Jacob's ladder

E64671

Jacob's ladder is the biblical vision of a stairway or ladder reaching between earth and heaven, seen by the patriarch Jacob and symbolizing the connection between God and humanity.

Aliases (1)

Statements (48)
Predicate Object
instanceOf biblical vision
dream theophany
religious symbol
appearsIn Hebrew Bible
Old Testament
appearsInChapter Genesis 28
associatedPlace Bethel
associatedWith covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
patriarchal narratives
commemoratedBy naming of Bethel
connects earth
heaven
genreOfSourceText narrative
hasArtisticDepiction Christian art
Jewish art
hasElement ladder
stairway
hasFeature angels ascending and descending
hasLiturgicalUse theme in sermons and homilies
hasMedium dream
hasMotif vertical axis between earthly and divine realms
hasSourceText Book of Genesis
hasSpeaker God
hasTheologicalTheme God's immanence and transcendence
continuity of the patriarchal covenant
divine election of Jacob
includesDivinePromise divine protection
eventual return to the land
land to Jacob and his descendants
numerous descendants
influencedTradition Christian theology
Islamic exegesis
Jewish mysticism
interpretedAs image of prayer and contemplation
prefiguration of Christ in Christian theology
symbol of revelation
languageOfPrimaryText Biblical Hebrew
occursDuring Jacob's journey from Beersheba to Haran
referencedIn Gospel of John 1:51
relatedConcept axis mundi
heavenly ascent literature
relatedToPerson Abraham
Isaac
seenBy Jacob
symbolizes access to God
connection between God and humanity
divine-human communication
spiritual ascent

Referenced by (2)
Subject (surface form when different) Predicate
Jamestown ("Jacob’s Ladder")
hasLandmark
Jacob
visionOf

Please wait…