Jacob Sent to Laban
28:1 Then Isaac called Jacob and blessed him and directed him, “You must not take a wife from the Canaanite women. 2 Arise, go to Paddan-aram to the house of Bethuel your mother’s father, and take as your wife from there one of the daughters of Laban your mother’s brother. 3 God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and multiply you, that you may become a company of peoples. 4 May he give the blessing of Abraham to you and to your offspring with you, that you may take possession of the land of your sojournings that God gave to Abraham!” 5 Thus Isaac sent Jacob away. And he went to Paddan-aram, to Laban, the son of Bethuel the Aramean, the brother of Rebekah, Jacob’s and Esau’s mother.
Esau Marries an Ishmaelite
6 Now Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him away to Paddan-aram to take a wife from there, and that as he blessed him he directed him, “You must not take a wife from the Canaanite women,” 7 and that Jacob had obeyed his father and his mother and gone to Paddan-aram. 8 So when Esau saw that the Canaanite women did not please Isaac his father, 9 Esau went to Ishmael and took as his wife, besides the wives he had, Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham’s son, the sister of Nebaioth.
Jacob’s Dream
10 Jacob left Beersheba and went toward Haran. 11 And he came to a certain place and stayed there that night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place to sleep. 12 And he dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it! 13 And behold, the Lord stood above it and said, “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. 14 Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. 15 Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” 16 Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.” 17 And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.”
18 So early in the morning Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it. 19 He called the name of that place Bethel, but the name of the city was Luz at the first. 20 Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat and clothing to wear, 21 so that I come again to my father’s house in peace, then the Lord shall be my God, 22 and this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God’s house. And of all that you give me I will give a full tenth to you.” (ESV)
Gen 28:20-22 Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear so that I return safely to my father’s house, then the LORD will be my God and this stone that I have set up as a pillar will be God’s house, and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth.”
Sounds like Jacob, who will become Israel, has a conditional vow to God: “If You do this, I’ll do that…” God had already promised Jacob’s grandfather, Abraham, and so was Jacob just responding to what God had already done? Regardless, God wants our whole heart to trust Him and for us to turn from self-guidance to His ways withuot condition.
Lord, please forgive me today for when I leaned on my own understanding and make my path Your path today because I trust You.
15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
What a great verse! This is so encouraging! God is with us wherever we go. He can see, hear, and know, all things at once, so of course He can be with us wherever we go. He said won’t leave till He has finished what He started with Jacob. Jacob knew that he could trust God to keep His promise. God will do the same with us today. God has a plan for each and every one of us here. We have to trust that He’ll make sure that plan happens by walking beside us. He’s there right beside us, in good times and bad times. He won’t leave when the going gets tough. Whenever we need help, God’s right there! He’s not going to leave you, no matter what. He won’t go back on His promises. That’s a fact. We can trust that He is right beside us watching our backs and He is there to help us and make sure His plan for our lives is carried out.
20 Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear
21 so that I return safely to my father’s house, then the LORD will be my God
22 and this stone that I have set up as a pillar will be God’s house, and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth.”
This is a real act of faith on Jacob’s part – putting your trust in the Lord, and trusting that He will watch over you as you do His work. There’s nothing more fulfilling than serving the Lord!
16 When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” 17 He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.” 18 Early the next morning Jacob took the stone he had placed under his head and set it up as a pillar and poured oil on top of it.
Jacob’s response to God coming to him in a dream was immediate action to thank God for what He had done. Just as Abraham got up “early the next morning” when he was told to sacrifice Isaac, verse 18 says that Jacob awoke “early the next morning” to make a pillar to the LORD. Is this how we respond to God’s goodness to us? Do we immediately spend time in prayer to thank God for His gracious answer, or do we merely say a quick “thanks” and get on to our next request? My prayer today is that I have an immediate response to God’s goodness in my life and fall to my knees in prayer to let Him know how much I am blessed by having a personal relationship with Him.
