Today's readings from the Chronological Plan are from Genesis 28:6-30:24. Click here to read online.
Wow, today's readings cover a lot of ground!
It starts off with Jacob and Rebekah both starting to pay the consequences of their deception. They obviously had not thought through the end results should their scheme succeed. Rebekah ends up convincing Isaac to send Jacob to Haran to look for a wife there - I think with both right and wrong motives. She was definitely motivated by wanting to save the life of her son, but she was right in the argument she gave to Isaac - that Jacob should marry someone from their faith. Rebekah died before Jacob came back - she never saw him again. What a high price she paid for her sin.
It appears that Isaac and Rebekah had not given their sons any training in this matter of marriage until very late in life - Esau had already married Hittite women, and Jacob was already in his 70's. Esau attempted to redeem this by marrying from the family of Ishmael, not realizing that that was not the family that they were intended to marry either.
Neither sons appear to have accepted their father and grandfather's faith as their own either - in Gen 27:20 Jacob refers to God as your God.
But then there is Jacob's conversion during his dream at Bethel (sort of foreshadowing Saul's conversion on the road to Damascus I think) where he finally refers to God as his God. Likely Jacob had hit rock bottom. Yes, he had succeeded in receiving the blessing. But now he was living with the knowledge that he had deceived his father and brother, he was leaving the mother he loved for a place and people he did not know, and he had nothing to offer as a dowry for a future wife. Really, not a lot going for him at this point. And that is the point that he was finally ready to listen to God. Notice verse 16 - Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it. God doesn't leave us. We often simply are not listening for Him. We are striving to do things our way, to fix things, to take care of things for God because we know best - when if we would simply be still and know that He is God, He would reveal Himself to us.
Two interesting articles about this passage of scripture can be found here and here.
And then Jacob arrives in Haran where he meets his Uncle Laban - who happens to be even better at deception than Jacob! Hmmmm, more consequences it seems.
I've always felt very sorry for Leah. I now think, perhaps I have misread this chapter previously. I always thought that Leah was "ugly" while Rachel was beautiful, and that the only way she could get a husband was for her dad to trick someone into it.
And yet, the word for weak eyes could also be translated as gentle eyes, or even gentle character - which is contrasted to Rachel's beauty and spitfire personality. Jacob seems to have based his selection of a wife based solely on looks (very unlike how Isaac's wife was selected - God's leading and Rebekah's character were of utmost important, her beauty was just the icing on the cake). And yet - God blessed Leah. To Leah was born Judah - through whom the Messiah would be born. And to Leah was born Levi - through whom the priestly line would come. Leah and her maidservant had more than twice as many children as Rachel and her maidservant. And Rachel died first, even though she was younger, and was buried on the way to Bethlehem (35:19). Leah, on the other hand, was buried with Jacob (Gen 49:31). Though Jacob clearly favoured Rachel (mainly based on hormones it seems), God blessed Leah and Leah was a blessing to Jacob.
Jacob deceived his firstborn brother out of the birthright, and Laban deceives Jacob because Jacob was not going to honour the custom of marrying the firstborn daughter. Jacob did not respect the cultural laws of the day anymore than his brother Esau had valued his birthright.
Commentaries on that passage can be read here and here.
Something interesting in the commentaries (here and here) I read about chapter 30 is that the names of Leah's children show her changing heart. At first she is thankful to God for the sons she's been given because she thinks that surely Jacob will love her now. And then she realizes that being loved and led by God was far greater than being loved and led by man.
Then Rachel, out of jealousy, falls into the same sin as Sarah, and gives her maidservant to Jacob to bear children for her.
And, unfortunately, Leah falls into the same trap as well. And then they even barter over their husband!
In this story both women wanted what the other one had. Leah wanted Jacob to love her like he loved Rachel. And Rachel wanted to bear children like Leah. We need to learn to be content in our circumstances, to find our purpose in God and not in ourselves.
Tomorrow's readings are Genesis 30:25-31:55. Click here to read online.
4 comments:
Good insights Tammy!
The first thing that got my attention was Esau realising what Canaanite women were like and going to marry someone who was not a Canaanite. A little too late though.
I always felt a little sorry for Jacob that Laban took advantage of him, but for some reason I always seemed to have forgotten or didn't read in the whole context of the book that Jacob was a big deciever and was bearing the consequences for that.
I have always felt for Leah. I never noticed that change in her attitude before, how she then turned to praising God, thanks for the link to that article Tammy.
The jealousy between the two women just seemed to go on and on, at one stage I was like "does anyone just want to have a child because they want to have a child, or is it only to be one up on their sister?!"
I think we all have a bit of Rachel and Leah in is, trying to find purpose through being a wife or a mother or good at our job or being the best servant in church. We just have to rest and abide. Stop trying to keep up with the Jones'. I know I don't look to material things and wish I had them, but I do look to other things like relationships, company, help that kind of thing... So that is hard, something I am trying to work through. Thanks for pointing it out at the end Tammy.
This passage just made me sadder and sadder ~ that two sisters would use their children as weapons against each other and make it a competition; even to the point of WANTING their servant girls to sleep with their husband.... I know the culture and times were very different, but it still seems like it had become an ugly competition. And it wasn't even for Jacob's love anymore, it seems to be almost solely for superiority.
One thing that actually kinda struck me as funny was what Jacob says to Laban after he's worked his initial 7 years: "Give me my wife. My time is completed, and I want to lie with her." It's just not something you'd think her dad would really want to hear!!!!
I wonder if Laban had in mind the whole time to deceive Jacob and thereby keep him there for an extra seven years? After all, if he had wanted to deal fairly with Jacob, and still follow their customs, he had seven years to find another husband for Leah.
I wonder, also, if Leah loved Jacob and was happy to marry him (deceitfully or otherwise)? She probably had little or no say in the matter either way... but it does seem from the names that she gave her sons that she did love Jacob and she must have been very hurt when he didn't feel the same about her. I wonder if she secretly hoped that once Jacob had married her and spent the night with her, he would realize he had actually loved her all along and would be happy to be married to her?
As women, I've seen it happen many times, we too often think we can get a man to love us by giving him something he wants. "If I sleep with him, he'll love me." "If I have a child with him, he'll stay with me." I feel badly for Leah - I wonder if Jacob ever realized that Laban had actually done him a service rather than a disservice by marrying Leah to him first?
This whole passage just breaks my heart. Poor Leah, who has to spend a whole week of her wedding ceremony, knowing that her husband didn't want her. And a week later, having her sister be married to her husband as well. How awful. So much for two flesh coming together and being one!
Then we have the rivalry and the jelousy. It makes me so upset that these old testament men couldn't say "no, I love you and I will not sleep with your maid." I know it was customary in that day, and bearing children, espescailly sons, was important, but common! None of the stuff in these verses should have happend. But, it did.
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