< Genesis 28 >

1 Isaac called Jacob, blessed him, and commanded him, “You shall not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan.
Then Isaac sent for Jacob, and blessing him, said, Do not take a wife from among the women of Canaan;
2 Arise, go to Paddan Aram, to the house of Bethuel your mother’s father. Take a wife from there from the daughters of Laban, your mother’s brother.
But go to Paddan-aram, to the house of Bethuel, your mother's father, and there get yourself a wife from the daughters of Laban, your mother's brother.
3 May God Almighty bless you, and make you fruitful, and multiply you, that you may be a company of peoples,
And may God, the Ruler of all, give you his blessing, giving you fruit and increase, so that you may become an army of peoples.
4 and give you the blessing of Abraham, to you and to your offspring with you, that you may inherit the land where you travel, which God gave to Abraham.”
And may God give you the blessing of Abraham, to you and to your seed, so that the land of your wanderings, which God gave to Abraham, may be your heritage.
5 Isaac sent Jacob away. He went to Paddan Aram to Laban, son of Bethuel the Syrian, the brother of Rebekah, Jacob’s and Esau’s mother.
So Isaac sent Jacob away: and he went to Paddan-aram, to Laban, son of Bethuel the Aramaean, the brother of Rebekah, the mother of Jacob and Esau.
6 Now Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him away to Paddan Aram, to take him a wife from there, and that as he blessed him he gave him a command, saying, “You shall not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan;”
So when Esau saw that Isaac had given Jacob his blessing, and sent him away to Paddan-aram to get a wife for himself there, blessing him and saying to him, Do not take a wife from among the women of Canaan;
7 and that Jacob obeyed his father and his mother, and was gone to Paddan Aram.
And that Jacob had done as his father and mother said and had gone to Paddan-aram;
8 Esau saw that the daughters of Canaan didn’t please Isaac, his father.
It was clear to Esau that his father had no love for the women of Canaan,
9 So Esau went to Ishmael, and took, in addition to the wives that he had, Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham’s son, the sister of Nebaioth, to be his wife.
So Esau went to Ishmael and took Mahalath, the daughter of Abraham's son Ishmael, the sister of Nebaioth, to be his wife in addition to the wives he had.
10 Jacob went out from Beersheba, and went toward Haran.
So Jacob went out from Beer-sheba to go to Haran.
11 He came to a certain place, and stayed there all night, because the sun had set. He took one of the stones of the place, and put it under his head, and lay down in that place to sleep.
And coming to a certain place, he made it his resting-place for the night, for the sun had gone down; and he took one of the stones which were there, and putting it under his head he went to sleep in that place.
12 He dreamed and saw a stairway set upon the earth, and its top reached to heaven. Behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.
And he had a dream, and in his dream he saw steps stretching from earth to heaven, and the angels of God were going up and down on them.
13 Behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, “I am the LORD, the God of Abraham your father, and the God of Isaac. I will give the land you lie on to you and to your offspring.
And he saw the Lord by his side, saying, I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father, and the God of Isaac: I will give to you and to your seed this land on which you are sleeping.
14 Your offspring will be as the dust of the earth, and you will spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south. In you and in your offspring, all the families of the earth will be blessed.
Your seed will be like the dust of the earth, covering all the land to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south: you and your seed will be a name of blessing to all the families of the earth.
15 Behold, I am with you, and will keep you, wherever you go, and will bring you again into this land. For I will not leave you until I have done that which I have spoken of to you.”
And truly, I will be with you, and will keep you wherever you go, guiding you back again to this land; and I will not give you up till I have done what I have said to you.
16 Jacob awakened out of his sleep, and he said, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I didn’t know it.”
And Jacob, awaking from his sleep, said, Truly, the Lord is in this place and I was not conscious of it.
17 He was afraid, and said, “How awesome this place is! This is none other than God’s house, and this is the gate of heaven.”
And fear came on him, and he said, This is a holy place; this is nothing less than the house of God and the doorway of heaven.
18 Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put under his head, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil on its top.
And early in the morning Jacob took the stone which had been under his head, and put it up as a pillar and put oil on it.
19 He called the name of that place Bethel, but the name of the city was Luz at the first.
And he gave that place the name of Beth-el, but before that time the town was named Luz.
20 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 clothing to put on,
Then Jacob took an oath, and said, If God will be with me, and keep me safe on my journey, and give me food and clothing to put on,
21 so that I come again to my father’s house in peace, and the LORD will be my God,
So that I come again to my father's house in peace, then I will take the Lord to be my God,
22 then this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, will be God’s house. Of all that you will give me I will surely give a tenth to you.”
And this stone which I have put up for a pillar will be God's house: and of all you give me, I will give a tenth part to you.

< Genesis 28 >