In Laban Jacob met his match and his means of discipline.

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1 The long account of Jacob's relationship with Laban (chs ) is the centerpiece of the Jacob story (chs ). It is a story within a story, and it too has a chiastic structure. At its center is the account of the birth of Jacob's sons, who became the forefathers of the tribes of Israel (29:31 35). 29:1 30 Jacob met Rachel at a community well, and watered her (Laban's) flock of sheep, in spite of opposition against doing so. Jacob's love for Rachel (i.e., in the sense that he strongly preferred and desired her for marriage) led him to serve Laban for seven years to obtain her as his wife. But Laban deceived Jacob into marrying Leah, the firstborn, so Jacob had to work an extra seven years for Rachel. In Laban Jacob met his match and his means of discipline. Jacob is now in the greatest of all schools, that of experience, and there are many lessons to learn. These three chapters (29 31) cover about twenty years of his life ( B.C.), and are the record of a large part of his training. 443

2 1 Then Jacob went on his journey, and came to the land of the sons of the east. 2 He looked, and saw a well in the field, and behold, three flocks of sheep were lying there beside it, for from that well they watered the flocks. Now the stone on the mouth of the well was large. 3 When all the flocks were gathered there, they would then roll the stone from the mouth of the well and water the sheep, and put the stone back in its place on the mouth of the well (Gen. 29:1 3). 29:1 3 More than any other book in the Old Testament, Genesis emphasizes the east (see 3:24; 4:16; 10:30; 11:2; 13:11; 25:6; 29:1) as a direction of some significance. Here Jacob came to the land of the sons of the east. Jacob had traveled about miles from Beersheba to Haran (v. 4). Notice the absence of prayer for divine guidance to the woman of God's choosing, which dominates the story of Abraham's servant's (Eliezer's) visit to the same area for the same purpose (ch. 22). Also, Jacob traveled alone and on foot, whereas Abraham's servant came with a well-laden camel train. 444

3 4 Jacob said to them, My brothers, where are you from? And they said, We are from Haran. 5 He said to them, Do you know Laban the son of Nahor? And they said, We know him. 6 And he said to them, Is it well with him? And they said, It is well, and here is Rachel his daughter coming with the sheep. 7 He said, Behold, it is still high day; it is not time for the livestock to be gathered. Water the sheep, and go, pasture them. 8 But they said, We cannot, until all the flocks are gathered, and they roll the stone from the mouth of the well; then we water the sheep (Gen. 29:4 8). 29:4 8 True to his character, Jacob proceeded arrogantly, questioning the shepherds' carefree behavior (v. 7). For all the criticism one might level at Jacob's conduct, he was no slacker in his labor ethic (31:6, 38 41). Nahor was actually the grandfather of Laban, not his father (v. 5; cf. 22:20 23). The well was probably a cistern that had a mouth with a large circumference (v. 8). A very large stone that required several men to remove it evidently covered it. After they moved the stone, the flocks would gather around the edge of the well to drink. The well from which Rebekah drew water for Eliezer (24:16) may have been a different kind. The male shepherds may have been unauthorized to roll the stone away because the well belonged to Laban; their inability may have been legal rather than physical. 445

4 9 While he was still speaking with them, Rachel came with her father s sheep, for she was a shepherdess. 10 When Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother s brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother s brother, Jacob went up and rolled the stone from the mouth of the well and watered the flock of Laban his mother s brother. 11 Then Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted his voice and wept. 12 Jacob told Rachel that he was a relative of her father and that he was Rebekah s son, and she ran and told her father (Gen. 29:9 12). 29:9 12 Jacob wept for joy and relief (v. 11), but he did not praise God. He had ended his journey, was now in the right place, and had met the right person, he thought. This is one of the few places in Scripture that we read of a man kissing a woman. Jacob apparently acted solely on the basis of Rachel's physical attractiveness. Her name means "Ewe Lamb. When Abraham's servant Eliezer had discovered Rebekah's identity, he worshiped the Lord (24:24, 26), but here Jacob flexed his muscle (by rolling away the stone from the mouth of the well), proving his capacity to serve Laban's house. 446

5 13 So when Laban heard the news of Jacob his sister s son, he ran to meet him, and embraced him and kissed him and brought him to his house. Then he related to Laban all these things. 14 Laban said to him, Surely you are my bone and my flesh. And he stayed with him a month (Gen. 29:13 14). 29:13 14 This scene (29:1 14) is chiefly about God's providence versus Jacob's prayerlessness. The suggestion of some interpreters that Laban adopted Jacob as his son is questionable. 447