The Dreamer

"And Jacob dwelt in the land wherein his father was a stranger, in the land of Canaan. These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brethren; and the lad was with the sons of Bilhah, and with the sons of Zilpah, his father's wives: and Joseph brought unto his father their evil report. Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat of many colours. And when his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably unto him. And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet the more. And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed: For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance to my sheaf. And his brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed reign over us? Or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us? And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words. And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me. And he told it to his father, and to his brethren; and his father rebuked him, and said unto him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth? And his brethren envied him; but his father observed the saying." (Genesis 37:1-11)

We are about to embark on a journey with Jacob's favorite son, Joseph. We will learn quite a bit about Joseph before we are done. In fact, there are more details provided to us about Joseph than just about any other biblical character, excepting of course, David and Jesus. And we will find that the scriptures do not give us details of any sin of Joseph's. We know he had to have sinned, because there was ever only one man who never sinned, and that was Jesus Christ. But on the whole Joseph appears to be a very righteous both as a youth and as a man; we will see he has much in common with Daniel, another righteous youth who grew into a righteous man.

In spite of the righteousness of Joseph, or perhaps we should say because of it, he will end up suffering greatly at the hands of his brothers. And Jacob unwittingly helped to bring this evil upon his son Joseph, both by letting his other sons see his favoritism of Joseph, and by supplying Joseph with a "coat of many colors."

Chuck Missler says that the term "coat of many colors" was incorrectly translated in the Latin Vulgate. It should be termed "a long-sleeved robe." The significance of this is greater than you would think.

It seems that a long-sleeved robe was the clothing of a ruler. When Jacob produced this for his favorite son, Jacob, jealousy immediately increased amongst his brethren. Compound that further by a dream (two dreams!) symbolizing that the brethren might be "under" Joseph in any sense of the word sometime in the future, and that jealousy began to take on a life of its own!

Joseph seems to be without guile and unable to see that his dreams and his words are turning his brothers against him. Jacob, however, knows his own sons. He has already clearly seen the evil actions of the first three of his sons by Leah. And Jacob, probably remembering himself as a younger brother to an elder brother of whom he coveted things, surely is able to discern undercurrents of envy surrounding his beloved son. This is most likely why he responds outwardly to Joseph with a rebuke, while inwardly he ponders the meaning of the dreams.

Meanwhile, Joseph's brothers hated him. It is interesting that scripture says that Joseph's brothers "hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words." So it is not just that they believe Joseph is an obnoxious little brat of a younger brother; they are fearful that the dreams (and they do believe dreams can be prophetic) will come true. They dwell on this hatred, until they hit upon a plan to get rid of Joseph, which we will see in the next posting.

Esau: Father of the Edomites

"Now these are the generations of Esau, who is Edom. Esau took his wives of the daughters of Canaan; Adah the daughter of Elon the Hittite, and Aholibamah the daughter of Anah the daughter of Zibeon the Hivite; and Bashemath Ishmael's daughter, sister of Nebajoth. And Adah bare to Esau Eliphaz; and Bashemath bare Reuel; And Aholibamah bare Jeush, and Jaalam, and Korah: these are the sons of Esau, which were born unto him in the land of Canaan. And Esau took his wives, and his sons, and his daughters, and all the persons of his house, and his cattle, and all his beasts, and all his substance, which he had got in the land of Canaan; and went into the country from the face of his brother Jacob. For their riches were more than that they might dwell together; and the land wherein they were strangers could not bear them because of their cattle. Thus dwelt Esau in mount Seir: Esau is Edom. And these are the generations of Esau the father of the Edomites in mount Seir: these are the names of Esau's sons: Eliphaz the son of Adah the wife of Esau, Reuel the son of Bashemath the wife of Esau. And the sons of Eliphaz were Teman, Omar, Zepho, and Gatam, and Kenaz. And Timna was concubine to Eliphaz Esau's son; and she bare to Elipha Amalek: these were the sons of Adah Esau's wife. And these are the sons of Reuel; Nahath, and Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah: these were the sons of Beshemath Esau's wife. And these were the sons of Aholibamah, the daughter of Anah the daughter of Zibeon, Esau's wife: and she bare to Esau Jeush, and Jaalam, and Korah. These were dukes of the sons of Esau: the sons of Eliphaz the firstborn son of Esau; duke Teman, duke Omar, duke Zepho, duke Kenaz, duke Korah, duke Gatam, and duke Amalek: these are the dukes that came of Eliphaz in the land of Edom; these were the sons of Adah. And these are the sons of Reuel Esau's son; duke Nahath, duke Zerah, duke Shammah, duke Mizah: these are the dukes that came of Reuel in the land of Edom; these are the sons of Beshemath Esau's wife. And these are the sons of Aholibamah Esau's wife; duke Jeush, duke Jaalam, duke Korah: these were the dukes that came of Aholibamah the daughter of Anah, Esau's wife. These are the sons of Esau, who is Edom, and these are their dukes. These are the son of Seir the Horite, who inhabited the land; Lotan, and Shobal, and Zibeon, and Anah, and Dishon, and Ezer, and Dishan: these are the dukes of the Horites, the children of Seir in the land of Edom. And the children of Lotan were Hori and Heman; and Lotan's sister was Timna. And the children of Shobal were these; Alvan, and Manahath, and Ebal, Shepko, and Onam. And these are the children of Zibeon; both Ajah, and Anah: this was that Anah that found the mules in the wilderness, as he fed the asses of Zibeon his father. And the children of Anah were these; Dishon, and Aholibamah the daughter of Anah. And these are the children of Dishon; Hemdan, and Eshban, and Ithran, and Cheran. The children of Ezer are these; Bilhan, and Zaavan, and Akan. The children of Dishan are these: Uz and Aran. These are the dukes that came of the Horites; duke Lotan, duke Shobal, duke Zibeon, duke Anah, duke Dishon, duke Ezer, duke Dishan: these are the dukes that came of Hori, among their dukes in the land of Seir. And these are the kings that reigned in the land of Edom, before there reigned any king over the children of Israel. And Bela the son of Beor reigned in Edom: and the name of his city was Dinhabah. And Bela died, and Jobab the son of Zerah of Bozrah reigned in his stead. And Jobab died, and Husham of the land of Temani reigned in his stead. And Husham died, and Hadad the son of Bedad, who smote Midian in the field of Moab, reigned in his stead: and the name of his city was Avith. And Hadad died, and Samlah of Masrekah reigned in his stead. And Samlah died, and Saul of Rehoboth by the river reigned in his stead. And Saul died, and Baalhanan the son of Achbor reigned in his stead. And Baalhanan the son of Achbor died, and Hadar reigned in his stead: and the name of his city was Pau; and his wife's name was Mehetabel, the daughter of Matred, the daughter of Mezahab. And these are the names of the dukes that came of Esau, according to their families, after their places, by their names; duke Timnah, duke Albah, duke Jetheth, duke Aholibamah, duke Elah, duke Pinon, duke Kenaz, duke Teman, duke Mibzar, duke Magdiel, duke Iram: these be the dukes of Edom, according to their habitations in the land of their possession: he is Esau the father of the Edomites." (Genesis 36:1-43)

All throughout this passage of scripture, Esau and Edom are made equivalent. We are to be reminded of that as we continue to read scripture and find the hostility, or animosity at least, that continues between the descendants of Israel and the descendants of Edom. Even if Esau's heart was softened by God, his descendants remember that they could have had the blessings of Israel had Jacob not usurped the birthright and the blessing from Esau, the father of the Edomites. So animosities will continue throughout the ages. (See Numbers 20 and 1 Samuel 13)

There are too many children and children of children to examine each one. So I chose only one: Eliphaz.

Genesis is one of the five books of the Torah written by Moses. This means that the events happened much, much earlier, obviously – including the creation, than when Moses actually wrote the books. All that he wrote was inspired by God, of course, otherwise he could not have written such things that contain prophecies that came to pass thousands of years later.

But the book of Job is another book, not written by Moses, but that occurred long before its position in scripture indicates. Many biblical scholars believe that Job pre-dates the books of Moses. And if we turn to Job 4:1, we will see one of the friends of Job listed by the name of Eliphaz the Temanite. The Temanites were descendants of Esau, and Eliphaz obviously a family name. So we perhaps see an Edomite appearing in the book of Job.

In addition, in the passage above, again many scholars believe that Jobab, the son of Zerah could actually be Job. What is interesting about that is that Jobab was a ruler; which meant then, if scholars are correct, that Job was a ruler. There is additional evidence that a monument mentioned in Isaiah 19 could have been built by Job…and that it is one of the great Pyramids.

That means that perhaps not all Edomites were all bad. Yet, in 2 Chronicles 25, God orders the Edomites to be destroyed because they have become devil worshippers. And the entire book of Obadiah is about the destruction of Edom or the Esau-ites.

A couple of final notes:

1. the city of Petra was the capital of Edom for a while. If any of you have read the Left Behind Series, you will remember Petra. It is the place that scripture warns the remnant of Israel to flee to when under attack from the anti-christ.
   
2. The Edomites were also called Idumeans – and Herod was the most famous of all Idumeans (or Edomites.)
   

Scripture has much more to say about Edom, but we will discuss future prophecies and such in depth when we arrive at those passages in scripture.

