God delights in blessing

May God Almighty bless you and make your descendants fruitful and numerous,

so that you become the ancestor of many nations.

May He give the blessing promised to Abraham to you and your descendants,

so that you may take possession of the land where you now live, the land God gave to Abraham"

(Genesis 28:3-4).

After receiving this blessing from his father Isaac, Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Haran.

Along the way, he stopped for the night and, using a stone for a pillow, he lay down to sleep.

In his dream, he heard the word of God (vv. 10-13):

"I am the Lord, the God of your grandfather Abraham and the God of your father Isaac.

I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying.

Your descendants will be as numerous as the dust of the earth,

and they 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" (vv. 11-15).

It is interesting to compare the blessing Jacob received from his father Isaac

with the blessing from God in heaven.

Isaac blessed Jacob, saying, "May God Almighty bless you

and make your descendants fruitful and numerous ...

May you take possession of the land where you now live, the land God gave to Abraham."

It is as if God confirmed these words when He spoke to Jacob,

saying, "I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying.

Your descendants will be as numerous as the dust of the earth,

and they will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south ..."

In this way, God not only listened to the blessing spoken by Jacob's father Isaac

but also appeared to Jacob directly, promising to bless him in accordance with that blessing.

Therefore, we too should bless our children in the name of Jesus.

The Lord will hear our prayers of blessing and will directly bless our children.

Furthermore, God blessed Jacob with a promise that Isaac had not specifically mentioned:

"All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring" (v. 14).

This blessing echoes the promise God made to Jacob's grandfather Abraham:

"All peoples on earth will be blessed through you" (12:3).

In this way, God not only fulfilled Isaac's prayer of blessing for Jacob

but also extended Abraham's blessing to Jacob.

Thus, the blessings of Abraham and Jacob are also our blessings in the Lord.