Genesis 28

1 So Isaac [the son of Abraham, a man of faith] called for Jacob [the son of Isaac, a key figure in God’s plan] and blessed him [to praise or honor, conferring divine favor]. “Do not take [to receive or acquire, as a wife] a wife [a female partner, a helpmate] from the Canaanite women [daughters of Canaan, the inhabitants of the land],” he commanded [to give a charge or order, with authority]. word study 2 “Go [arise, get up] at once to Paddan-aram [Padan-aram, a region in Syria], to the house [dwelling place, family home] of your mother’s [female parent, maternal figure] father Bethuel [man of God], and take [get, receive] a wife [woman, female partner] from among [out of, from the daughters of] the daughters [female children, women] of Laban [brother-in-law, uncle], your mother’s [female parent, maternal figure] brother [male sibling, close relative]. word study 3 May God [Shadday, the all-powerful One] Almighty bless you [bestow divine favor upon you] and make you fruitful [enabling you to produce spiritual offspring] and multiply you [increase your numbers, like a tree bearing fruit], so that you may become a company [assembly, gathering] of peoples [nations, tribes]. word study 4 And may He give [bestow, grant] the blessing [divine favor, prosperity] of Abraham [the father of faith] to you and your descendants [seed, offspring], so that you may possess [take control, inherit] the land [earth, territory] where you dwell [reside, sojourn] as a foreigner [stranger, alien], the land [earth, country] God [Elohim, the supreme Creator] gave [granted, provided] to Abraham.” word study 5 So Isaac [the son of Abraham, a man of faith] sent Jacob [to live with his relatives, as a sojourner] to Paddan-aram [in the region of Aram, a plain or tableland], to Laban [a nephew of Abraham, a shepherd] son of Bethuel [a man of God, meaning ‘man of God’] the Aramean [from Aram, a region in Syria, an Aramaean], the brother [a close relative, a male sibling] of Rebekah [the wife of Isaac, a mother in Israel], who was the mother [a female parent, a nurturer] of Jacob [the supplanter, a key figure in Israel’s history] and Esau [the hairy one, a twin brother]. word study 6 Now Esau learned [discovered, became aware] that Isaac [the son of Abraham, the father of the promised nation] had blessed [praised, honored] Jacob and sent [dispatched, commanded to go] him to Paddan-aram [the region of Aram, a plain in Syria] to take [obtain, acquire] a wife [a female companion, a partner] there, commanding [instructing, charging] him, “Do not [refrain from, avoid] marry [take as a wife, wed] a Canaanite [a descendant of Canaan, an inhabitant of the land] woman [a female, a wife],” word study 7 and that Jacob [the supplanter, deceiver] had obeyed [listened to and followed] his father [parent, ancestor] and mother [female parent, nurturer] and gone [walked, traveled] to Paddan-aram [the plain of Aram, a region in Syria]. word study 8 And seeing [perceiving, noticing] that his father [abba, paternal ancestor] Isaac [he laughs, son of Abraham] disapproved [did not delight in, was not pleased with] of the Canaanite [inhabitant of the promised land, descendant of Ham] women [daughters, female descendants], word study 9 Esau [the hairy one, twin brother of Jacob] went to Ishmael [God will hear, Abraham’s son with Hagar] and married Mahalath [a woman, daughter], the sister [biological sibling, close relative] of Nebaioth [a son of Ishmael, a brother] and daughter [female child, descendant] of Abraham’s [the father of many nations, a key figure] son Ishmael, in addition to [besides, along with] the wives [women, female partners] he already had [possessed, was married to]. word study 10 Meanwhile [in the meantime, at the same time] Jacob [the son of Isaac and Rebekah] left [went out from, departed] Beersheba [the city of the well of the sevenfold oath] and set out [went toward, started walking] for [toward, on the road to] Haran [a city in Paddan Aram, a place of spiritual significance]. word study 11 On reaching [arriving at, coming to] a certain place [location, region], he spent the night [tarried, lodged] there because the sun [the celestial body] had set [gone down, disappeared]. And taking [getting, obtaining] one of the stones [rocks, pebbles] from that place [location, spot], he put [placed, set] it under his head [as a pillow, for rest] and lay down [rested, reclined] to sleep [in