"[Jacob] dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. And behold, the Lord stood above it...." (Genesis 28:12-13)

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JACOB'S DREAM

Rev. Arne Bau-Madsen
Reading: Genesis 28:10-22

In our reading from the Word we heard the story of Jacob's dream. Jacob had left his father Isaac's camp in Beer-Sheba and was on his way to the land of Haran, which was where his mother, Rebekah, had come from.

Do you remember why Jacob left Beer-Sheba? He left because he had done something very wrong, and now he was afraid what might happen.

The bad thing Jacob had done was to steal the blessing from his brother Esau. Jacob had tricked their father, Isaac, into believing that he was Esau, and so he was given the blessing instead of Esau. Esau was angry, and so Jacob was afraid of him, and he fled toward the land of Haran.

He traveled all day, and he probably walked pretty fast to get away from Esau, and at sunset he was so tired that he went to sleep right on the ground, using a stone for his pillow.

Then he had a wonderful dream. He saw a tall, tall ladder, or perhaps rather a wide and magnificent staircase reaching all the way from earth to heaven. Above the staircase he saw the Lord Himself, and there were angels going up and down the stairs, all the way up to the Lord, and all the way down to Jacob. And then the Lord spoke to Jacob, and gave him His blessing.

This was a marvelous dream, indeed, and Jacob was so moved by it that when he woke up, he called the place Bethel, which means the house of God. Before he went on his way to Haran, he raised the stone he had used for a pillow and anointed it with oil as an altar for the Lord.

And when you come to worship the Lord, if you listen carefully to the Word, then just as the angels in the dream came down the stairs from the Lord to Jacob, so the reading from the Word will come into your mind from the Lord. And the prayers and songs that you say and sing will rise up toward heaven and the Lord, just as the angels went up the stairs from Jacob to the Lord.

Then you will receive the Lord's blessing and be able to continue your journey through life with strength and hope, trusting in the Lord's love and protection.

Amen.

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