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Jacob part 3
Genesis 27: 27 Now it happened that when Isaac was old and his eyes were too dim to see, that he called his older son Esau and said to him, “My son.” And he said to him, “Here I am.” 2 [a]And Isaac said, “Behold now, I am old, and I do not know the day of my death. 3 So now, please take up your gear, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me; 4 and prepare a savory dish for me such as I love, and bring it to me that I may eat, so that my soul may bless you before I die.”
5 Now Rebekah was listening while Isaac was speaking to his son Esau. Then Esau went to the field to hunt for game to bring to Isaac. 6 But Rebekah spoke to her son Jacob, saying, “Behold, I heard your father speaking to your brother Esau, saying, 7 ‘Bring me some game and prepare a savory dish for me, that I may eat and bless you in the presence of Yahweh before my death.’ 8 So now, my son, listen to my voice [b]as I command you. 9 Go now to the flock and [c]get for me two choice [d]young goats from there, that I may prepare them as a savory dish for your father, such as he loves. 10 Then you shall bring it to your father, that he may eat, so that he may bless you before his death.”
We’ve been looking at the story of Jacob as an analogy for how and why God saves us. God saves us to recreate us. He chooses us, and then begins to work on us like a potter works on a raw lump of clay, molding us into a beautiful vessel for His use. And He works on us to overcome aspects of our lives that get in the way of the greatness He intends for us. We are hampered by our sinful nature, our flawed upbringing, or nurture, our own self-centered narcissism, and today we will begin to look at one of the biggest obstacles to God’s glorious plans for your life: nincompoops. As Scar said when looking at the hyenas in the movie the Lion King, “I’m surrounded by idiots.”
Jacob was surrounded by nincompoops. And we will spend life dealing with idiocy from others around us. The world is full of idiots. The book of Proverbs, in the Bible, is a book of wisdom, teaching a person how to live wisely in this world. It uses the words wisdom and wise 118 times. But there is another word used quite often in the book. The word fool and its other forms are used 95 times in 31 chapters. Do you ever feel like you are “surrounded by idiots?”
I read some quotes about foolishness.
Fools rush in where angels fear to tread.
The learned fool writes his nonsense in better language than the unlearned, but still 'tis nonsense.
B. Franklin.
The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits.
Unknown.
Foolishness is indeed the sister of wickedness.
Psalm 53:1 The wicked fool says in his heart, “There is no God,” They act corruptly, and commit abominable injustice; There is no one who does good.
Proverbs 1:7 The fear of Yahweh is the beginning of knowledge; Ignorant fools despise wisdom and discipline.
Proverbs 10:1 The proverbs of Solomon. A wise son makes a father glad, But a foolish son is a grief to his mother.
Proverbs 10:18 He who covers up hatred has lying lips, And he who spreads a bad report is a fool.
Proverbs 12:15 The way of an ignorant fool is right in his own eyes, But a wise man is he who listens to counsel.
Proverbs 18:7 A fool’s mouth is his ruin, And his lips are the snare of his soul.
Proverbs 20:3 It is a glory for a man to cease quarreling, But any ignorant fool will break out in dispute.
Proverbs 26:11 Like a dog that returns to its vomit Is a fool who repeats his folly.
Proverbs 13:20 He who walks with the wise will be wise, But the friend of fools will suffer harm.
Proverbs 17:12 Let a man meet a bear robbed of her cubs, Rather, than a fool in his folly.
Jacob was surrounded by fools, and it took a good portion of his life for God to burn this dross out of him. We are going to look at that this morning.
Prayer
The incident of the blessing of Jacob we read a moment ago, and the nincompoopery of Jacobs family finally shatters a broken and dysfunctional family. But it also shines a light of wisdom on the kinds of foolishness we should avoid. Let me summarize the story of Jacob so far. He is a fraternal twin. He and his brother Esau were born years earlier to Isaac and Rebekah. And there was contention in the family from their nativity. Rachel was told by God that she would have twins, and that the elder would serve the younger. They were two very different boys, even from birth. Esau’s birth as a hairy red-haired man/boy portended his later life as a hunter and man’s man. Jacob being born with typical baby appearance, but grabbing his brothers heal while exiting the birth canal portended the schemer and supplanter he would become. And their parents chose sides between their children early on. Isaac loved Esau because Esau hunted game and made tasty Barbeque. Rebekah loved Jacob became he was mild, stable, and a keeper at home.
