Resumen
Resumen de The Ladder of Jacob
Go deeper: the whole of The Ladder of Jacob
The full book, start to finish.Para quién es
For readers who enjoy Bible stories retold with fresh detail, students of Second Temple Jewish writing, and anyone curious about ancient ideas of history, exile and hope.
De qué trata este libro
The Ladder of Jacob is a short ancient text that retells and expands the dream of Jacob at Bethel, the scene told in Genesis chapter twenty-eight. Its author is unknown. Scholars usually place its origin in the first or second century of the common era, and many think it began in a Jewish setting. It is preserved in Old Church Slavonic, in manuscripts from the Slavic Christian world.
What does it give you? A vivid picture of Jacob resting after sunset, and a ladder whose steps stand for stretches of history. Where Genesis gives a few lines, this text gives a guided tour of the future, explained by an angel. It also gives a look at how readers of the age thought about time, exile and hope. Let us begin with what kind of text this is and how it came down to us.
En este resumen
- 1A short text preserved in SlavonicFree
- 2Jacob dreams of a ladder with twelve steps
- 3An angel explains the ages of history
- 4Why it stands outside most Bibles
Idea clave 1 de 4
A short text preserved in Slavonic
The Ladder of Jacob belongs to the group of writings that scholars call pseudepigrapha. These are works linked to biblical figures but not included in most Bibles. The text is brief, and it is best known from Slavonic manuscripts.
Scholars study the surviving Slavonic manuscripts to understand the text and its history.
Dating is also debated. A common view places the original in the first or second century, in a period after the fall of the Jerusalem Temple in the year 70. Some readers also detect later Christian touches in the text. The honest summary is that the origin is uncertain, though the story clearly grows out of Genesis and the Jewish tradition of explaining it.
That’s 1 of 4 key points.
The rest of the summary, written and spoken, and the whole book: free to start.
- Nothing to pay today · Renews every year
- We email you before you pay
- Cancel online in two clicks
Go deeper: the whole of The Ladder of Jacob
The full book, start to finish.Questions about The Ladder of Jacob
What is the Ladder of Jacob about?
It retells Jacob's dream at Bethel. Jacob sees a ladder with twelve steps and faces upon it, and an angel explains that the steps stand for ages of history and the future of his descendants.
Is the Ladder of Jacob in the Bible?
No. It is not in the Hebrew Bible or in the main Christian canons. It belongs to the pseudepigrapha, ancient writings linked to biblical figures but kept outside most Bibles.
What language was the Ladder of Jacob written in?
It survives only in Old Church Slavonic.
When was the Ladder of Jacob written?
Scholars often suggest the first or second century of the common era, perhaps after the fall of the Jerusalem Temple. The date is uncertain, and the extant Slavonic manuscripts are much later.
Who is the angel Sariel in the Ladder of Jacob?
Sariel is the angel who comes to Jacob after the dream and explains its meaning. He serves as the guide of the vision, as angels do in many ancient Jewish apocalyptic works.