Boaz Marries Ruth

Continuing a chronological Bible study:

(Ruth 4:1) Then Boaz went up to the gate and sat down there, and behold, the kinsman of whom Boaz spoke came by, to whom he said, "Ho, such a one! Turn aside, sit down here." And he turned aside and sat down.

At the end of the last chapter and post, Ruth had let Boaz know he was her next of kin, and by law, should marry her.  Boaz, in turn, let Ruth know that although he was her kin, he knew she had one who was nearer in kin to her than he was.  So Boaz went to the city gate and sat and waited until that kinsman he had spoken of came by.  He did indeed come by, and Boaz said something to the effect of he was the one Boaz had been looking for, and he asked him to sit down.  The man did as Boaz asked and sat down with him.

(2) And he took ten men of the elders of the city, and said, "Sit down here." And they sat down.

Boaz also called ten elders of the city to come and sit by him.  His purpose was to call a court to determine whether or not Ruth's next of kin would assume his responsibility as laid out in Deuteronomy 25:7-9.

(3) And he said to the kinsman, "Naomi, who has come again out of the country of Moab, sells a parcel of land which was our brother Elimelech's, (4) And I thought to advise you, saying, 'Buy it before the inhabitants and before the elders of my people. If you will redeem it, redeem it, but if you will not redeem it, tell me that I may know, for there is no one to redeem it besides you, and I after you.'" And he said, "I will redeem it."

Boaz began by explaining to his kinsman that Naomi who had come back from Moab was now needing to sell a parcel of land that had belonged to their mutual kinsman, Elimelech.  He had come to inform Elimelech's nearest kinsman that he might buy it and redeem it, preserving the inheritance in the family according to the law (Leviticus 25:25).  Boaz asked his kinsman to tell him then and there if he would redeem the land, for if he didn't, then it was Boaz's responsibility to redeem it as he was the nearest of kin after the kinsman to whom he now spoke.  The kinsman said he would indeed redeem it.

(5) Then said Boaz, "What day you buy the field of the hand of Naomi, you must buy also of Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the dead, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance."

Boaz went on to explain that on the day the kinsman bought the field from Naomi, he was also buying it from Ruth, as her husband had been the rightful heir of Elimelech's land upon his passing.  Now that her husband was also dead, it was the redeemer's duty to raise up the name of Ruth's husband and Naomi's son, Mahlon, perpetuating it according to the law (Deuteronomy 25:5).

(6) And the kinsman said, "I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I mar my own inheritance; you redeem my right to yourself as I cannot redeem it."

At that, the kinsman said he would not be able to redeem the land, for he had his own inheritance to think of and pass on to the next generation.  He was surely married and had children and thought that marrying Ruth and raising up children in her husband's name would greatly diminish his own inheritance for his children.

(7) Now this was the custom in former time concerning redeeming and concerning changing, for to confirm all things, a man plucked off his shoe and gave it to his neighbor, and this was a testimony in Israel.

The custom at that time concerning redemption and the exchanging of property, in order to confirm the transaction, a man was to take off his shoe and give it to the other party, in this case Boaz, to confirm that he had refused his right of redemption and allowed it to pass to Boaz.  In Deuteronomy 25:8-9, we saw a stricter version of this custom that was the law, where the widow of the brother of the man who refused to uphold his responsibility in taking his brother's widow as his wife, she herself took off her brother-in-law's shoe and spit in his face because he refused to do his duty in perpetuating his brother's name.  As this kinsman was not a brother to Mahlon, he was therefore not obliged to take Ruth as his wife, but it appears that it remained a custom in the transferring of property to remove the shoe and pass it to the other party to confirm the transaction in the presence of the elders in Israel.

(8) Therefore the kinsman said to Boaz, "Buy it for yourself." So he drew off his shoe. 

So the kinsman told Boaz to buy the land for himself, and he took off his shoe to confirm that he was relinquishing his right to the land and giving Boaz the right to redeem it.

(9) And Boaz said to the elders and all the people, "You are witnesses this day that I have bought all that was Elimelech's and all that was Chilion's and Mahlon's, of the hand of Naomi. (10) Moreover, Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, have I purchased to be my wife, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance, that the name of the dead not be cut off from among his brethren, and from the gate of this place, you are witnesses this day."

Boaz then said to the elders and thus in testimony to all the people of Israel that they were witnesses to the fact that he had bought all that had been Elimelech's, and all that would have been passed down to his sons, Chilion and Mahlon, from Elimelech's widow, Naomi.  In addition, he was purchasing the right to make Ruth his wife and agreeing to raise up the names of Mahlon and his father Elimelech, so that their names would not be cut off and forgotten among their brethren.  From their position at the gate of the city, the elders and the people present were witnesses to those facts that day.

(11) And all the people who were in the gate and the elders said, "We are witnesses. Lord make the woman who is coming into your house like Rachel and like Leah, the two who built the house of Israel, and may you do worthily in Ephratah and be famous in Bethlehem, (12) And let your house be like the house of Pharez whom Tamar bore to Judah, of the seed which the Lord shall give you of this young woman."

The elders and the people present at the gate of the city declared they were indeed witnesses.  They blessed the union of Boaz and Ruth.  The fact that they wished that Ruth who was coming into his house be like Rachel and Leah seems to indicate that Boaz had married before this time, and their wish was that both women would continue to build up the house of Israel as Rachel and Leah had done.  They wished that Boaz might do well in Ephratah and Bethlehem, which were one and the same place, where Rachel had died and was buried, according to Genesis 35:19.  The elders and the people also wished that Boaz's house might be like that of Pharez, the son of Judah, by Tamar who was actually Judah's daughter-in-law.  When Tamar's husband Er died, the other sons of Judah and Judah himself refused to do their duty to Tamar to raise up an inheritance to her dead husband.  However, she tricked Judah into impregnating her when he did not know it was his daughter-in-law.  This event was detailed in Genesis 38.  The people wished that Boaz's house might be like that of Pharez who was the result of the union between his mother and a redeemer, although an unwitting one.  May he as Ruth's redeemer have descendants as numerous as Judah by Pharez.  The fact that Ruth was a Moabitess, although often mentioned, seems to be of no concern, as Ruth had obviously become a proselyte or convert to the Jewish religion.  

(13) So Boaz took Ruth, and she was his wife, and when he went in to her, the Lord gave her conception, and she bore a son.

Boaz took Ruth as his wife, and he performed his conjugal duty.  As the ultimate proof that God blessed this union, it is said that He gave her conception, and she bore a son.

(14) And the women said to Naomi, "Blessed be the Lord who has not left you this day without a kinsman, that his name may be famous in Israel. (15) And he shall be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age, for your daughter-in-law who loves you, who is better to you than seven sons, has borne him."

The women of Bethlehem, neighbors of Naomi, told her that the Lord had not abandoned her and left her without descendants after all.  Through her daughter-in-law Ruth, who so loved her, and was better to her than seven sons would have been, she had a grandson.  They wished that his name be famous in Israel as he was to her a restorer of life and nourisher to her in her old age at a time when she had felt alone and abandoned.

(16) And Naomi took the child and laid him in her bosom and became nurse to him.

Naomi took the baby and laid him in her bosom as a sign of her tender love and affection for him, and she became a nurse to him, aiding Ruth in her care of him.

(17) And the women her neighbors gave him a name, saying, "There is a son born to Naomi," and they called his name Obed; he is the father of Jesse, the father of David.

The neighbor women suggested a name for the baby that was indeed adopted by Ruth and Boaz.  They suggested the name of Obed which meant "serving," as they saw him serving, nourishing, and comforting Naomi in her old age as they had wished for her in verse 15.  However, the name had greater significance than they knew as Obed's grandson, David, was God's beloved servant.  Life was restored to Naomi's name as a son, actually a grandson, was born to her son's wife.  Obed would go on to have a son Jesse, and Jesse was the father of David.  In this would Obed's name become famous in Israelite history as the grandfather of David, as the women neighbors had wished (v. 14).

(18) Now these are the generations of Pharez: Pharez begat Hezron,

The author of Ruth now inserted a descendant genealogy of Pharez, the son of Judah and Tamar, whose house the people of Israel wished for the descendants of Boaz and Ruth to mirror (v. 12).  Pharez's son was Hezron.

(19) And Hezron begat Ram, and Ram begat Amminadab, (20) And Amminadab begat Nahshon, and Nahshon begat Salmon, (21) And Salmon begat Boaz, and Boaz begat Obed,

Pharez's son Hezron had a son Ram who produced Amminadab, who produced Nahshon, and Nahshon produced Salmon, the father of Boaz.  And of course, Boaz's son was Obed.