a state of slumber, for repose]. word study 12 And Jacob had a dream [a vision from God, a prophetic experience] about a ladder [stairway, steps] that rested on the earth [land, ground] with its top reaching up to heaven [the sky, the spiritual realm], and God’s [Elohim, the supreme Being] angels [messengers, heavenly beings] were going up [ascending, rising] and down [descending, coming down] the ladder [stairway, a means of communication between heaven and earth]. word study 13 And there at the top the LORD [Yehovah, The covenant Name of God] was standing [stationed, as an appointed official] and saying, “I [the first person singular, emphasizing God’s personal involvement] am the LORD [the God of covenant and promise], the God [Elohim, the supreme deity] of your father Abraham [the patriarch of faith] and the God of Isaac [the son of promise]. I will give [bestow, grant as a gift] you and your descendants [seed, offspring] the land [the earthly territory] on which you now lie [are resting, sleeping]. word study 14 Your descendants [seed, offspring] will be like the dust [dry earth] of the earth [land, ground], and you will spread out [break forth, burst out] to the west [large body of water] and east [front] and north [zaphon, northern direction] and south [negeb, southern district]. All [every, entire] the families [clans, tribes] of the earth [land, soil] will be blessed [nibrahchu, praised, honored] through you and your offspring [seed]. word study 15 Look [behold, take notice], I am with you [by your side, accompanying you], and I will watch over you [keep you safe, protect you] wherever you go [in all your journeys, to all places], and I will bring you back [return you, restore you] to this land [the promised territory, your inheritance]. For I will not leave you [forsake you, abandon you] until I have done [accomplished, fulfilled] what I have promised you [spoken to you, declared to you].” word study 16 When Jacob [the son of Isaac and Rebekah] woke up, he thought, “Surely [truly, indeed] the LORD [Yehovah, The covenant Name of God] is in this [specific] place [location, region], and I [the speaker, Jacob] was unaware [did not know, ignorant] of it [the presence of God].” word study 17 And he was afraid [feared, stood in awe] and said, “How awesome [dreadful, fearful] is this place [location, holy site]! This is none other than [nothing less than, surely] the house [dwelling place, temple] of God [Elohim, the supreme Being]; this is the gate [entrance, doorway] of heaven [the sky, the spiritual realm]!” word study 18 Early [at the break of day, in the morning] the next morning, Jacob [the son of Isaac and Rebekah] took [got, received] the stone [a rock, a weight, or even a precious gem] that he had placed [laid, set] under his head [as a pillow, a place of rest], and he set [appointed, established] it up as a pillar [a monument, a memorial]. He poured [made something firm or hard, anointed] oil [olive oil] on top of it [upon its head, as an act of dedication], word study 19 and he called [summoned, invoked] that place [location, region] Bethel [house of God, dwelling of the divine], though previously [at the first, from the beginning] the city [town, settlement] had been named [designated, known as] Luz [almond tree, illumination]. word study 20 Then Jacob [the supplanter, deceiver] made a vow [a solemn promise, a commitment to God], saying, “If God [Elohim, the supreme Creator] will be with me [accompanying me, protecting me] and watch over me [keep me safe, guard me] on this journey [this path, this way of life], and if He will provide me with food [bread, sustenance] to eat [nourishment, satisfaction] and clothes [garments, clothing] to wear [cover myself, be clothed], word study 21 so that I may return [to my homeland] safely to my father’s [ancestral, family] house, then the LORD [Yehovah, the covenant God] will be my God [Elohim, the one supreme God, my Rock]. word study 22 And this stone [a rock, memorial, or monument] I have set up [appointed, established, or dedicated] as a pillar [a memorial or monument, sometimes with an altar] will be God’s [Elohim, the supreme God] house [a dwelling place, including a family home, temple, or place of worship], and of all [everything, the whole] that You give me [bestow upon, provide for, or entrust to] I will surely give [offer, provide, or tithe] You a tenth [a tenth part, tithe, or portion].” word study