Genesis 29:1-35

October 16, 2013 Jacob has fled to Haran on the pretense of finding a wife. God met him along the way and promised to take care of him and confirmed the promise; Christ will eventually come through Jacobs lineage. But at this point in the story, these things might be hard to see. Jacob is running for his life and he doesnt yet have a wife or children. But Jacob believes God, and says, the LORD will be my God (Gen 28:20). The following story shows how God begins to fulfill His promise: Then Jacob went on his journey, and came into the land of the people of the east. 2And he looked, and behold 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 great stone was upon the wells mouth. 3And thither were all the flocks gathered: and they rolled the stone from the wells mouth, and watered the sheep, and put the stone again upon the wells mouth in his place. They kept the well covered to prevent it from filling with sand or other debris. Once everyone was gathered around they opened it long enough to drink and covered it again.
4

And Jacob said unto them, My brethren, whence be ye? And they said, Of Haran are we. 5And he said unto them, Know ye Laban the son of Nahor? And they said, We know him. 6And he said unto them, Is he well? And they said, He is well: and, behold, Rachel his daughter cometh with the sheep. His whole purpose in leaving is to find a wife from Laban, so its fortunate that he happens upon some men from Haran who know Laban and his daughter. Note the differences in these verses from when Abrahams servant got a wife for Isaac. The servant went to a well and found the woman too, but he very clearly sought Gods direction. Jacob may or may not have asked anything of God, but the situation shows Gods hand just as He had promised.
7

And he said, Lo, it is yet high day, neither is it time that the cattle should be gathered together: water ye the sheep, and go and feed them. 8And they said, We cannot, until all the flocks be gathered together, and till they roll the stone from the wells mouth; then we water the sheep. He may want them to hurry up and water so he can be alone with Rachel, but since shes already in view this doesnt seem right. Or he may simply be giving advice about how to shepherd, but this also seems strange because hes obviously more interested in her than in the shepherds. I think perhaps he wants to make

sure shell stop and water her flock so he tries to get the shepherds to open the well early. They refuse, but Gods plan is already at work so Jacob doesnt need them anyway.
9

And while he yet spake with them, Rachel came with her fathers sheep; for she kept them. 10And it came to pass, when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mothers brother, and the sheep of Laban his mothers brother, that Jacob went near, and rolled the stone from the wells mouth, and watered the flock of Laban his mothers brother. Theres a lot left out of this story which I suppose is unimportant. Did Jacob break the rule of waiting for everyone? Did a lot of time pass in it came to pass? Was Rachels flock among the last to arrive and so it was time? None of these are answered or stressed. What is important is that without even trying Jacob found his mothers brother!
11

And Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice, and wept. 12And Jacob told Rachel that he was her fathers brother, and that he was Rebekahs son: and she ran and told her father. Jacob is so overwhelmed that he cant help but kiss her and weep and shes so excited that she runs to tell her father
13

And it came to pass, when Laban heard the tidings of Jacob his sisters 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. 14And Laban said to him, Surely thou art my bone and my flesh. How much did Jacob tell Laban? At the very least he tells enough to convince Laban they are truly kin. And he abode with him the space of a month. 15And Laban said unto Jacob, Because thou art my brother, shouldest thou therefore serve me for nought? tell me, what shall thy wages be? Jacob lives with Laban a month and helps with all the chores. At the end of that time Laban wants to hire Jacob to stay on full time. What will you charge?
16

And Laban had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. 17Leah was tender eyed; but Rachel was beautiful and well favoured. 18And Jacob loved Rachel; and said, I will serve thee seven years for Rachel thy younger daughter.

There are two important facts here: (1) Leah is the elder sister. Jacob wants to skip over Leah and marry Rachel. The original readers would have caught that immediately and known that this request goes against cultural norms. But theres an even more significant fact here: (2) Jacob loved Rachel and didnt love Leah. Leah has weak eyes. Whatever it means its the opposite of beautiful and well favored. The bottom line is that he has rejected her because of what he sees about her. He doesnt see her as God does and his choice is not made with guidance and apparently not by faith. He probably didnt have anything to give for a dowry so hell render services instead.
19

And Laban said, It is better that I give her to thee, than that I should give her to another man: abide with me. 20And Jacob served seven years for Rachel; and they seemed unto him but a few days, for the love he had to her. I can picture him whistling while he works. Hes so in love that these seven years fly, but things dont go as intended:
21

And Jacob said unto Laban, Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in unto her. 22And Laban gathered together all the men of the place, and made a feast. 23And it came to pass in the evening, that he took Leah his daughter, and brought her to him; and he went in unto her. This is a pretty bold move on Labans part. Its dark and the bride wears a veil so Jacob never suspects a thing. He goes to her and consummates the marriage and the two become one flesh.
24

And Laban gave unto his daughter Leah Zilpah his maid for an handmaid.

