Jacob’s Dream at Bethel

¹⁰ Jacob left Beersheba [21:14] and set out for Haran [11:31]. ¹¹ When he came to a place, he spent the night there because the sun had set. He found a stone and laid his head on it ·to go to sleep [^Land lay down in that place]. ¹² Jacob dreamed that there was a ·ladder [or stairway; or ramp] resting on the earth and reaching up into heaven, and he saw ·angels [messengers] of God ·going up and coming down [ascending and descending on] ·the ladder [^Lit; John 1:51]. ¹³ Then Jacob saw the Lord standing above the ladder [28:12], and he said, “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your grandfather, and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your ·descendants [^Lseed] the ·land [ground] on which you are now ·sleeping [lying; 12:1–3]. ¹⁴ Your ·descendants [^Lseed] will be as many as the dust of the earth [13:16]. They will spread west and east, north and south, and all the ·families [clans] of the earth will ·be blessed [or bless themselves] through you and your ·descendants [seed]. ¹⁵ I am with you and will ·protect [guard] you everywhere you go and will bring you back to this land. I will not ·leave [abandon; forsake] you until I have done what I have promised you.”

¹⁶ Then Jacob woke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, but I did not know it.” ¹⁷ He was afraid and said, “This place frightens me! It is surely the house of God and the gate of heaven.”

¹⁸ Jacob rose early in the morning and took the stone ·he had slept on [^Lwhich was under his head] and set it up ·on its end [^Las a pillar; 31:13, 45; 35:14, 20; Ex. 24:4; ^Ca practice later prohibited because similar to Canaanite religion (Ex. 23:24; 34:13; Deut. 12:3)]. Then he poured olive oil on the top of it. ¹⁹ ·At first [Formerly], the name of that city was Luz, but Jacob named it Bethel [^C“house of God”].

²⁰ Then Jacob ·made a promise [^Lvowed a vow]. He said, “I want God to be with me and to ·protect [guard] me on this journey. I want him to give me food to eat and clothes to wear ²¹ so I will be able to return ·in peace [or safely] to my father’s house. If the Lord does these things, he will be my God. ²² This stone which I have set up ·on its end [^Las a pillar] will be the house of God. And I will give God ·one-tenth [a tithe] of all he gives me.”