Genesis 28

Jacob’s Departure

1 Isaac called up Jacob and said, ‘Listen, do not mess with none of these Canaanite women.’

2 ‘Head over to your uncle Laban’s crib in Paddan Aram and find yourself a wife from your mom’s side of the family.’

3 ‘May God bless you big, give you mad kids, and turn you into a whole nation.’

4 ‘And may He hook you up with the same blessings He gave Abraham, so you and your future fam can own this land.’

5 So Isaac sent Jacob on his way, and dude headed straight to Laban, his mom’s brother.

Esau Tries to Make It Right

6 When Esau peeped that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him to find a wife, he also noticed that Isaac did not want him marrying any Canaanite chicks.

7 Jacob listened to his parents and bounced to Paddan Aram.

8 Esau saw how much his parents hated Canaanite women, so he tried to fix it.

9 He went and married Mahalath, Ishmael’s daughter, Abraham’s granddaughter, to add to his other wives.

Jacob’s Dream at Bethel

10 Jacob left Beersheba and started heading toward Haran.

11 When the sun went down, he stopped for the night, grabbed a rock to use as a pillow, and knocked out.

12 While he was sleeping, he had this crazy dream of a stairway reaching from earth to heaven, with angels going up and down on it.

13 At the top of the ladder, the Lord stood and said, ‘Listen, I am the God of your granddad Abraham and your dad Isaac. This land you are crashing on, It is yours, fam, and your descendants.’

14 ‘Your people are going to spread out in all directions, and the whole world is going to be blessed because of you and your fam.’

15 ‘Do not trip, I am with you. I will protect you wherever you go and bring you back here. I will not leave until I make all this happen.’

16 Jacob woke up and said, ‘Whoa, the Lord is in this spot, and I had no idea.’

17 He was shook and said, ‘This place is mad holy. This must be the gate to heaven!’

18 Early the next morning, Jacob grabbed the rock he used as a pillow, stood it up as a marker, and poured oil on it to bless it.

19 He called the place Bethel, which means ‘House of God.’ Before this, it was called Luz.

20 Then Jacob made a deal with God: ‘If You roll with me, protect me, and hook me up with food and clothes,’

21 ‘And if You bring me back to my dad’s crib in one piece, then You will be my God.’

22 ‘This rock will be Your house, and I will give You a tenth of everything You give me.’