(22) And Obed begat Jesse, and Jesse begat David.

Completing the genealogy from Judah (by his son Pharez) to David, Obed would go on to have a son Jesse, who was the father of David.  How beautiful and fitting that Ruth the Moabitess should play a prominent role in the genealogy of David which would also extend to Jesus, the Son of David, the Lion of Judah.  Of course, Ruth had converted to Judaism, so was not really a Moabite at the time she married Boaz.  But this shows how the Gentile, someone not originally of the Jewish faith, was grafted into the line of Jesus, just as Jesus offered his salvation to the Gentiles and allowed them to be grafted into His living vine (Romans 11).  As the author of Ruth linked her to her great-grandson David, we know her book was written after David's anointing which agrees with Jewish tradition that the prophet Samuel may have written it.

We Have Hope and Confidence Because of the Messy Lives Recorded in the Bible

Continuing a chronological Bible study:

(Genesis 34:1) And Dinah the daughter of Leah, whom she bore to Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land.

In the last chapter, Jacob had bought a parcel of land near Shechem.  At least a few years have passed, because when Jacob first settled in the land, Dinah couldn't have been more than a little girl, as she was the eleventh child born in the 13 years he lived with his wives after he served the first seven years for them.  Now Dinah was surely a young woman in her teens.  It looks like she had some curiosity about the other girls of the land, and went out to see for herself.  I suppose something could be said here about the "wisdom" of youth, and why Jacob's young daughter should have been more supervised and protected and not allowed to venture out by herself.

(2) And when Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, prince of the country, saw her, he took her, and lay with her, and defiled her.

Shechem was the person for whom the land of Shechem was named.  It would seem that his father Hamor was king of the country and named the place after his son, who was prince.  Shechem saw Dinah on the occasion that she ventured out in the land.  It looks as if he may have taken her forcibly and lay with her.

(3) And his soul cleaved to Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the damsel, and spoke kindly to the damsel. (4) And Shechem spoke to his father Hamor, saying, "Get me this damsel as wife."

It looks as if Shechem sincerely loved Dinah, but he had taken her by force.  He spoke kindly to her which may mean he spoke sweet nothings, or maybe he was trying to calm her and gain her affection after he had raped her.  Either way, he loved Dinah and he told his father the king to get her for his wife.

(5) And Jacob heard that he had defiled Dinah his daughter; now his sons were with his cattle in the field, and Jacob held his peace until they came. (6) And Hamor the father of Shechem went out to Jacob to speak with him.

Apparently Jacob heard the news about his daughter, but did not act on it immediately.  His sons were out in the field and he held his peace until they had come.  Meanwhile, Hamor the father of Shechem went to speak to Jacob, surely about the affair with Dinah and to get his consent for his son to marry her.

(7) And the sons of Jacob came out of the field when they heard it; and the men were grieved and they were very angry, because he had done wickedness in Israel in lying with Jacob's daughter, a thing which ought not to be done.

The sons of Jacob came out of the field, either because they heard the discussion between Hamor and Jacob, or because they had also heard the news, as Jacob had, about their sister.  They were upset and very angry.  The original translation was that they were angry because Shechem had "wrought folly" in Israel.  "Folly" doesn't seem a strong enough translation of the original word "nebalah".  It means "foolishness" or "senselessness", but when spoken of morally, it means "wickedness" or "villainy".  At this time, Israel is not the name of a place, but the name of Jacob, so this must be translated as "in Israel's land".  However, since Moses is the one who presumably wrote this account later, he may have written "in Israel" as he viewed Israel as not only a place, but a church and a people.

(8) And Hamor spoke with them, saying, "The soul of my son Shechem longs for your daughter; I pray you give her to him as wife. (9) And make marriages with us; give your daughters to us, and take our daughters to you. (10) And you will dwell with us, and the land will be before you; dwell and trade in it, and acquire possessions for yourselves in it."

Hamor appears to be very sincere when he spoke with Jacob and his sons.  He told them that his son loved Dinah and he asked their permission that she become his wife.  Not only Dinah, but he asked that they all dwell together and intermarry.  As king, he offered the family of Jacob to dwell and trade and prosper in his land.  Hamor seems very sincere and generous.  He obviously offered these things in an attempt to gain approval for his son to marry Dinah, but he appears upfront, honest, and honorable.

(11) And Shechem said to her father and to her brothers, "Let me find grace in your eyes, and whatever you say to me I will give. (12) Ask me ever so much dowry and gift, and I will give according to what you will say to me; but give me the damsel as a wife."

Now Shechem, who had apparently come with his father to speak to Jacob, spoke for himself.  He also seems sincere in asking for favor, which surely required forgiveness for what he had done to Dinah.  He offered to give Jacob and his sons whatever they asked for dowry and gifts for the hand of Dinah.

(13) And the sons of Jacob answered Shechem and Hamor his father deceitfully, because he had defiled Dinah their sister.

We are told that what the sons of Jacob were about to say was deceitful.  Once again, we find the people of God acting deceitfully!  Although this looks to be not Jacob himself, but his sons, it appears they may have learned the deceitful ways of their father and of their grandfather, Laban.  They may have felt that they were justified because of what Shechem had done to their sister, but these pagans did not have the same values as Jacob and his family supposedly had.  In this case, the pagans may have been more sincere and honest than Jacob's sons! 

This may be a good place to insert a general synopsis of Jacob's life given by John Nelson Darby in his Synopsis of the Old and New Testaments.  At the time of Jacob's wrestling with the angel of God, I suppose I was giving Jacob a little more benefit of the doubt than does Darby, with regard to the desire of his heart being to follow God.  Again, I will say that I realize these are Jacob's sons and not Jacob himself, but since deceitfulness always seems to be a part of this family, this seems a good time to refect on Darby's opinion of the life of Jacob.  He sees the wrestling with God as the dealings of God with a soul that does not walk with Him.  He contrasts the relationship of God and Abraham with the relationship of God and Jacob.  With Abraham, who was called a friend of God, there was a calm communion with God, where Abraham interceded for others, instead of a wrestling with God for himself.  Even after Jacob wrestled with the angel and received the blessing, he appeared to be deceitful when he said he would go to his brother in Seir, a brother who was most sincere and loving, but there was no evidence that he ever did.  Now his sons acted deceitfully to Hamor and Shechem who appear to be sincere and honest. 

To continue Darby's thought, God was still dealing with Jacob.  Jacob thought about God, but really wasn't in proper communion with Him.  But God was with Jacob anyway.  Jacob constantly had to live with the consequences of his actions, but God blessed him through it all.  What a hope this should give us.  Don't we often do things our way, the hard way, instead of giving it all to God, and doing it His way?  Do we not wrestle with God?  This is a beautiful picture of the love and mercy of God for His imperfect and selfish children.  God does show mercy for us, but if we could learn to live His way and be in communion with Him, our lives would be much more peaceful and calm.

(14) And they said to them, "We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one who is uncircumcised, for that would be a reproach to us. (15) But in this we will consent to you, if you will be as we are, that every male of you be circumcised, (16) Then will we give our daughters to you, and we will take your daughters to us; and we will dwell with you, and we will become one people. (17) But if you will not listen to us to be circumcised, then we will take our daughter and we will be gone."

The brothers of Dinah told Hamor and Shechem that they could not intermix with uncircumcised people, but if they agreed to become circumcised, they would agree to become one people.  We have already been told that this was a deceitful statement.  But how reasonable and sincere it sounded!  That makes it all the more terribly deceitful and wrong.  It would be one thing to speak in sarcasm and to be honest about their anger, but these comments appear to come from the heart; they are obviously trying to gain the trust of Shechem and that seems so much more wicked than just laying their honest feelings out for Hamor and Shechem to see.

(18) And their words pleased Hamor and Shechem, Hamor's son. (19) And the young man did not delay to do the thing, because he had delight in Jacob's daughter, and he was more honorable than all the household of his father.

Indeed, Hamor and Shechem believed and trusted what the sons of Jacob had told them, and Shechem did not delay in getting circumcised and in encouraging the rest of the men to do the same, as revealed in the next verses.  Verse 19 states that Shechem was honorable, at least more honorable than all the others in his father's household.  Even though he had done a terrible thing in raping Jacob's daughter, he sought to marry her, and do anything requested of him to make up for the injury he had caused, and he seems honest and honorable in keeping his side of their covenant by acting on it immediately.

