Genesis 28

Now we will be observing Genesis 28, first paying attention to the words "angels" and "dream" because Jacob's dream at Bethel is one of the chapter's main events. Jacob left the town of Beersheba and started out for Haran. At sunset, he stopped for the night and went to sleep, resting his head on a large rock. He saw a ladder that reached from Earth to Heaven in a dream, and God’s angels were going up and down on it. The LORD was standing beside the ladder and said: "I am the LORD God who was worshiped by Abraham and Isaac. I will give to you and your family the land on which you are now sleeping. Your descendants will spread over the earth in all directions and become as numerous as the specks of dust. Your family will be a blessing to all people. Wherever you go, I will watch over you, then later I will bring you back to this land. I won’t leave you—I will do all I have promised" (Genesis 28:10-15). The land was promised to Abraham, then to Isaac, and now to Jacob.

The Promised Land was the former land of Caanan, where Isaac had warned Jacob not to take a wife of the present inhabitants. "Don't marry any of those Canaanite women." Esau found out that his father Isaac had blessed Jacob and had warned him not to marry any of the Canaanite women. He also learned that Jacob had been sent to find a wife in northern Syria and obeyed his father and mother. Esau already had several wives, but he realized at last how much his father hated the Canaanite women. So Esau married Ishmael’s daughter Mahalath, the sister of Nebaioth and one of Abraham's granddaughters (Genesis 28:1, 6-9).

Paddan-Aram is mentioned four times because it's where Isaac sent Jacob to find a wife. Isaac said, "Go at once to Paddan-Aram, to the house of your grandfather Bethuel, and marry one of your uncle Laban’s daughters. So Isaac sent Jacob away, and he went to Paddan-Aram to stay with his uncle Laban, his mother’s brother, the son of Bethuel the Aramean. Esau knew that his father, Isaac, had blessed Jacob and sent him to Paddan-Aram to find a wife and that he had warned Jacob, “You must not marry a Canaanite woman.” He also knew that Jacob had obeyed his parents and gone to Paddan-Aram (Genesis 28:2, 5-7). Paddan Aram designates the area of Harran in Upper Mesopotamia. Padan-Aram or Padan appears in 11 verses in the Hebrew Bible, all in Genesis (Paddan-Aram- Wikipedia). So Jacob left Beersheba, the Well of the Oath of earlier chapters, and traveled toward that way (Genesis 28:10).

We should pay careful attention to where the various events occur and the sequence in which they happen. Isaac blesses Jacob and sends him away to find a wife from among his own people. We should not just skim over the blessing part of this because it is one of the most powerful things in the life of someone belonging to the LORD to have his blessing. The blessing mixed with obedience led to a supernatural encounter with God that is important to Israel's history. In the New Testament, Jesus prophesied, “I tell you the truth, you will all see Heaven open and the angels of God going up and down on the Son of Man, the one who is the stairway between Heaven and Earth" (John 1:51). Jacob got a preview of God's plan of redemption for all of humanity! The place where Jacob had this dream was initially called Luz, but he called it Bethel, which means "House of God."

We see from this chapter that Isaac still makes a practice of blessing his son, even though Jacob was older himself by this part. Children are never too old for their parents to speak blessings over them. If you're not in the habit of doing it, get in the habit of doing it, even if they aren't physically there with you anymore. Only after Isaac blessed Jacob did he send him on to fulfill God's will. As I alluded to above, you can't fulfill God's will without the blessing. That's why it is so important. We also see Isaac's life's greatest blessing that God identifies himself as Isaac's God.

Jacob is mentioned 10 times in Genesis 28, more so than any other person. As I stated above, Jacob received his father's blessing before he journeyed on to obey his father and fulfill God's will for his life. Then Jacob went to Paddan-Aram to stay with his uncle Laban, his mother’s brother, Bethuel, the Aramean's son. When Jacob stopped for the night to rest, using a stone as a pillow, he got his divine dream, which contained God's promise. After God's oath, Jacob got up very early the following day and made a vow to God.

And then we have Esau. The more I read these accounts of their lives, the more I feel sorry for this guy. He was short-sighted, made a lot of mistakes, and was godless. But he was also mistreated, unappreciated, and taken advantage of. Yet, he still continues to gain his father Isaac's approval. "Esau knew that his father, Isaac, had blessed Jacob and sent him to Paddan-Aram to find a wife and that he had warned Jacob, “You must not marry a Canaanite woman.” He also knew that Jacob had obeyed his parents and gone to Paddan-Aram. It was now apparent to Esau that his father did not like the local Canaanite women. So Esau visited his uncle Ishmael’s family and married one of Ishmael’s daughters, in addition to the wives he already had. His new wife’s name was Mahalath. She was the sister of Nebaioth and the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham’s son (Genesis 28:6-9). He hears about Jacob's obedience to Isaac and knows Isaac's dislike for the godless Canaanite women. So he visited his uncle Ishmael and marries from there, similar to Jacob's sent to. Well into their adult lives, godless Esau, who gave up his birthright and wept bitterly at realizing that his blessing was lost, was still trying to earn his father's admiration.

God is mentioned 16 times in Genesis 28. His name is first mentioned in the chapter as part of Isaac's blessing to Jacob when Jacob calls him "God Almighty." Isaac prayed that God would bless Jacob with many children so that his descendants would multiply and become nations, passing on to Jacob the promises given to Abraham. Then during Jacob's dream, he sees God's angels going up and down on a stairway, which again John 1:51 says is Jesus Christ. The LORD--Yahweh--was standing at the top of the stairway, which makes sense since Jesus and the Father are one. God identifies himself as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and now Jacob. God promised Jacob the same land grant that he had to Abraham and Isaac. The LORD also promised to protect Jacob wherever he went. Jacob ended up calling the place God's house, the Gateway to Heaven, setting up a memorial pillar there for worshiping God.

Then Jacob made this vow: “If God will indeed be with me and protect me on this journey, and if he will provide me with food and clothing, and if I return safely to my father’s home, then the LORD will certainly be my God. And this memorial pillar I have set up will become a place for worshiping God, and I will present to God a tenth of everything he gives me" (Genesis 28:20-22). Jacob promises God that he will give God back a tenth of everything God gives him. This is the second reference to tithing in the Bible. The first is in Genesis 14:17-20. After Abram returned from his victory over Kedorlaomer and all his allies, the king of Sodom went out to meet him in the valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley). And Melchizedek, the king of Salem and a priest of God Most High, brought Abram some bread and wine. Melchizedek blessed Abram with this blessing: “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, creator of Heaven and Earth. And blessed be God Most High, who has defeated your enemies for you.” Then Abram gave Melchizedek a tenth of all the goods he had recovered. Tithing predates the Mosaic Law and is still biblical practice for today.