Genesis 31:1–55

We have had the word "glory" once before, in Genesis 31:1, where it means wealth. This later place is the first time it means honour and splendour, so again we can see what it pictures. When Christ is revealed in His glory, Israel will be gathered to Him and bow down before Him.

But God thwarted the covetous man and helped the long-suffering one. The result was plenty on one side and loss on the other. This cut Laban and his sons to the quick, and their connection with Jacob soon ended, to Jacob's relief. But how weak the faith!

Before this, Laban had recognized that Jacob's presence with him was what made him prosper so much. So he valued Jacob. Now Jacob prospers and Laban's attitude toward him changes to that of resentment.

We move on to Laban's sons (Gen. 31:1), who became envious of Jacob; Laban also became full of ANGER against him, though God did not permit him to show it (Gen. 31:2, 24). It is worth noting that Isaac and Jacob were both envied for their riches. Yet we never find that Abraham was, though he was just as rich — a fact that says a great deal for his character.

At last Jacob has reached the limit of his desire by deceit, trickery, and fraud. Through it all, and despite it all, the unseen God has heard the desire of Jacob's heart and given him his fill. Yet in his own thinking Jacob has done it all, with God little known or acknowledged. Jacob's hand, and thought, and fraud have gained it all; all is his.

If he had rested with confidence in God, and not used the tricks described in the last chapter, God would still have reached the end He purposed. And Jacob's "righteousness" would have spoken for him far more convincingly.

After all his planning, Jacob has to learn that it is the power of God to which he owes the increase. God has looked on his affliction and his toil, and ordained him a repayment. But his prosperity puts distance between him and Laban, just as spiritual increase separates a person from the world. Then comes the call of God to return to Canaan.

Truly the Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and rich in loving-kindness. For the words of Laban's sons, and the looks of Laban himself, revealed their discontent — and no wonder. So the Lord told Jacob to return to the land of his fathers, and to his relatives. God's providence paid Jacob in some five or six years the wages Laban had cheated him of for twenty years.

We must not excuse the way Jacob manipulated things. On the other hand, Laban had been taking unfair advantage of Jacob all the way through. Jacob did the hard work of caring for Laban's flocks for twenty years. Laban had sons who could have helped with this work, but they left the work to the one who could do it well. … Management often thinks it has the right to reap all the benefits that labour produces, because management provided the money at the start. But God takes account of the guilt of management in the oppression of its employees (James 5:4).

Jacob had gained all of this through his caring for their father's sheep: now most of the sheep, and the stronger sheep, belonged to Jacob. But Laban had agreed to the arrangement, and they could do nothing about it. Before this, Laban had seen that Jacob's presence with him made him prosper greatly, so he valued Jacob. Now Jacob prospers and Laban's attitude toward him changes to that of resentment.

Jacob was a man of faith, but he failed in spiritual life, and he comes under the Lord's discipline so that he might bear more fruit, and better fruit. He had cheated at home, so he suffered abroad, most of all at the hands of his mother's brother. He bore Laban's hardhearted wrongs patiently, and that shows he bowed to God.

Surely no one can miss the lesson of this repayment. It is God's holy discipline for us, so that we may share His holiness. The measure we use is measured back to us. What we sow we reap. And in the fairness of God's government we find the correction of a Father's hand. Jacob receives from a relative the deceit he had practiced on a relative.

The sons of Laban saw that Jacob had stripped their father of much of his flocks, and Laban himself began to look on him with disfavour. The situation became critical, and the Lord Himself stepped in to end it… Seeing this, we would reflect that if Jacob had rested in God with confidence, and had not used the tricks described in the last chapter, God would still have reached the end He purposed. And Jacob's "righteousness" would have spoken for him far more convincingly.

Truly the Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and full of loving-kindness. The words of Laban's sons and the looks of Laban himself showed their discontent — and no wonder. So the Lord told Jacob to return to the land of his fathers, and to his relatives. In about five or six years, God's providence paid Jacob the wages Laban had cheated him out of for twenty years.

After all his planning, Jacob has to learn that he owes his increase to the power of God… But his prosperity turns Laban against him, just as spiritual growth separates one from the world. Then comes the call of God to return to Canaan.

Everything may be going along smoothly and pleasantly. Our property is safe. Our business is doing well. Our children and servants behave nicely, our home is comfortable, our health is excellent — everything, in short, just as we would like it. How easily we then mistake the peace that rests on such circumstances for the peace that flows from the known presence of Christ. The Lord knows this. So He steps in, in one way or another, and stirs up the nest.

The twenty years had expired. Laban's hatred and the hatred of his sons had increased. When the crisis had been reached the voice of Jehovah was heard. "Return to the land of your fathers and to your kindred, and I will be with you." This is the first time Jehovah spoke since the vision at Bethel.

After all his planning, Jacob has to learn that it is the power of God to which he owes the increase. God has looked on his affliction and his toil, and appointed him a reward. But his prosperity turns Laban away from him, as spiritual increase separates from the world. Then comes the call of God to return to Canaan.

The situation became critical, and the Lord Himself intervened to end it. Back to his own land and kindred he was to go.

While Scripture has plainly exposed what Jacob was doing, the Lord does not reprove him for this: Jacob knew that his actions were wrong, since they were not the fruit of faith. The Lord therefore left him to fight that matter out with his own conscience. But God repeats His promise to Jacob, that He will be with him. Such is the sovereign goodness of God toward His servants in spite of their failing ways.

So Jacob is all things to all men, hoping somehow to gain something for himself. He is willing enough to return to the land of his kindred, but not to his kindred as God had said. For between him and them stood the place of sacrifice and obedience to God.

At last Jacob had reached the limit of his desire. He had got for himself much cattle, maidservants, menservants, camels and donkeys, and so for the moment he had no further object before him. Then Jehovah presents Himself to Jacob as the only worthy object, the true satisfying portion, saying, "Return to the land of your fathers and to your kindred, and I will be with you."

At last Laban's sons murmur, and their father's face is no longer toward Jacob as before. Then Jehovah tells him to return to the land of his fathers. He makes up his mind at once. He gives a touching explanation to Rachel and Leah, and then sets out in secret. He did so because he had no confidence in God with a clear conscience — the kind that frees a man from fear. The unseen hand of God was there; but the power and the honour of God could not righteously be found in such a course.

At last Laban's sons murmur, and their father's face is no longer friendly toward Jacob as before. So Jehovah tells him to return to the land of his fathers. He makes up his mind at once. He gives a touching explanation to Rachel and Leah, and sets out secretly.

Jacob was also too timid to act openly, but, encouraged from above, he calls Rachel and Leah to a meeting. He could truly say this: if Laban showed ill will, the God of his father was with him. And if Laban had tried to cheat him, God did not let him come to harm.

He did not have the confidence in God, with a clear conscience, that sets a man free from fear.

Jacob therefore sent for Rachel and Leah to come to him where he was with the flock, and set before them the facts about Laban's changed attitude (v. 5). He does defend himself in the whole matter: it would have been better if he had not done so. However, it was true that he had served Laban with great diligence. Here we learn that Laban had changed Jacob's wages ten times.

So he says that God had taken Laban's flocks and given them to Jacob. He does not tell them about his own trickery in the matter: evidently he had been able to hide this from everyone except the Lord.

We are now allowed to see how God had intervened and caused the agreement about the spotted and speckled cattle to work in his favour. In the light of this, our reflection would be this. If he had rested in confidence in God, and had not used the schemes described in the last chapter, God would have reached the end He purposed. And Jacob's "righteousness" would have answered for him far more convincingly.

Divine providence paid Jacob in some five or six years the wages that Laban had defrauded him of for twenty years.

This name, "the God of Bethel," is of very real importance, for it means "God of the house of God." Jacob had been concerned about his own house, allowing the claims of God's house to wait. But the increase of Jacob's house had not produced peace and happiness in all his relationships. It was time that he learned that true contentment is only found in connection with God's house, where God's interests come first.

Rachel and Leah were fully ready to move at once. They realised there was nothing to tie them to their father. One thing they remembered: their father had sold his daughters and made himself rich by the sale. So they had become almost strangers to their own father… But Rachel and Leah have good advice for Jacob: "Do whatever God has said to you" (v. 16).

The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and full of steadfast love. Laban's sons complained, and Laban's own face showed his discontent — and no wonder. So the LORD told Jacob to return to the land of his fathers, to his own relatives. God's providence paid Jacob in five or six years the wages Laban had cheated him out of for twenty. They wanted to get rid of Jacob, but would not say so. After all, what did Laban own before Jacob came?

How grand a word this is. Even though Jacob was not living as he should (and he knew it), the Lord said, "I am with you." Can the Lord go with a believer on a wrong course? Well, He did not say He approved of the way Jacob was living. Yet He still said, "I am with you" — and He was with Jacob. Later, Jacob treated Laban badly far too many times, but the Lord blessed him anyway.

So Jacob sent for Rachel and Leah to come out to him where he was with the flock. He told them the facts about Laban's changed attitude. He does defend himself in the whole matter: it would have been better if he had not done so. However, it was true that he had served Laban with great diligence... He does not tell them about his own trickery. He had managed to hide that from everyone except the Lord.

No doubt he often had to suffer from Laban's deceit. But was this not a reminder of his own deceit? He is deceived about his wife, about his wages, about everything. But how had he treated his father — not to mention his brother? Deceit must meet deceit under the hand of God, who repays. Do not wonder too much at the story of Jacob. Bless with all your heart the God who cares for His servant. After Jacob had suffered a while, God made him prosper — slowly, but surely.

All his hard work and scheming, like his miserable bargain before, comes from not knowing God's grace. He could not put full confidence in God's promise... You would have thought that Jacob's vision had told him a story of grace. But what God showed him at Bethel and what Jacob did at Haran are two very different things. What he did at Haran shows what he had made of what God said. How a person lives is the real measure of what he has experienced and believes, whatever he may claim.

When the crisis came, the LORD spoke. "Return to the land of your fathers and to your kindred; and I will be with you." This is the first time the LORD spoke since the vision at Bethel... What comfort it must have been to hear "I have seen all that Laban is doing to you." The Lord watched over Jacob. Laban hated him, and still Jacob prospered. So Israel, scattered among the nations and hated by them, increases and prospers.

God called him back to the land of promise. In doing so He revealed Himself as "the God of Bethel," reminding Jacob of the pillar he anointed and the vow he made. God brought him back to the beginning of his direct dealings with Him. This is always God's way with His people. We may wander away, but we have to come back to the original spot we departed from. The point of departure proves to be the place of recovery.

Here we learn that Laban had changed Jacob's wages ten times. When he saw that Jacob was doing very well out of one bargain, he would change the terms of his wages. Then the sheep would breed in a different way, and again it worked to Jacob's advantage.

He states that Laban had changed his wages ten times (v. 41). This must have been true, or Laban would have denied it. It does show the manipulating character of Laban. He was every bit as skilled at this trickery as Jacob.

Jacob had tricked his brother, and Laban treated him in the same way. Laban gave him Leah as his wife instead of Rachel, though he had Rachel, the one he loved, later on. He had not learned to trust God. He used clever tricks to increase what he owned, and he received the same treatment in return: his wages changed "ten times." But God was watching over him, and told him to return to the land of his fathers.

While he was living in the Syrian's house, Jacob knew that he was under the mighty hand of God for correction, and he behaved that way. He did not defend himself when he was blamed. He did not fight for his rights when he was wronged and treated unfairly.

In about five or six years God's providence paid Jacob the wages Laban had cheated him out of for twenty years… He could truly say that if Laban showed him ill will, the God of his father was with him. And if Laban tried to cheat him, God did not let him come to harm.

Laban's greedy wish to profit from Jacob's strange bargain made the self-absorbed master poor instead, while the servant he had long cheated grew richer and richer… It was a righteous thing, as far as it could go, to pay back the wrongdoer and repay the one who had suffered… Notice too how fitting such a dealing from God was toward the one patriarch who pictures the chosen people more than any other. They took their name from him. Their ups and downs were like his own — endless changes of fortune, failures and humiliations, to be turned at the end, through God's mercy, into everlasting blessing.

By Jacob's own complaint, Laban changed his wages ten times. Jacob got his own back by clever tricks with the breeding of Laban's cattle. Laban's sons complained that he had taken away everything that belonged to their father. So the contest went on until God stepped in again through a dream. God showed Jacob that it was He, and not Jacob's schemes, who had moved the cattle from Laban to him. And He called Jacob out of the whole unpleasant business, back to Canaan.

Jacob said that Laban had changed his wages ten times. If that was true, it was a serious provocation. But relying on God would have kept him from actions that are also open to question.

Here we learn that Laban had changed Jacob's wages ten times. When he saw that Jacob was gaining greatly by one bargain, he would change the terms of his wages. Then the sheep would bear in another way to Jacob's advantage. So he says that God had taken Laban's flocks and given them to Jacob.

Truly the Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and full of loving-kindness… God in His providence paid Jacob in some five or six years the wages Laban had cheated him out of for twenty years… Jacob could truly say that if Laban showed ill-will, the God of his father was with him. And if Laban had sought to cheat him, God did not allow him to be hurt.