Rachel’s Tomb

"And they journeyed from Bethel; and there was but a little way to come to Ephrath: and Rachel travailed, and she had hard labour. And it came to pass, when she was in hard labour, that the midwife said unto her, Fear not; thou shalt have this son also. And it came to pass, as her soul was departing, (for she died) that she called his name Benoni: but his father called him Benjamin. And Rachel died, and was buried in the way to Ephrath, which is Bethlehem. And Jacob set a pillar upon her grave: that is the pillar of Rachel's grave unto this day. And Israel journeyed, and spread his tent beyond the tower of Edar. And it came to pass, when Israel dwelt in that land, that Reuben went and lay with Bilhah his father's concubine: and Israel heard it. Now the sons of Jacob were twelve. Tthe sons of Leah: Reuben, Jacob's firstborn, and Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Ebulon. The sons of Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin. The sons of Bilhah, Rachel's handmaid: Dan and Naphtali. And the sons of Zilpah, Leah's handmaid: Gad, and Asher. These are the sons of Jacob, which were born to him in Padanaram. And Jacob came unto Isaac his father unto Mamre, unto the city of Arbah, which is Hebron, where Abraham and Isaac sojourned. And the days of Isaac were an hundred and fourscore years. And Isaac gave up the ghost, and died, and was gathered unto his people, being old and full of days: and his sons Esau and Jacob buried him." (Genesis 35:16-29)

Finally, we see the birth of Jacob's last son, Benjamin, making the number of his sons: twelve. Rachel did not survive the birth of Benjamin, however, and as she was dying she proclaimed the baby's name to be Benoni, which means "son of my sorrow." Jacob, however, changed the baby's name immediately to Benjamin: "son of the right hand" which in Hebrew indicates a deeper meaning of: "son of good fortune" (or "prosperity.") It is interesting to note that Rachel's midwife prophesied over the birth of Benjamin and what she prophesied came to pass. Even though Rachel died, the baby lived. And Rachel was buried in Bethlehem, actually somewhat on the outskirts of that city. And we are not told why he did not carry her body on to the family tomb which Abraham had purchased so many years before. Perhaps, the Lord instructed him to leave her there. Here is an excerpt from a Jewish website concerning Rachel's grave:

"Rachel's Tomb is located in the city of Bethlehem, just south of Jerusalem. For centuries, it lay on a deserted roadside, and Rachel's descendents would come here to pour out their hearts to her – the mother who dwells in a lonely wayside grave in order to be there for her suffering children…"

This same website (www.chabad.org) states that Joseph was seven at the time of his mother's death. It also gives information on how the grave might have been marked, saying that it was marked first with stones (which would have been the only way to mark it when Jacob buried her, I imagine), then with a tiny dome upheld by four beams from the 5^th century A.D. until the mid-1800's at which time a Jewish couple added walls to the dome and a room for visitors. The Midrash (a Jewish book of Rabbinical wisdom) provides its own suggestion as to why Jacob buried Rachel in this lonely place. You can find that reason here on this website as well, under the tab labeled "Spiritual." There are many websites that speak about Rachel's Tomb as it is a sacred memorial to the Jews to this day.

Jacob's father, Isaac, dies sometime after Jacob's return to his homeland. Isaac lives to be 180 years old (fourscore = 4 x 20 = 80). And thankfully, because of God's grace towards Jacob in softening Esau's heart towards Jacob, he and his brother Esau come together to bury their father.

Now we take a look at Reuben, Jacob's firstborn son, the son of Leah. Reuben slept with Bilhah who was originally Rachel's handmaid, and then became Jacob's concubine for the purpose of bearing him sons during that period of time when Rachel was barren, before the Lord opened up her womb. Again, we are not told why Rebuen decided to do such a thing that was extremely dishonoring to his father and I would think to his half-brothers by Bilhah as well: Dan and Napthali. But he might have been driven more by lust than by a desire to hurt his father, for further on in our study we will see that he does several things that indicate how important his father Jacob is to him. I believe Reuben does love his father, so I believe this was either lust or perhaps he intended for some reason to hurt his half-brothers by this action with their mother. We just don't know why, and the Lord who inspired all scripture must have decided that the reason behind his actions were not as important as the action itself. And sadly, just as will happen with Simeon and Levi, Reuben also will pay a price for his actions.

The reality that we must face is that there is always a price attached to each and every sin. The work of the enemy, Satan, who had his way with Reuben here, blinds each of us with momentary deception that causes us to lose sight of the price of sin, and causes us to momentarily forget how wrong sin is. He causes us to momentarily forget God and what is right. But he cannot have his way in us, in other words, he cannot deceive us, unless we open the door and let him in. In the case of lust, it is said that it is not the first glance that causes sin, it is the second. And this is true whether it is sexual lust or material lust or power lust or any other lust, for many sins are a product of lust. It is when we linger and dwell upon the possibilities of sin, all of which takes place first in our mind, that Satan is able to enter in and bring sin to fruition in us through our actions. And when sin is fulfilled in us, then Satan leaves us and the deception lifts and we see what we have done. Often, it is at that moment, when the deception lifts and our eyes are opened again to see, that we are left wondering how we could have done such a thing.

And just as there are two very real realms, the earthly and the heavenly, the physical and the spiritual, the price for sin must be paid in both realms. Adam and Eve died two deaths: one spiritual and one physical for their sin. So will we.

An example of this is of the sin of sexual immorality as was displayed by Reuben. Sin in this area can cause a person to lose his or her spouse if they are married and sin in adultery, or lose relationship with some other loved one who was hurt by their actions, or they can contract disease from sexual immorality, sometimes even a fatal disease. There are many different ways that sin can cause us (and others) severe loss or pain, not only from sexual immorality which is the sin we happen to be discussing from this passage of scripture, but from all sin, no matter how small. The consequences of our sin all happens in the physical realm and are labeled temporal or short-lived. Even though the consequences of our actions can last our entire life, still that is as long as the consequences or punishment of our sins can last in this physical realm; and then it comes to an end.

But in the spiritual realm, where time has no end, the consequences or punishment for sin continues eternally. The sin is, after all, against a Holy God, our creator, our heavenly Father. We who are His creation have him to answer to. And when we sin, no matter how small or how large the sin, we have sinned against God. And there is an eternal price to pay; one that will NEVER end. In a place called HELL. And our punishment will continue into eternity.

We can only be thankful then that we have a heavenly Father who truly loves us and cares for us, and wants us to be free from the bondage to sin and from the punishment, both temporal and eternal, that accompanies sin. He loved us so much that He sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, to take the punishment for our sins, so that if we choose to accept Him in our place, as God intends for us to do, we will not need to suffer the eternal consequences of our sin. Jesus gave His life for us to pay for our sins Himself. Who in their right minds would reject such a divine deal?

Unless, of course, they are under the blindness of that fatal deception we spoke of earlier. In which case, I pray for open eyes to "see" and open ears to "hear" the Truth that is JESUS CHRIST: God's plan to save us from eternal Hell and to give us eternal LIFE instead!

"Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else." (Isaiah 45:17)

"For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior; who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all…" (1 Timothy 2:3-6)

Back to Bethel

"And God said unto Jacob, Arise, go up to Bethel, and dwell there: and make there an altar unto God, that appeared unto thee when thou fleddest from the face of Esau thy brother. Then Jacob said unto his household, and to all that were with him, Put away the strange gods that are among you, and be clean, and change your garments: and let us arise, and go up to Bethel; and I will make there an altar unto God, who answered me in the day of my distress, and was with me in the way which I went. And they gave unto Jacob all the strange gods which were in their hand, and all their earrings which were in their ears; and Jacob hid them under the oak which was by Shechem. And they journeyed, and the terror of God was upon the cities that were round about them, and they did not pursue after the sons of Jacob. (Genesis 35:1-5)

After the slaughter of the Hivites, God again commands Jacob to get up and go. Amazingly, He does so rather gently, even though there is also some rebuke in that He calls for a sacrifice to be made. Jacob has lingered here in Shechem 8 to 10 years by the time the slaughter takes place, making Simeon and Levi somewhere in their very early twenties. Jacob himself had forgotten that he had asked God to return him to his father's home (Genesis 28:20-21), a thing which God is doing even though Jacob has caused much delay (and tragedy) by settling here in Shechem.

Jacob's response to God's command is immediate. And his understanding of the need for the sacrifice is clear. He instructs his entire household, including servants, to gather up any false gods that they have with them. These false gods are in Jacob's household perhaps because Jacob brought with him servants from the land of Mesopotamia where Laban dwelled; and the Mesopotamians superstitiously carried these false gods. And they could be there because of the Hivite plunder that was brought into Jacob's household after the slaughter. But Jacob knows that a cleansing is needed; and he even instructs them all to change their garments as though even the garments touching those idols needs cleansing. Once gathered up, all the false gods, and objects of idol worship which included their earrings; perhaps earrings worn as a sign of slavery to these false gods? All of it was buried under an oak on the land Jacob had purchased when he first arrived in Shechem.

And then they moved on.

But Jacob's fear of vengeance being wrought upon him by the neighboring Cannanites never happened. Instead, all those potentially dangerous neighbors were struck with a terror of God that CAME from God Himself; God once more protecting Jacob along his journey. And so no one pursued Jacob's entourage.

