Genesis 28
1 Isaac called for Jacob and blessed him. “Don't marry a Canaanite woman,” he ordered him.
And so Isaac called for Jacob, and he blessed him, and he instructed him, saying: “Do not be willing to accept a mate from the family of Canaan.
2 “Leave right away and go to Paddan-aram, to the home of Bethuel, your mother's father. Find yourself a wife there—a daughter of Laban, your mother's brother.
But go, and journey to Mesopotamia of Syria, to the house of Bethuel, your mother’s father, and there accept for yourself a wife from the daughters of Laban, your maternal uncle.
3 God Almighty bless you and may your descendants be so numerous that you become the ancestor of many nations.
And may God almighty bless you, and may he cause you to increase and also to multiply, so that you may be influential among the people.
4 May he grant you and your descendants the same blessing he gave to Abraham, so that you may take over the land where you now live as a foreigner, the land God gave to Abraham.”
And may he give the blessings of Abraham to you, and to your offspring after you, so that you may possess the land of your sojourning, which he promised to your grandfather.”
5 So Isaac sent Jacob on his way. He traveled to Paddan-aram, to Laban, son of Bethuel the Aramean. Laban was the brother of Rebekah, the mother of Jacob and Esau.
And when Isaac had dismissed him, setting out, he went to Mesopotamia of Syria, to Laban, the son of Bethuel, the Syrian, the brother to Rebekah, his mother.
6 Esau found out that Isaac had blessed Jacob and had sent him to Paddan-aram to find a wife there, and that when he blessed him he ordered him, “Don't marry a Canaanite woman.”
But Esau, seeing that his father had blessed Jacob and had sent him into Mesopotamia of Syria, to take a wife from there, and that, after the blessing, he had instructed him, saying: ‘You shall not accept a wife from the daughters of Canaan,’
7 He also discovered that Jacob had done what his father and mother told him and had left for Paddan-aram.
and that Jacob, obeying his parents, had gone into Syria,
8 This made Esau realize how much his father disliked Canaanite women.
having evidence also that his father did not look with favor upon the daughters of Canaan,
9 So he went to Ishmael's family and married an additional wife—Mahalath, the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham's son, the sister of Nebaioth.
he went to Ishmael, and he took as a wife, beside those he had before, Mahalath, the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham’s son, the sister of Nebaioth.
10 In the meantime Jacob had set off from Beersheba on his way to Haran.
Meanwhile Jacob, having departed from Beersheba, continued on to Haran.
11 He arrived after sunset at a particular place and stopped there for the night. He picked up a stone, put it under his head, lay down and went to sleep.
And when he had arrived at a certain place, where he would rest after the setting of the sun, he took some of the stones that lay there, and placing them under his head, he slept in the same place.
12 He dreamed he saw a stairway that started on earth, and the top reached all the way into heaven. He saw God's angels going up and down on it.
And he saw in his sleep: a ladder standing upon the earth, with its top touching heaven, also, the Angels of God ascending and descending by it,
13 Then he saw the Lord standing over him, who said, “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham, and the God of Isaac. I'm giving you and your descendants the land you're lying on.
and the Lord, leaning upon the ladder, saying to him: “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father, and the God of Isaac. The land, in which you sleep, I will give to you and to your offspring.
14 Your descendants will be as numerous as the dust of the earth, and will spread out west and east, and north and south. Everyone on earth will be blessed by your descendants.
And your offspring will be like the dust of the earth. You will spread abroad to the West, and to the East, and to the North, and to the Meridian. And in you and in your offspring, all the tribes of the earth shall be blessed.
15 Listen! I am with you and will take care of you wherever you go. I will bring you back to this country. I won't leave you because I'm going to do what I've promised you.”
And I will be your guardian wherever you will journey, and I will bring you back into this land. Neither will I dismiss you, until I have accomplished all that I have said.”
16 When Jacob woke up he said to himself, “The Lord is right here, in this place, and I didn't realize it!”
And when Jacob had awakened from sleep, he said, “Truly, the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.”
17 He became frightened and said, “This is a scary place! It must be the house of God and the entrance to heaven.”
And being terrified, he said: “How terrible this place is! This is nothing other than the house of God and the gateway of heaven.”
18 When Jacob got up in the morning he took the stone he'd put under his head and set it upright as a stone pillar and poured some olive oil on it.
Therefore, Jacob, arising in the morning, took the stone which he had placed under his head, and he set it up as monument, pouring oil over it.
19 He named the place “Bethel,” (previously it was called Luz).
And he called the name of the city, ‘Bethel,’ which before was called Luz.
20 Jacob also made a solemn promise, saying, “God, if you will be with me, and take care of me on my journey, and give me food to eat and clothes to wear
And then he made a vow, saying: “If God will be with me, and will guard me along the way by which I walk, and will give me bread to eat and clothing to wear,
21 so I can return safely to my father's home, then you Lord will be my God.
and if I will return prosperously to my father’s house, then the Lord will be my God,
22 This stone pillar that I've set up will be the house of God, and I will give you one tenth of all you give me.”
and this stone, which I have set up as a monument, will be called ‘the House of God.’ And from all the things that you will give to me, I will offer tithes to you.”
