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NOTES for Gen 31:1-21

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1 And he heard the words of Laban's sons, saying, Jacob hath taken away all that was our father's; and of that which was our father's hath he gotten all this glory.
2 And Jacob beheld the countenance of Laban, and, behold, it was not toward him as before.
3 And the LORD said unto Jacob, Return unto the land of thy fathers, and to thy kindred; and I will be with thee.
4 And Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah to the field unto his flock,
5 And said unto them, I see your father's countenance, that it is not toward me as before; but the God of my father hath been with me.
6 And ye know that with all my power I have served your father.
7 And your father hath deceived me, and changed my wages ten times; but God suffered him not to hurt me.
8 If he said thus, The speckled shall be thy wages; then all the cattle bare speckled: and if he said thus, The ringstraked shall be thy hire; then bare all the cattle ringstraked.
9 Thus God hath taken away the cattle of your father, and given them to me.
10 And it came to pass at the time that the cattle conceived, that I lifted up mine eyes, and saw in a dream, and, behold, the rams which leaped upon the cattle were ringstraked, speckled, and grisled.
11 And the angel of God spake unto me in a dream, saying, Jacob: And I said, Here am I.
12 And he said, Lift up now thine eyes, and see, all the rams which leap upon the cattle are ringstraked, speckled, and grisled: for I have seen all that Laban doeth unto thee.
13 I am the God of Bethel, where thou anointedst the pillar, and where thou vowedst a vow unto me: now arise, get thee out from this land, and return unto the land of thy kindred.
14 And Rachel and Leah answered and said unto him, Is there yet any portion or inheritance for us in our father's house?
15 Are we not counted of him strangers? for he hath sold us, and hath quite devoured also our money.
16 For all the riches which God hath taken from our father, that is ours, and our children's: now then, whatsoever God hath said unto thee, 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, the cattle of his getting, which he had gotten in Padan-aram, for to go to Isaac his father in the land of Canaan.
19 And Laban went to shear his sheep: and Rachel had stolen the images that were her father's.
20 And Jacob stole away unawares to Laban the Syrian, in that he told him not that he fled.
21 So he fled with all that he had; and he rose up, and passed over the river, and set his face toward the mount Gilead.
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To become the leader of God's people, one must learn to listen to God and hear Him. Jacob learned this, judging by the words he spoke to his wives. He mentions the God of Abraham, who appeared to him in a dream. Jacob speaks of an angel, a messenger of God, but in those times people often made no distinction between the appearance of an angel and the appearance of God Himself. God made Jacob rich, and this was a lesson. A lesson that by following God one can become rich, and quite unexpectedly.

Now the next lesson lay ahead: he had to understand that such following is not free of problems or danger. Even when, it would appear, everything has succeeded and one can feel like a victor. Jacob has become rich; now he has almost more flocks than Laban himself, and he owes all of it only to God. It would seem to be a complete victory. But after victory, after success, he has to flee, to flee from otherwise unavoidable problems, and serious problems at that.

A successfully carried out plan of God, even with our direct participation, does not at all imply the possibility of relaxing and resting. Everything can turn out quite the opposite: after carrying out one of God's plans, one may have to begin immediately carrying out the next, and it may well be a matter of one's own salvation. Perhaps even of physical survival. God's pedagogy can seem severe, but it is needed to teach a person real spiritual collectedness. Real means not at certain times and places, but constantly.

God does not have a fixed workday or workweek for us; He does not provide a legal vacation. Sometimes He may give a person rest, and at times even quite a long rest, but not according to the schedule a person usually counts on. Besides, rest can end at any moment and turn without delay into active work to carry out another of God's designs.

Such unpredictability belongs to God's action - unpredictability, of course, only from our point of view, since He Himself knows His plans well. For a person, what matters is learning a quick, almost lightning-fast response to His words and actions. Otherwise one cannot become God's person. And God wants to see Jacob precisely as His own person, and trains him accordingly.

Other notes

 
For Gen 31:1-21
1 And he heard the words of Laban's sons, saying, Jacob hath taken away all that was our father's; and of that which was our father's hath he gotten all this glory.
2 And Jacob beheld the countenance of Laban, and, behold, it was not toward him as before.
3 And the LORD said unto Jacob, Return unto the land of thy fathers, and to thy kindred; and I will be with thee.
4 And Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah to the field unto his flock,
5 And said unto them, I see your father's countenance, that it is not toward me as before; but the God of my father hath been with me.
6 And ye know that with all my power I have served your father.
7 And your father hath deceived me, and changed my wages ten times; but God suffered him not to hurt me.
8 If he said thus, The speckled shall be thy wages; then all the cattle bare speckled: and if he said thus, The ringstraked shall be thy hire; then bare all the cattle ringstraked.
9 Thus God hath taken away the cattle of your father, and given them to me.
10 And it came to pass at the time that the cattle conceived, that I lifted up mine eyes, and saw in a dream, and, behold, the rams which leaped upon the cattle were ringstraked, speckled, and grisled.
11 And the angel of God spake unto me in a dream, saying, Jacob: And I said, Here am I.
12 And he said, Lift up now thine eyes, and see, all the rams which leap upon the cattle are ringstraked, speckled, and grisled: for I have seen all that Laban doeth unto thee.
13 I am the God of Bethel, where thou anointedst the pillar, and where thou vowedst a vow unto me: now arise, get thee out from this land, and return unto the land of thy kindred.
14 And Rachel and Leah answered and said unto him, Is there yet any portion or inheritance for us in our father's house?
15 Are we not counted of him strangers? for he hath sold us, and hath quite devoured also our money.
16 For all the riches which God hath taken from our father, that is ours, and our children's: now then, whatsoever God hath said unto thee, 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, the cattle of his getting, which he had gotten in Padan-aram, for to go to Isaac his father in the land of Canaan.
19 And Laban went to shear his sheep: and Rachel had stolen the images that were her father's.
20 And Jacob stole away unawares to Laban the Syrian, in that he told him not that he fled.
21 So he fled with all that he had; and he rose up, and passed over the river, and set his face toward the mount Gilead.
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Jacob's departure from his father-in-law's land is connected with understandable human ideas of justice. To work for...  Read more