So Jacob came to Luz, which is in the land of Canaan, that is Bethel, he and all the people that were with him. And he built there an altar, and called the place Elbethel: because there God appeared unto him, when he fled from the face of his brother. But Deborah Rebekah's nurse died, and she was buried beneath Bethel under an oak: and the name of it was called Allonbachuth. And God appeared unto Jacob again, when he came out of Padanaram, and blessed him. And God said unto him, Thy name is Jacob: thy name shall not be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name: and he called his name Israel. And God said unto him, I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins; and the land which I gave Abraham and Isaac, to thee I will give it, and to thy seed after thee will I give the land. And God went up from him in the place where he talked with him. And Jacob set up a pillar in the place where he talked with him, even a pillar of stone: and he poured a drink offering thereon, and he poured oil thereon. And Jacob called the name of the place where God spake with him, Bethel." (Genesis 35:6-15)

Several interesting things happen here.

Jacob does build an altar on which certainly an animal is sacrificed although we are not told of the animal specifically. God even appears to Jacob in a sign of acceptance of that obedient sacrifice made by Jacob, but before He does Rebekah's nurse dies. Here we learn of something we did not know before-hand. Apparently, Rebekah, Jacob's mother, sent her nurse (most likely meaning the servant who helped raise Jacob) along with Jacob when he first left his father's house. So, this woman has been with him all this time and has now died. She must have been in her fifties at least. And she is buried under an oak which was considered to be a sanctified tree. Jacob's affection for this nurse who had been with him his entire life must have been great; for he named the oak "Allonbachuth" or "Oak of Weeping."

Then God appears to Jacob, to talk with him (which indicates a dialogue rather than just a commandment); reiterating Jacob's name change that was given to him during that long-ago wrestling match with the Lord, and confirming once more that He will bless Jacob and multiply his seed (descendants) – even promising that kings will come forth from his bloodline.

And then God "went up from him in the place where he talked with him."

This is very interesting in that when Jesus Christ leaves his disciples (after His death on the cross and resurrection but just before the Day of Pentecost) He also is taken "up" out of their sight….an ascension into heaven (Luke 24:51). There is after all only ONE GOD.

And then Jacob (prophetically, I believe) builds a pillar of stone upon which he pours a drink offering of wine and oil. I see the stone as being prophetic of the Rock of Ages, the corner stone, Jesus Christ; the wine representing the blood that Jesus would one day shed for us; and the oil, His anointing.

Jacob renames the place once more with the same name he had formerly given it: Bethel . " House of God."

 

 

Senseless Slaughter of the Hivites

"And Dinah the daughter of Leah, which she bare unto Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land. And when Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, prince of the country, saw her, he took her, and lay with her and defiled her. And his soul clave unto Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the damsel, and spake kindly unto the damsel. And Shechem spake unto his father Hamor, saying, Get me this damsel to wife. And Jacob heard that he had defiled Dinah his daughter: now his sons were with his cattle in the field: and Jacob held his peace until they were come. And Hamor the father of Shechem went out unto Jacob to commune with him. And the sons of Jacob came out of the field when they heard it: and the men were grieved, and they were very wroth, because he had wrought folly in Israel in lying with Jacob's daughter; which thing ought not to be done. And Hamor communed with them, saying, The soul of my son Shechem longeth for your daughter: I pray you give her him to wife. And make ye marriages with us, and give your daughters unto us, and take our daughters unto you. And ye shall dwell with us: and the land shall be before you; dwell and trade ye therein, and get you possessions therein. And Shechem said unto her father and unto her brethren, Let me find grace in your eyes, and what ye shall say unto me I will give. Ask me never so much dowry and gift, and I will give according as ye shall say unto me: but give me the damsel to wife. And the sons of Jacob answered Shechem and Hamor his father deceitfully, and said, because he had defiled Dinah their sister: and they said unto them, We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one that is uncircumcised; for that were a reproach unto us: but in this will we consent unto you: If ye will be as we be, that every male of you be circumcised; then we will give our daughters unto you, and we will take your daughters to us, and we will dwell with you, and we will become one people. But if ye will not hearken unto, to be circumcised; then will we take our daughter, and we will be gone. And their words pleased Hamor, and Shechem, Hamor's son. And the young man deferred not to do the thing, because he had delight in Jacob's daughter: and he was more honourable than all the house of his father. " (Genesis 34:1-19)

Let's pause here for a moment in this passage and reflect on what has brought these events to pass.

In the first place, this is not the place that the Lord has called Jacob to. He was to go home; but instead he dwelled here in the city of Shechem, perhaps named so after the prince of the land: Shechem, son of Hamor (or Emmor as in Acts 17:2).

Secondly, Dinah has not kept to her family as she most likely was expected to do. Perhaps her curiosity overcame her; perhaps loneliness and longing to be with other girls (although we would assume the multitude of servants Jacob would have had would have daughters, perhaps she wasn't allowed to make companions of them). In either case, she left the safety and protection of her family's camp which probably numbered as many as the Hivites themselves; and placed herself in danger. And danger came by way of a prince who abused the privileges of royalty as later on a great King of Israel named David would also do.

But the bulk of the blame for the shameful aspects of this event do fall on Shechem, who sadly was the most honorable man in his father's house. In fact, he does appear to want to do right by Dinah on the one hand (he tells Jacob to ask any dowry he wants and Shechem will pay it as long as he can keep Dinah). He most definitely is smitten with Dinah, but whether it is true love or true lust is debatable, no matter what his actions. The passion of lust could create this great a frenzy to have the object of one's desires as much as the passion of love could. The difference is that true love is honorable; true lust forgets about honor in its efforts to obtain its desires.

Such, I believe, was the case with Shechem. For honor, both to Dinah and to her family, would have been to restore Dinah to her family along with at least SOME manner of repentance for the wrongdoing before offering to make it right by marriage. Shechem's princely arrogance did not offer any repentance or remorse for his former bad treatment of Dinah.

This is the very thing that outraged Dinah's brothers, Simeon and Levi. And where a man has multiple wives, the duty of protecting the honor of the daughter, Dinah, does not fall to her father, but to her own brothers, the sons of Leah.

The tragedy is had the two fathers, Jacob and Hamor, worked it out, they would have come to a wise and peaceable outcome because of their maturity and life experience. But two young bucks full of pride and revenge, and obviously with hardened hearts as well, took matters into their own hands without consulting the wisdom of their father.

"And Hamor and Shechem his son came unto the gate of their city, and communed with the men of their city, saying, These men are peaceable with us; therefore let them dwell in the land, and trade therein; for the land, behold, it is large enough for them; let us take their daughters to us for wives, and let us give them our daughters. Only herein will the men consent unto us for to dwell with us, to be one people, if every male among us be circumcised, as they are circumcised. Shall not their cattle and their substance and every beast of theirs be ours? Only let us consent unto them, and they will dwell with us. And unto Hamor and unto Shechem his son hearkened all that went out of the gate of his city; and every male was circumcised, all that went out of the gate of his city. And it came to pass on the third day, when they were sore, that two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, Dinah's brethren, took each man his sword, and came upon the city boldly, and slew all the males. And they slew Hamor and Shechem his son, with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah out of Shechem's house, and went out. The sons of Jacob came upon the slain, and spoiled the city, because they had defiled their sister. They took their sheep and their oxen, and their asses, and that which was in the city, and that which was in the field. And all their wealth, and all their little ones, and their wives took they captive, and spoiled even all that was in the house. And Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, Ye had troubled me to make me stink among the inhabitants of the land, among the Cannanites and the Perizites: and I being few in number, they shall gather themselves together against me, and slay me; and I shall be destroyed, I and my house. And they said, Should he deal with our sister as with an harlot?" (Genesis 34:20-31)

The gate of a city was the gathering place for the men, in which public announcements were made. This is why we find in Proverbs 31 mention of the virtuous woman's husband sitting in the gate of the city. It was a place where men "read" the newspapers and discussed politics and world events with one another, a necessary thing in those days for survival. Only there were no newspapers; all news traveled by word of mouth. And, as in this case, royal edicts were announced. Only the Hivites were apparently not commanded to be circumcised; they heard the king's and prince's opinions and decided it was a wise thing to do. And again, Shechem was considered a most honorable man; one whom the other men of the village apparently trusted.

Notice that Simeon and Levi imposed only an outward form of religion upon the Shechem and the Hivites; there was no mention of worshiping the one true God versus the many pagan gods that the Hivites worshipped. But then again, it was all deceit anyway. Religion used as a tool in a plot to murder; a thing that will repeat itself in every century to follow, by religions of all sorts. (Thus a distinction is made between religion and true God-worshippers; beginning here with Jacob's sons.) They know, of course, that the circumcisions will disable the men and make them useless to defend themselves. I think they might have taken their own servants with them to help in the slaughter, for even after killing the men, I don't know how they could have gathered up all the women and children and animals and belongings of the Hivite town without help. But certainly it was by Simeon and Levi's hands alone that the king and his son were slain and Dinah retrieved.

It was a cowardly and hideously violent thing to do. One that brought shame to Jacob's house; and no glory to God. When Jacob rebuked his sons, it appears that he has no concern about the evil of what they have done, other than that it brought his own household into risk of also being slaughtered. This was indeed a real risk from ALL the Cannanites and Perizites in the entire land who did indeed outnumber Jacob's household. But Jacob doesn't address the evil that his sons have done.

