During a time of worship at our apostolic center Holy Place, I received an open vision. In this vision I saw a spiral staircase in the middle of the room where many angels were ascending and descending in a circular movement. These angels had bodies which were filled with light.

Jacob's Departure

While I saw this in the spirit, I was reminded of the scripture in Genesis 28:10-13, where Jacob went from Beersheba (note: means “well of the seven or well of an oath”) to Harran (note: means “way or road”) and was settling down at a certain place to sleep, because the sun had already set.

Jacob's Dream

From this place Jacob had taken one selected stone and placed this stone under his head, so that he fell asleep and received a dream from God. In this dream he saw a ladder standing on the earth and reaching into heaven. He also saw angels of God ascending and descending that ladder. Then Jacob heard the Lord speaking to him about a promise that was immediately connected with his lying position.

 

10 Jacob left Beersheba (note: means “well of the seven or well of an oath”) and set out for Harran (note: means “way or road”).

11 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.

12 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.

13 There above it stood the Lord, and he 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.

Lying In The Presence Of God

According to the Word of God, if someone lies down or comes to rest at a place where God's presence dwells, then the result will be revelation which is released. This had happened to the prophet Samuel in the house of God, where he was lying and where the lamp of God was not extinguished yet (see 1 Samuel 3:3-4).

 

1 Samuel 3:3-4:
3 The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the house of the Lord, where the ark of God was.

4 Then the Lord called Samuel. Samuel answered, “Here I am.”

The lying position of a person in God's presence is as a sign to Him that one has been completely surrendered to Him to receive His full promise.

Speaking in a prophetic context, the surface of the ground which is covered by the body of a person lying is notably larger than if the person is standing on it with one's feet. So, standing on the ground is connected with the taking of land for the purpose of obtaining property, whereby lying on the ground in the presence of God is connected with the promise of the generations and with an internal restructuring, as at the time of Samuel (see Deuteronomy 11:24 i.c.w. Genesis 28:13-15).

 

24 Every place where you set your foot will be yours: Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the Euphrates River to the Mediterranean Sea.

 

Genesis 28:13-15:
13 There above it stood the Lord, and he 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.

14 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.

15 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.”

The Time Of Faith

The dream that Jacob had received took place before the time of the Torah, which had taken place in the time of Moses, who lived many decades after Jacob died. Thus, the time of Jacob indicates the time of faith as this was the time of the trusting relationship with God (note: the law was given later).

It is faith that is connected with firm confidence and trust, concerning the things that are not seen in the natural realm (see Hebrews 11:1).

 

1 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.

It is not known to what extent Jacob was prophetically trained to see into the spiritual realm or to classify dreams, but he received that dream of which he knew that it was from God. Jacob was also able to recognize in the Spirit that the region of Luz was connected with the open gate of heaven (see Genesis 28:16-17).

 

16 When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.”

17 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.”

Jacob's Stopover In Luz

The departure of Jacob from Beersheba (note: means “well of the seven or well of an oath”) to Harran (note: means “way or road”) and his stopover in the region of Luz (note: means “almond tree”), which he later renamed due to the presence of God into Bethel (note: means “house of God”), carry strategy. In a prophetic context, it means that Jacob left the place of the deep waters (note: divine confirmation => oath) to make his way to THE WAY, as a sign of approaching the Heavenly Father in Jesus Christ (see John 14:6).

 

6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
While Jacob was on his way to Harran, he came to the region called Luz, which indicates the prophetic anointing and is associated with the announcement of a new time. Therefore, it was no coincidence that Jacob arrived in Luz at the very time of sunset and getting tired, he fell asleep in order to receive a dream.

It was a time when the region's economy and its employees were at rest and gaining strength for the new season to come.

The New Day And The Release Of Revelation

Jacob carried within his heart the desire to enter into the new day of the LORD, which God had already created as God is eternal (see Ephesians 2:10).