Jacob's departure from his father-in-law's land is connected with understandable human ideas of justice. To work for his father-in-law for so many years, to face petty deceit and substitution, to endure constant attempts to grab a piece and profit from Jacob: all this is hard. But his departure is not connected with an ordinary "I've had enough," but with God's call to obtain the land promised to his father and grandfather. Despite being in the right, Jacob fears for his life and for his family; he fears revenge from his brothers-in-law. He leaves secretly, having secured the support of Rachel and Leah. This secrecy gives Rachel the opportunity to bring idolatry into the people who worship the One God. She cannot part with what had long formed the foundation of her life, and the weed of paganism, without Jacob's knowledge, penetrates the field that the Lord planted.

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For Gen 31:19
19 And Laban went to shear his sheep: and Rachel had stolen the images that were her father's.
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Why did Rachel need those "idols," small images of pagan gods, household patrons, which in those days were in every home? There is one simple explanation...  Read more

Why did Rachel need those "idols," small images of pagan gods, household patrons, which in those days were in every home? There is one simple explanation: the person who possessed the household gods could claim the inheritance. True; but was that all? Rachel herself must have understood that there was no way back to her father's house. Then what was it? Distrust of Jacob's God? Of the God in whom she now had to place her only hope? Hardly: if that had been so, Rachel would not have dared to flee with her husband, risking everything. Then why?

The simplest answer may look strange at first: just in case. Of course, Jacob's God is stronger than the pagan gods. He is plainly stronger than Laban's gods, and He has proved it more than once. But still: what if? What if His support turns out not to be enough? After all, He is unpredictable. But here everything is familiar and known; these household gods have always helped, and they will help now. The main thing is not to leave them behind, but to take them along.

Of course, such arguments are not always clearly thought out. Sometimes a person follows them while giving little or no account to himself of what he is doing and what motives guide him. But in the heart, where choices are made and decisions are taken, indecision settles in. And indecision brings the desire for backup, the desire not to put all one's eggs in one basket. Let it be God, and also something or someone else: the old gods, the old half-magical customs, whatever it is, as long as it is old and tested. And how it works or what help it can give does not matter either: it helped before, so it will help today.

Deep down there is one desire: to get hold of, if not a lifeboat, then at least a life preserver in case of possible shipwreck, in case God somehow does not manage. And it does not occur to those seeking such "salvation" that if God leaves them, no boats and no life preservers will help. Without Him there is only one road: to the bottom. With Him, to the Kingdom. Without life preservers and without a safety net.

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For Gen 31:19
19 And Laban went to shear his sheep: and Rachel had stolen the images that were her father's.
Hide
Why would Rachel need these "idols", small statues of the heathen gods - the defenders of the house, which were in those days in every house? There is a simple explanation: the one who possessed the domestic gods could aspire to inheritance...  Read more

Why would Rachel need these "idols", small statues of the heathen gods - the defenders of the house, which were in those days in every house? There is a simple explanation: the one who possessed the domestic gods could aspire to inheritance. So; but is the problem only in it? Indeed, Rachel understood herself probably that the roads to the paternal house are closed for her.

Then what? The distrust of the God of Jacob? The God, Whom only now it was possible to hope on? Hardly: if it was so, Rachel would not have decided to run away with her husband, risking everything. So, why? The simplest answer can seem at first sight strange: in any case. Of course, the God of Jacob is stronger than the gods of Laban, He demonstrated it not once. But all the same: what if? What if His support will not be enough? After all, He is unpredictable. And here everything is usual, familiar; these domestic gods always helped, and probably will also help now.

The important thing is not to leave them, but take them along with oneself. Naturally, such arguments are not always clearly understood, sometimes man follows them, being little or not being at all aware of what he does and of which motives he is guided. But in the heart, there, where choice is done and decisions are taken, settles down indecision. And indecision causes the desire to be insured, do not put all eggs into the same basket.

Let it be God, and something or somebody again, old gods, old semi-magic customs, no matter what, if only he is old and reliable. And how it works, in what it can help is not also important: it helped before, so it will help and today also? Deep down, there is only one desire: obtain if it is not a lifeboat, at least a lifebuoy in case of a possible crash, in case God suddenly fail. And it does not come to the head of the one, who seeks for such a "rescue" that if God really leaves, no boat and no buoy will help. That without Him, there is only one way: to the bottom. And with Him - to the Kingdom. Without lifebuoy and without insurance.

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