By Jay T. Robertson, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Christian Studies, University of Mobile
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Genesis 31:2–16
Obedience Required (2–3)
Laban and his sons no longer looked favorably upon Jacob. Laban’s ugly mood did not bode well for Jacob. So when the Lord told Jacob to return to his father’s land, Jacob responded without any hesitation.
Jacob’s exodus from Mesopotamia serves as a prophetic outline of Israel’s exodus from Egypt. Jacob’s large family flees from Laban; in the future a multitude of Jacob’s descendants will flee from Pharaoh. Jacob’s family plunders Laban; his descendants will plunder Pharaoh and his people. Laban is forced to let Jacob’s family go; Pharaoh will be forced to let Jacob’s descendants go. Jacob’s exodus from Laban provides a picture of redemptive history that points to the ultimate exodus that believers will experience in Christ, the ultimate Israel, who plundered the power of evil and led them out of bondage to Satan.
God’s providence is clearly seen in the narrative of Jacob’s escape from Laban. God has been continually at work through his many interventions and constant protection. God would later do the same thing in Moses’ escape from Egypt and in the ultimate exodus in Christ. All glory goes to God.
At this stage in Jacob’s life, we can see spiritual progress. He is faithful to the Lord. He begins obediently and continues to walk obediently. The Lord commanded him to return to his homeland, and Jacob obeys the command.
Obedience Declared (4–13)
The Mesopotamian legal code stated that a husband could not take his wives away without their consent. So Jacob had Rachel and Leah meet him in the field where he was shepherding so he could make his case before them. In the ensuing conversation Jacob and his wives mentioned God by name seven times. Jacob and his wives acknowledged that God had been providentially at work protecting him from Laban’s scheming against him and graciously providing for him.
Jacob declared that he had served their father obediently with all of his strength. He had served Laban faithfully all through the years of his sojourn in Mesopotamia. But Laban had cheated him and changed his wages ten times.
Jacob reminded his wives of their father’s unfair dealings with him. He also reminded them that God had nullified Laban’s deceitful plan by making Laban’s plain-colored flocks bear multicolored offspring. Jacob concluded that God had taken away Laban’s livestock and given them to him. This transfer of wealth had nothing to do with Jacob’s scheming or wisdom and everything to do with God’s gracious blessing of Jacob.
Jacob also shared with them how God had confirmed in a dream during breeding season that it was the Lord who had blessed him with offspring and possessions and now it was time for him to return home, to the land of his kindred. This dream caused Jacob to remember the vow he had made to the Lord in Bethel (Gen. 28:20–22). He had vowed that if the Lord would be with him, provide for him and lead him back to his father’s house in peace, the Lord would be his God.
Obedience Affirmed (14–16)
For the first time we see Rachel and Leah agree with one another. Both Rachel and Leah agreed that their father had not been fair with Jacob or loving toward them. They agreed that it was time to make a new beginning in Canaan. Laban had used Jacob, their husband, like a common slave.
In addition to misusing Jacob, Laban had sold them and used up their own dowries. The dowry, the price of the bride, was supposed to be held in trust in the event that they were abandoned or widowed. Jacob’s long labor of 14 years had benefited their father alone. The two sisters encouraged their husband to do what God told him to do.
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