There was an incident earlier in their lives where these differences played out two divergent destinies for the boys. Esau came in from a hunt and was famished. Jacob was cooking a bowl of red lentils over a fire. Esau asked for some of “that red stuff.” Jacob said he would give it to him if he traded it for Esau’s elder brother 2/3 portion of the inheritance when their father would die. And as messed-up as it is that Jacob would withhold food from his brother for financial gain, it is more messed up that Esau took the bait, giving away inheritance, and position in the family for a bowl of lentils.
All of this prehistory to our story today shows a very foolish family. But they are all foolish in different ways. And these foolish ways are instructive for us.
I. Rebekah: The foolish path of “Fairness” instead of God. I have my rights.
Remember the story
Genesis 27: Now it happened that when Isaac was old and his eyes were too dim to see, that he called his older son Esau and said to him, “My son.” And he said to him, “Here I am.” 2 [a]And Isaac said, “Behold now, I am old, and I do not know the day of my death. 3 So now, please take up your gear, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me; 4 and prepare a savory dish for me such as I love, and bring it to me that I may eat, so that my soul may bless you before I die.”
We know this. But Rebekah overheard that conversation. And it startles her. Why? Because Isaac is about to give his patriarchal blessing to the wrong twin. Jacob should be receiving the primary blessing of his father. The blessing given by a father before death, was viewed almost like we would view a will. It’s the passing of the baton to the child who you believe will continue the race in your stead. It’s the passing of the crown as sovereign over the family. It is a proclamation of goodness over the life of the first child. And every child that receives the second or third blessing, gets consolation prizes.
Rebekah knew that God had said before the boys were born that “the elder will serve the younger.” And everything about the boys, up until now, had demonstrated that Esau didn’t have the temperament to lead the family, but Jacob did. Isaac was blessing the wrong child. And she can’t let this stand. This isn’t fair.
Now, there’s nothing wrong with trying to fight injustice. But she is going to go about it with deceptive means. “By golly, I’m going to make sure God’s will is done, no matter how I have to do it.” And there is the folly in Rebekah’s fight for fairness. She thinks she has to make sure God’s will is done. And she is willing to use sinful means to accomplish it.
This is the foolishness of trying to always make life fair. This lifelong pursuit often leads to not trusting God. The truth of the matter is that life will never be completely fair, or just, or equitable. And this pursuit also often leads to using sinful means to accomplish what you deem to be God’s will.
That’s what Rebekah did.
15 Then Rebekah took the [f]best garments of Esau her elder son, which were with her in the house, and she put them on Jacob her younger son. 16 And she put the skins of the [g]young goats on his hands and on the smooth part of his neck. 17 She also gave the savory dish and the bread, which she had prepared into the hand of her son Jacob.
She is doing everything she can to pass off Jacob as Esau.
We can get caught up in dedicating our life to fairness. In this election year I think of people, on both sides of the aisle, who have a contrived idea of what is right and fair. And we can end up dedicating all of our energy and passion to getting the right person into office, to getting the right people on the court. And it has gotten to the point now where people, even “Christian” people, will use any means necessary to further what they deem is “fair.”
Let me be blunt. Election season can become the most unloving and unchristian season in the church. I am not saying that there is no right or wrong choice to make, but ultimately we do what we can, justly, within the law, with Christian charity, and we leave the results to God.
And Jacob let’s his mother influence him to join in on this unsavory scheme. Maybe this is simplistic of me. But couldn’t Rebekah and Jacob have simply got down on their knees and prayed to God to work this out? And couldn’t they have gone into Isaac honestly and talked about what God had said about the boys and asked Isaac to bless Jacob?
Romans 12:14,17-19 14 Bless those who persecute [j]you; bless, and do not curse.
17 Never paying back evil for evil to anyone, [l]respecting what is good in the sight of all men, 18 if possible, so far as it depends on you, being at peace with all men, never taking your own revenge, beloved—instead leave room for the wrath of God. For it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.