Laban, according to Jacob's complaint, changed his wages ten times. Jacob got his own back by cunning tricks connected with the breeding of Laban's cattle… So the contest went on until God stepped in again through a dream. He made known to Jacob that it was He, not Jacob's schemes, that caused the cattle to pass from Laban to him. And He called him out of the whole unpleasant business back to Canaan.

We are now allowed to see how God had stepped in. He caused the agreement about the spotted and speckled cattle to work in Jacob's favour. This makes us reflect. If Jacob had rested with confidence in God, and not used the devices described in the last chapter, God would still have reached the end He purposed. And Jacob's "righteousness" would have answered for him in a much more convincing way.

He does not tell them about his own trickery. It seems he had been able to hide it from everyone except the Lord.

He is now a stranger and a servant for hire. Laban cheats him and pushes his own gain — a relative of his, and in character close kin too. You cannot mistake the payback all the way through: the measure Jacob handed out to another comes back to him. But you also cannot miss that in the way it is dealt out, God is speaking to the heart and conscience of the wanderer. There is fairness in God's government, but also the chastening of a holy love.

From all this we may draw a practical conclusion. We have no need nor right to fall back on plans of our own, as though we could help God to achieve His purpose. If, on the other hand, God instructs us by His word to act, it is our duty and our wisdom to do as He says. Jacob asserted that Laban had changed his wages ten times. If that was true, it was great provocation. But relying on God would have saved him from actions that were also open to question.

The twenty years had expired. Laban's hatred and the hatred of his sons had increased. When the crisis came, Jehovah spoke. "Return to the land of your fathers and to your kindred; and I will be with you." This is the first time Jehovah spoke since the vision at Bethel. Jacob then laid the matter before his wives and told them of a dream in which the angel of the Lord had spoken to him. What comfort it must have been for him to hear "I have seen all that Laban is doing to you."

Grey colour, or mixed with grey. Gen. 31:10; Zech. 6:3, 6.

Laban, according to Jacob's complaint, changed his wages ten times. Jacob got his own back by cunning tricks connected with the breeding of Laban's cattle. According to the complaint of Laban's sons he had "taken away all that was our father's." The contest went on until God stepped in again in a dream. He showed Jacob that it was He, and not Jacob's schemes, who caused the cattle to pass from Laban to him. And He called him out of the whole unpleasant business back to Canaan.

He speaks of a dream in which he saw the goats mating in the way that would benefit him. He also speaks of the angel of God saying that it was God who had caused the animals to bear in a way that was to Jacob's advantage. This is no doubt true, but it shows us that there was no need for Jacob to resort to his deceitful actions. God would bless him apart from this. He tells him that He has seen all that Laban was doing to him.

Truly Jehovah is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and full of loving-kindness. The words of Laban's sons and the looks of Laban himself showed their discontent — and no wonder. So Jehovah told Jacob to return to the land of his fathers, and to his kindred. In some five or six years God's providence paid Jacob the wages that Laban had cheated him out of for twenty years.

It is true that the one who appears is often called "the Angel of the Lord," "Angel of the Covenant," or simply "Angel." But the Hebrew word "malach" carries a double sense, like its Greek equivalent: angel and messenger. Jacob uses the word in his review of God's dealings. "The Angel who redeemed me from all evil, bless the boys" (Gen. 48:16). This would undoubtedly include the incidents of Bethel (Gen. 28:13), of Haran (Gen. 31:10), of Peniel (Gen. 32:35), of Beersheba (Gen. 41:1). Would the patriarch at such a moment call on a mere angel to bless his grandsons? None but the Son of God could redeem.

Years passed — twenty long and eventful years. They were years of trial and testing, in which Jacob went through many ups and downs, changes, and varied trials. But the God of Bethel watched over His poor servant. He appeared to him while he was under pressure and said, "I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed the pillar, and where you made a vow to Me. Now arise, go out from this land, and return to the land of your kindred."

Scripture uses the word as a veiled representation of God's presence, as in Genesis 31:11-13. "The angel of God" spoke to Jacob saying, "I am the God of Bethel." Jacob, when blessing the sons of Joseph, said, "The angel who has redeemed me from all evil, bless the boys." ... Most believe that it was the second person of the Trinity who appeared as a man in the Old Testament.

God is invisible. So He speaks to man in ways that do not show Him in person, but in ways that wake up man's serious attention. Man may not realise it is God speaking to him. Yet God often speaks "in a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls on men." At such a time God has a captive audience, whether man wants to listen or not.

Jacob got his own back by cunning tricks connected with the breeding of Laban's cattle. According to the complaint of Laban's sons, he had "taken all that was our father's." So the contest went on until God stepped in again in a dream. He made known to Jacob that it was He, and not Jacob's schemes, who caused the cattle to pass from Laban to him. And He called Jacob out of the whole unpleasant business back to Canaan.

He speaks of a dream in which he saw the goats mating in the way that would benefit him. He also speaks of the angel of God showing him that it was God who had caused the animals to bear to Jacob's advantage. This is no doubt true, but it shows us that there was no need for Jacob to resort to his deceitful actions. God would bless him apart from this.

Here we learn that Laban had changed Jacob's wages ten times. When he saw Jacob gaining a lot by one bargain, he would change the terms of his wages. Then the sheep would bear in another way to Jacob's advantage. So he says that God had taken Laban's flocks and given them to Jacob. He does not tell them of his own trickery. It seems he had been able to hide it from everyone except the Lord.

Truly Jehovah is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and full of loving-kindness. The words of Laban's sons, and the looks of Laban himself, revealed their discontent — and no wonder. So Jehovah told Jacob to return to the land of his fathers and his relatives. God's providence paid Jacob in about five or six years the wages Laban had cheated him out of for twenty years. ... But He had worked to repay the servant for his relative's injustice. And He reminded forgetful Jacob of Bethel, telling him to leave and return to the land of his family.

He speaks of a dream in which he saw the goats mating in the way that would benefit him. He also speaks of the angel of God, who spoke to show that it was God who had caused the animals to bear in a way that was to Jacob's advantage. This is no doubt true, but it shows us that there was no need for Jacob to resort to his deceitful actions. God would bless him apart from this.

Laban, according to Jacob's complaint, changed his wages ten times. Jacob got his own back by cunning tricks connected with the breeding of Laban's cattle... So the contest went on until God stepped in again in a dream. He made known to Jacob that it was He, not Jacob's schemes, who caused the cattle to pass from Laban to him. And He called him out of the whole unpleasant business back to Canaan.

The twenty years had expired. Laban's hatred and the hatred of his sons had increased... This is the first time the Lord spoke since the vision at Bethel. Jacob then laid the matter before his wives and told them about a dream in which the angel of the Lord had spoken to him. What comfort it must have been for him to hear, "I have seen all that Laban is doing to you." The Lord watched over Jacob, and though Laban hated him, Jacob prospered. So Israel in the dispersion, hated by the Gentiles, increases and prospers.

God's providence paid Jacob in some five or six years the wages Laban had cheated him out of for twenty years... He could truly say that if Laban showed ill-will, the God of his father was with him; and that if Laban tried to cheat him, God did not let him be harmed.

The term is used for the mysterious representation of the divine presence, as in Genesis 31:11-13. "The angel of God" spoke to Jacob saying, "I am the God of Bethel."... It is generally believed that it was the second Person in the Trinity who appeared as a man in the Old Testament.

He was cheated about his wife. He was wronged over his wages. He was a wanderer from his father's house and a slave to Laban. All this came from acting in a deceitful way, instead of leaving it to God to fulfil the blessing. In all of it we see real discipline because of evil.

God blessed Jacob at Bethel through His abundant grace. In later years Jacob needed reminding of this. Again and again God made him feel that he really had been blessed like this. When Laban dealt harshly with him, the angel of God said to him in a dream, "I have seen all that Laban is doing to you. I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed the pillar and where you made a vow to Me: now arise, get out from this land and return to the land of your relatives."

The title is used to picture God's own presence, as in Genesis 31:11-13. "The angel of God" spoke to Jacob and said, "I am the God of Bethel." … Most believe it was the second person of the Trinity who appeared as a man in the Old Testament.

This name, "the God of Bethel," matters a great deal, because it means "God of the house of God." Jacob had been concerned about his own house (Genesis 30:30). He had let the claims of God's house wait. But the increase of Jacob's house had not produced peace and happiness in all his relationships. It was time for him to learn that true contentment is only found in connection with God's house, where God's interests come first. God also remembered Jacob's vow (Genesis 28:20-22), though He only mentions it without comment.

Oil was constantly used in anointing or setting apart persons, places and objects. A striking case is that anointing of the pillar at Bethel by Jacob (Genesis 28:18; Genesis 31:13), where he set apart the place as "the house of God," a kind of anticipation of the tabernacle.

God had not forgotten the original terms, and He would not let His servant forget them. Is this legality? No; it is the display of divine love and faithfulness. God loved Jacob, and He would not allow him to settle for less than the old standard. He watched over the state of His servant's heart with jealous care. He would not let it stay below the Bethel mark, so He gently reminds him with those touching and meaningful words, "I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a pillar and made a vow." This was the sweet expression of God's unchanging love. It showed that He counted on Jacob remembering the scenes at Bethel.

In calling him back to the land of promise, God revealed Himself to him as "the God of Bethel," reminding him of the pillar he anointed and the vow that he made. So God called him back to the beginning of his direct dealings with Him. This is always God's way with His people. We may wander away, but we have to come back to the original spot from which we departed. The point of departure proves to be the place of recovery.

When Laban dealt harshly with him, the angel of God said to him in a dream, "I have seen all that Laban is doing to you. I am the God of Bethel." … And so we are often told to consider Him, and to remember Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood. Like Jacob, we should count the God of Bethel as our God. Bethel is the place we should visit, to think about His marvellous grace, and how richly and fully He has blessed us.

Rachel and Leah were ready to leave at once. They realized that there was nothing to tie them to their father. They remembered one thing: their father had sold his daughters and made himself rich by the sale. It had turned them into near strangers to their own father.

Leah and Rachel were his daughters, so he thought — wrongly — that they were his property and that he had the right to sell them. They were not his to begin with, let alone after he had sold them. But this verse says it loud and clear: a purely possessive man loses what he holds on to so tightly. Laban found himself poorer in several ways once Jacob had gone. … He feels that he has lost his family. Let us learn the lesson this history teaches: what we own is not ours but the Lord's, and what we selfishly hold on to, we will lose. On the other hand, what we give up unselfishly for the Lord's sake, we will find that we gain in the end.

God's providence paid Jacob in about five or six years the wages Laban had cheated him out of for twenty. Laban and his sons really wanted to be rid of Jacob, but held back from saying so. After all, what did Laban own before Jacob came on the scene? … The two wives agreed completely. Their father had lost all hope of love or respect from them. So, low as their own thoughts were, they encouraged their husband to do as God had told him.

Their attitude shows that they were convinced their father had acted dishonestly and without feeling. It gives us more evidence of how much Jacob had suffered at his hands. No one could better their advice in this crisis — "Now then, whatever God has said to you, do." Complete trust and obedience to God is the only right thing. It reminds us of the words of Mary, the mother of our Lord, recorded in John 2:5. God alone has the right to demand such unquestioning obedience.

At last Jacob had reached the limit of what he wanted. He had gathered to himself large herds, male and female servants, camels and donkeys. For the moment he had nothing left to aim at. So the Lord presents Himself to Jacob as the only worthy object, the true satisfying portion, saying, "Return to the land of your fathers and to your kindred, and I will be with you."

Rachel and Leah were fully ready to move at once. They realised that there was nothing to tie them to their father. One thing they remembered: their father had sold his daughters and made himself rich by the sale. So they became almost strangers to their own father.

Their father had lost all hope of any love or respect from them. So they, low as their own thoughts were, encouraged their husband to do as God directed.

Proverbs 31:10 says, "An excellent wife who can find? She is more precious than jewels." What was the price in this case? Seven years' wages. It was all completely wrong; a wife is worth a great deal more than that, far more. "He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the LORD" (Prov. 18:22) — and favour is grace. So the marriage relationship beautifully represents the pure grace of God. This is something that should never have been so badly mishandled by Jacob. Many nations have done the same and sell their daughters, with the husband paying a dowry when they marry. In reality this is the selling of the woman.

Genesis 31:15. Are we not counted by him as strangers? Nothing another person does is put to their account. They were treated or reckoned as such — that is just what the word means. We are reckoned righteous. Whether that comes by something put to our account is another question. In the passage quoted it was certainly not so.

Leah and Rachel were his daughters, so he thought — wrongly — that they were his property and that he had the right to sell them. They were not his to begin with, let alone after he had sold them. But this verse declares loudly that a man set on possessing loses what he grips so hard. When Jacob left, Laban found himself poorer in several ways. He felt he had lost his family. May we learn the lesson this history teaches: what we own is not ours but the Lord's, and what we selfishly hold we will lose. On the other hand, what we unselfishly give up for the Lord's sake we will find that we gain in the end.

