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!”
Parallel translations
- WEB He was afraid, and said, “How dreadful is this place! This is none other than God’s house, and this is the gate of heaven.”
- KJV And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.
- BSB And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven!”
- NKJV 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!”
- NLT But he was also afraid and said, “What an awesome place this is! It is none other than the house of God, the very gateway to heaven!”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Filled with fear, Jacob declares the place to be the house of God and the gate of heaven.
Overview
Jacob responds to the vision with holy fear, recognizing the spot as a meeting point between heaven and earth. "The gate of heaven" expresses his sense that here heaven has opened toward him. This reverent dread is the fitting response of a sinner who has glimpsed the living God's presence and promise.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- 1 Tim 3:15but if I wait long, that you may know how men ought to behave themselves in God’s house, which is the assembly of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.
- Gen 35:1–13God said to Jacob, “Arise, go up to Bethel, and live there. Make there an altar to God, who appeared to you when you fled from the face of Esau your brother.”
- Eccl 5:1Guard your steps when you go to God’s house; for to draw near to listen is better than to give the sacrifice of fools, for they don’t know that they do evil.
- Exod 3:6Moreover he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look at God.
- 2 Chr 5:14so that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud; for Yahweh’s glory filled God’s house.
- Gen 28:22then this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, will be God’s house. Of all that you will give me I will surely give a tenth to you.”
- Judg 13:22Manoah said to his wife, “We shall surely die, because we have seen God.”
- Luke 2:9Behold, an angel of the Lord stood by them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.
- 1 Pet 4:17For the time has come for judgment to begin with the household of God. If it begins first with us, what will happen to those who don’t obey the Good News of God?
- Rev 1:17When I saw him, I fell at his feet like a dead man. He laid his right hand on me, saying, “Don’t be afraid. I am the first and the last,
- Heb 10:21and having a great priest over God’s house,
- Luke 8:35People went out to see what had happened. They came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting at Jesus’ feet, clothed and in his right mind; and they were afraid.
- Matt 17:6When the disciples heard it, they fell on their faces, and were very afraid.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
From the first promise that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent (3:15), through Abraham's blessing to all nations and Judah's coming ruler, Genesis sows every seed that flowers in Christ — the true offspring, the better Adam, the ram caught for Isaac.
How Genesis 28:17 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.