Genesis 28:16

Easy-to-Read Version

Then Jacob woke up and said, "I know that the Lord is in this place, but I did not know he was here until I slept."

Parallel Translations

English Standard Version
Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, "Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it."

Update Bible Version
And Jacob awakened out of his sleep, and he said, Surely Yahweh is in this place. And I didn't know it.

New Century Version
Then Jacob woke from his sleep and said, "Surely the Lord is in this place, but I did not know it."

New English Translation
Then Jacob woke up and thought, "Surely the Lord is in this place, but I did not realize it!"

Webster's Bible Translation
And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew [it] not.

World English Bible
Jacob awakened out of his sleep, and he said, "Surely Yahweh is in this place, and I didn't know it."

Amplified Bible
Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and he said, "Without any doubt the LORD is in this place, and I did not realize it."

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And whanne Jacob hadde wakyd of sleep, he seide, Verili the Lord is in this place, and Y wiste not.

Young's Literal Translation
And Jacob awaketh out of his sleep, and saith, `Surely Jehovah is in this place, and I knew not;'

Berean Standard Bible
When Jacob woke up, he thought, "Surely the LORD is in this place, and I was unaware of it."

Contemporary English Version
Jacob woke up suddenly and thought, "The Lord is in this place, and I didn't even know it."

Complete Jewish Bible
Ya‘akov awoke from his sleep and said, "Truly, Adonai is in this place — and I didn't know it!"

American Standard Version
And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely Jehovah is in this place; and I knew it not.

Bible in Basic English
And Jacob, awaking from his sleep, said, Truly, the Lord is in this place and I was not conscious of it.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
When Iacob was awaked out of his sleepe, he sayde: Surely the Lorde is in this place, and I knewe it not.

Darby Translation
And Jacob awoke from his sleep, and said, Surely Jehovah is in this place, and I knew [it] not.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said: 'Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not.'

King James Version (1611)
And Iacob awaked out of his sleepe, and he said, Surely the LORD is in this place, and I knew it not.

King James Version
And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the Lord is in this place; and I knew it not.

New Life Bible
Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, "For sure the Lord is in this place and I did not know it."

New Revised Standard
Then Jacob woke from his sleep and said, "Surely the Lord is in this place—and I did not know it!"

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And Jacob awoke from his sleep, and said. Surely, Yahweh was in this place, And I, knew it not.

Geneva Bible (1587)
Then Iaakob awoke out of his sleepe, & sayde, Surely the Lorde is in this place, and I was not aware.

George Lamsa Translation
And Jacob awoke from his sleep, and he said, Surely the LORD is in this place; and I did not know it.

Good News Translation
Jacob woke up and said, "The Lord is here! He is in this place, and I didn't know it!"

Douay-Rheims Bible
And when Jacob awaked out of sleep, he said: Indeed the Lord is in this place, and I knew it not.

Revised Standard Version
Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, "Surely the LORD is in this place; and I did not know it."

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and said, The Lord is in this place, and I knew it not.

English Revised Version
And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not.

Christian Standard Bible®
When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.”

Hebrew Names Version
Ya`akov awakened out of his sleep, and he said, "Surely the LORD is in this place, and I didn't know it."

Lexham English Bible
Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, "Surely Yahweh is indeed in this place and I did not know!"

Literal Translation
And Jacob awakened from his sleep, and said, Surely Jehovah is in this place, and I did not know.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Now whan Iacob awaked from his slepe, he saide: Surely the LORDE is in this place, and I knew not.

THE MESSAGE
Jacob woke up from his sleep. He said, " God is in this place—truly. And I didn't even know it!" He was terrified. He whispered in awe, "Incredible. Wonderful. Holy. This is God's House. This is the Gate of Heaven."

New American Standard Bible
Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, "The LORD is certainly in this place, and I did not know it!"

New King James Version
Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, "Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it."

New Living Translation
Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, "Surely the Lord is in this place, and I wasn't even aware of it!"

New American Standard Bible (1995)
Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, "Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it."

Legacy Standard Bible
Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, "Surely Yahweh is in this place, and I did not know it."

Contextual Overview

¹⁶ Then Jacob woke up and said, "I know that the Lord is in this place, but I did not know he was here until I slept." ¹⁷ Jacob was afraid and said, "This is a very great place. This is the house of God. This is the gate to heaven." ¹⁸ Jacob got up very early in the morning. He took the rock he had slept on and set it up on its edge. Then he poured oil on the rock. In this way he made it a memorial to God. ¹⁹ The name of that place was Luz, but Jacob named it Bethel. ²⁰ Then Jacob made a promise. He said, "If God will be with me, and if he will protect me on this trip, and if he gives me food to eat and clothes to wear, ²¹ and if I return in peace to my father's house—if he does all these things—then the Lord will be my God. ²² I am setting this stone up as a memorial stone. It will show that this is a holy place for God, and I will give God one-tenth of all he gives me."