Rachel and Leah fully supported Jacob in his decision to return. Their attitude shows that they had no doubt about their father's dishonourable and heartless conduct. It is further evidence of how much Jacob had suffered at his hands. No one could improve on the advice they gave in this crisis — "Now then, whatever God has said to you, do." Complete trust and obedience to God is the only right thing. It reminds us of the words of Mary, the mother of our Lord, recorded in John 2:5. God alone has the right to demand such unquestioning obedience.

Jacob complained that Laban had changed his wages ten times. Jacob got his own back by cunning tricks with the breeding of Laban's cattle. Laban's sons, for their part, complained that he had "taken all that was our father's." So the contest went on until God stepped in again through a dream. He made known to Jacob that it was He, and not Jacob's schemes, who caused the cattle to pass from Laban to him. And He called him out of the whole unpleasant business back to Canaan.

God's providence paid Jacob in some five or six years the wages Laban had cheated him out of for twenty years… After all, what was Laban's wealth before Jacob appeared on the scene?

Rachel and Leah were fully ready to move at once. They realized that there was nothing to tie them to their father. They remembered one thing: their father had sold his daughters. He made himself rich through their sale, so that they became almost strangers to their own father.

Rachel and Leah were fully behind Jacob in his decision to return. Their attitude shows how sure they were that their father had acted in a dishonourable and heartless way. It gives us further evidence of how Jacob had suffered at his hands. No one could have given better advice in the crisis — "whatever God has said to you, do." Complete trust and obedience to God is the only right thing. It reminds us of the words of Mary, the mother of our Lord, recorded in John 2:5. God alone has the right to demand such unquestioning obedience.

We have no need and no right to fall back on plans of our own, as though we could help God achieve His purpose. If, on the other hand, God instructs us by His word to act, it is our duty and our wisdom to do as He says.

Suppose he had rested with confidence in God and had not used the devices described in the last chapter. God would still have reached the end He purposed. And Jacob's "righteousness" would have answered for him in a far more convincing way.

Because Leah and Rachel were his daughters, Laban thought — wrongly — that they were his property and that he had the right to sell them. They were not his to begin with, let alone after he had sold them. This verse says it loud and clear: a man who only wants to possess loses what he grips so tightly. When Jacob left, Laban found himself poorer in several ways… Let us learn the lesson this history teaches. What we own is not ours but the Lord's. What we hold for ourselves we will lose. What we give up for the Lord's sake we will find we gain in the end.

The twenty years were over. Laban's hatred, and the hatred of his sons, had grown. When the crisis came, Jacob heard the voice of Jehovah. "Return to the land of your fathers and to your kindred; and I will be with you." This is the first time Jehovah spoke since the vision at Bethel.

In calling him back to the land of promise, God revealed Himself to him as "the God of Bethel," reminding him of the pillar he anointed and the vow that he made. Thus he was called back to the beginning of his direct dealings with God. Such is ever God's way with His people. We may wander away, but we have to come back to the very place we left. The point of departure proves to be the place of recovery.

Rachel and Leah altogether supported Jacob in his determination to return. Their attitude shows they were sure their father had acted dishonourably and without pity. It gives us more evidence of how much Jacob had suffered at his hands. No one could have given better advice in the crisis — "Now then, whatever God has said to you, do." Complete trust and obedience to God is the only right thing.

Jacob did not delay his departure. This time he does not consult with Laban, as he had before. In fact, he does not even inform him that he is leaving. His sons and his wives ride on camels (v. 17). He also had servants to care for the sheep. He organised everything he owned and had it all moving three days before Laban even heard that he had gone.

His mind is at once made up. He gives a touching explanation to Rachel and Leah, and then sets out in secret. He did not have the kind of confidence in God, held with a clear conscience, that frees a man from fear. The unseen hand of God was there. But God's power and honour could not rightly be seen in a course like that.

He could have dealt openly with Laban, met him face to face, and left with proper notice. Instead he slipped away unnoticed while Laban was away shearing his sheep. That gave Laban fresh ground for complaint. Jacob had put himself in the place of a servant, working for wages, even though he was his master's son-in-law.

God's time has come. God's promise must be fulfilled — to bring Jacob back to his father's house in peace, so that it can be tested whether he will keep his vow. How do things stand with God's name, God's house, God's dues? In Jacob's view that depended on whether he recognised that God had been with him, giving him bread and clothing. If so, Jacob would give back a tenth, set up the house, and own Jehovah. God has taken him at his word, and Jehovah faithfully does His part. But notice what Jacob thought! Had God given him anything? No, nothing. It is all his own gain, which he himself had gained. If he had not looked after himself, he would have been left with nothing.

God called him back to the land of promise. In doing so He revealed Himself as "the God of Bethel," reminding him of the pillar he anointed and the vow he made. So He called him back to the beginning of his direct dealings with God. This is always God's way with His people. We may wander away, but we have to come back to the original spot we departed from. The point of departure proves to be the place of recovery.

How does it stand with God's name — God's house — God's dues? In Jacob's view that depends on whether he recognises that God had been with him, giving him bread and clothing. If he did, Jacob would return a tenth, set up the house, and acknowledge Jehovah. Jehovah has taken him at his word, and He faithfully does His part. But notice Jacob's thought! Has God given him anything? No, nothing. It is all his getting, which he had gotten. If he had not looked after himself, he would have ended up with nothing.

In some five or six years, God's providence paid Jacob the wages Laban had cheated him out of for twenty years. They wanted to get rid of Jacob, but held back from saying so. After all, what was Laban's wealth before Jacob appeared?

The word miqneh, however, often used for 'cattle,' means 'possession,' because the main property of nomadic tribes consisted of their cattle. The word also includes sheep and goats, but not horses and donkeys.

A cultivated district in Mesopotamia, which held the city of Nahor. Terah and his family moved there from Ur of the Chaldees. Rebekah, Leah and Rachel, the wives of Isaac and Jacob, came from there. It is strictly Paddan-aram, meaning 'table land of Aram.'

He makes up his mind at once. He gives a touching explanation to Rachel and Leah, and then sets out in secret. He did not have the kind of confidence in God, with a clear conscience, that frees a man from fear. God's unseen hand was in it. But such a course could not rightly show the power and the honour of God.

He did not deal openly with Laban. He never met him face to face and left with proper notice. Instead he stole away unnoticed while Laban was away shearing his sheep. In doing so he gave Laban fresh ground for complaint. He had accepted the place of a servant working for wages, even though he was son-in-law to his master.

It is a different Jacob as well as a different journey. He was an empty Jacob at Bethel; he is a full Jacob at Peniel. Flocks and herds and servants and wives and children tell of his prosperity. Twenty years before, he had walked that road friendless and alone, with a staff in his hand. Now we see him surrounded like this. He has become a rich man. He has a stake in the world. He has something to lose, and may become a prey to others, as he must certainly be an object of interest to them.

There are only a few references to the Syrians in the early part of Scripture. Scripture brings in Laban as "the Syrian" in connection with Rebekah, the wife of Isaac. He was a grandson of Nahor, Abraham's brother. See Gen. 25:20; Gen. 28:5; Gen. 31:20, 24.

His mind is at once made up. He gives a touching explanation to Rachel and Leah, and sets out secretly. He had no confidence in God with a clear conscience — the kind of confidence that would have freed him from fear. The unseen hand of God was there. But the power and the honour of God could not rightly show themselves in such a course. Grace would give these another day; they could not be there yet. So he steals away timidly, chased like a thief by his father-in-law.

But Jacob has to flee. The time has come for him to return to his father's house, and God tells him to return. Why steal away without a word? Because he was conscious of sins. He knew that he had wronged Laban; hence his trouble and fear. No sooner is he delivered from Laban than the dread of Esau falls on him. God uses it as a means of bringing Jacob to Himself in prayer.

But in the manner of his departure we again see Jacob's character revealed. He did not deal openly with Laban. He could have met him face to face and left after proper notice. Instead he stole away in secret while Laban was away shearing his sheep. That gave Laban fresh ground of complaint. Jacob had put himself in the place of a servant, working for wages, though he was son-in-law to his master. In those circumstances the parting ought to have been arranged by mutual agreement.

How does it stand with God's name — God's house — God's dues? In Jacob's view it all turns on one thing. Did he recognise that God had been with him, giving him bread and clothing? If so, Jacob would return a tenth, set up the house, and own the LORD. He has been taken at his word, and the LORD faithfully performs His part. But notice Jacob's thought! Has God given him anything? No, nothing. It is all his own getting, everything he had gained for himself. If he had not looked after himself, he would have had nothing. To Jacob's conscience these were not gifts from God. They were Laban's heart and Laban's images, which he had stolen (Gen. 31:19-20, margin).

It is a sorry sight to the eye of faith. Laban meets retribution; Jacob and his house find rescue through God's overruling hand and goodness. Yet inside the chosen family the wife had stolen images used in idol worship, and her husband knew nothing of it. And Laban, instead of crushing him, begs him for a covenant. For, as Laban did not fear God, he had no confidence even in his own nearest relation. But what had Jacob still to learn, as he weighed his old self-seeking and scheming before the LORD?

This river is first mentioned in connection with the garden of Eden, but cannot be traced from that. Gen. 2:14. It was the north-east boundary of the land promised to Abraham, as the river of Egypt was the south-west. Gen. 15:18. It is called the great river, the river Euphrates, Deut. 1:7, and at times it is simply called "the river." Gen. 31:21.

This district lies east of the Jordan. It extends from the river Yarmouk, a little south of the Sea of Galilee, to the north corner of the Dead Sea... It is a mountainous district, which accounts for some part of it being called "the mount of Gilead" in Gen. 31:21-25... Pasturage abounds in Gilead.

But in the manner of his departure we again see the character of Jacob revealed. He should have dealt openly with Laban, met him face to face, and then left with proper notice. Instead he stole away unnoticed while Laban was away shearing his sheep. In doing so he handed Laban fresh grounds for complaint. He had accepted the place of a servant, working for wages, though he was son-in-law to his master. In those circumstances the parting ought to have been arranged by mutual consent.

Laban's sons murmur, and their father's face is no longer toward Jacob as before. At last Jehovah tells him to return to the land of his fathers. (Genesis 31:3) His mind is made up at once. He gives a touching explanation to Rachel and Leah, and sets out secretly. He had no such confidence in God with a clear conscience as would rid him of fear. The unseen hand of God was there; but the power and the honour of God could not rightly be found in such a course... So he steals away timidly, pursued like a thief by his father-in-law. But God deals seriously with Laban, coming to him in a dream by night.

But Jacob has to flee. The time has come for him to return to his father's house, and God tells him to return. Why steal away unnoticed? Because he was conscious of sins. He knew he had wronged Laban, and so he was troubled and afraid.

But Jacob is oppressed and unwelcome among the Gentiles. So he returns to the land of his pilgrimage, the land of the fathers — pushed by circumstances, but in truth directed by God.

Jehovah was faithful and gracious; Jacob was a fugitive. Laban soon pursued in hot haste with no friendly intent, but in the end he had to bow to God's protection of Jacob.

After all his planning, Jacob has to learn that it is the power of God to which he owes the increase... But his prosperity turns Laban against him, just as spiritual increase separates a person from the world. Then comes the call of God to return to Canaan. Laban can no longer get on with him, yet his withdrawal makes Laban openly hostile. In the same way, the world feels the sting of separation, though there can be no more fellowship.

Jacob did not delay his departure. This time he does not consult with Laban, as he had before (ch. 30:25-26). In fact, he does not even inform him that he is leaving. His sons and his wives ride on camels (v. 17). He was able to organise all his possessions and get everything moving three days before Laban even heard that he had left. Jacob owned so much by now that there was of course some distance between him and Laban. Also the time was right for Jacob since Laban was busy with the shearing of his sheep.

His mind is at once made up. He gives a moving explanation to Rachel and Leah, and sets out in secret. He did not have the kind of confidence in God, held with a clear conscience, that frees a man from fear. The hand of God was there, unseen. But God's power and honour could not rightly be shown in a course like that. Grace would give him these another day. They could not be his yet. So he steals away in fear, chased like a thief by his father-in-law. God, however, deals seriously with Laban, coming to him in a dream at night.

But in the way he left we again see Jacob's character revealed. He should have dealt openly with Laban, met him face to face, and left with proper notice. Instead he stole away unnoticed while Laban was away shearing his sheep. In doing so he gave Laban fresh ground for complaint, for he had put himself in the place of a servant, working for wages, though he was son-in-law to his master. In those circumstances the two men should have agreed on the parting together.

Jacob was under no obligation to stay. Laban and his sons showed plainly how much they disliked his growth and their own decline. He wanted a word from God, Who gave it to him. His wives were of one mind with him. So he seized the first opportunity, which Laban's shearing supplied, to be gone. Now Laban and all the clan overtook Jacob on Mount Gilead. What just objection could they raise?

Now, in Jacob's case, all his toiling and working, like his miserable bargain before, is the result of his ignorance of God's grace, and his inability to put full confidence in God's promise. God had promised him the whole land of Canaan, with no conditions at all. Yet this is the man who could say, "IF God will give me food to eat and clothing to put on." He could have had only a very faint grasp of who God was, or of what His promise was. Because of this, we see him trying to do the best he can for himself.