II. Isaac: the foolish path of sensuality instead of God.
Now, why do I say that Isaac is on the foolish path of sensuality? sensuality can be defined as “devotion to gratifying bodily appetites; free indulgence in carnal pleasures.” Because, from the start of this little family’s story, all we learn about Isaac has to do with his seeking to please his senses. The word sensuality comes from the root word, sense. We have five senses; sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell. And all we are told about Isaac is that as the boys grew up, he preferred, he loved Esau, not Jacob. It doesn’t even say that he loved Esau more than Jacob. It just says that he loved Esau. And why did he love him? It literally says that he loved him because of “the game in his mouth.” He loved him because he brought home the beef. How sensual is that? Esau’s hunting pleased his desire for tasty meat. So he liked Esau. This is all we know of Isaac. But, his pathway of sensuality is revealed more as the story unfolds.
Here’s how the story continues. Jacob dresses up in Esau’s clothes. His mother has sewn goat hair coverings for his arms, hands, and neck to simulate Esau’s hairy body. His mother made a meat dish in the same way that Esau would so Isaac will think that it is Esau returning from the hunt for the blessing. And Jacob goes in to his father as Esau.
18 Then he came to his father and said, “My father.” And he said, “Here I am. Who are you, my son?”
Remember, he has lost, or partially lost, his sense of sight. There is immediate suspicion. What is it that arouses his suspicion? Jacob’s voice. Isaac detects a difference by his sense of hearing.
19 And Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn; I have done as you told me. Rise up, please, sit and eat of my game, that your soul may bless me.” 20 Then Isaac said to his son, “How is it that you have found it so quickly, my son?” And he said, “Because Yahweh your God caused it to happen to me.”
Oh, now let’s bring God into this deception.
21 Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come near, that I may feel you, my son, whether you are really my son Esau or not.”
Better straighten up my goat hair gloves. Isaac wants further confirmation that this is indeed Esau. So he uses his sense of feel.
22 So Jacob came near to Isaac his father, and he felt him and said, “The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau.” 23 And he did not recognize him because his hands were hairy like his brother Esau’s hands; so he blessed him. 24 And he said, “Are you really my son Esau?”
There is still some lingering doubt.
And he said, “I am.” 25 So he said, “Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son’s game, that my soul may bless you.” And he brought it near to him, and he ate; he also brought him wine, and he drank. 26 Then his father Isaac said to him, “Please come near and kiss me, my son.” 27 So he came near and kissed him; and he smelled the smell of his garments,
He still has some doubts, so he decides to uses another one of his senses; his sense of smell.
and then he blessed him and said, “See, the smell of my son Is like the smell of a field which Yahweh has blessed;
What is fascinating about this episode is that Isaac was guided by sensuality. He lived to please his five senses. But, in the end, he was fooled by his five senses.
28 Now may God give you of the dew of heaven, And of the fatness of the earth, And an abundance of grain and new wine;
His blessing starts with “May God give you yummy food and drink.”
29 May peoples serve you, And nations bow down to you; Be master of your brothers, And may your mother’s sons bow down to you. Cursed be those who curse you, and blessed be those who bless you.”
Ah, now we get the validation of what God had said at his birth. His brother would serve him. Now, remember, this is what Isaac intended to say to Esau. Which would have been in direct contradiction to what God had said at the birth of the twins; the elder will serve the younger.
Such is the folly of living life for your belly, your eyes, ears, nose and touch. They will all fail in the end, and only the spirit will remain. We find Jacob here seeking that kind of gratification. Galatians 5:16 But I say, walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.
III. Esau: the foolish path of impulsive emotion and vengeance instead of God.
Look at how the story continues.
30 Now it happened that as soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, and Jacob had hardly gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunting. 31 Then he also made a savory dish and brought it to his father;
Now we can understand why Isaac was suspicious when Jacob came to the tent presenting himself as Esau. Jacob came immediately after he got dressed, and his mother had butchered and cooked a goat. Esau had gone out and had to first find a wild animal. He had to shot it or trap it. He had to carry it back home. He had to butcher it, then cook it and bring it to his father. So the story continues.
and he said to his father, “Let my father arise and eat of his son’s game, that your soul may bless me.”
There are a handful of Bible stories that touch me emotionally. This is one of them. I feel for Esau here.
32 And Isaac his father said to him, “Who are you?”
He’s confused. He’s already met with Esau he thought.