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

and I: Exodus 3:5, Exodus 15:11, Joshua 5:15, 1 Samuel 3:4-7, Job 9:11, Job 33:14, Psalms 68:35, Isaiah 8:13

Reciprocal: Leviticus 19:30 - reverence Judges 13:6 - terrible Ecclesiastes 5:1 - thy foot Hosea 12:5 - Even 2 Peter 1:18 - the holy

Cross-References

Genesis 28:4
and that God will bless you and your children the same way he blessed Abraham. And I pray that you will own the land where you live. This is the land God gave to Abraham."

Genesis 28:7
Esau learned that Jacob obeyed his father and his mother and went to Paddan Aram.

Exodus 3:5
Then God said, "Don't come any closer. Take off your sandals. You are standing on holy ground.

Exodus 15:11
"Are there any gods like the Lord ? No, there are no gods like you— you are wonderfully holy! You are amazingly powerful! You do great miracles!

Joshua 5:15
The commander of the Lord 's army answered, "Take off your sandals. The place where you are standing is holy." So Joshua obeyed him.

Job 9:11
When he passes by, I cannot see him. He goes right past me, and I don't notice.

Job 33:14
But maybe God does explain what he does but speaks in ways that people don't understand.

Psalms 68:35
God, you are awesome in your Temple! The God of Israel is the one who gives strength and power to his people. Praise God!

Isaiah 8:13
The Lord All-Powerful is the one you should fear. He is the one you should respect. He is the one who should frighten you.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And Jacob awaked out of his sleep,.... Which had been sweet unto him, and out of his dream, it being now over; and it having left such a weight upon his mind, and such an awe upon his spirits, it might tend the sooner to awaken him; what time it was is not said, perhaps it was in the middle of the night or towards morning, since after this it is said that he rose early in the morning:

and he said, surely the Lord is in this place, and I knew [it] not; God is everywhere, in a general way, upholding all things by his power, as he is immense and omnipresent; but here he was in a special sense, by some signal token of his presence; by a stream of light and glory darting from the heavens, hence Onkelos and Jonathan paraphrase it,

"the glory of the Lord, and the glory of the majesty of the Lord;''

and by the appearance of angels, and by the communications of his mind and will, and grace to Jacob, and that communion he had with him in his dream, of which he was very sensible: for, when he says, "I knew it not", the meaning is, he did not think or expect to meet with God in such a place; he did not know that God ever appeared anywhere but in the houses of his people, such as his father's house; and in the congregation of the faithful, or where the saints met for public worship, or where an altar was erected for God: though sometimes God is present with his people, and they are not sensible of it; as the church in Isaiah 41:10; and as Mary, when Christ was at her elbow, and she knew him not, John 20:13.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

- Jacob’s Journey to Haran

3. קהל qâhāl, “congregation.”

9. מחלת māchălat, Machalath, “sickness, or a harp.”

19. לוּז lûz, Luz, “almond.”

The blessing of his sons was the last passage in the active life of Isaac, after which he retires from the scene. Jacob now becomes the leading figure in the sacred history. His spiritual character has yet come out to view. But even now we can discern the general distinction in the lives of the three patriarchs. Abraham’s is a life of authority and decision; Isaac’s, of submission and acquiescence; and Jacob’s, of trial and struggle.

Genesis 28:1-5

Isaac has now become alive to the real destiny of Jacob. He therefore calls for him to bless him, and give him a command. The command is to take a wife, not from Kenaan, but from the kindred of his parents. The blessing comes from “God Almighty” (Genesis 17:1). It is that belonging to the chosen seed, “the blessing of Abraham.” It embraces a numerous offspring, the land of promise, and all else that is included in the blessing of Abraham. “A congregation of peoples.” This is the word “congregation” (קהל qâhāl) which is afterward applied to the assembled people of God, and to which the Greek ἐκκλησία ekklēsia, “ecclesia,” corresponds. Jacob complies with his mother’s advice and his father’s command, and, at the same time, reaps the bitter fruit of his fraud against his brother in the hardship and treachery of an exile of twenty years. The aged Isaac is not without his share in the unpleasant consequences of endeavoring to go against the will of God.

Genesis 28:6-9

Esau is induced, by the charge of his parents to Jacob, the compliance of the latter with their wishes, and by their obvious dislike to the daughters of Kenaan, to take Mahalath, a daughter of Ishmael, in addition to his former wives. “Went unto Ishmael;” that is, to the family or tribe of Ishmael, as Ishmael himself was now thirteen years dead. Esau’s hunting and roving career had brought him into contact with this family, and we shall presently find him settled in a neighboring territory.

