Genesis 31:17-21

2009.Feb.27 17:00

Trickery

Read Genesis 31:17-21 | Full Chapter

Then Jacob, his wives, and his children got on camels and left for the home of his father Isaac in Canaan. Jacob took all of the flocks, herds, and other property that he had gotten in northern Syria. Before Rachel left, she stole the household idols while Laban was out shearing his sheep. Jacob tricked Laban the Aramean by not saying that he intended to leave. When Jacob crossed the Euphrates River and headed for the hill country of Gilead, he took with him everything he owned.
(Genesis 31:17-21, CEV)

The main point here is that Jacob, Rachel, Laban, Zilpah, Bilhah and their children, along with Jacob’s flock, herds, property and–I assume–servants, head out to return to Palestine. After the probably twenty-plus years that Jacob has been away. But as their leaving, two “little”, what you might call “tricks” happen. I’ll look at them in reverse order of their presentation in the passage.

Jacob “[tricks] Laban the Aramean” by not letting Laban know of his plans to leave. This strikes me as sensible, with reservations. After all, Laban’s sons are considering killing Jacob and Laban himself is obviously going to upset by this permanent loss of animals he was at least trying to claim as his own, not to mention of Jacob’s work in what appears to have been more or less managing Laban’s economic affairs, particularly related to these same animals. In other words, Laban will probably have mixed emotions about Jacob’s departure, and Jacob is reasonable to think Laban or his sons might react violently. On the other hand, this secretive departure is not going to make Laban more kindly disposed. Unfortunately, there’s probably not a good answer for how Jacob should have handled his leaving. The problems to be resolved have been allowed to exist far too long. Both Laban and Jacob are culpable.

The second is that Rachel steals the household idols. In my previous article, I noted that Rachel was going to take her rejection of Laban one step farther and it is to this theft I refer. There’s a whole lot of ways this could be interpreted and ten thousand discussions about it, but one way I see it is as Rachel’s rejection of Laban and his home as the center and source of the family. For Rachel, Jacob is now the leader of the extended family (or maybe Isaac), not Laban.

It’s of course interesting to see one of the matriarchs of Israel leaving town with idols in her luggage, but then, it’s not clear that Rachel is a worshipper of Yahweh, or even that she knows much about him. In her eyes at this point, Yahweh may be just the god of Isaac and Abraham, perhaps a god restricted to Palestine. That is to say, I don’t think that aspect of the story is particularly important.

One last element I want to comment on is that Rachel does not tell Jacob about this theft. This will create yet another uncomfortable situation later on, but it also suggests to me that Rachel doesn’t have anyone she really trusts. Jacob, despite his professions of love for her, does not appear to have earned her trust. Considering that her time with Jacob has been contemplated by the anger and dissension between her and Leah, and Jacob’s sort of fights with Laban, it’s hard to see how their relationship could have had the chance to really strengthen.

Genesis 31:1-9

2009.Feb.06 17:00

Jacob Notices the Obvious

Read Genesis 31:01-09 | Full Chapter

Now Jacob heard that the sons of Laban were saying, "Jacob has taken all that was our father’s, and from what was our father’s he has gained all this wealth." And Jacob saw that Laban did not regard him with favor as before. Then the LORD said to Jacob, "Return to the land of your fathers and to your kindred, and I will be with you." So Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah into the field where his flock was and said to them, "I see that your father does not regard me with favor as he did before. But the God of my father has been with me. You know that I have served your father with all my strength, yet your father has cheated me and changed my wages ten times. But God did not permit him to harm me. If he said, 'The spotted shall be your wages,' then all the flock bore spotted; and if he said, 'The striped shall be your wages,' then all the flock bore striped. Thus God has taken away the livestock of your father and given them to me.
(Genesis 31:01-09, ESV)

Jacob hasn’t been ignorant of his father-in-law’s machinations, but he’s been largely going along with him. If he had expected it to turn too bad to bare, then he had chosen to stick around for as long as possible. But now he becomes aware that Laban and Laban’s sons are not kindly disposed to him. In the case of Laban’s sons, the grumbling is sensible: their father’s wealth is declining and their cousin / brother-in-law is the one doing well. For Laban, it’s a bit more complex, because he had wanted Jacob to stay around; he knew that for whatever reason, Jacob’s presence contributed to his material success. However, now that they’ve engaged in these strange doings over the coloration of the flocks, Jacob is benefitting at Laban’s expense, instead of the lots of both improving.

