“[God’s prophet] Daniel saw a dream . . . as he lay on his bed. Then he wrote down the dream; he recorded a complete account of the matters.”—Daniel 7:1.

WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS

God has conveyed important messages to people in a variety of ways. In Bible times, he occasionally used dreams. But these were not everyday vague, illogical dreams. Dreams from God were vivid and coherent, and they had a definite message. For example, in a dream, the prophet Daniel saw a series of beasts that symbolize political empires from Babylon down to our time. (Daniel 7:1-3, 17) By means of a dream, God told Joseph of Nazareth, the adoptive father of Jesus, to flee to Egypt with his wife and child. As a result, Jesus escaped death at the hands of vicious King Herod. When Herod died, God disclosed his death to Joseph by means of a dream, at the same time instructing him to return with his family to their homeland.—Matthew 2:13-15, 19-23.

“Do not go beyond the things that are written.”—1 Corinthians 4:6.

WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS

The dreams recorded in the Bible form part of God’s written revelation to mankind. Concerning that revelation, 2 Timothy 3:16, 17 states: “All Scripture is inspired of God and beneficial for teaching, for reproving, for setting things straight, for disciplining in righteousness, so that the man of God may be fully competent, completely equipped for every good work.”

The Bible ‘completely equips’ us in that it reveals all that we need to know about God, his qualities, his moral standards, and our place in his purpose for the earth. Hence, God no longer uses dreams to convey messages to humans. If we want to learn about the future and God’s will for us, we need “not go beyond the things that are written”—that is, written in the Bible. Moreover, virtually all mankind can access this book and study its many revelations from God, including dreams.

“Men spoke from God as they were moved by holy spirit.”—2 Peter 1:21.

WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS

Many of the dreams and visions recorded in the Bible were prophetic—that is, they foretold future events. By recording these prophecies, the Bible writers put their credibility—and that of the Scriptures—on the line. Did their writings prove to be accurate? Consider an example—the vision found at Daniel 8:1-7, recorded toward the end of the Babylonian Empire.

Using symbolism, the prophecy involved a ram and a male goat that overthrew the ram, trampling it down. Daniel did not have to guess at the meaning of the vision. An angelic messenger of God declared: “The two-horned ram . . . stands for the kings of Media and Persia. The hairy male goat stands for the king of Greece.” (Daniel 8:20, 21) History confirms that Medo-Persia succeeded Babylon as a world power. Then, some two hundred years later, Medo-Persia fell to Alexander the Great of Greece. Such amazing accuracy characterizes Bible prophecy, including prophetic dreams. This fact alone sets the Bible apart from all other sacred books, making it worthy of our confidence.