Bible Commentaries

Genesis gen 28:0 INTRODUCTION TO GENESIS 28 In this chapter an account is given of the charge Isaac gave to Jacob not to marry a Canaanitess, but to go to Padanaram, and take a wife from his mother's family, and of his blessing him before he sent him away, Gen 28:1; of the notice that Esau took of this blessing and charge, which led him to take a wife of the family of Ishmael, Gen 28:6; of the dream of the ladder, which Jacob had in his way to Haran, Gen 28:10; of the blessing which God conferred upon him there, Gen 28:13; of the awfulness of the place upon his awaking, and of his erecting a pillar in it, and giving a name to it, Gen 28:16; and of the vow he made to God, should he be supplied with the necessaries of life, and be kept in safety by him, Gen 28:20.

And Isaac called Jacob,.... Or therefore (d), because of what Rebekah had said to him, related in the latter part of the preceding chapter, he sent for Jacob to come to him from his tent or apartment where he was, or from the field where he was keeping the flocks; thus paying a great regard to what his wife Rebekah had suggested to him, and which appeared to him very right and reasonable: and blessed him; he did not send for him to chide and reprove him for his fraudulent dealings with him to get the blessing from his brother, much less to revoke it, but to confirm it; which was necessary to prevent doubts that might arise in the mind of Jacob about it, and to strengthen him against the temptations of Satan; since he was about to be sent away from his father's house solitary and destitute, to go into another country, where he was to be for awhile in a state of servitude; all which might seem to contradict the blessing and promises he had received, and would be a trial of his faith in them, as well as a chastisement on him for the fraudulent manner in which he obtained them: and charged him, and said unto him, thou shall not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan; it was time that he was married; for he was now, as the Jewish writers (e) say, seventy seven, years of age, which exactly agrees with what Polyhistor (f), an Heathen writer, relates from Demetrius, that Jacob was seventy seven years of age when he came to Haran, and also his father Isaac was then one hundred and thirty seven years old; and so it is calculated by the best chronologers, and as he must be, since he was born when his father was sixty years of age; see Gill on Gen 27:1; and being now declared the heir of the promised land, it was proper he should marry, but not with any of the Canaanites, who were to be dispossessed of the land of Canaan, and therefore their seed, and Abraham's, to whom it was given, must not be mixed. Isaac takes the same care, and gives the same charge concerning the marriage of his son Jacob, on whom the entail of the land was settled, as his father Abraham did concerning his, Gen 24:3. (d) "itaque", V. L. Schmidt, Tigurine version, Junius & Tremellius, Piscator; "igitur", Drusius. (e) Pirke Eliezer, c. 35. Vid. Seder Olam Rabba, c. 2. p. 4. (f) Apud Euseb. Praepar. Evangel. l. 9. c. 21. p. 422.

Arise, go to Padanaram,.... Of this place; see Gill on Gen 25:20; either he is bid to go directly, in haste and alone; perhaps by this time Rebekah had given Isaac some hint of the ill design of Esau against him, which made Isaac the more urgent upon him to be gone, as well as it was high time he had took to himself a wife: to the house of Bethuel thy mother's father; who though now dead in all probability, yet the house and family went by his name: and take thee a wife from thence of the daughters of Laban thy mother's brother: who had daughters unmarried, of which no doubt Isaac and Rebekah had knowledge, a correspondence being kept up between the two families, though at a great distance.

And God Almighty bless thee,.... This is not a new blessing, distinct from that in Gen 28:1, but the same; there it is expressed in general, here the particulars of it are given; and by which it appears, that Isaac's blessing Jacob was a prayer, wishing a blessing from God upon him, and was the prayer of faith, delivered out under the spirit of prophecy; and they are blessed indeed that are blessed of God, and they must needs be blessed who are blessed by the Almighty; for what is it he cannot do or give? The Targum of Jonathan adds,"with much riches;''but no doubt all kind of blessings are included, both temporal and spiritual: and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee; with a numerous offspring: that thou mayest be a multitude of people; or an "assembly" or "congregation" (g) of them; which may all unite in one body and make one nation, as the twelve tribes descending from Jacob did. (g) "in Coetum", Pagninus, Montanus, &c.

And give thee the blessing of Abraham, to thee, and to thy seed with thee,.... Which was promised to Abraham, and was entailed upon Isaac and his seed, and now upon Jacob and his seed, which follows: that thou mayest inherit the land wherein thou art a stranger, which God gave to Abraham; the land of Canaan, which was given to Abraham by promise, but not in possession; he was a sojourner and stranger in it, and so Isaac had been all his days, and now Jacob, who through the blessing was become heir of it; but as yet neither he nor his posterity must enjoy it, but be strangers and sojourners in it, for the exercise of faith, and for the leading of their minds off of all earthly enjoyments, to the better and heavenly country God has provided for his people; see Heb 11:9.

And Isaac sent away Jacob,.... From Beersheba; not in anger, or in a dishonourable way, but took his leave of him no doubt in an affectionate manner; as it is clear he went with his blessing, and had his good wishes for a prosperous journey: and he went to Padanaram; which from Beersheba, according to some (h), was four hundred and eighty miles: unto Laban, son of Bethuel the Syrian; some versions make Laban to be the Syrian, others Bethuel; it is a matter of no great moment which is here so called, since they were both called Syrians, see Gen 25:20, the brother of Rebekah; this refers to Laban, for Bethuel was her father: Jacob's and Esau's mother; Jacob is set first, not only as being most beloved by his mother, but as now having the birthright and the blessing. (h) Bunting's Travels, p. 72.

And when Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob,.... Had conferred the blessing before given, or had wished him a good journey; which perhaps may be all that Esau understood by it, and so was not so much offended with it: and sent him away to Padanaram, to take him a wife from thence; which likewise might not be displeasing to him, partly as he understood it to be only on account of taking a wife, and not on account of his ill design upon him, which he might imagine his parents knew nothing of; and partly as he would now be out of the way, and he might find means the easier to ingratiate himself into his father's favour, and get him to revoke the blessing, and settle the inheritance upon him: and that as he blessed him, he gave him a charge, saying, thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan; or of the Canaanites, of any of the tribes or nations that belonged to that people, whether Hittites or others.

And that Jacob obeyed his father and his mother,.... As it became him, and as it becomes all children to be obedient to their parents in all things lawful they command them; and it would have been well if Esau had been obedient to them also in a like case, the case of his marriage: and was gone to Padanaram; as they had enjoined him, to take a wife from thence.