I devoted one of my recent Blog entries, God’s Promises Continue, to the amazing story of Isaac blessing Jacob, as well as reaffirming the covenant of blessing, which was given to Abraham. I wrote that we see how God repeats the promise again in order for us to understand that He has chosen a specific line in which to fulfill the blessing; it was first given to Abram in Genesis 12, then to Isaac, and now, here in Genesis 28, to Jacob and his descendants. Please do not miss the key fact that the covenant included 1) a people, and 2) a land (which ultimately belongs to God)! God gave this Land to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as an inheritance. They are to obey God, to be a people set apart unto Him, and remember that their job was – and still is – to care for the Land that God gave them.

God is always faithful to His promises; He is not a liar, nor does He go back on His word. That is a great promise in itself, on which we can completely rest!

As one continues to read Genesis 28, we get to the wonderful and important story of Jacob’s dream:

“Then Jacob departed from Beersheba and went toward Haran. And he came to 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. And he had a dream, and behold, a ladder was set on the earth with its top reaching to heaven; and behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. And behold, the LORD stood above it and said, “I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie, I will give it to you and to your descendants. “Your descendants shall also be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread out to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south; and in you and in your descendants shall all the families of the earth be blessed. “And 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 28:10-15

I find it very interesting that Isaac’s blessing, which was indeed not just a blessing, but also a covenant, was not enough in this very specific story. God knew the future; He knew that there would be those who would divert the truth, divert His story (History), and would try to deny His promises to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

God Himself positions Himself above Jacob (the word ‘Nizav’ in Hebrew can also refer to a officer), and affirms once again that Covenant of Blessing. Here God starts by promising the Land to Jacob and His descendants; He then goes on to promise Jacob that his seed would multiply as the dust of the earth, and finally, reveals a great mystery, which we often miss.

God said to Jacob, “and in you and in your descendants shall all the families of the earth be blessed.” The entire blessing (which was given to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and their descendants after them) was not given for them alone, but rather that through them, God’s blessing would be available to all the families of the earth.

God finishes with a beautiful, compassionate promise that He would always be with Jacob – He will watch over Jacob and He will fulfill that which is promised to him. It reminds me of the promise that Yeshua gave to us, His followers, when He charged us with the honor of making disciples of all nations, which is actually very similar to the call of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; God’s blessing would reach to all nations, as He promised, “and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matt 28: 20b

Shabbat Shalom,

Moran