genesis-28:10-18

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 28:12

Verse 12 12.And he dreamed. Moses here teaches how opportunely, and (as we may say) in the critical moment, the Lord succoured his servant. For who would not have said that holy Jacob was neglected by God, since he was exposed to the incursion of wild beasts, and obnoxious to every kind of injury from earth and heaven, and found nowhere any help or solace? But when he was thus reduced to the last necessity, the Lord suddenly stretches out his hand to him, and wonderfully alleviates his trouble... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 28:13

Verse 13 13.I am the Lord God of Abraham. This is the third point which, I said, was to be noticed: for mute visions are cold; therefore the word of the Lord is as the soul which quickens them. The figure, therefore, of the ladder was the inferior appendage of this promise; just as God illustrates and adorns his word by external symbols, that both greater clearness and authority may be added to it. Whence also we prove that sacraments in the Papacy are frivolous, because no voice is heard in... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 28:14

Verse 14 14.And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth. The sum of the whole is this, Whatever the Lord had promised to Abraham, Jacob transmitted to his sons. Meanwhile it behoved the holy man, in reliance on this divine testimony, to hope against hope; for though the promise was vast and magnificent, yet, wherever Jacob turned himself, no ray of good hope shone upon him. He saw himself a solitary man; no condition better than that of exile presented itself; his return was uncertain and... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 28:15

Verse 15 15.I am with thee, and will keep thee. God now promptly anticipates the temptation which might steal over the mind of holy Jacob; for though he is, for a time, thrust out into a foreign land, God declares that he will be his keeper until he shall have brought him back again. He then extends his promise still further; saying, that he will never desert him till all things are fulfilled. There was a twofold use of this promise: first, it retained his mind in the faith of the divine... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 28:16

Verse 16 16.And Jacob awaked. Moses again affirms that this was no common dream; for when any one awakes he immediately perceives that he had been under a delusions in dreaming. But God impressed a sign on the mind of his servant, by which, when he awoke, he might recognize the heavenly oracle which he had heard in his sleep. Moreover, Jacob, in express terms, accuses himself, and extols the goodness of God, who deigned to present himself to one who sought him not; for Jacob thought that he was... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 28:17

Verse 17 17.And he was afraid, and said. It seems surprising that Jacob should fear, when God spoke so graciously to him; or that he should call that place “dreadful,” where he had been filled with incredible joy. I answer, although God exhilarates his servants, he at the same time inspires them with fear, in order that they may learn, with true humility and self-denial, to embrace his mercy. We are not therefore to understand that Jacob was struck with terror, as reprobates are, as soon as God... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 28:18

Verse 18 18.And Jacob rose up early. Moses relates that the holy father was not satisfied with merely giving thanks at the time, but would also transmit a memorial of his gratitude to posterity. Therefore he raised a monument, and gave a name to the place, which implied that he thought such a signal benefit of God worthy to be celebrated in all ages. For this reason, the Scripture not only commands the faithful to sing the praises of God among their brethren; but also enjoins them to train... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 28:10

And Jacob went out from Beersheba,— in obedience to his father's commandment to seek a wife ( Genesis 28:2 ), but also in compliance with his mother's counsel to evade the wrath of Esau ( Genesis 27:43 ; cf. Hosea 12:12 . On Beersheba vide Genesis 21:31 ; Genesis 26:33 — and went towards Haran —probably along the route traversed by Abraham's servant (cf. Genesis 14:10 ). read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 28:10-22

Jacob at Bethel, or heaven opened. I. THE LONELY SLEEPER . 1. His desolate condition . Exiled from home, fleeing from the murderous resentment of a brother, o'er-canopied by the star-lit firmament, remote from human habitation, and encompassed by a heathen population, on the bleak summit of the Bethel plateau, upwards of sixty miles from Beersheba, the wandering son of Isaac makes his evening couch with a stone slab for his pillow, an emblem of many another footsore and... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 28:10-22

Jacob's dream. Where revelations had been vouchsafed it was supposed that they would be repeated. The stony pillow on which the weary head rested may be changed by the visitation of Divine grace into the meeting-place of heaven and earth. The morning beams breaking in upon the shadowy refuge of the night are transfigured into a dream of covenant blessing. The ladder set up on the earth, the top of it reached to heaven. Angels of God on the way of mediation, ascending, descending, carrying... read more

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 28:12

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 28:13

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 28:14

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 28:15

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 28:16

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 28:17

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 28:18

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 28:10

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 28:10-22

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 28:10-22

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