Dreams

God is calling his people to be prophetic. He wants us to be ready and prepared for what is coming in the world. He doesn’t want us to be just reactive but to be proactive. He wants us to understand the times we are living in so that we know what we should do (1 Chron. 12:32). To serve God effectively, we need to hear from him. Jesus said my sheep hear my voice, and they follow me (John 10:27). 

One important way that we can hear from God is through dreams. God said that he would pour out his Spirit in the last days, and people would dream dreams (Acts 2:17). Dreams are connected to visions. Visions are seen when someone is awake, but dreams are visions that are seen when someone is asleep. The Bible calls dreams night visions (Dan. 7:7). Dreams are an important way God speaks to his people.

Almost everyone has dreams. Dreams can come from three sources: from ourselves, from God, or from Satan.

Dreams come from ourselves often when we are busy. These dreams are connected to the activities we are engaged in (Ecc. 5:3). Sometimes dreams come from what we want (Isa. 29:8). 

Satan can give us nightmares. To get the victory over nightmares, we need to pray. It is possible to stop nightmares through prayer. If we are tormented by an evil spirit at night, we need to use the name of Jesus against that evil spirit and command it to go.

God can give us dreams. The Bible tells us that God will speak to his prophets through dreams (Num. 12:6). Each one of us has the ability to hear from God in dreams, because the Holy Spirit is inside us. We need discernment to recognize what dreams are from God and what dreams are not from God. The Bible warns us about false dreams (Jer. 23:32; Jude 8). All dreams must be measured by the standard of the Bible.

If God gives us a dream, we need to remember that dream in order to receive guidance from it. Often dreams from God are symbolic. We must interpret this symbolism correctly.

All the Dreams from God in the Bible

In the Bible, I counted 22 dreams that were from God. It’s helpful to understand these dreams. Looking at these dreams in the Bible will help us learn how to recognize if we get a dream from God. It will also help us understand how to interpret dreams.

1. Abimelech had a dream that he should not take Sarah to be his wife, because she was already the wife of Abraham (Gen. 20). 

God can speak to people directly through a dream. God sometimes gives dreams to unbelievers. God can send a dream to a person in order to protect someone else.

2. Jacob had a dream of a ladder going up to heaven at Bethel (Gen. 28). 

Dreams are often symbolic, and they reveal spiritual mysteries. Dreams can show us God’s plan. They can reveal God’s purpose for a person’s life. To understand symbolic dreams, we must accurately interpret them.

3. Jacob had a dream to go home (Gen. 31:10-11). God can give us important directions to us through dreams.

4. Laban dreamed that he should not bless or curse Jacob (Gen. 31:24). God used this dream to protect Jacob.

5. When Joseph was 17, he dreamed of his brothers’ grain sheaves bowing down to his sheaf. This meant that his brothers would become subject to him. 

Sometimes the interpretation of a dream is obvious. Joseph shared this dream to his brothers, and this caused them to hate him. Sometimes we should not share dreams with others because it may raise up unnecessary opposition.

6. Joseph dreamed that the sun, moon, and stars were bowing down to him. This dream meant that his entire family would become subject to him. Joseph shared this dream too, and it made him even more unpopular in his family.

Joseph received dreams from God, and he also was a gifted interpreter of dreams. He was involved in 6 dreams in the Bible. Joseph said that dream interpretation comes from God (Gen. 40:8). We can interpret a dream correctly when we hear from the Holy Spirit. Sometimes we need to tell our dream to a gifted person who can interpret the dream correctly for us.

7. In prison, the Egyptian butler had a dream about a vine with three branches that budded, had blossoms, and brought forth grapes. The butler saw himself taking the grapes, squeezing them into Pharoah’s cup, and giving the cup into Pharoah’s hand. Joseph interpreted the dream. The three branches symbolized three days, and in three days the butler would be taken from prison and restored to his position. This happened (Gen. 40).

8. In prison, the Egyptian baker had a dream. In his dream he had three white baskets on his head. The top basket had baked goods, and birds were eating these baked goods. Joseph interpreted this dream. The three baskets symbolized three days. In three days the baker would be hanged, and the birds would eat his dead body. This happened (Gen. 40).

9. Pharaoh had a dream. He saw seven fat cows coming out of the Nile. Seven skinny cows came up after them. The skinny cows ate the fat cows (Gen 41).

10. The same night Pharaoh had another dream. He saw seven fat and healthy ears of grain. Then he saw seven thin ears of grain. The thin grain ate the fat grain. Joseph came out of prison and interpreted both dreams to Pharoah. The seven fat cows and seven fat ears of grain symbolized seven years of plenty. The seven thin cows and seven thin ears symbolized seven years of famine.

As a result of these dreams, action had to be taken. Joseph was put in position managing the resources of Egypt so that they could survive this upcoming famine. As a result of Joseph’s faithfulness, Egypt was preserved. His family was preserved. His brothers became subject to him, according to his dreams when he was 17. God can give us dreams to prepare for the future.

11. A person dreamed of a loaf of barley bread tumbling into an army camp and causing a tent to fall over. Another person said this meant that Gideon would defeat this army (Judges 7:13). 

12. Solomon dreamed that God asked him whatever he wanted. Solomon asked for wisdom, and he got it (1 Kings 3:5-15).

13. Nebuchadnezzar dreamed about a large statue with a gold head, silver chest and arms, brass stomach and thighs, iron legs, and feet made partially of iron and clay. A stone struck the feet of this image and broke it. Then the entire image crumbled. The stone became a massive mountain that filled the entire earth (Dan. 2).

14. After praying and asking God for help, Daniel received the interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream in a dream of his own (Dan. 2:18-19). He said the image represented the political future of the world. The gold head represented Babylon. The silver chest represented Medo-Persia, which would come after Babylon. The brass stomach and thighs represented Greece which would replace Medo-Persia. The the iron legs symbolized Rome, which would replace Medo-Persia. The feet of iron and clay symbolized the nations that emerged out of the Roman Empire. The toes symbolized a political system that will be at the end of the age. The stone represents Christ and his kingdom that will smash this entire system and cover the earth with God’s glory.

15. Nebuchadnezzar dreamed that he would lose his mind. Daniel interpreted the dream, and soon Nebuchadnezzar went insane (Dan. 4).

16. Daniel had a dream of beasts coming out of the sea. This represented political systems rising from the earth. 

Daniel wrote this dream down (Dan. 7:1). It is helpful to write down dreams that we think might be from God so that we don’t forget the details.

17. Joseph had a dream that he should marry Mary, even though she was already pregnant with someone else’s (God’s) child (Matt. 1:20).

18. The Magi dreamed that they should not return to Herod after visiting Jesus (Matt. 2:12).

19. Joseph dreamed that he should go to Egypt to escape persecution (Matt. 2:13).

20. Joseph dreamed that he should return to Israel (Matt. 2:19-20).

21. Joseph dreamed that he should not go to Judea to avoid persecution (Matt. 2:22).

22. Pilate’s wife dreamed that her husband should let Jesus go because he was innocent (Matt. 27:19).

From all these examples, we can learn the importance of dreams and their interpretation. Sometimes the history of the world hinges on a dream. Sometimes dreams can save lives – multiple dreams saved the life of Jesus Christ when he was young. 

God is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Heb. 13:8). He’s still speaking to people today through dreams. Be alert if God may be communicating to you through dreams. If you think you may have a dream from God, measure it by the Bible. Pray for interpretation. And ask someone to help you interpret your dream if you need help. God wants to speak to you, and he might do so through a dream.