1 As Jacob travelled far along the stony desert ways, a passing vision made him strong and turned his sleep into a song and all his pain to praise. 2 And as he saw, that night alone, a stairway to the sky with angels moving up and down, he heard the mighty voice of One who stood supreme on high: 3 'I am your fathers' God, the Lord; I bring your tribes to birth; I am with you to guide and guard, to see your family spread abroad, a blessing for the earth.' 4 And by the grace of God we share the way that Jacob went: the Lord from heaven to earth comes near; the upward path is now made clear in Christ, our one Ascent. 5 So may my eyes and heart and mind awake to see that grace, those steps before me and behind, as in the barren tracks I find the Lord is in this place. 6 I carry with me all the way the promise Christ has given; and at each resting-place I stay the guest of Jacob's God, and say 'This is the gate of heaven!'