Jacob is desperately seeking to get far away from a family situation that has imploded. Seized by a mixture of guilt, shame, and fear he runs off trying to put as much distance between him and his family as possible. He lays down to sleep in the midst of a rocky wilderness feeling as desolate and lonely as his surroundings. While he sleeps, he dreams of a ladder stretching from heaven to earth and recognizes the abiding presence of God with him, in a time and place that he did not expect it. Barbara Brown Taylor writes about this moment, “Having woken up to God, Jacob would never be able to go to sleep again, at least not to the divine presence that had promised to be with him whether he could see it or not.”

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