Genesis (2011) 31B. Jacob made his case to his wives that it was time to leave Laban and head to a new place

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1 Genesis (2011) 31B Jacb made his case t his wives that it was time t leave Laban and head t a new place Gd had appeared t Jacb and given him the instructins t pack up and mve Laban had turned against Jacb because f Jacb s success And Laban was prbably lking fr any reasn t accuse Jacb and recver his lst herds But Jacb needed t bring his wives alng with him in this change They are Laban s daughters, s Jacb deals with them in a respectful way, seeking their supprt and agreement He pleads his case and waits fr their respnse Let s take nte f hw these wmen respnd and see what we can learn abut their hearts tday Gen. 31:14 Rachel and Leah said t him, D we still have any prtin r inheritance in ur father s huse? Gen. 31:15 Are we nt reckned by him as freigners? Fr he has sld us, and has als entirely cnsumed ur purchase price. Gen. 31:16 Surely all the wealth which Gd has taken away frm ur father belngs t us and ur children; nw then, d whatever Gd has said t yu. Jacb made his case t his wives in a tw-part argument First, he said the family s situatin was nw in jepardy because Laban had taken ntice f Jacb s gains and was hstile tward Jacb In fact, Jacb s gains were designed by Gd t cme at Laban s expense S it was n surprise that Laban has becme upset Secndly, the Lrd has called Jacb t return hme The call came in a dream, where Gd reminded Jacb that he had made a vw t return S Jacb had little chice but t bey Gd s call 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

2 Genesis 31B 2 f 10 In their respnse, the wives fcus n the issue f the inheritance and the wealth f their father First, they ask if they have any inheritance in their father s huse? Since Jacb wasn t a true sn f Laban, he wasn t entitled t any f Laban s wealth That s why Jacb has been required t earn it And since Jacb had fallen ut f favr with Laban, they assume crrectly that Jacb will never receive anything Secndly, the daughters themselves had n inheritance since nly the men culd inherit prperty S they wmen cnclude that there is nthing t expect frm their father in the future Secndly, they say he has treated them as freigners because Laban sld them t Jacb Remember that nrmally wmen were betrthed with a purchase paid t the father The higher the price paid, the mre is hnred the wmen But Laban allwed Jacb t buy his wives thrugh labr And the value f that labr remained with Laban He alne prfited by that labr Thus he cnsumed the purchase price that Jacb paid rather than using it t bless the daughters with their dwry S the wives secnd bservatin is that they have been treated prly by their father all alng They have little reasn t cling t their father s husehld Finally, they acknwledge Gd s authrity in the situatin They see the hand f Gd ding all these things t enrich Jacb They tell Jacb t d as Gd directed 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

3 Genesis 31B 3 f 10 With that begins Jacb s persnal exdus ut f Laban s family This is a fascinating stry with mre intrigue than meets the eye As we study this sectin, remember the main theme f Jacb s stry: The svereignty f Gd wrking thrugh the sin f peple Jacb is shwing helpful signs as a man wh knws the Lrd s wrk and trust in Him t a degree But he still has a tendency t rely n schemes and deceptin t make things happen And his wives fllw in his ftsteps Gen. 31:17 Then Jacb arse and put his children and his wives upn camels; Gen. 31:18 and he drve away all his livestck and all his prperty which he had gathered, his acquired livestck which he had gathered in Paddan-aram, t g t the land f Canaan t his father Isaac. Gen. 31:19 When Laban had gne t shear his flck, then Rachel stle the husehld idls that were her father s. Gen. 31:20 And Jacb deceived Laban the Aramean by nt telling him that he was fleeing. Gen. 31:21 S he fled with all that he had; and he arse and crssed the Euphrates River, and set his face tward the hill cuntry f Gilead. Gen. 31:22 When it was tld Laban n the third day that Jacb had fled, Gen. 31:23 then he tk his kinsmen with him and pursued him a distance f seven days jurney, and he vertk him in the hill cuntry f Gilead. Jacb aims t make a midnight escape frm Laban He knws that Laban desn t want t see Jacb leave his emplyment This is especially since Jacb will be taking mst f Laban s wealth with him Therefre, Jacb makes a run fr it In v.20 we re tld Jacb deceived Laban by nt telling him he was leaving Here s a wnderful verse t remind us that deceptin can take the frm f withhlding truthful infrmatin 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

