Genesis 28:1 Then Isaac called Jacob and blessed him, and charged him, and said to him: “You shall not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan. 2 Arise, go to Padan Aram, to the house of Bethuel your mother’s father; and take yourself a wife from there of the daughters of Laban your mother’s brother.
Then Isaac called Jacob and blessed him… "he did not send for him to chide and reprove him for his fraudulent dealings with him to get the blessing from his brother, much less to revoke it, but to confirm it; which was necessary to prevent doubts that might arise in the mind of Jacob about it, and to strengthen him against the temptations of Satan; since he was about to be sent away from his father's house solitary and destitute, to go into another country, where he was to be for awhile in a state of servitude; all which might seem to contradict the blessing and promises he had received, and would be a trial of his faith in them, as well as a chastisement on him for the fraudulent manner in which he obtained them. AND CHARGED HIM, and said unto him, thou shall not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan;... it was proper he should marry, but not with any of the Canaanites, who were to be dispossessed of the land of Canaan,.. Isaac takes the same care, and gives the same charge concerning the marriage of his son Jacob, on whom the entail of the land was settled, as his father Abraham did concerning his, Genesis 24:3.” (Gill) The difference here is that Jacob, unlike Isaac, was allowed to return and sojourn in the native land. It was supposed to only be for a little while, but unbeknownst to all except El Shaddail: “He goes out to a hard service… This corrected him for the fraud on his father. The blessing shall be conferred on him, yet he shall smart for the indirect course taken to obtain it.” (Matthew Henry)
3 “May God Almighty bless you, and make you fruitful and multiply you, that you may be an assembly of peoples;
May God Almighty bless you— "The title 'God almighty', El Shaddai, was specially associated with the covenant with Abraham (17:1), which Isaac was concerned to emphasize, as the next verse shows.” (Derek Kidner) AND MAKE YOU FRUITFUL AND MULTIPLY YOU… "Through his loins that people should descend from Abraham which should be numerous as the stars of heaven; AND through his loins should descend from Abraham that person in whom all the families of the earth should be blessed...” (Benson Commentary), even the Kinsman Redeemer. THAT YOU MAY BE AN ASSEMBLY OF PEOPLES... "Jacob in his loneliness could be assured that he was far from isolated, and the unusual phrase 'a company of people' adds a new richness to the promises made to Abraham and Isaac. In the word 'company', from the root 'to assemble', the Old Testament term for the church or congregation makes its first appearance, bringing with it the idea of coherence as well as multiplicity. It is associated with Jacob again in 35:11; 48:4.” (Kidner) This signifies "literally for an assembly, congregation, or church of peoples; referring no doubt to the Jewish Church in the wilderness, but more particularly to the Christian Church, composed of every kindred, and nation, and people, and tongue. This is one essential part of the blessing of Abraham. See Genesis 28:4.” (Adam Clarke)
4 And give you the blessing of Abraham, to you and your descendants with you, that you may inherit the land in which you are a stranger, which God gave to Abraham.”
Jacob would receive the blessing of Abraham. And we are reminded here that this includes the land deal— "The promise of an inheritance for those heirs, Genesis 28:4. That thou mayest inherit the land of thy sojournings… Canaan was hereby entailed upon the seed of Jacob, exclusive of the seed of Esau. Isaac was now sending Jacob away into a distant country to settle there for some time; and lest this should look like disinheriting him, he here confirms the settlement of it upon him.” (Benson Commentary) “Isaac had before blessed him unwittingly; now he does it designedly. This blessing is more full than the former; it is a gospel blessing. This promise looks as high as heaven, of which Canaan was a type. That was the better country which Jacob and the other patriarchs had in view.” (Matthew Henry) Note: The promises belong to all who are of like faith as Abraham.
5 So Isaac sent Jacob away, and he went to Padan Aram, to Laban the son of Bethuel the Syrian, the brother of Rebekah, the mother of Jacob and Esau.
"In rather a formal fashion the author reports how Jacob obeyed the paternal injunction. The formality consists in repeating the name of the place to which, as well as that of the person to whom he went. The identity of this person is also established in a formal manner —his nationality and his relation to Jacob’s mother also being appended. This formality is the Hebrew way of emphasizing the importance of an event. For, certainly, very much hinged on this momentous journey, and very important issues depended on it.” (H C Leupold)
Genesis 28:6 Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him away to Padan Aram to take himself a wife from there, and that as he blessed him he gave him a charge, saying, “You shall not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan,” 7 and that Jacob had obeyed his father and his mother and had gone to Padan Aram. 8 Also Esau saw that the daughters of Canaan did not please his father Isaac. 9 So Esau went to Ishmael and took Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham’s son, the sister of Nebajoth, to be his wife in addition to the wives he had.
