A. Revelatory dreams promised to His people:

NUM 12:6. And he said, Hear now my words: If there be a prophet among you, I the LORD will make myself known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream.

JOB 33:15. In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falleth upon men, in slumberings upon the bed;

JOB 33:16. Then he openeth the ears of men, and sealeth their instruction,

JOB 33:17. That he may withdraw man from his purpose, and hide pride from man.

JER 23:28. The prophet that hath a dream, let him tell a dream; and he that hath my word, let him speak my word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat? saith the LORD.

JOE 2:28. And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:

ACT 2:17. And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:

B. Old Testament examples:

GEN 15:12. And when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and, lo, an horror of great darkness fell upon him.

GEN 15:13. And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not their's, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years;

GEN 15:14. And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance.

GEN 15:15. And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace; thou shalt be buried in a good old age.

GEN 15:16. But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full.

GEN 20:2. And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, She is my sister: and Abimelech king of Gerar sent, and took Sarah.

GEN 20:3. But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, Behold, thou art but a dead man, for the woman which thou hast taken; for she is a man's wife.

GEN 20:4. But Abimelech had not come near her: and he said, LORD, wilt thou slay also a righteous nation?

GEN 20:5. Said he not unto me, She is my sister? and she, even she herself said, He is my brother: in the integrity of my heart and innocency of my hands have I done this.

GEN 20:6. And God said unto him in a dream, Yea, I know that thou didst this in the integrity of thy heart; for I also withheld thee from sinning against me: therefore suffered I thee not to touch her.

GEN 20:7. Now therefore restore the man his wife; for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for thee, and thou shalt live: and if thou restore her not, know thou that thou shalt surely die, thou, and all that are thine.

GEN 28:10. And Jacob went out from Beersheba, and went toward Haran.

GEN 28:11. And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in that place to sleep.

GEN 28:12. And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it.

GEN 28:13. And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I am the LORD God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed;

GEN 28:14. And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.

GEN 28:15. And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.

GEN 28:16. And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not.

GEN 31:10. And it came to pass at the time that the cattle conceived, that I lifted up mine eyes, and saw in a dream, and, behold, the rams which leaped upon the cattle were ringstraked, speckled, and grisled.

GEN 31:11. And the angel of God spake unto me in a dream, saying, Jacob: And I said, Here am I.

GEN 31:12. And he said, Lift up now thine eyes, and see, all the rams which leap upon the cattle are ringstraked, speckled, and grisled: for I have seen all that Laban doeth unto thee.

GEN 31:13. I am the God of Bethel, where thou anointedst the pillar, and where thou vowedst a vow unto me: now arise, get thee out from this land, and return unto the land of thy kindred.

GEN 31:22. And it was told Laban on the third day that Jacob was fled.

GEN 31:23. And he took his brethren with him, and pursued after him seven days' journey; and they overtook him in the mount Gilead.

GEN 31:24. And God came to Laban the Syrian in a dream by night, and said unto him, Take heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad.

GEN 37:5. And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet the more.

GEN 37:6. And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed:

GEN 37:7. For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance to my sheaf.

GEN 37:8. And his brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed reign over us? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us? And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words.

GEN 37:9. And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me.

GEN 40:1. And it came to pass after these things, that the butler of the king of Egypt and his baker had offended their lord the king of Egypt.

GEN 40:2. And Pharaoh was wroth against two of his officers, against the chief of the butlers, and against the chief of the bakers.

GEN 40:3. And he put them in ward in the house of the captain of the guard, into the prison, the place where Joseph was bound.

GEN 40:4. And the captain of the guard charged Joseph with them, and he served them: and they continued a season in ward.

GEN 40:5. And they dreamed a dream both of them, each man his dream in one night, each man according to the interpretation of his dream, the butler and the baker of the king of Egypt, which were bound in the prison.

GEN 40:6. And Joseph came in unto them in the morning, and looked upon them, and, behold, they were sad.