4 Genesis 31B 4 f 10 Jacb knew that the prper thing t d in this case was t tell Laban f his departure After living in Laban s huse fr 20 years and having married his tw daughters, Jacb wuld certainly be expected t infrm Laban In fact, he was under a legal bligatin t seek the patriarch s blessing fr this actin As a hired man, Jacb was bund t remain in Laban s emplyment until Laban released him Therefre, Jacb purpsely withheld the news that he was leaving, and in nt telling Laban smething he shuld tell him, Jacb was deceiving Reminding us f James instructins James 4:17 Therefre, t ne wh knws the right thing t d and des nt d it, t him it is sin. We dn t need the Bible t spell ut gdly living dwn t the last detail f life The Hly Spirit living in each f us prvides a cmpass in ur heart true enugh t pint ut right frm wrng in any situatin When we knw what is right, we sense it by Gd s grace and by that knwledge, we instantly becme bligated by Gd s wrd t d the right thing When we g against that knwledge, we sin Jacb was right t leave Laban, but he was wrng t d it in this way Once again, Jacb relies n deceptin cmplicating his bedience t Gd Meanwhile, Rachel makes a mve f her wn Laban is ut shearing the flck, which is a multi-day endeavr invlving many men This leaves the hmes empty f men, s Rachel takes the pprtunity t steal Laban s husehld idls 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

5 Genesis 31B 5 f 10 Amng pagan wrshippers, each husehld wuld adpted its wn idls These idls culd take many frms, and were represented as small figurines a few inches high The idls became assciated with the husehld s identify, prtecting and blessing the huse They might be inscribed with the family name The patriarch f the family held these idls The were passed dwn t the next patriarch f the family S the idls als indicated family authrity and the right t rule the inheritance Nuzi tablets f this era have been fund with instructins that whever pssessed the family idls culd lay claim t be the legitimate heir S whever pssessed these idls culd assume wnership f Laban s estate upn his death Reading that Rachel tk these idls leaves us wndering if her intentins were t wrship them The suggestin is that she didn t have a faith in Gd but retained her pagan religius views While this is pssible, the issue f inheritance is much mre likely Rachel tk these idls as leverage against her father and prtectin against his threats She tk the keys t his kingdm, which wuld have left Laban very vulnerable Perhaps she wanted sme insurance that Laban wuldn t attack them Or maybe she intended t use them t claim sme f the estate that Laban has withheld frm her and Leah when he denied them a dwry 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

6 Genesis 31B 6 f 10 Regardless f her reasns, her actins mirrred thse f her husband While Jacb was deceiving Laban, Rachel was stealing frm Laban Aren t these tw tempting Gd by their actins? As readers we knw the Lrd has prmised t act in Jacb s best interest, but will their mischief cause Gd t g back n his prmises? It s imprtant t remember that at this early pint in the Bible, a reader is still trying t understand the character and nature f this Creatr Gd And Mses is teaching us abut Gd by recrding Gd s respnses t men in their sin In the first part f Genesis, Gd shwed that sin has cnsequences Adam and Eve received cnsequences fr failing t keep Gd s wrd S Gd is a Gd wh respnds t sin Then later in the face f wrldwide rebellin, Gd judges men thrugh a wrldwide fld But Gd prmises t preserve a family f gdly peple if Nah builds an ark S Gd is a Gd executes judgment while ffering mercy t thse wh hear Him Nw we watch as Gd makes cvenant with men, cvenants that hld n requirements fr men And as Abraham, Isaac and Jacb experience sin in their lives, Gd has shwn Himself faithful regardless S Gd is a Gd wh hnrs His prmises uncnditinally Clearly, the relatinship we want with this Gd is ne based n His prmises, and nt ne based n ur perfrmance When ur relatinship with Gd depends n man s perfrmance, the utcmes are disastrus When we turn t Gd s mercy, rescue will cme 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

7 Genesis 31B 7 f 10 And when we rest in Gd s prmises, nthing can shake Gd s faithfulness Still, even if ur sin wn t break Gd s cvenants, it will bring cnsequences We ve seen this thrughut the stry f the patriarchs, especially in the stry f Jacb He cntinues t intrduce deceptin int the wrk f Gd Gd is preparing t shw Jacb a better way, but fr the time being cntinues t rescue Jacb S Jacb reaches t Gilead, which is directly east f Bethel acrss the Jrdan Jacb has crssed the desert directly, which is the hardest way t travel but it indicates hw quickly he was trying t mve Gen. 31:22 When it was tld Laban n the third day that Jacb had fled, Gen. 31:23 then he tk his kinsmen with him and pursued him a distance f seven days jurney, and he vertk him in the hill cuntry f Gilead. Gen. 31:24 Gd came t Laban the Aramean in a dream f the night and said t him, Be careful that yu d nt speak t Jacb either gd r bad. Gen. 31:25 Laban caught up with Jacb. Nw Jacb had pitched his tent in the hill cuntry, and Laban with his kinsmen camped in the hill cuntry f Gilead. Gen. 31:26 Then Laban said t Jacb, What have yu dne by deceiving me and carrying away my daughters like captives f the swrd? Gen. 31:27 Why did yu flee secretly and deceive me, and did nt tell me s that I might have sent yu away with jy and with sngs, with timbrel and with lyre; Gen. 31:28 and did nt allw me t kiss my sns and my daughters? Nw yu have dne flishly. Gen. 31:29 It is in my pwer t d yu harm, but the Gd f yur father spke t me last night, saying, Be careful nt t speak either gd r bad t Jacb. It takes three days befre Laban hears that Jacb has left with his family Remember that Laban made his sns mve their flcks three days jurney away frm Jacb This distance is the reasn fr the three day delay in the news reaching Laban 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

