Jacob's Dream

Let's pick up where we left off, starting at verse ten. In keeping with the new schedule of things, this is going to go from verse ten to the end of the chapter, and that's it for today.

Beresheet 28:10-12 "Now Jacob went out from Beersheba and went toward Haran. So he came to a certain place and stayed there all night, because the sun had set. And he took one of the stones of that place and put it at his head, and he lay down in that place to sleep. Then he dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of Elohim were ascending and descending on it."

Do you think having a rock for a pillow might cause weird dreams? Maybe he had too much pizza or Doritos before bed? Before you come to any assumptions like that, consider this; way back then, one of the ways Yahuah talked with people was through dreams. You'll soon learn about people like Joseph, who interpreted dreams for the Pharaoh and a couple of his servants. Dreaming was no laughing matter. What do you think is the significance of this particular dream?

Beresheet 28:13-15 "And behold, Yahuah stood above it and said: 'I am Yahuah Elohim of Abraham your father and the Elohim of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants. Also your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread abroad to the west and the east, to the north and the south; and in you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed. Behold, I am with you and 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 spoken to you.'"

So much for crazy, junk-food induced dreams, huh? This is pretty much the same thing that Yahuah's been telling Jacob's family for awhile now, but consider this... This man got his brother to trade him his special birthright for a bowl of soup. He stole his blessing. He ran away from home to go to a land with family he's never known. His brother wants to kill him. He probably feels all alone in the world with no family to return to. Remember just how tightly knit those family units were? So here he is, alone, maybe a little bit lost, probably scared his brother's going to jump out of a bush somewhere and shoot him with an arrow, but the sun's going down and he needs to rest, somehow. He finds a nice, comfy rock, and falls asleep where he is reminded in a peaceful dream of angels going up and down a ladder, that Yahuah is with him. No matter where he goes, no matter where his life takes him, Yahuah is with him and his family until the blessing is fulfilled. That is easily the greatest comfort you can ask for.

Beresheet 28:16-17 "Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, 'Surely Yahuah 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 Elohim, and this is the gate of heaven!'"

It may take a moment for that comfort to sink in. Also, Yahuah is in every place, no matter how dark and awful it is. There's a psalm or two that talks about that, but we'll get there when we get there.

Beresheet 28:18-22 "Then Jacob rose early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put at his head, set it up as a pillar, and poured oil on top of it. And he called the name of that place Bethel; but the name of that city had been Luz previously. Then Jacob made a vow, saying, 'If Yahuah will be with me, and keep me in this way that I am gong, and give me bread to eat and clothing to put on, so that I come back to my father's house in peace, then Yahuah shall be my Elohim. And this stone which I have set as a pillar shall be Elohim's house, and of all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to you.'"

Ok, so first he sleeps with a rock-pillow, then he sets it up and pours oil on it. That's not strange at all! ...Ok, it's kinda weird, but we live in a different time. Back then, you poured oil on things that were special. It's called anointing. You could anoint a priest or a king, and in this case, a rock where you are reminded of an important promise.

He then made a promise himself; basically as long as Yahuah takes care of him (which looks to be for a really long time), then Yahuah will be his Elohim. Maybe Jacob was just saved here.

Then he said that the rock-pillow that he set up and anointed will be Elohim's house. I'm not entirely certain whether he's being literal or metaphorical right now. Maybe he's saying that Yah will be his Rock. Or maybe he really wants Yah to live in this stone. I'm no biblical scholar, remember? But anyway, that's what he said.

Then he promised to give up a tenth of everything Yah gives him. That is probably the very first tithe. It's kind of obvious what tithing is; but aside from following in Jacob's footsteps, why should you tithe too? Tithe is basically charity. Think about it, what would a world without charity be like? There would be no rubber bracelets or colored ribbon magnets on the back of cars. Those little kids in third world countries wouldn't get any help. If you wind up homeless, you can't get any help. No paper clovers or hot air balloons helping people with muscular dystrophy and sick kids would be stapled on the walls at the local mega-mart. Worthy associations, aiming for the end of diseases like cancer would have to slow research due to a lack of funding. Churches just might go out of business; tithe keeps the lights on and makes sure the coffee pot stays full. A world without tithe is rather bleak, so it's good that it started so early in our history. I'm not saying you should donate everything you have, but 10% is a good number.

That's all that I've got for today, tomorrow we'll be reading Beresheet 29.

Shabbat Shalom!

-Kj