Perhaps he knew it would be a waste of time for they had such hardened consciences that it would not have touched them; even as fear of retribution upon themselves and their family members doesn't move them either. They have no remorse. Their youthful arrogance and pride rule them in horrendous ways.

And we will see in the days to come what price they will pay for this senseless vengeance.

 

Mighty God of Israel

Before we go on to the actual meeting between Jacob and Esau, there are a few more things to consider regarding the wrestling match between Jacob and the pre-incarnate Jesus Christ.

For example, when Jacob asks his contender's name, then answer is another question: "Why do you ask my name?" He does not question Jacob out of curiosity, but rather as though to say "You know it already." This question will be answered further along in scripture in the book of Judges as well as in the book of Isaiah (only a few of the 300 or so names of God to be found in the Bible).

"Manoah said unto the angel of the LORD, What is your name, so that when your words come to pass, we may honor you? But the angel of the LORD said to him, Why do you ask my name, seeing it is wonderful?" (Judges 13:17-18 NASB)

"For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace." (Isaiah 9:6 NASB)

As far as Jacob's new name, his is an exception to the name-change pattern that is normally seen in the Bible. Normally, when God changes an individual's name, only the new God-given name is used by God from that point on in scripture. For example: Abram becomes Abraham and then God always refers to him as Abraham after that point. The same thing happens with Sarai who become Sarah and Saul who become Paul, etc. Not so with Jacob. It appears that God calls him Jacob when Jacob is walking according to his flesh, while his God-given name of Israel is used when he is following the Spirit of God. Unfortunately, we will see that the name Jacob is used twice as often as Israel.

Hosea also offers some insight into the wrestling match:

"In the womb he took his brother by the heel, and in his maturity he contended with God. Yes, he wrestled with the angel and prevailed; he wept and sought His favor. He found Him at Bethel…" (Hosea 12:3-4)

There was weeping on Jacob's part when he wrestled with the Lord, indicative perhaps of repentance (as one reader of this blog, GW, suggested earlier). And all three of the above scriptures indicate to us that it was God that Jacob wrestled with, otherwise known as the "angel of the Lord" or the pre-incarnate Jesus Christ, as is commonly understood by scholars when the term "angel of the Lord" is used.

Jacob "found God" at Bethel. He met the "hosts of God" at Mahanaim. And he "saw the face of God" at Peniel.

Now let's watch what happens when Jacob meets Esau.

"And Jacob lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, Esau came, and with him four hundred men. And he divided the children unto Leah, and unto Rachel, and unto the two handmaids. And he put the handmaids and their children foremost, and Leah and her children after, and Rachel and Joseph hindermost. And he passed over before them, and bowed himself to the ground seven times, until he came near to his brother. And Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck, and kissed him, and they wept. And he lifted up his eyes, and saw the women and the children; and said, Who are those with thee? And he said, The children which God hath graciously given thy servant. Then the handmaidens came near, they and their children, and they bowed themselves. And Leah also with her children came near, and bowed themselves, and after came Joseph and Rachel, and they bowed themselves. And he said, What meanest thou by all this drove which I MET? And he said, These are to find grace in the sight of my lord. And Esau said, I have enough, my brother, keep that thou hast unto thyself. And Jacob said, Nay, I pray thee, if now I have found grace in thy sight, then receive my present at my hand: for therefore I have seen thy face, as though I had seen the face of God, and thou wast pleased with me,. Take I pray thee, my blessing that is brought to thee; because God hath dealt graciously with me, and because I have enough. And he urged him, and he took it. And he said, Let us take our journey, and let us go, and I will go before thee. And he said unto him, My lord knoweth that the children are tender, and the flocks and herds with young are with me: and if men should overdrive them one day, all the flock will die. Let my lord, I pray thee, pass over before his servant: and I will lead on softly, according as the cattle that goeth before me and the children be able to endure, until I come unto my lord unto Seir. And Esau said, Let me now leave with thee some of the folk that are with me. And he said, What needeth it? Let me find grace in the sight of my lord. So Esau returned that day on his way unto Seir. And Jacob journeyed to Succoth, and built him an house, and made booths for his cattle: therefore the name of the place is called Succoth. And Jacob came to Shalem, a city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan, when he came from Padanaram; and pitched his tent before the city. And he bought a parcel of field, where he had spread his tent, at the hand of the children of Hamor, Shechem's father, for an hundred pieces of money. And he erected there an altar, and called it Elelohe Israel," (Genesis 33:1-20)

We can't help but notice the order in which Jacob places his wives, concubines and children in the procession that is moving out to meet Esau whom Jacob fears greatly. Even though Jacob does take the lead, he has placed Rachel and Joseph farthest away from the potential of Esau's potential anger and vengeance, in the hope that they will escape while the ones closest to Esau are being slaughtered (all of which is playing out as a great possibility in Jacob's guilty imagination). Surely this did not escape Leah's attention, and how deeply hurt she must have been. And how did the children feel; the eldest of which is around 14 years of age and is staged alongside of Leah?

But Esau miraculously throws himself at Jacob's neck in a huge embrace of joyful emotion, rather than fury. While Jacob is thoroughly shocked at this response (obviously God softened Esau's heart somewhere along the way as God is able to do), still Jacob does not want to linger in Esau's presence. We are not sure if it is because he just doesn't want to linger around one whom he believes does not really honor God (even though Esau acknowledges that he has been blessed by God) or because he still doesn't trust Esau. In truth, Esau seems to be governed for most of his life thus far by emotional compulsion (moved by the circumstances of the moment rather than by what is right) and one like this cannot be trusted or thought to be "safe" to be around.

I would guess that it is still fear that motivates Jacob, however. Notice that Jacob "evades" traveling in company with Esau, by suggesting that his young herds and young children will not be able to keep up with Esau and his men. While this is a true statement, still it is a ploy. For Jacob, in truth, does not want to travel with Esau at all. In fact, he wants to put as much distance between himself and Esau as possible.

Even though Jacob tells Esau he will meet him further along at Mount Seir (which is in the southeast), Jacob deliberately turns his entourage towards the northwest….the completely opposite direction!

Perhaps this is the direction he always intended to go towards his father Isaac's home, or perhaps this is a detour. In either case, Jacob will settle for a time in the town of Shalem in an area known as Shechem (both names should sound familiar). This will prove to be an extremely bad choice; and is most likely NOT where God told him to go when God told Jacob to leave Laban. Abraham left the place God had brought him to and traveled to Egypt, during which time he picked up a servant by the name of Hagar. Abraham's presence in a place God did not call him to wrought terrible havoc in Abraham's immediate family as well as for generations to come. Such will happen with Jacob as well when he makes a choice that is outside of God's will for him.

Now let's look for a moment at some of the terms used in the last few verses of scripture above.

Shalem is another spelling of the city of Salem (meaning "peace") whose king we have met earlier on in scripture: Melchizedek.

Shechem (meaning "shoulder") is the land in which Abraham purchases a burial place for Sarah. Jacob himself will later be buried there as well.

Succoths (meaning "booths" which will also become the name of an Israelite religious Feast Day) will also be the first stop that the Israelites camp in on their way out of the land of Egypt after 400 years of bondage.

Elelohe Israel means "Mighty God of Israel." An altar erected by Jacob most likely because of the mercy and grace of God that Jacob experienced in the meeting with Esau. It is here that Jacob finally "worships" God as his own God, no longer referring to Him as "the God of my father Isaac."

Now, another name of God will be "The God of Abraham, Isaac, AND Jacob."

Next: a heinous incident which will cause two sons of Jacob to lose their birthright blessings from God.

The Birth of Israel

"And he rose up that night, and took his two wives, and his two womenservants, and his eleven sons and passed over the ford Jabbok. And he took them, and sent them over the brook, and sent over that he had. And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day. And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob's thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him. And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed. And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there. And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel; for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved. And as he passed over Penuel the sun rose upon him, and he halted upon his thigh. Therefore the children of Israel eat not of the sinew which shrank, which is upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day: because he touched the hollow of Jacob's thigh in the sinew that shrank." (Genesis 32:22-32)

Jacob makes sure his family is safely encamped past the stream called Jabbok, but then he himself returns back over it to find a place of solitude, in which he can wait upon the answer he seeks from God. In the same sentence we are told he is left alone and at the same time wrestling a man til the break of day. Do we determine from this statement that it was in a vision or a dream that this wrestling match occurred or was it a real occurrence?

The truth is that, in either case, it was real and left a very real defect in Jacob's thigh that caused him to limp for the rest of his life. While we are not told where this "man" came from, we are told that Jacob believed this man to be God Himself. Certainly the "man" spoke with a prophetic authority that could only come from God. We might, then, determine that this is another instance, such as Abraham experienced, of meeting the "angel of the Lord" or Jesus Christ in His pre-incarnate form. Thus, this WAS God Himself that Jacob struggled with.

And the struggle was all about a blessing. Jacob, the usurper, who sought Esau's blessings of both birthright and double portion of inheritance, needed the biggest blessing of all on this particular night. In fact, for the first time, Jacob is not struggling to obtain a blessing for himself alone, but for his entire family of two wives, two womenservants (concubines), their eleven sons and one daughter, plus a huge company of servants and animals.

