New International Version NIV
The Message Bible MSG
1 So Isaac called for Jacob and blessed him. Then he commanded him: “Do not marry a Canaanite woman.
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So Isaac called in Jacob and blessed him. Then he ordered him, "Don't take a Caananite wife.
2 Go at once to Paddan Aram, to the house of your mother’s father Bethuel. Take a wife for yourself there, from among the daughters of Laban, your mother’s brother.
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Leave at once. Go to Paddan Aram to the family of your mother's father, Bethuel. Get a wife for yourself from the daughters of your uncle Laban.
3 May God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and increase your numbers until you become a community of peoples.
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"And may The Strong God bless you and give you many, many children, a congregation of peoples;
4 May he give you and your descendants the blessing given to Abraham, so that you may take possession of the land where you now reside as a foreigner, the land God gave to Abraham.”
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and pass on the blessing of Abraham to you and your descendants so that you will get this land in which you live, this land God gave Abraham."
5 Then Isaac sent Jacob on his way, and he went to Paddan Aram, to Laban son of Bethuel the Aramean, the brother of Rebekah, who was the mother of Jacob and Esau.
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So Isaac sent Jacob off. He went to Paddan Aram, to Laban son of Bethuel the Aramean, the brother of Rebekah who was the mother of Jacob and Esau.
6 Now Esau learned that Isaac had blessed Jacob and had sent him to Paddan Aram to take a wife from there, and that when he blessed him he commanded him, “Do not marry a Canaanite woman,”
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Esau learned that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him to Paddan Aram to get a wife there, and while blessing him commanded, "Don't marry a Canaanite woman,"
7 and that Jacob had obeyed his father and mother and had gone to Paddan Aram.
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and that Jacob had obeyed his parents and gone to Paddan Aram.
8 Esau then realized how displeasing the Canaanite women were to his father Isaac;
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When Esau realized how deeply his father Isaac disliked the Canaanite women,
9 so he went to Ishmael and married Mahalath, the sister of Nebaioth and daughter of Ishmael son of Abraham, in addition to the wives he already had.
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he went to Ishmael and married Mahalath the sister of Nebaioth and daughter of Ishmael, Abraham's son. This was in addition to the wives he already had.
10 Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Harran.
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Jacob left Beersheba and went to Haran.
11 When he reached a certain place, he stopped for the night because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones there, he put it under his head and lay down to sleep.
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He came to a certain place and camped for the night since the sun had set. He took one of the stones there, set it under his head and lay down to sleep.
12 He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.
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And he dreamed: A stairway was set on the ground and it reached all the way to the sky; angels of God were going up and going down on it.
13 There above it stood the LORD, and he said: “I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying.
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Then God was right before him, saying, "I am God, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. I'm giving the ground on which you are sleeping to you and to your descendants.
14 Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring.
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Your descendants will be as the dust of the Earth; they'll stretch from west to east and from north to south. All the families of the Earth will bless themselves in you and your descendants.
15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
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Yes. I'll stay with you, I'll protect you wherever you go, and I'll bring you back to this very ground. I'll stick with you until I've done everything I promised you."
16 When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I was not aware of it.”
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Jacob woke up from his sleep. He said, "God is in this place - truly. And I didn't even know it!"
17 He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.”
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He was terrified. He whispered in awe, "Incredible. Wonderful. Holy. This is God's House. This is the Gate of Heaven."
18 Early the next morning Jacob took the stone he had placed under his head and set it up as a pillar and poured oil on top of it.
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Jacob was up first thing in the morning. He took the stone he had used for his pillow and stood it up as a memorial pillar and poured oil over it.
19 He called that place Bethel, though the city used to be called Luz.
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He christened the place Bethel (God's House). The name of the town had been Luz until then.
20 Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear
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Jacob vowed a vow: "If God stands by me and protects me on this journey on which I'm setting out, keeps me in food and clothing,
21 so that I return safely to my father’s household, then the LORD will be my God
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and brings me back in one piece to my father's house, this God will be my God.
22 and this stone that I have set up as a pillar will be God’s house, and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth.”
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This stone that I have set up as a memorial pillar will mark this as a place where God lives. And everything you give me, I'll return a tenth to you."
Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NIV) are from THE HOLY BIBLE: NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica. All rights reserved worldwide.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.