Preaching the Word
Preaching the Word
Gen 28:10-22 - Jacob's Ladder: God Confirms the Abrahamic Covenant - The Mysteries of God's Word
What if an ordinary stone could serve as a bridge between heaven and earth? Join us this week as we unpack when Jacob's journey from Beersheba to Haran takes a divine turn at Bethel. We'll examine the profound meaning behind Jacob's dream and the heavenly ladder, and explore how this Old Testament event has New Testament significance. This episode underscores God's continuous involvement in human history and His unchanging promises to Jacob and all of His children.
Toward the end of our discussion we examine the biblical prohibition against setting up pagan pillars of worship and contrast it with permissible acts of remembrance such as Jacob's pillar. Drawing insights from Deuteronomy and Micah, we reflect on the vital difference between honoring God and idolizing man-made objects. This conversation serves as a timely reminder to keep our worship directed towards our Creator and Redeemer.
Email: nathan@nathandietsche.com
Thank you again for joining me on the Mysteries of God's Word. If you've been joining me over the last couple of weeks, you probably would have noticed I've been working through some technical difficulties here at our sound booth and for those of you who've stuck with me and listened to our podcasts, thank you. I think you'll notice that this week we got to the bottom of some of our sound issues. For those who've been following along this week, we are in Genesis, chapter 28, starting at verse 10. We are going to be looking at Jacob's dream, beginning in verse 10. Jacob left Beersheba and went toward Haran, and he came to a certain place and stayed there that night because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and laid down in that place to sleep. Here in our first two verses, we see Jacob, the son of Isaac, leaving Beersheba and heading towards Haran. Again, this is a long journey. This is at least 500 miles. Beersheba is a town that still exists south of Jerusalem today. It's about 45 miles southwest of Jerusalem. The town itself was founded by Abram in the Negev. It's often considered the southernmost part of the Israelite kingdom. Beersheba is where Abraham and Abimelech had made an oath concerning a well, and it's where Isaac eventually settled for most of his life. And here we see Jacob now leaving Beersheba, heading towards Haran, because again, if you remember, his brother, esau, said he wanted to kill him. Haran is quite a ways north. It's a city in northern Mesopotamia. Today we know it as Haran, in southeastern Turkey. This was for some years the home of Abraham, before he came to the promised land, and it's where Abraham's family currently resides. So it says that Jacob came to a certain place and he stayed there for the night. This certain place is later identified in verse 19 as Bethel, although at the time that Jacob arrives it's currently called Luz. So Jacob has traveled about 50 miles north of his home in Beersheba, where Isaac is, his home in Beersheba, where Isaac is, and about six miles north of what is Jerusalem. This area of Bethel is also the same area where Abraham, jacob's grandfather, had built an altar to the Lord and called on the name of the Lord, and Jacob now finds himself in an open field. And Jacob now finds himself in an open field as the sun is setting. It says he takes one of these stones and he puts it under his head to lay down, to find a place to sleep. So Jacob uses a stone for a pillow. Perhaps Jacob didn't want to go into the village of Luz, perhaps he enjoyed staying in the open country, or perhaps he just couldn't quite make that journey and he was stopped short by the setting sun. In either case, he grabs a rock that fits his head and he lays down in the open field to sleep, picking up in verse 12,.
Speaker 1:Picking up in verse 12. And said I am the Lord, the God of Abraham, your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. Your offspring will be like the dust of the earth and you shall spread abroad, to the west and to the east, and to the north and to the south. And in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. Behold, I am with you and I will keep you wherever you go and will bring you back to this land, for I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.
Speaker 1:These four verses describe to us Jacob's dream. It begins by telling us that there was a ladder set up on the earth and it reached to heaven. The Hebrew word translated ladder here could also refer to a staircase, such as is found in ancient ziggurats. We see the image of the angels is both going up and coming down this stairway. The dream reveals to Jacob he's not alone on his travel. There are many messengers of God that Jacob sees coming up and going down, encouraging him that God is actively involved in the affairs of men and that the angels of heaven patrol the earth.
Speaker 1:In the Gospel of John, jesus uses the imagery from this ladder or staircase to describe to his disciples how the kingdom of heaven is coming on earth through him. In John, chapter 1, verse 51, jesus said to his disciples Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of man. This in part happened at his first coming. For example, at his baptism, we saw the Holy Spirit descending on Jesus like a dove. In Matthew 3, 16 and 17, it reads when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water and behold, the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him. And behold, a voice from heaven said this is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.
Speaker 1:We also see the kingdom of heaven coming on earth at Jesus' transfiguration. In Luke 9, starting at verse 29, it says and as he was praying, the appearance of his face was altered and his clothing became dazzling white. And behold, two men were talking with him, moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory and spoke of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem, and finally, at his resurrection. In Matthew 28, verse 2, it says there was a great earthquake and the angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning and his clothing white as snow. Now, these are glimpses as to angels and the Lord God himself descending from heaven and God's interaction with man, but we certainly should not forget this imagery will be most fully realized when Jesus arrives again. He will come with his holy angels bringing the kingdom of God in power and in glory, in the power and glory of the Father.