Jacob, a man who knows the true value of birthrights and inheritances, and goes after them by whatever means are available to him; a man who loves so passionately that he barters away 14 years of his life for one woman; this same Jacob is the one who now wrestles with God himself refusing to let Him go until he is blessed by God. This is no ordinary, mundane, passive individual. This is a ferocious and bull-doggedly determined individual who though aware of his own faults and wrong-doings, still has the bold audacity to insist upon a blessing from God! And God FAVORS him! Wow! That should be a revelation to us!

And what IS the revelation? That Jacob considered God to be a GOOD God even when he, Jacob, was bad, and a God of BLESSINGS, rather than of PUNISHMENT! The same bull-doggedness that made Jacob do all that he had done (whether good or bad) in his life, also caused him to have bull-dogged faith in the GOODNESS of God towards him! Not because he deserved it or earned it or it was due him, but just simply because GOD IS GOOD!

And what does Jacob's determination to NOT LET GO get for him? The very blessing that he sought and even more than he is able to imagine. God, the one Jacob is wrestling with, gives him a new name: ISRAEL. And from this determined yet frail human named Jacob, an entire nation will be born! God does not think small. Why do we?

It is because of Jacob's determination and his faith in God's goodness towards him, that he is told that he is "like a prince" (royalty) and has "power with God and with men"…power with God meaning that God favors him and hears his requests and grants them and protects him; power with men meaning that Jacob's blessedness and protection that comes from God makes him powerful among men in terms of provision and wealth, and even points men towards God who is Jacob's benefactor. If God is for you, who can be against you?

We need Abraham's courage to leave all that is familiar to us and venture forth following God alone. We need Isaac's "fear" of God that reminds us that God alone is sovereign. And finally we need Jacob's determined faith and audacity to believe in AND receive the blessings that our GOOD God has promised us in His Word! We cannot shrink back and still be blessed by God. We must pursue with all that is in us, until God Himself brings us to a halt of His own timing, as happened here with Jacob – halted by God's touch on his thigh for God always prevails.

We do not serve a God who is untouchable and unconcerned with our human troubles. We serve the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob – the same God who chose frail men to pour out His blessing onto – men such as you and I – yet they were men who believed the Word that God spoke, trusted in His promises to them, and deemed God to be good, faithful, and able to fulfill those promises! He is this same God. He has not changed. He is not dead. And His Promise is still there for all who will trust in Him.

Wrestle with Him if you will, but do not leave until you have received the blessing He has promised!

Jacob’s Prayer

"And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him. And when Jacob saw them, he said, This is God's host: and he called the name of that place Mahanaim. And Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother unto the land of Seir, the country of Edom. And he commanded them, saying, Thus shall ye speak unto my lord Esau; Thy servant Jacob saith thus, I have sojourned with Laban, and stayed there until now: And I have oxen, and asses, flocks, and menservants, and womenservants: and I have sent to tell my lord, that I may find grace in thy sight. And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, We came to thy brother Esau, and also he cometh to meet thee, and four hundred men with him. Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed: and he divided the people that was with him, and the flocks, and herds, and the camels, into two bands; and said, If Esau come to the one company, and smite it, then the other company which is left shall escape. And Jacob said, O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, the LORD which saidst unto me, Return unto thy country, and to thy kindred, and I will deal well with thee: I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which thou hast shewed unto thy servant; for with my staff I passed over this Jordan; and now I am become two bands. Deliver me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau: for I fear him, lest he will come and smite me, and the mother with the children. And thou saidst, I will surely do thee good, and make thy seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude." (Genesis 32:1-12)

When angels come to meet Jacob and he names the place of meeting "Mahanaim" (which is Hebrew for "two camps") we might safely assume that Jacob has a host of angels encamped either in front of him and also behind him, or possibly on either side of him, for the name that Jacob gives the meeting ground indicates that there are two distinct groups of angels encamped with him in that place. And they do seem to have arrived for the purpose of meeting Jacob; yet we are not privy to their conversations if there were any. And we do not know how long they remain there. One thing for sure is that Jacob has seen more angels than just about anyone thus far in scripture.

Just before Jacob arrives in the country of Edom, he sends a group of men to deliver a very humble and subservient message to his brother Esau whom he now calls "my lord." Jacob hopes a little humble pie will satisfy Esau, but the response he gets to his message to Esau is to hear from his messenger that Esau is on his way with 400 men! This leaves Jacob to determine, because of his guilty conscience, that a furious vengeance is about to descend upon him and his family….and Jacob is terrified…absolutely terrified!

And so Jacob prepares for the worst! He divides his family up, hoping only half of them will die and the other half will somehow escape, which is very sad and shows his great fear for them all.

Then Jacob calls upon God, the God of Abraham and of his father Isaac, and pleads for mercy even though he knows he is least deserving of mercy. It is a beautiful prayer, and a humble one; and one which reminds God of His promise to Jacob as well.

We are not told whether the next thing that he does is at God's instructions or of his own thinking, but I think it is Jacob's own idea and that he has not yet heard from God (although God will answer him before the night is over.) Jacob proceeds to establish a gift, a peace offering he hopes, to send to Esau in advance. He hopes to be able to see by Esau's face whether or not his offering is accepted gracefully; and thus, Jacob will know whether or not he will be accepted as well.

"And he lodged there that same night; and took of that which came to his hand a present for Esau his brother; two hundred she goats, and twenty he goats, two hundred ewes, and twenty rams, thirty milch camels with their colts, forty kine, and ten bulls, twenty she asses, and ten foals. And he delivered them into the hand of his servants, every drove by themselves; and said unto his servants, Pass over before me, and put a space betwixt drove and drove. And he commanded the foremost, saying, When Esau my brother meeteth thee, and asketh thee, saying, Whose art thou? And whither goest thou? And whose are these before thee? Then thou shalt say, They be thy servant Jacob's; it is a present sent unto my lord Esau: and, behold, also he is behind us. And so commanded he the second, and the third, and all that followed the droves, saying, On this manner shall ye speak unto Esau, when ye find him. And say ye moreover, Behold, thy servant Jacob is behind us. For he said, I will appease him with the present that goeth before me, and afterward I will see his face; peradventure he will accept of me. So went the present over before him: and himself lodged that night in the company." (Genesis 32:13-21)

What a long night that must have been! In fact, we will see that it is a night that will change Jacob forever!

 

The Heap of Witness

"And Jacob was wroth, and chode with Laban: and Jacob answered and said to Laban, What is my trespass? What is my sin, that thou hast so hotly pursued after me? Whereas thou hast searched all my stuff, what hast thou found of all thy household stuff? Set it here before my brethren and thy brethren, that they may judge betwixt us both. This twenty years have I been with thee; thy ewes and thy she goats have not cast their young, and the rams of thy flock have I not eaten. That which was torn of beasts I brought not unto thee; I bare the loss of it; of my hand didst thou require it, whether stolen by day, or stolen by night. Thus I was; in the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night; and my sleep departed from my eyes. Thus have I been twenty years in thy house; I served thee fourteen years for thy two daughters, and six years for thy cattle: and thou hast changed my wages ten times. Except the God of my father, the God of Abraham, and the fear of Isaac, had been with me, surely thou hadst sent me away now empty. God hath seen mine affliction and the labor of my hands, and rebuked thee yesternight. And Laban answered and said unto Jacob, These daughters are my daughters, and these children are my children and these cattle are my cattle, and all that thou seest is mine: and what can I do this day unto these my daughters, or unto their children which they have born? Now therefore come thou, let us make a covenant, I and thou: and let it be for a witness between me and thee. And Jacob took a stone, and set it up for a pillar. And Jacob said unto his brethren, Gather stones; and they took stones, and made an heap: and they did eat there upon the heap. And Laban called it Jegarsahadutha: but Jacob called it Galeed. And Laban said, This heap is a witness between me and thee this day. Therefore was the name of it called Galeed; and Mizpah; for he said, The Lord watch between me and thee, when we are absent one from another. If thou shalt afflict my daughters, or if thou shalt take other wives beside my daughters, no man is with us; see, God is witness betwixt me and thee. And Laban said to Jacob, Behold this heap, and behold this pillar, which I have cast betwixt me and thee; this heap be witness, and this pillar be witness, that I will not pass over this heap to thee, and that thou shalt not pass over this heap and this pillar unto me, for harm. The God of Abraham, and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge betwixt us. And Jacob sware by the fear of his father Isaac. Then Jacob offered sacrifice upon the mount, and called his brethren to eat bread; and they did eat bread, and tarried all night in the mount. And early in the morning Laban rose up, and kissed his sons and his daughters, and blessed them: and Laban departed, and returned unto his place." (Genesis 31:36-55)

Jacob is slow to anger, how could he be perceived otherwise having had the patience and fortitude to remain in such an unfair relationship with Laban for these past twenty years? But now, especially having been accused of stealing from Laban, Jacob gives forth in righteous indignation, and rightly so.

All that Jacob speaks to Laban, Laban knows is true. I can imagine Laban shrinking as the offenses are piled upon him one by one of his unfair treatment of his relative Jacob; but he is too proud to apologize. But Laban knows that God is concerned with the affairs of Jacob. Laban knows, therefore, that God is aware and listening even now to Jacob's speech about Laban's injurious actions towards Jacob.

