There are at least 21 dreams recorded in the Bible. Different kinds of people, with very different lives, all having dreams that greatly impact their lives; some for generations to come. From Abimelech and Abraham in Genesis, through to Pilate’s wife dreaming that Jesus was innocent and warning her husband, God spoke through the symbols and narrative of dreams; both to people who believed in Him and people who did not. He still speaks through dreams today.

In these biblical dreams, we see that God speaks for many different purposes; to warn (Matthew 1:18-2:23) sometimes to give courage (Judges 7:13-14) to correct (Daniel 4) and to give direction to name a few. Can you imagine if Joseph had not interpreted Pharaoh’s dream containing the seven cows and the seven ears of corn (Genesis 41)? This dream warned Pharaoh of the upcoming famine and let him know there would be seven years of plenty first. What would have happened if Pharaoh had not heeded the interpretation and therefore had not made plans to be ready for the famine? The course of history would have changed. As it was, a way through was established.  

The wonderful thing about hearing God through dreams is that the message is so deeply personalized. He touches on things that we don’t necessarily share with anybody; only He knows, and He does it in a way that resonates with us individually. A while ago, in 2012, I had the following dream:

I was going up a hotel staircase. I could see ‘mess’ everywhere, including strands of spaghetti hanging from the bannisters. I was trying to clear up the mess as I went up. When I got to the top, I saw my mom lying, relaxing, on a couch. I could hear lots of alarm clocks sounding loudly all at the same time and I said ‘we should just set one alarm and turn the rest off.

The dream was about a situation I was in at that time, which felt out of control and I was longing to bring order. God was showing me that this was a temporary situation and that by giving it to Him, and staying close to Him, I would find a way through. This reassured me that God was in charge and encouraged me greatly. If I hadn’t received that interpretation, I would have missed out on the comfort and encouragement God had for me at that time, helping me get through challenging circumstances.

God gives all kinds of revelation in dreams. I have spoken with people who have received entire plans, downloaded to them in their dreams, showing them how to do a particular project or technical solutions for a complex problem at work. There are also numerous examples of this in science, for example Einstein had the following dream:

Standing at the bottom of a hill, Einstein watched cows jump away from an electric fence at the exact moment a farmer wired it to a battery. To Einstein, the cows jumped as one, but to the farmer (at the top of the hill) the cows jumped in sequence from closest to furthest.

As the current travels down the line, the cows leap. At the same time, though, the image of the jumping cow has to travel to Einstein, so he sees them jump as one. This showed Einstein that time is relative to the observer.

Is God speaking to you through a dream? Do you have a dream that you keep remembering and wonder what it means? Send us your dream