(20) And Hamor and Shechem his son came to the gate of their city, and spoke with the men of their city, saying, (21) "These men are peaceable with us; therefore let them dwell in the land and trade in it, for indeed the land is large enough for them; let us take their daughters to us for wives, and let us give them our daughters. (22) Only in this will the men consent to dwell with us, to be one people, if every male among us is circumcised as they are circumcised. (23) Will not their cattle, their possessions, and every animal of theirs be ours? Only let us consent to them, and they will dwell with us." (24) And all who went out of the gate of his city heeded Hamor and Shechem his son, and every male was circumcised, all who went out of the gate of his city.

Shechem and his father encouraged all the men of the city to do as Jacob's sons asked.  They convinced them that they were peaceable and that it would be ultimately to their advantage to become as one people with them.  All the men consented and were circumcised as requested by their king and his son. 

(25) And it came to pass on the third day, when they were sore, that two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, Dinah's brothers, each took his sword and came boldly upon the city and killed all the males. (26) And they killed Hamor and Shechem his son with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah out of Shechem's house, and went out.

From what I have read, evidently the third day after circumcision was the worst--the pain was at its worst, the part was most inflamed, and the person was even feverish at this point.  With such pain and inflammation in that area of the body, and even in the entire body as fever would make the person weak and hurt all over, they were not that aware of their surroundings in the first place, and were not able to defend themselves once they were aware of what was going on.  Simeon and Levi came easily into the city and killed all the adult males, as we are told later that they took all the little children captive.  They also killed Shechem and Hamor, and took Dinah from Shechem's house.

(27) The sons of Jacob came upon the slain, and plundered the city, because they had defiled their sister. (28) They took their sheep, their oxen, and their donkeys, and what was in the city and what was in the field, (29) And all their wealth, and all their little ones and their wives they took captive, and they plundered even all that was in the houses.

Not only did they kill all the men, but they plundered the city, and took all their livestock, all the women and children, and took all their possessions.

(30) And Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, "You have troubled me to make me stink among the inhabitants of the land, among the Canaanites and the Perizzites; and I being few in number, they will gather themselves together against me and kill me; and I shall be destroyed, I and my house."

Jacob was not happy with what Simeon and Levi had done.  He feared he would be considered abominable and hated by all the people round about them.  He and his family, being a small number of people in the land, would be easy prey to the Canaanites who could easily have destroyed them over this thing if it was not for God's promise to protect Jacob.

(31) And they said, "Should he deal with our sister as with a harlot?"

Simeon and Levi felt perfectly justified in their actions because of what Shechem had done to their sister.  They may have even felt that Jacob had not shown the proper regard for his daughter's honor, and they had to take matters into their own hands.  It might have been more easily understood if it had been Jacob who had said that the men must be circumcised and that they could then become one with his people, and then Jacob's sons who would have no part of it, then killed the men.  But this was premeditated murder on the part of Simeon and Levi.  They intentionally gained the trust of Shechem and Hamor and then took advantage of the men in their weakened state, and killed an entire people because of the actions of one.  The act cannot be excused, and in fact, when Jacob blessed his sons near the end of his life, he recalled this event and cursed their anger and their cruel wrath.

As I reflect on this chapter, I am first grateful that I and my entire family do not have to be perfect in order to receive the love, mercy, salvation, and blessings of my Lord!  The Bible is full of imperfect and sinful people; many seem much worse than we could imagine, and yet we see how God could love and forgive and bless those who tried to follow Him.  That should give us hope!

I also think about how some people use incidents like this in the Bible to refute the whole book.  They claim the Bible is full of sex and violence and murder, so why would you want such a God?  But this is exactly the thing that should make the unprejudiced reader realize that the Bible is true.  It is historical fact, no matter how messy and imperfect.  If the Bible were the fabricated book that atheists try to tell us it is, would not the fabricators have used less embarrassing examples of God's people?  It is because these things actually happened, that they are recorded in the Bible, as messy as they are.  Once again, it should give us great hope, and also great confidence that the Bible is true.

Jacob Meets Esau Again

Continuing my chronological Bible study:

(Genesis 33:1) And Jacob lifted up his eyes and looked, and there Esau was coming, and with him four hundred men. And he divided the children among Leah, Rachel, and the two maidservants. (2) And he put the maidservants and their children in front, and Leah and her children after, and Rachel and Joseph last. (3) And he crossed over before them and bowed himself to the ground seven times, until he came near to his brother.

In the last chapter, Jacob had prepared himself to meet Esau, whom he feared still wanted to kill him.  He divided his company and possessions into two bands, saying that if Esau attacked one, the other might escape.  Now Jacob separated his wives and children into their own smaller groups.  It seems he placed the ones he esteemed less toward the front, and kept Rachel and Joseph, his most beloved, last.  He himself went out in front and went near to his brother, bowing all the way, it seems.

(4) And Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept.

Esau ran to and embraced his brother with what appears to be genuine love and affection.  If he had harbored any ill feelings toward Jacob, he had forgiven him upon the sight of him, or perhaps he had long ago forgiven him.  Either way, Jacob's prayers were certainly answered and his fears abated, and he wept surely out of relief as well as out of joy for this reconciliation.

(5) And he lifted up his eyes and saw the women and children, and said, "Who are those with you?" And he said, "The children whom God has graciously given your servant." (6) Then the maidservants came near, they and their children, and they bowed themselves. (7) And Leah also with her children came near, and bowed themselves; and after Joseph and Rachel came near, and they bowed themselves.

When Jacob had sent the message ahead to Esau, he never mentioned his wives and children, so now when Esau saw them, he asked whose they were.  Jacob answered that they were his gifts from God, and one by one, the small groups of his family came up to Esau and bowed themselves in greeting.

(8) And he said, "What do you mean by all this drove which I met?" And he said, "These are to find grace in the sight of my lord." (9) And Esau said, "I have enough, my brother; keep what you have for yourself."

Now Esau asked Jacob about all the herds which went before him.  He had been told by the messengers about those, but he wanted to ask his brother about them.  When Jacob told him they were meant to be a gift to him, he once again showed sincerity that he was truly reconciled with his brother and didn't need anything from him to make up for any hurts of the past.

(10) And Jacob said, "No, please, if I have now found grace in your sight, then receive my present from my hand, for therefore I have seen your face as though I had seen the face of God, and you were pleased with me. (11) Please take my blessing that is brought to you, because God has dealt graciously with me, and because I have enough." And he urged him, and he took it.

Jacob insisted that Esau take his present.  He surely felt as if he had seen the face of God in that God so graciously answered his prayers and worked on the heart of Esau his brother.  I don't see that there was anything in the scriptures leading up to their meeting that showed that Esau still harbored resentment toward his brother.  One might ask why he had four hundred men with him, and there could be countless speculations as to why, but whether he just recently came to forgiveness for his brother, or if he had long ago forgiven him, it was still God working within his heart for love and forgiveness.  At Jacob's urging, Esau did take the gift, but it is apparent there was no selfish covetousness on his part.

(12) And he said, "Let us take our journey, and let us go, and I will go before you."

At first glance, it is difficult to know which "he" is speaking, but judging by the "he" who answered, this was Esau inviting Jacob to come along and follow him back to his home.

(13) And he said to him, "My lord knows that the children are tender, and the flocks and herds with young are with me, and if men should overdrive them one day, all the flock will die. (14) Let my lord please pass over before his servant, and I will lead on softly as the cattle that go before me, and the children are able to endure, until I come to my lord in Seir."

Jacob declined the company and asked that he and his family and flocks be allowed to take their time and go slowly.  He asked that Esau go on ahead of him and Jacob would travel at the pace that his children and the young of the herds could endure and he would come to Esau at Seir later.

(15) And Esau said, "Now let me leave with you some of the folks who are with me." And he said, "What need is it? Let me find grace in the sight of my lord."

Esau offered to leave some of his men with Jacob's company, perhaps to show them the way or help them along, but Jacob refused, saying there really was no need.  As long as he had Esau's favor and good will, that is all he needed.  Interestingly, in the last few verses of this chapter, there is no record of Jacob ever going to Esau's home.  I suppose it's possible that he did and it is not recorded, but it may be that Jacob never planned to go to Esau's home.  He asked not to travel with him and refused any help or company in his travels.  It may be that all he really did desire was to have found grace and forgiveness from his brother, and then went on to build his life in his homeland.

(16) So Esau returned that day on his way to Seir. (17) And Jacob journeyed to Succoth, and built himself a house, and made booths for his cattle; therefore the name of the place is called Succoth.

Esau returned to his home in Seir, and Jacob traveled to Succoth.  It would appear that he is the one who named the place Succoth, which literally meant "booths", as that is where he built a house and made booths, or some sort of huts or stalls for his animals.

