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"For who in the heavens can be compared to the Lord? Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened to the Lord?" Psalm 89:6

Text: Genesis 28:1-22

A LONG AND DIFFICULT JOURNEY

How did Jacob make the journey from Canaan to Haran? It was quite different from the trip made by Eliezer, the faithful old servant of Abraham. He did not have servants to accompany him. He apparently traveled on his own, for whatever reason.

“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.

GENESIS 28:10-11

The Scriptures are silent as to why the heir of Isaac traveled all by himself. Even if he had not yet come to the full place of inheritance where he could travel with an armed escort, he need not have traveled alone. To travel alone was dangerous. To Esau who was a hunter, traveling alone was not a problem, for he would be well armed. The possible reason why he traveled all by himself could well be that he wanted to make good his escape from his family problems as swiftly as possible. Who knows if his brother might change his mind, and slay him before his father’s demise? He could well do that! Isaac would not be there to protect him!

Jacob was not used to roughing things out. He had always had his mother to do things for him. Even in the matter of cooking a special meal for his father, it was Rebekah who cooked it. It was his mother who chose the clothes for Jacob to wear. It was his mother again who came up with the idea of Jacob donning the skin of an animal on his hands. How tough it must have been to have to sleep beneath the stars and to have a stone for a pillow! What a strange turnaround of circumstances! The stolen firstborn blessing had not stood him in good stead at all!

A LADDER REACHING TO HEAVEN

How would Jacob fare in Haran? Would he even survive the night? Would he ever return to Canaan as his father Isaac had declared in his farewell prayer of blessing? About the only thing that seemed to be true was that he felt like a stranger on the earth indeed. Jacob had no answers to any of the questions that must have flooded his mind. The night had settled and in the midst of a much needed rest, he had a special dream.

“Then he 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.”

GENESIS 28:12

How vivid that dream was! What was the meaning of this dream? Who were these heavenly beings ascending and descending the ladder that reached to heaven? How wonderful it would be to climb that ladder all the way to heaven! But who would dare to even get close to this ladder! Surely this was no ordinary dream of a person who was fleeing for his life! Could this be a special revelation from the God of his father Isaac?