Today is the 13th day of January. Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I am Brian. It is fantastic to be here with you today as we gather yet again each and every day around the global campfire.

And take the next step forward together. And we have been navigating our way through the first books that we're encountering this year, which is the Book of Genesis, the Old Testament and the Book of Matthew in the New, of course, Psalms and Proverbs every day as well.

So we're still working our way through Genesis. And we have spent a lot of our time this week moving through the life of Abraham and then Isaac. And now we've met Jacob and so we're in these emerging generations.

We are reaching the latter part of Isaac's life. And that's where we find ourselves today. Genesis, chapters 28 and 29.

So Isaac called for Jacob and blessed him and he commanded him, do not marry a cane a knight woman. Go at once to put an arm to the house of your mother's father, Bet you out.

Take a wife for yourself there from among the daughters of Laban, your mother's brother. May God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and increase your numbers until you become a community of peoples.

May he give you and your descendants the blessing given to Abraham so that you may take possession of the land where you now reside as a foreigner.

The land God gave to Abraham. Then Isaac sent Jacob on his way and he went to Pat and Aram to Laban, son of Bet you out the Aramian, the brother of Rebecca, who was the mother of Jacob and Esau.

Now Esau learned that Isaac had blessed Jacob and had sent him to Pat and Aram to take a wife from there and that when he blessed him he commanded him, do not marry a cane a knight woman. And that Jacob had obeyed his father and mother and had gone to Pat and Aram.

He saw then realized how displeasing the cane a knight women were to his father Isaac so he went to Ishmael and married Mahlat, the sister of Nebehut and daughter of Ishmael, son of Abraham, in addition to the wives he already had.

Jacob left Biersheba and set out for Haran. When he reached a certain place he stopped for the night because the sun had set.

Taking one of the stones there he put it under his head and laid down to sleep. He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth with its top reaching to heaven and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.

There above it stood the Lord and he said, I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying.

Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south.

All the peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. I am with you and will watch over you wherever 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.

When Jacob awoke from his sleepy thought, surely the Lord is in this place and I was not aware of it. He was afraid and said, how awesome is this place?

This is none other than the house of God. This is the gate of heaven.

Early the next morning Jacob took the stone he had placed under his head and set it up as a pillar and poured oil on top of it. He called that place Bethel. Though the city used to be called Luz.

Then Jacob made a vow saying, if God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear so that I return safely to my father's household.

Then the Lord will be my God and this stone that I have set up as a pillar will be God's house and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth.

And Jacob continued on his journey and came to the land of the eastern peoples.

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