GEN 40:7. And he asked Pharaoh's officers that were with him in the ward of his lord's house, saying, Wherefore look ye so sadly to day?

GEN 40:8. And they said unto him, We have dreamed a dream, and there is no interpreter of it. And Joseph said unto them, Do not interpretations belong to God? tell me them, I pray you.

GEN 40:9. And the chief butler told his dream to Joseph, and said to him, In my dream, behold, a vine was before me;

GEN 40:10. And in the vine were three branches: and it was as though it budded, and her blossoms shot forth; and the clusters thereof brought forth ripe grapes:

GEN 40:11. And Pharaoh's cup was in my hand: and I took the grapes, and pressed them into Pharaoh's cup, and I gave the cup into Pharaoh's hand.

GEN 40:12. And Joseph said unto him, This is the interpretation of it: The three branches are three days:

GEN 40:13. Yet within three days shall Pharaoh lift up thine head, and restore thee unto thy place: and thou shalt deliver Pharaoh's cup into his hand, after the former manner when thou wast his butler.

GEN 40:16. When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was good, he said unto Joseph, I also was in my dream, and, behold, I had three white baskets on my head:

GEN 40:17. And in the uppermost basket there was of all manner of bakemeats for Pharaoh; and the birds did eat them out of the basket upon my head.

GEN 40:18. And Joseph answered and said, This is the interpretation thereof: The three baskets are three days:

GEN 40:19. Yet within three days shall Pharaoh lift up thy head from off thee, and shall hang thee on a tree; and the birds shall eat thy flesh from off thee.

GEN 40:20. And it came to pass the third day, which was Pharaoh's birthday, that he made a feast unto all his servants: and he lifted up the head of the chief butler and of the chief baker among his servants.

GEN 40:21. And he restored the chief butler unto his butlership again; and he gave the cup into Pharaoh's hand:

GEN 40:22. But he hanged the chief baker: as Joseph had interpreted to them.

GEN 41:17. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, In my dream, behold, I stood upon the bank of the river:

GEN 41:18. And, behold, there came up out of the river seven kine, fatfleshed and well favoured; and they fed in a meadow:

GEN 41:19. And, behold, seven other kine came up after them, poor and very ill favoured and leanfleshed, such as I never saw in all the land of Egypt for badness:

GEN 41:20. And the lean and the ill favoured kine did eat up the first seven fat kine:

GEN 41:21. And when they had eaten them up, it could not be known that they had eaten them; but they were still ill favoured, as at the beginning. So I awoke.

GEN 41:22. And I saw in my dream, and, behold, seven ears came up in one stalk, full and good:

GEN 41:23. And, behold, seven ears, withered, thin, and blasted with the east wind, sprung up after them:

GEN 41:24. And the thin ears devoured the seven good ears: and I told this unto the magicians; but there was none that could declare it to me.

GEN 41:25. And Joseph said unto Pharaoh, The dream of Pharaoh is one: God hath shewed Pharaoh what he is about to do.

GEN 41:26. The seven good kine are seven years; and the seven good ears are seven years: the dream is one.

GEN 41:27. And the seven thin and ill favoured kine that came up after them are seven years; and the seven empty ears blasted with the east wind shall be seven years of famine.

GEN 41:28. This is the thing which I have spoken unto Pharaoh: What God is about to do he sheweth unto Pharaoh.

GEN 41:29. Behold, there come seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt:

GEN 41:30. And there shall arise after them seven years of famine; and all the plenty shall be forgotten in the land of Egypt; and the famine shall consume the land;

GEN 41:31. And the plenty shall not be known in the land by reason of that famine following; for it shall be very grievous.

GEN 41:32. And for that the dream was doubled unto Pharaoh twice; it is because the thing is established by God, and God will shortly bring it to pass.

GEN 46:1. And Israel took his journey with all that he had, and came to Beersheba, and offered sacrifices unto the God of his father Isaac.