Laban first speaks of Jacob's foolishness in leaving Haran secretly. He then tells Jacob that he had the power to do him harm. Yet he admits that God stopped his desire for revenge, by warning him to speak neither good nor bad to Jacob.

The journey was long, but Jacob ought to have realized that Laban would pursue him. Jacob had a three-day start before Laban learned he had left (v.22). Even so, Laban did not delay. He took others with him and went after Jacob. After seven days he caught up with him.

But Jacob has to flee. The time has come for him to return to his father's house, and God tells him to return. So why slip away in secret? Because he was conscious of his sins. He knew that he had wronged Laban, and so he was troubled and afraid.

He gives a touching explanation to Rachel and Leah, and leaves in secret. He did not have the confidence in God, with a clear conscience, that would have freed him from fear. The unseen hand of God was there. But the power and the honour of God could not be rightly found in such a course... So he steals away in fear, chased like a thief by his father-in-law. God, however, deals gravely with Laban, coming to him in a dream by night.

Soon Laban pursued and overtook Jacob. God warned the Syrian to beware how he treated Jacob. It seems the main reason for the pursuit was the teraphim (household gods). Rachel had stolen them, and Laban wanted them back. Laban's household practiced idolatry, even though he used the name of Jehovah (verse 49).

Jacob was under no bond to stay. Laban and his sons gave ample signs how distasteful to them were his growth and their decay. He wanted a word from God, Who gave it to him. His wives were of one mind with his own... Now Laban and all his clan have overtaken Jacob on mount Gilead. What righteous objection could he raise? No doubt the warning God gave Laban alarmed his guilty conscience. But there was no true fear of God in him, and no sense of his own injustice — even if Jacob had been no more than a faithful servant.

Jehovah was faithful and gracious, Jacob a fugitive. Laban soon pursued in hot haste with no friendly intent, but in the end he had to bow to God's protection of Jacob.

Laban is warned to be careful what he says or does to Jacob, and he is even forced to admit it himself. While Jacob lays his complaint before him, Laban in the end cannot help seeking Jacob's help, and he enters into a special covenant with the very man he had overtaken in his flight.

Jacob was not walking with God at this time, but God was walking in pure grace with Jacob. This is also a picture of God's preserving hand over the nation of Israel. That hand stays on them even when they have failed badly and are wandering and seeking their own way.

Jacob set out secretly. He did not have the kind of confidence in God, with a clear conscience, that sets a man free from fear. God's unseen hand was there, but the power and the honour of God could not rightly be found in such a course. So he steals away timidly, chased like a thief by his father-in-law. God, however, takes Laban firmly in hand and comes to him in a dream by night. He warns Laban the Syrian to be careful what he says or does to Jacob, and Laban himself ends up admitting it.

By stealing away while Laban was off shearing his sheep, Jacob gave him fresh ground of complaint. Jacob had accepted the place of a servant working for wages, though he was son-in-law to his master, and the parting ought to have been arranged by mutual consent. The situation had become critical — so critical that God stepped in. This time He spoke to Laban, who had no direct knowledge of Him. Laban speaks of Him to Jacob as "the God of your father." In a dream God warned Laban not to overtake Jacob with violent speech or action. Because of this, Laban took an attitude only of complaint, with a note of reproach in it about the stealing of his gods.

Of course, he was most likely to speak bad to Jacob, for he was angry with him. God made it clear that Laban was not Jacob's judge. It is interesting, however, that Laban must not speak good to Jacob. Why is this? It is because God was dealing with Jacob, and Laban must not interfere.

Laban tells him that he had the power to harm Jacob. Yet he admits that God's warning — to speak neither good nor bad to Jacob — stopped his desire for revenge.

The warning God gave Laban alarmed his guilty conscience. But no true fear of God was there, and no sense of his own injustice — even if Jacob had been no more than a faithful servant.

This reminds us of God's words to Laban: "Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad" (Gen. 31:24). God was dealing with Jacob. Laban must not excuse Jacob or defend him in wrongdoing, and he must not accuse or condemn him either. Nations too must learn to leave others for God to deal with, instead of taking it on themselves to interfere one way or the other.

This district lies east of the Jordan. It stretches from the river Yarmouk, a little south of the Sea of Galilee, to the north corner of the Dead Sea... It is a mountainous district, and that is why part of it is called "the mount of Gilead" in Genesis 31:21-25. Some of the mountains are 2,000 to 3,500 feet high... Gilead has plenty of pasture.

But the way he left shows us Jacob's character again. He could have dealt openly with Laban, met him face to face, and then left after proper notice. Instead he slipped away unnoticed while Laban was away shearing his sheep. That handed Laban fresh ground for complaint. Jacob had put himself in the place of a servant working for wages, even though he was his master's son-in-law. In that situation, the two of them should have agreed on the parting together.

His mind is made up at once. He gives a moving explanation to Rachel and Leah, and then leaves in secret. He did not have the kind of confidence in God, held with a clear conscience, that frees a man from fear. God's unseen hand was there. But a course like that could not rightly show the power and the honour of God... So he slips away in fear, and his father-in-law chases him as if he were a thief. God, however, deals seriously with Laban, and comes to him in a dream at night.

Of course, he was likely to say something bad to Jacob, since he was angry with him. God made it clear that Laban was not Jacob's judge. But it is striking that Laban must not say anything good to Jacob either. Why is that? Because God was dealing with Jacob, and Laban must not interfere.

Laban and all his clan have now caught up with Jacob on mount Gilead. What fair objection could he raise? The warning God gave him certainly alarmed his guilty conscience. But there was no true fear of God in him, and no sense of his own injustice — even if Jacob had been nothing more than a faithful servant... He may have feared being robbed or attacked, but the loss he complained about was his stolen gods. He valued them next after his profits, and he admitted he worshipped idols without any shame.

When Jacob finally left his house, it was like an escape from an enemy's hand, or out of a bird-catcher's trap. It was a kind of exodus... Laban was Jacob's Pharaoh, and Padan-aram was his Egypt. Laban would gladly have kept him slaving away, or at best sent him off with nothing. But the Lord pleaded for Jacob with Laban, as He later pleaded for Israel with Pharaoh.

His mind is at once made up. He gives a touching explanation to Rachel and Leah, and sets out secretly. He does not have the confidence in God, held with a clear conscience, that frees a man from fear. God's unseen hand was there. But such a course could not rightly display the power and the honour of God. So he steals away timidly, pursued as if he were a thief by his father-in-law.

Why steal away unawares? Because he was conscious of his sins. He knew that he had wronged Laban, and so he was troubled and afraid.

He asks why Jacob had sneaked away in an underhand manner, as though he was carrying Laban's daughters away as captives (v. 26).

The situation had become critical — so critical that God stepped in. This time He spoke to Laban, who had no direct knowledge of Him. Laban speaks of Him to Jacob as "the God of your father." In a dream God warned Laban not to overtake Jacob with violent words or actions. Because of that warning, Laban took up an attitude only of complaint, with a note of reproach in it about the stealing of his gods.

Here everything is brought into the light, and Laban brings on himself the proofs of his selfishness and dishonesty. Jacob was under no bond to stay. Laban and his sons gave ample signs how distasteful his growth and their decay were to them. He wanted a word from God, and God gave it to him. His wives were of one mind with him. Now that Laban and all his clan had overtaken Jacob on Mount Gilead, what fair objection could he raise? No doubt the warning God gave Laban alarmed his guilty conscience. Yet there was no true fear of God in him, and no sense of his own injustice — even if Jacob had been no more than a faithful servant.

The bargain-making Jacob meets the bargain-making Laban, and both strain every nerve to outwit each other. Nor can we wonder at Laban, for he had never been at Bethel. He had seen no open heaven, with a ladder reaching from there to earth. He had heard no magnificent promises from the lips of the Lord... No wonder, then, that he should show a grasping, grovelling spirit. He had no other resource. You cannot expect anything from worldly men but a worldly spirit, and worldly principles and ways. But Jacob had seen and heard all this at Bethel. To find him struggling with a man of the world, and trying by such means to build up property, is especially humbling.

He is now a stranger, a servant for hire, the victim of deceit and self-advancement by Laban — his relative by blood, and just as near to him in character. It is impossible to mistake the repayment all the way through, in which the measure he has given to another is measured back to him. But it is impossible also not to see that in the way it is dealt out God is speaking to the heart and conscience of the wanderer. There is fairness in God's government, but also the chastening of a holy love.

But the way he left shows us Jacob's character once more. He could have dealt openly with Laban, met him face to face, and left after giving proper notice. Instead he slipped away unnoticed while Laban was away shearing his sheep. That handed Laban a fresh reason to complain. Jacob had put himself in the place of a servant working for wages, even though he was his master's son-in-law. In that situation, the two of them should have agreed on the parting together.

He explains himself to Rachel and Leah in moving words, then leaves in secret. He did not have the kind of confidence in God, joined with a clear conscience, that would have freed him from fear. God's unseen hand was there. But a course like that could not rightly display God's power and honour. Grace would give these another day; they could not properly be so yet. So he slips away in fear, chased like a thief by his father-in-law. God, however, deals firmly with Laban, coming to him in a dream at night.

The harp and the pipe were in use as early as Gen. 4:21. Laban, when finding fault with Jacob for secretly leaving him, said he would have sent him away "with songs, with tambourine, and with harp." Gen. 31:27. … When Moses sang the song of triumph at the Red Sea, Miriam answered with a tambourine in her hand.

He pretends that Jacob left simply because he missed home. His own conscience must have told him many a very different reason. He acts hurt and angry that he had no chance to kiss his daughters and grandchildren, or to send them off with honour. Yet his conscience must have reminded him how he had sold them again and again. He acts concerned for them, now that they are passing into Jacob's hands, as if his own hands had been a father's hands to them.

There is no doubt: the warning God gave Laban alarmed his guilty conscience. Yet there was no true fear of God in him, and no sense of his own injustice — not even toward a man who had served him faithfully. Still, on both sides, what a contrast with the day Rebekah left that same house! She seems to have gone without mirth and songs, without tambourine and harp, but with love and honour, with the fear of God, and the assurance of His blessing. Much of that had gone from that home.

It is remarkable how, all through the Scriptures, singing is the response to redemption. Genesis 31:27 mentions songs as something that might have happened. But the first actual record of singing is in Exodus 15, after God had redeemed Israel out of Egypt.

In the end, Jacob's departure from his house was like an escape from an enemy's hand, or out of a bird-catcher's trap. It was a kind of exodus. What Israel went through later as a nation, Jacob went through as a family. For Jacob, Laban was a Pharaoh, and Padan-aram an Egypt.

He asks why Jacob had sneaked away so deceitfully, as though he was carrying Laban's daughters off as captives (v. 26). Why act in such secrecy, without even a word to Laban? It left Laban no chance to give them a pleasant send-off, or even to kiss his daughters and their children goodbye. He does not hesitate to tell Jacob that he has acted foolishly in this.

But the way he left shows us Jacob's character again. He could have dealt openly with Laban, met him face to face, and gone with proper notice. Instead he slipped away in secret while Laban was away shearing his sheep. That gave Laban fresh ground for complaint. Jacob had put himself in the place of a servant working for wages, though he was his master's son-in-law. In that position, the two of them should have agreed the parting together.

But Jacob has to run. The time has come for him to return to his father's house, and God tells him to return. So why slip away in secret? Because he was conscious of his sins. He knew that he had wronged Laban, and so he was troubled and afraid.

His mind is made up at once. He explains himself movingly to Rachel and Leah, and then sets out in secret. He had no such confidence in God, held with a clear conscience, as would have freed him from fear. God's unseen hand was there. But the power and the honour of God could not rightly be seen in a course like that.

He pretends that Jacob left him out of simple homesickness, while his conscience must have told him many a very different reason. He puts on grief and outrage at missing the chance to kiss his daughters and grandchildren, and to send them off with honour — while his conscience must have reminded him how he had sold them again and again. He acts concerned for them, now that they are passing into Jacob's hands, as if his own hand had been a father's hand to them.

The situation had become critical — so critical that God stepped in. This time He spoke to Laban, who had no direct knowledge of Him; Laban speaks of Him to Jacob as "the God of your father." In a dream God warned Laban not to overtake Jacob with violent words or violent action. Laban took that warning into account, and kept to protest alone, with a note of reproach in it about the stealing of his gods.

The warning God gave Laban clearly alarmed his guilty conscience. Yet there was no true fear of God in him, and no sense of how unjust he had been — even if Jacob had been nothing more than a faithful servant. On both sides, what a contrast with the day when Rebekah left the same home! That day, it seems, had no laughter and songs, no tambourine and harp, but love and honour and the fear of God and the certainty of His blessing — and most of that had now left the household.

Laban has just called Jacob foolish for leaving Haran in secret. Now he tells Jacob that he had the power to harm him. Yet he admits that God's warning stopped his desire for revenge — a warning to speak neither good nor bad to Jacob.

