According to the Book of Genesis of the Hebrew Bible, Esau (Hebrew, Standard Hebrew Esav, Tiberian Hebrew ; ) was the fraternal twin brother of Jacob (whom God renamed Israel)—the patriarch and founder of the Israelites.Metzger & Coogan (1993). Oxford Companion to the Bible, pp. 191–2. Esau and Jacob were the sons of Isaac and Rebekah, and the grandsons of Abraham and Sarah. Esau was born first and when Jacob was born, he held onto Esau's heel . Isaac was sixty years old when they w… (More on Esau)