Genesis 28:7-17

7 and Jacob hearkened to his father and his mother, and went to Mesopotamia of Syria.

8 And Esau also having seen that the daughters of Chanaan were evil before his father Isaac,

9 Esau went to Ismael, and took Maeleth the daughter of Ismael, the son of Abraam, the sister of Nabeoth, a wife in addition to his wives.

10 And Jacob went forth from the well of the oath, and departed into Charrhan.

11 And came to a certain place and slept there, for the sun had gone down; and he took of the stones of the place, and put it at his head, and lay down to sleep in that place,

12 and dreamed, and behold a ladder fixed on the earth, whose top reached to heaven, and the angels of God ascended and descended on it.

13 And the Lord stood upon it, and said, I am the God of thy father Abraam, and the God of Isaac; fear not, the land on which thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed.

14 And thy seed shall be as the sand of the earth; and it shall spread abroad to the sea, and the south, and the north, and to the east; and in thee and in thy seed shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed.

15 And behold I am with thee to preserve thee continually in all the way wherein thou shalt go; and I will bring thee back to this land; for I will not desert thee, until I have done all that I have said to thee.

16 And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and said, The Lord is in this place, and I knew it not.

17 And he was afraid, and said, How fearful is this place! this is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.

Genesis 28:7-17 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

• [a]. Gr. was established.