So Jacob arose, and set his children and his wives on camels; and he drove away all his livestock, all the property that he had gained, the livestock in his possession that he had acquired in Paddan-aram, to go to his father Isaac in the land of Canaan. Now Laban had gone to shear his sheep, and Rachel stole her father's household gods.1 And Jacob deceived2 Laban the Aramean, in that he did not tell him that he intended to flee. So he fled with all that he had; starting out he crossed the Euphrates, and set his face toward the hill country of Gilead.
On the third day Laban was told that Jacob had fled. So he took his kinsfolk with him and pursued him3 for seven days until he caught up with him in the hill country of Gilead. But God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream by night, and said to him, "Take heed that you say not a word to Jacob, either good or bad."4
Laban overtook Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the hill country, and Laban with his kinsfolk camped in the hill country of Gilead. Laban said to Jacob, "What have you done?5 You have deceived me, and carried away my daughters like captives of the sword.6 Why did you flee secretly and deceive me and not tell me? I would have sent you away with mirth and songs, with tambourine and lyre.7 And why did you not permit me to kiss my sons and my daughters farewell? What you have done is foolish. It is in my power to do you harm; but the God of your father spoke to me last night, saying, 'Take heed that you speak to Jacob neither good nor bad.'8 Even though you had to go because you longed greatly for your father's house, why did you steal my gods?"
Jacob answered Laban, "Because I was afraid, for I thought that you would take your daughters from me9 by force. But anyone with whom you find your gods shall not live.10 In the presence of our kinsfolk, point out what I have that is yours, and take it."
Now Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen the gods. So Laban went into Jacob's tent11, and into Leah's tent, and into the tent of the two maids, but he did not find them. And he went out of Leah's tent, and entered Rachel's. Now Rachel had taken the household gods and put them in the camel's saddle, and sat on them. Laban felt all about in the tent, but did not find them. And she said to her father, "Let not my lord be angry that I cannot rise before you, for the way of women is upon me."12 So he searched, but did not find the household gods.
Then Jacob became angry, and upbraided13 Laban. Jacob said to Laban, "What is my offense? What is my sin, that you have hotly pursued me? Although you have felt about through all my goods, what have you found of all your household goods? Set it here before my kinsfolk and your kinsfolk, so that they may decide between us two. These twenty years I have been with you; your ewes and your female goats have not miscarried, and I have not eaten the rams of your flocks. That which was torn by wild beasts I did not bring to you; I bore the loss of it myself; of my hand you required it, whether stolen by day or stolen by night. It was like this with me: by day the heat consumed me, and the cold by night, and my sleep fled from my eyes. These twenty years I have been in your house; I served you fourteen years for your two daughters, and six years for your flock, and you have changed my wages ten times. If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had not been on my side, surely now you would have sent me away empty-handed. God saw my affliction and the labor of my hands, and rebuked you last night."14
Then Laban answered and said to Jacob, "The daughters are my daughters, the children are my children, the flocks are my flocks, and all that you see is mine.15 But what can I do today about these daughters of mine, or about their children whom they have borne? Come now, let us make a covenant, you and I; and let it be a witness between you and me."
So Jacob took a stone, and set it up as a pillar. And Jacob said to his kinsfolk, "Gather stones," and they took stones, and made a heap; and they ate there by the heap. Laban called it Jegar-sahadutha: but Jacob called it Galeed.16
Laban said, "This heap is a witness between you and me today." Therefore he called it Galeed, and the pillar Mizpah, for he said, "The LORD watch between you and me, when we are absent one from the other. If you ill-treat my daughters17, or if you take wives in addition to my daughters, though no one else is with us, remember that God is witness between you and me." Then Laban said to Jacob, "See this heap and see the pillar, which I have set between you and me. This heap is a witness, and the pillar is a witness, that I will not pass beyond this heap to you, and you will not pass beyond this heap and this pillar to me, for harm18. May the God of Abraham and the God of Nahor"--the God of their father--" judge19 between us."
So Jacob swore by the Fear of his father Isaac, and Jacob offered a sacrifice on the height and called his kinsfolk to eat bread; and they ate bread and tarried all night in the hill country.20 Early in the morning Laban rose up, and kissed his grandchildren and his daughters and blessed them; then he departed and returned home.
[1] Wow! Whatever happened to "do whatever God has said to you"? First stealing is involved, and second it is a stealing of idols!
[2] Yet more deception added on deception.
[3] Being deceived leads him to seek revenge.
[4] But God calms him towards a peaceful resolution. What does words "not good or bad" mean though?
[5] So he's definitely willing to say some words...
[6] Is he implying that his daughters belong to him like property, or does he think that Jacob has forced them to go with him unwillingly?
[7] Is this honest?
[8] So he is still holding to what God had said, but it means something different than what I would assume. Perhaps it means "do not speak or judge evil or good upon him"?
[9] Is that true? I had interpreted that he was more concerned with making off with all his property than thinking Laban threatened the women.
[10] Strong promise!
[11] He certainly is being given full freedom to look.
[12] Rachel is hoping that she will be saved from her deception by even more deception.
[13] Jacob is acting on his anger because he believes it is righteous...but Laban was right. The only reason Laban has not been shown to be right is because of the deception of Rachel. This is a strong reminder to us to be slow to anger, even when we believe it to be righteous.
[14] He certainly is equating God's provision with God's judgement on his enemies...not always a safe assumption.
[15] "my", "my", "my", "mine", even the women and children.
[16] Agreeing to set aside their disagreements, but clearly not one in spirit.
[17] First priority is his daughters.
[18] Second priority is not harming one another.
[19] God is agreed upon as the judge.
[20] It is settled, and no violence or bloodshed occurred.
Take-home: Jacob, Laban, and Rachel have a great net of deception and betrayal that they have wrapped each other in. Possession of Rachel/Leah and of the animals/property is at the center of much of it. Violence appears likely, but God intervenes and leads them to seek a peaceful solution. My Study Bible states that this story helps to explain the peaceful relations between the Israelites and the Arameans (descendants of Laban).
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