Genesis 28
28
Jacob’s Departure
1So Isaac called for Jacob and blessed him. “Do not take a wife from the Canaanite women,” he commanded. 2“Go at once to Paddan-aram,#28:2 That is, northwest Mesopotamia; also in verses 5, 6, and 7 to the house of your mother’s father Bethuel, and take a wife from among the daughters of Laban, your mother’s brother. 3May God Almighty #28:3 Hebrew El-Shaddai bless you and make you fruitful and multiply you, so that you may become a company of peoples. 4And may He give the blessing of Abraham to you and your descendants, so that you may possess the land where you dwell as a foreigner, the land God gave to Abraham.”
5So Isaac sent Jacob to Paddan-aram, to Laban son of Bethuel the Aramean, the brother of Rebekah, who was the mother of Jacob and Esau.
Esau Marries Mahalath
6Now Esau learned that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him to Paddan-aram to take a wife there, commanding him, “Do not marry a Canaanite woman,” 7and that Jacob had obeyed his father and mother and gone to Paddan-aram.
8And seeing that his father Isaac disapproved of the Canaanite women, 9Esau went to Ishmael and married Mahalath, the sister of Nebaioth and daughter of Abraham’s son Ishmael, in addition to the wives he already had.
Jacob’s Ladder
10Meanwhile Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Haran. 11On reaching a certain place, he spent the night there because the sun had set. And taking one of the stones from that place, he put it under his head and lay down to sleep.
12And Jacob had a dream about a ladder that rested on the earth with its top reaching up to heaven, and God’s angels were going up and down the ladder. 13And there at the top #28:13 Or there beside him the Lord was standing and saying, “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 now lie. 14Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and east and north and south. All the families of the earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. 15Look, I am with you, and I will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
16When Jacob woke up, he thought, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was unaware of it.” 17And 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!”
The Stone of Bethel
18Early the next morning, Jacob took the stone that he had placed under his head, and he set it up as a pillar. He poured oil on top of it, 19and he called that place Bethel,#28:19 Bethel means house of God. though previously the city had been named Luz.
20Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and watch over me on this journey, and if He will provide me with food to eat and clothes to wear, 21so that I may return safely to my father’s house, then the Lord will be my God. 22And this stone I have set up as a pillar will be God’s house, and of all that You give me I will surely give You a tenth.”
The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible, BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee. This text of God's Word has been dedicated to the public domain.
Genesis 28
28
1#Ge 24:3; 27:46Then Isaac called Jacob and blessed him. Then he charged him and said to him, “You must not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan. 2#Ge 25:20; Hos 12:12Arise, go to Paddan Aram to the house of Bethuel your mother’s father, and take for yourself a wife from there, from the daughters of Laban your mother’s brother. 3#Ge 35:11; 48:3May God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and multiply you, so that you may become a multitude of people. 4#Ge 12:7; Ps 39:12May He give you the blessing of Abraham, to you and your descendants with you, that you may inherit the land where you are a stranger, which God gave to Abraham.” 5Then Isaac sent Jacob away, and he went to Paddan Aram to Laban, the son of Bethuel the Syrian, the brother of Rebekah, Jacob’s and Esau’s mother.
6Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him away to Paddan Aram to take for himself a wife from there, and that as he blessed him he gave him a charge, saying, “You must not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan,” 7and that Jacob obeyed his father and his mother and had gone to Paddan Aram. 8#Ge 24:3; 26:34–35Esau saw that the daughters of Canaan did not please Isaac his father. 9#Ge 36:3So Esau went to Ishmael and took as his wife Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham’s son, the sister of Nebaioth, in addition to the wives he had.
Jacob’s Dream at Bethel
10#Ge 11:31; Ac 7:2Then Jacob went out from Beersheba and went toward Harran. 11He came to a certain place and stayed there all night, because the sun had set. He took one of the stones of that place and put it under his head, and lay down in that place to sleep. 12#Jn 1:51; Nu 12:6He dreamed and saw a ladder set up on the earth with the top of it reaching to heaven. The angels of God were ascending and descending on it. 13#Ge 13:15; 26:24The Lord stood above it and said, “I am the Lord God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie, to you will I give it and to your descendants. 14#Ge 12:3; 13:14Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and in your descendants all the families of the earth will be blessed. 15#Ge 26:24; 31:3Remember, I am with you, and I will protect you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I promised you.”
16#Ex 3:5; Jos 5:15Jacob awoke out of his sleep, and he said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.” 17He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.”
18#Ge 35:14; 31:13So Jacob rose up early in the morning and took the stone that he had put under his head, set it up as a pillar, and poured oil on top of it. 19#Ge 48:3He called the name of that place Bethel, but previously the name of the city was called Luz.
20#Ge 31:13; 2Sa 15:8Jacob vowed a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will protect me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat and clothing to put on, 21#Dt 26:17; Jdg 11:31so that I return to my father’s house in peace, then the Lord will be my God. 22#Ge 14:20; 35:7Then this stone, which I have set for a pillar, will be the house of God, and from all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to You.”
Military Bible Association