And he came near, and kissed him: and he smelled the smell of his raiment, and blessed him, and said, See, the smell of my son [is] as the smell of a field which the LORD hath blessed:
27. he smelled ] The scent of the “field” forms the starting-point of the Oracle, or Song, of Blessing. The blessing is concerned not with the personal destiny of Jacob, but with the national history of the Israelite people. Cf. the blessing of Jacob on Joseph (Gen 49:22 ff.). What “the smell of his raiment” had to do with “the goodly raiment” of Gen 27:15, is not explained.
as the smell of a field ] Cf. Hos 14:6, “and his smell as Lebanon.” Isaac’s words refer to the “field” of Gen 25:27, Gen 27:5, the country of the huntsman. Before Isaac’s mind rises up the picture of a rich and fruitful land.
which the Lord hath blessed ] i.e. by fertility. The versions prefix an adjective denoting “plenty” before the word “field.” LXX ; Lat. agri pleni.
Isaac’s utterance is in poetical form. The two clauses in this verse serve as a prelude to the blessing of Gen 27:28-29.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Verse 27. The smell of my son is as the smell of a field] The smell of these garments, the goodly raiment which had been laid up in the house, was probably occasioned by some aromatic herbs, which we may naturally suppose were laid up with the clothes; a custom which prevails in many countries to the present day. Thyme, lavender, &c., are often deposited in wardrobes, to communicate an agreeable scent, and under the supposition that the moths are thereby prevented from fretting the garments. I have often seen the leaves of aromatic plants, and sometimes whole sprigs, put in eastern MSS., to communicate a pleasant smell, and to prevent the worms from destroying them. Persons going from Europe to the East Indies put pieces of Russia leather among their clothes for the same purpose. Such a smell would lead Isaac’s recollection to the fields where aromatic plants grew in abundance, and where he had often been regaled by the scent.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Which is full of odoriferous herbs, and flowers, and fruits, and spices, with some of which Esaus garments might be perfumed in the chest wherein they were laid, as the manner now is. These garments smell not of the sheepcots and stables, as Jacobs do, but of the fields, in which Esau is conversant.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
27. the smell of my son is as of afieldThe aromatic odors of the Syrian fields and meadows,often impart a strong fragrance to the person and clothes, as hasbeen noticed by many travellers.
Ge27:28-46. THEBLESSING.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And he came near, and kissed him,…. Jacob came near and kissed Isaac his father:
and he smelled the smell of his raiment; which being not like the smell of a sheep coat, but of a field, might give him more full satisfaction that it was truly Esau:
and he blessed him; with his patriarchal and prophetic blessing, which here begins:
and said, see, the smell of my son [is] as the smell of a field which the Lord hath blessed; like a field fall of fragrant herbs, flowers, and spices, watered with the dews and rain of heaven, and so made fruitful, which emits a most, delightful odour; this may respect the scent of Esau’s clothes, now on Jacob’s back, which they received from the fields, which Esau continually frequented; or rather from the odoriferous herbs and fruits which were put among them in the chest, in which Rebekah had laid them up; and it may be, that whereas the goatskins on his hands and neck would be apt to send forth a rank and disagreeable smell, these might be so scented by Rebekah as to prevent that. Some render these words, “see the smell of my son, whom the Lord hath blessed w, as the smell of a field”; and so Isaac pronounces him blessed of the Lord, as well as by himself; the sense is the same: as to the smell many interpreters consider this as a type and figure of the acceptance of believers with God, being clothed with the goodly, excellent, and desirable garment of the righteousness of Christ their elder brother, even of their persons, services, and sacrifices; which is indeed truly spiritual and evangelical; but is liable to this objection, that it makes profane Esau a type of Christ. I see not that anything can well be objected to the application of this son of Isaac’s to the Messiah himself, whom he may have a special regard unto in this prophetic blessing, reading the words, “the smell of my son [shall be] as the smell of a field”: or “my son, whom the Lord hath blessed”, and came before with all the blessings of goodness, and in whom all nations shall be blessed, shall be “as the smell of a field”; all whose garments smell of myrrh, aloes, and cassia, Ps 45:8, even Isaac’s principal son, that should be of his seed, of whom Jacob his present son was a type, and who was to spring from him.
