Children Bible Stories

Jacob set out from Beersheba for Haran. When he reached a place, he decided to take some rest from his journey and spend the night there.

So Jacob took a stone to put it under his head as pillow and he lay down to sleep.

Then Jacob dreamed of a ladder that reaches high up into the heaven and angels were ascending and descending from it.

And the Lord said, “I am your God and the God of Abraham and Isaac. I will make your descendants as numerous as the dust of the earth. I will bless you and be with you. I will protect you wherever you go and I will bring you back here.”

Jacob woke up from his dream and said, “God is surely present in this place and I didn’t realize it,”

And he grew afraid and said, “This is so wonderful. This place must be no other than God’s house and the gate of heaven.”

So Jacob took the stone that he put under his head as pillow and makes an altar of it. Jacob called the place Bethel although the city is called Luz.

Then Jacob made an oath, “If God really be with me and protect me from harm wherever I go, and give me food and clothes to wear, then He shall be my God. This stone which I had set up as a pillar shall be the house of God and I will give a tenth of all my possessions to God.”

Jacob was getting very old and his eye sight is not clear anymore.

So Jacob called his oldest son, Esau, to him and said,” Go out into the wild and hunt a wild game. Then prepare the tasty meal for me so that I can bless you.”

After that, Esau went out to hunt game so that he can cook the delicious meal for his father and get his blessing.

Rebecca was eaves dropping on what Jacob is saying to Esau.

Rebecca said to Jacob, “I heard your father telling Esau to go out and hunt a game so that he can cook a tasty meal for him and bless him. Now, go out and get your fattest kids of goat and bring it to me. I will cook the tasty meal. You will bring it to your father so that he may eat it and bless you before his death.”

Jacob replied, “Esau is hairy but I have smooth skin. Father will feel me and surely find out I am not Esau and curse me instead.”

Rebecca said, “Let the curse be on me and not you. Now go and do what I said.”

Jacob did as what his mother told him to do and brought the choicest kids of goats from his flock to her.

Rebecca then cook the delicious meal that Jacob loves to eats.

Rebecca put the kid goat skins on Jacob’s hand and neck so that Isaac will not find out that he is Jacob.

Rebecca handed over the delicious meal to Jacob and he brought it to his father Isaac. Isaac didn’t know that Jacob is disguising as Esau so he ate the meal prepared by Rebecca and gave his blessing to Jacob.

When Esau came back from hunting, he found out that Jacob disguised as him to steal his blessing.

Esau said, “Is he not called Jacob? First he stole away my birthright. Now he stole my blessing.”

Esau was very angry. Esau hated Jacob and made plans to take revenge on Jacob by killing him.

Rebecca overheard of Esau’s plan to kill Jacob.

She felt worried about it so she said to Isaac, “I couldn’t stand Esau’s Canaanite wives. I don’t want Jacob to marry any woman from among the Canaanite but from among our family in my homeland. Therefore, please send Jacob to go to Nahor so that he can find a girl there to marry.”

Isaac listened to Rebecca and called Jacob and blessed him. Isaac sent Jacob away and Jacob went to Padam Aram to Laban the son of Bethuel in Haran.

There was a famine in the land and Isaac move to Gerar. The Lord said to Isaac, “Don’t go to Egypt. Stay here and I will bless you and be with you.” So Isaac obeyed the Lord and stay in Gerar.

Some men asked Isaac about Rebecca, “Who is she?” and Isaac replied, “She is my sister.” Isaac said this because he was afraid they will kill him in order to have Rebecca.

One day, King Abimelech saw Isaac kissing Rebecca from the window.

Abimelech then charged Isaac, “It is obvious that Rebecca is your wife because I saw you kissing her.”

Isaac replied, “I was afraid that you will kill me to have her so I said that.”

Abimelech was very angry about it and command that no one should touch Rebecca or he will be put to death.

Isaac sowed in the land that same year. The Lord blessed Isaac and Isaac reaped 1000 folds.

Because of God’s blessing upon Isaac, Isaac became more and more prosperous until he have herds of livestock and servants.

The Philistines grew jealous of Isaac and stopped up all the wells that Isaac’s servant dug.

Abimelech told Isaac to go away because Isaac has become wealthy and powerful. So Isaac moved away from there and pitches his tent in the valley of Gerar.

One day, Abimelech, his friend, Ahuzzah and army commander, Phicol paid a visit to Isaac.

They wanted to make a treaty with Isaac so that Isaac and his men will never harm them and they will do the same in return. So Isaac held a feast.

They ate and drank and Isaac sent them away in the morning.

Rebecca was barren and Isaac prayed to the Lord so that they can have children. The Lord listened to Isaac’s prayer and Rebecca became pregnant.