And he said, “I am your son, your firstborn, Esau.” 33 Then Isaac [h]trembled exceedingly violently
Suddenly, all those doubts he had about Jacob fall into place. How quickly he returned, his voice, and maybe even the taste of the meal he had eaten. He realizes that he’s been duped.
and said, “Who was he then that hunted game and brought it to me, so that I ate of all of it before you came and blessed him? Indeed, he shall be blessed.”
He realizes that the blessing of preeminence has been handed out all ready. You can not give out two first place metals. There can only be one Master in their relationship.
34 As Esau heard the words of his father, he cried out with an exceedingly great and bitter cry
He to realizes what has happened.
and said to his father, “Bless me, me also, O my father!”
There’s such pain here. I feel it with him. It’s one of those punch in the gut moments.
35 And he said, “Your brother came deceitfully and has taken away your blessing.” 36 Then he said, “[i]Is he not rightly named Jacob, for he has supplanted me these two times? He took away my birthright, (Well, technically you sold it to him.) and behold, now he has taken away my blessing.”
Now this that comes next is, I think, the most pathetic part of this episode.
And he said, “Have you not reserved a blessing for me?” 37 But Isaac answered and said to Esau, “Behold, I have made him your master, and all his fellow brothers I have given to him [j]as servants; and with grain and new wine I have sustained him. Now as for you then, what can I do, my son?”
He is saying, “What else is there to give you?” Which I find to be an incredible statement. It is first incredible because it is so narrow-minded. He has blessed Jacob with grain and new wine. Can’t he also bless Esau with grain and new wine? Is there only enough grain and new wine for one person? And it is also incredible because you realize that he never had a thought for how he would bless both of his sons. He never gave a thought to how he would bless Jacob. He only gave thought to how he would bless Esau. And Esau realizes that.
38 And Esau said to his father, “Do you have only one blessing, my father? (He’s incredulous) Bless me, even me also, O my father.” So, Esau lifted his voice and wept.
I feel for Esau. I feel for him because he seems to get a raw deal through no fault of his own. But he is on a wrong path. He has demonstrated that his quality some when he threw away his birth right. He will demonstrate it more in how he responds to this incident. So, Isaac comes up with another blessing. And I found something interesting in my study of this passage this time. The older translations of Isaac’s blessing start this way.
39 And Isaac his father answered and said unto him, Behold, thy dwelling shall be (of) the fatness of the earth, and of the dew of heaven from above;
https://biblehub.com/commentaries/genesis/27-39.htm
Thy dwelling shall be the fatness.—Heb., thy dwelling shall be of the fat places of the earth. (See Note on Genesis 27:28.) But most modern expositors consider that the preposition should not be translated “of,” but from, that is:—
“Behold thy dwelling shall be away from the fat places of the earth, And away from the dew of heaven from above,
You are not going to be blessed by the riches of the field, the fatness of the prosperous man of the farm. You will be away from that. And that interpretation better matches the second part of the blessing.
40 By your sword you shall live, And your brother you shall serve; But it shall be when you become restless, That you will [m]break his yoke from your neck.”
“Those who have fertile lands live by agriculture, but the inhabitants of sterile regions must look to more adventurous enterprises for a living. So the Swiss, like the Greeks of old, long served as mercenaries in the armies of other states.”
“Esau was to inhabit a land which by its barrenness would force him to a life of adventure, military service, and freebooting.”
“This was remarkably fulfilled both in Esau himself, and his posterity. He was a cunning hunter, a man of the field, and his descendants got possession of mount Seir by force and violence, expelling thence the Horites, the former inhabitants, Deuteronomy 2:22. They were almost continually at war with the Jews, both before and after the Babylonish captivity. Thou shalt serve thy brother — God never permitted the Edomites to lord it over the Israelites, although he made use of almost all the other neighbouring nations successively to oppress them. When thou shalt have dominion — Shalt gain strength, become powerful, and appoint a king of thy own. Thou shalt break his yoke from off thy neck —"
When the descendants of Jacob (Israel) were following God and His law, they dominated the regions around them, including Edom or Esau’s descendants. But when Israel was disobedient to God, Edom broke free from their dominance. This was the “blessing” of Esau. You might ask, “Why would Isaac say those things now about his favorite son?” I think that once he realized that his plan to reverse what God had said, “the elder will serve the younger” was destroyed, he realized that you can’t undo what God has done. You can’t curse who God has blessed. So, like Balaam later in Scripture, he resigns himself to say what God would have him say. Now this is where we get a sense of Esau’s impulsiveness and emotion.
