(Genesis 28) Bethel
(Chat GPT translation from Chinese, edited by Mijiale, 中文在后面）
On the weekend, my wife accompanied me for a walk, and we sat on a wooden chair, watching the sunset and the moon when we got tired. She asked me if I felt lonely when I walked alone usually. I said, “Not lonely, for the Creator is with me, which is great!” Genesis 28 recounts that when Jacob went on a distant journey and was alone at night, the Creator began to speak directly to him. Before this, in his parents’ home, the Creator spoke to Jacob’s parents and blessed him through them, but there is no biblical record of direct communication with Jacob himself.
When one walks alone, attention does not need to be on the people nearby, allowing for thoughts on things not usually considered. For instance, 35 years ago, before my first trip abroad, I once thought about what it would be like to walk on the streets on the other side of the Earth with the head facing downward, as that is the opposite side of the Earth. What would it feel like to take a stroll there? Now, I am indeed walking on the streets on the opposite side of the Earth, yet there is sunlight here, and in the afternoon, one can see a seemingly translucent moon. Even thousands of miles away, the laws of nature remain the same. Not to mention the Creator who established these natural laws; He is present both in China and in the United States. Just as Jacob went on a distant journey and (Genesis 28:11) “came to a certain place and stayed there because the sun had set,” he unexpectedly encountered the Creator there. Jacob couldn’t help but exclaim, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it” (Genesis 28:16)! He named the place Bethel (Genesis 28:19), which means “house of God” in the original text (ביתBeth = house of). Jacob left the house of his parents’, and, in the wilderness, had to sleep with a stone as a pillow (Genesis 28:11), only to find out that this place was the house of the Creator (Genesis 28:17)! Moreover, the Creator promised him, “I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go” (Genesis 28:15). Wherever one may be, the Creator is with those He loves because the Creator is omnipresent.
（创28）伯特利
周末我太太陪我散步累了，我们坐在木椅上，看夕阳和月亮。她问我平时一个人散步孤单吗？我说不孤单，有造物主同在，多好！ 创世纪28章记载，雅各出远门，一个人在夜里独处的时候，造物主开始与他直接说话。在此之前，在父母家，造物主与雅各的父母说话，通过父母祝福他，但是没有圣经记载直接与雅各自己说话。
一个人散步时，注意力不需要放在身旁的人身上，就可以想一些平时不想的事情，比如，我三十五年前首次出国以前，曾经想过，到了地球那一边，在街上走路是头朝下的，因为那是地球的反面，在哪里街上散步是什么感觉？现在真的在地球的反面的街上散步了，可是这儿也有阳光，下午也能看见那种好像半透明的月亮。到了几万里之外，大自然的规律还是一样的。更不用说造自然规律的造物主了，祂既在中国，祂也在美国。正如雅各首次出远门，（创28:11）“到了 一 个 地 方 ， 因 为 太 阳 落 了 ， 就 在 那 里 住 宿”，竟然在那里也遇见了造物主，雅各不由得感叹，造物主“真 在 这 里 ， 我 竟 不 知 道”（创28:16）！他把这里起名叫“伯特利”（创28:19），原文是“神的家”的意思（בית伯特=家）。雅各离开了父母的家，到了郊野之处不得不枕着石头睡觉（创28:11），没想到这儿竟然是造物主的家（创28:17）！而且造物主应许他，“我 也 与 你 同 在”（创28:15）。不论在哪里，造物主都与祂所爱之人同在。因为造物主无处不在。