I understand that this post does not represent mainstream theology and is likely the product of my own imagination, but I must tell it. Take it, as it is, food for your thought.
Paul taught that "the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” (1 Cor 2:14) And thus it was with Esau.
Here is his blessing: "Behold, thy dwelling shall be the fatness of the earth, and of the dew of heaven from above; and by thy sword shalt thou live, and shalt serve thy brother; and it shall come to pass when thou shalt have the dominion, that thou shalt break his yoke from off thy neck." (Gen 27:39-40)
Esau did not receive the right of the first-born that normally went to the elder son, but he did receive a blessing from Isaac— his father— which, if adhered to, would end in his salvation- here depicted as "the dew of heaven from above.”
A BLESSING is a “pronouncement of the favor of God upon an assembled congregation… The practice of benediction or blessing is often regarded merely as a ritual of dismissal, but it is actually a pronouncement of God's gracious favor, to be given only by his ministers on the authority of Holy Scripture to faithful believers.” (Tyndale Bible Dictionary) Even for Esau, this is not a curse. The blessing was a map for success. He was to serve his brother, Jacob. He was to go to his tent and willingly subject himself to his lead, as patriarchal head.
But here in this text, it seems that his main concern was to "get the last will revoked." (Jamieson- Fausset-Brown) His aim was to please his father only to get a reward— Jacob’s blessing. “But a motive merely to please man, spoils the best of actions in God’s account." (Sutcliffe Commentary) So he took the instructions given by Isaac to Jacob... and applied them to himself; he married a relative. Yay, Esau! "It is probable that he thought by this means to ingratiate himself with his father, and so to get another and a better blessing. But, alas! he mends one fault by committing another, and taking a third wife, when he had one too many before." (Benson Commentary)
Rather than seeking to receive another blessing, Esau should have sought to have his dominion restored by his Creator and Redeemer, that the yoke might be broken from off his neck. A proper path would be to reconcile with his younger brother and to humbly serve him in love with a pure heart. He could have offered a peace offering and to be his Eliezer, perhaps to secure a wife for him from Padan Aram.
Genesis 28:10 Now Jacob went out from Beersheba and went toward Haran.
It is thought that he went alone, without entourage, with his “staff" only. See Genesis 32:10. "It is not strange that Jacob went alone,...when his grandfather’s servant was attended with a so great retinue, Genesis 24:1-67, because attendance was then necessary to procure him reputation, and to obtain the consent of the virgin and her parents to long a journey; but here, as it was unnecessary, so it would have been troublesome and prejudicial, exposing him both to the envy and snares of his brother Esau, which by this private departure he did avoid. Besides, God in his wise providence did so order this, and some other matters of the like nature, for the greater illustration of his care and kindness towards his children.” (Matthew Poole's Commentary) Yahweh went with him.
11 So he came to a certain place and stayed there all night, because the sun had set. And he took one of the stones of that place and put it at his head, and he lay down in that place to sleep.
"As he was travelling from Beersheba, where Isaac was then staying (Genesis 26:25), to Haran, Jacob came to a place where he was obliged to stop all night, because the sun had set. The words 'he hit (lighted) upon the place,' indicate the apparently accidental, yet really divinely appointed choice of this place for his night-quarters; and the definite article points it out as having become well known through the revelation of God that ensued.” (Keil & Delitzsch Commentary)
"Jewish commentators identify the place with Mount Moriah, and say that the stone which Jacob placed under his head was one of those which had formed the altar upon which Isaac had been bound for sacrifice. “ (Ellicott's Commentary) Later, "In 2 Chronicles 3:1, Mt Moriah is the place of Solomon's temple, specifically identified with the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite (cf. 2 Sm 24; 1 Chr 21)…” (Tyndale Bible Dictionary) It is also the area of the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross of Calvary where the Ladder was made known by the rending of the veil in the temple.
12 Then he dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.
"Such a clear-cut dream must embody a deeper symbolism. Why a ladder? Why the angels? Why the Lord above it? Answer: In order to convey by a visible sign what the words themselves also convey as Yahweh speaks. The ladder symbolizes the uninterrupted communion between heaven and earth, mediated through God’s holy angels and instituted for the care and the needs of God’s children on earth. The angels bear man’s needs before God and God’s help to man. For this reason Jesus could alluding specifically to this passage (Joh 1:51), claim that the truth involved was most significantly displayed in His own life, for in Him the divine and the human met in perfect union.” (H C Leupold) “There is also an expression in the first chapter of John, bearing upon Jacob’s remarkable vision; it is Christ’s word to Nathanael, 'Verily, verily, I say unto you, hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man' (Ver. 51).Now, this vision of Jacob’s is a very blessed disclosure of divine grace to Israel.” (C H Mackintosh)
13 And behold, the Lord stood above it and said: “I am the Lord God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants. 14 Also your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread abroad to the west and the east, to the north and the south; and in you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.
