Genesis 31:14-16

2009.Feb.20 17:00

What You May Lose

Read Genesis 31:14-16 | Full Chapter

Rachel and Leah said to Jacob: There's nothing left for us to inherit from our father. He treats us like foreigners and has even cheated us out of the bride price that should have been ours. Now do whatever God tells you to do. Even the property God took from our father and gave to you really belongs to us and our children.
(Genesis 31:14-16, CEV)

Or, requiem for Laban. Yes, we’ll see some more of Rebekah’s brother before this story is done, but this statement by his daughters is a fitting but terribly disappointing eulogy for a man who really plays such a significant role in the formation story of the people Israel. Like Lot, Laban is both integral to the story and yet easily forgotten. I think the reason that both these men are so easily forgotten is there not the sort of ancestors one really wants to talk about. Like the proverbial trust-fund fool, they have every opportunity and manage to turn out somewhere between mediocre and failure. There not even interesting “bad guys”.

Not only has Laban lost what little respect he previously commanded of his son-in-law, but now his daughters are outright rejecting him (Rachel will take this one step farther later in this narrative). And they have good reason to. When he has noticed them, it’s been (or so appears to me) primarily to use them as a means to keep Jacob around. Now that Laban’s plans to take advantage of Jacob’s success keep backfiring, he probably resents his daughters.

Leah and Rachel also note that their father, whether or not intentionally, has turned over all their inheritance to Jacob anyway. For them, he is both a cheat and a failure. Again, relationships. A number of these folks have been failing at them, but Laban seems to have exceeded even the high standards set by Jacob. Greed seems to be his primary, if not entire, motivator. He has now lost a good chunk of wealth, and is about to lose a large part of his family. Gosh, that sounds like stories we hear all the time, doesn’t it? Greed leads to loses all around is the theme.

Genesis 15:1-6

2007.Mar.17 17:47

Faith/Hope

Read Genesis 15:1-6 | Full Chapter

Later the LORD spoke to Abram in a vision, “Abram, don’t be afraid! I will protect you and reward you greatly.” But Abram answered, “LORD All-Powerful, you have given me everything I could ask for, except children. And when I die, Eliezer of Damascus will get all I own. You have not given me any children, and this servant of mine will inherit everything.”
(Genesis 15:1-3, CEV)

My first thought upon reading this is that perhaps Abram is getting a bit persnickety. The, “You’ve given me everything I could ask for, except”, gives me that idea. Then again, the except here is more significant than, say, a yacht, or one of those new-fangled Hybrid Camels. He’d like to have a child. That’s a reasonable request, unless you’re, say, in your nineties. Based on my understanding of the chronology (and I don’t have anything clear to back this up), Abram may have been in his nineties or so at this point.

For whatever reason (probably cultural), Abram particularly bemoans that his servant, Eliezer, will inherit Abram’s wealth, since he is childless. Inheritance is one of many fascinating issues to me throughout the Bible, but for the moment, I just want to note that this issue appears here, and wonder if Eliezer too could have inherited God’s promise to Abram of Canaan (Genesis 13:14-18).

The LORD replied, “No, he won’t! You will have a son of your own, and everything you have will be his.” Then the LORD took Abram outside and said, “Look at the sky and see if you can count the stars. That’s how many descendants you will have.” Abram believed the LORD, and the LORD was pleased with him.
(Genesis 15:4-6, CEV)

Jehovah replies that Eliezer won’t inherit from Abram, because Abram will have a son. And more than that, he will have many, many descendents. Now, this is a nice thought for Abram and all. His legacy will be carried on, and all that (sorry, I’m 25; I’m not old enough to talk about legacies yet without a chuckle.), but more importantly, Abram takes Jehovah at his word. Abram believes, and God is pleased with him. Want to please Jehovah, do as Abram, believe what God tells you, and be obedient.

"So from one man [Abraham],” says the author Hebrews, “though he was physically as good as dead, there have sprung descendants whose number is as the stars of heaven and as countless as the innumerable sands on the seashore" (Hebrews 11:12, AMP) . So, see, faith and obedience are my role. And God can cause that which seems hopeless to be.