8 Genesis 31B 8 f 10 But as sn as Laban hears, he rushes t catch Jacb Mses ffers n cmmentary n what is mtivating Laban s haste t catch Jacb, but is there really any mystery? Mre than likely Laban intends t kill Jacb and take his daughters and the herd back Jacb s escape is reasn enugh in the ancient wrld fr Laban t take this actin, and he wuld lve nthing better than t have an excuse t reclaim his herds Befre Laban reaches Jacb, the Lrd appears in a dream t give Laban a warning This is the first time we ve seen the Lrd appear t Laban and the secnd time in Scripture that we see the Lrd speaking t an unbeliever As such, it s a remarkable mment, and it s prf that saving faith isn t simply a matter f knw abut Gd Like Abimelech befre him, Laban has cme t knw abut the living Gd and even receive a visin frm Him Nevertheless, they remain utside Gd s mercy since they have nt received a prmise and rested in it by faith Instead f a prmise, Laban is given a stern warning nt t say anything gd r bad t Jacb This is a strange cmmand We might expected Gd t say smething like dn t raise a hand against Jacb r maybe dn t say anything bad Why des Gd tell Laban nt t say anything gd t Jacb? Gd is intent n prtecting Jacb, but he s als intent n teaching Jacb a lessn alng the way The prtectin f Gd is evident in the instructin nt t say anything bad The cmmand nt t speak anything bad implies nt ding anything bad either 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

9 Genesis 31B 9 f 10 A man s wrd was his cmmand, s Laban has been prhibited frm cmmanding anything negative against Jacb But the chastisement f the Lrd will becme evident in His secnd instructin that Laban say nthing psitive either Laban might have been inclined t make an ffer t entice Jacb t return r t tempt Jacb t stay lnger Gd wants Jacb t rest entirely in His prmises and nt n the mercy f unbelievers S as Laban catches up, he gives Jacb a sb stry f cncern and hurt feelings Laban says Jacb deceived him, which is true And Jacb denied Laban the chance t say a prper gd bye t his daughters, which is als true Nw it s Laban s turn t deceive He says had he knwn f Jacb s departure, he wuld have celebrated the event in sngs f jy Finally, Laban accuses Jacb f denying him the chance t kiss his daughters gdbye After living with Laban fr twenty years, Jacb wuldn t have pssibly been fled by this shw But the shw must g n, because saving face and psturing was built in t the culture Finally, Laban declares it is in his pwer t d harm t Jacb The Hebrew wrd fr harm is ra, which means evil r disaster Clearly, this wuld have been Laban s chice, by his wn wrds Fr if Gd had nt stpped him, he wuld have gne frward in this act Clearly, this man has understd the pwer f Gd But ntice he describes Gd as the Gd f yur father in v.20 Laban hears frm Gd, knws Gd s pwer and bey s Gd, yet he desn t have a persnal relatinship with Gd 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

10 Genesis 31B 10 f 10 James 2:19 Yu believe that Gd is ne. Yu d well; the demns als believe, and shudder. A relatinship is based n mre than knwing abut Gd r even hearing frm Gd r even cnfrming t Gd s decrees The demns d all these things at times but t n gd utcme...they still shudder The nly test that matters is whether we have entered int a persnal relatinship with Gd And nly thrugh a cvenant can man have a saving relatinship with Gd Here we see Gd acting accrding t His wrd thrugh a cvenant with Jacb t prtect Jacb Gd said: Gen. 28:15 Behld, I am with yu and will keep yu wherever yu g, and will bring yu back t this land; fr I will nt leave yu until I have dne what I have prmised yu. In v.19 we see Gd at wrk as Laban reveals that Gd is hlding him back frm bringing harm t Jacb Gd s prtectin is bth a result f His prmises and the natural cnsequences f Laban s behavir Laban s hatred f Jacb and his pr treatment f Jacb have left Gd n chice but t bring calamity upn Laban Gd s wrd was t deliver Jacb back safely and t curse thse wh curse him Jacb has dne wrng things t Laban, but nthing in Jacb s behavir culd cause Gd t g back n His wrd Nevertheless, Jacb has deceived Laban and his wife has stlen frm Laban And will Gd deal justly with these mistakes? 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.