Summer
Sermon Series: Wrestling with Jacob
Genesis
30:25-31:55
Today we continue in our summer sermon
series, “Wrestling with Jacob”. We have
followed Jacob from his birth through his tumultuous family life. We have watched him trick his older brother
out of an inheritance, and be tricked himself as his uncle forces him to marry
two sisters. We have witnessed strife
within his family as the sisters fight for his affections and multiple sons are
born to both the sisters and their maids.
This week the family drama continues as Jacob prepares to leave Haran.
(Read
Genesis 30:25-43)
After the birth of Joseph, Jacob is
ready to return home. Laban doesn’t want
Jacob to leave. He knows Jacob is
blessed by God and as Jacob has been part of Laban’s household that blessing
has rubbed off on Laban. Jacob has made
Laban rich and so Laban doesn’t want to let that opportunity pass.
The bit about the animals is
interesting. Laban asks Jacob to set the
terms of his wages and Jacob is the one to offer the black and spotted sheep
and goats. These animals would have been
rare in the flock so it seems like a good deal to Laban. Following his pattern of dishonesty, after
the terms are agreed upon Laban removes the spotted and black sheep and goats
from the flock. That way they can’t
breed with the others, thereby insuring that Jacob has little to nothing for
wages. Setting the animals three days
distance away from the white flocks just cements the situation. As far as Laban is concerned, Jacob should leave
with nothing to his name.
The bit about the mating animals is
confusing. Some ancient people believed
that what animals looked at while they were breeding would determine the
coloring of the animals. The goats that
look to the spotted sticks produce spotted kids. The sheep that look to Laban’s black flocks
produce black lambs. Really, we can’t
explain this and it’s not meant to be explained. The point of the story is not that Jacob is
amazing at husbandry. Rather, the point
of the story is that God will bless Jacob no matter what. Even though there are no spotted or black animals
in his herd, still after six years, Jacob amasses a giant herd of spotted and
black sheep and goats. God makes Jacob a
rich man, and Laban is left with very little.
(Read Genesis 31:1-24)
Things continue to grow worse with
Laban and God tells Jacob that the time to leave is now. In an interesting turn of events, Jacob
consults his wives about the issue. They
too agree that Laban has abused the family and they echo Jacob’s desire to part
ways with their ancestral home. So,
everyone loads up, the slaves, the wives, the children, and the herds, and they
all head back to Canaan.
Rachel sees an opportunity to get back
at her father for all the trouble he has caused and she steals his household
gods before the group leaves. These
would have been small, man shaped statues that represented Laban’s authority
over the clan. To steal them is a big
insult to Laban’s manhood and his sense of propriety.
When Laban finds that Jacob, the
herds, and the family have all left he is angry. The missing household gods simply add insult
to injury. The author tells us that
Laban follows Jacob for seven days in an attempt to catch up with the
group. In a dream God warns Laban to
leave Jacob alone. He may be angry, but
he shouldn’t take any disruptive actions.
(Read Genesis 31:25-35)
Finally Laban catches up with Jacob
and his big crew in the country of Gilead.
Laban is angry and accuses Jacob of stealing not only the household gods
but his daughters as well. Jacob insists
he left because he didn’t trust Laban which is understandable at this
point. He swears he did not steal
Laban’s gods and whoever did may be put to death. The author is purposely creating tension for
the reader who knows that Rachel has the gods.
Again, I remind you, the primary purpose of this story is to entertain us
as it tells the origin story of ancient Israel.
Laban searches Jacob’s tent and Leah’s
tent before he finally comes to Rachel’s.
Rachel has hidden the gods in the saddle of her camel and she remains
seated upon that camel as Laban searches the tent. As Laban searches the tent, Rachel claims
that she cannot rise to honor him since she is having her period. Because she won’t get up, Laban misses
searching the saddle bag, and Rachel succeeds in her deception.
Much of the Jacob narrative is about
the power of the God of Israel. This
includes the power to bless Jacob with an inheritance that rightly belongs to
another, to bring him honor through a very large family, and the magic mating
of the sheep and goats that brings him great riches. It is no accident that the contrast to this
big God is the silly household gods of Laban who not only remain hidden from
him, but are actually hidden in the saddle of a menstruating woman which is a
tremendous insult. The author wants us to
notice that other gods are nothing when compared to the one true Lord of
Israel.
(Read Genesis 31:36-55)
Things have finally come to a head
between Jacob and Laban. Jacob claims
that he has offered Laban 20 years of service and if Laban had his way Jacob
would leave empty handed. It is God
alone who has brought Jacob riches.
Laban refuses to admit defeat, claiming that he owns everything. He even lays claim to the wives and children
which is a bit of a stretch. Laban knows
he is outwitted and the two decide to come to an uneasy truce.
They set up pillars to mark the space
between them. Jacob’s land towards
Canaan and Laban’s towards Haran. Neither
will cross the halfway point and they ask that God watch between them so that
none may wrong the other. A meal is
shared within Jacob’s camp but Laban does not seem to participate. In fact Laban is silent. In the morning Laban kisses the daughters and
grandchildren goodbye and he leaves never to return. This family connection is permanently
severed.
If you have picked up on hints of the
Moses story throughout this reading that is on purpose. From the family leaving the unjust rule of
Laban, to the leaving with great riches, to the seven days travel with Laban in
hot pursuit, we are meant to tie these narratives together. Jacob’s request of Laban to “let me go” only
cements the connection. The nation that
will flee from Egypt is a nation that flees from Haran in the first generation.
Throughout this narrative we have
witnessed the power of God. It is God
who has blessed Jacob beyond all expectation.
It is God who has brought Jacob family and wealth, and at this point in
the narrative, Jacob has become a man who will admit to and embrace that
faith. Over and over again Jacob
declares that it is God who has kept him safe and God who has blessed him. Ever since that dream at Bethel, Jacob has
seen the hand of God in his life.
Just like us, all of the characters in
this story are caught up in a drama surrounding the future. Just who holds the future and what will it
be? That is the question underlying this
text. Will Laban succeed in keeping all
the wealth to himself? Will Leah ever
find love with Jacob? Will Rachel ever
bear another son? Will Rachel and Leah
be able to break away from their abusive father and mend their bond as sisters? Will Jacob ever come home? And if he does come home, how will he face
the wrath of Esau?
All of these characters wonder about
their future. The author of the
narrative wants us to see that the future of these characters is in the hands
of God alone. God is the one who will
bring blessing, or even curse. God is
the one with the power to remember, God is the one with the power to surprise. God is the one who holds the story of this
nation of Israel and only God knows how the story will end.
Just like these characters we too are
in fear of our futures. Will we find
happiness? Will we be successful? Will God bring blessings to us and those that
we love? Just as with the figures in
this story, God alone holds our futures.
And as people of faith we recognize that God still has the power to
remember us, God still has the power to surprise us. I know I have certainly been surprised in my
own life’s journey.
And so today, we leave Jacob and his
family on the road to Gilead. I will be
gone for several Sundays and this feels like a perfect space to leave our
friend. Jacob has broken from Laban’s
grasp, and yet he is still in between things.
How will the journey home be? And
what will happen when he finally sees Esau again after these twenty years? Come back in a few weeks and we will find out
together, as we continue to wrestle with Jacob . . .
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