Jacob’s Dream, S.XX
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When he reached a certain place, he stopped for the night because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones there, he put it under his head and lay down to sleep. He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. And there above it stood the Lord, who said: “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he said: “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” He was afraid and said: “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.” (Genesis 28, 11 – 17)
After receiving his father’s blessing, Jacob must flee from home because his brother Esau wants to kill him, and he also has the mission of finding a wife from his own people and of the same faith. While Jacob is traveling to his family’s land, night falls, and he lies down to sleep using a few stones as a pillow. Jacob dreams of a ladder reaching from earth to heaven, with angels going up and down on it. During his dream, he hears the voice of God, who reaffirms the covenant made with his father and grandfather, promising to make his descendants into a great nation and to give them the promised land , the very land where he was lying down.
This is the moment represented by the figures of the scene, God, represented as a venerable old man standing on a cloud, surrounded by numerous angels suspended in the air with instruments in their hands, speaks to Jacob while he sleeps.