This is why the ever-shrewd Laban hits upon the idea that rather than attack Jacob in any way (seeing as how God has already warned him off of Jacob even in his speech much less in any other regard by which Laban might have profited further) it would be better to establish Jacob as a covenant friend and protector.

You will notice that all of the covenant terms are dictated by Laban; Jacob contributes nothing to the terms of the covenant. It is after all, Laban who needs protection from the God of Jacob; and not Jacob that needs protection from Laban. God has shown Himself mighty on Jacob's behalf. But Jacob is not vengeful and is willing to be at peace with Laban.

When Laban invokes the surety of this covenant upon the God of Abraham, and the God of Nahor, and the God of their father (who is Terah) – Jacob does not reiterate the same invocation. This is because he knows idol worship has entered into the family of Terah through Nahor and his son Laban. He will have no part of the "gods" of Nahor and Laban. Instead he invokes "the fear of his father Isaac." What he is invoking is the fear of God that Isaac has for the God of Abraham. This is a reverential and healthy fear. In which Isaac lives as he is not dead and already with God as Abraham is. Jacob fears "the God of Abraham" as well, but does not call Him his own God yet. To Jacob, He is still "the God of Abraham" and "the fear of Isaac."

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown Commentaries describe the heap of stone in this way:

"The way in which this covenant was ratified was by a heap of stones being laid in a circular pile, to serve as seats, and in the center of this circle a large one was set up perpendicularly for an altar. It is probable that a sacrifice was first offered, and then that the feast of reconciliation was partaken of by both parties seated on the stones around it. To this day heaps of stones, which have been used as memorials, are found abundantly in the region where this transaction took place."

The covenant or peace treaty (and such it is as violence might have ensued without it) between Laban and Jacob is confirmed or ratified with an animal sacrifice, as a slain animal represents what should happen to the covenant participants should they break their covenant. Covenant was a deadly serious business and never taken lightly.

Bread is broken between the covenant parties and their brethren, and the fellowship of reconciliation goes on all night long. And in the morning Laban blesses them all and leaves to return home again.

Laban Restrained by God

"And it was told Laban on the third day that Jacob was fled. And He took his brethren with him, and pursued after him seven days' journey; and they overtook him in the mount Gilead. And God came to Laban the Syrian in a dream by night, and said unto him, Take heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad. Then Laban overtook Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the mount: and Laban with his brethren pitched in the mount of Gilead. And Laban said to Jacob, What hast thou done, that thou hast stolen away unawares to me, and carried away my daughters, as captives taken with the sword? Wherefore didst thou flee away secretly, and steal away from me, and didst not tell me, that I might have sent thee away with mirth, and with songs, with tabret, and with harp. And hast not suffered me to kiss my sons and my daughters? Thou hast now done foolishly in so doing. It is in the power of my hand to do you hurt: but the God of your father spake unto me yesternight, saying, Take thou heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad. And now, though thou wouldest needs be gone, because thou sore longedst after thy father's house, yet wherefore hast thou stolen my gods? And Jacob answered and said to Laban, Because I was afraid: for I said, Peradventure thou wouldest take by force thy daughters from me. With whomsoever thou findest thy gods, let him not live: before our brethren discern thou what is thine with me, and take it to thee. For Jacob knew not that Rachel had stolen them. And Laban went into Jacob's tent, and into Leah's tent, and into the two maidservants' tents; but he found them not. Then went he out of Leah's tent, and entered into Rachel's tent. Now Rachel had taken the images, and put them in the camel's furniture, and sat upon them. And Laban searched all the tent, but found them not. And she said to her father, Let it not displease my lord that I cannot rise up before thee; for the custom of women is upon me. And he searched, but found not the images." (Genesis 31:22-35)

Laban is angry that Jacob has escaped without his knowing it…and escaped is as good a word as any as to Jacob it is as though he were held prisoner for all these twenty years that should only have been seven at most, except for Laban's deceptions regarding both wives and wages. No wonder that Jacob decides to leave secretly, distrusting Laban so much that he feared Laban would try to forcibly take Jacob's wives from him. And no doubt Laban might have tried that very thing or more, had not God warned him to beware how he spoke to Jacob, His own. Fortunately for Jacob, Laban believed God's word in that dream. But that left Laban in a rather difficult position of choosing his words very carefully; and in the end, the most he could do was complain that he was unable to kiss his children and grandchildren good-bye…AND question Jacob about why he took his gods.

And we come back to "his gods." The Hebrew word used here is not teraphiym this time; instead it is elohiym. Elohiym can mean God with a capital G when used in the singular (in other words the one true God). But the Hebrew word is not used in the singular here. It is used in the plural, and in the plural usage the Hebrew word means "gods" with a little "g;" in other words, false gods or idols. It is clear in this statement that these "gods" were valuable to Laban; we still don't know whether the importance attached to them was because they were made of precious metal such as gold, or whether it was because he relied upon them, such as superstitious people rely upon a rabbit's foot or some other object on which they look to protect them; or whether he worshiped them as idols. If he did worship these idols as gods, then he is exceedingly foolish since the very gods he trusts in cannot even protect themselves from being stolen.

But we must be concerned more about Rachel than about Laban. What was her motive in stealing his gods from him? Did she steal them merely to get back at her father? Or did she rely on them as well?

When Jacob proclaims death to whomever it was that stole Laban's household gods, he had no idea it was Rachel. Unfortunately, once spoken it could not be unspoken; it was only Rachel's quick cleverness that prevented an outcome that would have devastated Jacob. Or perhaps it had something to do with God's timing as well.

After all, there was one more son to be born to Jacob in order for the future "twelve tribes of Israel" to be established. The LORD was not yet finished with Rachel; it was not possible for Rachel to die before that son was born.

Sadly, what Jacob has so passionately pronounced will yet be fulfilled.

Going Home

"And he heard the words of Laban's sons, saying, Jacob hath taken away all that was our father's; and of that which was our father's hath he gotten all this glory. And Jacob beheld the countenance of Laban, and, behold, it was not towards him as before. And the LORD said unto Jacob, Return unto the land of thy fathers, and to thy kindred; and I will be with thee. And Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah to the field unto his flock, and said unto them, I see your father's countenance, that it is not toward me as before; but the God of my father hath been with me. And ye know that with all my power I have served your father. And your father hath deceived me, and changed my wages ten times, but God suffered him not to hurt me. If he said thus, The speckled shall be thy wages; then all the cattle bare speckled: and if he said thus, The ringstraked shall be thy hire; then bare all the cattle ringstraked. Thus God hath taken away the cattle of your father, and given them to me, and it came to pass at the time that the cattle conceived, that I lifted up mine eyes, and saw in a dream, and behold, the rams which leaped upon the cattle were ringstraked, speckled and grisled. And the angel of God spake unto me in a dream, saying, Jacob: and I said, Here am I. And he said, Lift up now thine eyes, and see, all the rams which leap upon the cattle are ringstraked, speckled, and grisled: for I have seen all that Laban doeth unto thee. I am the God of Bethel, where thou anointedst the pillar, and where thou vowedst a vow unto me: now arise, get thee out from the land, and return unto the land of thy kindred. And Rachel and Leah answered and said unto him, Is there yet any portion or inheritance for us in our fathers house? Are we not counted of him strangers? For he hath sold us and hath quite devoured also our money. For all the riches which God hath taken from our father, that is ours, and our children's: now then, whatsoever God hath said unto thee, do. Then Jacob rose up, and set his sons and his wives upon camels; and he carried away all his cattle, and all his goods which he had gotten, the cattle of his getting, which he had gotten in Padanaram, for to go to Isaac his father in the land of Canaan. And Laban went to shear this sheep: and Rachel had stolen the images that were her father's. And Jacob stole away unawares to Laban the Syrian, in that he told him not that he fled. So he fled with all that he had, and he rose up, and passed over the river, and set his face toward the mount Gilead." (Genesis 31:1-21)

Jacob and his herds are three days apart from Laban's sons. Laban is residing in the same vicinity as Jacob, as are also Leah and Rachel and all of Jacob's children and servants. But Laban's sons are three days away, and yet rumors have reached Jacob and Laban's camp that Laban's sons are grumbling over the inequity they perceive to be happening in that Jacob's herds of speckled, ringstraked (striped) and grisled cattle (goats and sheep) are far outnumbering Laban's solid colored cattle. It is and will always be the way of the world that whenever one person is blessed, there will always be someone who will be envious and resentful of that person, even to the point of falsely accusing them of acquiring the blessing by dishonorable means.

But, in truth, Jacob has done nothing dishonorable here. Instead. The LORD has shown Jacob wisdom in a dream, showing him that there are more cattle to be had that are not solid in color, most likely because God Himself will see to it that this will be the case in Jacob's favor. And so, when Jacob strikes a bargain with Laban, he does have the upper hand in the bargain because he knows what will be, but still Laban agrees to it and so there is no reason for Laban to now become suspicious of Jacob or angry that Jacob has done better than him. After all, Jacob has served Laban for twenty years now; and served him with all that he had within him to do so.

