Genesis 31:22-54 Laban Pursues Jacob
“On the third day Laban was informed that Jacob had fled. So he took his relatives with him, pursued Jacob for seven days, and overtook him at Mount Gilead. But that night God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream and warned him, “Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.”
Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the hill country of Gilead when Laban overtook him, and Laban and his relatives camped there as well. Then Laban said to Jacob, “What have you done? You have deceived me and carried off my daughters like captives of war! Why did you run away secretly and deceive me, without even telling me? I would have sent you away with joy and singing, with tambourines and harps. But you did not even let me kiss my grandchildren and daughters goodbye. Now you have done a foolish thing.
I have power to do you great harm, but last night the God of your father said to me, ‘Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.’ Now you have gone off because you long for your father’s house. But why have you stolen my gods?”
“I was afraid,” Jacob answered, “for I thought you would take your daughters from me by force. If you find your gods with anyone here, he shall not live! In the presence of our relatives, see for yourself if anything is yours, and take it back.” For Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen the idols.
So Laban went into Jacob’s tent, then Leah’s tent, and then the tents of the two maidservants, but he found nothing. Then he left Leah’s tent and entered Rachel’s tent. Now Rachel had taken Laban’s household idols, put them in the saddlebag of her camel, and was sitting on them. And Laban searched everything in the tent but found nothing.
Rachel said to her father, “Sir, do not be angry that I cannot stand up before you; for I am having my period.” So Laban searched, but could not find the household idols.
Then Jacob became incensed and challenged Laban. “What is my crime?” he said. “For what sin of mine have you so hotly pursued me? You have searched all my goods! Have you found anything that belongs to you? Put it here before my brothers and yours, that they may judge between the two of us.
I have been with you for twenty years now. Your sheep and goats have not miscarried, nor have I eaten the rams of your flock. I did not bring you anything torn by wild beasts; I bore the loss myself. And you demanded payment from me for what was stolen by day or night. As it was, the heat consumed me by day and the frost by night, and sleep fled from my eyes.
Thus for twenty years I have served in your household—fourteen years for your two daughters and six years for your flocks—and you have changed my wages ten times! If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had not been with me, surely by now you would have sent me away empty-handed. But God has seen my affliction and the toil of my hands, and last night He rendered judgment.”
Jacob’s Covenant with Laban
But Laban answered Jacob, “These daughters are my daughters, these sons are my sons, and these flocks are my flocks! Everything you see is mine! Yet what can I do today about these daughters of mine or the children they have borne? Come now, let us make a covenant, you and I, and let it serve as a witness between you and me.”
So Jacob picked out a stone and set it up as a pillar, and he said to his relatives, “Gather some stones.” So they took stones and made a mound, and there by the mound they ate. Laban named it Jegar-sahadutha (“Heap of witness” in Aramean), but Jacob called it Galeed (“Heap of Witness” in Hebrew.)
Then Laban declared, “This mound is a witness between you and me this day.” Therefore the place was called Galeed. It was also called Mizpah, (watch) because Laban said, “May the LORD keep watch between you and me when we are absent from one another. If you mistreat my daughters or take other wives, although no one is with us, remember that God is a witness between you and me.”
Laban also said to Jacob, “Here is the mound, and here is the pillar I have set up between you and me. This mound is a witness, and this pillar is a witness, that I will not go past this mound to harm you, and you will not go past this mound and pillar to harm me. May the God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us.”
So Jacob swore by the Fear of his father Isaac.
Then Jacob offered a sacrifice on the mountain and invited his relatives to eat a meal. And after they had eaten, they spent the night on the mountain. Early the next morning, Laban got up and kissed his grandchildren and daughters and blessed them. Then he left to return home.”
Laban has wasted his daughters’ doweries and has attempted to cheat Jacob, changing his wages ten times. Rachel and Leah feel their father is treating them like strangers and ignoring their children altogether. So if all this is true, why is Laban vigorously pursuing Jacob? Rachel has stolen her father’s household gods, and Laban is frightened and furious. But a God whom Laban has never known has confronted Laban in a dream, warning him to be careful in his handling of Jacob.
Now Laban has pursued Jacob for seven days and is attempting to play the role of offended patriarch. Suddenly, Laban is trying to pretend an affection for his daughters and their children that he has never demonstrated previously. It’s likely that if Rachel hadn’t stolen those household gods, Laban might have stayed in Haran, leaving Jacob to return to Canaan. Laban might not know God, but he certainly doesn’t want to offend Him and suffer the consequences. Jacob, meanwhile, has no idea that Rachel has stolen the household gods and so pronounces a curse on anyone who has done so. Rachel eventually dies while delivering Benjamin, and many people feel her death during that delivery is a result of this curse.
Laban and Jacob make a covenant, erecting a monument, a mound and a pillar, and swearing that neither of them will pass that monument to harm the other. Laban belatedly attempts to save face by forbidding Jacob to mistreat his daughters or to take other wives; however, these statements are mostly for show. Certainly, Laban has not cared for his daughters up until now.
Jacob makes a covenant with Laban even though he knows better than to trust Laban. But erecting a mound and a pillar is very serious business and indicates a lasting agreement. There is no mention of “cutting covenant” as was described earlier in Genesis; however, if Jacob and Laban also cut covenant, that will be an additional reason for Laban to behave well. Laban’s previous agreements with Jacob may have been undocumented, but this time the monument is there for everyone to see.
Although Jacob has considered himself to be a slick trickster, twenty years with Uncle Laban has taught him that Laban is even slicker than he is. Laban might be considered as a psychopathic liar. When dealing with such people the only way of securing agreements is complete documentation.
One of the major struggles we have in our mission hospital is getting people to document incidents and to submit written requests. At times I have joked with some of the workers that I don’t see any POP on their wrists, so they should be able to write. Documentation is critically important in health care; if it’s not documented, it’s as if you never did anything. Only documentation will protect you in case of a lawsuit. Documentation also brings peace because we then have a written record to which we can refer. The mound and pillar that Jacob and Laban are erecting is a permanent form of documentation of their covenant, ensuring peace between them.
Today you might be dealing with a family member or someone in your workplace who habitually lies. Ask God for assistance and then document any agreements you must make.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Thank You that You are a God of truth and that You know the end from the beginning in every situation. Help us to forge out agreements and then to document them so that there will be no further arguments. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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