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Teaching the Bible
JACOB'S LADDER
Theological Issues
- God as Saviour and Deliverer
This is an important theme throughout the Bible. God's purpose is to bless and restore. So Jacob, in spite of his wilfulness, is caught up in God's purposes and plays the part destined for him. He has to be recreated as Israel. What was begun at Bethel was completed at Penuel where, after struggling with God, Jacob is renamed Israel (Genesis 32:22-32).
- Assisting Presence
Assurance of the assisting presence of God runs throughout the Bible. God is present to support and meet people's needs even in the most unexpected places and situations and when they are at their most vulnerable. Jacob is a runaway and outcast who had tried to overtake his brother. He discovers that a God whom he does not know is interested in him and has actually descended the ladder from heaven to earth to stand beside him. In this desolate spot, where he was utterly lonely and afraid, he finds that gates of heaven. 'I will not leave you' (v.15) means that Jacob will not be abandonded.
God's self-identification is important, especially if this was a Canaanite sanctuary where many gods were said to appear to worshippers.
- The ladder linking heaven and earth
The ladder is a religious symbol originating in Egypt and Babylon. It was used in the Egyptian coronation ritual as a symbol of the deification of the king and in the ziggurat which was the Babylonian temple tower (like a tiered wedding cake in shape), with stairs leading up to the temple on top symbolising the bond between heaven and earth. So the ladder is reminiscent of the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:4). In the Babel story, though, it is humans who try to reach heaven. In the Jacob story, God takes the initiative by coming down to earth.
- Angels
The Hebrew word here translated as 'angels' means 'messengers'. All the gods had their messengers, who were themselves lesser gods. Here are traces of the ancient Canaanite religion, which had been influenced by the religions of Egypt and Babylon. Mention of angels appears in Israel's early history and then much later on.
- Experiencing the Holy
God's holiness is revealed in a particular place, e.g. Sinai. Here, Bethel is a holy place marking a dividing line between the human and the divine, where humans are forbidden to dwell. Yet this is where God appears to Jacob. Holiness is manifested in three ways in this narrative:
- As holy object: stone which becomes a house;
- As holy place: marked by the altar;
- As heaven: where God dwells.
God's holiness is seen as always provoking a response of awe and fear in humans. God's purpose for Israel was that she should become holy like God in order to spread holiness throughout God's creation.
- Promises and Vows
God's promise to Israel can be traced through Israel's history and religion. Here God's promise to Abraham is repeated and a personal promise given to Jacob (vv.13-15) which confirms Isaac's blessing (Genesis 27:28-29).
God's promise is matched by Jacob's vow (vv.20-22). Jacob can be seen as bargaining even with God! But it is suggested that Jacob is asking for survival, without which he would be unable to keep his promise. He is therefore dedicating himself completely to God in response to his experience of God. His promise to return a tenth of his possessions to God (the basis of tithing) confirms his commitment to this relationship.
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