(18) And Jacob came to Shalem, a city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan, when he came from Padan Aram; and he pitched his tent before the city.

It is unclear to me if Jacob moved on after building his house in Succoth, or if this is more detail about the place where he built his house and his booths.  Some Bible scholars say that Shalem was not meant to be the name of a place, but rather as the word means "complete, safe, peaceful", the meaning was that Jacob came safely and soundly to a city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan.  That is where he ultimately came after he left Padan Aram, and he pitched his tent near the city, but it would seem not in it.  Since Jacob is the one who named Succoth, I wonder if he didn't come safely to a location near Shechem and built his home at a place he called Succoth.  It doesn't appear that any of the old commentaries saw it that way, and it may be that the two cities are not close enough that that idea makes any sense, but it just seems a bit odd to me that Jacob built a house and booths in one place and then moved on and pitched a tent.  Perhaps it shows that Jacob is making a name and multiple places for himself and his God in the region.

(19) And he bought a parcel of a field, where he had spread his tent, from the children of Hamor, Shechem's father, for a hundred pieces of money.

Jacob bought a parcel of land where he had pitched his tent near Shechem.  He bought it from Shechem's descendants, apparently the person for whom Shechem was named.  Once again, I am unclear as to whether Jacob built a house and booths in an unhabited area until he could buy the land from Shechem, or if this outlying area of Shechem became Succoth after he bought it.  I suppose if I am to read nothing extra into the scriptures, I will have to assume he lived in Succoth first and then moved on to Shechem.  They are definitely two different places, perhaps not too far from each other, but they are two different places.

(20) And he erected there an altar and called it El Elohe Israel.

There in the parcel of land that Jacob bought near Shechem, he built an altar and called it El Elohe Israel, which literally meant "the mighty God of Israel".  At this point, Israel is only the name given to Jacob; it is not yet a place, so Jacob is calling this altar in honor of his mighty God who had blessed him and delivered him back to this land.

Laban's Final Deceit and Jacob's Flight From Haran

In my chronological Bible study, it is now time to get back to Jacob.

(1 Chronicles 2:1) These are the sons of Israel: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun,

The last study recapped the life and descendants of Esau, and now I am going back to Esau's brother, Jacob, who will later be known as Israel.

(2) Dan, Joseph, Benjamin, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher.

All twelve sons of Jacob are listed in this passage in 1 Chronicles 2, although not all of them have been born yet in my study in Genesis.

(3) The sons of Judah were Er, Onan, and Shelah; these three were born to him by the daughter of Shua, the Canaanitess. And Er, the firstborn of Judah, was evil in the sight of the LORD; and He slew him.

All I'm going to say about this passage is to question what it is doing here in this place in a chronological study!  As I have already begun a chronologically ordered study by Skip Andrews, I won't try to change course now, but I am pretty sure I will get back to the sons of Judah in Genesis, so I will not bother to study this now.  Now back to Genesis:

(Genesis 30:25) And it came to pass, when Rachel had borne Joseph, that Jacob said to Laban, "Send me away, that I may go to my own place and to my country."

In the study before the last one that was the recap of the life and descendants of Esau, Rachel had just borne a son, Joseph.  Apparently, Jacob's second seven years' servitude for Rachel (Gen. 29) had now expired.  Jacob asked Rachel and Leah's father, Laban, to let him go now to his own place in his own country.

(26) "Give me my wives and my children for whom I have served you, and let me go; for you know my service which I have done for you."

Jacob continued asking Laban to release him from service and to let him take his wives and children and go away from him, for Laban knew that he had fulfilled his service well.

(27) And Laban said to him, "Please, if I have found favor in your eyes, stay, for I have learned by experience that the LORD has blessed me for your sake." (28) And he said, "Name me your wages, and I will give it."

Laban was not so eager to see Jacob go.  He could see that the Lord blessed Jacob, and he was therefore blessed because of Jacob.  He pleaded with Jacob to stay and offered to pay him whatever he wanted.

(29) And he said to him, "You know how I have served you and how your cattle was with me. (30) For it was little what you had before I came, and it is now increased to a great amount, and the LORD has blessed you since my coming; and now, when shall I provide for my own house also?"

Jacob expounded on the fact that the Lord had indeed blessed Laban since Jacob's coming, pointing out that he had little before Jacob came and he now had a great deal, but Jacob felt it was high time that he provide for his own family now.

(31) And he said, "What shall I give you?" And Jacob said, "You shall not give me anything; if you will do this thing for me, I will again feed and keep your flocks: (32) I will pass through all your flock today, removing from there all the speckled and spotted cattle, and all the brown ones among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats; and these shall be my wages. (33) So my righteousness will answer for me in time to come, when the subject of my wages comes before you: every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and brown among the sheep, will be considered stolen, if it is with me."

Laban persisted in wanting Jacob to name his fee for staying on with him.  Jacob devised a plan.  He would agree to take care of Laban's flocks, if he would allow Jacob to take the speckled and spotted ones (and brown sheep) and let him keep and take care of those for himself.  In this way, he could begin to increase and provide for his own family, as he cared for Laban's flocks.  It would be evident by the coloring which were of Laban's flocks and which were of Jacob's.

(34) And Laban said, "Oh, that it were according to your word!"

Laban thought that sounded like an excellent idea and agreed to it.

(35) And he removed that day the male goats that were streaked and spotted, all the female goats that were speckled and spotted, and every one that had some white in it, and all the brown among the sheep, and gave them into the hand of his sons. (36) And he set three days' journey between himself and Jacob, and Jacob fed the rest of Laban's flocks.

Laban SAID that he agreed to it, but then he removed all the streaked, speckled, and spotted (and brown sheep), and gave them to his own sons, and I am assuming set three days' journey between these and the rest of his flocks that Jacob would feed.  I don't see how he could set three days' journey between his flocks and Jacob's flocks if Jacob was to tend to them all himself, so I believe the meaning is that the ones he took out of his flocks he set three days' journey away from the rest so that Jacob would not find them.

(37) And Jacob took for himself rods of green poplar and of the hazel and chestnut trees, and peeled white strips in them, and exposed the white which was in the rods. (38) And he set the rods which he had peeled before the flocks in the gutters in the watering troughs when the flocks came to drink, so that they should conceive when they came to drink. (39) And the flocks conceived before the rods, and brought forth cattle streaked, speckled, and spotted.

By stripping away parts of the barks of the rods, Jacob made striped rods that he set before the flocks in the troughs and supposedly that made them conceive striped and streaked and speckled young.  It sounds odd and even seems like witchery until I get to the next chapter when Jacob tells his wives of Laban's deceit and God's plan to prosper Jacob in spite of it.  I have to believe that God probably told Jacob in a dream or vision to do this.

(40) And Jacob separated the lambs, and set the faces of the flocks toward the streaked and all the brown in the flock of Laban; and he put his own flocks by themselves and did not put them with Laban's flock.

As the flocks began to conceive streaked and speckled young, Jacob separated the flocks and positioned the solid colored of Laban's flocks facing toward the streaked and spotted, and in the same way looking at the striped rods would bring forth streaked young, so would looking at the streaked flocks.  Jacob kept his growing flocks separated from Laban's flocks.

(41) And it came to pass, whenever the stronger cattle conceived, that Jacob laid the rods before the eyes of the cattle in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods. (42) But when the cattle were feeble, he did not put them in, so the feebler were Laban's and the stronger Jacob's. (43) And the man increased exceedingly, and had much cattle, and female and male servants, and camels and donkeys.

Jacob began to pick and choose the livestock he wanted to reproduce as streaked so that his flocks became stronger and thus were Laban's made weaker.  In this way, Jacob prospered exceedingly, and of course, it had to be by God's blessing, as there was no real magic in striped sticks.

(Genesis 31:1) And he heard the words of Laban's sons, saying, "Jacob has taken away all that was our father's, and of that which was our father's he has gotten all this glory." (2) And Jacob saw the countenance of Laban, and indeed it was not favorable toward him as before. (3) And the LORD said to Jacob, "Return to the land of your fathers and to your family, and I will be with you."

Jacob began to hear the grumblings of Laban's sons that he had taken away all that was their father's to become great, and Laban began to treat him differently, as well.  It was then that the Lord told Jacob to return to the land of his fathers and that He would be with him.

(4) And Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah to the field to his flock, (5) And said to them, "I see your father's countenance, that it is not toward me as before; but the God of my father has been with me."

Jacob called his wives out to the field of his flocks to tell them of the situation with their father.

(6) "And you know that with all my power I have served your father. (7) And your father has deceived me and changed my wages ten times, but God did not allow him to hurt me."