Genesis 28:10-22

Jacob’s dream and vow. Setting out on the way to Haran, he was overtaken by night, and slept in the field. He was far from any dwelling, or he did not wish to enter the house of a stranger. He dreams. A ladder or stair is seen reaching from earth to heaven, on which angels ascend and descend. This is a medium of communication between heaven and earth, by which messengers pass to and fro on errands of mercy. Heaven and earth have been separated by sin. But this ladder has re-established the contact. It is therefore a beautiful emblem of what mediates and reconciles John 1:51. It here serves to bring Jacob into communication with God, and teaches him the emphatic lesson that he is accepted through a mediator. “The Lord stood above it,” and Jacob, the object of his mercy, beneath. First. He reveals himself to the sleeper as “the Lord” Genesis 2:4, “the God of Abraham thy father, and of Isaac.” It is remarkable that Abraham is styled his father, that is, his actual grandfather, and covenant father. Second. He renews the promise of the land, of the seed, and of the blessing in that seed for the whole race of man. Westward, eastward, northward, and southward are they to break forth. This expression points to the world-wide universality of the kingdom of the seed of Abraham, when it shall become the fifth monarchy, that shall subdue all that went before, and endure forever. This transcends the destiny of the natural seed of Abraham. Third. He then promises to Jacob personally to be with him, protect him, and bring him back in safety. This is the third announcement of the seed that blesses to the third in the line of descent Genesis 12:2-3; Genesis 22:18; Genesis 26:4.

Genesis 28:16-19

Jacob awakes, and exclaims, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I knew it not.” He knew his omnipresence; but he did not expect a special manifestation of the Lord in this place, far from the sanctuaries of his father. He is filled with solemn awe, when he finds himself in the house of God and at the gate of heaven. The pillar is the monument of the event. The pouring of oil upon it is an act of consecration to God who has there appeared to him Numbers 7:1. He calls the name of the place Bethel, “the house of God.” This is not the first time it received the name. Abraham also worshipped God here, and met with the name already existing (see on Genesis 12:8; Genesis 13:3; Genesis 25:30.)

Genesis 28:20-22

Jacob’s vow. A vow is a solemn engagement to perform a certain duty, the obligation of which is felt at the time to be especially binding. It partakes, therefore, of the nature of a promise or a covenant. It involves in its obligation, however, only one party, and is the spontaneous act of that party. Here, then, Jacob appears to take a step in advance of his predecessors. Hitherto, God had taken the initiative in every promise, and the everlasting covenant rests solely on his eternal purpose. Abraham had responded to the call of God, believed in the Lord, walked before him, entered into communion with him, made intercession with him, and given up his only son to him at his demand. In all this there is an acceptance on the part of the creature of the supremacy of the merciful Creator. But now the spirit of adoption prompts Jacob to a spontaneous movement toward God. This is no ordinary vow, referring to some special or occasional resolve.

It is the grand and solemn expression of the soul’s free, full, and perpetual acceptance of the Lord to be its own God. This is the most frank and open utterance of newborn spiritual liberty from the heart of man that has yet appeared in the divine record. “If God will be with me.” This is not the condition on which Jacob will accept God in a mercenary spirit. It is merely the echo and the thankful acknowledgment of the divine assurance, “I am with thee,” which was given immediately before. It is the response of the son to the assurance of the father: “Wilt thou indeed be with me? Thou shalt be my God.” “This stone shall be God’s house,” a monument of the presence of God among his people, and a symbol of the indwelling of his Spirit in their hearts. As it comes in here it signalizes the grateful and loving welcome and entertainment which God receives from his saints. “A tenth will I surely give unto thee.” The honored guest is treated as one of the family. Ten is the whole: a tenth is a share of the whole. The Lord of all receives one share as an acknowledgment of his sovereign right to all. Here it is represented as the full share given to the king who condescends to dwell with his subjects. Thus, Jacob opens his heart, his home, and his treasure to God. These are the simple elements of a theocracy, a national establishment of the true religion. The spirit of power, and of love, and of a sound mind, has begun to reign in Jacob. As the Father is prominently manifested in regenerate Abraham, and the Son in Isaac, so also the Spirit in Jacob.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Genesis 28:16. The Lord is in this place; and I knew it not. — That is, God has made this place his peculiar residence; it is a place in which he meets with and reveals himself to his followers. Jacob might have supposed that this place had been consecrated to God. And it has already been supposed that, his mind having been brought into a humble frame, he was prepared to hold communion with his Maker.