Arcana Coelestia #3732
3732. 'Jacob made a vow, saying' means a state of Providence. This is clear from the meaning of 'making a vow' in the internal sense as wishing the Lord to provide; and therefore in the highest sense, in which the Lord is the subject, a state of Providence is meant. The reason why in the internal sense 'making a vow' means wishing the Lord to provide is that present within vows there is a desire and affection that what is wished for may come about, thus that the Lord may provide it. Within them something of a bargain is present, and at the same time on man's part something of a bounden duty to keep his side of it, should he obtain his desire. This was the case with Jacob, in that Jehovah was to be his God, and the stone which he placed as a pillar was to be God's house, and he would devote a tenth of everything He had given him, if Jehovah guarded him on the road, gave him bread to eat and clothing to wear, and he went back in peace to his father's house. From this it is evident that the vows made in those times were particular agreements, involving primarily men's acknowledgement of God as their God if He provided them with what they desired, and involving also their repayment to Him with some gift if He did provide it.
[2] That state of affairs shows quite clearly what the fathers of the Jewish nation were like. They were like Jacob here, who did not as yet acknowledge Jehovah and was still at the stage of choosing whether to acknowledge Him or some other as his own God. It was a special feature of that nation, even of their fathers, that everyone wished to have his own God; and anyone who worshipped Jehovah worshipped Him merely as some god called Jehovah, the name which distinguished Him from the gods of other nations. Accordingly their worship even in this respect was idolatrous, for the worship of the name only, even of Jehovah's, is nothing but idolatrous, 1094. This is like people who call themselves Christians and say that they worship Christ, but do not live according to His commandments. They worship Him in an idolatrous way since they worship only His name, it being a false Christ whom they worship; reference to that false Christ is made in Matthew 24:23-24 - see 3010.
Genesis 28
1
Isaac called Jacob, blessed him, and commanded him, "You shall not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan.
2
Arise, go to Paddan Aram, to the house of Bethuel your mother's father. Take a wife from there from the daughters of Laban, your mother's brother.
3
May God Almighty bless you, and make you fruitful, and multiply you, that you may be a company of peoples,
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and give you the blessing of Abraham, to you, and to your seed with you, that you may inherit the land where you travel, which God gave to Abraham."
5
Isaac sent Jacob away. He went to Paddan Aram to Laban, son of Bethuel the Syrian, Rebekah's brother, Jacob's and Esau's mother.
6
Now Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him away to Paddan Aram, to take him a wife from there, and that as he blessed him he gave him a command, saying, "You shall not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan,"
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and that Jacob obeyed his father and his mother, and was gone to Paddan Aram.
8
Esau saw that the daughters of Canaan didn't please Isaac, his father.
9
Esau went to Ishmael, and took, besides the wives that he had, Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham's son, the sister of Nebaioth, to be his wife.
10
Jacob went out from Beersheba, and went toward Haran.
11
He came to a certain place, and stayed there all night, because the sun had set. He took one of the stones of the place, and put it under his head, and lay down in that place to sleep.
12
He dreamed. Behold, a stairway set upon the earth, and its top reached to heaven. Behold, the angels of God ascending and descending on it.
13
Behold, Yahweh stood above it, and said, "I am Yahweh, the God of Abraham your father, and the God of Isaac. The land whereon you lie, to you will I give it, and to your seed.
14
Your seed will be as the dust of the earth, and you will spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south. In you and in your seed will 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 again into this land. For I will not leave you, until I have done that which I have spoken of to you."
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Jacob awakened out of his sleep, and he said, "Surely Yahweh is in this place, and I didn't know it."
17
He was afraid, and said, "How dreadful is this place! This is none other than God's house, and this is the gate of heaven."
18
Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put under his head, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil on its top.
19
He called the name of that place Bethel, but the name of the city was Luz at the first.
20
Jacob vowed 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 put on,
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so that I come again to my father's house in peace, and Yahweh will be my God,
22
then this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, will be God's house. Of all that you will give me I will surely give the tenth to you."
