When Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob, and sent him away to Padan-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;
When Esau saw ... - desirous to humour his parents, and if possible get the last will revoked, he became wise when too late (see Matthew 25:10), and hoped, by gratifying his parents in one thing, to atone for all his former delinquencies. But he only made bad worse; and though he did not marry a "wife of the daughters of Canaan." he married into a family which God had rejected; it showed a partial reformation, but no repentance, because he gave no proofs of abating his vindictive purposes against his brother, nor cherishing that pious spirit that would have gratified his father-he was like Micah (see Judges 17:13: see the note at Genesis 36:2).