The First Book of Moses, called Genesis
Genesis 28
Chapter XXVIII · Vol. I, pp. 259–260
1 Isaac blesseth Jacob, and sendeth him to Padan-aram. 6 Esau marrieth Mahalath, the daughter of Ishmael. 10 The vision of Jacob's ladder. 18 The stone of Beth-el. 20 Jacob's vow.
1 And Isaac called Jacob, and ablessed him, and charged him, and said unto him, bThou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan.5
B.C. 1759.
a ch. 27.4,28,29,33; 48.15; 49.28. De. 33.1. Jos. 22.7.
b ch. 24.3; 26.34,35; 27.46. See ch. 6.2.
5 Isaac, in pursuance of the system of founding family alliances on religious education and character, ch. 24. 3, immediately acts upon the suggestion of Rebekah, and charges Jacob, as heir of the promised blessings, not to marry any of the daughters of Canaan. The cordial concurrence of husband and wife in all family arrangements is of the utmost importance to domestic peace and prosperity.—Note, While Isaac spares not good advice to his son, his dependence for its success is in prayer to Almighty God.—C.
2 Arise,c go to Padan-aram, to the house of Bethuel thy mother's father, and take thee a wife from thence of the daughters of Laban thy mother's brother.
c ch. 25.20; 24.10; 22.20-23; 29.1; ver. 5. Ho. 12.12.
3 And dGod Almighty bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a multitude of people;6
d ch. 17.1; 13.16; 22.17. Ps. 128.1-6. ch. 35.11; 48.3.
6 Heb. an assembly of people.
4 And give thee ethe blessing of Abraham, to thee, and to thy seed with thee; that thou mayest inherit the land wherein thou art fa stranger,7 which God ggave unto Abraham.
5 And Isaac sent away Jacob: and he went to hPadan-aram unto Laban, son of Bethuel the Syrian, the brother of Rebekah, Jacob's and Esau's mother.
h See ver. 2.
6 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, iThou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan;
i See ver. 1.
8 And Esau seeing that the daughters of Canaan pleased not7 Isaac his father,
7 Heb. were evil in the eyes, &c.
9 Then went Esau unto lIshmael, and took unto the wives which he had, Mahalath8 the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham's son, the sister of Nebajoth, to be his wife.
l His posterity, ch. 25.17; 36.13,18.
8 Or, Bashemath.
11 And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set: and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his mpillows, and lay down in that place to sleep.1
m ver. 18. 2 Co. 1.5, with Mat. 8.20.
1 The distance from Beersheba to Bethel is fifty miles as the crow flies, and Jacob could not have walked that distance in a single day. The narrative does not profess to give a full itinerary of his journey. The night at Bethel is specially mentioned, because of the events which occurred there. It is no unusual thing in Palestine to sleep in the open air. Two-thirds of the present population do so during the summer months—on house-tops, in fields, or with their flocks on hill-sides. I have often seen a shepherd or muleteer take a stone for his pillow; and it is by no means uncomfortable when the turban is properly folded.—P.
12 And he ndreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it.
n ch. 15.1,12; 20.3. Nu. 12.6. Job 33.14,15; 4.13. Da. 7.1. He. 1.1.
13 And,o behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I am the LORD pGod of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, qto thee will I give it, and to thy seed;
o ch. 35.1; 48.3.
p ch. 15.1; 17.7. Ex. 3.6. Mat. 22.32.
q To thee in right, and to thy seed in possession, ch. 12. 7; 13.15,17. Ps. 105.11. Ac. 7.5. Eze. 37.24,25.
14 And rthy seed shall be as the dust of the earth; and thou shalt spread2 abroad sto the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee, and tin thy seed, shall all the families of the earth be blessed.3
r Seed natural, but chiefly spiritual, Ac. 3.25. ch. 13.16; 32.12; 35.11. Nu. 23.10. Re. 7.4,9.
2 Heb. break forth.
s De. 12.20.
t ch. 12.3; 18.18; 22.18; 26.4. Ga. 3.16. Ps. 72.17. Ep. 1.3.
3 Here again the Lord renews to Jacob, in all its details, the promise previously made to Abraham, ch. 22.17, and to Isaac, ch. 26.4, including not merely a numerous posterity, and the possession of Canaan, but greatest and best of all, the promise of the Messiah.—P.
15 And, behold, uI am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land: for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.
u ch. 31.3; 32.9; 46.4. Mat. 28.20. Jos. 1.5. Ju. 6.16. Is. 43.2; 41.10,13. Je. 1.19. Ro. 3.31,32. 1 Ti. 4.8. He. 13.5. Jn. 10.28,29. Jude 1.
16 And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the LORD is in this place, and Ix knew it not.
x Little expected it, Job 9.11; 33.14. 1 Sa. 3.4-7.
17 And he was yafraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is znone other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.
y Mat. 17.6. Lu. 2.9; 8.35. Re. 1.17.
z Here God is manifested in a remarkable manner, and there is an inlet into communion with him, 1 Ti. 3. 15. ch. 35. 13.