15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
Just like God promised to walk beside Jacob and fulfill His plans and purposes within Him, He does the same for us as Max talked about above. God is not in the business of not keeping His promises, or being surprised by circumstances in our lives, or changing His mind. God is immutable which means HE CANNOT CHANGE. He says something and then it is done. He fulfills His word. His yes is always yes and his no is always no. Romans 8:28 says that “God works all things together for the good of those who love Him and have been called according to His purpose.” That means that for the Christian God promises to work out everything in our lives (the good, the bad, the righteous choices and the sinful ones) for good…He uses it all. How encouraging to know that we have a God that carries us through until the end!
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8 Esau then realized how displeasing the Canaanite women were to his father Isaac;
9 so he went to Ishmael and married Mahalath, the sister of Nebaioth and daughter of Ishmael son of Abraham, in addition to the wives he already had.
Esau, angry at his father for blessing Jacob instead of him, does this terrible thing by marrying foreign women who worshiped other gods. This is a sad, but common reaction to not being treated how we want. Taking things into our own hands to try to make someone we’re mad at “pay” for what they’ve done.
We are instructed to act completely opposite from Esau in Romans 12:19 “Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,”says the Lord.”
Great comment Christa! Not only is Esau trying to get back at Isaac, but he is not listening to his wisdom. If our parents tell us to stay away from someone because they think that they are bad company (1 Corinthians 15:33) then we definitely need to listen. It is interesting how many times in Genesis we have seen this already. When Abraham and Isaac were around people they didn’t trust they lied. When Lot was around wicked people it brought his family down. Now Isaac and Rebekah are trying to keep their two boys away from “bad company” and one of the doesn’t listen on purpose. We definitely need to consider who our friends are and the impact they are having on us. Let’s surround ourselves with God’s people who will encourage us towards him!
15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
Just as God is with Jacob, He is also going to be with us! I was also going to use that verse the Vanessa used, Romans 8:28 and just knowing that I can be right in the sight of God because of Christ that all things are going to work out for the good, even though we might not want it to happen the way we want it too, it’s God’s purpose and it’s going to be a better result.
15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
What a great promise! God is always with His people. He never breaks His promises. Whatever we are going through, we should trust that God is with us, and He is in control.
13 There above it stood the LORD, and he said: “I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying.
i think that it is so cool how the Lord keeps His promises. he tells jacob what He told Abraham and Isaac before him; that is the promise that his descendants will be many nation. and of course, Jacob did have many sons, just as God promised. the Lord always fufills all of His promises, and He has yet to fufill them all. we need to be ready for His ultimate promise, the return of Christ! Maranatha!
13 There above it stood the LORD, and he said: “I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying.
God promised Abraham, Issac, and Jacob that their offspring would become a nation. He fortold that their descendants would spread across the world and would spread to every end of the earth. Jacob praised God for who He was and God in return kept him safe and blessed him with many wonderous things. We should praise God too for all the things He has blessed ud with.
12 He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.
13 There above it stood the LORD, and he said: “I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying.
Sounds like the best dream you could ever have. How awesome will that day be seeing the gates of Heaven open to us! Seeing the Lord our God and falling facedown before Him! and it will be for eternity, having no problems, no tears, no pain but pure rejoicing with Jesus Christ! We need to be praying MARANATHA!!!!! and tell others the Gospel and what God has done for us. We cant keep the gift of salvation a secret, we need to get it out there.
20 Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear
21 so that I return safely to my father’s house, then the LORD will be my God
22 and this stone that I have set up as a pillar will be God’s house, and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth.”
Jacob doesn’t have much faith at this point. He says basically, “if God does everything I want him to, then he’ll be my God.” That’s pretty much opposite of how Abraham was. God told him to sacrifice his son and he did it without even questioning him. It’s cool though, to see how Jacob changes over time from calling God, “the God of my fathers,” to finally trusting him. That’s how we usually are unfortunately. But hopefully, we are growing to have more and more faith in our faithful God as we obey him.
7 …Jacob had obeyed his father and mother and had gone to Paddan Aram.
I see such a clear distinction between Jacob and Esau. Jacob had always found favor with God while Esau goes out and marries women who his parents did not approve of. Not only is he unequally yoked but he also has disobeyed his parents. Jacob on the other hand obeys his parents and waits for God’s timing (in the next chapter) to find his wife. We all need to obey our parents with the same honor and respect that Jacob has!
15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
This verse is a very encouraging verse! It must have been amazing to dream about God and listen to him speak about his blessings upon Jacob!
