J.
Genesis
31:31 – And Jacob
answered and said to Laban, Because I was afraid: for I said, Peradventure thou
wouldest take by force thy daughters from me.
§
Jacob was wise in
this assessment and it is confirmed in the words of Christ:
o
Luke 16:10 –
He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust
also in much.
o
Laban already
demonstrated that he was unjust in the
least.
§
Similar to the
exodus, the children of Israel
o
Exodus 32:1
– And when
the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out of the mount, the people
gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, “Up make us gods,
which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out
of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him.”
K.
Genesis
31:32 – 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.
§
With this
statement it is likely that Jacob pronounced Rachel’s death sentence, Rachel
dies giving birth to Benjamin in chapter 35
§
Jacob was a
prophet, whatever he spoke had to come to pass; even in ignorance God honors
the word of his prophets
L.
Genesis
31:33 – 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.
§
Laban searched
thoroughly, he knew he looked foolish accusing Jacob and was motivated to save
face.
§
Notice the order
in which Laban searched the tents, Rachel seems to be the least likely suspect
in Laban’s eyes and perhaps this is the reason that she was not made to get
down from the camel
o
Clear that Rachel
is quite cunning in her own right
M.
Genesis
31:34 – 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.
N.
Genesis
31:35 – 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.
§
Whatever happened
to these images?
§
Did Jacob ever
find out about them?
O.
Genesis
31:36 – 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?
§
We haven’t seen
Jacob lose his temper too often except when he is accused wrongly. Rachel accused him of not giving her children
and now Laban accuses him of stealing.
Yet other times Jacob shows great patience, such as when he is cheated.
§
Jacob’s guilt
about how he has been a deceiver may subdue is anger when being the victim of
deception, but there is no such guilt when he is accused of something he hasn’t
done.
P.
Genesis
31:37 – 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.
Q.
Genesis
31:38 – 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.
R.
Genesis
31:39 – 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.
S.
Genesis
31:40 – [Thus] I
was; in the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night; and my sleep
departed from mine eyes.
T.
Genesis
31:41 – 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.
§
Jacob is really
laying it on now, he’s not holding back any of the frustrations that he has
bottled up inside him for the last 20 years working for uncle Laban
§
This no doubt has
a significant impact on Laban, who is likely much more inclined to make a truce
with Jacob after his tirade.
§
20 years makes
Jacob ~98 years old
U.
Genesis
31:42 – 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
labour of my hands, and rebuked [thee] yesternight.
§
The God of my
father…God of Abraham אלהים 'elohiym, Jacob refers to the impersonal Elohiym, God which can be the creator
God as well as a collective “gods”
§
Fear of Isaac - “The God whom Isaac feared”
V.
Genesis
31:43 – 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?
§
More boasting
from Laban who believes he possesses everything of Jacob’s, but God has taken
it away from Laban and had given it to Jacob.
II.
Laban and Jacob make a Covenant (Genesis 31:44-55)
A.
Genesis
31:44 – Now
therefore come thou, let us make a covenant, I and thou; and let it be for a
witness between me and thee.
§
“make a covenant”
à CUT a covenant, same
as when Abraham divided the pieces when God formed His covenant
§
The animals were
split and the covenant parties would walk through the pieces.
o
Similar to the Egyptians
pursuit of the Israelites through the split Red Sea , the water then came crashing down upon them fulfilling God’s promise
from Moses:
a.
Exodus 14:13 -
…for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more
for ever.
b.
Likewise after
this covenant and the boundary established Jacob and Laban do not see each
other again
B.
Genesis
31:45 – And Jacob
took a stone, and set it up [for] a pillar.
C.
Genesis
31:46 – And Jacob
said unto his brethren, Gather stones; and they took stones, and made an heap:
and they did eat there upon the heap.
D.
Genesis
31:47 – And Laban
called it Jegarsahadutha: but Jacob called it Galeed.
§
Jegarsahadutha -
Chaldean for “heap of witness”
o
Language of heathens
§
Galeed - Hebrew
for “heap of witness”
o
Language of God’s
people
§
The names have
one in the same meaning
E.
Genesis
31:48 – And Laban
said, This heap [is] a witness between me and thee this day. Therefore was the
name of it called Galeed;
F.
Genesis
31:49 – And Mizpah;
for he said, The LORD watch between me and thee, when we are absent one from
another.
§
Mizpah – מצפה
Mitspah, "watchtower"
G.
Genesis
31:50 – 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.
§
Laban suddenly
has concern for the well-being of his daughters
H.
Genesis
31:51 – And Laban
said to Jacob, Behold this heap, and behold [this] pillar, which I have cast
betwixt me and thee;
§
v.45 says that
Jacob was the one who set up the pillar
I.
