Genesis 27:46- And Rebekah said to Isaac, I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth: if Jacob take a wife of the daughters of Heth, such as these which are of the daughters of the land, what good shall my life do me?
Rebekah not only wanted to save Jacob's life, but she also wanted him to find a wife that loved the Lord and would serve Him. Isaac agreed with this decision.
Genesis 28:1-5- And Isaac called Jacob, and blessed him, and charged him, and said unto him, Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan. Arise, go to Padanaram, to the house of Bethuel thy mother's father; and take thee a wife from thence of the daughters of Laban thy mother's brother. And God Almighty bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a multitude of people; And give thee the blessing of Abraham, to thee, and to thy seed with thee; that thou mayest inherit the land wherein thou art a stranger, which God gave unto Abraham. And Isaac sent away Jacob: and he went to Padanaram unto Laban, son of Bethuel the Syrian, the brother of Rebekah, Jacob's and Esau's mother.
So, Isaac sends Jacob away to get a wife from Syria. But, Esau hears about this and he is mad! I guess Esau thinks that Isaac should punish Jacob for being deceitful.
Genesis 28:6-9- When Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob, and sent him away to Padanaram, to take him a wife from thence; and that as he blessed him he gave him a charge, saying, Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan; And that Jacob obeyed his father and his mother, and was gone to Padanaram; And Esau seeing that the daughters of Canaan pleased not Isaac his father; Then went Esau unto Ishmael, and took unto the wives which he had Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael Abraham's son, the sister of Nebajoth, to be his wife.
Esau is so mad that he takes one of Ishmael's daughter to be his wife! Remember, Ishmael was sent away because he wasn't promised from God. Again, Esau is doing what Esau wants to do without asking God what he should do.
Jacob, on the other hand, obeyed his father's command. God takes notice of everything in our lives- our deceit, our obedience, and even our desires. God can see that Jacob desires the important things.
Genesis 28:10-15- And Jacob went out from Beersheba, and went toward Haran. And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it. And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I am the LORD God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.
This is the first time the Bible mentions God speaking to Jacob. Perhaps Jacob grew up hearing how the Lord had made a promise to Abraham and Isaac. I'm certain he knew that God promised a family as many as the stars of heaven and the sands of the sea to both his father and his grandfather. But, this may be the first time that God spoke this promise directly to Jacob!
Genesis 28:16-17- And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not. And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.
Jacob woke up and thought that God spoke to him because he was in a certain place. But, what Jacob must not have realized was that God is everywhere! The Bible says in Psalm 139:7-10- Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.
God spoke to Jacob because He knew it was time Jacob heard what all the birthright and the blessing contained! Not because Jacob was in a special location.
Genesis 28:18-22- And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it. And he called the name of that place Bethel: but the name of that city was called Luz at the first. And Jacob vowed 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 raiment to put on, So that I come again to my father's house in peace; then shall the LORD be my God: And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God's house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.
Jacob tries to make a deal with God. He says that if God blesses him and brings him home again that he will give God 10% of all that he gets. It's kind of silly to think that we can make deals with God, because He already owns everything! But Jacob is so use to getting what he wants through deal making and deceit that he doesn't even stop to think that God's promises are unchangeable!
Did you know that God's promises are unchangeable? God makes some promises to us! He promises to give us salvation. He promises to provide our needs. He promises to never leave us. And God doesn't go back on His promises!
