Reference: Dream
American
The orientals, and in particular the Jews, greatly regarded dreams, and applied for their interpretation to those who undertook to explain them. We see the antiquity of this custom in the history of Pharaoh's butler and baker, Ge 40; and Pharaoh himself and Nebuchadnezzar are also instances. God expressly forbade his people to observe dreams, and to consult explainers of them. He condemned to death all who pretended to have prophetic dreams, even though what they foretold came to pass, if they had any tendency to promote idolatry, De 13:1-3. But they were not forbidden, when they thought they had a significant dream, to address the prophets of the Lord, or the high priest in his ephod, to have it explained. The Lord frequently made known his will in dreams, and enabled persons to explain them, Ge 20:3-7; 28:12-15; 1Sa 28:6; Da 2; Joe 2:28; Mt 1:20; Ac 27:22. Supernatural dreams are distinguished from visions, in that the former occurred during sleep, and the latter when the person was awake. God spoke to Abimelech in a dream, but to Abraham by vision. In both cases he left on the mind an assurance of the certainty of whatever he revealed. Both are now superseded by the Bible, our sure and sufficient guide through earth to heaven.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
And God cometh in unto Abimelech in a dream of the night, and saith to him, 'Lo, thou art a dead man, because of the woman whom thou hast taken -- and she married to a husband.' And Abimelech hath not drawn near unto her, and he saith, 'Lord, also a righteous nation dost thou slay? read more. hath not he himself said to me, She is my sister! and she, even she herself, said, He is my brother; in the integrity of my heart, and in the innocency of my hands, I have done this.' And God saith unto him in the dream, 'Yea, I -- I have known that in the integrity of thy heart thou hast done this, and I withhold thee, even I, from sinning against Me, therefore I have not suffered thee to come against her; and now send back the man's wife, for he is inspired, and he doth pray for thee, and live thou; and if thou do not send back, know that dying thou dost die, thou, and all that thou hast.'
And he dreameth, and lo, a ladder set up on the earth, and its head is touching the heavens; and lo, messengers of God are going up and coming down by it; and lo, Jehovah is standing upon it, and He saith, 'I am Jehovah, God of Abraham thy father, and God of Isaac; the land on which thou art lying, to thee I give it, and to thy seed; read more. and thy seed hath been as the dust of the land, and thou hast broken forth westward, and eastward, and northward, and southward, and all families of the ground have been blessed in thee and in thy seed. And lo, I am with thee, and have kept thee whithersoever thou goest, and have caused thee to turn back unto this ground; for I leave thee not till that I have surely done that which I have spoken to thee.'
'When there ariseth in your midst a prophet, or a dreamer of a dream, and he hath given unto thee a sign or wonder, and the sign and the wonder hath come which he hath spoken of unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods (which thou hast not known), and serve them, read more. thou dost not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or unto that dreamer of the dream, for Jehovah your God is trying you, to know whether ye are loving Jehovah your God with all your heart, and with all your soul;
And it hath come to pass afterwards, I do pour out My Spirit on all flesh, And prophesied have your sons and your daughters, Your old men do dream dreams, Your young men do see visions.
And on his thinking of these things, lo, a messenger of the Lord in a dream appeared to him, saying, 'Joseph, son of David, thou mayest not fear to receive Mary thy wife, for that which in her was begotten is of the Holy Spirit,
and now I exhort you to be of good cheer, for there shall be no loss of life among you -- but of the ship;
Easton
God has frequently made use of dreams in communicating his will to men. The most remarkable instances of this are recorded in the history of Jacob (Ge 28:12; 31:10), Laban (Ge 31:24), Joseph (Ge 37:9-11), Gideon (Jg 7), and Solomon (1Ki 3:5). Other significant dreams are also recorded, such as those of Abimelech (Ge 20:3-7), Pharaoh's chief butler and baker (Ge 40:5), Pharaoh (Ge 41:1-8), the Midianites (Jg 7:13), Nebuchadnezzar (Da 2:1; 4:10,18), the wise men from the east (Mt 2:12), and Pilate's wife (Mt 27:19).
To Joseph "the Lord appeared in a dream," and gave him instructions regarding the infant Jesus (Mt 1:20; 2:12-13,19). In a vision of the night a "man of Macedonia" stood before Paul and said, "Come over into Macedonia and help us" (Ac 16:9; see also Ac 18:9; 27:23).
See Verses Found in Dictionary
And God cometh in unto Abimelech in a dream of the night, and saith to him, 'Lo, thou art a dead man, because of the woman whom thou hast taken -- and she married to a husband.' And Abimelech hath not drawn near unto her, and he saith, 'Lord, also a righteous nation dost thou slay? read more. hath not he himself said to me, She is my sister! and she, even she herself, said, He is my brother; in the integrity of my heart, and in the innocency of my hands, I have done this.' And God saith unto him in the dream, 'Yea, I -- I have known that in the integrity of thy heart thou hast done this, and I withhold thee, even I, from sinning against Me, therefore I have not suffered thee to come against her; and now send back the man's wife, for he is inspired, and he doth pray for thee, and live thou; and if thou do not send back, know that dying thou dost die, thou, and all that thou hast.'
