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Jacob Sent to Laban

28 Then Isaac called Jacob (A)and blessed him and directed him, (B)“You must not take a wife from the Canaanite women. (C)Arise, go to Paddan-aram to the house of (D)Bethuel your mother's father, and take as your wife from there one of the daughters of Laban your mother's brother. (E)God Almighty[a] bless you and make you fruitful and multiply you, that you may become a company of peoples. May he give (F)the blessing of Abraham to you and to your offspring with you, that you may take possession of (G)the land of your sojournings that God gave to Abraham!” Thus Isaac sent Jacob away. And he went to Paddan-aram, to Laban, the son of Bethuel the Aramean, the brother of Rebekah, Jacob's and Esau's mother.

Esau Marries an Ishmaelite

Now Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him away to Paddan-aram to take a wife from there, and that as he blessed him he directed him, “You must not take a wife from the Canaanite women”, and that Jacob had obeyed his father and his mother and gone to Paddan-aram. So when Esau saw (H)that the Canaanite women did not please Isaac his father, Esau went to Ishmael and took as his wife, besides the wives he had, (I)Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham's son, the sister of (J)Nebaioth.

Jacob's Dream

10 Jacob left (K)Beersheba and went towards (L)Haran. 11 And he came to a certain place and stayed there that night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place to sleep. 12 And he (M)dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder[b] set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, (N)the angels of God were ascending and descending on it! 13 And behold, (O)the Lord stood above it[c] and said, (P)“I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. (Q)The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. 14 Your offspring shall be like (R)the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and (S)your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. 15 Behold, (T)I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and (U)will bring you back to this land. For I will (V)not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” 16 Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is (W)in this place, and I did not know it.” 17 And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.”

18 So early in the morning Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up (X)for a pillar (Y)and poured oil on the top of it. 19 He called the name of that place (Z)Bethel,[d] but the name of the city was Luz at the first. 20 Then Jacob (AA)made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat and clothing to wear, 21 (AB)so that I come again to my father's house in peace, (AC)then the Lord shall be my God, 22 and this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, (AD)shall be God's house. And (AE)of all that you give me I will give a full tenth to you.”

Footnotes

  1. Genesis 28:3 Hebrew El Shaddai
  2. Genesis 28:12 Or a flight of steps
  3. Genesis 28:13 Or beside him
  4. Genesis 28:19 Bethel means the house of God

28 So Isaac called for Jacob and blessed(A) him. Then he commanded him: “Do not marry a Canaanite woman.(B) Go at once to Paddan Aram,[a](C) to the house of your mother’s father Bethuel.(D) Take a wife for yourself there, from among the daughters of Laban, your mother’s brother.(E) May God Almighty[b](F) bless(G) you and make you fruitful(H) and increase your numbers(I) until you become a community of peoples. May he give you and your descendants the blessing given to Abraham,(J) so that you may take possession of the land(K) where you now reside as a foreigner,(L) the land God gave to Abraham.” Then Isaac sent Jacob on his way,(M) and he went to Paddan Aram,(N) to Laban son of Bethuel the Aramean,(O) the brother of Rebekah,(P) who was the mother of Jacob and Esau.

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,”(Q) and that Jacob had obeyed his father and mother and had gone to Paddan Aram. Esau then realized how displeasing the Canaanite women(R) were to his father Isaac;(S) so he went to Ishmael(T) and married Mahalath, the sister of Nebaioth(U) and daughter of Ishmael son of Abraham, in addition to the wives he already had.(V)

Jacob’s Dream at Bethel

10 Jacob left Beersheba(W) and set out for Harran.(X) 11 When he reached a certain place,(Y) he stopped for the night because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones there, he put it under his head(Z) and lay down to sleep. 12 He had a dream(AA) 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.(AB) 13 There above it[c] stood the Lord,(AC) and he said: “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac.(AD) I will give you and your descendants the land(AE) on which you are lying.(AF) 14 Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you(AG) will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south.(AH) All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring.[d](AI) 15 I am with you(AJ) and will watch over you(AK) wherever you go,(AL) and I will bring you back to this land.(AM) I will not leave you(AN) until I have done what I have promised you.(AO)(AP)

16 When Jacob awoke from his sleep,(AQ) he thought, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” 17 He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place!(AR) This is none other than the house of God;(AS) this is the gate of heaven.”

18 Early the next morning Jacob took the stone he had placed under his head(AT) and set it up as a pillar(AU) and poured oil on top of it.(AV) 19 He called that place Bethel,[e](AW) though the city used to be called Luz.(AX)

20 Then Jacob made a vow,(AY) saying, “If God will be with me and will watch over me(AZ) on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear(BA) 21 so that I return safely(BB) to my father’s household,(BC) then the Lord[f] will be my God(BD) 22 and[g] this stone that I have set up as a pillar(BE) will be God’s house,(BF) and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth.(BG)

Footnotes

  1. Genesis 28:2 That is, Northwest Mesopotamia; also in verses 5, 6 and 7
  2. Genesis 28:3 Hebrew El-Shaddai
  3. Genesis 28:13 Or There beside him
  4. Genesis 28:14 Or will use your name and the name of your offspring in blessings (see 48:20)
  5. Genesis 28:19 Bethel means house of God.
  6. Genesis 28:21 Or Since God … father’s household, the Lord
  7. Genesis 28:22 Or household, and the Lord will be my God, 22 then