w So Junius, Tremellius, Gesner. & Walther. apud Calov.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
27. See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field. The allegory of Ambrose on this passage is not displeasing to me. Jacob, the younger brother, is blessed under the person of the elder; the garments which were borrowed from his brother breathe an odour grateful and pleasant to his father. In the same manner we are blessed, as Ambrose teaches, when, in the name of Christ, we enter the presence of our Heavenly Father: we receive from him the robe of righteousness, which, by its odour, procures his favor; in short, we are thus blessed when we are put in his place. But Isaac seems here to desire and implore nothing for his son but what is earthly; for this is the substance of his words, that it might be well with his son in the world, that he might gather together the abundant produce of the earth, that he might enjoy great peace, and shine in honor above others. There is no mention of the heavenly kingdom; and hence it has arisen, that men without learning, and but little exercised in true piety, have imagined that these holy fathers were blessed by the Lord only in respect to this frail and transitory life. But it appears from many passages to have been far otherwise: and as to the fact that Isaac here confines himself to the earthly favors of God, the explanation is easy; for the Lord did not formerly set the hope of the future inheritance plainly before the eyes of the fathers, (as he now calls and raises us directly towards heaven,) but he led them as by a circuitous course. Thus he appointed the land of Canaan as a mirror and pledge to them of the celestial inheritance. In all his acts of kindness he gave them tokens of his paternal favor, not indeed for the purpose of making them content with present good, so that they should neglect heaven, or should follow a merely empty shadow, as some foolishly suppose; but that, being aided by such helps, according to the time in which they lived, they might by degrees rise towards heaven; for since Christ, the first-fruits of those who rise again, and the author of the eternal and incorruptible life, had not yet been manifested, his spiritual kingdom was, in this way, shadowed forth under figures only, until the fullness of the time should come; and as all the promises of God were involved, and in a sense clothed in these symbols, so the faith of the holy fathers observed the same measure, and made its advances heavenwards by means of these earthly rudiments. Therefore, although Isaac makes the temporal favors of God prominent, nothing is further from his mind than to confine the hope of his son to this world; he would raise him to the same elevation to which he himself aspired. Some proof of this may be drawn from his own words; for this is the principal point, that he assigns him the dominion over the nations. But whence the hope of such a dignity, unless he had been persuaded that his race had been elected by the Lord, and, indeed, with this stipulation, that the right of the kingdom should remain with one son only? Meanwhile, let it suffice to adhere to this principle, that the holy man, when he implores a prosperous course of life for his son, wishes that God, in whose paternal favor stands our solid and eternal happiness, may be propitious to him.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(27) As the smell of a field.From the abundance of aromatic plants, the pastures of Palestine are peculiarly fragrant; but Isaac, deceived by the scent of Esaus own garments, intended probably to contrast the pure sweetness of one whose life was spent in the open field with the less pleasant odour which Jacob would bring with him from the cattle-shed.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
27. Kissed him With something of the nature of a Judas kiss . “But it is altogether a mistake to suppose, with Tuch, that Isaac demanded a kiss, in order thereby to distinguish the shepherd, who would smell of the flock, from the huntsman, who would smell of the field . After Isaac had partaken of the meal he has given up all distrust . The kiss is only the expression of paternal love, excited by having partaken of the savoury dish; it is the acme of his now overflowing emotions and the transition to the blessing.” Kurtz.
