Genesis 28:17-22

17 Then he was afraid and said, "How awesome [is] this place! {This is nothing else than the house of God}, and this is the gate of heaven!"
18 And Jacob rose early in the morning, and he took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up [as] a stone pillar, and poured oil on top of it.
19 And he called the name of that place Bethel; however, the name of the city [was] formerly Luz.
20 And Jacob made a vow saying, "If God will be with me and protect me on this way that I am going, and gives me food to eat and clothing to wear,
21 and [if] I return in peace to the house of my father, then Yahweh will become my God.
22 And this stone that I have set up [as] a pillar shall be the house of God, and [of] all that you give to me I will certainly give a tenth to you."

Genesis 28:17-22 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO GENESIS 28

In this chapter an account is given of the charge Isaac gave to Jacob not to marry a Canaanitess, but to go to Padanaram, and take a wife from his mother's family, and of his blessing him before he sent him away, Ge 28:1-5; of the notice that Esau took of this blessing and charge, which led him to take a wife of the family of Ishmael, Ge 28:6-9; of the dream of the ladder, which Jacob had in his way to Haran, Ge 28:10-12; of the blessing which God conferred upon him there, Ge 28:13-15; of the awfulness of the place upon his awaking, and of his erecting a pillar in it, and giving a name to it, Ge 28:16-19; and of the vow he made to God, should he be supplied with the necessaries of life, and be kept in safety by him, Ge 28:20-22.

Footnotes 2

  • [a]. Literally "there is not this but the house of God"
  • [b]. Or "vowed a vow"
Scripture quotations marked (LEB) are from the Lexham English Bible. Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software.