41 So Esau bore a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing with which his father had blessed him; and Esau said in his heart, “The days of mourning for my father are near; then I will kill my brother Jacob.”
Esau is bent on vengeance. And, in some ways, we don’t blame him for the emotion. But it becomes an obsession. It becomes a defining characteristic. And that is the problem with living life with vengeance, malice, and anger in your heart. It will eat you alive. A lot of people live that way. They are so consumed by anger that they are not only angry with the person who supposedly wronged them, but they are angry at the world as well. They approach all of life with anger and bitterness. That’s no way to live, and it is not what God desires. James 1:20 for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.
You say, did Esau ever get over it? Well, Rebekah hears about Esau’s plan to kill his brother and decides that Jacob needs to leave town for a time. She talks to Isaac about Jacob getting a wife from the old country. They send Jacob back to her family to get a wife. That gets him out of danger. But he is gone for 20 plus years! While he is gone, he gets 2 wives, 2 concubines, 11 sons, one daughter, and a large herd of animals. And then he decides to return to his home. When his journey with his band takes him close to home, he sends word back that he is returning. Now I want you to remember something. By this time, his return home happens when he and Esau are 91 years of age. But when Esau hears that his brother Jacob is coming back, this is what he does.
Genesis 32: 3 Then Jacob sent messengers before him to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the [c]country of Edom. 4 He also commanded them saying, “Thus you shall say to my lord, to Esau: ‘Thus says your servant Jacob, “I have sojourned with Laban and have been delayed until now; 5 and I have oxen and donkeys and flocks and male and female slaves; and I have sent to tell my lord, that I may find favor in your sight.”’”
He is basically sending a message. He calls his brother “my lord.” It is a term of respect. He is telling him that he is returning as a rich man, meaning that he is not returning to enrich himself by claiming his father’s inheritance, he’s already rich.
6 Then the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, “We came to your brother, to Esau, and furthermore he is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.” 7 Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed;
Esau is 91 years old, and he is holding on to the grudge. He hasn’t seen his brother for 20 years and yet he is holding on to that grudge.
We can choose to live that way. Or we can choose the way of forgiveness.
Ephesians 4:32 - Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.
Well, Jacob was surrounded by individuals pulling him in all different directions. He has the influence of his mother trying “to get him what is rightly his.” He had the influence of a father following his belly. And he had the influence of a brother following his emotions, whims, and eventually vengeance. They were all nincompoops. And who is a bigger fool? The fool himself, or the fool who follows the fool? Jacob is influenced by them. But God is at work in him. He is molding him so that he will be victorious over the fools in his life. We will continue this story next time.
IV. God steps in
42 Then the words of her elder son Esau were told to Rebekah. So, she sent and called her younger son Jacob and said to him, “Behold, your brother Esau is consoling himself concerning you by planning to kill you. 43 So now, my son, listen to my voice, and arise, [n]flee to Haran, to my brother Laban! 44 Stay with him a few days, until your brother’s wrath [o]subsides, 45 until your brother’s anger [p]against you subsides and he forgets what you did to him. Then I will send and get you from there. Why should I be bereaved of you both in one day?” 46 Then Rebekah said to Isaac, “I am tired of [q]living because of the daughters of Heth; if Jacob takes a wife from the daughters of Heth, like these, from the daughters of the land, what good will my life be to me?”
28 So Isaac called Jacob and blessed him and commanded him and said to him, “You shall not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan. 2 Arise, go to Paddan-aram, to the house of Bethuel your mother’s father; and from there take to yourself a wife from the daughters of Laban your mother’s brother. 3 May [a]God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and multiply you, that you may become an assembly of peoples. 4 May He also give you the blessing of Abraham, to you and to your seed with you, that you may possess the land of your sojournings, which God gave to Abraham.” 5 Then Isaac sent Jacob away, and he went to Paddan-aram to Laban, son of Bethuel the Aramean, the brother of Rebekah, the mother of Jacob and Esau.
