of Esebeon; which Helon and Esebeon were great lords among the
Canaanites: thereby taking upon himself the authority, and
pretending to have dominion over his own marriages, without so
much as asking the advice of his father; for had Isaac been the
arbitrator, he had not given him leave to marry thus, for he was
not pleased with contracting any alliance with the people of that
country; but not caring to be uneasy to his son by commanding him
to put away these wives, he resolved to be silent.

5. But when he was old, and could not see at all, he called Esau
to him, and told him, that besides his blindness, and the
disorder of his eyes, his very old age hindered him from his
worship of God [by sacrifice]; he bid him therefore to go out a
hunting, and when he had caught as much venison as he could, to
prepare him a supper (32) that after this he might make
supplication to God, to be to him a supporter and an assister
during the whole time of his life; saying, that it was uncertain
when he should die, and that he was desirous, by prayers for him,
to procure, beforehand, God to be merciful to him.

6. Accordingly, Esau went out a hunting. But Rebeka (33) thinking
it proper to have the supplication made for obtaining the favor
of God to Jacob, and that without the consent of Isaac, bid him
kill kids of the goats, and prepare a supper. So Jacob obeyed his
mother, according to all her instructions. Now when the supper
was got ready, he took a goat's skin, and put it about his arm,
that by reason of its hairy roughness, he might by his father be
believed to be Esau; for they being twins, and in all things else
alike, differed only in this thing. This was done out of his
fear, that before his father had made his supplications, he