Jacob told his wives that he had served their father well, as they would well know, but that their father had deceived him and changed his wages more than once.  I don't think "ten" was meant literally, but it seemed to Jacob Laban was constantly changing what he had told him he would pay him.  Laban had deceived Jacob into 14 years' service instead of the seven Jacob had first agreed to for Rachel.  When Laban told Jacob he could have all the spotted and speckled of the flock, he then took those from the flocks and hid them three days' journey from Jacob.  As Jacob continued telling his wives of Laban's deceit and fraud, it sounds like there may have been more agreements than the reader of these accounts may have known, so maybe "ten" was a literal number after all.  As Jacob related these events to his wives, he told them that regardless of what Laban had tried to do to hurt him, God did not allow it.

(8) "If he said thus, 'The speckled shall be your wages', then all the cattle bore speckled; and if he said thus, 'The streaked shall be your wages', then all the cattle bore streaked. (9) Thus God has taken away the cattle of your father and given them to me."

Here it does seem like there may have been more agreements and changes to their agreements than we knew, but whatever Laban tried to do, Jacob recognized that it was God working in Jacob's favor against Laban's deceit, and it was in that way that Jacob had taken the flocks from Laban, from honest agreements on his part, not from any theft.

(10) "And it came to pass at the time that the cattle conceived, that I lifted up my eyes and saw in a dream, and behold, the rams which leaped upon the cattle were streaked, speckled, and spotted. (11) And the angel of God spoke to me in a dream, saying, 'Jacob.' And I said, 'Here am I.' (12) And He said, 'Lift up your eyes now and see, all the rams which leap on the cattle are streaked, speckled, and spotted; for I have seen all that Laban does to you. (13) I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed the pillar and where you made a vow to Me; now arise, get out of this land, and return to the land of your family.'"

Indeed, Jacob had seen in a dream or vision that God had made the flocks streaked, speckled, and spotted, because He saw Laban's deceitful acts and plans.  He declared He was the same God who had appeared to Jacob at the place he called Bethel where he had had the dream of the ladder and where he had erected the stone and made the vow to God.  God now told Jacob to leave this land and return to the land of his family, and this Jacob relayed to his wives.

(14) And Rachel and Leah answered and said to him, "Is there still any portion or inheritance for us in our father's house? (15) Are we not counted by him as strangers? For he has sold us, and has quite devoured also our money. (16) For all the riches which God has taken from our father, that is ours and our children's; now then, whatever God has said to you, do it."

Rachel and Leah could see that they had been treated as things by their father, and that he had never intended to give them any inheritance.  Anything he made from his deals with Jacob, he had apparently kept and spent on himself.  The wives of Jacob felt that anything God had allowed their husband to take from their father they should have had coming as an inheritance anyway, so they were in full agreement that whatever God had told Jacob, they should do.

(17) Then Jacob rose up, and set his sons and his wives upon camels; (18) And he carried away all his cattle and all his goods which he had gotten, his acquired cattle which he had gotten in Padan Aram, to go to Isaac his father in the land of Canaan.

Jacob took his family and all his acquired possessions and headed back to Canaan, the land of his father Isaac.

(19) And Laban went to shear his sheep, and Rachel had stolen the images that were her father's.

Laban had gone to shear his sheep, and this would have been an ideal time to steal away unbeknownst to him, but Rachel had taken some things that were her father's.  What they were exactly is pretty much a mystery, and any one of many Biblical scholars' guesses.  The original word for "images" here is "teraphim" which seems to mean, gathered from its mentions in other parts of the Bible, some sort of image or idol used in a household shrine or for worship.  There are three uses of "teraphim" in Judges and one in Hosea where the words "teraphim" and "image" are both used in the same sentence, so merely "image" doesn't appear to be its full meaning, so that sort of puts the quietus on the suggestion by some that these were just family images, like portraits of sorts, of family members that Rachel wanted for her own.  Indeed, the other uses of the word in scripture make it sound like it was a sort of superstitious talisman, perhaps used in sorcery.  Some suggest that Rachel stole them so that her father would not be able to consult them to know where they had gone, but I wouldn't think that after so many years with Jacob, Rachel would give any credence to such false idols.  She certainly doesn't treat them with respect as will be pointed out in a later scripture.  Based on what Rachel and Leah had said in verses 14-16 above, I think it is more likely that even if Laban considered them idols of worship with perhaps some power, Rachel may have stolen them simply because they may have had some value and she felt she was entitled to some inheritance.  That doesn't make it right to take something of her father's, but it does explain why she might want these idols.

(20) And Jacob stole away, unknown to Laban the Syrian, in that he did not tell him that he fled. (21) So he fled with all that he had; and he rose up and crossed the river, and headed toward the mount Gilead.

It does seem that for the time being, Jacob had stolen away with all his family and his possessions, unbeknownst to Laban, and had gotten a good distance away.

(22) And Laban was told on the third day that Jacob had fled. (23) And he took his brethren with him and pursued after him seven days' journey; and they overtook him in the mount Gilead.

Since it was three days before Laban knew Jacob was gone, it would seem he was tending his flocks that he originally separated and kept three days' journey from Jacob.  Otherwise, I would think he would have discovered Jacob was no longer tending his flocks as he may have felt they still had an agreement for Jacob to do.  When Laban found out Jacob and his family were gone, he pursued him with his brethren, which may have been his actual brothers, or may have been other relations or maybe just friends and/or neighbors.  Because Jacob had a three day head start, it took Laban seven days to catch up, but he eventually did.

(24) And God came to Laban the Syrian in a dream by night, and said to him, "Take heed that you not speak to Jacob either good or bad."

Probaby this vision of God came to Laban right before he actually overtook Jacob.  God warned Laban not to speak good or bad, probably meaning to keep the speech generic with no promises of good if he were to stay or no accusations of bad because of the stolen images, for examples.

(25) Then Laban overtook Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the mount; and Laban with his brethren pitched in the mount of Gilead.

It does appear that it was after the dream that Laban actually reached Jacob.  Jacob and his family were already in tents on the mount, and now Laban and his brethren pitched tents there, too.

(26) And Laban said to Jacob, "What have you done, that you have stolen away unknown to me, and carried away my daughters like captives taken with the sword? (27) Why did you flee away secretly, and steal away from me, and not tell me, that I might have sent you away with joy and with songs, with timbrel and with harp?"

Up to this point, Laban had been careful to say neither good nor bad, but simply asked Jacob why he felt the need to steal away secretly like a thief in the night.  Based on previous experiences, I don't believe Laban would have readily let them go and with celebration to boot, but he at least pretended that might have been his intention if Jacob had not stolen away secretly.

(28) "And have not allowed me to kiss my sons and my daughters. You have now done foolishly in so doing. (29) It is in the power of my hand to do you harm, but the God of your father spoke to me last night, saying, 'Take heed that you not speak to Jacob either good or bad.' (30) And now you have surely gone because you greatly long for your father's house, yet why have you stolen my gods?"

Laban got a little close to speaking bad when he told Jacob he had acted foolishly and that it was within his right to do harm to Jacob, but he told Jacob of his dream of God telling him not to speak either good or bad to Jacob, so he returned to a generic comment and another question--why did he steal his gods?  Rather than "teraphim", the stolen items were called "elohiym" or "gods" by Laban, indicating he probably did use them for some sort of worship.

(31) And Jacob answered and said to Laban, "Because I was afraid, for I said perhaps you would take your daughters from me by force. (32) With whomever you find your gods, do not let him live; before our brethren, discern what is yours with me and take it with you." For Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen them.

Jacob answered the first questions about why he had stolen away secretly.  He was afraid that Laban would not let them go and might take his daughters from him by force, perhaps changing his wages yet again.  As far as the stolen gods, Jacob had no idea that Rachel had taken them and was so confident that Laban would not find them with him or his company, that he told Laban to kill whoever had taken his gods and to take whatever he considered his.

(33) And Laban went into Jacob's tent, and into Leah's tent, and into the two maids' tents, but he did not find them. Then he went out of Leah's tent and entered into Rachel's tent. (34) Now Rachel had taken the images, and put them in the camel's furniture, and sat on them. And Laban searched all the tent but did not find them.

Laban looked diligently for his gods or images in the tents of Jacob, Leah, the maids, and now searched Rachel's tent.  Rachel was in her tent and had hidden the images in what sounds like the camel's saddle and sat upon the saddle.  Rachel's act of sitting upon "gods" would seem to be one of disrepect if she had any reverence for these false gods; that is why I don't think she revered them as idols of worship, but probably just for their monetary value, or maybe she just felt it was within her right to take something her father valued because he had taken away any inheritance from her, and maybe she didn't really value them at all.

