Old Testament - Genesis31 - March 3, 2022

3/3/2022 – Genesis 31

The chapter synopsis says it all: “The Lord commands Jacob to return to Canaan, and he departs secretly—Laban pursues him; they resolve their differences and make a covenant of peace—Laban blesses his descendants, and he and Jacob part company.”

But here the story is: blow by blow: Jacob’s work over the twenty years he was will Laban, was responsible for greatly increased herds.  V 1 tells us that there was an ill will at Laban’s home: Jacob“… heard the words of Laban’s sons, saying, Jacob hath taken away all that was our father’s; and of that which was our father’s, hath he gotten all this glory”.   V 2 Then “Jacob beheld the countenance of Laban, and behold it was not toward him as before.”  This is when the Lord spoke to Jacob, telling him to return to his own father’s home, “and I will be with thee.” (v 3)

The very next thing Jacob did was to call Leah and Rachel telling them that Laban was no longer loving or friendly to Jacob. Jacob reminded his wives that he had served their father well, while Laban had “changed his wages ten times, but God suffered him not to hurt me.” (v 6) That sounds like some very serious ill-will from Laban.  

Jacob when on to tell his wives that he had been visited by an angel…the same one who was with him when he saw the ladder into heaven. The angel said “I have seen all that Laban doeth unto thee” (v 12) And then he told Jacob to “now arise, get thee out from this land, and return unto the land of thy kindred.” (v 13)  Leah and Rachel told him that they were counted as strangers to their father, that he had sold them both and “hath quite devoured also our money.”  (v 15) And then they told Jacob that they were with him and he should do whatever the Lord had told him to do.  But before they left Rachel stole from her father “the images that were her father’s”. (v 19) There are many thoughts as to what these images were, and this is my favorite one: “One scholar theorized that these images were somehow tied in with the legal rights of inheritance (see Guthrie, New Bible Commentary, p. 104). If this theory is correct, the possessor of the teraphim had the right to inherit the father’s property. This circumstance would explain why Rachel stole the images, since her father had “stolen” her inheritance (see Genesis 31:14–16). It would also explain Laban’s extreme agitation over their loss and Jacob’s severe penalty offered against the guilty party (see Genesis 31:31).”

It took 3 days for Laban to realize they had all fled. (v22) Amazingly “God came to Laban [a conniving man] in a dream by night and said unto him, Take heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad.” (v 24) Laban ignored this dream and he and his people chased after Jacob and his group, and accused Jacob of all sorts of bad doings.  Laban was especially upset over the theft of “the images”. Jacob had no knowledge of these images that Rachel had taken and had hidden. Jacob told Laban that he could search their group and if he found his images then he could kill the person who had them.  Rachel was the one who had them, but she hid them in furniture in her tent, then sat on them, then told her father he could search her tent but she could not move because she “cannot rise up before thee; for the custom of women is upon me.” 

V 28 tells us that Jacob had served Laban 20 years, and v 42 tells us that Jacob is very sure that it was only the fear of Isaac, Jacob’s father, that Laban hadn’t “sent me away now empty. God hath seen mine affliction and the labour of my hands, and rebuked thee yesternight.”

Somehow, Laban decided to take a different tack. He and Jacob built an alter and said that each would stay on their own side—not to see each other again.  Jacob offered a sacrifice to the Lord. (v54) and Laban “rose up, and kissed his sons, and his daughters, and blessed them; and Laban departed, and returned unto his place.” (v 55). They had made a serious covenant that they would not harm each other.

It was so good to see that Jacob and Leah and Rachel all supported one another—they were family!  Now I’ll wait to see what happens when Rachel is found to have Laban’s images……