10 Then Jacob departed from Beersheba and went toward Haran. 11 And he reached [c]a certain place and spent the night there because the sun had set; and he took one of the stones of the place and put it [d]under his head and lay down in that place. 12 Then he had a dream, and behold, a [e]ladder stood on the earth with its top touching heaven; and behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. 13 And behold, Yahweh stood [f]above it and said, “I am Yahweh, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie, I will give it to you and to your seed. 14 And your seed will also be like the dust of the earth, and you will [g]spread out to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south; and in you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed. 15 Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go. And I will bring you back to this land; for I will not forsake you until I have done what I have [h]promised you.” 16 Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely Yahweh is in this place, and I did not know it.” 17 And he was afraid and said, “How fearsome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.” 18 So Jacob rose early in the morning and took the stone that he had put [i]under his head and set it up as a pillar and poured oil on its top. 19 And he called the name of that place [j]Bethel; however, [k]previously the name of the city had been Luz. 20 Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will keep me on this journey on which I am going, and will give me [l]food to eat and garments to wear, 21 and I return to my father’s house in peace, then Yahweh will be my God. 22 Now this stone, which I have set up as a pillar, will be God’s house, and of all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to You.”
V. Laban
29 Then Jacob [a]took up his journey and came to the land of the sons of the east. 2 And he looked, and behold, a well in the field, and behold, three flocks of sheep were lying there beside it, for from that well they gave water to the flocks to drink. Now the stone on the mouth of the well was large. 3 And all the flocks would be gathered there, and they would roll the stone from the mouth of the well and give water to the sheep to drink and return the stone back to its place on the mouth of the well. 4 And Jacob said to them, “My brothers, where are you from?” And they said, “We are from Haran.” 5 Then he said to them, “Do you know Laban the son of Nahor?” And they said, “We know him.” 6 And he said to them, “Is it well with him?” And they said, “It is well, and here is Rachel his daughter coming with the sheep.” 7 And he said, “Behold, it is still high day; it is not time for the livestock to be gathered. Give water to the sheep to drink, and go, pasture them.” 8 But they said, “We cannot, until all the flocks are gathered, and they roll the stone from the mouth of the well; then we give water to the sheep to drink.” 9 While he was still speaking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherdess. 10 Now it happened, when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother’s brother and the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother, Jacob came near and rolled the stone from the mouth of the well and gave water to the flock of Laban his mother’s brother to drink. 11 Then Jacob kissed Rachel and lifted his voice and wept. 12 And Jacob told Rachel that he was a [b]relative of her father and that he was Rebekah’s son, and she ran and told her father. 13 So it happened that when Laban heard the report of Jacob his sister’s son, he ran to meet him, and he embraced him and kissed him and brought him to his house. Then he recounted to Laban all these things. 14 And Laban said to him, “Surely you are my bone and my flesh.” And he stayed with him one month. 15 Then Laban said to Jacob, “Because you are my [c]relative, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what shall your wages be?” 16 Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. 17 And Leah’s eyes were weak, but Rachel was beautiful in form and beautiful in appearance. 18 Now Jacob loved Rachel, so he said, “I will serve you seven years for your younger daughter Rachel.” 19 And Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you than to give her to another man; stay with me.” 20 So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they were in his sight but a few days because of his love for her. 21 Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in to her.” 22 And Laban gathered all the men of the place and made a feast. 23 Now it happened in the evening that he took his daughter Leah and brought her to him; and Jacob went in to her. 24 Laban also gave his servant-woman Zilpah to his daughter Leah as a servant-woman. 25 Now it happened in the morning that, behold, it was Leah! And he said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Was it not for Rachel that I served with you? Why then have you deceived me?” 26 But Laban said, “It is not [d]the practice in our place to give the younger before the firstborn. 27 Fulfill the week of this one, and we will give you the other also for the service which you shall serve with me for another seven years.” 28 And Jacob did so and fulfilled her week, and he gave him his daughter Rachel as his wife. 29 Laban also gave his servant-woman Bilhah to his daughter Rachel as her servant-woman. 30 So Jacob went in to Rachel also, and indeed he loved Rachel more than Leah, and he served with [e]Laban for another seven years.
