(כט) וַיָּ֥זֶד יַעֲקֹ֖ב נָזִ֑יד וַיָּבֹ֥א עֵשָׂ֛ו מִן־הַשָּׂדֶ֖ה וְה֥וּא עָיֵֽף׃ (ל) וַיֹּ֨אמֶר עֵשָׂ֜ו אֶֽל־יַעֲקֹ֗ב הַלְעִיטֵ֤נִי נָא֙ מִן־הָאָדֹ֤ם הָאָדֹם֙ הַזֶּ֔ה כִּ֥י עָיֵ֖ף אָנֹ֑כִי עַל־כֵּ֥ן קָרָֽא־שְׁמ֖וֹ אֱדֽוֹם׃ (לא) וַיֹּ֖אמֶר יַעֲקֹ֑ב מִכְרָ֥ה כַיּ֛וֹם אֶת־בְּכֹֽרָתְךָ֖ לִֽי׃ (לב) וַיֹּ֣אמֶר עֵשָׂ֔ו הִנֵּ֛ה אָנֹכִ֥י הוֹלֵ֖ךְ לָמ֑וּת וְלָמָּה־זֶּ֥ה לִ֖י בְּכֹרָֽה׃ (לג) וַיֹּ֣אמֶר יַעֲקֹ֗ב הִשָּׁ֤בְעָה לִּי֙ כַּיּ֔וֹם וַיִּשָּׁבַ֖ע ל֑וֹ וַיִּמְכֹּ֥ר אֶת־בְּכֹרָת֖וֹ לְיַעֲקֹֽב׃ (לד) וְיַעֲקֹ֞ב נָתַ֣ן לְעֵשָׂ֗ו לֶ֚חֶם וּנְזִ֣יד עֲדָשִׁ֔ים וַיֹּ֣אכַל וַיֵּ֔שְׁתְּ וַיָּ֖קָם וַיֵּלַ֑ךְ וַיִּ֥בֶז עֵשָׂ֖ו אֶת־הַבְּכֹרָֽה׃
(29)And Jacob boiled a stew; and Esau came in from the field, and he was faint. (30)And Esau said to Jacob: "Feed me, please, some of this red, red stew; for I am faint." Therefore his name was called Edom. (31)And Jacob said: "Sell me, today, your birthright." (32)And Esau said: "Behold, I am going to die; and what use is this birthright to me?" (33)And Jacob said: ‘"Swear to me, first," and he swore to him; and he sold his birthright to Jacob. (34)And Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew; and he ate and drank, and he got up and went. And Esau despised his birthright.
ויבז עשו, הֵעִיד הַכָּתוּב עַל רִשְׁעוֹ שֶׁבִּזָּה עֲבוֹדָתוֹ שֶׁל מָקוֹם:
And Esau despised, the text testifies to his wickedness that he despised the service [or worship] of God.
ויבז עשו, לפי שלסוף נתחרט על כך, כדכתיב: "את בכורתי לקח," לכן הקדים כאן להודיע שטותו עתה בשביל אכילה ביזה את הבכורה, אבל לבסוף היה מתחרט.
And Esau despised, seeing that eventually Esau regretted having sold his birthright, as it is written, "He took my birthright," (Gen. 27:36) the Torah teaches here of his mistake now in order to eat he despised the birthright, but in the end he was remorseful.
ויבז, אפילו לאחר שאכל ושתה לא התחרט ובזה אותה בלבו:
And he despised, even after he had eaten and drunk he did not feel remorse, and he despised it [the birthright] in his heart.
4. Stephen Mitchell (1943- ), Genesis: A New Translation of the Classical Biblical Stories, p. 51
Now Rebecca was barren, and Isaac prayed to the Lord for her. And the Lord answered his prayer, and Rebecca conceived. And when it was time for her to give birth, twins came out of her womb. And the first one was red and hairy like a fur cloak; so they named him Esau, The Shaggy One. And then his brother came out, with one hand grasping Esau's heel; so they named him Jacob, Heel-Grasper.
And when the boys grew up, Esau became a skilled hunter, a man of the open country, and Jacob was a peaceful man who stayed near the tents. And Isaac loved Esau because he brought him venison to eat; but Rebecca loved Jacob.
One day, as Jacob was cooking a stew, Esau came back from hunting, and he was famished. And he said to Jacob, "Give me a heap of that red stuff: I'm famished."
And Jacob said, "First sell me your birthright."
And Esau said, "I am dying of hunger: what good is my birthright to me?"
And Jacob said, "Swear to me first." So he swore to him and sold him his birthright. Then Jacob gave Esau Bread and lentil stew; and he ate and drank, and got up and went away. That is how Esau showed how little he valued his birthright.
5. Professor Richard Elliott Friedman (1946- ), Commentary on the Torah, p. 88
25:27. Esau. Numerous attempts have been made to denigrate Esau in midrash and even in current biblical interpretation. It is not justified according to the text. The motive is understandable: Jacob's behavior in the matters of the birthright and the blessing is an embarrassment....The Torah itself neither denigrates Esau nor justifies Jacob.
6. Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artson (1959-) in "Today's Torah" from Ziegler School (11/29/2000)
Esau comes home after a day of hunting and he wants to eat. Meanwhile, Jacob has prepared a pot of lentil stew. Here, the man of action meets the man of forethought.
Acting on impulse, Esau demands to be fed. Responding with calculation, Jacob agrees to sell his stew in exchange for Esau's birthright. Living in the present, Esau sees no benefit in his birthright. After all, it doesn't satisfy his hunger, so his parting with his birthright represents no real loss.
Jacob, on the other hand, lives with one foot in the future. Less powerful than his burly brother, Jacob compensates by using his mind and weighing the consequences. He prefers to skip a meal if that means he will acquire the birthright of the covenant.