The Lord was faithful and gracious; Jacob was a fugitive. Laban chased him in hot haste with no friendly intent. In the end he had to bow to God, who was protecting Jacob.

The situation had become critical — so critical that God stepped in. This time He spoke to Laban, who had no direct knowledge of Him; when Laban speaks of Him to Jacob, he calls Him "the God of your father." In a dream God warned Laban not to overtake Jacob with violent words or actions. Because of that warning, Laban could only protest, with a note of reproach in it about the stealing of his gods.

In the days of the patriarchs, we may say that God revealed Himself only to individuals. He made His mind known this way to Noah, to Abraham, and even to men who knew little of Him, such as Abimelech and Laban. He often used a dream or a vision, but what came was a divine revelation.

God's warning certainly alarmed Laban's guilty conscience. But there was no true fear of God in him, and no sense of his injustice — even if Jacob had been no more than a faithful servant... If he dreaded being robbed or attacked, he complained about his stolen gods. He valued them next to his gains, and felt no shame in admitting his idol worship. Where that is found, Satan has already brought in darkness and death.

In the end Jacob's words to Laban were very strong. He told him to his face about the hard terms of service he had imposed. He treated God's warning to Laban as more than a kind intervention on his own behalf: it was a rebuke to Laban, and so indeed it was, without a doubt.

Jacob knew nothing about the stolen gods. He broke into unusual anger with Laban, and he exposed his greed and complete lack of justice, to say nothing of affection. He spared him nothing. He could truly say that, but for God's overruling, he would now have been sent away empty.

His own scheming never saved him from a single danger. Yet Jacob can pass over all his own failures, caught up in the overwhelming thought of God's grace towards him.

He gives a touching explanation to Rachel and Leah, and then leaves in secret. He did so because he had no such confidence in God, with a clear conscience, as would have freed him from fear. The unseen hand of God was there. But such a course could not rightly show the power and the honour of God.

Jacob answers his first question first. He excuses his secret departure on the ground that he was afraid Laban might take Leah and Rachel from him by force. This was not sensible. Laban was not likely to want two daughters back under his roof to care for, along with their children, with no prospect of their finding husbands. Besides, Laban had sold his daughters at a high price.

But Jacob has to flee. The time has come for him to return to his father's house, and God tells him to return. Why steal away in secret? Because he was conscious of sins. He knew that he had wronged Laban, and that is where his trouble and fear came from. As soon as he was free from Laban, the dread of Esau fell on him. God uses it to bring Jacob to Himself in prayer.

But in the manner of his departure we again see the character of Jacob revealed. He did not deal openly with Laban. He could have met him face to face and left with due notice. Instead he stole away while Laban was away shearing his sheep. That gave Laban fresh ground of complaint. Jacob had put himself in the place of a servant, working for wages, though he was his master's son-in-law. In those circumstances the two men should have agreed the parting together.

Jacob was under no obligation to stay… He wanted a word from God, and God gave it to him. His wives were of one mind with him. So he seized the first opportunity, which Laban's sheep-shearing gave him, to be gone. Now that Laban and all his clan had overtaken Jacob on Mount Gilead, what fair objection could be raised? The warning God gave Laban certainly alarmed his guilty conscience, though there was no true fear of God in him, and no sense of his own injustice.

The situation had become critical. It was so critical that God stepped in. This time He spoke to Laban, who had no direct knowledge of Him. Laban speaks of Him to Jacob as "the God of your father." In a dream God warned Laban not to overtake Jacob with violence of speech or action. Because of this, Laban only argued with him, with a note of reproach about the stealing of his gods.

God appeased Esau, as He had already appeased Laban. This is how He always delights to rebuke our poor, cowardly, unbelieving hearts, and put all our fears to flight… He gives sweet evidence of His faithfulness to those who put their trust in Him. Yet why are we so ready to doubt and hesitate on every fresh occasion? The answer is simple: we do not know God well enough.

The image (teraphim) ranks a little below the idol. It is a lesser god whose domain is the household. People treated it as important, and at times they even consulted it. Superstitions like this soon lead to real idols. That is how Jacob judged the matter when he told Laban to take back his gods.

Teraphim were small images, used for purposes of divination. The incident shows us how far spiritist practices had spread. People revered and valued these little "household divinities", and women often valued them most. That explains why Rachel was eager to keep them with her as they travelled away from her old home. Pagan practices spread very easily.

Jacob did not suspect anyone in his company of stealing Laban's idols. Rachel was probably the last person he would suspect. He invites Laban to search through everyone's goods and to put the thief to death (v. 32). What a shock it would have been to him if Laban had found her!

How little Jacob knew that Rachel had stolen Laban's teraphim, to her own shame! She had already shown herself a victim of low, vile superstition, and that kind of superstition opens the way to secret idolatry. But Jacob had no suspicion that his beloved wife was guilty. If he had, he would not have been so quick to propose that such a person should not live.

Rachel had stolen the teraphim (household images) that belonged to her father (v. 19). She had not learned to walk by faith in the living God, but like her father, she needed to depend on what she could see. She was a beautiful woman. Yet her desire for a religious atmosphere allowed her to indulge in stealing, idolatry and deceit.

Rachel was like most of us. We know well how to hide our idols and to deceive even our own loved ones! In fact, Rachel was the last in Laban's search, evidently the least suspected. She was sitting on the images and had a good excuse for not standing.

Rachel had sinned greatly. She kept her husband in the dark when he unknowingly said that anyone guilty should not live. Her theft was not only a sin against her father. In what she stole it was a serious insult to God. There is no evidence that she ever judged herself properly. It is plain that Jacob became aware in time of idols in his household. God's call to go up to Bethel laid that sin on his conscience. To take his beloved away was a chastening, not to her only but to him also.

Rachel stole the images from her father; was it his love for her that led Jacob to allow them in his house? Christian parents sometimes allow things in their homes that they know are wrong. It is a sin to them. When human affection interferes with faithfulness to God, it always brings sorrow.

The thought of God's presence made Jacob remember the false gods. It woke in his soul the conviction that the gods this world worships can never be kept alongside a faithful God. Nothing else can wake this conviction. No amount of experience can ever have the effect that the presence of God produces on a soul. ... Only the presence of God, as light, makes us condemn ourselves. It gives us power to purify ourselves from our deepest idols — the ones we know well but keep hidden.

The teraphim was not really an idol, and the Word is careful to keep the two apart. The image (teraphim) ranks below the idol. It is a lesser god whose domain is the household. It carries a certain importance, and people even consult it at times. Such superstitions soon lead to true idols. Jacob judged the matter this way when he told Laban to take back his gods. Often the believer lacks the energy to drive these causes of stumbling out of his family. Each one of us must take this to heart.

If he dreaded being robbed or attacked, he complained of his stolen gods. He prized them next to his profits, and felt no shame in owning his worship of false gods. Where this is found, Satan has already brought in darkness and death.

There is a grave lesson lost by those who think there can be no danger of tampering with idols even for believers. There is no reason to suppose that Rachel intended to give up the one true God; even Laban scarcely went so far as that. Yet here, and all through Scripture, we meet the same fact. From the earliest days to the latest, those who acknowledged the living God showed a clear tendency to indulge more or less in idolatry. The case of Solomon is the clearest proof of how great a snare this was for Israel in its brightest days.

Jacob did not suspect anyone in his company of stealing Laban's idols — probably least of all Rachel. He invites Laban to search through the goods of everyone with him, and to put the thief to death. What a shock it would have been to him if Rachel had been discovered! But Rachel was like most of us. We know well how to hide our idols and to deceive even our own loved ones. In fact, Rachel was the last in Laban's search, clearly the least suspected.

You keep some part of your heart shut up from Him. You do not want the light of God's presence to enter that dark room, because it is a secret idol-shrine. You do not want the idol exposed to the light of a rightly jealous God, who says, "I am the Lord your God. You shall have no other gods before me." And remember, an "idol" is anything preferred to Christ and allowed to slip in between Him and the soul. It is useless to hide one corner of your heart from God's searching light while keeping the other part lit up!

As soon as God called him back to Bethel, he realised there were evil things in his household, even strange gods. In Genesis 31 we saw how Rachel had carried off from Laban the "gods," or teraphim, that he valued, and there is no record of Jacob objecting to them at that time. But with God before him, he at once became alive to the evil of them. They were to put the things away and to be clean themselves, even down to the clothes they wore.

This is a Hebrew word in the plural. It refers to household idols, like the ones Rachel stole from her father. There, as elsewhere, some Bible versions translate the word "images" and put "teraphim" in the margin. Gen. 31:19, 34, 35. Michal the wife of David had one in her house, and laid it in the bed when David escaped. 1 Sam. 19:13, 16. Micah also had them in his house, and regarded them as "gods." Judges 17:5; Judges 18:14-20. They were used in some way for divination.

Teraphim were small images, used for purposes of divination. The incident gives us a sidelight on the way spiritist practices had spread. People honoured and valued these little "household divinities," and women often most of all. That is why Rachel was anxious to have them with her as they travelled away from her old home. Heathen practices are very infectious.

Rachel's theft brings personal and family idolatry to light — the kind that so often went along with professing the true God. What can be more offensive to God than to make Him a senior or a silent partner in a partnership of gods? The good commentator Matthew Henry makes a strange note: "We are willing to hope that she did not take them away out of greed for the rich metal they were made of… She might have meant to convince her father of the folly of treating as gods things that could not even protect themselves." This is all kindly but unwise. We can learn the true reason from Israel bowing down to the golden calf right after the solemn scenes at Sinai, and from Israel's history down to the captivity in Babylon. We must believe in the godless, evil obsession of the human heart instead of imagining other reasons.

Rachel had not learned to walk by faith in the living God. Like her father, she needed to depend on what she could see. Though she was a beautiful woman, her desire for a religious atmosphere allowed her to indulge in stealing, idolatry and deceit. This is common with all human religion: only the true knowledge of the Lord Jesus will preserve us from such things.

Rachel was like most of us. We know well how to hide our idols and to deceive even our own loved ones! Rachel was the last in Laban's search, and the least suspected. She was sitting on the images and had a good excuse for not standing.

How little Jacob knew that Rachel had stolen Laban's teraphim, to her own shame! She had already shown herself the prey of low and vile superstition, which paves the way for idolatry in secret. But Jacob had no suspicion that his beloved was guilty. Otherwise he would never have been so quick to propose that such a person should not live. And she who had played false to God had few scruples about deceiving her father as well as robbing him.

The image (teraphim) ranks below the idol. It is a half-god whose realm is the home. It carries a certain importance, and people even consult it at times. Such superstitions soon lead to true idols… Often the believer lacks the energy to drive these causes of stumbling out of his family. Each one of us must take this to heart.

Rachel, out of fear of Laban, had hidden them under the camel's saddle… The thought of God's presence made Jacob remember the false gods. It awakens in his soul the conviction that the gods this world worships can never be kept alongside a faithful God. Nothing else can awaken this conviction. No amount of experience can ever have the effect that the presence of God produces on a soul.

Jacob was under no bond to stay. Laban and his sons showed plainly how much they disliked his growing wealth and their own decline. He wanted a word from God, Who gave it to him. His wives were of one mind with him. He therefore seized the first opportunity, which Laban's shearing gave him, to be gone. Now that Laban and all his clan had caught up with Jacob on Mount Gilead, what fair charge could anyone bring? The warning God gave Laban plainly alarmed his guilty conscience. Yet there was no true fear of God in him, and no sense of his own injustice — even if Jacob had been nothing more than a faithful servant.

Then Jacob's self-righteous anger begins to boil (v. 36). If only Laban had discovered the idols, how different this would have been! … Of course, even if there had been no sin of stealing, Jacob had still left in secret without telling Laban.

When Jacob bargained with Laban over his wages, he had taken his stand on righteousness (Gen. 30:33). Had he been righteous? And now, with a bold face and proud words, he asks, "What is my offense?"

The bargain-making Jacob meets the bargain-making Laban, and each strains every nerve to outwit the other. And we cannot wonder at Laban. He had never been at Bethel. He had seen no open heaven, with a ladder reaching from there to earth. He had heard no magnificent promises from the lips of Jehovah… But Jacob had seen and heard all of that at Bethel. To find him still struggling with a man of the world, and trying by such means to pile up property, is deeply humbling.

Jehovah was faithful and gracious, Jacob a fugitive. Laban soon chased after him at speed, and with no friendly intent. In the end, God's protection of Jacob forced him to give way.

Jacob could say, "You know that I have served your father with all my strength, yet your father has cheated me and changed my wages ten times," and Jacob became angry and berated Laban. Paul can say, "I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses… For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities." But it is all "for Christ," not for Laban. Not for glory to himself, but for his Lord; not serving for a wife, as Jacob did.

Then Jacob's self-righteous anger begins to boil… Laban has searched through all of Jacob's possessions. So Jacob tells him to set before everybody anything he found that belonged to Laban. Of course he knew that Laban had found nothing.

Jacob however did not at all suspect any of his company of having stolen Laban's idols, probably least of all Rachel. He invites Laban to search through the goods of everyone with him, and to put the thief to death. What a shock it would have been to him if Laban had found Rachel out! But Rachel was like most of us. We know well how to hide our idols and to deceive even our own loved ones!