7 and that Jacob had obeyed his father and mother and had gone to Paddan Aram.
I also really like this verse because it reminds me that I always need to obey my parents and authority! Jacob is a great example of how to we need to respect our parents!
16 When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I was not aware of it.”
17 He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.”
18 Early the next morning Jacob took the stone he had placed under his head and set it up as a pillar and poured oil on top of it.
Wow, what a cool experience. Sitting and sleeping in the house of GOD. Think of the awe Jacob must have been in, and then think of the daily awe that we should be in. GOD is sooooooooooooooooooooooo amazing and we should be in constant awe that one day we will live with him.
7 and that Jacob had obeyed his father and mother and had gone to Paddan Aram.
I think Jacob (from True North) made a nice comment on Jacob. Obeying our parents is not always convenient or easy, but it is what God wants us to do. It must have been difficult to travel to a distant land to find a wife when there were probably many local canidates for Jacob already. It may have made more sense to him to do things another way but he resisted and did things the way his parents asked.
I like Christa’s comment regarding Esau’s issues with anger. We need to be careful to not let anger take root in our heart, leading to bitterness and resentment. Verses like Ephesians 4:31-32 and James 1:19-20 are great to remember when we are tempted to let anger get the best of us. We need to trust in Gods sovereignty knowing that as you endure various trials or unfair treatment, God can use it to develop a more Christ-like character in each of our lives… Romans 5:3-5
Ya Nachooooooo kind of took my comment. That is an awesome promise that you can get from God. He will watch over you until he gives you what He has promised. We still have a promise that if we repent of our sins and stay faithful with the Lord and keep his commandments that he will promise us eternity in Heaven. That is the biggest promise you can have right there.
oh, AMEN to that Laura J.!!!!!!! How exciting will it be to see the gates of Heaven open and God welcomes you!!!! There, we will be praising His name forever and living in paradise!!!!
9 so he went to Ishmael and married Mahalath, the sister of Nebaioth and daughter of Ishmael son of Abraham, in addition to the wives he already had.
Bad Esau!!! Esau fell into sin and so quickly too! Now, if you think about it, we do the same thing everyday. We sin and sometimes we don’t even notice it! Just a bad thought, or listening to a little gossip is sin. We always need to be watchful of what we think about, listen to, and say. The tongue is an evil thing! If our minds are always on Jesus, will it be as hard as it is when it’s not? nuhuh! Lets pray for constant focus on our Lord and that God will keep us out of temptation. God we cry out to you!!! May we always give You the glory in everything we do!
7 … Jacob had obeyed his father and mother and had gone to Paddan Aram.
I also found wisdom in this verse!! It is interesting to see the comparison between Esau and Jacob as they listen and act (or not act) upon their parents instructions. Jacob has clearly had his faults, but overall in this chapter he seems to be making progress as an obedient child of God! This is just another reminder of how important obedience is, not just because there are consequences if not carried out, but also because it pleases God. :D
13 There above it stood the LORD, and he said: “I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying.
The continued promise to Jacob. This same promise was given to both Abraham and Isaac. We also have hope in a promise from God. That in the end Jesus will return for the second time and we will be resurrected to Heaven. Our bodies will be transformed so that they will be like his glorious one. I am excited for that day! MARANATHA!
17 He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.”
Jacob realizes that God’s presence was in the place where he was, and his first reaction was one of awe and adoration of the Lord. This seems far from our reaction upon coming to church. While it is true that the Holy Spirit dwells in us and not in a building, church should be a place for us to center all of our thoughts and praises upon God. We need to follow Jacob’s example and have a sense of reverence and fear for God when we gather together in His presence!
8 Esau then realized how displeasing the Canaanite women were to his father Isaac;
9 so he went to Ishmael and married Mahalath, the sister of Nebaioth and daughter of Ishmael son of Abraham, in addition to the wives he already had.
Going off what Christa said, a lot of times children get mad at their parents and are willing to mess up their own lives if it means displeasing the people who love them most. We see this a lot today: Christian parents will tell their kids not to date non-Christians, and the kids date them just to tick off their parents. The kids often don’t realize its going to have a negative affect on their OWN life, and drag them into sin. We all need to remember that honoring our parents is honoring God.
