What Did God Promise Jacob in Genesis 28?

God promised Jacob, who was leaving for Haran, that He would be with him, watch over him, and bring him back again. Genesis 28 shows this promise through the dream Jacob had on the road and his response afterward. God said He would not leave Jacob until He had done all that He had promised.

Jacob set out on the road at his parents’ command

After Isaac called Jacob and blessed him, he told him to go to Paddan-aram. He also asked him to take a wife from among the daughters of his uncle Laban there. Isaac wanted Almighty God to bless Jacob and to give him and his descendants the blessing He had granted to Abraham.

Jacob set out for Paddan-aram in obedience to his parents’ command. As he left Beersheba and traveled toward Haran, he stopped for the night when the sun had set. He took one of the stones there, made it his pillow, and lay down to sleep.

The central event of Genesis 28 happens right on this journey. While Jacob was going toward a new destination, God appeared in a dream and spoke to him.

God continued His promise to Jacob

In the dream, Jacob saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven. The angels of God were ascending and descending on it. The LORD stood above it and identified Himself as the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac.

God said that the land on which Jacob was lying would be given to him and to his descendants. He also said that his descendants would become as numerous as the dust of the earth and spread out to the west and the east, to the north and the south. He said that all the families of the earth would be blessed through Jacob and his descendants.

This promise continues the blessing Isaac gave when he sent Jacob away. Isaac wanted the blessing granted to Abraham to be given to Jacob and his descendants. In the dream, God directly mentioned Abraham and Isaac and spoke personally about the promise concerning the land and the descendants.

God said He would be with him and watch over him

God did not only speak about the land and the descendants. He said He would be with Jacob and watch over him wherever he went. He also promised to bring Jacob back to this land.

At the end of that promise was a clear statement. God said He would not leave Jacob until He had fulfilled all that He had promised him. The central answer Jacob received in Genesis 28 is that God speaks His promise and remains with him until that promise is fulfilled.

When Jacob woke from his sleep, he said that the LORD was in that place, and he did not know it. He was afraid and called the place the house of God and the gate of heaven. In the morning he took the stone he had used as a pillow, set it up as a pillar, poured oil on top of it, and named that place Bethel.

Today, let’s write down one sentence of God’s promise

One thing to do today is to read Genesis 28:15 and write down one sentence of the promise God made to Jacob exactly as it is. You can choose a sentence such as “I am with you,” “and will watch over you wherever you go,” or “and will bring you back to this land.”

This action is not meant to assume that Jacob’s experience is the same as our situation. It is a small practice to check carefully what God actually said in the text. Just as Jacob set up a stone in response to the words he heard, we too can leave one sentence from the promise we confirmed in today’s passage.

Passage references

• Genesis 28:1-5
• Genesis 28:7
• Genesis 28:10-22