Jacob's Ladder
Ilumi Kids · Stories
Jacob was on a long journey, all by himself. He walked all day, and when the sun began to set, he became very tired.
He needed a place to rest. Jacob looked around and saw a good spot to sleep. He found a soft stone to use as a pillow and lay down to rest under the starry sky.
Running away from home, Jacob slept outside with a stone for a pillow. In a dream he saw a stairway reaching from earth to heaven, with angels going up and down. God spoke to him and promised to always be with him. When he woke up, Jacob named the place Bethel, "House of God".
Where it is in the Bible: Genesis 28:10-22
God is with us everywhere, even when we feel alone.
After reading, use these questions to help your child remember and apply the story.
Jacob was on a long journey, all by himself. He walked all day, and when the sun began to set, he became very tired.
He needed a place to rest. Jacob looked around and saw a good spot to sleep. He found a soft stone to use as a pillow and lay down to rest under the starry sky.
While he was sleeping, Jacob had a very special dream. It was a dream that came from God. It wasn't an ordinary dream about toys or animals.
In this dream, he saw something amazing that made his eyes wide open, even though he was asleep! It was a surprise that would change his life forever.
In the dream, there was a giant ladder! The bottom of the ladder was on the earth, right near where he was sleeping, and its top reached all the way to heaven, so high it disappeared into the clouds.
And on the ladder, angels of God were going up and down without stopping. They moved up and down, as if they were very busy carrying messages between heaven and earth.
Then, at the top of the ladder, Jacob saw God Himself. And God spoke to him, with a voice full of love and care. God made a wonderful promise to Jacob.
God promised that He would always be with Jacob, wherever he went. He also said that He would give that land to Jacob's family and that his family would be very, very large, like the stars in the sky.
God: I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go. I will not leave you.
When Jacob woke up, he felt great wonder and joy in his heart. He was no longer afraid or feeling alone. He realized that this was not an ordinary place.
Jacob took the stone he had used as a pillow and set it upright as a pillar. He called that place Bethel, which means "House of God," so he would never forget the promise God made to him in that special dream.
“The Lord is truly in this place, and I didn’t know it.” — Genesis 28:16
