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King James Version (KJV)
“In our prayers we talk to God, in our Bible study God talks to us, and we had better let God do most of the talking.”
— D.L. Moody
Scripture focus
20. 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, 21. So that I come again to my father’s house in peace; then shall the LORD be my God: 22. 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.
Genesis 28:20-22 — KJV
Jacob vowed a vow. This is the first recorded vow. By taking a vow a man binds himself to do certain things in a specified way. Since the fulfillment of Jacob’s vow depended upon God’s power, and because it was made to God, it took the form of a prayer. It was not made in a mercenary spirit, but in gratitude, humility, and confidence.
If God. This expression in no way implies doubt in Jacob’s mind as to whether God would fulfill His promises, or that Jacob was proposing terms to God. He took the Lord at His word. Since He had graciously promised to be with him and to bless him, he on his part would be faithful to God (see PP 187, 188). In profound appreciation, Jacob’s thoughts turned to tangible ways in which his devotion might be expressed.
Bread to eat. Jacob, who had not hesitated to use the most despicable means in an endeavor to secure for himself the larger share of the inheritance, now humbly asked nothing more than protection, food, clothing, and a peaceful return to his father’s house. He would be happy for the bare necessities of life. Gone was his desire for wealth, luxury, honor, and power. What a lesson in humility, and how thoroughly Jacob had learned it!
By SdaBc
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