(35) And she said to her father, "Let it not displease my lord that I cannot rise up before you, for the custom of women is upon me." And he searched but did not find the images.

I always thought this was rather amusing.  Just in case Laban would decide to look under Rachel, she told her father she was having her period!  Laban searched everywhere else, and of course, did not find the images.

(36) And Jacob was angry and argued with Laban, and Jacob answered and said to Laban: "What is my trespass? What is my sin, that you have so hotly pursued after me? (37) Although you have searched all my stuff, what have you found of all your household stuff? Set it here before my brethren and your brethren, that they may judge between us both."

By now, Jacob was angry with Laban's intrusion and his apparent (to Jacob) false accusations.  He challenged Laban to put before them all his personal property he had found among Jacob's group and let their brethren judge between them.

(38) "These twenty years I have been with you; your ewes and your female goats have not miscarried their young, and I have not eaten the rams of your flock. (39) That which was torn by beasts I did not bring to you, I bore the loss of it; you required it from my hand, whether stolen by day or stolen by night. (40) There I was; in the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night, and my sleep departed from my eyes. (41) Thus I have been in your house twenty years; I served you fourteen years for your two daughters, and six years for your cattle, and you have changed my wages ten times."

Jacob did not hold back and told Laban how he had served him for 20 years.  He told him how he had treated him more than fairly, absorbing any losses himself.  Day in and day out, no matter what the weather, and for as long as it took, even if he lost sleep, Jacob had served Laban well.  He pointed out that Laban had not treated Jacob as fairly, but had changed his wages ten times, whether that is literal or figurative, I don't really know.

(42) "Had not the God of my father, the God of Abraham, and the fear of Isaac, been with me, surely you would have sent me away now empty. God has seen my affliction and the labor of my hands, and rebuked you last night."

Jacob continued his tirade to Laban.  He finished by saying if it hadn't been for God and the reverence and fear for Him that he undountedly learned from his father Isaac, that he knew Laban would have sent him away empty-handed.  It was God who had seen how Laban treated him as he described to Laban above, and it was God who rebuked Laban in the dream because of it.

(43) And Laban answered and said to Jacob, "These daughters are my daughters, and these children are my children, and these cattle are my cattle, and all that you see is mine; and what can I do this day to these my daughters or to their children whom they have borne?"

Laban didn't deny anything Jacob said, but he pointed out that these were his daughters and grandchildren, and his flocks, or at least young that came from his very flocks.  He saw all these as his own and would not do anything to hurt any of them.

(44) "Now therefore, come, let us make a covenant, you and I, and let it be for a witness between you and me." (45) And Jacob took a stone and set it up as a pillar. (46) And Jacob said to his brethren, "Gather stones"; and they took stones and made a heap, and they ate there on the heap. (47) And Laban called it Jegar Sahadutha, but Jacob called it Galeed.

Laban asked that they come to a peaceful agreement, and Jacob set up a stone as a pillar to serve as a sign of their agreement.  They heaped stones around or beside it and then ate there at the heap.  Laban called the place Jegar Sahadutha, which literally meant "heap of the testimony" or "witness heap" in his Syrian language.  Jacob called the place Galeed, which literally meant the same, but was in his Hebrew language.

(48) And Laban said, "This heap is a witness between you and me this day." Therefore its name was called Galeed, (49) And Mizpah, for he said, "The LORD watch between you and me when we are absent one from another.

Laban proclaimed that the heap would serve as a witness to their covenant.  It was called Galeed by Jacob, as already cited, but it was also called Mizpah, which literally meant "watchtower", because the Lord would watch over them when they were absent from one another and see to it that they adhered to their covenant.

(50) If you afflict my daughters, or if you take other wives besides my daughters; no man is with us, see, God is witness between you and me."

As a "for instance", Laban declared that if Jacob ever did anything to harm his daughters or if he took new wives, although no man might be there to see, God would see and would be a witness.  Laban appears to show a kindness and affection for his daughters, although up to this point, he had treated them more like property.

(51) And Laban said to Jacob, "Here is this heap and here is this pillar, which I have placed between you and me. (52) This heap be witness, and this pillar be witness, that I will not pass over this heap to you, and that you will not pass over this heap and this pillar to me, for harm. (53) The God of Abraham, and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us." And Jacob swore by the fear of his father Isaac.

Actually, Jacob was the one who placed the pillar, but I suppose Laban was in agreement that it be set, and he and his brethren helped to pile the heap.  The heap wasn't really meant to be a boundary between them, but the meaning was that they would do no harm to one another.  It appears that Laban may have sworn by more than one god, the true God of Abraham, and the false gods of Terah.  I guess he thought he was covering all his bases, unless he realized the God of Abraham was the God of all, but regardless, Jacob swore by the one true God feared and revered by his father, Isaac.

(54) Then Jacob offered sacrifice on the mount, and called his brethren to eat bread; and they ate bread and stayed all night on the mount. (55) And early in the morning Laban rose up, and kissed his sons and his daughters and blessed them; and Laban departed and returned to his place.

Jacob offered a sacrifice and it appears that Laban and his company stayed with Jacob's on the mount all night, and then Laban departed the next morning, after kissing and blessing his daughters and his granchildren.  The same Laban who had tracked them down, and by his own admission in so many words, probably had the intention of doing them harm, now kissed and blessed them and departed from them in peace, after his dream from God.

I Am Not Ashamed

This and most of my blog posts of late are my study notes from a chronological Bible study I am currently doing.  As I truly believe that all the world's problems could be solved by intimately knowing God and His plan for our salvation in Jesus, I write to share His Word with my personal thoughts, and also sharing some insights I receive from some of the great commentaries from centuries past.  I prefer the older teachings, because I truly believe in recent years we have lost our way.  We want to mold scripture into what we believe for our current culture.  We want to worship a god of our own devices.  There is only salvation in the one true God of the Bible, and I know when we truly seek Him, He will be found and He will reveal His truth to us.  This blog is my little way of saying I know this to be true and I am not ashamed to tell the world this is how I try to live privately and publicly.  I wish everyone would seek the true God of the Bible and discover what He said about Himself, and that is why I repost Bible scripture, even though it is out there in millions of places.  God's Word is life, and I truly wish it for everyone.

Picking up in the 30th chapter of Genesis:

(Genesis 30:1) And when Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister, and said to Jacob, "Give me children, or else I die!" (2) And Jacob's anger was kindled against Rachel, and he said, "Am I in God's place, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?"

The beautiful Rachel who had the true love of her husband now envied her sister.  She made the unreasonable demand to her husband that he give her not just one child, but children, or she would fret herself to death.  Her ugly jealous demands made Jacob angry.  It was not his fault that she had had no children; it was, of course, God who had withheld children from her.

(3) And she said, "Behold my maid Bilhah; go in to her, and she will bear upon my knees, that I also may have children by her."

Perhaps Rachel was not being as unreasonable as it first sounded.  She surely knew it wasn't in Jacob's power to give her children of her own, but it was in his power to take her maid and give her children that way.  Bilhah would bear a child upon Rachel's knees which sounds like Rachel would be there in labor receiving the child immediately and taking it as her own. 

(4) And she gave him Bilhah her handmaid as wife, and Jacob went in to her. (5) And Bilhah conceived and bore Jacob a son. (6) And Rachel said, "God has judged me, and has also heard my voice and has given me a son." Therefore she called his name Dan.

Jacob agreed to take Bilhah as a wife, and she conceived and bore a son.  Rachel named the baby Dan, which literally meant "judge", because she felt God had judged her and her situation.  God had heard her plea for a child and gave her one through her maid.  She felt righteously judged by God in that He had blessed her with a child according to her plan.

(7) And Bilhah, Rachel's maid, conceived again, and bore Jacob a second son. (8) And Rachel said, "With great wrestlings I have wrestled with my sister, and I have prevailed." And she called his name Naphtali.

Rachel's maid had another son, and Rachel named this one Naphtali, which meant "wrestling", because it represented the great wrestlings she felt she had had with her sister.  Obviously, there had not really been wrestling on the part of Leah; she just naturally bore children.  But with the envious human nature of Rachel, she saw herself in a contest with her sister, and she had prevailed.

(9) When Leah saw that she had stopped bearing, she took Zilpah her maid and gave her to Jacob as wife.