 

10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

In most cases, the day of the Lord is associated with the release of revelation, as it was with Jacob and the seer John (see Revelation 1:10).

 

10 On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, …

In order to enter the new time, Jacob knew that he had to leave the present place (note: Beersheba) in order to get deeper into his divine promise and calling.

 

The Lookout For The New Day

Jacob was looking for the new time because, according to God's standard, the day begins with the evening and the almond tree is the first tree in Israel that blooms at the time of spring or announces the season of spring (see Genesis 1:5).

 

5 God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning – the first day.

The Hebrew word used in the Word of God for “almond” is the word “šāqēd”, derived from the root word “šāqad”, which means “to watch, to watch out” (see Jeremiah 1:11-12). (note: part excerpt from the Elberfelder Study Bible on the word “almond-šāqēd” and the word “watching-šāqad” with the word key numbers: 8487* and 8485)

 

11 The word of the Lord came to me: “What do you see, Jeremiah?” “I see the branch of an almond tree,” I replied.

12 The Lord said to me, “You have seen correctly, for I am watching to see that my word is fulfilled.”

In addition, Jacob was aware of the significance of the prophetic acting at the birthplace of the new day (note: Luz), so that he anointed the stone on which he would lay his head and by his act changed the stone into a pillar or rather a memorial stone. This stone was now already a reference to the precious corner stone of Jesus Christ, who was to come to earth and whose testimony is the spirit of prophecy (see Genesis 28:18-19 i.c.w. 1 Peter 2:5-6; Revelation 19:10e).

 

18 Early the next morning Jacob took the stone he had placed under his head and set it up as a pillar and poured oil on top of it.

19 He called that place Bethel, though the city used to be called Luz.

 

… 5 you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

6 For in Scripture it says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.”

 

… 10e for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

The knowledge of Jacob's revelation led him to recognize the region not only as an “almond tree” (note: Luz), but as a region of the close relationship with God (note: Bethel => “house of God”).

The Transformation From The Tree To The House

Whenever God visits the saints with His presence at their present place of residence in Jesus Christ, their territory gains a character of higher quality. The “substance/character” of that present dwelling place gets transformed into the place of the deeper communion with God, which means access to having intimacy with Him (see Genesis 28:17-19).

 

17 And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.

18 And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it.

19 And he called the name of that place Bethel: but the name of that city was called Luz at the first.

Jesus Christ, the Son of God who is as well the heavenly “carpenter” desires to create a new place and realm for us in the house of His father (see Mark 6:2-3 i.c.w. John 14:2-3a).

 

2 When the Sabbath came, he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were amazed. “Where did this man get these things?” they asked. “What’s this wisdom that has been given him? What are these remarkable miracles he is performing?

3 Isn’t this the carpenter? Isn’t this Mary’s son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren’t his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him.

 

2 In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.

3a And if I go and prepare a place for you, …

The Exchange Of Angels

The place Luz, to which Jacob came on his way to Harran, was a special place because God chose to exchange angelic powers there. It is mentioned in Genesis 28:12 that first the angels of God ascended and others descended. The reason for this exchange of angelic powers was that Jacob was in a time of transition, going from the land of the confirmed promise (note: Beersheba) to the land of “the pioneers” in order to prepare the field for the future generations as these generations were meant to be blessed by him (see Genesis 28:14-15).

 

14 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.

15 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.”

The angels of God who were destined for the Promised Land ascended and the angels chosen for the pioneering phase descended.

The pioneering angels are angelic powers helping us to become successful in the natural realm administering resources on our new way with God with the purpose of revealing the breakthroughs of God that are visible before the eyes of men.

There are angels who are exclusively destined to cooperate with God in the spiritual world and there are angels who are chosen by God to support us in the natural realm as revealed in Hebrews 13:2.

 

2 Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.

 

Amen and Amen.

 

In His Wisdom,

 

Daniel Glimm