18 And Jacob arose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and bset it up for a pillar, and poured oil4 upon the top of it.
a ch. 22.3. Ec. 9.10. Ps. 119.60.
b ch. 31.45; 35.14,20. Is. 19.19. Jos. 24.26. 1 Sa. 7.12. 2 Sa. 18.18.
4 As a thank-offering to God.
19 And he called the name of that place cBethel: but the name of that city was called Luz at the first.5
A.M. 2245. B.C. 1759.
c That is, the house of God, Ju. 1. 23-26. Ho. 4.15.
5 It was close to Bethel Abraham pitched his tent, and there too he was encamped when Lot separated from him. It afterwards became one of the great sanctuaries of the land. At Bethel Jeroboam set up one of his golden calves, and the infatuated Israelites so polluted it by their idolatry that instead of Bethel, it was called in derision, by the later prophets, Beth-aven, 'house of folly.' It is now ruined and desolate.—'Bethel has come to nought,' Am. 5. 5.—P.
20 And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If 6God will be with me,7 and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on,
6 Or, since.
7 Not, if God will be with me, which seems to imply a doubt, though God had given his solemn promise of protection, but, since God will be with me, a resolution founded in a believing reliance upon, and grateful acknowledgment of, the divine goodness.—C.
21 So that I come again to my father's house in peace; then shall the LORD be my God:
Notes
Ver. 12, 13. This vision represented the peculiar care of God concerning Jacob and other saints, and the ministration of angels to them, 2 Ch. 16. 9; Ec. 5. 8; Ps. 135. 6; Is. 41. 10; Ac. 18. 10; 2 Ti. 4. 16, 17; Ps. 34. 7; 91. 11; Mat. 18. 10; He. 1. 14; ch. 32. 1, 2. But chiefly this ladder typified Christ, as Mediator between God and man. He, in his manhood, is of the earth, a descendant of Jacob; and in his divine person is the Lord from heaven, Is. 7. 14; 9. 6; Jn. 1. 14; Ro. 1. 3, 4; 9. 5; 1 Ti. 3. 16; he is the only means of fellowship between God and men, Jn. 14. 6; Ep. 2. 18; 3. 12; 1 Ti. 2. 5, 6; and he directs and enjoys the ministration of angels, Jn. 1. 51; 1 Pe. 1. 12; 1 Ti. 3. 16,—in his conception, Lu. 1. 31; Mat. 1. 20,—his birth, Lu. 2. 14; He. 1. 6,—his temptation, Mat. 4. 11,—his agony, Lu. 22. 43,—his resurrection, Mat. 28. 2, 5,—his ascension, Ac. 1. 10, 11; Ps. 47. 5; 68. 17, 18; Da. 7. 10, 13,—and second coming, 1 Th. 4. 16; 2 Th. 1. 7; Mat. 25. 31.
Ver. 20. A vow is a solemn promise made to God, by which we bind ourselves more strictly to necessary duty, or what indifferent things are calculated to promote it, Ps. 76. 11; 119. 106; Is. 19. 21; 44. 4, 5; 45. 23; 2 Co. 8. 5; De. 5. 2, 3; 29. 1, 12, 13; Jos. 24. 25; 2 Ki. 11. 17; 2 Ch. 29. 10; 34. 31-34; Ezr. 10. 3; Ne. 9. 10; Ac. 18. 18; 21. 23, 24; and that either in thankfulness for some mercy received, Jonah 1. 16; or for obtaining some special benefit, Nu. 21. 1, 2; Ju. 11. 30; 1 Sa. 1. 11; Pr. 31. 2.
Ver. 21. Owned and worshipped by me and my family, as the author of our whole happiness, and as our valuable and everlasting portion, Ex. 15. 2; Ps. 118. 27.
Reflections. How crosses and crowns are mingled together in the lot of the saints! But it is comfortable when the blessing of parents and of God prepares men for their trials; and to have a godly friend's house to lodge in, amidst our distress, alleviates the grief. What care both parents and children ought to take to prevent unequal marriages with the ungodly! How shrewd the contrivances of carnal men to promote their temporal advantage! But they who aim only at pleasing men often meet with the most bitter disappointments. They who rest on partial reformations lie down but the more securely under the wrath of God. It is too late to be wise when the opportunity is lost. How amazing the mercy of God, in graciously visiting such as, by their sin, have made their own homes dangerous for them to tarry at! Easily he renders even trouble sweet with his kindness; and happy they who have him and his angels to be their protectors! No danger can come near them. And, if he love, he will never leave us. He is often nearer us than we are aware; and his comfortable presence in ordinances is the very gate to celestial joys. How effectually nearness to God humbles us under a sense of our own vileness and corruption! And happy is it when our fellowship with God leaves a lasting impression on our spirits—powerfully constrains us, by solemn engagement, to surrender ourselves, and all that we have, to his service—and renders us content with a moderate share of the good things of this life! But while I thus regard the kindness of his providence, let me here contemplate the person and the work of my glorious Redeemer, that Mediator between God and man. On earth, in the condescension of his humanity; in heaven, in the glory of his divinity; through him I come near to God, and enjoy his presence and his favour; through him I behold the promises of guidance and protection; and after all my wanderings in this world, defended by his care, shall return to my Father's house in peace, laden with the blessings of eternal glory.