Transcendence

Twelve: Stairway To Heaven

Jacob, son of Isaac and Rebekah, set out to Paddan Aram in the region of Haran just as his parents had directed. (He was running from his angry brother. He was also in search of a wife from his mother's hometown. )  After traveling for a whole day he stopped for the night, he was tired and the sun had set. He took a stone and placed it under his head and lay down to sleep. That night he had a dream in which he saw a stairway leading from Earth all the way to heaven. The magnificent stairway led directly to God. Just above the last step he saw the Lord. The Lord told Jacob in the dream that He is in-fact the God of Abraham and of Isaac. He told Jacob he would give him the land which he lied on and make his descendants like the dust of the earth. God told Jacob all people will be blessed through him, that He would be with him, and watch over him wherever he goes. God said he would bring Jacob back to that land. God promised not to leave him until he had delivered on all he had told him. ( Ironic that Jacob, through his own greedy scheming, had won the family birthright and then was forced to run away from the family to survive. Yet God came to him full of promises instead of the reproaches he deserved. Jacob doesn't seem like choice material for a religious leader, yet God chose him, not because of how he behaved, but because he was the one God wanted, simple as that. Jacob had not looked for God, God looked for Jacob. Jacob's vision here, the stairway to heaven, is symbolic of Jesus and his bridge of love between heaven and earth.) The stairway to heaven was like a direct connection from the special land Jacob was laying on and God's specific promises for his life. The precious bond Jacob felt for God increased significantly after the dream. He believed not only in God's words, but also in God's power to make it all come true.

When Jacob woke up from sleeping he declared, "This place is the gate of heaven, how awesome is this place! God is here, this is none other than the house of God!" When he rose he took the stone he had slept on and poured oil on it, then set it up on a pillar and called the place Bethel. Jacob made an oath there claiming that if God will keep his promise and allow him safe travels through his journey, and provide food and drink, along with clothes to wear and bring him back safely to his father's house then the Lord would be his God and the stone he had placed as a pillar will be God's house. Jacob also said he would from then on give a tenth of all he had to the Lord. 

(At this time Jacob was away from his family, on a journey he had never gone on before. He was running from his brother who promised to kill him, and headed out to find relatives he didn't know. He wasn't sure what battles and problems he would face along the way, he had no idea if he would be safe. Then God showed up. Having God's promises when he needed them most was what helped him move on, it gave him hope. He once again felt protected and loved.)

Jacob continued on his journey and came to the land of the eastern peoples. There in a field he saw a well and three flocks of sheep lying near it. He saw that the stone covering the mouth of the well was large. When the flocks were all gathered the shepherds rolled the stone away from the well's mouth and watered the sheep, then they would return the stone. Upon approaching the well, Jacob asked the shepherds where they were from. They answered they were from Haran. He then asked if they knew his uncle Laban and they answered that they indeed knew him and that he was doing well. "In fact," one said, "Here comes Rachel, his daughter, with the sheep."

When Rachel approached, Jacob helped her by rolling the stone away and watering his uncle's sheep. As he talked with her he was overcome with emotion. He missed his mother and father, his home and all he had left behind. The relief and excitement to be successful in meeting and finding his relative caused him to weep as he embraced her and kissed her. He explained he was the son of Rebekah, her father's sister. Rachel ran and told her father about all Jacob has said. As soon as Laban heard of his sister's son he ran out to greet him, so excited to meet a man who was his own flesh and blood. He embraced him, kissed him then brought him into his home. There Jacob told him all about his family.

Jacob stayed on in Laban's home. He helped the family by working anywhere he was needed. After he had been there for a month Laban realized that even though Jacob was family it did not mean he should not be paid for the work he was doing. He asked Jacob, "What do you wish your wages to be for working here?"

Jacob's answer came easily because he had fallen in love with Laban's beautiful daughter Rachel, "I will work for you for seven years in return for your younger daughter Rachel."

Laban agreed saying, "It is better for me to give her to you than to some other man." So Jacob happily served seven years so that he may marry Rachael. It only felt like a very short time because of his love for her. Jacob worked hard and continued to count down the days. As soon as the time was up he went to his uncle Laban and asked for Rachel's hand.

Laban brought everyone together and gave a great feast, but when evening came he took his older daughter Leah and gave her to Jacob. Laban also gave Zilpah, his servant girl to them as Leah's maidservant. Jacob was furious though, for he only loved Rachel. He asked Laban, "Why have you done this? I served you for Rachel, not Leah. Why have you deceived me?" ( Sad but Jacob may have deserved to be deceived after his on bout of deception toward his brother. Though they never knew each other, it seems the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree. Laban was being deceitful to get his way, just as Jacob had been deceitful to get his way when it came to his own brother's birthright and then again when he took his brother's blessing from his dying father. Laban had played on Jacob's love for Rachel in order to give his older daughter away in marriage first.)

Laban replied, "It is not custom here to give the younger daughter in marriage before the older one. Finish this daughter's bridal week, then we will give you the younger one also, in return for another seven years of work."

Though angry and hurt, Jacob agreed to work the following seven years for Rachel. He felt he had no choice, he loved her and felt obligated to agree to seven more years of work in order to marry the one girl he truly loved.

At the end of that week, just as he said he would, Laban gave Rachel to Jacob along with his servant girl Bilhah as Rachel's maidservant.

Jacob then had two wives and two maidservants. But, it was obvious to everyone he loved Rachel more than Leah. (Jacob had a favorite, just as Rebekah, his own mother, chose him as her favorite son. But, as always, choosing to have favorites causes jealousy. Jealousy had been the root cause of Esau's hate for Jacob. It dates all the way back to Cain and Able , where Cain killed Able out of Jealousy. Jealousy causes all kinds of problems and heartache, and will continue to do so throughout Jacob's life.)

The Lord saw that Leah was not loved. He heard her pain so He opened up her womb, but Rachel remained barren. This was considered very successful for Leah because in those days having children was considered better than wealth. This made Rachel very jealous and heartbroken. She wanted to become pregnant very bad.

Leah and Jacob's first born baby was a son, and because she believed the Lord has seen her misery, she named him Reuben. She prayed that because of their son, surely her husband would come to love her. But, Jacob remained the same. She conceived again and though she still didn't believe her husband loved her, she knew God had blessed her and she named her second son Simeon. Her third son came next and Leah believed with all her heart that Jacob would become attached to her after giving him three fine sons. So her third one was named Levi, which she believed meant attached. When her forth son came Leah decided she was truly blessed and since she decided to praise the Lord, she named him Judah.

(Life Question: Does God's promises give you hope?  In a time where you found yourself in a situation that may have been scary or confusing did you lean on God's promises to carry you through? God made promises to Jacob and it carried him through a terrifing time in his life. Have you prayed for stronger faith? )