(י) וַיֵּצֵ֥א יַעֲקֹ֖ב מִבְּאֵ֣ר שָׁ֑בַע וַיֵּ֖לֶךְ חָרָֽנָה׃ (יא) וַיִּפְגַּ֨ע בַּמָּק֜וֹם וַיָּ֤לֶן שָׁם֙ כִּי־בָ֣א הַשֶּׁ֔מֶשׁ וַיִּקַּח֙ מֵאַבְנֵ֣י הַמָּק֔וֹם וַיָּ֖שֶׂם מְרַֽאֲשֹׁתָ֑יו וַיִּשְׁכַּ֖ב בַּמָּק֥וֹם הַהֽוּא׃ (יב) וַֽיַּחֲלֹ֗ם וְהִנֵּ֤ה סֻלָּם֙ מֻצָּ֣ב אַ֔רְצָה וְרֹאשׁ֖וֹ מַגִּ֣יעַ הַשָּׁמָ֑יְמָה וְהִנֵּה֙ מַלְאֲכֵ֣י אֱלֹהִ֔ים עֹלִ֥ים וְיֹרְדִ֖ים בּֽוֹ׃
(יג) וְהִנֵּ֨ה ה' נִצָּ֣ב עָלָיו֮ וַיֹּאמַר֒ אֲנִ֣י ה' אֱלֹהֵי֙ אַבְרָהָ֣ם אָבִ֔יךָ וֵאלֹהֵ֖י יִצְחָ֑ק הָאָ֗רֶץ אֲשֶׁ֤ר אַתָּה֙ שֹׁכֵ֣ב עָלֶ֔יהָ לְךָ֥ אֶתְּנֶ֖נָּה וּלְזַרְעֶֽךָ׃ (יד) וְהָיָ֤ה זַרְעֲךָ֙ כַּעֲפַ֣ר הָאָ֔רֶץ וּפָרַצְתָּ֛ יָ֥מָּה וָקֵ֖דְמָה וְצָפֹ֣נָה וָנֶ֑גְבָּה וְנִבְרֲכ֥וּ בְךָ֛ כָּל־מִשְׁפְּחֹ֥ת הָאֲדָמָ֖ה וּבְזַרְעֶֽךָ׃ (טו) וְהִנֵּ֨ה אָנֹכִ֜י עִמָּ֗ךְ וּשְׁמַרְתִּ֙יךָ֙ בְּכֹ֣ל אֲשֶׁר־תֵּלֵ֔ךְ וַהֲשִׁ֣בֹתִ֔יךָ אֶל־הָאֲדָמָ֖ה הַזֹּ֑את כִּ֚י לֹ֣א אֶֽעֱזָבְךָ֔ עַ֚ד אֲשֶׁ֣ר אִם־עָשִׂ֔יתִי אֵ֥ת אֲשֶׁר־דִּבַּ֖רְתִּי לָֽךְ׃
And Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Haran. And he came upon a certain place and stopped there for the night, for the sun had set, and he took one of the stones of the place and put it at his head and he lay down in that place, and he dreamed, and, look, a ramp was set against the ground with its top reaching the heavens, and, look, messengers of God were going up and coming down it.
And, look, the LORD was poised over him and He said, “ I, the LORD, am the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie, to you I will give it and to your seed. And your seed shall be like the dust of the earth and you shall burst forth to the west and the east and the north and the south, and all the clans of the earth shall be blessed through you, and through your seed. And, look, I am with you and I will guard you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land, for I will not leave you until I have done that which I have spoken to you.”
Alter, Robert (2008-10-17). The Five Books of Moses: A Translation with Commentary.
(א) עולים ויורדים. עולים תחלה ואחר כך יורדים, מלאכים שלווהו בארץ אין יוצאים חוצה לארץ ועלו לרקיע, וירדו מלאכי חוצה לארץ ללוותו:
Going up and down - Going up first and afterwards down; angels who accompany him in the land do not leave the land, but go up to the sky, and angels from outside the land go down to accompany him.
(א) ודרך סלם להיות סמל או על מספר סיני דרש הוא.
וה''ר שלמה הספרדי אמר כי סלם רמז לנשמה העליונה ומלאכי אלהים מחשבות החכמה.
ויאמר רבי ישועה כי טעם סולם שעלתה בו תפלתו וירדה ישועתו מן השמים
גם כן כתוב ומלאכים אחרים יורדים למלאות שליחות השם כדרך מלך משרתיו
It is common for a sulam (ramp, ladder) to be a symbol, or it is the same numerical value as "Sinai."
Rabbi Shlomo from Spain said that a ladder is a hint about the higher soul, and the mal'achim of God are thoughts of wisdom.
And Rabbi Yeshua said that the reason for a ladder is that prayers go up it, and God's salvation comes down from the heavens...
...And it is also written: and other messengers go down to fulfill their divine tasks, like a king and his servants.
Toldot Yitzchak, Breisheet 28:12
The answer to the intention of the ladder is that they tell us that the mal'achim do not have enough energy from when God created them, but rather at every moment they need to receive hashpa'ah/ 'influence' from God, and that is what is means when it says that the mal'achim are going up; it is to get hashpa'ah from God. And they go down with their hashpa'ah, and it is unlike a building which does not need its builder afterwards.
The Five Books of Miriam: The Symbolism of Ladders
Ellen Frankel
The Rabbi's explain: According to our Sages, the sulam, Jacob's ladder, (also translated as "stairway" or "ramp") was the stairway leading from the Temple altar to God. But others teach that it was Mount Sinai, since the numerical value of sulam equals "Sinai." Still others say that the ladder represents Jewish history, with its many ups and downs, and it is further taught that ladders represent an individual's life history: 'The Holy One of Blessing sits and makes ladders, raising one person and casting down another.'
Esther the Hidden One interjects: We need to remember that ladders lead not only from earth up to heaven but also from heaven down to earth. As we leap up to reach the bottom rung of the heavenly ladder, God lowers the ladder to meet our outstretched hand. And when we cannot grasp even that lowest rung, She-Who-Dwells-Within reaches down and meets us where we are.
Our Bubbies Offer: For centuries, Jewish women in Eastern Europe baked ladders into their hallahs for special occasions: for the meal just before Yom Kippur, so that our prayers for forgiveness should go up to Heaven; and for Shavuot, to remember how Moses climbed all the way up Mount Sinai to receive the Torah.
Torah Journeys -Vayetze
Rabbi Shefa Gold
Jacob's journey is blessed at its outset with a dream and with a moment of awakening. In the dream God shows Jacob the stairway that connects the realms of Heaven and Earth and then gives him a promise. Through this blessing we ourselves becomes that stairway, that connection, with our feet planted in the foundation of Earth and our crowns open to the expanse of Heaven. Through us the Divine flow pours down into the earthly realms, Through us the pleasure and miseries of earthly experience are offered up to The Divine Expanse.