Christian Standard Bible
Genesis 27:40
40You will live by your sword, and you will serve your brother. But when you rebel, you will break his yoke from your neck.
Genesis 27:40 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And by thy sword shalt thou live, and shalt serve thy brother; and it shall come to pass when thou shalt have the dominion, that thou shalt break his yoke from off thy neck.
- New International Version (NIV)You will live by the sword and you will serve your brother. But when you grow restless, you will throw his yoke from off your neck.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)By your sword you shall live, and you shall serve your brother; but when you grow restless you shall break his yoke from your neck."
- New King James Version (NKJV)By your sword you shall live, And you shall serve your brother; And it shall come to pass, when you become restless, That you shall break his yoke from your neck.”
Context of Genesis 27:40
38Esau said to his father, “Do you have only one blessing, my father? Bless me too, my father!” And Esau wept loudly. 39His father Isaac answered him, Look, your dwelling place will be away from the richness of the land, away from the dew of the sky above. You will live by your sword, and you will serve your brother. But when you rebel, you will break his yoke from your neck. 41Esau held a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing his father had given him. And Esau determined in his heart, “The days of mourning for my father are approaching; then I will kill my brother Jacob.” 42When the words of her older son Esau were reported to Rebekah, she summoned her younger son Jacob and said to him, “Listen, your brother Esau is consoling himself by planning to kill you.
Read all of Genesis 27Genesis 27:40 word by word
וְעַל־חַרְבְּךָ֣ תִֽחְיֶ֔ה וְאֶת־אָחִ֖יךָ תַּעֲבֹ֑ד וְהָיָה֙ כַּאֲשֶׁ֣ר תָּרִ֔יד וּפָרַקְתָּ֥ עֻלּ֖וֹ מֵעַ֥ל צַוָּארֶֽךָ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And by thy swordחֶ֫רֶבchereb · swordH2719
- shalt thou liveחָיָהchâyâh · to liveH2421
- and shalt serveעָבַד‛âbad · to serveH5647
- thy brotherאָח'âch · brother: male-siblingH251
- and it shall come to pass when thou shalt have the dominionרוּדrûd · to roamH7300
- that thou shalt breakפָּרַקpâraq · to tearH6561
- his yokeעֹל‛ôl ‛ôl · yokeH5923
- from off thy neckצַוָּארtsavvâ'r tsavvâr tsavvârôn tsavvâ'râh · neckH6677
Cross-references for Genesis 27:40
- Genesis 32:6When the messengers returned to Jacob, they said, “We went to your brother Esau; he is coming to meet you — and he has four hundred men with him.”
- Matthew 10:34Don’t assume that I came to bring peace on the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.
- Genesis 25:23And the Lord said to her: Two nations are in your womb; two peoples will come from you and be separated. One people will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger.
- 2 Samuel 8:14He placed garrisons throughout Edom, and all the Edomites were subject to David. The Lord made David victorious wherever he went.
- 1 Kings 11:15Earlier, when David was in Edom, Joab, the commander of the army, had gone to bury the dead and had struck down every male in Edom.
- 2 Kings 14:7Amaziah killed ten thousand Edomites in Salt Valley. He took Sela in battle and called it Joktheel, which is still its name today.
- 1 Chronicles 18:11King David also dedicated these to the Lord, along with the silver and gold he had carried off from all the nations — from Edom, Moab, the Ammonites, the Philistines, and the Amalekites.
- 2 Chronicles 25:11Amaziah strengthened his position and led his people to the Salt Valley. He struck down ten thousand Seirites,
- Psalms 60:8Moab is my washbasin. I throw my sandal on Edom; I shout in triumph over Philistia.”
- Obadiah 1:17But there will be a deliverance on Mount Zion, and it will be holy; the house of Jacob will dispossess those who dispossessed them.
- 2 Kings 8:20During Jehoram’s reign, Edom rebelled against Judah’s control and appointed their own king.
- 2 Chronicles 21:8During Jehoram’s reign, Edom rebelled against Judah’s control and appointed their own king.
- 2 Chronicles 28:17The Edomites came again, attacked Judah, and took captives.
Commentaries on Genesis 27:40
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 40By thy sword shalt thou live - This does not absolutely mean that the Edomites should have constant wars; but that they should be of a fierce and warlike disposition, gaining their sustenance by hunting, and by predatory excursions upon the possessions of others. Bishop Newton speaks on this subject with his usual good sense and judgment: "The elder branch, it is here foretold, should delight more in war and violence, but yet should be subdued by the…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-46Verses 1-46 - Isaac Blessing His Sons The life of Isaac falls into three periods. During the first seventy-five years he is contemporary with his father. For sixty-one years more his son Jacob remains under the paternal roof. The remaining forty-four years are passed in the retirement of old age. The chapter before us narrates the last solemn acts of the middle period of his life. Genesis 27:1-4 Isaac was old. - Joseph was in his thirtieth year when he…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 30-40Verses 30-40 When Esau understood that Jacob had got the blessing, he cried with a great and exceeding bitter cry. The day is coming, when those that now make light of the blessings of the covenant, and sell their title to spiritual blessings for that which is of no value, will, in vain, ask urgently for them. Isaac, when made sensible of the deceit practised on him, trembled exceedingly. Those who follow the choice of their own affections, rather than…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 39-40All that remained for Esau was a promise of hardship and struggle (compare 3:17–19; 16:11–12).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 39-4039-40. Behold, thy dwelling shall be the fatness of the earth--The first part is a promise of temporal prosperity, made in the same terms as Jacob's [Ge 27:28]--the second part refers to the roving life of hunting freebooters, which he and his descendants should lead. Though Esau was not personally subject to his brother, his posterity were tributary to the Israelites, till the reign of Joram when they revolted and established a kingdom of their own (2Ki…Read the comment
Topics related to Genesis 27:40
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Genesis 27
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
Christian Standard Bible — © 2017 Holman Bible Publishers
Commentaries