And he dreameth, and lo, a ladder set up on the earth, and its head is touching the heavens; and lo, messengers of God are going up and coming down by it;
And it cometh to pass at the time of the flock conceiving, that I lift up mine eyes and see in a dream, and lo, the he-goats, which are going up on the flock, are ring-streaked, speckled, and grisled;
And God cometh in unto Laban the Aramaean in a dream of the night, and saith to him, 'Take heed to thyself lest thou speak with Jacob from good unto evil.'
And he dreameth yet another dream, and recounteth it to his brethren, and saith, 'Lo, I have dreamed a dream again, and lo, the sun and the moon, and eleven stars, are bowing themselves to me.' And he recounteth unto his father, and unto his brethren; and his father pusheth against him, and saith to him, 'What is this dream which thou hast dreamt? do we certainly come -- I, and thy mother, and thy brethren -- to bow ourselves to thee, to the earth?' read more. and his brethren are zealous against him, and his father hath watched the matter.
And they dream a dream both of them, each his dream in one night, each according to the interpretation of his dream, the butler and the baker whom the king of Egypt hath, who are prisoners in the round-house.
And it cometh to pass, at the end of two years of days that Pharaoh is dreaming, and lo, he is standing by the River, and lo, from the River coming up are seven kine, of fair appearance, and fat in flesh, and they feed among the reeds; read more. and lo, seven other kine are coming up after them out of the River, of bad appearance, and lean in flesh, and they stand near the kine on the edge of the River, and the kine of bad appearance and lean in flesh eat up the seven kine of fair appearance, and fat -- and Pharaoh awaketh. And he sleepeth, and dreameth a second time, and lo, seven ears are coming up on one stalk, fat and good, and lo, seven ears, thin, and blasted with an east wind, are springing up after them; and the thin ears swallow the seven fat and full ears -- and Pharaoh awaketh, and lo, a dream. And it cometh to pass in the morning, that his spirit is moved, and he sendeth and calleth all the scribes of Egypt, and all its wise men, and Pharaoh recounteth to them his dream, and there is no interpreter of them to Pharaoh.
And Gideon cometh in, and lo, a man is recounting to his companion a dream, and saith, 'Lo, a dream I have dreamed, and lo, a cake of barley-bread is turning itself over into the camp of Midian, and it cometh in unto the tent, and smiteth it, and it falleth, and turneth it upwards, and the tent hath fallen.'
In Gibeon hath Jehovah appeared unto Solomon, in a dream of the night, and God saith, 'Ask -- what do I give to thee?'
And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, dreamed hath Nebuchadnezzar dreams, and his spirit doth move itself, and his sleep hath been against him;
As to the visions of my head on my bed, I was looking, and lo, a tree in the midst of the earth, and its height is great:
This dream I have seen, I king Nebuchadnezzar; and thou, O Belteshazzar, the interpretation tell, because that all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to cause me to know the interpretation, and thou art able, for the spirit of the holy gods is in thee.
And on his thinking of these things, lo, a messenger of the Lord in a dream appeared to him, saying, 'Joseph, son of David, thou mayest not fear to receive Mary thy wife, for that which in her was begotten is of the Holy Spirit,
and having been divinely warned in a dream not to turn back unto Herod, through another way they withdrew to their own region.
and having been divinely warned in a dream not to turn back unto Herod, through another way they withdrew to their own region. And on their having withdrawn, lo, a messenger of the Lord doth appear in a dream to Joseph, saying, 'Having risen, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and be thou there till I may speak to thee, for Herod is about to seek the child to destroy him.'
And Herod having died, lo, a messenger of the Lord in a dream doth appear to Joseph in Egypt,
And as he is sitting on the tribunal, his wife sent unto him, saying, 'Nothing -- to thee and to that righteous one, for many things did I suffer to-day in a dream because of him.'
And a vision through the night appeared to Paul -- a certain man of Macedonia was standing, calling upon him, and saying, 'Having passed through to Macedonia, help us;' --
And the Lord said through a vision in the night to Paul, 'Be not afraid, but be speaking and thou mayest be not silent;
for there stood by me this night a messenger of God -- whose I am, and whom I serve --
Fausets
The revelation of God's will in dreams is characteristic of the early and less perfect patriarchal times (Ge 28:12; 31:24; 37:5-10); to Solomon, 1Ki 3:5, in commencing his reign; the beginnings of the New Testament dispensation (Mt 1:20; 2:13,19,22); and the communications from God to the rulers of the pagan world powers, Philistia, Egypt, Babylon (Ge 20:3; 40:5; 41:1); Elihu, Job 33:15; Daniel 2; Da 4:5, etc. The dream form of revelation is that most appropriate to those outside the kingdom of God. So the Midianite (Jg 7:13), Pilate's wife (Mt 27:19). But it is the Israelites Joseph and Daniel who interpret; for pagandom is passive, Israel active, in divine things to the glory of the God of Israel. Dreams were a frequent means of imposture and idolatry De 13:1-3; Zec 10:2).
