John Calvin Commentary Genesis 28:6

"Now Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him away to Paddan-aram, to take him a wife from thence. And that as he blessed him he gave him a charge, saying, Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan." — Genesis 28:6 (ASV)

When Esau saw. A brief narration concerning Esau is inserted here, which is useful to know, because we learn from it that the wicked, though they exalt themselves against God and, in contempt of His grace, please themselves by obtaining their desires, are still not able to despise that grace altogether.

So now, Esau is filled with a desire for the blessing; not that he aspires to it sincerely and from his heart, but perceiving it to be something valuable, he is driven to seek it, though reluctantly. A further fault is that he does not seek it as he ought, for he devises a new and strange method of reconciling God and his father to himself; and therefore, all his diligence is unprofitable.

At the same time, he does not seem to be concerned about pleasing God, so long as he can propitiate his father. Above all, it was his duty to cast aside his profane disposition, his perverse ways, and his corrupt fleshly desires, and then to bear with meekness the chastisement inflicted upon him. For genuine repentance would have dictated this sentiment to him: “Since I have until now made myself unworthy of the birthright, my brother is deservedly preferred before me. Nothing, therefore, remains for me but to humble myself; and since I am deprived of the honor of being the head, let it be enough for me to be at least one of the members of the Church.” And certainly, it would have been more desirable for him to remain in some obscure corner of the Church than, as one cut off and torn away from the elect people, to shine with proud preeminence on earth.

He aims, however, at nothing of this kind but attempts, by I know not what deceptions, to appease his father in whatever way he can. Moses, in this example, depicts all hypocrites vividly. For as often as the judgment of God presses them, though they are wounded by the pain of their punishment, they still do not seek a true remedy. For, having aimed at offering only one kind of satisfaction, they entirely neglect a simple and real conversion; and even in the satisfaction offered, they only make a pretense.

Whereas Esau ought to have repented thoroughly, he only tried to correct the single fault of his marriage—and this, too, in a most absurd manner. Yet another defect follows, for while he retains the wives who were so hateful to his parents, he supposes he has discharged his duty by marrying a third.

But by this method, neither was the trouble of his parents alleviated, nor was his house cleansed from guilt. And now truly, from where does he marry his third wife? From the race of Ishmael, whom we know to have been degenerate himself, and whose posterity had departed from the pure worship of God.

A remarkable proof of this is discernible at the present day in the pretended and treacherous intermeddlers, who imagine they can admirably adjust religious differences by simply adorning their too-gross corruptions with attractive colors.

The actual state of things compels them to confess that the vile errors and abuses of Popery have so far prevailed as to make a Reformation absolutely necessary. But they are unwilling for the filth of this Camarine marsh to be stirred; they only desire to conceal its impurities, and even that they do by compulsion.

For they had previously called their abominations the sacred worship of God; but since these are now dragged to light by the word of God, they therefore resort to novel deceptions.

They flatter themselves, however, in vain, seeing they are condemned here by Moses in the person of Esau. Away, then, with their impure, pretended reformation, which is neither simple nor sincere!

Moreover, since it is a disease inherent in the human race to willingly attempt to deceive God by some fictitious pretext, let us know that we do nothing effectively until we tear up our sins by the roots and thoroughly devote ourselves to God.