Bible story · Genesis 25–35
Jacob & the Twelve Tribes
A ladder to heaven, a wrestling match with God, and the father of the twelve tribes of Israel.
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Told by Alex & family
Alex and his family are telling the Bible story of Jacob, Abraham's grandson, to children all over the world, just like a parent reading to their kids at bedtime. Get cozy and listen along.
Twin brothers, very different
Isaac and Rebekah, Abraham's son and daughter-in-law, had twin boys: Esau, who came out first, red and hairy, and became a skilled hunter, and Jacob, who came out gripping his brother's heel, and grew up quieter, often at home.
One day Esau came in from hunting, starving, and found Jacob cooking a pot of stew. Esau was so hungry he traded away his birthright, his special place as the older son, for a single bowl of soup. It was a foolish trade, and it set the two brothers on a rocky path.
Later, Jacob went even further, tricking his aging, nearly blind father Isaac into giving him the blessing meant for Esau. When Esau found out, he was furious, and Jacob had to run for his life, alone, far from home.
A ladder to heaven
On his first night on the run, Jacob lay down in the open wilderness with a stone for a pillow. That night he dreamed of a staircase reaching from the earth all the way up to heaven, with angels going up and down it. At the very top stood the LORD.
Behold, I am with you, and I will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.
Jacob woke up amazed. Even running away, even far from home and afraid, God had not left him. Jacob named that place Bethel, which means “house of God.”
Years of hard work
Jacob lived for many years with his uncle Laban, working hard, marrying, and raising a large family. It wasn't always easy: Laban tricked Jacob more than once, the same way Jacob had once tricked his own father. But through it all, Jacob's family kept growing, and God kept His promise to watch over him.
Wrestling with God
Finally, Jacob headed home, terrified to face Esau again after so many years. The night before their meeting, alone by a river, a mysterious man wrestled with Jacob all night long. Jacob wouldn't let go, even after he was hurt, until the man blessed him.
Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed.
Jacob had wrestled with God Himself, and instead of being destroyed, he was changed and given a new name: Israel. The next day, instead of the fight Jacob feared, Esau ran to meet him, and the brothers embraced and wept.
Jacob went on to have twelve sons, and those twelve sons became the twelve tribes of Israel, the beginning of the whole nation God had promised to Abraham, all the way back when Abraham first left his home country to follow God.
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