‏ Genesis 29

Summary for Gen 29:1-31:55: 29:1–31:55  ^a These chapters tell how God kept his promise by abundantly blessing Jacob with family and possessions. God also disciplined Jacob, leaving him to struggle with Laban for many years. Laban was Jacob’s match in deception, and thus a means of correction.

• The story of Jacob and Laban parallels Israel’s later sojourn in Egypt. Jacob struggled while serving his uncle but finally emerged with a large family (the founders of the twelve tribes) and great wealth. In Egypt, the Israelites suffered under their oppressors, but they also flourished, becoming a great nation of twelve large tribes and escaping with great riches. 29:1  ^b Jacob hurried on: The Hebrew text says that he “picked up his feet” as if he felt the wind at his back; he continued his journey with fresh enthusiasm. His changed outlook was the direct result of the vision he received at Bethel, a marvelous revelation that God was going to protect and bless him. He now sought the fulfillment of God’s promises to him, not just an escape from Esau. Jacob’s attitude had become positive and magnanimous to the point of being naive and vulnerable.
Summary for Gen 29:2-12: 29:2-12  ^c Jacob’s meeting Rachel at the well was providentially timed by the sovereign God who was leading Jacob to fulfillment of the promises (cp. 24:12-20  ^d). The well was a reminder of God’s blessing (cp. 16:13-14  ^e; 21:19  ^f; 26:19-25  ^g, 33  ^h).
29:10  ⁱ In contrast to the lazy, unhelpful shepherds (29:7-8  ^j), Jacob is portrayed as generous, industrious, and energetic.

• Jacob ... watered his uncle’s flock: Laban’s flocks would flourish under Jacob’s care.
29:11  ^k Jacob kissed Rachel: Kissing relatives was a proper greeting (29:13  ^l; cp. Song 8:1  ^m).
Summary for Gen 29:14-30: 29:14-30  ⁿ Jacob’s joyful prospect of marriage to the lovely Rachel became an occasion for Laban’s shrewdness and Jacob’s discipline. Jacob and his mother had deceived his father and brother to gain the blessing; now his mother’s brother deceived him. Jacob received a dose of his own duplicity through twenty years of labor, affliction, and deception in Laban’s service (31:38  ^o). In God’s justice, people harvest what they plant (Gal 6:7  ^p). Laban’s deception was perfectly designed to make Jacob aware of his own craftiness. God often brings people into the lives of believers to discipline them. But Jacob was tenacious, and God blessed him abundantly with a large family and many possessions (30:25-43  ^q) during this time of service. 29:14  ^r You really are my own flesh and blood! Laban welcomed Jacob into his house and treated him much like a son.
29:18  ^s Seven years of service was a high bride-price in the ancient world, but Rachel was beautiful (like Sarah and Rebekah), and Jacob was in love with her.
Summary for Gen 29:23-26: 29:23-26  ^t Like Isaac, Jacob was plied with food and wine (cp. 27:25  ^u), deprived of sight in the darkness (cp. 27:1  ^v), baffled by clothing (cp. 27:15  ^w), and misled by touch (cp. 27:23  ^x). The marriage had been consummated (29:23  ^y; see 2:24  ^z), so Jacob was bound to Leah.

• It’s not our custom here to marry off a younger daughter ahead of the firstborn: Laban’s words are a reminder of what Jacob did when he, the younger son, pretended to be his older brother to gain the blessing (ch 27  ^aa). Now Leah, the older sister, pretended to be the younger sister to get a husband. God gave the deceiver a dose of his own deception as a discipline in his life.
Summary for Gen 29:28-30: 29:28-30  ^ab After the bridal week ended (29:27  ^ac), Jacob also received Rachel as his wife, though he then would have to work an additional seven years (cp. 31:41  ^ad). Laban seemed to have gained the upper hand.
29:30  ^ae Jacob loved Rachel much more than Leah: Favoritism was an ongoing cause of dysfunction in Jacob’s family (cp. 25:28  ^af; 37:3  ^ag). Jacob’s favoritism had lasting effects: his family was never together, and their descendants, the tribes of Israel, were rarely unified.
Summary for Gen 29:31-30:24: 29:31–30:24  ^ah The rivalry between these sisters explains much of the later rivalry among their sons, and then among the tribes, just as the rivalry between Jacob and Laban foreshadowed conflict between Israel and the Arameans of Damascus (2 Sam 8:5-6  ^ai; 10:8-19  ^aj; 1 Kgs 20:1-34  ^ak; 2 Kgs 5:1–8:29  ^al; 13:1-25  ^am; Isa 7:1-9  ^an).