This is important because Zilpah will bear Gad and Asher in the next chapter (Gen. 30:9-13).
25

And it came to pass, that in the morning, behold, it was Leah: and he said to Laban, What is this thou hast done unto me? did not I serve with thee for Rachel? wherefore then hast thou beguiled me? Jacob is right to be angry, but theres a little hypocrisy on his part. Think of the similarities between this experience and what he did to his own father: (1) Neither Jacob nor Isaac could see the one tricking him. Isaac made the wrong choice in his blindness, and Jacob was blinded by his wrong choice.

(2) Both men were driven by their flesh. Jacob wanted Rachel and Isaac wanted his favorite food. (3) Neither man sought Gods will in the matter. They knew best and both ended up with something they didnt want. (4) Both chose the unchosen. Isaac tried to cheat Jacob. Jacob tried to cheat Leah.
26

And Laban said, It must not be so done in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn. 27Fulfil her week, and we will give thee this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years. I wonder if this is a jab at the fact that Jacob has tricked his older brother out of the birthright and blessing. Perhaps, but the point is that Laban refuses to go against culture and uses it to justify his actions. The only way hell let Rachel go is after a second payment: And Jacob did so, and fulfilled her week: and he gave him Rachel his daughter to wife also. 29And Laban gave to Rachel his daughter Bilhah his handmaid to be her maid. 30And he went in also unto Rachel, and he loved also Rachel more than Leah, and served with him yet seven other years. Jacob finally gets what he wants and he also gets Bilhah who will give him Dan and Naphtali (Gen. 30:3-8). But now hes still got to work another seven years and he has this wife he doesnt love. Apparently he wasnt very concerned about hiding it:
31 28

And when the LORD saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb: but Rachel was barren. This is a good spot to remind you of the point of this story. God promised to make Jacobs descendants like the dust of the earth. This whole chapter shows us how Hell do that, and isnt it interesting that He opened Leahs womb but closed Rachels? Look at this significance:
32

And Leah conceived, and bare a son, and she called his name Reuben: for she said, Surely the LORD hath looked upon my affliction; now therefore my husband will love me. 33And she conceived again, and bare a son; and said, Because the LORD hath heard I was hated, he hath therefore given me this son also: and she called his name Simeon. 34And she conceived again, and bare a son; and said, Now this time will my husband be joined unto me, because I have born him three sons: therefore was his name called Levi.

35

And she conceived again, and bare a son: and she said, Now will I praise the LORD: therefore she called his name Judah; and left bearing. The Levites, Moses, David, and Christ were born from the lineage of Leah and not Rachel! Jacob rejected the one God chose. But its still a very sad story. Imagine her not being wanted and waking up the next morning only to find Jacob already gone to be with the one he really wanted. I can almost see her waking up by herself and leaving the tent only to find Jacob consoling and holding Rachel. Even the bridal week would have been bitter; it only served as a countdown until she would officially take second place. That must have been one depressing week, though it was supposed to be joyous. Once Rachel comes in, I imagine Leah sleeps most nights by herself. Jacob probably comes around some, but probably more out of obligation than anything. On one occasion Leah conceives. The new baby sparks some hope in Leah, and when she has a son, the pride of any man, she hopes Jacob will now love her: now therefore my husband will love me. Did you catch that? All she wants is for Jacob to love her the way he loves Rachel. He doesnt. She has another son for him, and there is still no apparent change. By the time she has his third son, she knows love is too much to ask; shes decided to settle for attachment: Now this time will my husband be joined unto me, because I have born him three sons. Perhaps Jacob will now value her. Were not told whether or not he does, but the birth of the fourth child gives us a clue: And she conceived again and bore a son and said, This time I will praise the LORD. Its almost as if Leah has given up hope waiting for Jacobs love or attention. Shes come to the point where she realizes that God loves her, He blesses her, and thats enough: Now will I praise the LORD. What can we learn from all this? #1- God directs us even when were not looking for it. It always bothers me when Christians fear missing the will of God. Yes, its possible to grieve the Spirit and to do things that arent righteous, but Jacob is a great example of a man more along for the ride than piloting the ship. He doesnt know where hes going or who hell meet or where hell stay, but he doesnt need to know these things. God has it worked out and it becomes clear in time. Even when were not as righteous as we ought to be Gods promise is unchanged. His plan for us is as unchangeable as His love, so were confident that Hell finish His good work even without our permission.

#2- God fulfills His promise despite mens sinfulness. Ive got Laban in mind here. He didnt have Jacobs best interests in mind which explains why he acted so selfishly. But even though this shrewd and harsh and deceitful man seems in control hes not. He played right into what God wanted to happen! It doesnt matter what other people do to us they cant do anything but fulfill what God has decreed. Even Satan can only do what God allows and its always for our good! #3- God causes His chosen ones to experience suffering to glorify Himself and lead us to praise. Its good to remember that being chosen doesnt mean being happy by the worlds standards. In fact, its through much tribulation that we enter the kingdom of God (Acts 14:22). And so we must expect persecution and hardship and expect to be hated. But were also comforted because we know that God is the only real source of comfort. Leah sought this comfort from Jacob, but by the time her fourth child was born she looked only to the Lord. newgracebaptistchurch.wordpress.com