GEN 46:2. And God spake unto Israel in the visions of the night, and said, Jacob, Jacob. And he said, Here am I.

GEN 46:3. And he said, I am God, the God of thy father: fear not to go down into Egypt; for I will there make of thee a great nation:

GEN 46:4. I will go down with thee into Egypt; and I will also surely bring thee up again: and Joseph shall put his hand upon thine eyes.

JDG 7:9. And it came to pass the same night, that the LORD said unto him, Arise, get thee down unto the host; for I have delivered it into thine hand.

JDG 7:10. But if thou fear to go down, go thou with Phurah thy servant down to the host:

JDG 7:11. And thou shalt hear what they say; and afterward shall thine hands be strengthened to go down unto the host. Then went he down with Phurah his servant unto the outside of the armed men that were in the host.

JDG 7:12. And the Midianites and the Amalekites and all the children of the east lay along in the valley like grasshoppers for multitude; and their camels were without number, as the sand by the sea side for multitude.

JDG 7:13. And when Gideon was come, behold, there was a man that told a dream unto his fellow, and said, Behold, I dreamed a dream, and, lo, a cake of barley bread tumbled into the host of Midian, and came unto a tent, and smote it that it fell, and overturned it, that the tent lay along.

JDG 7:14. And his fellow answered and said, This is nothing else save the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel: for into his hand hath God delivered Midian, and all the host.

JDG 7:15. And it was so, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream, and the interpretation thereof, that he worshipped, and returned into the host of Israel, and said, Arise; for the LORD hath delivered into your hand the host of Midian.

1KI 3:5. In Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night: and God said, Ask what I shall give thee.

1KI 3:6. And Solomon said, Thou hast shewed unto thy servant David my father great mercy, according as he walked before thee in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with thee; and thou hast kept for him this great kindness, that thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.

1KI 3:7. And now, O LORD my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in.

1KI 3:8. And thy servant is in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude.

1KI 3:9. Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?

1KI 3:10. And the speech pleased the LORD, that Solomon had asked this thing.

1KI 3:11. And God said unto him, Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life; neither hast asked riches for thyself, nor hast asked the life of thine enemies; but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern judgment;

1KI 3:12. Behold, I have done according to thy words: lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart; so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee.

1KI 3:13. And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches, and honour: so that there shall not be any among the kings like unto thee all thy days.

1KI 3:14. And if thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days.

1KI 3:15. And Solomon awoke; and, behold, it was a dream. And he came to Jerusalem, and stood before the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and offered up burnt offerings, and offered peace offerings, and made a feast to all his servants.

JOB 4:12. Now a thing was secretly brought to me, and mine ear received a little thereof.

JOB 4:13. In thoughts from the visions of the night, when deep sleep falleth on men,

JOB 4:14. Fear came upon me, and trembling, which made all my bones to shake.

JOB 4:15. Then a spirit passed before my face; the hair of my flesh stood up:

JOB 4:16. It stood still, but I could not discern the form thereof: an image was before mine eyes, there was silence, and I heard a voice, saying,

JOB 4:17. Shall mortal man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his maker?

JOB 4:18. Behold, he put no trust in his servants; and his angels he charged with folly:

JOB 4:19. How much less in them

that dwell in houses of clay, whose foundation is in the dust, which are crushed before the moth?

JOB 4:20. They are destroyed from morning to evening: they perish for ever without any regarding it.

JOB 4:21. Doth not their excellency which is in them go away? they die, even without wisdom.

DAN 2:1. And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams, wherewith his spirit was troubled, and his sleep brake from him.

DAN 2:28. But there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets, and maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. Thy dream, and the visions of thy head upon thy bed, are these;

DAN 2:29. As for thee, O king, thy thoughts came into thy mind upon thy bed, what should come to pass hereafter: and he that revealeth secrets maketh known to thee what shall come to pass.

DAN 2:31. Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible.

DAN 2:32. This image's head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass,

DAN 2:33. His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay.

