SEV Biblia, Chapter 12:16
Que ninguno sea fornicario o profano, como Esa, que por una vianda vendi su primogenitura.
Clarke's Bible Commentary - Hebrew 12:16
Verse 16. Lest there be any fornicator] Any licentious person who would turn the Gospel of the grace of God into lasciviousness. Or profane person, as Esau] It is not intimated that Esau was a fornicator; and the disjunctive h, or, separates the profane person from the fornicator.
And Esau is here termed profane, because he so far disregarded the spiritual advantages connected with his rights of primogeniture, that he alienated the whole for a single mess of pottage. See the note on "Gen. xxv. 34". The word bebhlov, which we translate profane, is compounded of be, which in composition has a negative signification, and bhlov, the threshold of a temple or sacred edifice; and was applied to those who were not initiated into the sacred mysteries, or who were despisers of sacred things, and consequently were to be denied admittance to the temple, and were not permitted to assist at holy rites. Indeed, among the Greeks bebhlov signified any thing or person which was not consecrated to the gods. Hence, in the opening of their worship, they were accustomed to proclaim, Procul, O procul, este profani! VIRG.
"Hence! O hence! ye profane." And, Odi profanum vulgus, et arceo. HOR.
"I abominate the profane vulgar, and drive them from the temple." The Latin profanus, from which we have our word, is compounded of procul a fano, "far from the temple," properly an irreligious man.
Sold his birthright.] The first-born, in patriarchal times, 1. Had a right to the priesthood, Exodus 22: 29. 2. And a double portion of all the father's possessions, Deut. xxi. 17. 3. And was lord over his brethren, Gen. xxvii. 29, 37; xlix. 3. 4. And in the family of Abraham the first-born was the very source whence the Messiah as the Redeemer of the world, and the Church of God, were to spring. Farther, 5. The first-born had the right of conveying especial blessings and privileges when he came to die. See the case of Isaac and his two sons, Jacob and Esau, in the history to which the apostle alludes, Genesis 27; and that of Jacob and his twelve sons, Genesis 49; In short, the rights of primogeniture were among the most noble, honourable, and spiritual in the ancient world.
John Gill's Bible Commentary
Ver. 16. Lest there be any fornicator or profane person , etc..] The first of these is guilty of a sin against the second table of the law, as well as against his own body; and which is opposed to the holiness the apostle had before exhorted to; such who are guilty of it, are not to be continued in the communion of the church; and it is a sin, which, lived in not repented of, excludes from the kingdom of heaven: the latter is one who is a transgressor of the first table of the law; who is an idolater, a swearer, a despiser of public worship and ordinances, and who behaves irreverently in divine service, and mocks at the future state, as Esau; to whom both these characters seem to belong: and this agrees with what the Jews say concerning him: they have a tradition f286 , that he committed five transgressions on the day he came out of the field weary. He committed idolatry: he shed innocent blood; and lay with a virgin betrothed; and denied the life of the world to come (or a future state); and despised his birthright.
It is elsewhere a little differently expressed. Esau, the wicked, committed five transgressions on that day: he lay with a virgin betrothed; and killed a person; and denied the resurrection of the dead; and denied the root, or foundation, (i.e. that there is a God,) and despised his birthright; and besides, he desired his father's death, and sought to slay his brother.
It is common for them to say of him, that he was an ungodly man; and particularly, that he was a murderer, a robber, Pawnw , and an adulterer f288 ; and that he has no part in the world to come f289 : who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright; the account of which is in ( Genesis 25:29-34) this includes all the privileges which he had a right unto by being the firstborn; as a peculiar blessing from his father; a double portion of goods; and dominion over his brethren: and it is commonly said by the Jews, that the priesthood belonged to the firstborn, before the Levitical dispensation; and that for this reason, Jacob coveted the birthright f290 , Esau being a wicked man, and unfit for it. The birthright was reckoned sacred; it was typical of the primogeniture of Christ; of the adoption of saints, and of the heavenly inheritance belonging thereunto; all which were despised by Esau: and so the Jewish paraphrases interpret the contempt of his birthright, a despising of his part in the world to come, and a denial of the resurrection of the dead: and his contempt of it was shown in his selling it; and this was aggravated by his selling it for one morsel of meat; which was bread, and pottage of lentiles, ( Genesis 25:34). The Jewish writers speak of this bargain and sale much in the same language as the apostle here does; they say of him, this is the man that sold his birthright hl rkk d[b , for a morsel of bread; and apply to him the passage in ( Proverbs 28:21) for a piece of bread that man will transgress.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 12-17 - A burden of affliction is apt to make the Christian's hands hang down and his knees grow feeble, to dispirit him and discourage him; but against this he must strive, that he may better run his spiritual rac and course. Faith and patience enable believers to follow peace an holiness, as a man follows his calling constantly, diligently, and with pleasure. Peace with men, of all sects and parties, will be favourabl to our pursuit of holiness. But peace and holiness go together; ther can be not right peace without holiness. Where persons fail of havin the true grace of God, corruption will prevail and break forth; bewar lest any unmortified lust in the heart, which seems to be dead, shoul spring up, to trouble and disturb the whole body. Falling away from Christ is the fruit of preferring the delights of the flesh, to the blessing of God, and the heavenly inheritance, as Esau did. But sinner will not always have such mean thoughts of the Divine blessing an inheritance as they now have. It agrees with the profane man' disposition, to desire the blessing, yet to despise the means whereb the blessing is to be gained. But God will neither sever the means from the blessing, nor join the blessing with the satisfying of man's lusts God's mercy and blessing were never sought carefully and not obtained.
Greek Textus Receptus
μη 3361 τις 5100 πορνος 4205 η 2228 βεβηλος 952 ως 5613 ησαυ 2269 ος 3739 αντι 473 βρωσεως 1035 μιας 1520 απεδοτο 591 5639 τα 3588 πρωτοτοκια 4415 αυτου 846
Vincent's NT Word Studies
16. Fornicator (pornov). In the literal sense, as always in N.T. Profane person (bebhlov). See on 1 Tim. i. 9.
As Esau. Only the epithet profane is applied to Esau, not fornicator. For one morsel of meat (anti brwsewv miav). Brwsiv, lit. the act of eating, as 1 Cor. viii. 4, Rom. xiv. 17: "one eating of meat." Sometimes corrosion, as Matt. vi. 19. Sometimes of that which is eaten, John vi. 27, 55.
Sold (apedeto). The word occurs in the narrative of Gen. xxv. 31, 33, LXX. In N.T. often of discharging an obligation; paying back. To sell, Acts v. 8; vii. 9.
His birthright (ta prwtotokia). N.T.o , o Class. In this form only in the later Greek translations of the O.T. Prwtotokeion, a very few times, almost all in this narrative.
