128:1 Mwa 24:3Basi Isaki akamwita Yakobo, akambariki na akamwamuru, akisema, “Usioe mwanamke wa Kikanaani. 2Nenda mara moja mpaka Padan-Aramu, kwenye nyumba ya Bethueli baba wa mama yako. Uchukue mke kati ya binti za Labani ambaye ni ndugu wa mama yako. 328:3 Mwa 17:1; Hes 6:24Mungu Mwenyezi28:3 Mungu Mwenyezi hapa ni jina la Kiebrania, El-Shaddai (yaani Mungu Mwenye utoshelevu wote). na akubariki uwe na uzao uongezeke idadi yako upate kuwa jamii kubwa ya watu. 428:4 Mwa 12:2, 3; 17:8Na akupe wewe na uzao wako baraka aliyopewa Abrahamu, upate kumiliki nchi unayoishi sasa kama mgeni, nchi ambayo Mungu alimpa Abrahamu.” 528:5 Hos 12:12; Mwa 24:29Kisha Isaki akamuaga Yakobo, naye akaenda Padan-Aramu, kwa Labani mwana wa Bethueli Mwaramu, ndugu wa Rebeka, aliyekuwa mama wa Yakobo na Esau.
6Sasa Esau akajua kuwa Isaki amembariki Yakobo na kumtuma kwenda Padan-Aramu ili achukue mke huko na kwamba alipombariki alimwamuru akisema, “Usioe mke katika binti za Wakanaani,” 7tena kwamba Yakobo amewatii baba yake na mama yake naye amekwenda Padan-Aramu. 828:8 Mwa 26:35Esau akatambua jinsi ambavyo baba yake Isaki anavyowachukia binti za Wakanaani. 9Ndipo Esau akaenda kwa Ishmaeli, akamwoa Mahalati, ndugu wa Nebayothi na binti wa Ishmaeli mwana wa Abrahamu, kuongezea wale wake wengine aliokuwa nao.
Ndoto Ya Yakobo Huko Betheli
10Yakobo akatoka Beer-Sheba kwenda Harani. 11Alipofika mahali fulani, akalala hapo kwa sababu jua lilikuwa limetua. Akachukua jiwe moja la mahali pale, akaliweka chini ya kichwa chake akajinyoosha akalala usingizi. 1228:12 Yn 1:51Akaota ndoto ambayo aliona ngazi imesimamishwa juu ya ardhi, ncha yake ikiwa imefika mbinguni na malaika wa Mungu wakawa wakipanda na kushuka juu yake. 13Juu yake alisimama Bwana, akasema, “Mimi ni Bwana, Mungu wa baba yako Abrahamu na Mungu wa Isaki. Nchi ambayo umelala juu yake, nitakupa wewe na uzao wako. 1428:14 Mwa 26:4; 12:3; Gal 3:8Uzao wako utakuwa kama mavumbi ya nchi, nawe utaenea upande wa magharibi na mashariki, kaskazini na kusini. Kupitia wewe na uzao wako mataifa yote ya duniani yatabarikiwa. 1528:15 Kum 31:6, 8; Law 26:42; Za 105:10Niko pamoja nawe nami nitakulinda kila uendako na nitakurudisha katika nchi hii. Sitakuacha mpaka nitakapofanya hayo niliyokuahidi.”
1628:16 1Fal 3:15; Yer 31:26Yakobo alipoamka kutoka usingizini, akawaza, “Hakika Bwana yuko mahali hapa, wala mimi sikujua.” 1728:17 Kut 3:5; Yos 5:15Kwa hiyo akaogopa, akasema, “Mahali hapa panatisha kama nini! Bila shaka hapa ndipo nyumba ya Mungu ilipo, hili ni lango la mbinguni.”
18Asubuhi yake na mapema, Yakobo akalichukua lile jiwe aliloliweka chini ya kichwa chake, akalisimamisha kama nguzo na kumimina mafuta juu yake. 1928:19 Yos 16:2; Amu 1:23, 26Mahali pale akapaita Betheli,28:19 Betheli maana yake Nyumba ya Mungu. ingawa mji ule hapo kwanza uliitwa Luzu.
2028:20 Mwa 31:13; Amu 1:23, 26Kisha Yakobo akaweka nadhiri, akisema, “Kama Mungu akiwa pamoja nami na kunilinda katika safari niendayo, akinipa chakula nile na nguo nivae 2128:21 Kum 26:17; Za 48:14; 118:28na nirudi salama nyumbani kwa baba yangu, hapo ndipo Bwana atakuwa Mungu wangu, 2228:22 Mwa 14:20; Lk 18:12nalo jiwe hili nililolisimamisha kama nguzo litakuwa nyumba ya Mungu na katika yote utakayonipa nitakutolea wewe sehemu ya kumi.”
1So Isaac called for Jacob and blessed him. Then he commanded him, “Don’t get married to a Canaanite woman. 2Go at once to Paddan Aram. Go to the house of your mother’s father Bethuel. Find a wife for yourself there. Take her from among the daughters of your mother’s brother Laban. 3May the Mighty God bless you. May he give you children. May he make your family larger until you become a community of nations. 4May he give you and your children after you the blessing he gave to Abraham. Then you can take over the land where you now live as an outsider. It’s the land God gave to Abraham.” 5Isaac sent Jacob on his way. Jacob went to Paddan Aram. He went to Laban, the son of Bethuel the Aramean. Laban was Rebekah’s brother. And Rebekah was the mother of Jacob and Esau.
6Esau found out that Isaac had blessed Jacob and had sent him to Paddan Aram. Isaac wanted him to get a wife from there. Esau heard that when Isaac blessed Jacob, he commanded him, “Don’t get married to a woman from Canaan.” 7Esau also learned that Jacob had obeyed his father and mother and had gone to Paddan Aram. 8Then Esau realized how much his father Isaac disliked Canaanite women. 9So he went to Ishmael and married Mahalath. She was the sister of Nebaioth and the daughter of Abraham’s son Ishmael. Esau added her to the wives he already had.
Jacob Has a Dream at Bethel
10Jacob left Beersheba and started out for Harran. 11He reached a certain place and stopped for the night. The sun had already set. He took one of the stones there and placed it under his head. Then he lay down to sleep. 12In a dream he saw a stairway standing on the earth. Its top reached to heaven. The angels of God were going up and coming down on it. 13The Lord stood beside the stairway. He said, “I am the Lord. I am the God of your grandfather Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your children after you the land you are lying on. 14They will be like the dust of the earth that can’t be counted. They will spread out to the west and to the east. They will spread out to the north and to the south. All nations on earth will be blessed because of you and your children after you. 15I am with you. I will watch over you everywhere you go. And I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
16Jacob woke up from his sleep. Then he thought, “The Lord is surely in this place. And I didn’t even know it.” 17Jacob was afraid. He said, “How holy this place is! This must be the house of God. This is the gate of heaven.”
18Early the next morning Jacob took the stone he had placed under his head. He set it up as a sacred stone. And he poured olive oil on top of it. 19He named that place Bethel. But the city used to be called Luz.
20Then Jacob made a promise. He said, “May God be with me. May he watch over me on this journey I’m taking. May he give me food to eat and clothes to wear. 21May he do as he has promised so that I can return safely to my father’s home. Then you, Lord, will be my God. 22This stone I’ve set up as a sacred stone will be God’s house. And I’ll give you a tenth of everything you give me.”
