JOHN 1:51

 

                                   Highway to Heaven (2009 college)

One of Jesus' most opaque sayings is found in John 1:51 – “...you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.” As R.E. Brown says, “At the very end of this part on the call of the disciples in the Jordan valley [i.e. John 1:43-51], there comes a verse that has caused as much trouble for commentators as any other single verse in the Fourth Gospel...there is nothing in what follows 51 to indicate that its promise was ever fulfilled, if the vision promised is to be taken literally.”

Jesus is obviously referring to himself by that final phrase ['the Son of man'], and the context shows that he is addressing these words to Nathaniel just after revealing to him that he had earlier supernaturally seen Nathaniel under the fig tree. In addition, it seems obvious that Jesus is somehow alluding back to Jacob's vision of the ladder to heaven described in Genesis 28:1-12. But it is not at all obvious what the relationship is to either of those portions of the Bible. It is a question which cries out to be answered, which I will attempt to do with the aid of my trusty, but not always trustworthy, commentaries. But first a few specific subjects need to be addressed.

Addressee

One question involves the audience which was being addressed by these words of Jesus. Although only Nathanael is mentioned in the text, Kostenberger, among others, brings up the fact that in the Greek text, the words “you” and “your” are given in the plural, not the singular. His explanation is the common one, that is, that all the disciples are being referred to here.

However, O.M. Hendricks expresses the opinion that “Nathanael (Heb 'God has given') may be a collective character representing those in Israel who have no deceit, i.e. none of the qualities of Jacob before he became Israel (Genesis 27:35; 32:28). Because of their openness to Jesus they will see him in the fullness of his role as mediator between heaven and earth; cf. Gen 28.12.” It is not necessary for one to believe that Nathanael is only a symbolic character and not an historical one in order to accept, or at least understand, Hendricks' interpretation of him as the opposite counterpoint of the trickster Jacob.

Mode of transport

It may seem like a minor point, but there is also a little controversy as to what the angels were climbing on, a ladder or a flight of stairs. The Hebrew text seems to indicate the former, but Carr expresses another opinion based on speculation as to the 'original wording': “The earliest version of this oracle described angels ascending and descending a stairway (a better translation than NRSV's ladder) to heaven. This is reflected in v. 17 [in which Jacob calls it 'the gate of heaven.'].”

Are the angels climbing 'on it' or 'on him'?”

If it is the latter (not 'ladder'), “the parallel is clear: as the angels ascended and descended on Jacob (who was later renamed 'Israel')...so the angels will ascend and descend on the Son of Man (Jesus)... Jesus will mediate greater revelations than Abraham (8:58), Jacob (cf. 4:12-14); Moses (1:17-18; 5:45-47; 9:28-29), and Isaiah (12:37-41).” (Kostenberger) Carson also notes this recurring “greater than” theme throughout John's Gospel.

Bruce's opinion is: “The difference between 'on it' and 'on him' (underlying John's 'on the Son of Man') is not significant in that the Hebrew could be translated both ways.”

Is this a prophecy of a specific event?

There seems to be no consensus of opinion on this subject. Thus, we are told authoritatively by various scholars that the fulfillment happened at Jesus baptism, the miracle at Cana, the Transfiguration, the cross, or in the post-resurrection appearances of Christ. And finally, an anonymous entry in The Dictionary of Biblical Imagery reads: “Indeed, when the new Jerusalem comes down out of heaven, as John prophesies in his vision, Jesus the Lamb of God will dwell there, himself the light for all to see, in this final and complete opening of heaven to earth (Rev 21:1-3).”

But a more general fulfillment is what is probably being suggested:

“John at Bethel sees a stairway to heaven and experiences the presence of God. The disciples during Jesus' life did not literally see a stairway to heaven, but they did experience the presence of God and commerce between heaven and earth...in the signs with Jesus worked, and they responded with commitment (faith).” (Bruce)

Culpepper also expresses the opinion that rather viewing the words as the prophecy of a particular event, this verse “should probably be taken as a metaphorical reference which occurred during Jesus' ministry.”

Overall Meaning

Ellis: “Wescott understands this of prayers taken to God through Christ, and the answers were sent in Him, seeing that He is ever present (cf. Mt. 28:20). But Jesus' words are more likely to have been colored by Jewish theology and apocalyptic. More probably we should understand this picture as denoting the embodiment, in Jesus, of a heavenly fellowship between God and man, brought about by the death of Jesus...”

Blum: “Just as Jacob saw angels from heaven communicating with earth, so Nathanael...would see Jesus as the divine Communication from heaven to earth. The Son of Man, replacing the ladder, is God's link with earth (cf. Dan. 7:13; Matt. 26:64). Perhaps Jesus was also indicating that He is the new Bethel, God's divine place...”

“From this point onward Christ's Messianic work of linking heaven to earth; and re-establishing free intercourse between man and God, goes on.” (Comb)

According to The Dictionary of Biblical Imagery, Jesus is suggesting “that he himself is the ladder (as in Jacob's vision) that would finally open up heaven to earth and earth to heaven.”

Evans and Novakovic state: “ According to midrashic [rabbinical] traditions, the angels came down to gaze upon Jacob because his image was on God's throne in heaven...The Fourth Evangelist probably wanted to invite his readers to view Jesus as superior to the patriarch, for Jesus, not Jacob, is the true image of God...”

Morris points out that “in both passages there is the thought of communication between heaven and earth. In both the angels are spoken of as ascending first,which may imply their presence on earth already. In this passage [i.e. John 1:51] the place of the ladder is taken by 'the Son of man'. Jesus Himself is the link between heaven and earth (3:13). He is the means by which the realities of heaven are brought down to earth.”

“The meaning of this statement seems to be that heaven is now opened for continuous communication with men, the representative of whom is Christ Himself under the title of 'Son of man.' It is remarkable that this title is substituted for Nathanael's 'Son of God.' The link between heaven and earth depends as much on the Mediator's human character as on the divine.” (Guthrie)

Conclusion

R.E. Brown states that “whether it is as the ladder, the shekinah [God's glory], the merkabah [Ezekiel's chariot], Bethel ['house of God'], or the rock [according to a mystical Jewish belief that Jacob's rock was the first thing created by God and the basis for the whole world], the vision means that Jesus as the Son of Man has become the locus for divine glory, the point of contact between heaven and earth.”