Bible Discussion Thread

I have read all of the comments on this chapter. I appreciate everyone's contributions. This chapter picks up where the previous chapter left off, with Jacob pronouncing his blessing on Jacob, conferring to Jacob the blessing of the promise and covenant Isaac received from his father, Abraham. This is a transfer of the blessing from one person of the promise to another. It is very important. Jacob receives the blessing without hesitation. Ishmael must have overseen this event, as he knew that his father had told Jacob to go to the house of Bethuel to take a wife, not from the Canaanite women, as Esau had done. This must have stung Esau. It seems he went out to Ishmael's family to take a wife, so he, too, could perhaps please his father. So, now he had three wives and through them he fathered 12 sons. He was when he tookk his first two wives. It is unknown how much time had passed, or if he had any children yet.

In the last chapter, it says Rebekah was sending him away to escape Esau, but here, Isaac and Rebekah send Jacob off to Padan Aram with the charge to take a wife from Laban's household Jacob obeys and heads out from Beer-Sheba. Along the way he stops in the area north of what is now Jerusalem, a place called Luz. He takes stones to serve as pillows and beds down for the night. I assume that this is an open field on a hill. During the night, he has a dream from the Lord. It is interesting that the angels go up and down. someone asked, "What does that mean?" I really don't know, but perhaps it is to show that Lord is the open gateway between heaven and earth. Perhaps t announce a restoration of the two way interactions of Adam in the Garden with the Lord. This would make this a prophetic dream. the Lord stands at the top of the ladder. It does establish that the angels are lower beings than the Lord and they serve him, as we should. Perhaps this is a nod to Paul's warning against the worship of angels.

The Lord speaks to Jacob. He announces Who He is and