The Book of Genesis
Part 55
Bartering with God
Chapter 28:16-22
As we pursue our thoughts relative to the discoveries that Jacob made at Bethel, we see that not only did he now possess a very definite sense of the Divine Presence, but that the divine blessing upon his forefathers was now his with the added promise of constant preservation; furthermore, he discovered that Bethel was a spot of ready access to God and exclaimed, “How dreadful (remarkable) is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of Heaven.” Probably these three statements were echoes of the longings of his own heart. Under the circumstance of his solitude, he would yearn for companionship; in his weakness wish for strength; in his fear, for peace: in his errors, for forgiveness; and in his poverty, for blessing. These he realized could be found in perfection only in God. Had he known the words of the Psalmist, he might have used his language to express the desire of his heart, “As the heart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after Thee, O God” (Psa. 42:1).
These three statements seem to suggest: first, a divine revelation, “How dreadful is this place!” Second, they suggest a Divine Resident, “This is none other than the house of God.” Third, they also suggest, a divine reception. “This is the gate of Heaven.”
Obviously, Jacob did not wish to forget this sacred place, this holy experience, because for his pillow he makes a pillar, and Luz he makes Bethel. Here Jacob raised the first of several pillars which marked the history of his wanderings. This was a pillar witnessing to the fact that God had revealed Himself to the lonely exile.
The life of Jacob should teach us the folly of planning our own course of action without taking into consideration the confusion and conflict which we may make for ourselves and others. At the same time, the biography of this particular Patriarch testifies to the grace of God. Who would have expected such a disclosure of divine forbearance and care to one whose own behaviour had banished him from his father’s house? It would seem that in this inspired narrative we have exemplified the divine promise made to the nation that bears the new name of Jacob, Israel: “But now thus saith the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and He that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art Mine. When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee” (Isa. 43:2-2).
While all this is true, we must not forget that although God deals with His children in grace and forgives them, He also deals with them in government and disciplines them.
His Determination
“And 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 raiment to put on, So that I come again to my father’s house in peace; then shall the Lord be my God: And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God’s house: and of all that Thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto Thee.”
There is evidence that Jacob had a heart hunger for God, and that he valued this special revelation of God to him in the vision, but there appears to be some doubt in his mind as to the promise of God. This might be explained by the fact that the revelation of God to him was actually in a dream; and that consequently, he questioned the reality of the whole matter.
Even before Jacob’s day, Job made vicar his convictions regarding such divine interposition: “God speaketh once, yea twice, yet man perceiveth it not. In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falleth upon men, in slumberings upon the bed; Then He openeth the ears of men, and sealeth their instruction” (Job 33:14-16).
God spoke in dreams to Joseph, Pharaoh, Nebuchadnezzar, Daniel, Peter, Paul, and others.
In its final analysis this vow of Jacob is a selfish if not a mercenary arrangement. God was to do much for Jacob, and if He did, then Jacob would accept Him as his God, and would tithe his income to the extent of ten percent and give that to the Lord.
Let us notice what Jacob, in his bartering, expected of the Lord. First he asked for the Divine Presence, “If God will be with me.” Second, he requested divine protection, “And will keep me in this way that I go.” Third, he wanted divine provision, “And will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on.” Fourth, to these he added divine prosperity, “So that I come again to my father’s house in peace.” What more could anyone ask in life: God’s presence, protection, provision, and prosperity! Jacob asked much of God for the little he offered in return.
In the full light of completed revelation it would be improper to thus impose conditions upon the Lord. In fact, the enjoyment of God’s presence with us is wholly dependent upon our meeting the conditions He imposes upon us: “Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty” (2 Cor. 6:17-18).
Let us notice what Jacob offered in return. “Then shall the Lord be my God,” he asserts, and follows this statement with the promise, “Of all that Thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto Thee.”
How strange the language of Jacob sounds, “Then shall the Lord be my God!” What does he imply? Is he stating that if God can meet all the yearnings of his heart, then he will embrace fully the Lord, Jehovah, as his God? Is he suggesting that if he sees the evidence then he will believe and accept God? The Lord Jesus said to Thomas, “Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed” (John 20:29). Jacob made his decision to accept God dependent upon certain visible proofs. Ruth made her decision upon faith developed under the rather adverse testimony of her mother-in-law. Poor Naomi said to her dauthers-in-law, “It grieveth me much for your sakes that the hand of the Lord is gone out against me” (Ruth 1:13). What mingled feelings must have been stirred in Ruth as she heard of God’s action against one she loved! Notwithstanding, she insisted, saying, “Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God” (Ruth 1:6). Jacob, Thomas, and many others have attempted to walk by sight, but Ruth and an innumerable host of saints have sought to walk by faith (Heb. 11).
Let us examine the other term in Jacob’s part of the pledge. “Of all that Thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto Thee.” The Lord was to give the entire one hundred percent to Jacob, and then Jacob was to divide it between them, ninety percent for himself and ten percent for God. Jacob’s thoughts were quite adverse to the words of Christ, “Do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again” (Luke 6:35).
What a mercy for Jacob, and what a mercy for us that the Lord does not treat His people as they treat Him! God loves a cheerful giver because He is a cheerful giver.
The principles used by Jacob at Bethel are not in anywise comparable to those taught in the New Testament. He was to be the recipient of every benefit, and as such the sole owner. Furthermore, he was to have the final disposition of all he received, even of what he was to return to the Lord. In the New Testament the Christian is only the administrator, not the owner, of all that God gives to him, and this is as true in the spiritual aspect of life as in the material. The Christian is to properly administer for God his praise, purse, and personality.
In what a vivid contrast to Jacob does Paul see the Macedonian believers! “Moreover, Brethren, we do you to wit of the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia; How that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality. For to their power, I bear record, yea, and beyond their power they were willing of themselves; Praying us with much intreaty that we would receive the gift, and take upon us the fellowship of the ministering to the saints. And this they did, not as we had hoped, but first gave their own selves to the Lord, and unto us by the will of God” (2 Cor. 8:1-5).