We have got out of the venison here, and Jacob is subject to God's mind, not only in his words, but soberly in his will, but then we have come down to earth, and to Israel. Jehovah is there the God of Abraham, and Isaac, and will take care of Jacob even when a wanderer; the land is given to him, and in him and his seed all the families are to be blessed. It is not the promise confirmed to the seed, but the numerous seed the seat of blessing for the earth.
3. Jehovah never appeared to Isaac by His name of God Almighty; he knew Him, we see, as such, but it is not the revealed relationship of the risen seed.
Jehovah appeared to him twice (see chapter 26: 2, 24). Isaac was not to return into Egypt—the risen man into the world—he was Abraham's seed. To Jacob God reveals Himself as God Almighty; this is all, I apprehend, characteristic, and is remarkable.
8, 9. Well meant, perhaps, but this imitation was no use; it is, besides, ethnological.
11. M'ra-ashoth (pillows) at his head. Angels of God, servants thus, or messengers, apart from Himself, but of Elohim as such. Clearly John 1 refers to this, but not with the foolish thought that Christ was the ladder—He held Jacob's place.
13. But we get Jehovah at once in His intercourse with Jacob—it is specially relationship.
14. Here the seed is Israel, for we are on earthly ground, and so it will be; before, it was in Abraham and in his seed risen (compare chapter 35: 9-13), only the earthly seed and blessing—we have no Galatian promise. To Isaac we have no promise of the land (but see chapter 26: 3, 4); only the personal promise of a numerous seed. He was the seed of promise, and is the figure of Christ thus risen and exalted. The heir of promise ought to be Abraham's, so to speak, not Jacob's; Abraham had all the promises.
19. How striking these earthly memorials, and associations with God. But we are on wholly earthly ground here; this attaches to earth though (and this is to be noted) connected with heaven. The vow and all partook of this character.
20-22. The vow of Jacob was a poor thing, suited indeed to one driven out, through his want of principle; faith in a certain sense, but faith used for selfishness. Never did Abraham, or even Isaac make such a vow.