But this dream now brings us back to the last passage of scripture (in the previous posting) in which Jacob has placed striped rods in front of the watering troughs and that as the cattle conceive at that spot, the resulting cattle born are ringstraked. Jacob does not tell Rachel and Leah that God instructed him to do this. So why did Jacob do it? Was he again helping God along with what God had already told him would surely happen?

And yet, Jacob is obedient to get up and go when God tells him to. And we see that Jacob determined to go probably only AFTER the dream, for without the dream having occurred, Jacob would not have known to ask for the ringstraked and speckled cattle. So, it appears that Jacob is hearing the LORD's words to him, and being obedient to them.

And what about Rachel? Why would she steal her father's household images? The Hebrew word here is teraphiym. Some scholars believe that these were not used for worship; while others believe that they are. It is not clear to us why she took them. Was it the rich metal they were made of? Was it because she trusted in them to help see them safely off? Was it that she wanted to take from her father something that was more precious to her than she herself, or her sister Leah, had been? We aren't told why she took them. But the only dishonorable act here is on the part of Rachel, certainly not Jacob.

Yet, in spite of Rachel's actions, God will protect Jacob and his family, as we will see in the next posting.

It is while Laban has returned to help his sons shear sheep (three days away) that Jacob, Leah, and Rachel tear down their tents and make their escape, in fear of Laban turning violent against Jacob or finding some way to prevent, once more, Jacob's leaving.

But Laban will follow them.

The Blessing of the Speckled and Spotted

"And it came to pass, when Rachel had born Joseph, that Jacob said unto Laban, Send me away, that I may go unto mine own place, and to my country. Give me my wives and my children, for whom I have served thee, and let me go: for thou knowest my service which I have done thee. And Laban said unto him, I pray thee, if I have found favour in thine eyes, tarry: for I have learned by experience that the LORD hath blessed me for thy sake. And he said, Appoint me thy wages, and I will give it. And he said unto him, Thou knowest how I have served thee, and how thy cattle was with me. For it was little which thou hadst before I came, and it is now increased unto a multitude; and the LORD hath blessed thee since my coming: and now when shall I provide for mine own house also? And he said, What shall I give thee? And Jacob said, Thou shalt not give me any thing: if thou will do this thing for me, I will again feed and keep thy flock: I will pass though all thy flock to day, removing from thence all the speckled and spotted cattle, and all the brown cattle among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats: and of such shall be my hire. So shall my righteousness answer for me in time to come, when it shall come for my hire before thy face: every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and brown among the sheep, that shall be counted stolen with me. And Laban said, Behold, I would it might be according to thy word. And he removed that day the he goats that were ringstraked and spotted, and all the she goats that were speckled and spotted, and every one that had some white in it, and all the brown among the sheep, and gave them into the hand of his sons. And he set three days' journey betwixt himself and Jacob: and Jacob fed the rest of Laban's flocks. And Jacob took him rods of green poplar, and of the hazel and chestnut tree; and pilled white strakes in them, and made the white appear which was in the rods. And he set the rods which he had pilled before the flocks in the gutters in the watering troughs when the flocks came to drink, that they should conceive when they came to drink. And the flocks conceived before the rods, and brought forth cattle ringstraked, speckled, and spotted. And Jacob did separate the lambs, and set the faces of the flocks toward the ringstraked, and all the brown in the flock of Laban; and he put his own flocks by themselves, and put them not unto Laban's cattle. And it came to pass, whensoever the stronger cattle did conceive, that Jacob laid the rods before the eyes of the cattle in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods. But when the cattle were feeble, he put them not in; so the feebler were Laban's, and the stronger Jacob's. And the man increased exceedingly, and had much cattle, and maidservants, and menservants, and camels, and asses." (Genesis 30:25-43)

The tables are turning once more! Laban deceived Jacob into working for him 14 years instead of 7 (in fact, Jacob has been there close to 20 years now), and now Jacob will exact his own price for those years. In truth, Jacob cannot go back to his own country again (400 miles away, where Isaac still lives) without cattle to sustain his family which consisted of at the least: two wives, two concubines, and twelve sons. Jacob knows this; but Jacob, who is still Jacob after all, cannot go honestly, he must still find a way to deceive. And so he does.

Once more Jacob uses carnal methods in his attempt to help bring about the promised blessing of God in his life. Goad has already promised He would bless Jacob. Just as wearing the hair of a kid goat on his hands and neck was not necessary to receive his father's blessing, for God had already promised it and was able to fulfill it without Jacob's help; so it is still that Jacob's applying superstitious methods to achieve specked and spotted cattle is not necessary, for God would bless him without any effort on Jacob's part – simple because God promised it and would perform what He promised.

Laban is characteristic of so many folks in the world who don't mind being blessed by God through His people, but will not commit themselves to become one of God's own. He is like the parent who sends his child to Sunday School and church, but will never go himself. Laban recognizes that Jacob is indeed blessed by God, and he even recognizes that the fallout of that blessing has showered down upon himself; but still his heart his hard towards giving himself over to Jacob's God. In fact, Laban is an idol-worshipper…a popular thing in Mesopotamia (what is now known as Iran).

Regardless of Laban's idol-worship, God's blessing over Jacob does cause an increase to come to Laban (God's rain falls on the just and the unjust); and regardless of Jacob's carnality, God's promised blessing does bring an increase to Jacob as well.

Some might want to believe that perhaps God instructed Jacob to use the rods the way he did in order to bring about God's miracle; but that would not be consistent with Jacob's carnality. Jacob has been loved by God before he was born (while in the womb); he has been chosen by God not because he deserves it, but because God so desired it. And Jacob is blessed simply because God always fulfills his promises once spoken. The blessing does not mean Jacob is doing everything right in obedience to God, nor does it mean that he even could do that if he wanted to…not yet at least; for Jacob is still in the driver's seat. He is not 100% trusting in God yet. No, the blessing that Jacob received is simply because he has been shown favor and has been chosen by God, to be loved by Him.

A transformation is coming, but for now the blessing Jacob is receiving is just God's goodness and grace being poured out on to one that He loves….no matter his carnality and devious methods. In fact, even when the transformation comes, while it will bring glory to God, it will not earn God's blessing; for Jacob to earn God's blessing would diminish God's goodness towards Jacob.

So it is with us also. Think about it.

Sons of Jacob

"And when the LORD saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb: but Rachel was barren. And Leah conceived, and bare a son, and she called his name Reuben: for she said, Surely the LORD hath looked upon my affliction; now therefore my husband will love me. And she conceived again, and bare a son; and said, Because the LORD hath heard that I was hated, he hath therefore given me this son also: and she called his name Simeon. And she conceived again, and bare a son; and said, Now this time will my husband be joined unto me, because I have born him three sons: therefore was his name called Levi. And she conceived again, and bare a son: and she said, Now will I praise the LORD: therefore she called his name Judah; and left bearing. And when Rachel saw that she bare Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister; and said unto Jacob, Give me children, or else I die. And Jacob's anger was kindled against Rachel: and he said, Am I in God's stead, who hath withheld from thee the fruit of the womb? And she said, Behold my maid Bilhah, go in unto her; and she shall bear upon my knees, that I may also have children by her. And she gave him Bilhah her handmaid to wife: and Jacob went in unto her. And Bilhah conceived, and bare Jacob a son. And Rachel said, God hath judged me, and hath also heard my voice, and hath given me a son: therefore called she his name Dan. And Bilhah Rachel's maid conceived again, and bare Jacob a second son. And Rachel said, With great wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and I have prevailed: and she called his name Naphtali. When Leah saw that she had left bearing, she took Zilpah her maid, and gave her Jacob to wife. And Zilpah Leah's maid bare Jacob a son. And Leah said, A troop cometh: and she called his name Gad. And Zilpah Leah's maid bare Jacob a second son. And Leah said, Happy am I, for the daughters will call me blessed: and she called his name Asher. And Reuben went in the days of the wheat harvest, and found mandrakes in the field, and brought them unto his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, Give me, I pray thee, of thy son's mandrakes. And she said unto her, Is it a small matter that thou hast taken my husband? And wouldest thou take away my son's mandrakes also? And Rachel said, Therefore he shall lie with thee tonight for thy son's mandrakes. And Jacob came out of the field in the evening, and Leah went out to meet him, and said, Thou must come in unto me; for surely I have hired thee with my son's mandrakes. And he lay with her that night. And God hearkened unto Leah, and she conceived, and bare Jacob the fifth son. And Leah said, God hath given me my hire, because I have given my maiden to my husband: and she called his name Issachar. And Leah conceived again, and bare Jacob the sixth son. And Leah said, God hath endued me with a good dowry; now will my husband dwell with me. Because I have born him six sons: and she called his name Zebulon. And afterwards she bare a daughter, and called her name Dinah. And God remembered Rachel, and God hearkened to her, and opened her womb. And she conceived, and bare a son; and said, God hath taken away my reproach. And she called his name Joseph; and said, The LORD shall add to me another son." (Genesis 29:31 thru 30:24)

Here are listed 11 of the 12 sons that will be Jacob's. The last one comes a bit later and we will get to him; but for now the "race" is on! A race or competition between two sisters to see who can produce the most sons for Jacob and who can claim his greater affection.

It seems that Leah wins in terms of the children she bears to Jacob; yet Rachel still has his greater affection. And neither are content with what they have. Leah longs for her husband to love her as he does Rachel; while Rachel envies her sister's position as first wife and elder sister, as well as envying all the children Leah has. She not only sins in her envy, but adds to her sin by adding such discontented nagging to it that Jacob, who loves her, ends up having to rebuke her.