So, Yahweh goes ahead and intervenes, telling Jacob that the time to return to Palestine has come. This is probably the first time Jacob would be receptive to this idea. After all, the injustices he’s so far suffered have been minimal in comparison to what he fears Esau would like to do to him. Now, with Laban’s sons being potential mortal enemies, it’s the choice between being killed by one person or multiple. Add in God’s suggestion, and Jacob’s choice is made.

Jacob calls Leah and Rachel, his wives, to tell them of his intent to hit the road. But he initially focuses on Laban’s treatment of him. Jacob fails to mention his own actions with the various sticks, which might show some culpability on his part for Laban’s treatment. Instead, he’s now happy to give Yahweh, and not his cunning, all the credit for his increased wealth. How often do we play these sort of games? Anyway, it still bugs me that Jacob has not taken up responsibility for the quality of his relationships.

On the Leah / Rachel drama, it’s interesting that Jacob actually speaks with both of them, and together. It’s also interesting that Rachel is listed first. But maybe there’s an indication that Rachel and Leah at least have put some of their bickering behind them.

Genesis 9:24-29

2006.Nov.28 20:37

A curse, A blessing

Read Genesis 9:24-29 | Full Chapter

Ah, the fatherly blessing, a lovely feature of Genesis. Ah, the fatherly curse… Let’s review. Ham saw his dad naked and bragged about it (or, perhaps, something completely different). And Noah finds out. Let’s see what the man who built a big boat has to say.

I now put a curse on Canaan!
He will be the lowest slave
of his brothers.
I ask the LORD my God
to bless Shem
and make Canaan his slave.
I pray that the LORD
will give Japheth
more and more land and let him take over
the territory of Shem.
May Canaan be his slave.

(Genesis 9:25-27, CEV)

I imagine Shem’s reaction to this: “Yeah, that’s right, bless me…and let Japheth take…over…my…territory… Um, thanks Dad…”

Noah blesses (although a mixed blessing for Shem) his children who covered him. He curses Ham. And like the curses on man, woman, and snake, this is interesting. The curse is slavery. There will be time enough later to explore how this blessing/curse plays out in human history, but for now I want to consider that this is all financial. Recall the curse on Adam: "You will have to sweat to earn a living" (Genesis 3:19, CEV) . Noah’s blessing/curse is this: Ham’s sweat will not even earn him a living; Shem’s sweat will meak out a living; Japheth’s sweat will bring him a living, and will be augmented by the toil of his brother. Looking at it that way, it doesn’t bode all that well for any of them.

Without our high priest in Jesus and grace through him, all blessings and curses are constrained by those original curses. Ham’s hope is destroyed, but Japheth’s hope is merely shallow. One of the promises of Jesus’ sacrifice was the breaking of the curses of toil and birth pains. I can’t really imagine that life, but when I think of Noah and his three sons and how he curses them with destroying each other just to eat…I want God to teach me to imagine a better way.

Genesis 9:18-23

2006.Nov.13 10:12

Ham’s Faux Pas

Read Genesis 9:18-23 | Full Chapter

Now the sons of Noah who came out of the ark were Shem and Ham and Japheth; and Ham was the father of Canaan. These three were the sons of Noah, and from these the whole earth was populated.
(Genesis 9:18-19, NASB)

I don’t have much to say about these two verses, other than that they obeyed God’s instruction, earlier in the chapter, to fill the earth (v 1,7). Also, here is an interesting discussion about Noah’s grandchildren and their connections with later cultures.

The following passage is what I want to particularly comment on.

