Genesis 27:41-42

27:41 So Esau hated ¹  Jacob because of the blessing his father had given to his brother. ²  Esau said privately, ³  “The time ⁴  of mourning for my father is near; then I will kill ⁵  my brother Jacob!”

27:42 When Rebekah heard what her older son Esau had said, ⁶  she quickly summoned ⁷  her younger son Jacob and told him, “Look, your brother Esau is planning to get revenge by killing you. ⁸ 

[27:41]  ¹ tn Or “bore a grudge against” (cf. NAB, NASB, NIV). The Hebrew verb שָׂטַם (satam) describes persistent hatred.

[27:41]  ² tn Heb “because of the blessing which his father blessed him.”

[27:41]  ³ tn Heb “said in his heart.” The expression may mean “said to himself.” Even if this is the case, v. 42 makes it clear that he must have shared his intentions with someone, because the news reached Rebekah.

[27:41]  ⁴ tn Heb “days.”

[27:41]  ⁵ tn The cohortative here expresses Esau’s determined resolve to kill Jacob.

[27:42]  ⁶ tn Heb “and the words of Esau her older son were told to Rebekah.”

[27:42]  ⁷ tn Heb “she sent and called for.”

[27:42]  ⁸ tn Heb “is consoling himself with respect to you to kill you.” The only way Esau had of dealing with his anger at the moment was to plan to kill his brother after the death of Isaac.