Whose dreams are in the Bible? What was their meaning?

God uses a variety of ways to communicate with humans such as visions, signs and wonders, angels, shadows and biblical motifs and many others. One of the most common means used in the Bible to transmit his will is through dreams (Numbers 12: 6).

The word dreams and its singular version occur most often in the book of Genesis (33 total occurrences) followed by the book of Daniel (27 times) in the King James Bible. Both words occur only eight times throughout the New Testament. Interestingly, the only two people that the states of the scriptures had the ability to interpret dreams correctly were Joseph (Genesis 40:12, 13, 18, 19, 41:25 - 32) and Daniel (Daniel 2:16 - 23, 28 - 30, 4).

Dreams occur when a person sleeps while visions usually occur during waking hours. The scriptures, however, are sometimes not entirely clear if God is communicating with someone through a dream or vision.

For example, Daniel 2:19 states that a prophet was revealed to the prophet in a "night vision". It is not known whether Daniel was sleeping or not when the event occurred. Another example of dreams is found in Daniel 7: 1 - 2.

Did Daniel see visions shortly before falling asleep and then had dreams, both coming from God? On the other hand, while he was dreaming, did he see vivid visions of four great empires of the world that he then wrote when he woke up? The Bible seems to indicate that visions can happen both during awakening and during sleep.

Who had them?
The dreams of many Old Testament people are recorded in the scriptures. They include King Abimelech of Gerar (Genesis 20: 3), Jacob (Genesis 28:12, 31:10), Laban (Jacob's employer - Genesis 31:24), Joseph (Genesis 37: 5, 9) and a imprisoned butler and baker (Genesis 40).

Still others that the Bible tells of having special dreams include the Egyptian pharaoh (Genesis 41), Midianites who will soon be conquered by Gideon (Judges 7), King Solomon (1 Kings 3: 5), King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon (Daniel 2: 3 , 4) and the prophet Daniel (Daniel 7).

The details of what Joseph, Jesus' stepfather, dreamed of on three different occasions is reported in the New Testament (Matthew 1:20 - 23, 2:13, 19 - 20). A fourth dream is also mentioned, in which he is warned not to live in Judea (Matthew 2:22).

The wise men who came to worship Jesus dreamed of being told not to visit Herod the Great on their way home (Matthew 2:12) and Pilate's wife had a disturbing dream about her husband's judgment of Christ (Matthew 27:19).

What is their purpose?
We discover, from the biblical documentation of at least twenty dreams, that were used by God for various purposes.

Dreams can warn a person not to do something (Genesis 20: 3, 31:24, Matthew 27:19).

They can convey what will happen in the near or distant future (Genesis 37: 5, 9, 40: 8 - 19, 41: 1 - 7, 15 - 32, Daniel 2, 7).

Dreams can convey a spiritual truth (Genesis 28:12).

They can confirm a promise (Genesis 28:13 - 14).

Dreams can offer encouragement (Genesis 28:15).

They can inform someone or a group to do something (Gensis 31:11 - 13, Matthew 1:20 - 23, 2:12 - 13, 19, 22).

They can pass on their destruction to an enemy (Judges 7:13 - 15).

They can offer a person a gift from God (1 Kings 3: 5).

Dreams can warn a person that they will receive punishment for their sins (Daniel 4).

Is it always the truth?
An intense program during the day can produce dreams at night (Ecclesiastes 5: 3). They can also arise from our own vanity and lust (Ecclesiastes 5: 7, Jude 1: 8). According to the Bible, they commonly convey information and describe events that do not reflect the truth but rather represent our vivid imagination (Isaiah 29: 8, Zechariah 10: 2)!

If some dreams come from God, then it makes sense that only He can reveal their true meaning (Genesis 40: 8, Daniel 2:27 - 28). Those who believe that the Eternal is communicating with them using this method should pray and humbly ask if what they have seen has come to him and if so what it means.

A severe warning
The Bible offers severe warnings against those who use dreams (those who have actually dreamed or lied) as a means of convincing others to break God's laws and rebel against worshiping them. In ancient Israel, those who practiced such things received the ultimate penalty.

“If a prophet rises among you, or a dreamer of dreams, and gives you a sign or a wonder, And the sign or wonder that he has predicted is manifested, saying: 'Let's go look for other gods. (they) must be put to DEATH ... "(Deuteronomy 13: 1 - 3, 5, see also Jeremiah 23:25 - 27, 32).

Although the New Testament gives them much less meaning than the Old Testament, it states that just before Jesus' return to earth that God will make his people have special dreams. The Bible records the apostle Peter, citing Joel 2, stating a similar fact when he preached a powerful message on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:17).