Genesis 28 is one of the most poignant temple texts in scripture. Jacob travels from Beersheba (meaning “well of the covenant” or “well of seven”) to Haran. The text reads:
“And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in that place to sleep.
“And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it.
“And, behold, the Lord stood above it, and said, I am the Lord God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed;
“And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.
“And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.
“And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the Lord is in this place; and I knew it not.
“And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.
“And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it.
“And he called the name of that place Beth-el: but the name of that city was called Luz at the first.” (Genesis 28:11-19).
There are two Hebrew writing styles in these verses that are important to the story. The first is the Leitwort, (theme word) place, which occurs seven times for emphasis in these few verses. The Leitwort place is to highlight the holy place, or temple.
Jacob gathers the stones to make a pillow. This is not my idea of a good pillow, but stones were used for memorials to bring to remembrance God’s covenant with Israel. Twelve stones were placed at the Jordan River for a memorial reminding them of their entrance into the promised land (Joshua 4:9). Samuel erected a stone monument and called it Ebenezer, meaning “Stone of Help,” to remind them of the Lord’s help in a battle against the Philistines (1 Samuel 7:12).
Jacob saw in a dream, a ladder “set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven.” The Hebrew word could also be a staircase, like in a temple, but whenever heaven and earth are connected, we have the sacred space of a temple.
Angels, or messengers from God, are descending and ascending on this staircase or ladder. President Marion G. Romney said, “When Jacob traveled from Beersheba toward Haran, he had a dream in which he saw himself on the earth at the foot of a ladder that reached to heaven where the Lord stood above it. He beheld angels ascending and descending thereon, and Jacob realized that the covenants he made with the Lord there were the rungs on the ladder that he himself would have to climb in order to obtain the promised blessings—blessings that would entitle him to enter heaven and associate with the Lord . . . Temples are to us all what Bethel was to Jacob” (Marion G. Romney, “Temples—the Gates to Heaven,” Ensign, March 1971).
Jacob knew he was in sacred space, so he named the place Beth-el, which is a contraction for Beth-Elohim, meaning “the house of the Lord” or “house of God.”
The Lord stood above the ladder and confirmed the Abrahamic or New and Everlasting Covenant by saying, “And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.” The pairing of opposites—north and south and east and west—is what Bible scholars call a merism. Remember, the river from Eden ran out into the four cardinal directions.
The idea of a merism is all-inclusive. When Jesus says things like, “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end” (D&C 45:7), He is not merely speaking about A and Z, but everything in between. Really, this represents eternity. It is related to the Greek word merizo, meaning “to bestow or share.” Again, I like to use the analogy of a pie. The Lord shares His infinite pie with you and gives you a piece, which is still eternity! You get “all that my Father hath” in the New and Everlasting Covenant! (see D&C 84:38).
You also get His constant companionship. “For I will go before your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my Spirit shall be in your hearts, and mine angels round about you, to bear you up” (D&C 84:88). He says to Jacob and to us, “I will not leave thee.”
When Jacob awakes, he says, “How dreadful is this place!” But the Hebrew word for dreadful is yare’, and it means “profound reverence,” or “to stand in awe.” He says, “This is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.” Temples in every culture have gatekeepers. In Egyptian temples, these are sometimes statues made of stone. See image below. In the Book of Mormon, “the keeper of the gate is the Holy One of Israel; and he employeth no servant there; and there is none other way save it be by the gate; for he cannot be deceived, for the Lord God is his name” (2 Nephi 9:41). The knowledge of certain names is required to pass by the gatekeepers.
Jacob took the stone he had used for a pillow and set it up for a pillar. He then poured oil on the top of it, constituting an anointing. This act points to Jesus Christ and His atonement. The term Messiah means “anointed One.” It comes from the Hebrew root mashach, (to anoint or smear) and it literally means, “the one who was smeared with oil.” Kings and priests (and queens and priestesses) were also anointed with oil. The Hebrew word for oil is shemen, and is part of the name Gethsemane, meaning “oil press.” Pure olive oil reminds us of Gethsemane and the atonement of Jesus Christ. Oil was used anciently as a sealant and is symbolic of the Holy Ghost, who ratifies or seals covenants and ordinances.
We see this anointing as a ceremonial act to seal the covenant:
“And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on,
“So that I come again to my father’s house in peace; then shall the Lord be my God:
“And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God’s house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee” (Genesis 28:20-22).
This seals the deal. Jacob covenants his allegiance to the Lord and promises to give back the tenth part as a tithe and as an act of consecration.
