Bible Strands
Genesis 28:1
So Isaac called for Jacob and blessed him. “Do not take a wife from the Canaanite women,” he commanded.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Isaac summons Jacob and blesses him before issuing a direct command. The moment occurs during a parental commissioning sequence preceding Jacob’s departure.
The words — וַ/יְצַוֵּ֙/הוּ֙ (va/y.tza.Ve./hu) literally means "and he commanded him," establishing the authoritative nature of the instruction. אֹת֑/וֹ ('o.T/o) functions as the direct object pronoun "him," specifying Jacob as the recipient.
The thread — The text explicitly forbids taking a wife from Canaanite women, a directive that runs parallel to the oath in Genesis 24:3 and the fruitfulness blessing in Genesis 28:3. Rebekah’s stated weariness regarding local women in Genesis 27:46 confirms the family’s consistent boundary.
Why it lands — The text requires a reader to recognize that covenant identity is preserved through specific marital choices rather than cultural assimilation. It demands immediate compliance with a parental directive that shapes future lineage.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And Isaac called Jacob, and blessed him, and charged him, and said unto him, Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan.
Cross-references
- Genesis 24:3 and I will have you swear by the LORD, the God of heaven and the God of earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites among whom I am dwelling,
- Genesis 28:3 May God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and multiply you, so that you may become a company of peoples.
- Genesis 27:46 Then Rebekah said to Isaac, “I am weary of my life because of these Hittite women. If Jacob takes a Hittite wife from among them, what good is my life?”
- Genesis 6:2 the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful, and they took as wives whomever they chose.
- Genesis 24:37 My master made me swear an oath and said, ‘You shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites in whose land I dwell,
- Genesis 26:34 When Esau was forty years old, he took as his wives Judith daughter of Beeri the Hittite and Basemath daughter of Elon the Hittite.
- 2 Corinthians 6:14 Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership can righteousness have with wickedness? Or what fellowship does light have with darkness?
- Genesis 27:27 So he came near and kissed him. When Isaac smelled his clothing, he blessed him and said: “Ah, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field that the LORD has blessed.
- Genesis 49:28 These are the tribes of Israel, twelve in all, and this was what their father said to them. He blessed them, and he blessed each one with a suitable blessing.
- Exodus 34:15 Do not make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, for when they prostitute themselves to their gods and sacrifice to them, they will invite you, and you will eat their sacrifices.