The Forgotten Vow Of Jacob
Genesis 35:1-7
We begin our study today with a reading of Gen 35:1-7 “God said to Jacob, "Arise, go up to Bethel and dwell there. Make an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau." So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, "Put away the foreign gods that are among you and purify yourselves and change your garments. Then let us arise and go up to Bethel, so that I may make there an altar to the God who answers me in the day of my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone." So they gave to Jacob all the foreign gods that they had, and the rings that were in their ears. Jacob hid them under the terebinth tree that was near Shechem. And as they journeyed, a terror from God fell upon the cities that were around them, so that they did not pursue the sons of Jacob. And Jacob came to Luz (that is, Bethel), which is in the land of Canaan, he and all the people who were with him, and there he built an altar and called the place El-bethel, because there God had revealed himself to him when he fled from his brother.”
We find God telling Jacob to go to Bethel in which he is to build an altar. Why did God command this? Nearly thirty years earlier, Jacob had made a vow. But he seems to have forgotten about it, and God is now calling him to fulfill it. There are several lessons that can be gleaned from this “forgotten vow of Jacob” which can be easily applied to our service as Christians. But before I point these lessons out, a little more historical background might be helpful.
Thirty years before, Jacob had made a vow. It was made as he was fleeing the wrath of Esau (for Jacob had stolen Esau’s blessing from their father Isaac). Leaving Beersheba, he headed toward Haran (consult a map). On the way, he stopped at what is now called Bethel (consult a map) - Gen 28:10-15 “Jacob left Beersheba and went toward Haran. And he came to a certain place and stayed there that night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it! And behold, the LORD stood above it and said, "I am the LORD, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you."’ There he had a dream, in which he saw what we commonly call “Jacob’s Ladder” (angels ascending and descending on a ladder between heaven and earth). In this dream, God promises to be with him and safely return him to his home. The dream prompted Jacob to make his vow - Gen 28:16-22 “Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, "Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it." And he was afraid and said, "How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven." So early in the morning Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it. He called the name of that place Bethel, but the name of the city was Luz at the first. Then Jacob made 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 clothing to wear, so that I come again to my father's house in peace, then the LORD shall be my God, and this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God's house. And of all that you give me I will give a full tenth to you."’ Jacob promised to make the LORD his God, if God carries out His promise. He vowed to sanctify the stone upon which his head had rested and which he has set up as a pillar and to give God a tenth of all that God will give him.
For the next twenty years, Jacob dwells in Haran. As God promised, He was with Jacob. Jacob prospered both in family, and in gaining wealth - Gen 29-30. Upon Jacob’s return, God kept him safe from Laban, who was pursuing him - Gen 31. God kept him safe from Esau, who was coming to meet him - Gen 32-33. By the time of our Text (Gen 35), Jacob had been living in Cannan ten years. He had settled near the city of Shechem (consult map) - Gen 33:18. But he had not bothered to go back to Bethel, where the Lord had appeared to him and where he had made his vow. So it appears that Jacob had forgotten his vow, and for this reason God commands him to return to Bethel (Gen 35:1).
What lessons or principles of truth can we learn from this? There are several there several applications we can find. First, God expects us to keep the vows we make. He does not take vows lightly, and neither should we - Ecc 5:2-5 “Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few. For a dream comes with much business, and a fool's voice with many words. When you vow a vow to God, do not delay paying it, for he has no pleasure in fools. Pay what you vow. It is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay.” So let’s be sure to keep any covenant or vow that we make with God; for example, the “vow” we made when we became Christians, to turn from sin, and to follow Christ with all our heart. -- Are we faithfully keeping this “vow”?
Second, we are prone to forget our vows when God has fulfilled His side of them. We saw where God fulfilled His side, but Jacob had not. This “forgetfulness” seems to occur most often when vows are made in times of trouble. Like those made in a foxhole. Or those made in an airplane during extreme air turbulence or mechanical problems. Or those made in an effort to solve marital problems. But such vows are just as binding as those made upon careful reflection!