Instead of dealing openly with Laban, meeting him face to face, and then leaving with proper notice, he slipped away in secret while Laban was away shearing his sheep. By doing this he gave Laban a fresh reason to complain. Jacob had put himself in the place of a servant, working for wages, even though he was his master's son-in-law. In that position the two of them should have agreed on the parting together.

Here everything comes out into the light, and Laban brings on himself the proof of his own selfishness and dishonesty… What he feared was being robbed or attacked, and what he complained about was his stolen gods. These he prized next to his gains, with no shame for admitting his heathenism; for where this is, Satan has already brought in darkness and death.

God's reckoning, not Jacob's righteousness, is why Laban had to pay him wages. God brought him out by His angel. Remember now, Jacob, what the Syrian Laban had planned, and how God answered Laban: "Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad."

Jacob, who knew nothing of it, broke into unusual anger with Laban. He exposes Laban's greed and complete lack of justice, to say nothing of affection, and spares him nothing. And he could well say that, without God's overruling, he would now be going away empty-handed.

He is really telling Jacob, "I cannot trust you out of my sight, so I want the Lord to watch." Of course it was true the other way also. Jacob had learned not to trust Laban. So this pillar is the milestone in Jacob's life that proclaims clearly the untrustworthiness of the flesh. Very often it takes two parties to expose it to one another!

For twenty years, he says, he has served Laban. He had so cared for the females of Laban's flock that they had not miscarried, nor had he taken any of Laban's sheep, even to eat.

Laban had sons who could have helped with this work, but it seems they left it to the one who could do it well. Were Laban and his sons all sharing the benefits of Jacob's work without having to work themselves? It seemed so. Employers often think they have the right to reap all the benefits that labor produces, because they put up the original capital. But God takes account of the guilt of employers who oppress their workers (James 5:4).

In all this he is humbled under the mighty hand of God, as a man who would gladly remember his own past ways. And at the end of twenty years of hard work and ill treatment, he is able to testify to his faithfulness, and God Himself seems to seal that testimony.

While he lived in the house of Laban the Syrian, Jacob knew that he was under the mighty hand of God for correction, and he behaved that way. He did not defend himself when he was blamed. He did not fight for his rights when he was wronged and treated unjustly.

Jacob was a man of faith, but failed in spirituality, and comes under the Lord's discipline that he might bear more fruit and better. As he had cheated at home, he suffered abroad, and at the hands of his mother's brother most of all. His patience under Laban's hardhearted wrongs testifies that he bowed to God.

He was cheated about his wife. He was wronged over his wages. He was a wanderer from his father's house and a slave to Laban. All this came because he acted deceitfully, instead of leaving God to bring the blessing about. In all of it we see real discipline for evil done.

Besides, when Jacob bargained with Laban over his pay, he took his stand on righteousness (Gen. 30:33). Had he been righteous? And now, with a bold face and big words, he asks, "What is my offense?"

Does Jacob scold in anger when Laban searches his belongings and fails to find his stolen gods? He says, "I have not eaten the rams of your flocks. What was torn by wild beasts I bore the loss of it myself. By day the heat consumed me, and the cold by night … and my sleep fled from my eyes … and you have changed my wages ten times." So another "I" will also boast, as if in folly. Another servant! One who served in love, for love, not money. He announced God's good news free of charge, and took no pay from anyone for shepherding the flock.

He is a picture of a servant too, in some small way not unworthy to foreshadow Him who "took the form of a servant." He submits in silence to the wrongs of a cruel master. He serves patiently and suffers without complaint. Laban changes his wages ten times, but he never answers back.

He had cared for the females of Laban's flock so well that they had not miscarried. He had not taken any of Laban's sheep, even to eat. If an animal was lost, whether wild animals killed it or someone stole it, Laban held Jacob accountable. Jacob had to pay for the loss. He often suffered from the heat of the day and shivered at night in the cold, unable to sleep.

The difficulties and hardships of a shepherd's life in the East may be gathered from what Jacob passed through during the time he was with Laban. Gen. 31:39-40.

Jacob, who did not know that anything had been stolen, broke into unusual anger with Laban. He held nothing back in exposing Laban's greed and total lack of justice, to say nothing of affection. He could well say that, but for God's over-ruling, he would have been sent away empty-handed. What could Laban reply, except that everything was his — wives, children, flock? God had no place in his thoughts, and neither had love for his daughters, or their children, or his son-in-law.

He was cheated about his wife and wronged over his wages. He was a wanderer from his father's house and a slave to Laban. All this came because he acted deceitfully, instead of leaving God to bring the blessing about. In all of it we see real discipline because of evil.

In Jacob at Padan-aram, if I am not mistaken, we get a believer under discipline who knows he is under discipline. He understands what the moment means under God's hand. He sees that the Lord's rebuke is right, and he carries himself with meekness and watchfulness. He takes the wrongs of a harsh master in silence. He serves with patience, and suffers without complaint.

We shall find, I know, that after this Jacob is old Jacob still. The same evil that had been working in him from the beginning betrays him again. But while he was in the Syrian's house, Jacob knew that he was under the mighty hand of God for correction, and he behaved that way. He did not defend himself when he was blamed, and he did not fight for his rights when he was wronged and treated unjustly.

Leah was bride to a man who pictured Christ as a sufferer. He gave back what he did not take away. Tireless work wore him out, and he laboured while others slept (see Gen. 31:39-40; Luke 6:12) … Jacob went for Leah and won her at the cost of hard service. She first shared his days of toil, before she shared the wealth and glory he gained.

Does Jacob complain in anger when Laban searches his belongings and does not find his stolen gods? He says he never ate Laban's rams, that he bore the loss of the animals torn by wild beasts, that drought consumed him by day and frost by night, that sleep left his eyes, and that Laban changed his wages ten times. Then another "I" also will boast as in folly. Another servant! One who served in love, for love, not money. He announced God's glad tidings free of charge, and took no pay from any man for shepherding the flock … in labour and toil; in many sleepless nights; in hunger and thirst, often without food; in cold and without clothing.

He had cared for the females of Laban's flock so well that they did not miscarry. He had not taken any of Laban's sheep, even to eat. If an animal went missing, whether wild animals killed it or someone stole it, Laban held Jacob accountable: he had to pay for the loss. He often suffered from the heat of the day. At night he shivered with cold and could not sleep.

The difficulties and hardships of a shepherd's life in the East may be gathered from what Jacob passed through during the time he was with Laban.

God deals with him in government, and measures back to him the measure he used himself. He is continually the target of similar deceit… He was cheated about his wife and wronged over his wages. He became a wanderer from his father's house and a slave to Laban. All of it came from acting deceitfully instead of leaving the fulfilment of the blessing to God. In all this we see real discipline because of evil.

In about five or six years, God's providence paid Jacob the wages Laban had cheated him out of for twenty years.

The Lord Jesus personally has borne the heat of the day all alone. He had nowhere to lay His head, like Jacob — absent from His Father's house and from the place of His inheritance. He was wronged again and again in a world which, like Laban and his household, always seeks its own. Yet He endured all this, and was willing to endure all this, for the love He had for her on whom His eye had rested. It was the same with Jacob: his seven years of service seemed to him only a few days, because of his love for Rachel.

But love lightened the burdens and sweetened all the bitterness of those long years… And this is the only phase of his life in which the patriarch Jacob appears to picture our Lord, "who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame." His toil ended, He has taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of God.

In Hebrews 13:17 we read of the Guides — the ones who lead, as a shepherd leads and guides the flock. It tells us they "keep watch over your souls." The word "watch" means "to be sleepless," and so "to be vigilant." A good shepherd kept watch over his flock by day and by night, like the shepherds of Bethlehem, or Jacob, who could say, "by day the heat consumed me, and the cold by night, and my sleep fled from my eyes." So should the true overseer watch, by day and by night, over the flock of God.

He stresses that he had served Laban fourteen years for his two daughters. Of course he had willingly offered to work seven years for Rachel, but had been deceived. Then he had worked six years to gain the large flock he now had. But more: he affirms that Laban had changed his wages ten times (v. 41). This must have been true, or Laban would have denied it. It does show the manipulating character of Laban. He was not at all behind Jacob in this trickery.

Genesis 29, 30 and 31 record the years of Jacob's stay in Haran. Those years turned into a duel of diplomacy between Jacob and Laban his uncle. Under the government of God, Jacob found himself in the hands of a man even more selfish than himself. God's discipline fitted his case remarkably well in the matter of his marriage. Laban deceived him about his two daughters, just as Isaac's two sons had deceived Isaac.

Jacob deceived his old father and stole his brother's birthright. That was bad sowing, but he did not expect the harvest he received. Laban deceived him about his wife, and he had to work another seven years to win her. That was not all the harvest. Laban changed his wages ten times to cheat him. He had twenty years of bitter labour in Syria. Then his own sons deceived him about Joseph. He spent twenty-two years in bitter sorrow, mourning him as dead.

We have no need or right to fall back on plans of our own, as if we could help God achieve His purpose. If, on the other hand, God instructs us by His word to act, it is our duty and our wisdom to do as He says. Jacob asserted that Laban had changed his wages ten times. If that was true, it was great provocation. But relying on God would have saved him from actions that are also open to question.

But in much of his behaviour during the twenty years he spent with Laban, we see what was excellent in him. Anyone whose mind is right towards God at all must feel the force of knowing that we are under the hand of God for correction... Here we get a saint under discipline who knows he is under discipline. He understands well what the moment means under God's hand, and that the Lord's rebuke is right. He carries himself meekly and watchfully. He takes the wrongs of a harmful master in silence. He serves patiently and suffers without complaint. His wages were changed ten times, but he does not answer back.

The Lord brought him to Padan-aram, where he was to dwell as an exile for twenty years. During these twenty years the Lord did not show Himself to him. In the same way, Israel scattered among the nations hears nothing from the Lord.

Here we find the one who was to own and enjoy her, travelling and toiling for her... He has Himself gone into the distant land. There He laboured, and there He bore reproach and wrong for her. In all this, Jacob sets forth the true Bridegroom. The Lord Jesus Himself has borne the heat of the day all alone. He had nowhere to lay His head, like Jacob. He was away from His Father's house and from the place of His inheritance. The world wronged Him again and again, for like Laban and his house it always seeks its own.

What Jacob says in verse 42 is also very likely true. It was only the intervention of God that enabled Jacob to accumulate the wealth he had. Laban was so greedy of gain that he would have been content to let Jacob leave with nothing at all for his twenty years of work. He says that God had seen his hard work and his suffering, and so had rebuked Laban the night before.

Truly the LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. The words of Laban's sons, and the looks of Laban himself, showed their discontent — and no wonder. So the LORD told Jacob to return to the land of his fathers and to his relatives. In some five or six years God's providence paid Jacob the wages Laban had cheated him out of for twenty years.

Jacob saw God's warning to Laban as more than a kind step taken for his own sake. He saw it as a rebuke to Laban — and without a doubt that is what it was.

The warning God gave Laban clearly alarmed his guilty conscience. But no true fear of God was there, and no sense of his injustice — even if Jacob had been no more than a faithful servant.

It was something to hear Jacob confessing the name of the God of Abraham and the fear of Isaac (chapter 31:42)... Up to this point Jacob had grown in his sense of God's faithfulness and of His holy majesty. His cattle, servants, camels and donkeys had increased greatly, and all of them disappear at the end. But I doubt he had made much more progress than this growth in confidence in God and fear of Him.

Isaac was a gracious and prayerful person, who knew what it is to meditate in the fields at evening. Could a man with such habits fail to judge his own deliberate lie? It was a stumbling block to the world. It dishonoured his Almighty Protector, his beloved wife, and himself as a saint... Can one doubt, then, that the fear of Isaac (Gen. 31:42) worked in his conscience to humble him and to clear his spirit from deceit.

Jacob had been only a little while under the trials and sorrows of his stay with Laban. Then he was paid back in the exact pattern of his own offence at home. He had deceived his father about his brother and the blessing. Laban now deceives him about Rachel and the marriage... He submits to the wrongs of an injurious master in silence. He serves patiently, and suffers without complaint.

Laban had little to say in his own defence in answer to Jacob's outburst. But he does use the one argument he considered valid: "The daughters are my daughters, the children are my children, the flocks are my flocks" (v. 43). Leah and Rachel had been his daughters, but Laban had sold them. The children were really Jacob's children, though they were Laban's grandchildren too — at least those born to Leah and Rachel. The flocks had been bred from Laban's flocks, but they were the wages Laban had agreed to give Jacob for his work.

Jacob broke into unusual anger with Laban. He exposes Laban's greed and lack of all justice, to say nothing of affection, without sparing him. He could well say that but for God's overruling he would now have been sent away empty. What could Laban reply but that all were his — wives, children, flock? God was in none of his thoughts, any more than love for his daughters, or their children, or his son-in-law.

