Genesis 28:16-17: “When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, ‘Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.’ He was afraid and said, ‘How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.’”
After his twin brother Esau had left, Jacob was called to his father’s bedside. His heart was heavy when he entered Isaac’s tent. He did not expect this to be a good conversation. To his surprise however, his father appeared to be cool, calm and collected.
With a sense of humor Isaac touched on the sore subject. “My son”, he said upon Jacob’s arrival, “this time I definitely know it’s you, because I have just sent off your brother Esau. He is on his way to Paran as we speak to choose a bride from the daughters of Uncle Ishmael.”
Contrite, Jacob apologized, “Dad, I am truly sorry for the mess I’ve made.” His father was quiet for a moment. Finally he said: “You’re sorry now, but sadly there are consequences to your actions.”
Jacob froze. Expecting the worst he replied: “I know that I deserve to be punished …” But his father interrupted him, saying: “My son, stop it. Look at me!” And when Jacob lifted his eyes to look at his father he detected a faint smile on his face. “I’m not mad at you anymore”, Isaac said.
Relief washed over Jacob. After the way his brother Esau had treated him the week before, it was a sight for sore eyes to see his father smile. “Listen carefully,” he continued, “Move to your grandfather’s family in Harran and get in touch with Uncle Laban. Marry into his family and stay there until Esau’s anger has subsided.” His face softened as he reminisced. “I remember our servant Eliezer bringing home your mother as if it was only yesterday. Oh what a day that was!”
Then Isaac’s expression turned serious. Everything was so very different now. He sighed and said: “Jacob, I cannot give you any bridal gifts. I have to send you away penniless on account of what you did to your brother. Do you understand?” Jacob sobbed as he hugged his father. He asked him, “Will I ever see you again?” His father encouraged him and said: “Lord willing, He will reunite us while I’m still alive. Remember that I have forgiven you. Go in peace my son!”
And Isaac spoke an ancient blessing over Jacob – the very blessing his father had spoken over him on the day he got married [Genesis 28:3-4]:
“May God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and increase your numbers until you become a community of peoples. May he give you and your descendants the blessing given to Abraham, so that you may take possession of the land where you now reside as a foreigner, the land God gave to Abraham.”
After a tearful goodbye Jacob saddled his donkey and left. Never had he been without his family. And although his father had released him with good wishes he still felt like an outcast.
The sun neared the horizon at the end of an eventful day when Jacob set up camp. He fed his donkey before he settled down near the campfire. Chewing on some dried figs, his eyelids grew heavier by the minute. Getting up, he looked for a smooth stone that he could use as a pillow. Under a scraggly broom tree he quickly drifted off and fell into a deep sleep.
In a dream, Jacob stood at the bottom of a staircase. Angels were everywhere. Some of them moved upstairs to report back to the King; others had received a brand-new mission and hurried downstairs to take off.
“How does infinity look like?” Jacob wondered in his dream. That’s when he beheld the Lord who stood on top of the mysterious stairway. Introducing Himself, the Lord said: “I am the God of Abraham and Isaac.”
Jacob was floored that he was able to see the Lord. “Am I dead?” he blurted out. The Lord smiled and said: “Don’t get too excited, Jacob. Your journey has just begun. You are going to be father of twelve tribes, and your descendants will spread out all over the earth. They will be too numerous to count, like the dust on the earth. Your descendants are going to be a tremendous blessing to mankind. So don’t be discouraged, for I am with you. You are not alone.”
The prophetic Word still reverberated in his heart when Jacob awoke the next morning. Astonished he said, “Wow! The Lord lives here and I had no idea.” Then he took the stone on which he had slept, leaned it against the broom tree and poured oil over it, saying: “I declare this a sacred location. And since God lives here I will name this place Bethel – the house of God.”
Face down Jacob lay on the ground to worship. This was his first personal encounter with God and the biggest surprise of his life – almost too good to be true. “How come the Lord never showed up in my childhood?” he wondered, “and why does He talk to me now, after all the ungodly things I have done?”
He was touched to the core that the God of his grandfather Abraham and his father Isaac had revealed Himself last night. But could he rely on Him in times to come? He felt that he barely knew Him. And what if He was a fickle God who was there for him on one day and nowhere to be found on another? Overwhelmed with conflicting emotions Jacob lifted his hands in prayer [Genesis 28: 20-22]:
“If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear so that I return safely to my father’s household, then the Lord will be my god and this stone that I have set up as a pillar will be God’s house, and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth.”
He paused to see if the Lord would speak again, but there was a profound silence. An inexplicable peace filled his heart as he packed his few belongings and headed east, to the land between Tigris and Euphrates where his relatives lived.