The dream form of revelation is placed below that of prophecy and even divination (Nu 12:6; Joe 2:28; 1Sa 28:6). "Trances" and "visions" are mentioned in the Christian church, but not dreams. While God has acted and can act on the mind in a dream (wherein the reason and judgment are dormant, but the sensations and imaginations active and uncontrolled by the judgment), His higher mode of revelation is that wherein the understanding is active and conscious; consequently, the former mode appears more in imperfect stages of the development of God's scheme than in the advanced stages. "In the multitude of dreams are divers vanities" (Ec 5:7), i.e., God's service becomes by "dreams" (foolish fancies as to what God requires of worshippers); and random "words," positive vanity of manifold kinds; compare Mt 6:7, "they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking."
See Verses Found in Dictionary
And God cometh in unto Abimelech in a dream of the night, and saith to him, 'Lo, thou art a dead man, because of the woman whom thou hast taken -- and she married to a husband.'
And he dreameth, and lo, a ladder set up on the earth, and its head is touching the heavens; and lo, messengers of God are going up and coming down by it;
And God cometh in unto Laban the Aramaean in a dream of the night, and saith to him, 'Take heed to thyself lest thou speak with Jacob from good unto evil.'
And Joseph dreameth a dream, and declareth to his brethren, and they add still more to hate him. And he saith unto them, 'Hear ye, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed: read more. that, lo, we are binding bundles in the midst of the field, and lo, my bundle hath arisen, and hath also stood up, and lo, your bundles are round about, and bow themselves to my bundle.' And his brethren say to him, 'Dost thou certainly reign over us? dost thou certainly rule over us?' and they add still more to hate him, for his dreams, and for his words. And he dreameth yet another dream, and recounteth it to his brethren, and saith, 'Lo, I have dreamed a dream again, and lo, the sun and the moon, and eleven stars, are bowing themselves to me.' And he recounteth unto his father, and unto his brethren; and his father pusheth against him, and saith to him, 'What is this dream which thou hast dreamt? do we certainly come -- I, and thy mother, and thy brethren -- to bow ourselves to thee, to the earth?'
And they dream a dream both of them, each his dream in one night, each according to the interpretation of his dream, the butler and the baker whom the king of Egypt hath, who are prisoners in the round-house.
And it cometh to pass, at the end of two years of days that Pharaoh is dreaming, and lo, he is standing by the River,
And He saith, 'Hear, I pray you, My words: If your prophet is of Jehovah -- in an appearance unto him I make Myself known; in a dream I speak with him;
'When there ariseth in your midst a prophet, or a dreamer of a dream, and he hath given unto thee a sign or wonder, and the sign and the wonder hath come which he hath spoken of unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods (which thou hast not known), and serve them, read more. thou dost not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or unto that dreamer of the dream, for Jehovah your God is trying you, to know whether ye are loving Jehovah your God with all your heart, and with all your soul;
And Gideon cometh in, and lo, a man is recounting to his companion a dream, and saith, 'Lo, a dream I have dreamed, and lo, a cake of barley-bread is turning itself over into the camp of Midian, and it cometh in unto the tent, and smiteth it, and it falleth, and turneth it upwards, and the tent hath fallen.'
In Gibeon hath Jehovah appeared unto Solomon, in a dream of the night, and God saith, 'Ask -- what do I give to thee?'
In a dream -- a vision of night, In the falling of deep sleep on men, In slumberings on a bed.
For, in the abundance of dreams both vanities and words abound; but fear thou God.
a dream I have seen, and it maketh me afraid, and the conceptions on my bed, and the visions of my head, do trouble me.
And it hath come to pass afterwards, I do pour out My Spirit on all flesh, And prophesied have your sons and your daughters, Your old men do dream dreams, Your young men do see visions.
Because the teraphim did speak iniquity, And the diviners have seen a falsehood, And dreams of the vanity they speak, With vanity they give comfort, Therefore they have journeyed as a flock, They are afflicted, for there is no shepherd.
And on his thinking of these things, lo, a messenger of the Lord in a dream appeared to him, saying, 'Joseph, son of David, thou mayest not fear to receive Mary thy wife, for that which in her was begotten is of the Holy Spirit,
And on their having withdrawn, lo, a messenger of the Lord doth appear in a dream to Joseph, saying, 'Having risen, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and be thou there till I may speak to thee, for Herod is about to seek the child to destroy him.'
And Herod having died, lo, a messenger of the Lord in a dream doth appear to Joseph in Egypt,
and having heard that Archelaus doth reign over Judea instead of Herod his father, he was afraid to go thither, and having been divinely warned in a dream, he withdrew to the parts of Galilee,
And -- praying -- ye may not use vain repetitions like the nations, for they think that in their much speaking they shall be heard,
And as he is sitting on the tribunal, his wife sent unto him, saying, 'Nothing -- to thee and to that righteous one, for many things did I suffer to-day in a dream because of him.'