Because Leah and Rachel were his daughters, he thought, wrongly, that they were his possession and that he had the right to sell them. They were not his own to begin with, let alone after he had sold them. But this verse proclaims loudly that a man who only wants to own things loses what he stubbornly tries to hold. Laban found himself poorer in several ways when Jacob left him... May we learn well the lesson that this history teaches: what we own is not ours, but the Lord's, and what we selfishly hold we will lose. On the other hand, what we unselfishly give up for the Lord's sake we shall find that we gain in the end.

As to Laban, he was a thorough man of the world when Jacob entered his house, and so he was when Jacob left it. In all his dealings, from first to last, he looks out for his own advantage. He is forced to admit that the hand of God was with Jacob. But he would make that hand, through Jacob, serve himself, and turn Jacob's interest in God to his own account. For twenty years he had the evidence of the hand of the Lord, and the working of His grace and power, under his eye and in his house, and that daily. Yet he continued a man of the world still... And Jacob's departure from his house at the last was like an escape out of the enemy's hand.

The bargain-making Jacob meets the bargain-making Laban, and you can see both straining every nerve to outwit each other. Nor can we wonder at Laban, for he had never been at Bethel. He had seen no open heaven, with a ladder reaching from there to earth. He had heard no magnificent promises from the lips of the Lord, promising him all the land of Canaan and countless descendants. No wonder, then, that he should show a grasping, grovelling spirit. He had no other resource.

Verses 43 and 44 would indicate that Laban himself was conscious that this was the case, and so, while asserting his fatherly rights, he adopted a different tone altogether, and suggested that a covenant should be agreed and established between them. This was accordingly done.

Laban had calmed down enough that, instead of carrying on the argument, he suggested that he and Jacob make a covenant between them (v. 44). It is sad to think he found this necessary between relatives. It is again a legal arrangement rather than a relationship of trust shaped by grace, which is what every family relationship should be. What we see here is still confidence in the flesh, rather than the faith that trusts in the living God.

To the eye of faith it is a sad sight. Laban is paid back, and Jacob and his household are rescued by God's overruling hand and goodness. Yet inside the chosen family the wife has stolen idol images, and her husband knows nothing of it. Laban, far from crushing Jacob, begs him for a covenant. Because he did not fear God, he had no confidence in his own closest relative.

He is really telling Jacob, "I cannot trust you out of my sight, so I want the Lord to watch." Of course it was true the other way also. Jacob had learned not to trust Laban. So this pillar is the milestone in Jacob's life that declares how untrustworthy the flesh is. Very often it takes two people to expose it to each other!

But he tries to put a good face on the matter, and asks for a covenant between himself and Jacob. Jacob leaves all the terms to Laban, with his miserable thoughts and fears, but he carries the covenant out in full earnest, and with it the name that stood. He not only swore by the Fear of Isaac; he also offered peace offerings, and they ate bread together.

Then Laban speaks of the heap and the pillar as a dividing point between him and Jacob. It witnessed their agreement that neither would pass that point to harm the other (v. 52). The whole covenant may seem needless to us. Neither of them was likely to cross that line for any reason: they would be happier living far apart from each other.

There is something great in this. It tells us that Jacob knew his place and dignity under God. Laban had every claim that nature or the flesh or family ties could give, but Jacob acts despite them. Laban was the older man; he was the master and the father-in-law. Still, Jacob takes the place of the "better," and offers the sacrifice.

Such a scene, in mystery, exhibits our blessing. For we enjoy a covenant of peace, secured by a sacrifice, and witnessed by a feast.

But Jacob's prosperity turns Laban against him, just as spiritual growth separates a person from the world… Laban follows Jacob; God appears for Jacob and shields him; and Jacob at last departs in peace, with a covenant between him and Laban, at Galeed, the "heap of witness."

matstsebah, from 'to set, put, place'; and so anything that is set up. It is used for the stone that Jacob had for a pillow, which he set up, and on which he poured oil and made his vow. Also for the heap of stones he raised when Laban and he parted.

Jacob sets up his second pillar. His first was in Genesis 28:18, where he made his fleshly vow, therefore the pillar of confidence in the flesh. This time his pillar is a memorial to broken confidence between relatives. It stands in contrast to the first pillar, because it tells us that the flesh has proved it cannot be trusted.

It is Laban who pronounces the terms of their covenant, saying that the heap was a witness to it. He introduces the Lord's name here, expecting Him to watch between himself and Jacob when they are absent from one another. He is really telling Jacob, "I cannot trust you out of my sight, so I want the Lord to watch." Of course it was true the other way also. Jacob had learned not to trust Laban.

He set up pillars several times in his life — it seems to have been a favourite practice with him. He set one up by Galeed, east of the Jordan, to stand as a witness that God had stepped in on his behalf. Together with the heap that he and his relatives raised, it marked the boundary that neither he nor Laban was to cross to harm the other. He set up another on Rachel's grave, on the way to Ephrath, a lasting memorial marking the spot where he laid the body of his beloved. But neither at Galeed nor at Rachel's grave did he pour out a drink-offering. Neither the time nor the places were right for such an expressive action, and no doubt he understood that.

This has great character in it. It tells us that Jacob knew his place and dignity under God. Laban had every claim that nature or the flesh or family could give, but Jacob acts despite them. Laban was the elder; he was the master and the father-in-law. But Jacob still takes the place of the "better," and offers the sacrifice. He acts in the same spirit of faith as Abraham when he made a covenant with the king of Gerar (Gen. 21), or Jethro at Horeb, among the Israel of God and in the presence of Aaron (Ex. 18).

Such a scene, in mystery, shows our blessing. For we enjoy a covenant of peace, secured by a sacrifice, and witnessed by a feast.

After all his planning, Jacob has to learn that it is the power of God to which he owes the increase. God has looked on his affliction and his toil, and ordained him a recompense. But his prosperity turns Laban against him, as spiritual increase separates from the world. Then comes the call of God to return to Canaan. Laban cannot get on with him any more, and yet Jacob's leaving makes him openly hostile — just as the world feels the sting of separation, though there can be no more fellowship.

Jacob sets up his second pillar. His first was in Genesis 28:18, where he made his fleshly vow. That first pillar was a pillar of confidence in the flesh. This time his pillar is a memorial to broken confidence between relatives. It stands in contrast to the first pillar, because it tells us that the flesh has proved it cannot be trusted. A heap of stones underlines this. Both Laban and Jacob call it a "heap of witness" — Laban in the Chaldee language, Jacob in Hebrew. They eat upon the heap, not the most comfortable dining room!

This is the Aramaic name Laban gave to the heap of stones raised as a witness between him and Jacob. Jacob called it GALEED. Both names mean 'cairn of witness.'

It is sad to think that he considered this necessary between relatives. It is again a legal arrangement instead of a trusting relationship shaped by grace, as every family relationship should be. There is still evidence here of mere confidence in the flesh, instead of the faith that trusts in the living God.

But he tries to put a good face on the matter, and asks for a covenant between himself and Jacob. Jacob leaves all the terms to Laban, and to his wretched thoughts and fears. Yet Jacob solemnly carries the covenant out, and accepts the name that stood. He not only swore by the Fear of Isaac; he also offered peace offerings, and they ate bread together.

While Laban has emphasized the covenant, Jacob offered a sacrifice, which was far better. Then he invited the whole company to eat a meal with him. At least the sacrifice was a reminder that God had rights far more important than those of either Jacob or Laban. Eating together eased the tension between them, so that they could part on fairly friendly terms.

You get Mizpah, or Jegar-sahadutha, or Galeed, and much instruction in it all, for the Lord takes care of the believer. But where the believer walks in this low, fleshly way, God chastens him through and through. Twenty-one years a slave — he cheats, and is cheated. He believed, and came to be believed, but his means were of the flesh. It was discipline in every possible way, because he walked after the flesh.

But Jacob's prosperity turns Laban against him, just as spiritual growth separates a believer from the world. Then comes the call of God to return to Canaan. Laban can no longer get on with him, yet Jacob's leaving turns him into an open enemy — just as the world feels the sting of separation, though there can be no more fellowship. Laban follows Jacob. God appears for Jacob and shields him. Jacob departs at last in peace, with a covenant between him and Laban, at Galeed, the "heap of witness."

This is the Aramaic name Laban gave to the heap of stones set up as a witness between him and Jacob. Jacob called it GALEED. Both names mean the same thing: a heap of witness.

Aramaic is the language of Aram. It takes in both Chaldean and the language of Syria. Its true home was Mesopotamia, Babylonia and Syria. The first time we meet it in Scripture is Genesis 31:47. There Laban called the heap of witness 'Jegar-sahadutha,' which is Chaldean, while Jacob gave it a Hebrew name, 'Galeed.'

Hebrew was the language of Palestine. The names of places and people there, from before Israel owned the land, show this. Hebrew was the language Abraham and his descendants took as their own. The difference between Jacob's language and that of Laban the Mesopotamian shows it plainly (Gen. 31:47).

Jacob sets up his second pillar. His first was in Genesis 28:18, where he made his vow in the strength of the flesh. That was a pillar of confidence in the flesh. This pillar is the opposite. It is a memorial of broken trust between relatives, and it tells us that the flesh has proved it cannot be trusted. A heap of stones makes the point stronger. Both Laban and Jacob call it a "heap of witness" — Laban in the Chaldean language, Jacob in Hebrew (v. 47).

Laban, instead of crushing Jacob, begs him for a covenant. Laban did not fear God, so he had no confidence even in his own closest relative. But how much Jacob had to learn, as he weighed his old self-seeking and scheming before Jehovah!

But Jacob's prosperity turns Laban against him, just as spiritual growth separates a person from the world. Then comes God's call to return to Canaan. Laban can no longer get along with Jacob, and Jacob's leaving makes him openly hostile — just as the world feels the sting of separation, though there can be no more fellowship. Laban follows Jacob. God appears for Jacob and shields him. In the end Jacob leaves in peace, with a covenant between him and Laban at Galeed, the "heap of witness."

A heap of witness exists for one purpose: to make forgetting impossible.

Aramaic name given by Laban to the heap of stones raised as a witness between him and Jacob, which Jacob called GALEED, both meaning "cairn of witness."

Gesenius gives Gilead as meaning "hard, rocky." But there seems reason to connect it instead with Jacob's Galeed (Gen. 31:47), "a heap of witness." That would put it in striking contrast with Manasseh, the name linked with it, which means "forgetting." A heap of witness exists for the very purpose of making forgetfulness impossible.

Jacob sets up his second pillar. His first was in Genesis 28:18, where he made his fleshly vow, and so it was the pillar of confidence in the flesh. This time his pillar is a memorial to broken confidence between relatives. It stands in contrast to the first pillar, for it tells us that the flesh has proved it cannot be trusted. A heap of stones underlines this. Both Laban and Jacob called it a "heap of witness" — Laban in Aramaic, Jacob in Hebrew (v. 47). They eat upon the heap — not the most comfortable dining room!

It is Laban who pronounces the terms of their covenant, saying that the heap was a witness to it. He brings in the Lord's name here. He expects Him to watch between himself and Jacob while they are apart (v. 49). He is really telling Jacob, "I cannot trust you out of my sight, so I want the Lord to watch." Of course it was true the other way also. Jacob had learned not to trust Laban. So this pillar is the milestone in Jacob's life that clearly proclaims the untrustworthiness of the flesh. Very often it takes two parties to expose it to one another!

It is a sorry sight to the eye of faith: retribution for Laban, rescue for Jacob and his house through God's overruling hand and goodness. Yet inside the chosen family the wife had stolen idolatrous images, and her husband knew nothing of it. Laban did not crush him; instead Laban begged him for a covenant. For, as he did not fear God, he had no confidence in his own nearest relative. But what had Jacob still to learn, as he weighed his old self-seeking and scheming before Jehovah?

He set up pillars several times in his life — it seems to have been a favourite practice with him. He erected one by Galeed, east of Jordan, to stand as a witness of God's intervention on his behalf. Along with the heap raised by him and his brothers, it marked the boundary which neither he nor Laban was to cross to injure the other (Gen. 31:24-25, 52).

It is Laban who states the terms of their covenant, saying that the heap was a witness to it. He brings in the Lord's name here. He expects Him to watch between himself and Jacob while they are apart (v.49). In effect he is telling Jacob, "I cannot trust you out of my sight, so I want the Lord to watch." Of course it was true the other way too. Jacob had learned not to trust Laban. So this pillar is the milestone in Jacob's life that shows how untrustworthy the flesh is. Very often it takes two parties to expose it to one another!

A covenant is an agreement between one man and another, or between nation and nation. Both sides weigh the terms and agree to them. Then an oath or some token seals it in front of witnesses… In the covenant Jacob made with Laban, they gathered a heap of stones to be a witness between them, and "they ate there by the heap." Gen. 31:46… Even today, if a stranger in the East can get the head of a tribe to eat with him, he knows he is safe. People count that meal as a covenant.

We may wonder if Laban suspected that Jacob would take revenge on him by mistreating Leah and Rachel (v. 50). There is no sign that Jacob had ever done this… Laban was even afraid that Jacob might take other wives besides Leah and Rachel. After all, he himself had started the whole business of Jacob having two wives. What right did he have to complain if Jacob took another? But his fears were groundless. Jacob never did show any inclination to have another wife, or more.

