The Ladder, the Dream, and the God Who Stands by Jacob

Sleeping on a Rock — But Not Alone

Jacob arrives exhausted at a certain place, the sun having set, and lies down with a stone for a pillow. Well, sleeping with a rock for a pillow is not exactly even Motel 6. But Jacob alone on the hills of Benjamin has a visitor during the night.

Dreams are an outcropping of a person's reality and needs. They also have a prophetic angle. So Jacob needs to be encouraged — his future is up in the air — and he needs to know that, although he is leaving the Land of Promise, God is still with him and is going to stand by him and continue to protect and bless and keep His promises which he gave to Abraham and Isaac.

In his sleep, Jacob sees a very tall ladder, and there are angels ascending and descending. You would think that, on a ladder from Heaven, the angels ought to be descending first and then ascending. However, the importance of the story is that the angels are taking Jacob's situation from the Earth up to Heaven. They are pleading for Jacob's plight, and there is a response.

"The Lord Stood Above Him" — A Translation Problem

Now here is something in the Hebrew text that the translators in the 17th Century didn't understand. The NKJV has:

Here is what the JPS (Jewish Publication Society translation) says:

The problem in the NKJV translation is that the "Him" was translated as the neutral "it." That makes a big difference in the plot of the story, and in the understanding of the very essence of the dream.

To stand above a person in Hebrew means to be there and serve him. Like a waiter in a first-class restaurant that is standing next to the table of his clients, watching to see if they just lift up their eyes and look at the waiter — he immediately comes to ask what they need. The statement that the Lord is standing over Jacob, not over the rock, is there to assure Jacob that he is not alone in this journey North. It is a journey of destiny, not a running away in fear from his brother Esau.

Here is the same phrase used elsewhere in the Bible. When three men appeared to Abraham:

The three men were "standing by him" — they came to serve Abraham and Sarah. Another example is from Genesis 45:1:

The phrase "all those who stood by him" is referring to his servants. The Lord Himself comes down to serve Jacob, to reassure him of his future, and affirm that the promises that were given to his grandfather Abraham were still in force.

What Nachmanides Says About the Ladder

This is what Nachmanides, the famous rabbi from Spain from the end of the 15th Century, wrote in his commentary:

To make things plain, what Rabbi Nachmanides says in his commentary is that God comes to Jacob in this dream to assure him that his destiny is secure, and that he will accomplish his divinely-ordained mission in history, in spite of the hardship that are waiting for Jacob along the route. From the next events that happen with Jacob, it is clear that this is what Jacob understood of this dream. Jacob understood that God is going to be with him no matter what, and that God's angels will be going up and down between Heaven and Earth to intercede for Jacob and protect him.

Jacob's Vow — Making a Deal With God

God has and still does, in my opinion, reveal Himself in dreams and visions! The idea that some Protestants inherited from the Catholic Church that the Holy Spirit and God's revelation is imprisoned between the two covers of the Book is not found in the Scriptures, and in fact is not a valid idea. God has always been the same and He has always given individuals dreams and visions. Let us not add or subtract from God's revelation, and not judge those who claim to have seen a dream or heard a word from God. But, God is God and He is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

Jacob realizes that he must do something for God and he makes a deal. Even immediately after the dream, Jacob negotiates with God — a kind of "let's make a deal":

Jacob is no longer naïve. That same business mind that purchased the birthright from his brother Esau is still there. This is not doing business with God — this is a vow that means, "when God does these things He promised me, I will surely give a tenth of all I have to God, and this anointed stone is the marker, the memorial, of this vow that I am making with myself."

Jacob's response to this vision and dream is also a prophetic act. He takes the stone that was his pillow that fateful night, anoints the stone with oil, proclaims prophetically that this place is going to be Beth-el — the house of God. This act is a classic act that was permitted and blessed up to the time of King Josiah, who centralized the worship in one place in Jerusalem.

The most important thing to remember is that if you make a promise to God, or a vow, you must keep it at all cost. This is a reason why Yeshua was teaching in the Gospels that we should not make vows, but Paul made a vow and kept it even if it was costly. He said that he would go to Jerusalem at all costs, even if it meant that he would die. He made the vow in Acts 18, and kept it in Acts 20.

One more personal word on this. I was 16 years old when I had to leave my home in Jerusalem, leave my father and mother, and spend a few nights sleeping in the abandoned British military barracks of Camp Allenby in Jerusalem. I also prayed to God the following prayer: "If you give me a chance and if I survive, I promise to serve You, God of Israel, and Yeshua, Your Son and our Savior, till the last day of my life." This is the reason that I identify with this parasha, even to the detail of my marriage. All I can say is, thank You Lord for your faithfulness to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and David.