The blessings of the Abrahamic covenant were passed on from Isaac to his son, Jacob (28:1-5). Esau, Jacob’s twin brother, had sold his birthright (25:29-34) and any blessing associated with being the eldest brother had been taken away because of the deceit of his mother, Rebekah, and his brother (27:29). Jacob then departed from Canaan in order to marry a woman from the daughters of Laban, but as he was journeying from Beersheba to Haran he stopped to rest in Luz (28:10-11; see also 28:19). When he fell asleep, Jacob dreamed of a “…stairway that reached from the earth up to heaven. And he saw the angels of God going up and down the stairway” (28:12, NLT). The Lord appeared at the top of the stairway and confirmed the Abrahamic covenant with Jacob, which promised a land of their own (28:13), numerous descendants (28:14a), and that through him all nations of the earth would be blessed (28:14b). Along with confirming the covenant, God promised Jacob His divine protection until the covenant had been fulfilled (28:15).
When Jacob awoke from his sleep he exclaimed, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it. How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!” (28:16-17). He then took the stone on which he had slept, set it up as a pillar, and poured oil on top of it (28:18). Setting something up as a pillar indicated it as a special place of religious worship. The name of the city where he had slept was called Luz, but he changed the name to Bethel, which meant “house of God” (28:19). All of Jacob’s actions at Bethel were an expression of his joy over God’s providential protection and His confirmation that the Abrahamic covenant would be fulfilled through him. Jacob then made a vow to God saying, “If God will indeed be with me and protect me on this journey, and if he will provide me with food and clothing, and if I return safely to my father’s home, then the Lord will certainly be my God. And this memorial pillar I have set up will become a place for worshiping God, and I will present to God a tenth of everything he gives me” (28:20-22, NLT). These words were Jacob’s first expression of his faith in God and indicated that he wholeheartedly believed that God was capable of keeping His promises. Every person, like Jacob, must also arrive at a place where they believe God’s words to be true or not.
Dear God, I believe Your words to be true and respond by putting my faith in Your promises.