VI. Jacob
25 Now it happened when Rachel had borne Joseph, that Jacob said to Laban, “Send me away, that I may go to my own place and to my own land. 26 Give me my wives and my children for whom I have served you, and let me go; for you yourself know my service which I have [n]rendered you.” 27 But Laban said to him, “If now I have found favor in your sight, stay with me; I have interpreted an omen that Yahweh has blessed me on your account.” 28 And he continued to say, “Name me your wages, and I will give it.” 29 But he said to him, “You yourself know how I have served you and how your livestock have [o]fared with me. 30 For you had little before [p]I came, but it has spread out to a multitude, and Yahweh has blessed you [q]at every step of mine. But now, when shall I provide for my own household also?” 31 So he said, “What shall I give you?” And Jacob said, “You shall not give me anything. If you will do this one thing for me, I will again pasture and keep your flock: 32 let me pass through your entire flock today, removing from there every speckled and spotted sheep and every black [r]one among the lambs and the spotted and speckled among the goats; and such shall be my wages. 33 So my righteousness will answer for me later, when you come concerning my [s]wages. Every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats and black among the lambs, if found with me, will be considered stolen.” 34 And Laban said, “Behold, [t]let it be according to your word.” 35 So he removed on that day the striped and spotted male goats and all the speckled and spotted female goats, every one with white in it, and all the black ones among the sheep, and gave them into the [u]care of his sons. 36 And he put a distance of three days’ journey between himself and Jacob, and Jacob was pasturing the rest of Laban’s flocks. 37 Then Jacob [v]took fresh rods of poplar and almond and plane trees, and he peeled white stripes in them, exposing the white which was [w]in the rods. 38 And he set the rods which he had peeled in front of the flocks in the trough, that is, in the watering channels, where the flocks came to drink; and they [x]mated when they came to drink. 39 So the flocks [y]mated by the rods, and the flocks brought forth striped, speckled, and spotted. 40 And Jacob separated the lambs, and he [z]made the flocks face toward the striped and all the black in the flock of Laban; and he set his own herds apart and did not set them with Laban’s flock. 41 Now it would be that, whenever the [aa]stronger of the flock [ab]were mating, Jacob would place the rods in the sight of the flock in the trough, so that they might [ac]mate by the rods; 42 but when the flock was feeble, he did not put them in; so the feebler were Laban’s and the [ad]stronger Jacob’s. 43 So the man spread out exceedingly and had large flocks and female and male servants and camels and donkeys.
VII. God steps in again.
31 Then [a]Jacob heard the words of Laban’s sons, saying, “Jacob has taken away all that belonged to our father, and from what belonged to our father he has made all this [b]wealth.” 2 And Jacob saw the face of Laban, and behold, it was not friendly toward him as formerly. 3 Then Yahweh said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your fathers and to your kin, and I will be with you.” 4 So Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah to his flock in the field, 5 and he said to them, “I see your father’s face, that it is not friendly toward me as formerly, but the God of my father has been with me. 6 You also know that I have served your father with all my power. 7 Yet your father has cheated me and changed my wages ten times; however, God did not allow him to harm me. 8 If he spoke thus, ‘The speckled shall be your wages,’ then all the flock bore speckled; and if he spoke thus, ‘The striped shall be your wages,’ then all the flock bore striped. 9 Thus God has delivered your father’s livestock and given them to me.
VIII. Jacob becomes a repentant, humbled man.
22 Then it was told to Laban on the third day that Jacob had fled; 23 so he took his [l]relatives with him and pursued him a distance of seven days’ journey, and he overtook him in the hill country of Gilead. 24 And God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream of the night and said to him, “[m]Beware lest you speak to Jacob either good or bad.”
25 So Laban caught up with Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the hill country, and Laban with his [n]relatives camped in the hill country of Gilead. 26 Then Laban said to Jacob, “What have you done [o]by deceiving me and carrying away my daughters like captives of the sword? 27 Why did you flee secretly and [p]deceive me and not tell me—so that I might have sent you away with gladness and with songs, with tambourine and with lyre— 28 and not allow me to kiss my sons and my daughters? Now you have acted foolishly. 29 It is in my hand to do evil against you, but the God of your father spoke to me last night, saying, ‘[q]Beware of speaking either good or evil to Jacob.’ 30 So now you have indeed gone away because you longed greatly for your father’s house; but why did you steal my gods?” 31 Then Jacob answered and said to Laban, “Because I was afraid, because I said, ‘Lest you take your daughters from me by force.’
32 Now Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him. 2 Then Jacob said when he saw them, “This is God’s [a]camp.” So he named that place [b]Mahanaim.
