February 3, 2023

God, the Promise Keeper

Genesis 28

Louie Garcia
Friday's Devo

February 3, 2023

Friday's Devo

February 3, 2023

Friday's Devo

February 3, 2023

Friday's Devo

February 3, 2023

Big Idea

We can trust God when we don't know how things will turn out.

Key Verse | Genesis 28:15

"Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you."

Genesis 28

Jacob Sent to Laban

1 Then Isaac called Jacob and blessed him and directed him, “You must not take a wife from the Canaanite women. 2 Arise, go to Paddan-aram to the house of Bethuel your mother's father, and take as your wife from there one of the daughters of Laban your mother's brother. 3 God Almighty 1 28:3 Hebrew El Shaddai bless you and make you fruitful and multiply you, that you may become a company of peoples. 4 May he give the blessing of Abraham to you and to your offspring with you, that you may take possession of the land of your sojournings that God gave to Abraham!” 5 Thus Isaac sent Jacob away. And he went to Paddan-aram, to Laban, the son of Bethuel the Aramean, the brother of Rebekah, Jacob's and Esau's mother.

Esau Marries an Ishmaelite

6 Now Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him away to Paddan-aram to take a wife from there, and that as he blessed him he directed him, “You must not take a wife from the Canaanite women,” 7 and that Jacob had obeyed his father and his mother and gone to Paddan-aram. 8 So when Esau saw that the Canaanite women did not please Isaac his father, 9 Esau went to Ishmael and took as his wife, besides the wives he had, Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham's son, the sister of Nebaioth.

Jacob's Dream

10 Jacob left Beersheba and went toward Haran. 11 And he came to a certain place and stayed there that night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place to sleep. 12 And he dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder 2 28:12 Or a flight of steps set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it! 13 And behold, the LORD stood above it 3 28:13 Or beside him and said, “I am the LORD, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. 14 Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. 15 Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” 16 Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it.” 17 And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.”

18 So early in the morning Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it. 19 He called the name of that place Bethel, 4 28:19 Bethel means the house of God but the name of the city was Luz at the first. 20 Then Jacob made 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 wear, 21 so that I come again to my father's house in peace, then the LORD shall be my God, 22 and this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God's house. And of all that you give me I will give a full tenth to you.”

Footnotes

[1] 28:3 Hebrew El Shaddai
[2] 28:12 Or a flight of steps
[3] 28:13 Or beside him
[4] 28:19 Bethel means the house of God

S2:025 Genesis 28

Listen Now

Dive Deeper | Genesis 28

Jacob's name means deceiver; and living up to it, he deceived his brother. Now he was on the run from Esau. Before his sudden departure, his parents imparted final directions on where to go and blessed him, linking him with the covenant made to Abraham (Genesis 17:1-8). Jacob was about to encounter something he did not deserve. He was a retreating liar who had nowhere to lay his head.

Of course, Jacob was not unique. We all are sinners, and sin leaves us alone and restless. Jacob, like the rest of mankind, was not worthy of or able to climb into heaven by his own effort.

However, something awesome happened! God's presence appeared to him in a dream. He saw a ladder (or stairway) to heaven, and God repeated Abraham's covenant promises. To cap it off, God gives him in Genesis 28:15 the divine assurance, "I am with you." This assurance is tied to God's promises.

God never leaves those He loves. His covenantal love is special, and we have this promised to us in the new covenant (Hebrews 8:6-13). Jacob was not looking for the gate of heaven; it came to him. Jacob never climbed the ladder because ultimately the ladder is Christ (John 1:51). By the mercy of God, Jesus descended upon us. May our response be like Jacob's "how awesome is this" (Genesis 28:17).

This month's memory verse

9  Whoever walks in integrity walks securely,
    but he who makes his ways crooked will be found out.

– Proverbs 10:9

Discussion Questions

1. How was God's promise to Jacob, "I am with you," fulfilled? How has this promise been fulfilled for you?

2. Genesis 28:17 says, "And he was afraid and said, 'How awesome is this place! This is no other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.'" This holy fear for God's house is a strong reverence. How do you show reverence for God when you gather with other believers for corporate worship?  What about your private worship?

3. In Jacob's dream, he never actually climbed the ladder to heaven. Why do you think this is significant? What does this tell us about salvation?

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Hugh Stephenson

Q1. He was "with me” even when I didn’t want Him to be. Provision, protection and patience that could only come from a supernatural source. Q2. Being transparent, I imagine I am singing directly to Jesus. Loudly. I focus on what He did for me and how I deserve less than nothing. He has given me an unquenchable thirst for His Word, Spirit, and people. I am thankful for our worship team as every song carries me with it. Q3. IDK :) "The ladder was a visible symbol of the real and uninterrupted fellowship between God in heaven and His people upon earth. The angels upon it carry up the wants of men to God, and bring down the assistance and protection of God to men. The ladder stood there upon the earth, just where Jacob was lying in solitude, poor, helpless, and forsaken by men.” TC’s Notes-
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Hugh Stephenson

For years Jacob was one of my favorite figures. I didn’t focus so much on the meaning of his name as “to deceive/cheat.” I was more focused on his being very focused on doing “whatever it takes” to get the deal done. I was recently reminded that he may have learned from his mother. :0 So, again I ask myself, “why did God have the Holy Spirit have Moses put this in here?” The audience is the Exodus Generation after they high tailed it out of Egypt. Presumably they were asking the questions- Who is Yahweh? Why are we here? What are we supposed to be doing? Same ones I have asked. I understand the “Sunday School Answer”. He invites me in. But doesn’t need me. But there seems to be more going on here.
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Hugh Stephenson

