Genesis 31:22-42 continues after Jacob has fled Laban in secret earlier in Genesis 31, taking His family and livestock with Him. Rachel, stole from her father the household idols to bring with her. When Laban realizes Jacob has left, he pursues him with anger. But God is with Jacob and comes to Laban in a dream to protect Jacob.
22When it was told Laban on the third day that Jacob had fled, 23then he took his kinsmen with him and pursued him a distance of seven days’ journey, and he overtook him in the hill country of Gilead. 24God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream of the night and said to him, “Be careful that you do not speak to Jacob either good or bad.”
25Laban caught up with Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the hill country, and Laban with his kinsmen camped in the hill country of Gilead. 26Then Laban said to Jacob, “What have you done by deceiving me and carrying away my daughters like captives of the sword? 27“Why did you flee secretly and deceive me, and did not tell me so that I might have sent you away with joy and with songs, with timbrel and with lyre; 28and did not allow me to kiss my sons and my daughters? Now you have done foolishly. 29“It is in my power to do you harm, but the God of your father spoke to me last night, saying, ‘Be careful not to speak either good or bad to Jacob.’ 30“Now you have indeed gone away because you longed greatly for your father’s house; but why did you steal my gods?” 31Then Jacob replied to Laban, “Because I was afraid, for I thought that you would take your daughters from me by force. 32“The one with whom you find your gods shall not live; in the presence of our kinsmen point out what is yours among my belongings and take it for yourself.” For Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen them.
33So Laban went into Jacob’s tent and into Leah’s tent and into the tent of the two maids, but he did not find them. Then he went out of Leah’s tent and entered Rachel’s tent. 34Now Rachel had taken the household idols and put them in the camel’s saddle, and she sat on them. And Laban felt through all the tent but did not find them. 35She said to her father, “Let not my lord be angry that I cannot rise before you, for the manner of women is upon me.” So he searched but did not find the household idols.
36Then Jacob became angry and contended with Laban; and Jacob said to Laban, “What is my transgression? What is my sin that you have hotly pursued me? 37“Though you have felt through all my goods, what have you found of all your household goods? Set it here before my kinsmen and your kinsmen, that they may decide between us two. 38“These twenty years I have been with you; your ewes and your female goats have not miscarried, nor have I eaten the rams of your flocks. 39“That which was torn of beasts I did not bring to you; I bore the loss of it myself. You required it of my hand whether stolen by day or stolen by night. 40“Thus I was: by day the heat consumed me and the frost by night, and my sleep fled from my eyes. 41“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 changed my wages ten times. 42“If the God of my father, the God of Abraham, and the fear of Isaac, had not been for me, surely now you would have sent me away empty-handed. God has seen my affliction and the toil of my hands, so He rendered judgment last night.”
Perhaps one of the first things to note, is that God is perfectly able to communicate through non believers, such as Laban. He appears to Laban in a dream in order to protect Jacob. We know Laban was not a man of God by his behaviors such as deceiving Jacob and then trying to cheat him by changing his agreed wages repeatedly… and of course by the fact that Laban clutches tightly to his household idols. Additionally, Laban refers to God as the God of Jacob’s father, not his own God or even just “God”.
We see, also, that though Laban is quick to deceive others, he does not like to be deceived. This is typical hypocritical behavior for those who are focused on themselves rather than fundamental principles or truths of right and wrong. Every situation is interpreted not against God’s holy standard, but rather against the flawed view of “How does it affect me?” Godly people are called to be different from this behavior, measuring right and wrong against God’s holy standard revealed in scripture.
As a man continuing on his walk toward righteousness, Jacob strongly agrees that whomever stole from Laban should be punished. Jacob wanted nothing to do with the idols anyway as they are detestable to God. Jacob did not make excuses when confronted by Laban. He clearly stated why he left secretly and made no excuse for someone stealing.
Rachel, clutching to idols instead of God or even husband, comes up with clever deception to avoid being caught at this time. A family raised by deceitful and wicked parents becomes quite good at being wicked. This type of cleverness is not to be admired.
Having given Laban time to look for his idols, Jacob then rebukes Laban for chasing him and for several other ways in which Laban has wrongly treated Jacob. Jacob highlights that his service has been righteous and honorable even when Laban was not. Both Jacob and Laban prospered from it. Best of all, Jacob honors God by recognizing and proclaiming His role in protecting Jacob and his family in this difficult twenty years.
For those of us today, who are going through difficult family situations or even situations in life not related to family specifically, keep in mind that God can be with you even in tough situations. He never promises to protect you from suffering and make life easy. Quite the contrary, those who serve Him the most often have quite difficult lives with a lot of earthly pain and suffering, but still find joy in the Lord and in the hope of what is to come after death.
When you find yourself in difficult times, it is then that you must draw nearer to Him, not pull away. Seek Him more earnestly both in study of scripture and in prayer. Change your ways from the path of sin to the path of righteous obedience and submission to God. Do not just look for a “quick fix” to your situation. Trust God. Ask Him for help. God is able to provide and protect according to His will.
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