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Dreams and Visions In the
Beginning Your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.—Joel 2:28 Joel’s prophecy that in some future time the old and young shall dream dreams and see visions comes as no surprise. From the beginning of recorded history through New Testament times, God sometimes communicated that way. It is probable that the events describing the creation of this planet contained in the first chapter of Genesis were revealed via visions not unlike those experienced by John the revelator on the Isle of Patmos. We start this issue of The Herald by looking at a dream that has inspired many artists: Jacob’s Ladder (though the Hebrew word should be translated “staircase”). Jacob recognized the importance of that dream and never forgot it. Joseph’s Dreams describes two dreams which predicted Joseph’s ascendency over his brothers. This is followed by The Butler and the Baker, fellow prisoners whose similar dreams Joseph interpreted. His ability later brought him to the attention of the Pharaoh to interpret the monarch’s dreams (Genesis 41:1-44). Jacob’s Faith Is Tested is a verse-by-verse analysis of Genesis 28, the “Jacob’s ladder” chapter. It looks at some details about Jacob’s flight to Paddam-aram. The prophet Daniel had dreams and interpreted the dreams of others. Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream looks at four world empires from man’s perspective (Daniel 2) and God’s perspective (Daniel 7). Near the end of his life Jesus said some would not die until they saw the kingdom in glory. That prophecy was fulfilled when Peter, James, and John experienced a kingdom vision. The details are described in Transfiguration. A Vision Introduces a New Age shows how Peter’s dream of a sheet with unclean animals coincided with Cornelius’ dream telling him to send servants to bring Peter. We end with The Macedonian Call, a review of a key experience in Paul’s second missionary journey. Paul’s willingness to change his plans once he realized what God wanted him to do provides an example for us all. We trust these many examples of dreams and visions will prove to be faith-inspiring for our readers. |