God's revelation to Rebekah regarding the struggling twins was of two nations and two types of people. It means two kinds, two styles. It is indicating a rivalry is going to exist between these two, at least partly because they are so different from one another.
What does the Bible mean by "a skillful hunter, a man of the field"? As the story unfolds, it is very clear that there is a powerful black mark against Esau. Yet I have no doubt that, if you begin to study into this man a little bit more deeply, almost everybody's first impression between the two (Jacob and Esau)—they would choose Esau as their friend and companion, rather than Jacob. "Man of the field" describes him as a man of physical vigor. He was virile, an outdoorsman. Actually, the word gives the impression of a frontiersman. He was an explorer. He was a "Davy Crockett" type of individual. I think that we would find him to be frank, to be impulsive, to be even generous and chivalrous. But also, at the same time, he was careless and sensuous.
Jacob is described as "a mild man." Unlike Esau, it means that his temperament was virtually devoid of peaks and valleys. There were not any mountains there. There were not any "Grand Canyons." He was a pretty steady individual. So most modern translations translate that word quiet. Other scriptures also show Jacob to be a physically strong, robust person. But, at the same time, he was quiet, reflective, pastoral, even timid, steady going, orderly, and contemplative.
So the Bible shows a clear contrast of expressions of personality between Esau and Jacob. Jacob (rather than taking advantage of his physical strength in the same way that Esau does) was persevering and almost dogged in his tenacity. He preferred to use clever deceit and inventive strategies in achieving his ambitions.
Before we go on through the rest of this, I want to point out here that we see some indications of Esau’s and Jacob’s character, even before they are born. They are in there duking it out with each other. They are obviously causing a lot of turmoil for Rebekah. She always felt like she had an upset stomach or something. But she was really worried about this, so she asked God what was going. And He gave her the answer.
But, when they came out it was obvious that this one, the non-hairy one, had his hand on the heel of his brother like he was about to ready pull him right back in for being the first out. And they saw that. They named the first one “hairy,” and the second one they called, “heel catcher,” or “supplanter.” His name indicated deception. “This kid is going to get into all kinds of trouble, and first thing out, he is already trying to pull his brother down, trying to get what his brother had.” So they called him “deceitful, supplanter; the one who is always trying to get the upper hand, looking for the advantage in everything.”
It is interesting that when the description of these two men is given in verse 27, it basically said that Esau was a single-minded one-sided person. He loved to go out and hunt. He was a man of the field. He liked to be outdoors. But Jacob—it says here a “mild man,” which is a silly translation, because it means a complete man—he liked to go into the tent and read and study books; he liked to hunt too, and cook. He was a go-getter—a complete man. He did not narrow himself down in on one thing. He was one who knew what he wanted, and went out and got it.
Esau, it says, was a man of the field. Jesus speaks of the field as a picture of the world. So Esau was a man who loved the things of the world. He was worldly. He lived for the pleasures of life now.
It says that Jacob dwelt in tents. In Hebrews 11:9 it says that Abraham “by faith dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; for he waited for a city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.” So Jacob, along with Abraham and Isaac, had his eyes on an eternal dwelling place. Jacob believed the promise that God had given to Abraham, his grandfather.
These two were just complete opposites. One was hairy and one was smooth; one enjoyed the outdoors and the other liked to stay in tents. One seemed to have one particular driving force (he liked to hunt), and the other was a complete man, a well-rounded man who was able to keep several balls in the air. This is the meaning in the Hebrew when Jacob is described as a "mild man." He was not one to have a laser-like focus on one interest, but was a man of great talent in several areas.
What God is establishing here at this point is that these two boys are vastly different personalities. Esau loved the outdoors, hunting, and cooking; he was a guy's guy. But, Jacob, on the other hand, was no wimp; however, he preferred other pursuits. He liked the things that he could do in his tent. He was more well-rounded. He could do the books. He could raise sheep. He could do this, that, and the other thing. He was a man of many talents.