Third, we are prone to forget our vows when things are going well. Just as in the case of Jacob. He had a nice family. He had become extremely wealthy. He had settled down in his home country. The same is often true of many Christians. Many obey the gospel at times in their lives when they are troubled. But later, especially if they enjoy financial security, they forget their commitment to God and Christ. But consider God’s warning to Israel against forgetfulness after they entered the “promised land” - Deu 8:11-20
Fourth, we are prone to forget our vows when we have allowed ourselves to be influenced by the world. Note that Jacob’s family had accepted the foreign gods of the people around them - Gen 35:2 “So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, "Put away the foreign gods that are among you and purify yourselves and change your garments.” In similar fashion, many people do not live up to the vow they made when they became Christians - 2 Ti 4:10 (Demas) “For Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia.”
For example, many teen-age Christians; zealous at first but when influenced by their peers, popular music or humanistic teaching in the schools, they often lose interest in spiritual matters. Another good example is, many adult Christians, who are influenced by the materialism and immorality of our society. But again, this is no excuse for “forgotten vows”.
Fifth, if we have forgotten our vows, we need to go back to the beginning. We noticed that Jacob was told to go back to Bethel. In a similar way, Jesus told the church at Ephesus to go back to the beginning - Re 2:4-5 “But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.” They had left their “first love”. They were told to “remember...from where you have fallen”. And to “repent and do the first works”. For Christians who have left their “first love”, they too need to “do the first works” (the fundamentals, such as Bible study, prayer, etc.).
Finally, when we fulfill our forgotten vows, there are renewed blessings! When Jacob fulfilled his vow, God appeared to him and renewed the promises that had been made to Abraham and Isaac - Gen 35:9-15. So it can be with us! It may be that we have forgotten the original commitment we made when we first obeyed the gospel of Christ. But if we will just return to Christ in full repentance and prayer, and fulfill our vow of service and devotion to Him, all the spiritual blessings that He has to offer can be ours again! - 1 Jn 1:9 “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Are you a Christian, but not living the dedicated and committed life that God expects...? Then, like Jacob, you have forgotten your vow you need to come back to the Lord in full repentance. The blessings of heaven await you if you do! If you are not yet a Christian, these same blessings can be yours if you will only accept the gospel of Jesus Christ - Mark 16:15-16 “And he said to them, "Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.”
Genesis 35:1-7
We begin our study today with a reading of Gen 35:1-7 “God said to Jacob, "Arise, go up to Bethel and dwell there. Make an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau." So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, "Put away the foreign gods that are among you and purify yourselves and change your garments. Then let us arise and go up to Bethel, so that I may make there an altar to the God who answers me in the day of my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone." So they gave to Jacob all the foreign gods that they had, and the rings that were in their ears. Jacob hid them under the terebinth tree that was near Shechem. And as they journeyed, a terror from God fell upon the cities that were around them, so that they did not pursue the sons of Jacob. And Jacob came to Luz (that is, Bethel), which is in the land of Canaan, he and all the people who were with him, and there he built an altar and called the place El-bethel, because there God had revealed himself to him when he fled from his brother.”
We find God telling Jacob to go to Bethel in which he is to build an altar. Why did God command this? Nearly thirty years earlier, Jacob had made a vow. But he seems to have forgotten about it, and God is now calling him to fulfill it. There are several lessons that can be gleaned from this “forgotten vow of Jacob” which can be easily applied to our service as Christians. But before I point these lessons out, a little more historical background might be helpful.
Thirty years before, Jacob had made a vow. It was made as he was fleeing the wrath of Esau (for Jacob had stolen Esau’s blessing from their father Isaac). Leaving Beersheba, he headed toward Haran (consult a map). On the way, he stopped at what is now called Bethel (consult a map) - Gen 28:10-15 “Jacob left Beersheba and went toward Haran. And he came to a certain place and stayed there that night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it! And behold, the LORD stood above it and said, "I am the LORD, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you."’ There he had a dream, in which he saw what we commonly call “Jacob’s Ladder” (angels ascending and descending on a ladder between heaven and earth). In this dream, God promises to be with him and safely return him to his home. The dream prompted Jacob to make his vow - Gen 28:16-22 “Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, "Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it." And he was afraid and said, "How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven." So early in the morning Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it. He called the name of that place Bethel, but the name of the city was Luz at the first. Then Jacob made 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 clothing to wear, so that I come again to my father's house in peace, then the LORD shall be my God, and this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God's house. And of all that you give me I will give a full tenth to you."’ Jacob promised to make the LORD his God, if God carries out His promise. He vowed to sanctify the stone upon which his head had rested and which he has set up as a pillar and to give God a tenth of all that God will give him.