Before Rebecca gives birth, the babies jostled in Rebecca’s womb. Rebecca was worried and asked God about it.

God told Rebecca that she is pregnant with twins of which the older will serves the younger.

When the time came for Rebecca to give birth, the first baby came out and it was red and hairy so they called him Esau; the second baby came out with his hand holding on to Esau’s heel so they named him Jacob.

Isaac was sixty years old when Rebecca bore him Esau and Jacob.

Esau is a wild man and loved the outdoors. Esau grew up to be a skillful hunter. Jacob is a docile man and love to stays at home in his tents.

Isaac loves Esau more because he loves the tasty wild game that Esau cooks for him. But Rebecca loves Jacob more.

One day, Jacob was cooking a stew. Esau just came back from hunting and was very tired and thirsty.

Esau said, “Give me some of the red stew you are cooking because I am weary.”

Jacob said, “I will give you the red stew if you sell your birthright to me.” So Esau makes an oath to give his birthright to Jacob.

Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and the lentil stew. Esau ate and drank and went on his way. Esau looks down on his birthright.

Abraham is very old now. So he called his faithful servant, Eliezer, to him.

Abraham said, “Put your hand under my thigh and promise me that you will find a wife from the daughters of my family and not from the daughters of Canaanites,”

Eliezer replied, “What if the woman refuse to come back with me? Should I bring Isaac back to the home land?”

Abraham said,” God will send an angel to be with so that you will take a wife for my son there. If the woman doesn’t want to come back with you to this land, then you will no longer be bound under this oath.”

The servant, Eliezer, took 10 camels along with him and set out for Nahor. Eliezer arrived at a well outside the city. He then made his camels kneel down by the well.

Eliezer prayed, “Lord God, the young women are coming out of the city to fetch water from the well. Please make the girl whom I said, ‘Please let down your pitcher so that I can have some water to drink’ and she says, ‘Drink, and I will also water your camels’ be the one whom you had appointed to be Isaac’s wife. So that I will know that you have shown kindness to my master, Abraham.”

Before Eliezer finished speaking, a beautiful young woman called Rebecca came out from the city to fetch water with the pitcher on her shoulder.

Rebecca is the daughter of Bethuel, the son of Milcah. Milcah is the son of Nahor. Nahor is Abraham’s brother.

Eliezer said to her, “Please let down your pitcher so that I can have some water to drink”.

She said, “Drink.”

After Eliezer had finished drinking the water, she said, “I will draw water for your camels until your camels finished drinking the water.”

After the camels had finished drinking, Eliezer took a very expensive gold nose ring and two hand bracelets and give it to Rebecca.

Rebecca told Eliezer where she was the daughter of Bethuel, from the family of Nahor.

Rebecca’s brother, Laban ran out to meet Eliezer who is by the well.

Laban invited Eliezer to spend the night at their home. Eliezer also give gifts of silver, gold, and clothing to Rebecca. He also gives gifts to Rebecca’s brother and mother. And they eat and drank all night.

When morning arrives the next day, Eliezer wanted to return to Canaan immediately with Rebecca. But Laban said, “Please let Rebecca stays with us for a few more days.”

Eliezer said, “Please don’t stop me from returning to my master.”

Laban said, “Let us call Rebecca and see if she is willing to go back with you now.”

They ask Rebecca and Rebecca agreed to go back to Laban. So they sent Rebecca and her maid away.

When they arrived home, Isaac saw Rebecca and was very happy. Isaac then took Rebecca as his wife.

God decided to test Abraham’s faith. So He called out to Abraham, “Abraham!”

Abraham replied, “I am here.”

God said, “Go to Moriah to offer Isaac as a sacrifice in one of the mountains which I will show you when you get there.”

Abraham obeyed God. Abraham woke up early the next day.

Afterwards Abraham prepared the wood for the burnt offering. Then he saddled his donkey with Isaac along with two young men to Moriah.

After three days of journey, Abraham saw the place within a distance.

Abraham told his men, “Stay here to guard the donkey while I went ahead with my son Isaac to offer sacrifices to the Lord,”

Then Isaac asked his father, Abraham, “Father, I can see that we have woods, but where is the lamb for the burnt offerings.”

As Abraham was about to kill Isaac, an angel of the Lord stopped him.

The angel said, “Don’t lay hand on your son. I know that you are a man of faith and fear God because you have not withheld your son to me.”

Right after the angel finished speaking; Abraham saw a ram caught in the bush. Abraham killed the ram and offered it as a sacrifice for the Lord.

Then the angel of the Lord called out, “Because you have not withheld your son from me, I promised I will bless you so that your descendants will be numerous like the stars in the sky and the dust in the sand. Everyone will be blessed through your seed.”

Later, Abraham and Isaac went back to his men and they returned to Beersheba.