3 Then Jacob sent messengers before him to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the [c]country of Edom. 4 He also commanded them saying, “Thus you shall say to my lord, to Esau: ‘Thus says your servant Jacob, “I have sojourned with Laban and have been delayed until now; 5 and I have oxen and donkeys and flocks and male and female slaves; and I have sent to tell my lord, that I may find favor in your sight.”’”
6 Then the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, “We came to your brother, to Esau, and furthermore he is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.” 7 Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed; and he divided the people who were with him, and the flocks and the herds and the camels, into two camps. 8 And he said, “If Esau comes to the one camp and strikes it, then the camp which remains will escape.”
9 And Jacob said, “O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, O Yahweh, who said to me, ‘Return to your land and to your kin, and I will [d]prosper you,’ 10 [e]I am unworthy of all the lovingkindness and of all the truth which You have shown to Your slave; for with my staff only I crossed this Jordan, and now I have become two camps. 11 Deliver me, I pray, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau; for I fear him, lest he come and strike me down with the mothers and the children. 12 For You said, ‘I will surely [f]prosper you and make your seed as the sand of the sea, which is too great to be numbered.’”
13 So he spent the night there. Then he took from what [g]he had with him a present for his brother Esau: 14 two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams, 15 thirty milking camels and their colts, forty cows and ten bulls, twenty female donkeys and ten male donkeys. 16 And he gave them into the hand of his servants, every flock by itself, and said to his servants, “Pass on before me and put a space between flocks.” 17 And he commanded the first one in front, saying, “When my brother Esau meets you and asks you, saying, ‘To whom do you belong, and where are you going, and to whom do these animals in front of you belong?’ 18 then you shall say, ‘These belong to your servant Jacob; it is a present sent to my lord, to Esau. And behold, he also is behind us.’” 19 Then he commanded also the second and the third and all those who followed the flocks, saying, “After this manner you shall speak to Esau when you find him; 20 and you shall say, ‘Behold, your servant Jacob also is behind us.’” For he said, “I will appease his face with the present that goes before me. Then afterward I will see his face; perhaps he will lift up my face.” 21 So the present passed on before him, while he himself spent that night in the camp.
22 And he arose that same night and took his two wives and his two servant-women and his eleven children and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. 23 And he took them and sent them across the stream. And he sent across whatever he had.
24 Then Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until the [h]breaking of dawn. 25 And he saw that he had not prevailed against him, so he touched the socket of his thigh; and so the socket of Jacob’s thigh was dislocated while he wrestled with him. 26 Then he said, “Let me go, for the dawn is [i]breaking.” But he said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” 27 So he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.” 28 Then He said, “Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but [j]Israel; for you have striven with God and with men and have prevailed.” 29 Then Jacob asked him and said, “Please tell me your name.” But he said, “Why is it that you ask my name?” And he blessed him there. 30 So Jacob named the place [k]Peniel, for he said, “I have seen God face to face, yet my [l]life has been delivered.” 31 And the sun rose upon him just as he crossed over Penuel, and he was limping on his thigh. 32 Therefore, to this day the sons of Israel do not eat the sinew of the hip which is on the socket of the thigh because he touched the socket of Jacob’s thigh in the sinew of the hip.
33 Then Jacob lifted up his eyes and saw, and behold, Esau was coming, and four hundred men with him. So he divided the children [a]among Leah and Rachel and the two servant-women. 2 And he put the servant-women and their children first, and Leah and her children after them, and Rachel and Joseph after them. 3 But he himself passed on ahead of them and bowed down to the ground seven times, until he came near to his brother.
4 Then Esau ran to meet him and embraced him and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept. 5 And he lifted up his eyes and saw the women and the children and said, “[b]Who are these with you?” And he said, “The children whom God has graciously given your servant.” 6 Then the servant-women came near [c]with their children, and they bowed down. 7 Leah likewise came near with her children, and they bowed down; and afterward Joseph came near with Rachel, and they bowed down. 8 And he said, “What do you mean by all [d]these camps which I have met?” And he said, “To find favor in the sight of my lord.” 9 But Esau said, “I have plenty, my brother; let what you have be your own.” 10 And Jacob said, “No, please, if now I have found favor in your sight, then take my present from my hand, [e]for I see your face as one sees the face of God, and you have received me favorably. 11 Please take my blessing which has been brought to you, because God has dealt graciously with me and because I have [f]everything.” Thus he urged him, and he took it.