Also, what’s with Jacob’s HIGHLY conditional response, Genesis 28:20-22. Reminds me of a pastor’s comment- We pray or even tell God, “Back me, bless me and bail me out if I fail.” “If a person cannot go to God, it is because he has something secret which he does not intend to give up— he may admit his sin but would no more give up that thing than he could fly under his own power.” https://utmost.org/the-focus-of-our-message/ “Many believers bargain with God as Jacob did here. They agree to worship Him on their terms, rather than because God has proven Himself faithful in the past. God often accommodates such weak faith, but the fact that He does so does not commend the practice of bargaining with God.” TC Notes
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Sue Bohlin

Wonderful devo, Louie! Especially loved this: “Jacob never climbed the ladder because ultimately the ladder is Christ.” The ladder/staircase came down from heaven to earth because God is the initiator of relationship with us. There’s an intriguing echo to this in Matthew 27:51 when the veil of the temple was torn in two FROM TOP TO BOTTOM—because like the ladder, it was the work of God Himself. How appropriate that after this amazing dream and promise from God, Jacob’s response was one of fear. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Prov. 9:10), but we sure don’t see very much of it these days. We—teachers, parents, grandparents, fellow Christ-followers—would do well to grow in this area of discipleship and teach it to those who will listen. Dr. Constable had two excellent points that really resonated with me: 1) Jacob was the second person in the Bible to hear the assurance “I am with you” (v. 15). Isaac was the first (cf. 26:3, 24). This was a promise that God later repeated to Moses (Exod. 3:12); Joshua (Josh. 1:5), Gideon (Judg. 6:16), regarding Immanuel (Isa. 7:14; Matt. 1:23), and to all Christians (Matt. 28:20; Heb. 13:5). 2) “The assurance of God’s presence should bring about in every believer the same response of worship and confidence it prompted in Jacob. This is the message from the beginning: God by grace visits His people and promises them protection and provision so that they might be a blessing to others. They in turn were to respond in faith, fearing Him, worshiping Him, offering to Him, vowing to Him, and making memorials for future worshipers at such places.”
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Michael Scaman

We used to sing 'we are climbing Jacobs ladder' in grade school at St Joseph Catholic School but the nuns didn't explain what it meant.. Jesus takes the image and applies it to himself in John 1:51 saying you will see angels ascending and descending to heaven on the son of man, just as Jacob saw the angels going up and down a ladder to and from heaven. This points to Jesus as our ladder between heaven and earth.
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Michael Scaman

Esau realizes how disappointed Isaac was in his choice of wives and takes a third wife, marries a second cousin Ishmaelite. Jacob is on the run to Laban's home and gets one more wife than he even wanted or expected. God met on the way there and on the way there and on the way back. I don't think I could sleep with a rock as pillow . Sounds uncomfortable. This shows us when life is crazy God is still working. Like the Psalms 34 :Taste and see the Lord is good" written when King David had to drool over his beard to escape a dangerous Philistine ruler.
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Michael Sisson

Re: Gen 28:11 Gen 28:11 (NASB) He came to >>>[*Lit “the place”]<<< *a certain place and spent the night there, because the sun had set; and he took one of the stones of the place and put it under his head, and lay down in that place. The Hebrew indicates Jacob didn’t just come to “a place” but rather “THE place,” implying a place of divine appointment. Re: Gen 28:12 In His response to Nathanael in (Jn 1:51), Yeshua (Jesus) alludes to Jacob’s dream and associates the Ladder with Himself. Re: Gen 28:17 Gen 28:17 (NASB) He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the >>>house of God,<<< and this is the >>>gate of heaven.”<<< See also Mt 7:13-14; Jn 2:19-21. Re: Gen 28:18 Gen 28:18 (NASB) So Jacob rose early in the morning, and took >>>the stone<<< that he had put under his head and set it up as a pillar and >>>poured oil on its top.<<< See “stone” or “rock” in Gen 49:24; Dt 32:31; 1Sa 2:2; Ps 18:31; Ps 118:22; Isa 8:14; Isa 28:16; Rom 9:33; 1Pet 2:5-8 Thus, Jacob’s “pillow” becomes "the anointed stone,” a type of Messiah (Heb: “Mashiach” or Eng: “Anointed One,”) Re: Gen 28:22 Gen 28:22 (NASB) “This stone, which I have set up as a pillar, will be God's house, and >>>of all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to You.”<<< Will that include a tenth of Jacob's descendants?
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Linda Green

“Sin leaves us restless and alone”. So sad but so true. Gen. 28:20-21 reeks of pride and control. That is how I used to pray also: “If you do things to please me, then I’ll let you be God.” A favorite preacher pointed out if my allowing God to be God is contingent on anything, that thing is my real god. When I get angry at God for not obeying me… what’s wrong with that picture? Everything. Thankful Jesus loves me anyway and calls me to walk with Him in humble submission. One day in Heaven that will be easy- here, I need so much help from the Holy Spirit.
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Amy Lowther

1. The Lord became Jacob’s God. -In completing a walk on tryout for the MLS Columbus Crew, I scored a goal in a three on three game. 2. In corporate worship and in private worship, I listen for information in the sermon and in the songs that helps me become a stronger, healthier person like God prefers. 3. He’s showing his respect for God and Jesus. -Salvation is a gift.