• God champions the cause of the poor and oppressed; he exalted Leah, the despised first wife, as the first to become a mother. Judah’s kingly tribe and Levi’s priestly line came through her despite Jacob’s favoritism for Rachel and her children. Despite the tension and jealousy resulting from Laban’s treachery and Jacob’s favoritism, God still built Jacob’s family and brought about the births of the tribal ancestors.
Summary for Gen 29:31-35: 29:31-35  ^ao Leah’s first four sons were born in rapid succession, but Rachel could not conceive. She was barren, like Sarah and Rebekah (cp. 16:1  ^ap; 25:21  ^aq; see also 1 Sam 1:1-28  ^ar; Luke 1:5-25  ^as).

• Each name is a memorable wordplay on Leah’s experience and hopes.
29:32  ^at Reuben (Hebrew re’uben) sounds like the Hebrew for “He has seen my misery” (ra‘ah be‘onyi). His birth gave Leah consolation from God and hope for Jacob’s love. Jacob seems not to have seen her misery, but God did (cp. 16:14  ^au; 24:62  ^av; 25:11  ^aw). The name was a reminder of God’s intervention.
29:33  ^ax Leah named her second son Simeon. The name suggests that she had cried out to the Lord and was heard (cp. 16:11  ^ay).
29:34  ^az Leah named her third son Levi, hoping that her husband would become “attached” to her since she had given him three sons. This hope was not fulfilled.
29:35  ^ba Leah reconciled herself to the reality that nothing would turn Jacob’s affections toward her. She named her fourth son Judah with the sentiment, “I will praise the Lord.” She seems to have given up on Jacob, taking her consolation from the Lord.

‏ Genesis 30

Summary for Gen 30:1-8: 30:1-8  ^bb Rachel’s naming of sons through Bilhah does not reflect faith as Leah’s namings had. Rachel felt wronged over the marriage and her barrenness. The names of Bilhah’s sons reflect Rachel’s bitter struggle with her sister and her feeling of some victory.
Summary for Gen 30:1-2: 30:1-2  ^bc In that culture, it was like death for a woman not to have children (cp. 1 Sam 1  ^bd); only God could open Rachel’s womb.
Summary for Gen 30:3-4: 30:3-4  ^be Rachel’s decision to have children through her servant, and Jacob’s compliance, recall Sarai’s use of Hagar (16:1-4  ^bf).
Summary for Gen 30:5-6: 30:5-6  ^bg Dan means “he judged” or “he vindicated.” Rachel felt vindicated (Hebrew dananni) by Dan’s birth.
Summary for Gen 30:7-8: 30:7-8  ^bh The name Naphtali is related to the clause I have struggled hard (Hebrew naptule ’elohim niptalti, “I have struggled the struggles of God”).
30:9  ^bi When Leah saw that she had stopped bearing children, she countered Rachel’s effort by giving her servant ... to Jacob as a wife even though she already had four sons.
Summary for Gen 30:10-13: 30:10-13  ^bj Gad was the name of a god of fortune. Asher was the name of a god of luck. These names reflect Leah’s pagan background, but there is no indication that she believed in these gods.
Summary for Gen 30:14-17: 30:14-17  ^bk Mandrakes were considered an aphrodisiac and aid to procreation (see Song 7:13  ^bl). Rachel thought they would help her get pregnant, so she traded Jacob for a night to get them. In the process, Leah got pregnant, not Rachel.
30:18  ^bm The name Issachar captures the sense of Jacob’s being hired (30:16  ^bn) and of the Lord’s rewarding Leah (Hebrew sekari, “my hire”).
Summary for Gen 30:19-20: 30:19-20  ^bo Zebulun means “honor” or “gift,” as in a dowry or tribute. Leah thought that God gave her Zebulun so that her husband would honor her. This hope never fully left her.
30:21  ^bp Dinah was Jacob’s only daughter. See ch 34  ^bq.
Summary for Gen 30:22-24: 30:22-24  ^br Rachel finally gave birth to her own son, Joseph. His birth was brought about by God’s intervention, not by superstitious practices (30:14-16  ^bs) or the social custom of giving servants as wives.

