Esau was rejected because he was destitute of faith — he sold his spiritual birthright for a bowl of food and grieved only the loss of material wealth, never his own sin.
Les Feldick teaches that Esau could not believe what God had said, and the promise of a Redeemer through Abraham's line meant nothing to him. He glibly traded his birthright for a single meal, and when Isaac had already blessed Jacob, Esau's tears were not repentance but an attempt to get Isaac to change his mind. Because the spoken blessing could not be reversed, and because Esau was faithless and immoral, he deserved neither the birthright nor the blessing.
Hebrews 12:16-17 — This is the key passage that directly ties Esau's rejection to his sale of the birthright and his failure to find repentance even with tears.
Genesis 25:32-34 — This passage records Esau's dismissive trading of his birthright for food, which demonstrates his lack of regard for spiritual things.
The writer of Hebrews presents Esau as the warning example of a profane person who 'for one morsel of meat sold his birthright.' Afterward, 'when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears' (Hebrews 12:16-17). In Genesis 25, Esau came in from the field faint and said, 'Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me?' He then sold his birthright to Jacob for bread and pottage of lentiles, 'and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: thus Esau despised his birthright' (Genesis 25:32-34). When Isaac discovered that Jacob had been blessed in his place, he trembled and said, 'yea, and he shall be blessed' (Genesis 27:33) — the blessing already spoken over Jacob stood.
Les Feldick teaches that Esau was 'a man destitute of faith,' and that this unbelief lay at the root of his rejection. When people are destitute of faith, he says, it affects their behavior, making them incapable perhaps of knowing right from wrong. Esau glibly gave up his spiritual birthright for a bowl of bean soup because what God had said about the coming of a Redeemer through Abraham's line meant nothing to him. Jacob, though a rascal, had enough concept of God's promise to be a man of faith; Esau could not. Les also clarifies the repentance mentioned in Hebrews 12:17. Esau was not seeking his own repentance — he had no faith and saw no need for it. Instead, he was trying to get Isaac to repent, to change his mind and say, 'sorry Jacob, I made a mistake, I'm going to give it to Esau after all.' Esau's tears were over losing the double portion of herds and flocks, not over the spiritual birthright or the line of the Messiah. According to what Les calls the Law of the Ancients, once the blessing was spoken, it was done — Isaac could not change the decree. Les concludes that Esau deserved nothing; he was not cheated or rooked, and on top of his unbelief he was an immoral man who married among the Hittites and Canaanites.
Les Feldick repeatedly points to Esau as 'a man destitute of faith.' He explains that Esau could not believe what God had said, and that God's promise of a Redeemer through Abraham meant nothing to him. This is why he could glibly surrender his spiritual birthright for a bowl of bean soup, and why, even afterward, he never understood why he had missed the blessing. Jacob, though called a rascal, could believe what God said and so be a man of faith.
Hebrews 12:17 says Esau 'found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.' Les Feldick clarifies that it was not Esau's own repentance he was seeking — he saw no need for it because he had no faith. Instead, he was trying to get Isaac to change his mind and reverse the blessing already given to Jacob. Isaac refused, and the blessing stood.
Esau, Les explains, cared nothing for the spiritual birthright or for Jacob being placed in the line of the Messiah. What upset him was the material side of the blessing — the double portion of the herds and flocks, and the wealth of his father Isaac. That is why he 'got all shook up' and sought the reversal with tears. But tears over lost wealth could not change what had already been spoken.
Les appeals to what he calls the 'Law of the Ancients': when the blessing was spoken, it was done. In his own words, 'Isaac could not change the decree that the blessing as well as the birthright now ended up in Jacob's domain.' Isaac himself trembled and declared, 'yea, and he shall be blessed.' Esau deserved nothing because he had no faith, so Les says we should not feel sorry for him.
Les compares Esau with Cain, saying it was 'the same situation as Cain.' Cain had the same opportunity as Abel but lacked faith and saw no importance in what God had said. In the same way, Esau did not see the significance of spiritual things. Both were marked by unbelief, and in both cases that unbelief led to rejection.
Isaac Refuses to Reverse the Already-Spoken Blessing
Les shows that when Esau became upset, Isaac trembled but refused to take the blessing back, saying 'and he shall be blessed' — the spoken blessing could not be reversed, and Esau's unbelief was at the root of the situation.
The Reason for Esau's Rejection — No Faith
Les directly answers why Esau was rejected: he could not believe what God had said. He was a man with no faith, and though he wept over missing the blessing, he never understood why he missed it.
Esau Sought to Change Isaac's Mind, Not Repent
Les interprets Hebrews 12:17 to mean Esau was not seeking his own repentance; he was trying to get Isaac to repent and change the blessing, but Isaac could not and would not.
Esau Deserved Nothing
Because Esau had no faith — and was also immoral — he deserved neither the birthright nor the blessing. The Law of the Ancients made the spoken blessing final, so Esau was not cheated.
Esau Cared Only for the Material Double Portion
Les explains that the spiritual birthright meant nothing to Esau; his distress came from losing the double portion of the herds and flocks — the material wealth.
The Blessing Meant Wealth, Not the Messiah
Esau cared about the double portion of his father's wealth but was indifferent to the fact that Jacob was now in the line of the Messiah.
The Birthright Sold for Bean Soup
Esau glibly traded his spiritual birthright for a bowl of bean soup while claiming he was about to die; Les says the real reason was that Esau had no faith.
What God Said Meant Nothing to Esau
The promise of a Redeemer through Abraham meant nothing to Esau, while Jacob, despite his flaws, could believe what God said. This is why Jacob received the birthright.
Hebrews 12:16-17: Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright. For ye know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.
This is the key New Testament passage that explains Esau's rejection in direct connection with his sale of the birthright.
Genesis 25:32: And Esau said, Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me?
Esau's dismissive words reveal his low regard for the spiritual birthright when he traded it for food.
Genesis 25:34: Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentiles; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: thus Esau despised his birthright.
The passage summarizes Esau's own contempt for the birthright, which is the basis for his later rejection.
Genesis 27:33: And Isaac trembled very exceedingly, and said, Who? where is he that hath taken venison, and brought it me, and I have eaten of all before thou camest, and have blessed him? yea, and he shall be blessed.
Isaac confirms that the blessing already spoken over Jacob cannot be undone, making Esau's tears futile.
Esau was rejected because he was destitute of faith. He sold his spiritual birthright for a single meal, showing that God's promises meant nothing to him, and when Isaac had already blessed Jacob, Esau wept only over the lost material inheritance — not over his sin or unbelief.
No. Les Feldick teaches that Esau had no faith and saw no need for repentance. His tears were an effort to get Isaac to change his mind and reverse the blessing, not a genuine turning from sin.
Because the spoken blessing was irrevocable according to the Law of the Ancients. Isaac trembled and said 'yea, and he shall be blessed.' Esau's tears were over the material double portion of wealth, not over spiritual things, and he had already despised his birthright.
No. Les Feldick says Esau deserved nothing because he had no faith; he was not cheated or rooked. On top of his unbelief, he was an immoral man who married among the Hittites and Canaanites.
Watch the Teaching: What Does the Bible Say About Deception? Jacob, Esau, and the Stolen Blessing.