What is Jacob's Ladder?

With a double “verily” or “most assuredly” the Lord assures him that he will see a greater manifestation of His glory in a coming day, heaven open and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man. This will be the fulfillment of Jacob's dream in Genesis 28:12, indicating as it does restored communication between heaven and earth, once interrupted by the corruption of sin; but Christ Himself being Mediator, in whom restoration is accomplished. His worldwide title, “Son of Man” is used, as embracing not only Israel, but all mankind. The angels of God will minister rejoicingly, but in subjection to the Son of Man, for that age will be in subjection to His authority, not to that of angels (Hebrews 2:5-9).

Though Jacob was not walking in communion with God, yet God was not stopped from communicating with him. When God sends a dream He has a captive audience (v. 12), and this dream given to Jacob was of particular significance. He saw a ladder set up on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God ascending and descending on it. Some have imagined that this intimates that man by his spiritual energy is able to climb up to heaven, gradually ascending by human effort, into favor with God. But it has nothing to do with man's ascending, just as is true when the Lord tells Nathanael he would “see the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man” (John 1:51).

Though Jacob was not walking in communion with God, yet God was not stopped from communicating with him. When God sends a dream He has a captive audience (v.12), and this dream given to Jacob was of particular significance. He saw a ladder set up on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God ascending and descending on it. Some have imagined that this intimates that man by his spiritual energy is able to climb up to heaven, gradually ascending by human effort, into favor with God. But it has nothing to do with man's ascending, just as is true when the Lord tells Nathanael he would "see the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man" (John 1:51).

As Jacob dreamed, he saw a ladder set up on earth that reached to heaven, plainly teaching Jacob that there was a divine link between earth and heaven, and this link was maintained in God's providence by angelic means, for the angels of God were "ascending and descending" on the ladder. Above the ladder was the Lord Himself, showing that the angelic ministry was directed by Him, the angels He sent forth on their earthly missions returning to Him to give account of what they had done for Him. It seems that the Lord alludes to this in John 1 when He said to Nathaniel, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, Hereafter (or Henceforth) ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man" (John 1:51). Angelic ministry is now under the control of the Lord as Son of Man, as is seen in Acts 5:19; Acts 10:3; Acts 12:7-11; and Hebrews 1:14.

Every word spoken by the Lord was in richest grace. There was not, as we might have expected, a solemn rebuke to Jacob for his reproachful conduct. The Lord had not overlooked Jacob's sins, but He was at this time declaring His sovereign grace. This is evident from the opening words of the Lord who declared Himself as "Jehovah, the God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac" (Gen. 28:13). The One who in His sovereign choice had called Abraham, and had chosen Isaac, was intervening to bless Jacob in spite of all he was naturally.

The first thing promised to Jacob was "the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed." This was the renewal of the promise given to Abraham and Isaac, which has already had a partial fulfilment, but which awaits complete fulfilment when, under Messiah, Israel will possess the land of promise. Even now we are witnessing the efforts of the Arab nations around to dispossess Israel, and great will be the conflicts before Israel are finally established in Palestine as the rightful heirs of the land because of the promise of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

In spite of all his defects Jacob's action in going forth to Haran was consistent with the purpose of God, and hence by a dream encouragement was ministered to him. At the time of Babel men sought to elevate themselves to heaven by a tower of their own construction, and it ended in scattering and confusion. But God has established a link between heaven and earth, indicated by the ladder of his dream, and this link in those days was made good by angelic administration. Jehovah Himself was at the top of the ladder and poor Jacob, the fugitive, at the bottom, needing a blessing and getting it.