• Removed (Hebrew ’asap, “take away”) sounds similar to Joseph (Hebrew yosep, “may he add”). Rachel rejoiced over Joseph’s birth, yet she prayed that the Lord would add yet another son to her family.
Summary for Gen 30:25-34: 30:25-34  ^bt After his fourteen years of service, Jacob asked Laban for permission to go home. The two bedouin leaders negotiated politely but remained cautiously on guard. Laban wanted to get more out of Jacob. Jacob wanted to gain his wages by selective breeding.
30:27  ^bu I have become wealthy: God had prospered Laban through Jacob’s presence (see 22:18  ^bv). Laban may have looked for omens, or simply have perceived what was happening. Since dark-colored sheep (30:32  ^bw) were rare, a large number of them was considered an omen of God’s blessing.
Summary for Gen 30:30-33: 30:30-33  ^bx Jacob agreed that God had blessed Laban through him, so he made a plan to gain something for himself. He proposed for his wages the rare black and multicolored goats and the speckled and spotted sheep that were born.
30:32  ^by As Abraham had done with Lot (13:9  ^bz), Jacob gave Laban what he valued most. White sheep were more common and more valuable than dark or multicolored sheep; as a man of faith, Jacob was willing to take the rejects (cp. 1 Cor 1:26  ^ca).
Summary for Gen 30:34-36: 30:34-36  ^cb Laban verbally agreed with Jacob’s plan, but he tried to prevent Jacob from accruing wealth by removing animals from the flock that would fulfill the agreement.

• Laban’s deception with his goats reminds us of Jacob’s deception of Esau (cp. 27:9  ^cc; see study note on 29:14-30).
Summary for Gen 30:37-43: 30:37-43  ^cd God blessed Jacob despite Laban’s duplicity. Not to be outwitted, Jacob used selective breeding to acquire a flock, following the traditional belief that peeled sticks influenced the kind of animal that would be born. The peeled branches seemingly made his animals produce streaked and spotted young; Jacob later acknowledged that God had prospered him (31:7-12  ^ce). Jacob gained stronger animals for himself and weaker ones for Laban (30:41-42  ^cf). 30:37  ^cg making white streaks: A clever wordplay captures the meaning of this whole section. When Jacob exposed the white (Hebrew laban) streaks of wood underneath, he played the “white” game (the Laban game) and won. As he outwitted Laban (“Whitey”), Jacob’s flocks flourished and Jacob prospered.
30:42  ^ch Laban now received due recompense for his treatment of Jacob. Laban’s attempt to defraud Jacob resulted in Jacob’s coming out ahead, because God was at work in his life.
30:43  ^ci Jacob became very wealthy, in fulfillment of God’s promises to him (27:28  ^cj; 28:13-15  ^ck).

‏ Genesis 31

Summary for Gen 31:1-21: 31:1-21  ^cl Jacob’s return journey precipitated a confrontation with Laban that set a permanent boundary between Israel (Jacob) and Aram (Laban). God kept his word to Jacob by prospering him in Paddan-aram and protecting him on his journey home.
Summary for Gen 31:1-2: 31:1-2  ^cm The animosity of Laban’s sons against Jacob grew because his flocks were multiplying faster than Laban’s. They were jealous of God’s blessing on Jacob and afraid that he would completely overrun them.
31:3  ^cn The land of your father and grandfather was the land of Canaan, to which Abraham had previously been called (12:1-7  ^co; 17:8  ^cp).