[Noah] drank of the wine and became drunk, and uncovered himself inside his tent. Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brothers outside. But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it upon both their shoulders and walked backward and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were turned away, so that they did not see their father’s nakedness.
(Genesis 9:21-23, NASB)

I’ve heard a number of different explanations as to what Ham actually did that prompted his father to curse him and his descendents. I suppose there’s cause to consider whether the “saw the nakedness” is euphamistic, but I find a special interest in the uncertainty as to his sin. Compare Noah and his wife to Adam and Eve, then Cain and Abel to Ham, Shem, and Japheth. There’s an interesting brothers bit here that happens throughout the Bible, where one (in this case, two) brother acts righteously and one unrighteously. But in most cases, the sin (or at least foolishness) is blatantly clear. Cain murdered Abel. And many can understand the judgment on the “unrighteous fellow”. This situation is different to me, because I’m left scratching my head, thinking, okay, what exactly did this boy do?

What did he do? He at least dishonored his father, which is made clear by the way in which Shem and Japheth react. But I want to look at it another way: Ham sinned and it does not matter to the story how “bad” the sin was. Ah, there’s the crux. Sin is sin. And it’s contrasted with Noah’s drunkenness. Noah appears not to be disciplined for this. Appears, of course, but he is shamed by his youngest son.

Ah, this is the story of grace. My story of grace. Any sin is an affront to God as it is me telling God that I think I can do it all on my own. My sin therefore separates me from Him, regardless of the nature of the sin. Ham is cursed for his sin, just as I deserve to be for mine. So are his descendents. Indeed, the rest of the Bible is full of Canaanites being killed (and, to be fair, killing). And yet, were these not among those that Jesus came to save? Just like me. If I read this story as a massive punishment for a minor sin, and realize that, yes, that actually makes sense (I know it doesn’t for a lot of people, but it does more and more for me), then I can understand even better how great God’s grace to me is. He’s willing to hang out with me, to care for me, despite my sin, and he offers me a way to accept that grace.

And then I think of how I dishonor him…

Genesis 12:4-9

2007.Jan.06 19:45

First Excursions

Read Genesis 12:4-9 | Full Chapter

Abram was seventy-five years old when the LORD told him to leave the city of Haran. He obeyed and left with his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, and all the possessions and slaves they had gotten while in Haran.
(Genesis 12:4-5, CEV)

So, Abram sets out as his father had begun, to Canaan. There’s not much discussion of the trip itself. The family’s stay in Haran had been profitable, but God told Abram to set off for Canaan, and so he and his wife, Sarai, with Lot and a number of slaves in tow, head off. I’d find it interesting to know more of the reactions of Sarai, Lot and the slaves to this journey. In any event, gold stars for the lot for obedience to Jehovah.

When they came to the land of Canaan, Abram went as far as the sacred tree of Moreh in a place called Shechem. The Canaanites were still living in the land at that time, but the LORD appeared to Abram and promised, “I will give this land to your family forever.” Abram then built an altar there for the LORD.
(Genesis 12:6-7, CEV)

For the record, I don’t know why the tree of Moreh is sacred, and I’m not going to try to find out. Jehovah appears to Abram again at this point and promises that he will give this land to Abram’s family. The note that the Canaanites were still living in the land may be a bit of humor, seeing as I’m not sure there ever was a time since Abram showed up that there weren’t Canaanites in Canaan. But I could be wrong there.

In either event, Abram builds an altar before Jehovah. This is an act of worship. And I like that Abram obeys first before building the altar. It’s easy but incorrect to thing that worshipping God is more important than obedience. Indeed, I feel that worship that is not grounded in obedience is inherently rude to God.

Abram traveled to the hill country east of Bethel and camped between Bethel and Ai, where he built another altar and worshiped the LORD. Later, Abram started out toward the Southern Desert.
(Genesis 12:8-9, CEV)

And then Abram and company travel around some more. He continues to worship, and I’d like to assume that the rest of the group also worships Jehovah, although it’s not recorded here. I do want to note that the family spends time that doesn’t seem “world-changing”. But in those times that aren’t full of “events” can be times of growing closer to God. Just stuff to ponder.