Why Did Jacob Dream About a Ladder in Genesis 28:12?

   The sibling rivalry between Jacob and Esau went to a whole new level after Jacob lied and cheated to get Esau’s blessing.  Of course, Esau was outraged, and word got to Rebekah that he was out to kill Jacob because of it.  To help Esau cool down, Rebekah persuaded Isaac to send Jacob to Haran to stay awhile with her brother Laban. 

  So thanks to all his conniving and cheating, Jacob is now walking on the same dusty road that his grandfather Abraham had walked on over 100 years before. But he’s all alone and probably doing a lot of thinking. 

   Only one part of this journey is recorded in the Bible, and that should make us pay closer attention.  After a long day’s journey, Jacob takes a stone and makes it into a pillow.  Does that not sound a little strange to you? Then he has this dream:

 And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven, and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it. 

   …And Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, Surely Jehovah is in this place, and I did not know it. And he was afraid and said, How awesome is his place!  This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.  Genesis 28:12, 16-17

   In chapters  68, 69, and 72 Witness Lee points out all the incredible symbolism in this dream.  Here are some excerpts from  
pages 885-889 in chapter 68 and page 928 from chapter 72 that focus on the meaning of the ladder with the angels of God:

"The center of this dream was a ladder….It was a ladder already existing on earth, not one descending from heaven….But this verse says that the angels were descending and ascending…..When we come to the New Testament, we see that Christ is the ladder which Jacob saw.  In John 1:51 Jesus said to Nathanael: Truly, truly, I say to you, you shall see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of man. Christ is the One who brings heaven to earth and earth to heaven….I believe that whenever a sinner receives the Lord Jesus and is saved, many angels ascend to heaven bearing the good news" (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of Genesis. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1975, Print).

    At the close of chapter 68, Witness Lee tells his readers that instead of trying to overcome their sins or conquer their weaknesses, we just need to  come to Christ as the heavenly ladder.  When we talk to the Lord and pray, He brings us to God and God to us.  It touched me when I read that when we do this, we give God the way to transforms us and build us up into Bethel, the house of God. 

You can  also listen to live excerpts from these messages on  Genesis on Life-Study of the Bible with Witness Lee.  

Other Posts on the Life-Study of Genesis:

From the Life-Study of Genesis - What is the Focus of the Bible?
What Happened Between Genesis 1:1 and 1:2?
Why Did God Create Man in Genesis 1:26?
Why Did God Create Man With 3 Parts in Genesis 2:7?
Why Did God Put Man in Front of the Two Trees in Genesis 2?
Seeing God's Purpose of Life & Building in the Book of Genesis
What is the Story Behind the Story of Cain & Abel?
What Did Enosh Learn to Do in Genesis 4:26?
How Did Enoch Escape Death in Genesis 5:24?
Why Did Noah Need to Find Grace in Genesis 6:8?
What Does the Rainbow Symbolize in Genesis 9:13?
How Did God Call Abraham in Genesis 12:1?
How Did God Fulfill the Birth of Isaac in Genesis 12:7?
What Does the Marriage of Isaac & Rebekah Show in Genesis 24?
How Does the Story of Jacob Show God's Selection in Genesis 25?
Why Did Jacob Dream About a Ladder in Genesis 28:12?
Seeing Our Spiritual Journey in the Lives of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, & Joseph
Why Did Jacob Call theTwo Altars in Genesis 33 & 35 By Different Names?
How Do the Stories of Jacob & Joseph Mirror God's Purpose in Genesis 1:26?
How Did Joseph's Dreams Really Get Fulfilled in Genesis 41?