Sermon Tone Analysis
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Background
Last week we saw the infamous story of Jacob’s deception and stealing of Esau’s birthright.
This pivotal moment in Jacob’s life shapes the rest of his story, and indeed the story of the nation of Israel.
The events of the previous chapter are a direct cause to Isaac sending Jacob away.
After Jacob stole Esau’s blessing by deceiving a blind Isaac, Rebekah overheard Esau’s plan to kill Jacob after the death of their father.
This shocked Rebekah into action, telling Jacob to flee to her brother Laban’s household in Haran, and then dramatically lamenting to Isaac over Esau’s choice of wives.
As we see here, Isaac agreed with Rebekah’s complaint:
This act was precisely what Abraham did for Isaac, so he would be familiar with the concept.
In fact, as we see in this chapter, it was his idea.
An interesting difference - Isaac sends Jacob himself rather than sending a servant like his father did.
Rebekah’s manipulation succeeded and she achieved her goal in saving her son, yet she assumed in her scheming that Jacob would only stay with Laban for a few days.
Perhaps she recalled her own experience, in which Abraham’s servant stayed only 1 night.
So Isaac sends Jacob to find a wife among his father’s, and his wife’s, kinsmen in Haran.
This is the most likely location for Haran, even though some scholars think that Abraham’s family still lived in Ur of the Chaldeans.
Haran would have been where Abraham’s father Terah settled before he died in Gen. 11:31.
Bethuel would have been Isaac’s cousin, which made Rebekah Isaac’s niece.
This also means that if Jacob marries a daughter of Laban, she would be his cousin.
Isaac blesses Jacob in a way that is reminiscent of Abraham’s blessings given by God.
Note the use of the title El Shaddai - this is the second time this has been used in Scripture.
God honors His generational blessing to achieve His purpose of blessing the nations of the earth.
At the time of Jacob’s leaving, he would be roughly 75 years old, the same age as his grandfather when he left his father’s household in Haran.
How bitter and sad this must have made Esau feel, to see his father bless the brother who stole the blessing he had been promised.
Though Jacob was a deceiver to his father, at this point he has been characterized by his obedience to his parents.
At this point, Esau already has 2 Hittite wives.
He also wanted to show his obedience and please his father, so his solution was to take another wife who was not from Canaan.
Rather than marry from his mother’s side like Jacob, Esau goes to his father’s family.
Ishmael and Esau are mirror images - the firstborn of their fathers, the son not chosen to receive the generational blessing, and being rebellious.
Esau too would come to live in the land east of where Jacob lived in Canaan.
Jacob has gone on his way, and leaving his father’s tents he made it as far as where we see Bethel on the map.
Jacob’s dream was not an uncommon way for God to communicate with people, but this is only the 3rd time it is mentioned up to this point in Scripture - Abraham and Abimelech.
This dream, however, is quite significant.
The ladder, or stairway, is the stuff of legends, with wild speculation as to its meaning and even its earthly location.
There is a reminiscence of the tower of Babel with a bit of irony.
The simplest understanding of the vision is simply that God is choosing to reveal Himself to Jacob in this way so that he would know that this is in fact God.
The angels are simply ascending and descending, going into the world and into God’s presence in heaven.
Considering their function as messengers, this is not unusual.
A couple of interesting cross-references on this topic.
First is Satan:
Here’s where it gets interesting:
Jesus Himself either is, or has replaced, the ladder.
This can simply be understood as Him being the mediator between heaven and earth.
Another reason that God may have revealed Himself to Jacob in this way was to inaugurate him as a prophet of God, like his grandfather and his father before him.
God reiterates His promises and blessings to Jacob, as he had done with Abraham and with Isaac.
Same promises of land, descendants, and blessing.
Once again, all the families of the earth will be blessed because of Abraham and the generations after him.
God also explicitly promises to be with Jacob and to safely bring him back to the land of Canaan.
Jacob recognizes that where he was lying was a holy place, and used the stone he was sleeping on to create an upright pillar to mark its significance.
In his ignorance and pagan thinking, he thinks that God is located at this particular location.
He is unaware that God is in fact everywhere.
Bethel means “house of God.”
There will be a city named Luz that is later conquered by the Israelites, and is renamed Bethel after this naming by Jacob.
Jacob is the first patriarch to make a vow to God.
This is an interesting turn, as with Abraham God made all of the declarations.
Now Jacob is putting God to the test.
Though Jacob mirrors his father and grandfather, his lack of spiritual maturity is evident at this time.
God has some work to do on him.
God’s grace covers our shortcomings, and He is faithful in spite of us.
Jacob not only promises to follow God, but promises to build a house for God, and tithe to God.
Once again reminiscent of Abraham, and also will be prophetic for his descendants.
APPLICATION
God honors His generational blessing to achieve His purpose of blessing the nations of the earth.
God’s grace covers our shortcomings, and He is faithful in spite of us.
Next week, we will continue with the story of Jacob in Haran.
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