Genesis
31:52 – 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 pillar and
heap are to serve as a boundary
§
No more will they
see each other, another foreshadowing that after the exopdus Israel
a. Exodus 14:13 - …for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye
shall see them again no more for ever.
J.
Genesis
31:53 – 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.
§
God of Abraham..God
of Nahor…God of their father - אלהים 'elohiym, Laban refers to each one of these God’s as
the Elohiym which can mean both the Creator God as well as any subordinate
“gods” or divine beings (because of its plural form). So the God of Abraham and the gods of Nahor
are not one in the same god as a casual reader might interpret, but a
distinction is made between them.
§
“fear of his father Isaac” – same as v. 42
K.
Genesis
31:54 – 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.
§
They sacrificed,
ate bread and commemorated a covenant, a type of picure pointing to the Passover
and eventually to the New Covenant of Jesus Christ.
§
Jacob was the one
who offered the sacrifice, not Laban.
The sacrifice had to originate with the seed of Isaac.
L.
Genesis
31:55 – 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.
§
What did Laban do
after this show of affection? According
to Jasher he sent messengers to bear false witness against Jacob to his brother
Esau.
§
Jasher 31:54-64 - And he hastened and sent off his son Beor, who was
seventeen years old, with Abichorof the son of Uz, the son of Nahor, and with
them were ten men. And they hastened and went and passed on the road before
Jacob, and they came by another road to the land of Seir land of Canaan
§
We can see even
more of Laban’s despicable character in this passage of Jasher.
Chapter 32
I.
Jacob Seeks Reconciliation with Esau (Genesis 32:1-5)
A.
Genesis
32:1 – And Jacob went on his
way, and the angels of God met him.
§
Psalm 34:7
- The angel of the LORD
encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them.
§
Psalm
91:11 - For he shall give his
angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.
§
angels - מלאך
mal'ak, messenger, representative
o
Messenger
o
Angel
o
the theophanic
angel
B.
Genesis
32:2 - And when Jacob saw
them, he said, This [is] God's host: and he called the name of that place
Mahanaim.
§
Host - מחנה
machaneh, encampment, camp
o
camp, place of
encampment
o
camp of armed
host, army camp
o
those
who encamp, company, body of people
§
Mahanaim - מחנים
Machanayim, "two camps"
C.
Genesis
32:3 - And Jacob sent
messengers before him to Esau his brother unto the land of Seir Edom
§
Did Jacob send
his own messengers or did he send these two “messengers” of God? What was the purpose of meeting these
messengers of God if not for the task that Jacob is about to give them?
o
If this is not
their task then the text is silent to the purpose of their visit
§
These messengers
are not called Jacob’s servants
§
Messengers – מלאך
mal'ak, messenger, representative
o
Messenger
o
Angel
o
the theophanic
angel
§
Seir – שעיר
Se`iyr, "hairy" or "shaggy"
o
Obviously Esau
was meant to live here
§
Edom Edom
D.
Genesis
32:4 - 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:
§
Lord Esau? Why is
Jacob calling Esau Lord?
§
Thy servant?
Again Jacob seems to be almost too submissive to Esau here
§
Though these
messengers are not called Jacob’s servants Jacob does command them so Jacob
clearly has some sort of authority over them.
§
Ecclesiastes
10:4 - If the spirit of the
ruler rise up against thee, leave not thy place; for yielding pacifieth great
offences.
o
By humbling
himself before Esau it shows that Jacob does not claiming his birthright and
blessings and that he trusts God to provide for him.
o
Might this have
provoked Esau even more?
E.
Genesis
32:5 - 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.
§
Jacob did not yet
send any of these items as gifts only to let Esau know that he has been blessed
II.
Jacob’s Test of Faith (Genesis 32:6-24)
A.
Genesis
32:6 - 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.
§
Normally you
don’t assemble 400 men for a welcoming party.
It appears that Esau is preparing for battle.
§
Odd that he had
already assembled 400 men, was he alerted somehow?
o
The book of
Jasher actually describes this encounter in detail. It says that messengers from Laban went ahead
to Esau and told him of all of the things that Laban accused Jacob. Esau’s wrath was again kindled against his
brother Jacob hearing the words from Laban’s messengers. He rejected Jacob’s gifts, gathered his men
and went out to destroy Jacob. Then God
entered. On Jacob’s behalf.
§
Wait! Isn’t Jacob
doing what God had told him to do? Why would there be any resistance?
o
This should tell
us that we can’t always assume that meeting resistance means that we are out of
God’s will
o
God allows
obstacles to arise that block us from attaining God’s perfect will, these
obstacles should only serve to strengthen our resolve remember God will not
allow us to be tempted beyond what we can bear.
o
1
Corinthians 10:13 - There
hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God [is]
faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but
will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear
[it].
