Aggada -- Translations into English; Bible. Old Testament -- Legends; Jewish legends; Midrash -- Translations into English
In this, the first prophetic dream dreamed by Jacob,[137] God made him
the promise that the land upon which he was lying would be given to
him, but the land he lay upon was the whole of Palestine, which God had
folded together and put under him. "And," the promise continued, "thy
seed will be like unto the dust of the earth. As the earth survives all
things, so thy children will survive all the nations of the earth. But
as the earth is trodden upon by all, so thy children, when they commit
trespasses, will be trodden upon by the nations of the earth."[138]
And, furthermore, God promised that Jacob should spread out to the west
and to the east, a greater promise than that given to his fathers
Abraham and Isaac, to whom He had allotted a limited land. Jacob's was
an unbounded possession.[139]
From this wondrous dream Jacob awoke with a start of fright, on account
of the vision he had had of the destruction of the Temple.[140] He
cried out, "How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the
house of God, wherein is the gate of heaven through which prayer
ascends to Him." He took the stone made out of the twelve, and set it
up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it, which had flowed
down from heaven for him, and God sank this anointed stone unto the
abyss, to serve as the centre of the earth, the same stone, the Eben
Shetiyah,[141] that forms the centre of the sanctuary, whereon the
Ineffable Name is graven, the knowledge of which makes a man master
over nature, and over life and death.[142]
Jacob cast himself down before the Eben Shetiyah, and entreated God to
fulfil the promise He had given him, and also he prayed that God grant
him honorable sustenance. For God had not mentioned bread to eat and
raiment to put on, that Jacob might learn to have faith in the Lord.
Then he vowed to give the tenth of all he owned unto God, if He would
but grant his petition. Thus Jacob was the first to take a vow upon
himself,[143] and the first, too, to separate the tithe from his
income.[144]
God had promised him almost all that is desirable, but he feared he
might forfeit the pledged blessings through his sinfulness,[145] and
again he prayed earnestly that God bring him back to his father's house
unimpaired in body, possessions, and knowledge,[146] and guard him, in
the strange land whither he was going, against idolatry, an immoral
life, and bloodshed.[147]
His prayer at an end, Jacob set out on his way to Haran, and the third
wonder happened. In the twinkling of an eye he arrived at his
destination. The earth jumped from Mount Moriah to Haran. A wonder like
this God has executed only four times in the whole course of
history.[148]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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