41 “And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing wherewith his father blessed him; and Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob. 42 And the words of Esau her elder son were told to Rebekah; and she sent and called Jacob her younger son, and said unto him, Behold, thy brother Esau, as touching thee, doth comfort himself, purposing to kill thee. 43 Now therefore, my son, obey my voice; and arise, flee thou to Haran to my brother; and tarry with him a few days, 44 until thy brother’s fury turn away; until thy brother’s anger turn away from thee, and he forget that which thou hast done to him; 45 then I will send, and fetch thee from thence; why should I be bereaved of you both in one day?”
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, of the daughters of the land, what good shall my life do me?”
1 “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. 2 Arise, go to Paddan-aram, 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. 3 And God Almighty bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a company of peoples; 4 and give thee the blessing of Abraham, to thee, and to thy seed with thee; that thou mayest inherit the land of thy sojournings, which God gave unto Abraham. 5 And Isaac sent away Jacob; and he went to Paddan-aram unto Laban, son of Bethuel the Syrian, the brother of Rebekah, Jacob’s and Esau’s mother.”
10 “And Jacob went out from Beer-sheba, and went toward Haran. 11 And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took one of the stones of the place, and put it under his head, and lay down in that place to sleep. 12 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. 13 And, behold, the Lord stood above it, and said, I am the Lord, the 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; 14 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. 15 And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee whithersoever 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.”
16 And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the Lord is in this place; and I knew it not. 17 And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, 18 and this is the gate of heaven. 19 And he called the name of that place Beth-el; but the name of the city was Luz at the first. 20 And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, 21 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, 22 and this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God’s house; and of all that Thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto Thee.”
2. In the night. Dream. (a) The ladder. (b) The angels. (c) God. Verse 12. Note 1. (d) The promise. Repeat verses 13-15. (e) The effect upon Jacob. Verses 16, 17. Note 2.
3. In the morning. (a) Stone. Verses 18, 22. (b) The place. Verse 19. (c) The vow. Verses 20-22.
Suggestive Readings.—“Patriarchs and Prophets,” pp. 183-188; Review and Herald, November 11, 1890; “Great Controversy,” page 19; “Christian Education,” pages 155, 156.
Notes
1. This is the only way back to God. “Here the Redeemer identifies Himself as the mystic ladder that makes communication possible between heaven and earth.” “In assuming humanity Christ planted the ladder firmly upon the earth. The ladder reaches unto the highest heaven, and God’s glory shines from its summit, and illuminates its whole length, while the angels pass to and fro with messages from God to man, with petition and praise from man to God. Through the divine nature, Christ was one with the Father; and by assuming humanity, He identified Himself with man. He ‘being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God; but made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men.’ In the vision of Jacob was represented the union of the human and the divine in Christ. As the angels pass to and fro on the ladder, God is represented as looking down with favor upon the children of men, because of the merit of His Son.” “The sinner can not take one step unless the Spirit draws him; he must cling to Christ if he would be saved. If he ascends to heaven, it must be by mounting up step by step the whole height of Christ’s work, so that Christ shall be his wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. The gaining of eternal life is no easy thing. By living faith we are to keep on reaching forward, ascending the ladder round by round, seeing and taking the necessary steps; and yet we must understand that not one holy thought, not one unselfish act, can be originated in self. It is only through Christ that there can be any virtue in humanity. Without Christ we can do no good thing, but with Him we may do all things.”—Review, 1890, No. 44.
2. Note the number and the order of the promises made to Jacob in verses 13-15, and the fitness of each to comfort and encourage him ever after that memorable night. What must have been his state of mind and heart on the night previous in order to receive so glorious a revelation concerning the future of himself and his posterity! (a) He felt lonely; but God said, “I am with thee.” (b) He was fearful; but God said, “I will keep thee.” (c) He felt forsaken; but God said, “I will not leave thee.” (d) He had no property with him; and his father’s blessing seemed lost forever; but God said, “I will do that which I have spoken to thee of.” (e) He thought that he might be slain; but God said, “In thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.” How terrible must Jacob’s misdeeds have seemed to him after that angel vision! but how precious the plan of salvation!
Additional Study
(1) Trace carefully the causes of Jacob’s exile. Are we in banishment? If so, why? (2) From the human standpoint, who was most prosperous then, Jacob or Esau? (3) Note that Jacob was forced from lack of faith to do what Isaac was forbidden to do,—go to Haran, thus risking his spiritual to save his natural life. (4) What did Jacob take with him when he left home, (a) of the earthly inheritance? (b) of the heavenly birthright? Gen. 28: 18; 32: 10. (5) Note the order of the causes and effects of sin in the human soul,—lack of faith, lack of love, distrustful of man, human planning, human working, bitter hatred on the part of his brother, distrustful of God’s protecting care, fearful, fleeing for life. (6) Note the order of return to God,—distress, humility, loneliness, repentance, prayer, visions of glory. (7) In what special promise did Adam and Eve see Christ? Did Abel? Enoch? Noah? Abraham? Isaac? Jacob? We? (8) What does every one behold who really sees Christ? See John 1: 51. There are two ways of seeing Him—by fear and by love. “This is the finger of God,” said the tremblingly opposing Egyptian astrologers; and the heart of Pharaoh was hardened. Ex. 8: 19. Love discerns Him. “It is the Lord,” said the loving and beloved disciple; and the hearts of the disciples were melted with joy. John 21: 7, 8. Behold the ladder; study the ladder; walk upon the ladder; see the angels with you on the ladder; behold God above the ladder.
