72 | Genesis 31:1
Jacob Flees From Laban
Ja cob heard that La ban’ s sons were say ing,“ Ja cob has taken ev ery thing our fa ther
31 owned and has gained all this wealth from what be longed to our fa ther.” 2 And Jacob no ticed that La ban’ s at ti tude to ward him was not what it had been.
3 Then the Lord said to Ja cob,“ Go back h to the land of your fa thers and to your rel a tives, and I will be with you.” i
4 So Ja cob sent word to Ra chel and Leah to come out to the fields where his flocks were. 5 He said to them,“ I see that your fa ther’ s at ti tude to ward me is not what it was be fore, but the God of my fa ther has been with me. j 6 You know that I’ ve worked for your fa ther with all my strength, k 7 yet your fa ther has cheated me by chang ing my wages ten times. l How ever, God has not al lowed him to harm me. m 8 If he said,‘ The speck led ones will be your wages,’ then all the flocks gave birth to speck led young; and if he said,‘ The streaked ones will be your wages,’ n then all the flocks bore streaked young. 9 So God has taken away your fa ther’ s live stock and has given them to me. o
10“ In breed ing sea son I once had a dream in which I looked up and saw that the male goats mat ing with the flock were streaked, speck led or spot ted. 11 The an gel of God p said to me in the dream,‘ Ja cob.’ I an swered,‘ Here I am.’ 12 And he said,‘ Look up and see that all the male goats mat ing with the flock are streaked, speck led or spot ted, for I have seen all that La ban has been do ing to you. q 13 I am the God of Bethel, r where you anointed a pil lar and where you made a vow to me. Now leave this land at once and go back to your na tive land. s’”
14 Then Ra chel and Leah re plied,“ Do we still have any share in the in her i tance of our father’ s estate? 15 Does he not re gard us as for eign ers? Not only has he sold us, but he has used up what was paid for us. t 16 Surely all the wealth that God took away from our fa ther be longs to us and our chil dren. So do what ever God has told you.”
17 Then Ja cob put his chil dren and his wives on cam els, 18 and he drove all his live stock ahead of him, along with all the goods he had ac cu mu lated in Pad dan Aram, a to go to his father Isaac u in the land of Ca naan. v 19 When La ban had gone to shear his sheep, Ra chel stole her fa ther’ s house hold gods. w
20 Moreover, Jacob deceived x
La ban the Ar a mean by not tell ing him he was run ning away. y 21 So he fled with all he had, crossed the Eu phra tes River, and headed for the hill coun try of Gilead. z
31:3 h ver 13; Ge 32:9 i Ge 21:22; 26:3; 28:15
31:5 j Ge 21:22; 26:3 31:6 k Ge 30:29
31:7 l ver 41; Job 19:3 m ver 52; Ps 37:28;
105:14 31:8 n Ge 30:32
31:9 o ver 1, 16; Ge 30:42
31:11 p Ge 16:7; 48:16 31:12 q Ex 3:7
31:13 r Ge 28:10-22 s ver 3; Ge 32:9
31:15 t Ge 29:20
31:18 u Ge 35:27 v Ge 10:19
31:19 w ver 30, 32, 34- 35; Ge 35:2; Jdg 17:5; 1Sa 19:13; Hos 3:4
31:20 x Ge 27:36 y ver 27
31:21 z Ge 37:25
31:24 a Ge 20:3; Job 33:15 b Ge 24:50
31:26 c Ge 27:36 d 1Sa 30:2‐3
Laban Pursues Jacob
22 On the third day La ban was told that Ja cob had fled. 23 Taking his relatives with him, he pur sued Ja cob for seven days and caught up with him in the hill coun try of Gil ead. 24 Then God came to La ban the Ar a mean in a dream at night and said to him, a“ Be care ful not to say any thing to Ja cob, ei ther good or bad.” b
25 Ja cob had pitched his tent in the hill coun try of Gil ead when La ban over took him, and La ban and his rel a tives camped there too. 26 Then La ban said to Ja cob,“ What have you done? You’ ve de ceived me, c and you’ ve car ried off my daugh ters like cap tives in war. d 27 Why did you run off se cretly and de ceive me? Why didn’ t you tell me, so I could send
a 18 That is, Northwest Mesopotamia
31:1 – 21 Jacob Flees From Laban. Tension arises when Laban’ s sons become jealous of Jacob’ s prosperity. Against this background, the Lord instructs Jacob to return to Canaan. Speaking privately to his wives, Rachel and Leah, Jacob emphasizes how God has actively enriched him and invites them to join him as he returns to Canaan. Acknowledging that their father has also mistreated them, they willingly agree to flee from their homeland with Jacob. 31:3 the land of your fathers. God’ s brief instruction to Jacob highlights that Canaan is the homeland of his fathers. This was not so when God called Abraham( 12:1). 31:7 your father has cheated me. Jacob explains to Rachel and Leah that their father has repeatedly changed his terms of employment. On every occasion, however, God has intervened, preventing Laban from harming Jacob. Consequently, Jacob has received more and more of Laban’ s livestock. The outcome reflects what Isaac said when he blessed Jacob: those who curse him will be cursed, and those who bless him will be blessed( 27:29; cf. 12:3). 31:14 – 16 For once Rachel and Leah agree. Their future will be best served by going with Jacob, especially since God has been with him. 31:19 – 20 Rachel stole... Jacob deceived. Although it is not immediately obvious from most English translations, these verses describe two thefts. The Hebrew text of v. 20 says,“ Jacob stole the heart of Laban”; in Hebrew the idiom“ to steal someone’ s heart” means to deceive or trick a person( see vv. 26 – 27). While Jacob steals Laban’ s heart( i. e., deceives him), Rachel steals her father’ s gods. Later, Laban accuses Jacob of stealing everything that Jacob now possesses( v. 43). 31:19 household gods. The objects Rachel steals may be small figurines that resemble certain gods. Worshipers thought that the gods were present in these images or idols, hence Laban speaks of them as“ my gods”( v. 30). Perhaps Rachel steals these household gods because she hopes that possessing them will bring her good fortune and deprive her father of such benefit. If so, she has not fully broken free from her polytheistic upbringing( see 35:2; Josh 24:2). She may also have taken the items for their monetary value if they were made of precious metals. 31:21 Jacob travels south from Paddan Aram toward Canaan. hill country of Gilead. Located southeast of the Sea of Galilee, about 400 miles( 645 kilometers) south of Harran. 31:22 – 55 Laban Pursues Jacob. Distrust and deception run deep within Laban’ s family. Jacob departs for Canaan when Laban is away. However, Jacob’ s father-in-law eventually overtakes Jacob and his retinue. After a heated encounter, the two men make a treaty guaranteeing not to harm each other. 31:22 – 23 Jacob and his family have journeyed for ten days before Laban overtakes them. By pursuing them so far, Laban demonstrates his determination to confront Jacob. 31:26 – 29 Laban portrays Jacob’ s actions as deceptive. Laban says that he, on the other hand, would have willingly and joyfully celebrated Jacob’ s departure for Canaan. In the light of his previous actions, Laban’ s words sound hollow.