What could Laban reply but that all were his — wives, children, flock? God was in none of his thoughts, any more than love for his daughters, or their children, or his son-in-law. But he tries to put a good face on the matter, and asks for a covenant between himself and Jacob. Jacob leaves all the terms to Laban, with his wretched thoughts and fears, yet carries it out in full seriousness, along with the name that stood. Not only did he swear by the Fear of Isaac, but he offered peace offerings; and they ate bread together.

"Because the LORD was witness between you and the wife of your youth, to whom you have been faithless, though she is your companion and your wife by covenant." Both of them stood on the same footing with God.

The Lord lays great stress on keeping natural relationships in a godly way. He attaches great importance to it. Wherever people treat these ties lightly, under any pretext, spiritual or otherwise, the door is already open to the worst forms of loose living and corruption… One of the plainest signs of a desire to please the Lord is carrying out our responsibilities at home faithfully and carefully.

Then Laban speaks of the heap and the pillar as a separating point between him and Jacob, a witness of the agreement of each not to pass that point in order to do harm to the other (v.52). The whole covenant might seem rather unnecessary to us, for it is not likely that either of them had any intention of passing that point for any purpose: they would be happier living well apart from each other.

Jacob sets up his second pillar. His first was in chapter 28:18, where he made his fleshly vow — the pillar of confidence in the flesh. This second pillar is a memorial to broken confidence between relatives. It is the opposite of the first, because it tells us the flesh has proved it cannot be trusted. A heap of stones underlines the same thing. Both Laban and Jacob call it a "heap of witness," Laban in Chaldee and Jacob in Hebrew. They eat on the heap — not the most comfortable dining room!

Laban is the one who states the terms of their covenant, and he says the heap is a witness to it. He brings in the Lord's name here, expecting Him to watch between himself and Jacob while they are apart. He is really telling Jacob, "I cannot trust you out of my sight, so I want the Lord to watch." Of course it was true the other way too. Jacob had learned not to trust Laban. So this pillar is the milestone in Jacob's life that announces plainly: the flesh cannot be trusted. Very often it takes two people to expose it to each other!

Again we find Jacob setting up a pillar of witness and also a heap of stones, as was the custom in those early days. Jacob promised to treat Laban's daughters well, and both men agreed not to pass beyond the stones of witness to harm each other. We do not read here of anyone anointing the pillar. We do read that Jacob marked the occasion with an oath and also with a sacrifice. The name of God comes in here, as we see in verse 53, and as the God of Abraham and of Nahor, since Laban as well as Jacob would have honoured both those forefathers.

To the eye of faith it is a sad sight. Laban gets what he deserves, and God's overruling hand and goodness rescue Jacob and his household. Yet inside the chosen family the wife has stolen idol images, and her husband knows nothing of it. And Laban, instead of crushing Jacob, begs him for a covenant. Because Laban did not fear God, he had no confidence even in his own nearest relation. But how much Jacob had to learn, as he weighed his old self-seeking and scheming before the Lord!

After all his planning, Jacob has to learn that he owes his increase to the power of God. God has seen his affliction and his toil, and has appointed him a reward. But his prosperity turns Laban against him, just as spiritual growth separates a man from the world. Then comes God's call to return to Canaan. Laban can no longer get along with Jacob, yet Jacob's leaving makes him openly hostile. The world feels the sting of separation in the same way, though there can be no more fellowship. Laban follows Jacob; God appears for Jacob and shields him; and in the end Jacob leaves in peace, with a covenant between him and Laban at Galeed, the "heap of witness."

You get Mizpah, or Jegar-sahadutha, or Galeed, and there is much instruction in it all. The Lord takes care of the believer. But where the believer walks in this low, fleshly way, the Lord disciplines him through and through. Twenty-one years a slave — he cheats, and is cheated. He believed, and came to be believed, but his means were fleshly. It was discipline in every possible way, because he walked after the flesh.

Then Laban speaks of the heap and the pillar as a separating point between him and Jacob. They are a witness of the agreement of each not to pass that point to harm the other (v. 52). The whole covenant might seem unnecessary to us. Neither of them was likely to have any intention of passing that point for any purpose. They would be happier living far apart from each other.

The pillar, as we know from the story of Jacob's parting with Laban, carries with it the thought of witness (Gen. 31:52).

Again we find Jacob raising up a pillar of witness and also a heap of stones, according to the custom of those early days. Both agreed not to pass beyond the stones of witness to harm each other. We do not read on this occasion of the anointing of the pillar. But we do find that Jacob marked the occasion not only by an oath but also by sacrifice... He also swore by the fear of Isaac his father... But there was the danger of the fear of Isaac, whom he could see, replacing the fear of the God, whom he could not see.

He is really telling Jacob, "I cannot trust you out of my sight, so I want the Lord to watch." Of course it was true the other way also. Jacob had learned not to trust Laban. So that this pillar is the milestone in Jacob's life that proclaims clearly the untrustworthiness of the flesh. Very often it takes two parties to expose it to one another!

It is sad to think that he considered this necessary between relatives, for it is again a legal arrangement rather than a trusting relationship marked by grace, as every family relationship should be.

It is a sorry sight to the eye of faith: retribution for Laban, rescue for Jacob and his house through God's overruling hand and goodness... For, since he did not fear God, he had no confidence in his own nearest relation. But what had Jacob still to learn, as he weighed his old self-seeking and scheming before the Lord?

After all his planning, Jacob has to learn that it is the power of God to which he owes the increase... But his prosperity turns Laban against him, as spiritual increase separates from the world. Then comes the call of God to return to Canaan. Laban cannot get on with him any more, yet Jacob's withdrawal makes him openly hostile — just as the world feels the sting of separation, though there can be no more fellowship... and Jacob finally departs in peace with a covenant between him and Laban, at Galeed, the "heap of witness."

Those of the world who claim relationship with the saints of God set up the "heap of witness." For them it is a sign that so long as the witness remains — religious profession — no harm can come to them. Notice that Laban covenants not to pass the heap to harm Jacob, whereas in Jacob's case both heap and pillar must be passed over before the day of reconciliation ends. God, as it were, is set between as judge.

The name of God was invoked, as we see in verse 53. He was called on as the God of Abraham and of Nahor, since Laban as well as Jacob would have honoured both of those forefathers. In addition Jacob swore by the fear of Isaac his father. Such was the esteem given to parents and ancestors in those far-off days — very good in many ways. But there was the danger that the fear of Isaac, whom he could see, would take the place of the fear of God, whom he could not see. So he received a reminder of the unseen world, as the opening verse of Genesis 32 shows.

Clearly Laban and his family were idolaters. But it also appears they had some superstitious knowledge of God — no doubt handed down by tradition. They mixed what they had received from earlier times with the image-worship growing up around them. In such a case, even to honour the true God is only superstition… One feature of ancient idolatry was not the denial of the name of God. It was joining that name with idols.

Isaac was a gracious and prayerful person, who knew what it is to meditate in the fields at evening. Is it conceivable that a man of such habits would fail to judge his own deliberate lie? It made the world stumble. It dishonoured his Almighty Protector, his beloved wife, and himself as a saint. … Can anyone doubt, then, that the fear of Isaac (Gen. 31:42) worked in his conscience to humble him and to clear his spirit from deceit.

God stepped in to protect him and keep him safe from every enemy. Yet in his heart Jacob claims all the credit, for "he swore by the fear of his father Isaac." Was this what he had agreed to do? By his own confession God had been with him. Had he not had bread and clothing these twenty years? Now surely was the time to own Jehovah as his God. But no, that needed faith… He certainly knew Jehovah would not own his ways; so he swears by the fear of his father Isaac.

It was something to hear Jacob confessing the name of the God of Abraham and the fear of Isaac (chap. 31:42), and then again at the end of the chapter "the fear of his father Isaac" seems to have been uppermost in his mind. The sense of God's faithfulness and of His holy majesty had deepened in Jacob up to this point.

God was in none of his thoughts, and neither was love for his daughters, or their children, or his son-in-law. But he tries to put a good face on the matter, and asks for a covenant between himself and Jacob. Jacob leaves all the terms to Laban and his wretched thoughts and fears, but solemnly carries it out, along with the name that stood. He not only swore by the Fear of Isaac; he also offered peace-offerings, and they ate bread together.

We have learned about the burnt offering. Now we must look at the offering that, until the days of Moses, was called simply a sacrifice. It is mentioned in Exodus 10:25, Exodus 18:12 and Exodus 24:5, and it was festive in character. In Exodus 24:5 it is called by the term translated peace offering. Very likely at Galeed (Gen. 31:54), where Jacob and Laban feasted together, sacrifices of this kind were offered, and the two men and their companies shared in them. This solemnly confirmed the covenant made between the father-in-law and the son-in-law... In the burnt offering everything went up to God. In the sacrifice, as this other offering was first called, the one who brought it and those with him feasted together, God, it is likely, having His part, and they theirs.

While Laban has emphasized the covenant, Jacob offered a sacrifice (v. 54), which was far better. Then he invited the whole company to eat a meal with him. At least the sacrifice was a reminder that God had rights far more important than those of either Jacob or Laban. Eating together eased the tension between them, so they could part on reasonably friendly terms.

There is something great in this. It tells us that Jacob knew his place and dignity under God. Laban had every claim that nature, the flesh or family ties could give, but Jacob acts despite them. Laban was the older man; he was the master and the father-in-law. Yet Jacob still takes the place of the "better," and offers the sacrifice. He does it in the same spirit of faith as Abraham when he made a covenant with the king of Gerar (Gen. 21).

Jacob was under discipline in Padan-aram. He had no altar there. Before God he was a penitent rather than a worshipper. But in front of Laban he knows himself as a saint. Here, at Mount Gilead, he has his pillar, his sacrifice and his feast. He acts in the faith that gives him courage to live up to his dignity as a saint and priest of God, in the face of every claim of flesh and blood.

Such a scene, as a picture, shows our own blessing. For we enjoy a covenant of peace, secured by a sacrifice and witnessed by a feast. So, on the night of redemption from Egypt, the altar and the table — that is, the sacrifice and the feast — are there again. The blood is on the doorpost. The household, ransomed and sheltered by it, are inside, feeding on the lamb whose blood was protecting and delivering them.

He tries to put a good face on the matter, and asks for a covenant between himself and Jacob. Jacob leaves all the terms to Laban, with his miserable thoughts and fears, but he solemnly carries it out, and the name that was given stood too. He not only swore by the Fear of Isaac; he also offered peace offerings, and they ate bread together.

While Laban has emphasized the covenant, Jacob offered a sacrifice (v. 54), which was far better. Then he invited the whole company to eat a meal with him. At least the sacrifice was a reminder that God had rights far more important than those of either Jacob or Laban. Eating together eased the tension between them, so that they could part on fairly friendly terms. The next morning, before they parted, Laban kissed his daughters and their children. But there is no mention of his kissing Jacob, as he had done when they first met (Genesis 29:13).

As to Laban, he was a thorough man of the world when Jacob entered his house, and so he was when Jacob left it. In all his dealings, from first to last, he looks to his own advantage. He has to admit that the hand of God was with Jacob. But he wanted that hand, working through Jacob, to serve himself, and to turn Jacob's interest in God to his own profit. For twenty years he had the witness of the Lord's hand, and of the working of His grace and power. It was before his eyes and in his house, and that daily. But he stayed a man of the world still... And Jacob's departure from his house at the end was like an escape out of the enemy's hand. It was a kind of exodus... Laban was his Pharaoh, and Laban's country his Egypt.

We cannot wonder at Laban, for he had never been at Bethel. He had seen no open heaven, with a ladder reaching from there to earth. He had heard no magnificent promises from the lips of the Lord, securing to him all the land of Canaan, with countless descendants. No wonder, then, that he showed a grasping, low-minded spirit; he had no other resource. It is useless to expect anything from worldly men but a worldly spirit, and worldly principles and ways; they have nothing better... But Jacob had seen and heard all this at Bethel. To find him struggling with a man of the world, and trying by such means to pile up property, is especially humbling.

He pretends that Jacob left him only because he missed home. His conscience must have told him many a very different reason. He puts on grief and anger at not having a chance to kiss his daughters and grandchildren, and to send them away with honour. Yet his conscience must have reminded him how he had sold them again and again... And he gives a solemn air to the last bargain between him and Jacob, bringing in the name of the God of Abraham. Yet he had just been searching for his idols. He was getting ready to go back to the land God had called Abraham out of, and to stay there a thorough, heartless man of the world still, a worshipper of his own god.

This was, after all, a formal separation of Jacob from the world. God had taken care of him up to now, as He always does of Israel, but through angels. He Himself only meets him after this. He told him to leave, that was all.

Laban went and returned to his place, as we have seen. Of him we hear no more.

After Laban left, "Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him." Jacob recognised them. He had seen them before in his dream, and he said, "This is God's camp!" Their appearing was God reminding him of His promise, "I will never leave you." It was to assure him of God's protection in the dreaded meeting with Esau. But his response to this grace is very feeble.