DAN 2:34. Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces.

DAN 2:35. Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.

DAN 2:36. This is the dream; and we will tell the interpretation thereof before the king.

DAN 2:37. Thou, O king, art a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory.

DAN 2:38. And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath he given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou art this head of gold.

DAN 2:39. And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee, and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth.

DAN 2:40. And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise.

DAN 2:41. And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters' clay, and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay.

DAN 2:42. And as the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken.

DAN 2:43. And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay.

DAN 2:44. And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.

DAN 2:45. Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.

DAN 2:16. Then Daniel went in, and desired of the king that he would give him time, and that he would shew the king the interpretation.

DAN 2:17. Then Daniel went to his house, and made the thing known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions:

DAN 2:18. That they would desire mercies of the God of heaven concerning this secret; that Daniel and his fellows should not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.

DAN 2:19. Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven.

DAN 7:1. In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon Daniel had a dream and visions of his head upon his bed: then he wrote the dream, and told the sum of the matters.

DAN 7:2. Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea.

DAN 7:3. And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another.

DAN 7:4. The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to it.

DAN 7:5. And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up itself on one side, and it had three ribs in the mouth of it between the teeth of it: and they said thus unto it, Arise, devour much flesh.

DAN 7:6. After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; the beast had also four heads; and dominion was given to it.

DAN 7:7. After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns.

DAN 7:8. I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things.

DAN 7:9. I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire.

DAN 7:10. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.

DAN 7:11. I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame.

DAN 7:12. As concerning the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away: yet their lives were prolonged for a season and time.

DAN 7:13. I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.

DAN 7:14. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.

DAN 7:15. I Daniel was grieved in my spirit in the midst of my body, and the visions of my head troubled me.

DAN 7:16. I came near unto one of them that stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me, and made me know the interpretation of the things.

DAN 7:17. These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth.

DAN 7:18. But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever.

DAN 7:19. Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast, which was diverse from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails of brass; which devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet;

DAN 7:20. And of the ten horns that were in his head, and of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows.

DAN 7:21. I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them;

DAN 7:22. Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom.

DAN 7:23. Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.

DAN 7:24. And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.

DAN 7:25. And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.

DAN 7:26. But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end.

DAN 7:27. And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.

DAN 7:28. Hitherto is the end of the matter. As for me Daniel, my cogitations much troubled me, and my countenance changed in me: but I kept the matter in my heart.

C. New Testament examples:

MAT 1:20. But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.

MAT 1:21. And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.

MAT 2:13. And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.

MAT 2:19. But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth in a dream to Joseph in Egypt,

MAT 2:20. Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel: for they are dead which sought the young child's life.

MAT 2:22. But when he heard that Archelaus did reign in Judaea in the room of his father Herod, he was afraid to go thither:

notwithstanding, being warned of God in a dream, he turned aside

into the parts of Galilee:

MAT 2:12. And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.

MAT 27:19. When he was set down on the judgment seat, his wife sent unto him, saying, Have thou nothing to do with that just man: for I have suffered many things this day in a dream because of him.

D. Caution regarding determining God's will by dreams:

ECC 5:3. For a dream cometh through the multitude of business; and a fool's voice is known by multitude of words.

ECC 5:7. For in the multitude of dreams and many words there are also divers vanities: but fear thou God.

JER 23:25. I have heard what the prophets said, that prophesy lies in my name, saying, I have dreamed, I have dreamed.

JER 23:26. How long shall this be in the heart of the prophets that prophesy lies? yea, they are prophets of the deceit of their own heart;

JER 23:27. Which think to cause my people to forget my name by their dreams which they tell every man to his neighbour, as their fathers have forgotten my name for Baal.

JER 23:32. Behold, I am against them that prophesy false dreams, saith the LORD, and do tell them, and cause my people to err by their lies, and by their lightness; yet I sent them not, nor commanded them: therefore they shall not profit this people at all, saith the LORD.