So now it appears it has become a contest!  Leah, not content with the first four sons she bore to Jacob, witnessed what Rachel had done in giving her maid to Jacob, and it would seem decided she might have more children that way, too.  It might be argued that Leah simply did this as a natural next step because she had stopped bearing, but I don't think so.  With the great dramatic emotion Rachel first used to get Jacob to take her maid as wife, it doesn't seem that that was the routine way of doing things.  I am pretty sure we can assume that Leah has taken her place in this rivalry.

(10) And Zilpah Leah's maid bore Jacob a son. (11) And Leah said, "A troop comes", and she called his name Gad.

Leah's maid did bear Jacob a son, and she called his name Gad, meaning "troop" or "fortune".  She herself explained her choice of names by saying, "A troop comes".  It appears she meant her good fortune with a troop of children, whether she meant at the present, or that they would now come with Zilpah helping her.

(12) And Leah's maid Zilpah bore Jacob a second son. (13) And Leah said, "I am happy, for the daughters will call me blessed." And she called his name Asher.

Zilpah, Leah's maid, bore Jacob another son, and Leah called his name Asher, which meant "happy" or "blessed".  She spoke of both meanings when she explained her choice of names.

(14) And Reuben went in the days of wheat harvest and found mandrakes in the field, and brought them to his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, "Please give me some of your son's mandrakes." (15) And she said to her, "Is it a small matter that you have taken my husband? And would you take my son's mandrakes also?" And Rachel said, "Therefore he will lie with you tonight for your son's mandrakes."

Meanwhile, Jacob's firstborn son, Reuben, has grown, and was in the field one day during harvest and found some mandrakes, and Rachel asked for some.  Apparently, Leah still felt slighted, even after her maid had given Jacob more children.  As for Rachel, some scholars think the mandrake mentioned here was an aphrodisiac that would help with conception, so that may explain why she wanted them so.

(16) And Jacob came out of the field in the evening, and Leah went out to meet him and said, "You must come in to me, for I have surely hired you with my son's mandrakes." And he lay with her that night.

Ironically, Jacob, who had taken his brother's birthright in exchange for food, was now himself traded for mandrakes. 

(17) And God hearkened to Leah, and she conceived and bore Jacob a fifth son. (18) And Leah said, "God has given me my wages, because I have given my maid to my husband." And she called his name Issachar.

God heard Leah's prayer and granted the desire of her heart, that she should have another child.  She called this son's name Issachar, which literally meant "there is recompense" or "he will bring a reward".  She decided herself that God had paid her for her mandrakes and rewarded her because she had given her maid to her husband.  Of course, God requested no such thing of her, but that was her reasoning.  However, it is true that God blessed her with another child.

(19) And Leah conceived again and bore Jacob a sixth son. (20) And Leah said, "God has endowed me with a good endowment; now my husband will dwell with me, because I have borne him six sons." And she called his name Zebulun.

Leah bore another son, her sixth, and Jacob's tenth.  She named this son Zebulun, which meant "habitation" or "dwelling", because she believed that surely her husband would live with her all the time, since she had borne him six sons.

(21) And afterwards she bore a daughter, and called her name Dinah.

After bearing Jacob six sons, Leah bore a daughter she named Dinah, meaning "judgment" or "justice".  She probably not only thought God had judged her favorably, but maybe decided He had even judged in her favor over Rachel, by giving her so many children.

(22) And God remembered Rachel, and God hearkened to her and opened her womb. (23) And she conceived and bore a son, and said, "God has taken away my reproach." (24) And she called his name Joseph, and said, "The LORD shall add to me another son."

Then God remembered Rachel--not that He had ever forgotten her, but He now answered her prayer and gave her a son.  She considered her barrenness a reproach and a disgrace, but felt God had taken that away.  She named the child Joseph, which literally meant "Jehovah has added", because indeed the Lord had done just that.

This is not the end of this chapter, but as I am following a chronological Bible reading schedule by Skip Andrews, this is where the study ends for now.

God's Grace in the Origin of Israel and Christianity

Continuing my chronological Bible study:

(Genesis 29:1) Then Jacob went on his journey and came into the land of the people of the east. (2) And he looked and beheld a well in the field; and lo, there were three flocks of sheep lying by it, for out of that well they watered the flocks, and a large stone was on the well's mouth. (3) And there were all the flocks gathered; and they rolled the stone from the well's mouth, and watered the sheep, and put the stone again in its place on the well's mouth.

Jacob continued on his way to Laban, his mother Rebekah's brother, as she and Isaac had directed him, to marry a woman from among his mother's people, and to flee from his brother Esau who wanted to kill him.  He came to the land east of Canaan and saw a well in the field where flocks of sheep lay.  He observed that there was a large stone at the well's mouth that the shepherds rolled away to water their flocks, and then rolled it back in place after watering.

(4) And Jacob said to them, "My brethren, where are you from?"; and they said, "We are from Haran." (5) And he said to them, "Do you know Laban the son of Nahor?"; and they said, "We know him." (6) And he said to them, "Is he well?"; And they said, "He is well; and look, Rachel his daughter is coming with the sheep".

Jacob spoke to the shepherds to ask where they were from.  They were from Haran which is where he was headed, so he asked if they knew Laban, his mother's brother.  They said they knew him and that he was well, and just look who happened to be coming to water her sheep, but Rachel, Laban's daughter.  Divine providence had brought Jacob to the very field and well where he would meet Laban's daughter; God was indeed with him as He had said He would be. 

(7) And he said, "Look, it is still high day; it is not time for the cattle to be gathered together. Water the sheep, and go and feed them".

Is Jacob trying to get rid of the shepherds so that he may meet Rachel alone?  Here he is a stranger telling the local shepherds to go ahead and water the sheep and go feed them.

(8) And they said, "We cannot until all the flocks are gathered together, and till they roll the stone from the well's mouth; then we water the sheep".

Apparently, Jacob did not actually observe the shepherds rolling the stone from the well's mouth as described in verse 3.  That was just an explanation of the large stone in front of the well and why it was there.  The shepherds told Jacob they could not yet leave until all the flocks had come, at which time they would roll the stone one time and all the sheep would be watered.

(9) And while he yet spoke with them, Rachel came with her father's sheep, for she kept them.

While Jacob was still talking to the shepherds, Rachel came to the well with her father's sheep, as she took care of them.  Interestingly, the name Rachel literally means "ewe", a female sheep.

(10) And it came to pass, when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother's brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother's brother, that Jacob went near and rolled the stone from the well's mouth, and watered the flock of Laban his mother's brother.

Maybe Jacob's intention all along was to get the stone moved so that Rachel might water her sheep as soon as she got there.  The shepherds waited and were too slow, so Jacob apparently moved the stone himself, and watered Rachel's flock.  It may have been a chivalrous act directed toward Rachel, but the way the scripture keeps repeating "Laban his mother's brother", I'm sure it was out of respect to his mother's family, as well.

(11) And Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice and wept.

My first impulse was, wow, Jacob moves fast!  But then I remembered that in Biblical times, people often kissed on the cheek as a way of greeting a friend.  Jacob must be overcome by emotion at the realization that God has brought him directly to his mother's brother's daughter.

(12) And Jacob told Rachel that he was her father's relative and that he was Rebekah's son, and she ran and told her father.

Jacob explained to Rachel who he was, probably in explanation of his demonstration of love and emotion, and she ran to tell her father.

(13) And it came to pass, when Laban heard the report of Jacob his sister's son, that he ran to meet him, and embraced him and kissed him, and brought him to his house. And he told Laban all these things.

Laban happily met and greeted his sister's son and brought him to his house.  Jacob told Laban all the things leading to his being there, probably about Esau and his vision that God would be with him, which surely brought him right to Rachel.

(14) And Laban said to him, "Surely you are my bone and my flesh." And he stayed with him for a month. (15) And Laban said to Jacob, "Because you are my relative, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what should your wages be?"

Laban happily let his relative, his sister's son, live with him.  Apparently, after a month, and evidently, all the while with Jacob helping him out about his house and land, he told Jacob that he should be paid for all he did to help him.  He asked Jacob what he would like for his wages to be.

(16) And Laban had two daughters; the name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. (17) Leah was tender eyed, but Rachel was beautiful and well favored. (18) And Jacob loved Rachel, and said, "I will serve you seven years for Rachel your younger daughter."

Laban had two daughters, the younger of whom Jacob loved, so he told Laban he would work seven years for him in exchange for the hand of his daughter, Rachel.  Much has been speculated about the meaning of Leah's tender eyes that made her less desirable than Rachel.  The original word is "rak" meaning "tender, soft, delicate, weak".  The NIV translators and other of the newer Bible version translators translated the word as "weak", but it is most often used in scripture to mean "tender" and paired with "young" and "delicate".  At this point, I don't see any reason to believe her eyesight was weak, and besides it appears to be a more visual thing that is being compared here.  I think Leah's eyes may have been light-colored or small and delicate looking, while Rachel had more strong and striking features.