• Return ... I will be with you: See study notes on 26:2-5; 28:12-15. God protected Jacob (“Israel,” 32:28  ^cq) as he brought his family back to the land that was promised to them. God later brought Israel back to Canaan after long years of service in Egypt. That great return had many elements similar to this passage: God defeated foreign gods and beliefs, used dreams for rescue and protection, gave victory over those who threatened them, and established boundaries between nations and tribes (see Deut 32:8  ^cr).
Summary for Gen 31:4-13: 31:4-13  ^cs Jacob explained to his wives how God had blessed him despite Laban’s opposition. He was not sure they would want to leave Laban and go to Canaan. He wanted to take a willing family, so he had to make an effective appeal. He rehearsed God’s leading and provision over the years and then told them that he had to keep the vow he had made at Bethel (28:20-22  ^ct).
Summary for Gen 31:14-16: 31:14-16  ^cu The women responded immediately that they would go with Jacob because God had blessed him. They were very willing to leave Laban, who had squandered their wealth (the property that would have provided for them). They knew that what God had given to Jacob would also be theirs.
Summary for Gen 31:17-21: 31:17-21  ^cv Jacob left Laban secretly out of fear of reprisal (31:31  ^cw).
Summary for Gen 31:19-20: 31:19-20  ^cx Rachel stole her father’s household idols: Rachel probably wanted to regain some of the assets Laban had squandered; possibly she also worshiped idols (cp. 35:2-4  ^cy). To have the idols may have signified claiming the family inheritance, as customs in subsequent periods indicate. Laban apparently felt vulnerable without them. Whatever her reasons, Rachel’s theft almost brought disaster on the fleeing family when Laban caught up with them.

• A wordplay shows that Rachel and Jacob were very much alike—Rachel stole (Hebrew wattignob) Laban’s household gods, and Jacob outwitted (Hebrew wayyignob, “stole the heart of, deceived”) Laban.
31:21  ^cz The journey took the family from Haran southwest to the land of Gilead, just east of the Jordan River in the north of today’s kingdom of Jordan.
Summary for Gen 31:22-23: 31:22-23  ^da The theft of the idols (31:19  ^db) was probably the main reason that Laban and his men chased Jacob. It was one thing for Jacob to take his family and flocks—Laban probably still believed they were all his—but another matter entirely to take his household gods. Laban may have feared that Jacob would return someday to claim all of Laban’s estate. When he failed to find the gods, he asked for a treaty to keep Jacob away (31:43-53  ^dc).

• It took Laban seven days to catch up with Jacob.
31:24  ^dd leave Jacob alone! (literally Do not speak to Jacob either good or evil): God commanded Laban not to take justice into his own hands. When we try to enact our own sense of good and evil apart from God’s command, we always do evil (see study note on 2:9).
Summary for Gen 31:25-30: 31:25-30  ^de The dispute between the two men used the language of legal controversies and lawsuits (see also 31:36  ^df). In his first argument, Laban presented himself as a wounded party that Jacob had robbed.
31:32  ^dg Jacob, so convinced that he didn’t have the gods, used an oath that unwittingly put Rachel under a death sentence.
Summary for Gen 31:33-35: 31:33-35  ^dh Laban searched for the idols but found nothing. Laban never dreamed that a woman having her monthly period would desecrate the idols by sitting on them (cp. Lev 15:19-24  ^di).
Summary for Gen 31:36-42: 31:36-42  ^dj Jacob retaliated by accusing Laban of false charges and humiliation. Laban now became the defendant, for his charges were demeaning and apparently groundless.
31:40  ^dk Jacob, who preferred domestic life (25:27  ^dl), had for twenty years endured the rigors of the outdoors that Esau had loved.
31:42  ^dm The God that Isaac feared (see textual note) was with Jacob (31:3  ^dn), had seen his hard work and faithfulness despite Laban’s abuse, and had rewarded Jacob. Laban’s dream only proved to Jacob that he was in the right.
Summary for Gen 31:43-44: 31:43-44  ^do Laban pushed for a treaty to settle the dispute—he felt vulnerable, so he wanted to secure the borders. Jacob did not need a treaty, since God had provided for him and protected him.
Summary for Gen 31:45-48: 31:45-48  ^dp The stone and the heap of stones were a monument to the border treaty between the two men, as a witness to future generations. Each man named the monument witness pile in his native language. It remained the perpetual border between Israel and the kingdom of Aram (Syria), two nations often at war.
31:49  ^dq The witness pile was also called watchtower. God would watch over Jacob and Laban and keep them apart, for they could not trust each other.
Summary for Gen 31:50-53: 31:50-53  ^dr Laban added some face-saving stipulations to the treaty, using many words to cover up his own untrustworthiness and portray Jacob as the unethical party. He even took credit for the monument Jacob had erected (this monument I have set, 31:51  ^ds). The women and children would be much safer and better cared for with Jacob than they ever were with Laban.