Genesis 28

God also made a personal promise to Jacob: “I will bring you back to this land” (verse 15). This promise surely sustained Jacob during the many years he was away from Canaan.

16–19 Jacob’s dream changed his life: he had met the Lord. The encounter was awesome (verse 17)—as every true encounter with the Lord must be. So he took the stone he had used for a “pillow” and set it upright as a pillar or memorial to the Lord; then he poured oil on the stone to consecrate it, that is, to set it apart as a holy object. And because the stairway in the dream seemed to lead up to “God’s house,” Jacob named that place Bethel (verse 19), which means “house of God.”

20–22 Then Jacob made a vow to the Lord. It is common after a dramatic encounter or experience to make a promise to God out of gratitude or fear. In Jacob’s case, the vow was conditional: “If God will be with me . . . then I will carry out my vow” (verse 20). Jacob didn’t yet have complete faith in God’s promises. But now, at least, he thought the promises might be fulfilled; and if they were, he would then be ready to acknowledge that the Lord was his God: “. . . then the LORD will be my God” (verse 21).

Jacob also vowed that the stone he had set up as a “pillar” would remain a memorial to his meeting with the Lord in that place. He further promised that he would give to the Lord a tenth of all his wealth—“all that you give me” (verse 22). In saying this, Jacob acknowledged that everything he possessed came ultimately from the Lord, in accordance with His covenant promises. In offering the Lord a tenth of everything, Jacob was also acknowledging that the Lord was his true God and King (Genesis 14:20).

As we reflect on Jacob’s flight to Haran and on his encounter with God along the way, we see once again God’s love and concern for sinful humans. God had chosen Jacob even from before his birth to be the recipient of His covenant blessings. But yet we see Jacob, even as an adult, still sinning, still deceiving, still fleeing—fleeing not only from Esau but also from God Himself. Can anyone consider Jacob worthy of such great promises?

So it is with each of us. Even when we are journeying through the wilderness, fleeing from God, He is ready to meet with us as He met with Jacob. And He provides for us a stairway—Jesus Christ—and calls for us to come up to Him.

Jacob didn’t suddenly become a perfect man after encountering God at Bethel;¹⁰³ but he was changed. He made important commitments to God. And later, he returned to Bethel and rededicated that place to God (Genesis 35:6–7). Likewise, at some point we too need to meet God “at Bethel”; we too need to commit ourselves to Him. And if we should wander away from that commitment, we can always return to Bethel, as Jacob did, and recommit ourselves to God. He will always be ready to receive us.