There are thus two things Jacob has to learn on this memorable occasion. First, for his consolation, he will learn that all his failures will not alter God's purpose to bless him in sovereign grace. Second, for his correction, he will learn that God's sovereign grace will not stay God's chastening hand on account of his failures. The sovereign grace of the Lord will not set aside the faithful government of the Lord. Jacob's circumstances are not altered; he still has to pursue his lonely way as a wanderer, and spend long years in toil and bondage, in the house of the stranger, as the result of his sin against his father and brother. He has to reap what he has sown. If Jacob deceives his father with the skins of goats so, in the years to come he will be deceived by his own sons with the blood of a goat. The sovereign grace by which we are blessed, does not alter that memorable law, "Whatsoever a man sows, that shall he also reap" (Gal. 6:7).

However, the very sin for which Jacob had to suffer became the occasion of displaying the grace and mercy of God to the sufferer. To make known this grace the Lord appears to him in a dream. Jacob sees a ladder set up on earth whose top reaches the heavens. He sees the angels of God ascending and descending on the ladder. More wonderful still, he sees that, "The Lord stood above it." At the top of the ladder is the Lord of glory, at the bottom of the ladder is a failing, lonely man. Between the Lord at the top and Jacob at the bottom there are heavenly messengers from the Lord, and heavenly guardians for the saints, ascending and descending.

But "the top of the ladder reached to heaven." It formed the medium of communication between heaven and earth; and "behold the angels of God ascending and descending upon it" — striking and beautiful picture of Him by whom God has come down into all the depth of man's need, and by whom also He has brought man up and set him in His own presence for ever, in the power of divine righteousness! God has made provision for the accomplishment of all His plans, despite of man's folly and sin; and it is for the everlasting joy of any soul to find itself, by the teaching of the Holy Ghost, within the limits of God's gracious purpose.

Jacob saw a ladder set up on earth reaching to heaven, with the angels of God ascending and descending upon. it. The Lord Jesus came into the world of the seed of Abraham and of the seed of David. He should have been received by His people, but He was rejected by Israel. He then took the place of the Son of Man. He suffered and died, and set up the ladder on earth through His wonderful work on the cross which reached to heaven. The Lord as Son of Man takes the place of Jacob’s ladder, and hereafter it shall be seen as He said “The angels of God ascending and descending [not descending and ascending] on the Son of Man.” God will have earth and heaven in beautiful and blessed communion, but this will be by the Son of Man, not exactly Son of David. Son of Man is His wider title, it takes in the vast universal dominion, when His name shall be excellent in all the earth (Ps. 8). The administration will then be directly under man, not angels.

376 It is not very material to our present subject, but the vulgar error of Christ's being the ladder on which angels descend, uniting heaven and earth, being repeated here, I notice it. Christ has Jacob's place, not the ladder's. Jacob was at the foot of the ladder, and these messengers were coming down and going up from God to him, and from him to God. Now the Son of man was to be the object. God's angels would have the Son of man for the object of their service from an open heaven. There is no ladder thought of. Christ, the Son of man, is the object. Nathaniel had recognized Him as Son of God, King of Israel, according to Psalm 2. Christ carries him on to His title in Psalm 8 (being rejected), and says he would see greater things than that, even heaven open, and the Son of man the object of the service of the angels, of God Himself.

On the morrow Jesus begins, directly and indirectly, to call others to follow Himself. He tells Philip to follow Him. This leads Philip to Nathanael, in whose case, when he comes to Jesus, we see not divine power alone in sounding the souls of men, but over creation. Here was One on earth who knew all secrets. He saw him under the fig tree. He was God. Nathanael's call is just as clearly typical of Israel in the latter day. The allusion to the fig-tree confirms this. So does his confession: Rabbi, thou art the Son of God: thou art the King of Israel. (See Psalm 2) But the Lord tells him of greater things he should see, and says to him, Verily, verily, I say unto you, henceforth (not "hereafter," but henceforth) ye shall see the heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of man. It is the wider, universal glory of the Son of man (according to Psalm 8); but the most striking part of it verified from that actual moment because of the glory of His person, which needed not the day of glory to command the attendance of the angels of God — this mark, as Son of man. (Verses 44-51)