"It is remarkable that Abraham is styled his father, that is, his actual grandfather, and covenant father.” (Barnes’ Notes) "Jacob had no doubt heard about the great God who appeared to Abraham and to Isaac, but now this same God has a personal encounter with Jacob himself. This was a life-changing experience for Jacob.” (David Guzik) "This is the first theophany that Jacob experiences of a total of seven according to the following count: the second, 31:3, cf. 11-13; the third, 32:1, 2; the fourth, 32:24-30; the fifth, 35:1; the sixth, 35:9-13; the seventh, Ge 46:1-4. Men may differ in their mode of counting but not to any very great extent. Dreams are a legitimate mode of divine revelation. “ (H C Leupold)
"After identifying Himself as Yahweh, the God of Abraham and Isaac, and so tying up this present revelation with those that preceded, Yahweh, the merciful covenant God, proceeds to confirm to Jacob 'the blessing of Abraham,' which Isaac had bestowed upon him just at his departure.” (H C Leupold) "The land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants. Also your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth. You shall spread abroad to the west and the east, to the north and the south." They would fill the land one day. "And in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed." From his line Messiah will spring forth to rescue His people.
15 Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you.”
“He then promises to Jacob personally to be with him, protect him, and bring him back in safety.” (Barnes’ Notes) This is "the same kind of promise found in Philippians 1:6 being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. God won’t let us go until His work is complete in us.” (David Guzik)
“Wherever we are, we are safe, if we have God’s favourable presence with us. He knew not, but God foresaw, what hardships he would meet with in his uncle’s service, and therefore promiseth to preserve him in all places. God gives his people graces and comforts accommodated to the events that shall be, as well as to those that are. He was now going an exile into a place far distant, but God promiseth him to bring him again to this land. He seemed to be forsaken of all his friends, but God gives him this assurance, I will not leave thee.” (Benson Commentary)
16 Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is 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 Then Jacob rose early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put at his head, set it up as a pillar, and poured oil on top of it.
"Since the pillar marked a holy experience, it was in this instance consecrated by the pouring out of oil upon it (cf. Exod. 40:9-11)… In addition to the consecration expressed by the anointing there is the possibility that the oil also gave expression to the idea of sacrifice and was offered as sacrifice, for in 35:14 in consecrating the Bethel altar Jacob poured a drink offering and oil upon the altar...” (H C Leupold), signifying the service of God.
19 And he called the name of that place Bethel [literally House of God]; but the name of that city had been Luz previously. 20 Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me, and keep me in this way that I am going, and give me bread to eat and clothing to put on, 21 so that I come back to my father’s house in peace, then the Lord shall be my God. 22 And this stone which I have set as a pillar shall be God’s house, and of all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to You.”
"God did not want Jacob’s altar, nor his tenths; He wanted Jacob.” (A. Maclaren) "Jacob is not displaying a mind ignorant of higher values but merely unfolding the potentialities of God’s promise (v. 15), 'I will keep thee and bring thee again,' etc. When he says: 'If Yahweh will be God to me,' he is paraphrasing the promise (v. 15): 'I am with thee.' Consequently, in all this Jacob is not betraying a cheap, mercenary spirit, bargaining with God for food and drink and saying: 'If I get these, then Yahweh shall be my God.' That would be about the cheapest case of arrogant bargaining with God recorded anywhere. In fact, it is difficult even with the very best construction that it is possible to put upon the words to draw the clause wehayah yahweh lî le’lohim into the apodosis: 'then shall the Lord be my God' (A.V. and Luther). The Lord was his God. Jacob was not an unconverted man still debating whether or not to be on the Lord’s side and here making an advantageous bargain out of the case. They who postpone his conversion to a time twenty years later at the river Jabbok completely misunderstand Jacob. Not only does the construction of the Hebrew allow for our interpretation, it even suggests it. The ‘if' clauses of the protasis all run along after the same pattern as converted perfects—future: 'if He will,' etc., including: 'if Yahweh will be, or prove Himself, God to me.’..." (H C Leupold) then I will return to this place— Canaan land— even to the altar at Bethel.