Speaker 1:2 Thessalonians 1.7 reads and to grant relief to you who are afflicted, as well as to us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels inflaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus himself spoke of this in Matthew 16.27. He says For the Son of man is going to come with his angels, in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done. And again, jesus said in Matthew 25, 31, when the Son of man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious. So this dream that God is giving to Jacob shows his personal interaction with the world. It's letting Jacob know he's not alone, that the God of heaven and earth is with him.
Speaker 1:And in verse 13, we see that the Lord was standing at the top of this staircase. The Lord stood above it and he began to speak personally to Jacob. And what does he tell him? To Jacob? And what does he tell him the Lord? God, reaffirms to Jacob all four elements of the Abrahamic covenant. The Lord says the land on which you lie. I will give you this land, the land that he's sleeping on. God is again promising to Jacob the promised land. God is promising Jacob that his offspring will possess this land, but it's even more a promised eternal land, all of the promises of the Abrahamic covenant are rooted in the Messiah.
Speaker 1:All of the promises of the Abrahamic covenant are rooted in the Messiah. God also promises that his offspring will be like the dust of the earth. This, too, is shown through his offspring in Israel, who become like the dust of the earth. But even more so, the promise to Abraham was that he would be the father of nations, and that promise, again, is rooted in faith. Abraham's children are children of faith rather than physical children. The third promise rooted in the Messiah is that in Jacob and in his offspring, all the families of the earth will be blessed, and this is through Jacob's line. The Messiah would come. And finally, god promises to be with Jacob wherever he goes. God promises to protect Jacob. This protection, too, is rooted in the Messiah. While there is real blessing that the Lord has for his children, there is also real trial and tribulation that his children go through. So God isn't promising to give Jacob an easy life. Rather, god is promising Jacob that he will be with him no matter what happens, that God is his shield and his safe place, picking up in verse 16,.
Speaker 1:Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said Surely, the Lord is in this place and I did not know it. And he was afraid and said how awesome is this place? This is none other than the house of God and this is the gate of heaven. So early in the morning Jacob took the stone that he'd put under his head and he set it up for a pillar and poured oil on top of it. He called the name of that place Bethel, but the name of the city was Luz at the first. Then Jacob made a vow, saying If God will be with me and will keep me in this way, that I go and will give me bread to eat and clothing to wear, so that I come again to my Father's house in peace, then the Lord shall be my God and this stone which I have set up for a pillar shall be God's house, shall be God's house, and of all that you give me I will give a full tenth to you.
Speaker 1:In these last six verses we begin to see where Jacob is at in his thinking and understanding of the Lord. At this time he says surely the Lord is in this place. He hasn't recognized yet in his heart and in his mind that the Lord is ever-present and that God sees all. In fact, the Lord just told him that he would be with Jacob and he wouldn't leave him. But Jacob still associates the presence of God to this specific location. It says Jacob was afraid. Having recognized the holiness and goodness of God and his sinful state as a man, jacob becomes afraid. But as we know from Proverbs 1.7, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.
Speaker 1:Jacob here says how awesome is this place. Jacob is overwhelmed with wonder and awe, knowing that God has confirmed the promise of his grandfather, abraham, and has spoken directly to him. So Jacob says this is the house of God, the gates of heaven are here, and he names the place Bethel. The name Bethel means the house of God. It's clear here in this text that Jacob perceives that God reveals himself and is present in this specific location. However, god will later reveal himself to Jacob in other places. This area of Bethel was special to Abraham's family. It is where Abraham had made an altar to the Lord the first time he came into the promised land, and we see that Jacob took that stone that he had had for a pillow and he sets up a pillar to remember the event in which God declared his faithfulness to him. Jacob is commemorating this event, while we see that Jacob is in fact worshiping the creator of heaven and earth here with fear and awe. Jacob hasn't been transformed in his faith yet, because that's going to happen 20 years later when he encounters God at Penuel. Encounters God at Penuel.
Speaker 1:Setting up pillars as a remembrance is something Jacob would do yet again when he comes back to Bethel and builds an altar to the Lord. However, we also know that setting up pillars became a way of worship for pagans and pagan worship to Baal. The Gentiles would worship the pillars. So later, under the law, god forbids pillars to be made because of this idolatry.
Speaker 1:In Deuteronomy 16.22, it reads you shall not set up a pillar which the Lord God hates. You shall not set up a pillar which the Lord God hates. And Deuteronomy 12.3 reads you shall tear down the altars and dash to pieces their pillars. Micah 5.13 reads I will cut off your carved images and your pillars from among you and you shall bow down no more to the work of your hands.
Speaker 1:As we think about the difference between the pillar that Jacob set up to remind him of how the Lord God, the creator of heaven and earth, spoke with him, and the pillars that the pagans set up to worship and the pillars that the pagans set up to worship. Let us set up reminders in our life to worship the Lord, god the creator of heaven and earth, and not something made by human hands. Thank you for joining me today. I want to let those of you who know who follow me our podcast will be taking a break for a couple of weeks, but we'll be back and I look forward to speaking with you again when Jacob marries Leah and Rachel, and God bless you, my friend.