It is clear from the mandrake episode that Jacob's time is spent mostly with Rachel, in her lodgings. Scholars don't agree on what these mandrakes actually were; some say they were just beautiful and rare flowers and Rachel was as envious of them as she was of everything else about Leah. Others say that they were some type of aphrodisiac or fertility enhancer. I favor the latter, as it seems to make clear sense of why Rachel makes such a big deal of them, even in "loaning" Jacob to her sister for a night, in order to possess the mandrakes. Although "loan" might be the wrong word, as Leah names the resulting son of that night spent with Jacob: "hire" or "wages".

I can't help but wonder how Jacob felt about being "sold."

In all of it, Rachel seems most lacking in her character. She is unlike other women in the bible whom we will meet who plead with God for a child and yet do not sin with such bad attitudes in the process.

What most scholars do agree on is that the reason for such fervor in obtaining sons is the hope that the expectant mother will be given the honor of producing the promised Messiah, according to God's promise to Abraham and to Jacob. Still, this is no excuse for bad attitude and sin.

I will just quickly go through the meanings of the names given to each of the 11 sons listed here, as their names will be used to identify the future "Twelve Tribes of Israel":

Reuben: behold a son or see a son

Simeon: heard or hearing

Levi: joined or attached – they will become the "priests."

Judah: praise

Dan: judging – not a great name to give a son – and we will see that Dan is marked for trouble for most of the way in scripture as it is through the tribe of Dan that idolatry will enter the land.

Napthali: wrestling

Gad: a troop (also Babylonian god of good fortune or of fate…like calling him "good fortune").

Asher: happy

Issachar: hire or wages

Zebulon: dwelling

Joseph: adding to (turns out to be a prophecy) and shows Rachel strong hopes that she will bear again.

There will be many times in scripture when these sons will be "listed." In this case they are listed in order of birth; other times they will be listed in order of how they are to enter battle; another time they are listed according to their placement in the camp.

And we will also see that Dan losing his place in the listing altogether (through sin) as does Levi (but only because the priests are kept out of battle); and Joseph's place in the listing will be split between his two sons (Epharim and Mannaseh) for reasons that will be discussed later. So that there are always just 12 tribes even when Dan and Levi are not counted in the list.

The Birthright Prevails

"And Jacob said unto Laban, Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in unto her. And Laban gathered together all the men of the place, and made a feast. And it came to pass in the evening, that he took Leah his daughter, and brought her to him; and he [Jacob] went in unto her. And Laban gave unto his daughter Leah, Zilpah his maid for a handmaid. And it came to pass, that in the morning, behold, it was Leah: and he said to Laban, What is this thou hast done unto me? Did I not serve with thee for Rachel? Wherefore then hast thou beguiled me? And Laban said, It must not be so done in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn. Fulfill her week, and we will give thee this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years. And Jacob did so, and fulfilled her week: and he gave him Rachel his daughter to wife also. And Laban gave Rachel his daughter Bilbah his handmaid to be her maid. And he went in also unto Rachel, and he loved also Rachel more than Leah, and served with him yet seven other years." (Genesis 29:21-30)

ZING!

That is the sound of Jacob experiencing divine retribution. And all because Leah is the firstborn and therefore has the firstborn's right to marry before her younger sister. Then again, we were told in the previous scripture passage that Leah is called "tender-eyed" which is a term meaning that she has "blue eyes;" something that was considered to be a flaw at that time in Mesopotamia. Thus, she was not considered to be a beautiful woman, while Rachel most definitely was beautiful. Knowing Laban as we now do (a conniver that is no match for the conniver that Jacob is), perhaps he used her birthright to help "marry off" a daughter who otherwise might never find a suitor. I feel certain this is the case.

But as testimony to Jacob's love for Rachel, he does not quibble with Laban over it for long, because immediately Laban has offered him Rachel for the very reduced price of: only seven MORE years of labor. Any other man would have turned away from that offer in disgust, but Jacob loved Rachel and was determined to have her. And we know that when Jacob wants something he can be very determined until he gets it. I believe this is a character trait that God can use, actually, and one that He would like to see in all of us; especially in our pursuit of the things of God.

There are two things to take note of in this passage of scripture.

The first is the use of the phrase "fulfill her week." This passage reads a bit differently in the NIV version in which Laban asks Jacob to "finish this daughter's bridal week" (the honeymoon period, in a sense). Fulfilling Leah's bridal week and then receiving Rachel, entails upon Jacob another seven years of work. We might then say that this one week actually represents seven years for Jacob. In some mysterious way that I cannot fully connect, there IS still a connection, like a little clue here of some sort to another passage of scripture we will get into further in our study when we get to the Book of Daniel. This use of the term "week" will be used more distinctly to actually mean seven years in an angelic revelation given to Daniel, a future descendant of Jacob.

In Daniel 9:24 is a reference to" 70 weeks" which is actually seven years times 70 weeks (or 490 years). The Israelites, Daniel is being told by the angel Gabriel, will remain in Babylonian captivity for 70 weeks; in reality it was 490 years. This wasn't an error on the part of Gabriel who was delivering his message from the Lord to Daniel. It is the proper definition of the term "70 weeks" which he used. We will get into that more when we get to Daniel. But understand that this also is speaking of a "week" of seven years.

The other thing to note is the two handmaids that are given to both Leah and Rachel. These two handmaids are important later on; for from Leah and Rachel AND Zilpah and Bilbah will come all twelve of the sons of Jacob who will form the twelve tribes of Israel.

 

Jacob’s Love

"Then Jacob went on his journey, and came into the land of the people of the east. And he looked, and behold a well in the field, and, lo, there were three flocks of sheep lying by it; for out of that well they watered the flocks: and a great stone was upon the well's mouth. And thither were all the flocks gathered: and they rolled the stone from the well's mouth, and watered the sheep, and put the stone again upon the well's mouth in his place. And Jacob said unto them, My brethren, whence be ye? And they said, Of Haran are we. And he said unto them, Know ye Laban, the son of Nahor? And they said, We know him. And he said unto them, Is he well? And they said, He is well: and, behold, Rachel his daughter cometh with the sheep And he said, Lo, it is yet high day, neither is it time that the cattle should be gathered together: water ye the sheep, and go and feed them. And they said, We cannot, until all the flocks be gathered together, and till they roll the stone from the well's mouth; then we water the sheep. And while he yet spake with them, Rachel came with her father's sheep: for she kept them. And it came to pass, when Jacob saw Rachel, the daughter of Laban his mother's brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother's brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother's brother, that Jacob went near, and rolled the stone from the well's mouth, and watered the flock of Laban his mother's brother. And Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice, and wept." (Genesis 29:1-11)

I believe this was love at first…kiss. Pretty amazing actually that Jacob just went up and kissed Rachel, seeing as how they had just met, if that. Even more amazing that after he kissed her "he lifted up his voice, and wept." Wow! That's very powerful! And is an extremely telling description of just how smitten Jacob was.

And here we have another well. Jacob's mother Rebekah is found at a well, and now his future wife, Rachel, is found at a well. But the fact is that wells were gathering places. The distance from Jacaob's home in Beersheba to "the land of the people of the east" (aka Mesopotamia) is about 400 miles, Jacob headed straight for the well, knowing that he would find there someone who would know his relatives. And sure enough he did.

The "great" stone was large enough that it needed more than one man, possibly more than two even, to move it. But it was also that in such an arid place as they were in, with water evaporating so quickly, they had to conserve it as best they could, by opening it only when ALL the flocks were ready to be watered, rather than several times each day. But, just after Rachel arrives at the well, Jacob suddenly takes it upon himself to remove the stone; and he did it alone. All I can think is that once he saw Rachel, the adrenaline kicked in giving him more strength than usual, I suspect.

But let's go on with their story:

"And Jacob told Rachel that he was her father's brother, and that he was Rebekah's son: and she ran and told her father. And it came to pass, when Laban heard the tidings of Jacob his sister's son, that he ran to meet him, and embraced him, and kissed him, and brought him to his house. And he told Laban all these things. And Laban said to him, Surely thou art my bone and my flesh. And he abode with him the space of a month. And Laban said unto Jacob, Because thou art my brother, shouldest thou therefore serve me for nought? Tell me, what shall thy wages be? And Laban had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. Leah was tender eyed; but Rachel was beautiful and well favoured. And Jacob loved Rachel; and said, I will serve thee seven years for Rachel thy younger daughter. And Laban said, It is better that I give her to thee, than that I should give her to another man: abide with me. And Jacob served seven years for Rachel; and they seemed unto him but a few days, for the love he had for her." (Genesis 29:12-20)

If you recall Laban from the prior mention of him when we first met Rebekah, you will remember that he was a bit of a shady character, at least in my opinion. I can just hear the scheming wheels churning in Laban's head as he discusses this wedding arrangement with Jacob….seven years service and Jacob thinks he will get Rachel. We will see that this will not be the case, for Laban is a deceiver just like Jacob.

Yet Jacob's intense love for Rachel causes those seven years of heavy toil, to pass as though they were "but a few days." In the days when marriages were "arranged," this is quite a love story!