(19) And Laban said, "It is better that I give her to you than that I should give her to another man; stay with me." (20) And Jacob served seven years for Rachel; and they seemed to him but a few days because of the love he had for her. (21) And Jacob said to Laban, "Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in to her."

I believe Jacob's desire was honorable.  He had wanted no other pay from Laban but that he have Rachel as his wife.  Perhaps he had offered to work so long for her because he had no other money to give as a dowry, as was customary in those times.  He offered servitude for seven years which would have been worth a fair amount.  Perhaps Laban did just mean it was better that Rachel become his relative Jacob's wife rather than any other man's wife, but his words that he "give her" may indicate more.  Whatever his meaning, he appears to have agreed to have Jacob stay with him and work seven years for the hand of Rachel.  Because he loved Rachel so, those seven years seemed only a few days to Jacob.  Wow, I think of how impatient we are in this day and age; we require instant gratification.  Anyway, the end of seven years came, and Jacob asked for his wife.

(22) And Laban gathered together all the men of the place and made a feast. (23) And it came to pass in the evening, that he took Leah his daughter, and brought her to Jacob; and he went in unto her.

So Laban made a feast, it would seem a celebratory marriage feast because Jacob was about to marry his daughter, Rachel.  In the evening, Laban brought Leah to Jacob, instead of Rachel, and it appears that Jacob did not realize that.  The custom was to keep the bride veiled up until and including the time she was brought into her husband's bed chamber as a sign of her purity.  It would have been dark when her veil was lifted and as Jacob had never been intimate with Rachel, it is conceivable that he could have been deceived in this manner.

(24) And Laban gave his maid Zilpah to his daughter Leah as a maid.

Slaves or maid servants were customarily given to daughters upon their marriages, and were to be their personal property and not subject to their husbands.  Zilpah is Laban's marriage gift to his daughter, Leah.

(25) And it came to pass, that in the morning, behold, it was Leah; and he said to Laban, "What is this you have done to me? Did I not serve you for Rachel? Why then have you deceived me?" (26) And Laban said, "It must not be done so in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn. (27) Fulfill her week, and we will give you this one also for the service which you will serve with me yet another seven years."

Obviously Jacob was upset when he discovered it was Leah he had gone to bed with rather than his Rachel.  He asked Laban why he had done such a thing.  Laban's true character is revealed when he told Jacob that it wasn't right that a younger daughter should be married before the firstborn.  If he had had good and sincere intentions, he could have told Jacob that upfront, but as it is, he held Rachel as a prize just out of reach, and told Jacob he could have her if he worked another seven years.  This treatment of his daughters as property that can be bought and sold and given at his will was not proper and is later described in scripture in his daughters' complaint against him, in Genesis 31:15.  Fulfilling her week referred to the week of Leah's marriage feast.  After the first night, when Jacob discovered he had been deceived, he might have refused to keep Leah as his wife, but Laban encouraged him to go ahead with the marriage, by enticing him with the real desire of his heart, Rachel.  Ironically, Jacob the deceiver, the one who deceived his brother to get what he wanted, was now deceived by Laban who would now get 14 years of service to marry off both his daughters.

(28) And Jacob did so and fulfilled her week; and he gave him Rachel his daughter as wife also. (29) And Laban gave his maid Bilhah to his daughter Rachel to be her maid. (30) And he went in also unto Rachel, and he also loved Rachel more than Leah; and he served with Laban yet another seven years.

Jacob did fulfill the marriage feast week for Leah, and Laban gave him Rachel as his wife, also.  Laban also gave Rachel her own maid, Bilhah.  Jacob consummated his marriage to Rachel, and loved his Rachel more than Leah.  After all, he only wanted Rachel, but was tricked into taking Leah as his wife, as well.  Jacob served Laban another seven years as he had said he would.

(31) And when the LORD saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb; but Rachel was barren.

It always bothered me a little that Leah was hated.  It is true, she was less loved than Rachel, and that is no one's fault.  Jacob loved Rachel; she was the one he wanted all along, so to have Leah forced upon him, as well, didn't make him instantly love her.  John Wesley pointed out something in scripture that explains this choice of words.  "Hate" was used in Luke 14:26, when Jesus said if any man came to Him and did not hate his mother, father, etc., he could not be a disciple of Jesus.  Obviously, I know that Jesus never taught us to hate anyone.  By studying another scripture where Jesus taught the same lesson, Matthew 10:37, we read about Jesus talking about one who loves his parents or his children more than Him, and was not worthy of Him.  It is the same case with Rachel and Leah; in the verse directly before this one, it simply stated that Jacob loved Rachel more than Leah, and in the next verse God saw Leah was hated.  I believe Jesus summed it up well in Matthew 6:24 when He talked about how no one could serve two masters, as he would naturally love one and hate the other.  Although "hate" seems like a strong word to the reader, I believe it was meant to show a comparison to the love shown.  In all these cases, there is a comparison made between the one loved and the one "hated".  Adam Clarke's notes on Luke 14:26 added more examples of love and hate being used in other scriptures, with Deuteronomy 21:15-17 offering a unique example not yet touched upon in these study notes.  His conclusion was that it was no arbitrary interpretation of the word "hate" to determine that it simply meant to not love or like as much, and it didn't mean there was any burning hatred. 

Back to verse 31, even though I am sure there was no open hatred of Leah, it was obvious she was not preferred by Jacob, and even her father had to devise a trick to get her married, so she had every reason to feel unloved.  Therefore, the Lord loved and blessed her and opened her womb. 

(32) And Leah conceived, and bore a son, and she called his name Reuben, for she said, "Surely the LORD has looked on my affliction; now therefore, my husband will love me."

Leah conceived and bore a son, and called him Reuben, which literally meant "behold a son".  As the mother of his firstborn son, Leah felt that now her husband would love her.  She obviously felt terribly unloved, calling it an affliction, and felt that surely the Lord had blessed her by giving her this son.

(33) And she conceived again and bore a son, and said, "Because the LORD has heard that I was hated, He has therefore given me this son also." And she called his name Simeon.

Leah bore Jacob a second son and called his name Simeon, which literally meant "heard".  Proving once again that she considered her affliction being the fact she was unloved, Leah declared that the Lord had heard that she was hated and gave her another son.

(34) And she conceived again and bore a son, and said, "Now this time my husband will be joined to me, because I have borne him three sons." Therefore his name was called Levi.

Leah called her third son Levi, which literally meant "joined to" or "attached".  She supposed her husband would form a strong loving bond with her now that she was the mother of his three sons.

(35) And she conceived again and bore a son, and she said, "Now I will praise the LORD." Therefore she called his name Judah, and stopped bearing.

Leah bore a fourth son and called his name "Judah", which meant "praised" or "celebrated".  Leah had surely thanked and praised the Lord when she was given sons before this, when she felt the Lord had seen she was unloved and had blessed her with sons.  But with four sons, she must have praised Him more than ever now.  Little did Leah know that from the line of this celebrated son would come the Messiah.  After bearing four sons, Leah stopped bearing children, at least for the time being.

Keil and Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament offers a beautiful insight into the story of Leah's first sons.  God blessed Leah with the first four sons while Rachel, the object of Jacob's love and desire, remained barren, at least for a time.  "By this it was made apparent once more, that the origin of Israel was to be a work not of nature, but of grace."  We have already seen that it was not a work of nature with regard to it being brought through the firstborn.  When I think about Leah, I can see a humble woman, lowly in spirit, but obviously a loving wife.  It seems that her husband's love was very important to her.  It doesn't appear that she was angry or resentful and nagged her husband about it.  She just did what she was called to do as a wife, and God blessed her.  Jesus later taught that the poor in spirit and those that mourn would be blessed and comforted.  The Apostle Paul wrote this in 1 Corinthians 12:24-25:

"For our comely parts have no need: but God hath tempered the body together, having given more abundant honour to that part which lacked: That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another."

Rachel was the beautiful one who had the love of her husband and for that time had no other need, but God gave honor to Leah who lacked her husband's love.  What a beautiful demonstration of God's love and tender mercy for His children! 

John Nelson Darby took this a step further and likened it to Israel and the Gentiles.  Rachel was the one first loved, as Israel was God's chosen people, but Leah was given grace as are the Gentiles who actively seek after God.  I love this analogy!  I love seeing God's plan for our salvation in Jesus from the very beginning!