Vow

January 10, 2026

After Jacob had his dream of the ladder, he set up a stone and made a vow. “Then Jacob made a vow, saying, ‘If God will be with me, and keep me in this way that I am going, and give me bread to eat and clothing to put on, so that I come back to my father’s house in peace, then the LORD shall be my God. And this stone which I have set as a pillar shall be God’s house, and of all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to You.’” This is the longest-formulated vow in the Bible.

A vow is a solemn promise, often made to a deity, and in this case, Jacob made a vow to God. Now, the wording seems conditional: You do this for me, and I will do this for you. However, when we consider the context of the story, it becomes clear that this is not the case. “He was responding in faith and commitment to the assurance that he had just received.” (Andrews Bible Commentary, Vol 1, p 174) We should see that it is always God who initiates the act of reaching out and provision for us. It was God who appeared to Jacob in a dream, and in Genesis 31:13, God reminds Jacob of the vow he had made and tells him to return home. “I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed the pillar and where you made a vow to Me. Now arise, get out of this land, and return to the land of your family.” God fulfills His part of the vow and invites Jacob and his family to go back home.

We are in the second week of the new year. Making a vow isn’t something we typically do, but we know that God will lead us as He always does. Knowing of His goodness and leading, may we also make a vow to our Father in heaven, and express our commitment to Him. God is leading us all the way to the end.