The smell of his raiment “Many parts of Arabia and Palestine exhale a most delicious odour. Herod., 3:113. After a refreshing rain especially, the air is perfumed with a fragrance inexpressibly sweet, (Plin., 17:5;) and the soil, furrowed by the ploughshare, emits often the balmy treasures hidden in its depths. Thus the garments of Esau, the man of the field, who roamed through hill and valley, were redolent of the scent of aromatic herbs; they called up in Isaac’s mind the pictures of freshness, health, and abundance; his spirit, moved and struck, assumed a prophetic elevation; and he began the blessing.” Kalisch. We render Isaac’s words as follows:
See, the odour of my son,
Like the odour of a field
Which Jehovah has blessed And the God shall give to thee
Of the dew of the heavens,
And of the fatness of the land,
And abundance of grain and sweet wine
Nations shall serve thee,
And peoples bow down to thee
Be lord to thy brethren,
And the sons of thy mother shall bow down to thee
They that curse thee shall be cursed;
And they that bless thee shall be blessed
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Gen 27:27. He smelled the smell, &c. It is thought to have been the custom to scent their richer garments with odoriferous flowers and other perfumes, with which they could easily be supplied from Arabia, famed for aromatic herbs: though perhaps the common flowers and odoriferous herbs of the country were most in use: and in these it is not improbable those garments (the sacerdotal, as we suppose) were kept. Isaac, no stranger to the smell of them, thence concluded that they belonged to his son Esau; and from this circumstance of their odour, he takes occasion to begin his benediction. By See, the smell, &c. some suppose the old patriarch to express, that the smell of his son’s garments was as grateful and pleasing as that of a field, which the Lord hath blessed; that is, hath made fertile in all useful produce. See Heb 6:7. While others again suppose that he asserts, See, the smell is, &c. i.e.. behold, the odour of my son’s apparel resembles that of a field blest with fertility by the Lord, a field full of flowers and odoriferous herbs. By the word full, I refer to male, which is found in the Samaritan, &c. and is much defended by Houbigant.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Gen 27:27 And he came near, and kissed him: and he smelled the smell of his raiment, and blessed him, and said, See, the smell of my son [is] as the smell of a field which the LORD hath blessed:
Ver. 27. As the smell of a field. ] Compare Son 2:13 ; Son 4:12-14 . Aristotle a writes of a parcel of ground in Sicily that sendeth such a strong smell of fragrant flowers to all the fields and pasturages thereabouts, that no hound can hunt there, the scent is so confounded by the sweet smell of those flowers. Labour we so to resent heavenly sweetnesses, so to savour the things above, that we may have no mind to hunt after earthly vanities, &c. Alexander’s body is said to be of such an exact constitution, that it gave a sweet scent where it went. Christ, the true body, smells so sweet to all heavenly eagles, that, being now lifted up, he draws them after him. Mat 24:28 Joh 12:32
a Arist. Lib. de Mirab. Auscult.
blessed: Heb 11:20
the smell of a field: A field where aromatic plants, flowers, fruits, and spices grew in abundance, with which these garments – see note on Gen 27:15 of Esau might probably have been perfumed by being laid up with them. Son 2:13, Son 4:11-14, Son 7:12, Son 7:13, Hos 14:6, Hos 14:7
which: Gen 26:12, Heb 6:7
Reciprocal: Gen 27:4 – that my Gen 28:1 – blessed Gen 48:10 – kissed Gen 49:26 – have prevailed Num 6:23 – General Deu 33:1 – the blessing Rth 1:9 – she kissed 1Sa 2:20 – blessed Son 1:2 – him Mal 1:2 – yet I
Gen 27:27. He smelled the smell of his raiment Probably scented with odoriferous flowers and other perfumes, with which they could easily be supplied from Arabia, famed for aromatic herbs. The smell of my son is as the smell of a field The grateful odour of my sons apparel resembles that of a field which God hath adorned with a variety of fruits and flowers, and this I consider as a token and presage that he and his posterity shall be blessed with all sorts of blessings, and become blessings to others.
Three things Jacob is here blessed with, 1st, Plenty, (Gen 27:28,) heaven and earth concurring to make him rich. 2d, Power, (Gen 27:29,) particularly dominion over his brethren, namely, Esau and his posterity. 3d, Prevalency with God, and a great interest in heaven, Cursed be every one that curseth thee Let God be a friend to all thy friends, and an enemy to all thine enemies. Now, certainly, more is comprised in this blessing than appears at first; it must amount to an entail of the promise of the Messiah: that was, in the patriarchal dialect, the blessing; something spiritual, doubtless, is included in it. First, That from him should come the Messiah, that should have a sovereign dominion on earth, See Num 24:19, Out of Jacob shall come he that shall have dominion, the star and sceptre, Gen 27:17.
Jacobs dominion over Esau was to be only typical of this, Gen 49:10. Secondly, That from him should come the Church, that should be particularly owned and favoured by Heaven. It was part of the blessing of Abraham when he was first called to be the father of the faithful, Gen 12:3, I will bless them that bless thee; therefore, when Isaac afterward confirmed the blessing to Jacob, he called it, the blessing of Abraham, Gen 28:4.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments