Chapter 31:1-21 | Caitlyn Weeks

Despite all of Laban’s attempts to deceive and mistreat Jacob, his flocks still prospered, and his wealth continued to grow.

Laban's sons were not happy about this, and the word spread back to Jacob that they were grumbling that he had taken everything their father had and become rich from what belonged to their father.  The family drama that we saw between Rachel and Leah has now extended to the brothers.  

Genesis 31:2 tells us that Jacob noticed that Laban’s attitude toward him began to change.  What was already a bad situation had gotten even worse.

In the middle of all of this, Jacob receives a clear word from the Lord “Return to the land of your fathers and to your kindred and I will be with you”. [1]

We have seen this longing to return home stirring in Jacob’s heart [2] and now it is confirmed by the Lord.

Moving four wives, twelve children, livestock, and servants over three hundred miles away was going to be difficult. Jacob seems to know that he needs to have his wives’ full support.  He sends for Rachel and Leah to come to him to present the idea of leaving their father’s household.

He explains the situation regarding their father’s treatment toward him but emphasized how God had protected him through all that Laban had done. 

Jacob shared with his wives a specific encounter in which the angel of the Lord told him He saw all that Laban had done to him and identifies Himself as the God of Bethel.

Prior to coming into Laban’s household, God met Jacob at Bethel.  Jacob made a vow to God that if God would protect him, Jacob would serve Him [3].  God reminds Jacob of this vow and tells him to go back to the land of his father.

Upon hearing Jacob recount the treatment that he has received, Rachel and Leah are in full agreement.  They too have been mistreated by their father and their deep wounds begin to surface. They recognize that they have no inheritance from their father and that he treats them as foreigners instead of daughters.

They recount how he sold them and has already used up what was paid for them.  Rachel and Leah see that they have no future in their father’s home and begin to reason that whatever God took from Laban belongs to them and their children. “So do whatever God has told you”, they say. [4]

Before they leave, when Laban is occupied with the shearing of his sheep, Rachel steals her father’s household gods without Jacob’s knowledge 

This little piece of information gives us some insight about what Laban’s household was built upon. Jacob is serving the one true God while living and raising his family in the midst of idol worshippers. Is it any surprise that their lives were filled with constant deception and striving?  

Rachel has yet to offer God her full devotion. She was raised with pagan practices and shows us that she wants to hold onto what she knows. 

Rachel took the gods for the same reason she wanted the mandrakes [5], she didn’t fully trust that God would give her all she needed, and she wanted to take matters into her own hands.  She wanted a backup plan.

We’re not so different from Rachel. We too struggle with the lie that we need something other than God to fulfill us. For most of us that probably doesn’t mean we bow down to golden images.  It looks more like seeking out temporal refuge rather than allowing God to be our true refuge. Like Rachel, when our circumstances feel out of our control, we seek out comfort.

We may try to find refuge in a person, a substance, scrolling on our phone, shopping, and the list goes on.  The human heart can make an idol out of anything, even good things. We can beat one addiction just to find that we just replaced it with another.  This pattern will continue until we fully put our trust in God as our refuge and the source of our provision, joy, and fulfillment.

It’s easy to look back at Rachel’s story and see that a god that she could steal would never be able to fill the longings of her soul. But that was what she knew.  That was her refuge.

We must examine our hearts and ask where we are like Rachel? Rachel was obedient to go to an unknown land but not fully trusting in the One who called her to leave. We’re not so different. What “gods” are we still clinging to?

Without notifying Laban, Jacob puts his children and wives on camels, sends the livestock out, and brings along the goods he has accumulated and begins the journey back to his father Isaac in the land of Canaan.  

Even when Jacob knew God told him to leave and would protect him, he still sneaks away in a manner that was dishonoring to Laban. Just like you and me, Jacob was far from perfect. If you look over Jacob’s life, it's easy to see his deceitfulness and manipulation. Afterall, Jacob’s name means heel grabber or supplanter, and we see him live up to this so many times. 

Even in his shortcomings, God still gave him this blessing:

“your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed.” [6]

We can rest in the hope that we don’t have to live a life free from bad decisions, family drama, or situations that look hopeless in order for God to fulfill His promises. He will fulfill His promises because He is God.

Twenty years in the household of a deceitful man probably looked bleak to Jacob.  But God was working in Jacob the whole time to fulfill the promises that He gave him.  Our sanctification, the building of our faith, the removal of our idols, is a process. God was with Jacob through the process that would ultimately lead to an encounter that would transform him from the supplanter to Israel. [7]

Even in Jacob’s imperfections many generations were still blessed. After Jacob, one would come who is greater than he. One who would not just bless the world but become the ransom for the world’s sins.  Those that accept Him won’t just receive a new name but become a new creation. Like Jacob’s experience, it will also be a process and a journey for those of us who are in Christ.

When you feel more like a supplanter than an Israel, stand firm in the promise we find in Philippians 1:6, “that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ”. Just as God was faithful to fulfill the promise that He made to Jacob, He will be faithful to fulfill His promises to you.

By Caitlyn Weeks 

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[1] Genesis 31:3 ESV

[2] Genesis 30:25 ESV

[3] Genesis 28: 20-21 ESV

[4] Genesis 31:16 ESV

[5] Genesis 30:14 ESV

[6] Genesis 28:14

[7] Genesis 32:28 ESV