19 He called that place Bethel, though the city used to be called Luz.
I just thought I’d point out that Jacob names this place Bethel, which like my name means “house of God” or “residing place of God.” I also love the prayer and that follows in which I could point out some of the elements of prayer we have been learning about such as dependency on God for physical life.
12 He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.
17 He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.”
Wow!, it sounds like heaven is a pretty great place–and Jacob wasn’t even actually there!
12 He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.
Jacob’s Ladder :). This dream and verses 12-15 are very powerful. The Lord speaks to Jacob in his dream. I think that is really cool when God is saying He is with Jacob and will watch over him wherever he goes, and God will bring Jacob back to this land. Then he said he will not leave him until He has done what He has promised him. !!Pretty strong!!
15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
What a grrreat verse! it is so emcouraging! just as God was continually with Jacob, he is continually with us:D It reminds us of the promise and plan God has for each and every one of us.
I enjoyed reading the last verse also…Jacob didnt just disregard God’s help and promise and protection, He found a way to thatnk God and give a tenth of all he has to Him…he made sure to give his heavenly father the glory for what had been done in his life.
15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
What an amazing promise!! God is so great and we need to put all our trust in him and his promises. He is never going to leave our side which is so amazing!!
12.) He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.
Great comment Laura…This really would be the best dream a person could ask for, just catching a glimpse of the glory of the Lord whom we will be with forever and worshipping Him eternally. How great a day this will be! MARANATHA!!
22 and this stone that I have set up as a pillar will be God’s house, and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth.”
God had just reaffirmed His covenant to Abraham by making promises to Jacob. Jacob’s immediate reaction is then to dedicate the place for worship of God (just like Abraham built altars) and give money as tithes to God. When God blesses us, we sometimes even forget to say thank you, but instead we should follow Jacob’s example by dedicating worship to Him, giving of ourself to Him, and obeying His commands.
15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
God is so encouraging. He provides us with everything each day. It is so easy to get prideful and think we can get through life on our own, but we need to realize we can’t because our Lord Jesus Christ is the only way of salvation. From when we wake up in the morning to when we fall asleep, we should be relying on God and acknowledging that he is with us always.
Esau then realized how displeasing the Canaanite women were to his father Isaac;
9 so he went to Ishmael and married Mahalath, the sister of Nebaioth and daughter of Ishmael son of Abraham, in addition to the wives he already had.
Previously in Genesis, the wives of Esau have brought great trouble to the lives of Rebekah and Isaac. Esau did not gain his fathers blessing from marrying the foreign women who did not trust in God. The worshiped other gods and brought great distress on the family (Genesis 26:33-35.) In an attempt to protect Jacob from the same fate, Isaac stresses the important that Jacob go to his relatives to find a wife. Jacob trusts the wisdom from his parents and follows their instructions. Let’s be like Jacob who obeyed his parents’ godly counsel rather than following Esau’s example, who brought much distress to his family.
Great comment Christa! Esau didn’t have things go his way and he acted out in anger and disobedience. He went and married a foreign wife on top of his other wives… that was bad company and exactly what his parents didn’t want him to do. But, don’t we do the same with God our Father? We know he has commanded us to not do things, like sin, but we do it anyway because we want our way and to trust in ourselves… but we need God for life and breath and salvation!!
15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
This verse is very encouraging to us as Christians. God is with us wherever we are and whenever we need Him. He is so merciful just in this we are so undeserving of everything from God we deserve nothing yet He protects us and is with us every second of our lives. That is so crazy. And also it says that he will always be with us and not leave us until all that He has promised is done. That is so cool and assuring to be reminded that all that God says IS going to happen and He will not leave us until that is done!!!!!!!
15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
This is a great and encouraging verse. This shows that God will always be watching over us and how he follows through with every promise. We need Him to watch over us because we can not do anything without Him.
Haley and Christa both had good points. Esau acted out of his own dish decision instead obey his parent’s will and God’s will. But Haley was right in say: how are we any better? God is quite plain and evident of what his will is for us and sometimes even in the easiest of commands. We need to truest Him and have control to obey Him.
15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
Thank God this is true: He surely is always with us