For the next twenty years, Jacob dwells in Haran. As God promised, He was with Jacob. Jacob prospered both in family, and in gaining wealth - Gen 29-30. Upon Jacob’s return, God kept him safe from Laban, who was pursuing him - Gen 31. God kept him safe from Esau, who was coming to meet him - Gen 32-33. By the time of our Text (Gen 35), Jacob had been living in Cannan ten years. He had settled near the city of Shechem (consult map) - Gen 33:18. But he had not bothered to go back to Bethel, where the Lord had appeared to him and where he had made his vow. So it appears that Jacob had forgotten his vow, and for this reason God commands him to return to Bethel (Gen 35:1).
What lessons or principles of truth can we learn from this? There are several there several applications we can find. First, God expects us to keep the vows we make. He does not take vows lightly, and neither should we - Ecc 5:2-5 “Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few. For a dream comes with much business, and a fool's voice with many words. When you vow a vow to God, do not delay paying it, for he has no pleasure in fools. Pay what you vow. It is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay.” So let’s be sure to keep any covenant or vow that we make with God; for example, the “vow” we made when we became Christians, to turn from sin, and to follow Christ with all our heart. -- Are we faithfully keeping this “vow”?
Second, we are prone to forget our vows when God has fulfilled His side of them. We saw where God fulfilled His side, but Jacob had not. This “forgetfulness” seems to occur most often when vows are made in times of trouble. Like those made in a foxhole. Or those made in an airplane during extreme air turbulence or mechanical problems. Or those made in an effort to solve marital problems. But such vows are just as binding as those made upon careful reflection!
Third, we are prone to forget our vows when things are going well. Just as in the case of Jacob. He had a nice family. He had become extremely wealthy. He had settled down in his home country. The same is often true of many Christians. Many obey the gospel at times in their lives when they are troubled. But later, especially if they enjoy financial security, they forget their commitment to God and Christ. But consider God’s warning to Israel against forgetfulness after they entered the “promised land” - Deu 8:11-20
Fourth, we are prone to forget our vows when we have allowed ourselves to be influenced by the world. Note that Jacob’s family had accepted the foreign gods of the people around them - Gen 35:2 “So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, "Put away the foreign gods that are among you and purify yourselves and change your garments.” In similar fashion, many people do not live up to the vow they made when they became Christians - 2 Ti 4:10 (Demas) “For Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia.”
For example, many teen-age Christians; zealous at first but when influenced by their peers, popular music or humanistic teaching in the schools, they often lose interest in spiritual matters. Another good example is, many adult Christians, who are influenced by the materialism and immorality of our society. But again, this is no excuse for “forgotten vows”.
Fifth, if we have forgotten our vows, we need to go back to the beginning. We noticed that Jacob was told to go back to Bethel. In a similar way, Jesus told the church at Ephesus to go back to the beginning - Re 2:4-5 “But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.” They had left their “first love”. They were told to “remember...from where you have fallen”. And to “repent and do the first works”. For Christians who have left their “first love”, they too need to “do the first works” (the fundamentals, such as Bible study, prayer, etc.).
Finally, when we fulfill our forgotten vows, there are renewed blessings! When Jacob fulfilled his vow, God appeared to him and renewed the promises that had been made to Abraham and Isaac - Gen 35:9-15. So it can be with us! It may be that we have forgotten the original commitment we made when we first obeyed the gospel of Christ. But if we will just return to Christ in full repentance and prayer, and fulfill our vow of service and devotion to Him, all the spiritual blessings that He has to offer can be ours again! - 1 Jn 1:9 “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Are you a Christian, but not living the dedicated and committed life that God expects...? Then, like Jacob, you have forgotten your vow you need to come back to the Lord in full repentance. The blessings of heaven await you if you do! If you are not yet a Christian, these same blessings can be yours if you will only accept the gospel of Jesus Christ - Mark 16:15-16 “And he said to them, "Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.”
