Have you ever heard the expression, “He got a taste of his own medicine?” I’m afraid that is what happens to Jacob in our story today. He has just experienced his first theophany (one of many). God appeared to Jacob in a dream (Gen 28) and reaffirmed to him the covenant promise. Even though Jacob is fleeing his home in exile and heading to his mother’s childhood home in Harran, God has assured him that He will be with Him and bring him back to Canaan. Verse 1 has Jacob continuing on his journey to his uncle Laban’s place in good spirits.
In verses 2-3, Jacob reaches a well where there are some shepherds. This is a pretty common place to come upon people back then. In the desert, water was life. There were three flocks there waiting for the time that the stone would be rolled away from the well and they could drink. What does Jacob ask the shepherds (vs 4-6)? Jacob is directing the conversation. He is trying to learn more about his uncle. He ascertains that he is in the right place and then tries to get rid of the shepherds by having them water their sheep and go away but they tell him that they cannot (vs 7-8). They need the rest of the flocks to gather so that they will have help rolling away the stone. The stone is apparently heavy.
Read verses 9-10. While Jacob was still talking with the men, Rachel, Laban’s daughter, arrives at the well with her sheep. Jacob must have been taken with her as the Bible tells us that he rolled away the stone, on his own, and watered her sheep. The other shepherds had been waiting for help to arrive before they attempted it, but Jacob suddenly summons the strength to do it all by himself when Rachel arrives. Verses 11-12 tell us what happened next. Jacob was overjoyed at having found his mother’s family and, I believe, overwhelmed with Rachel. And Rachel ran immediately to tell her father, Jacob’s uncle Laban.
Read verses 13-14. What did Laban do when he heard the news? Remember, Jacob’s mother, Rebekah, was Laban’s sister and Laban hasn’t seen her since she left to marry Isaac. Rebekah’s son, Jacob, is now in his seventies. Laban will want news of his sister. And Laban tells Jacob, “Surely thou art my bone and my flesh.” He is greeting Jacob like family. But Bible scholars believe there is more to this statement than the family relationship. Laban and Jacob have something else in common. We will soon see they are two peas in a pod.
After Jacob had worked for Laban for a month, Laban approaches him to negotiate wages (vs 15). It is apparent that Jacob will not be living with him as family so much as a hired hand. In verses 16-18 we see Jacob’s response. In these verses, Laban’s two daughters are compared, and the older daughter, Leah, comes up way short in comparison to the younger daughter, Rachel, who is apparently very beautiful. And Jacob is in love with her and wants to marry her. It is love at first sight. Does this seem like a good basis for choosing a wife?
Jacob offers to work seven years in exchange for taking Rachel as his wife. This seems like an odd offer when viewed from our culture’s perspective. But in those days, Jacob would have been expected to pay a bride price. The bride price was paid, by the groom, to the bride’s family, and was used to support her should the husband divorce her or die. Jacob would not have had any money to pay a bride price for Rachel and Laban would surely have remembered the vast riches that Abraham’s servant had brought as a bride price for Isaac’s bride, Rebekah, long ago. These seven years of free labor served as the bride price for Rachel.
Read verses 19-21. Laban and Jacob reach an agreement and Jacob works for Laban for free for seven years. It seems like nothing to Jacob since he loves Rachel so much. She is worth it. When the seven years are up, Jacob goes to Laban and demands his bride. So, what does Laban do? Read verses 22-24.
Laban throws a wedding feast. It was probably the usual celebration with eating and drinking and dancing. But in those days, consummation of the marriage was part of the wedding. The bride and groom were brought together, and the marriage was complete once they slept together. But Laban pulled a fast one on Jacob. Instead of bringing Rachel in for Jacob to perform the conjugal part of the festivities, he brought Leah.
Jacob spent his wedding night being intimate with the wrong woman without even noticing that it was Leah and not Rachel. How can this happen? Well… there was the wedding veil, and the alcohol, and the ancient Middle Eastern status of women and romance…. Yes, it is still difficult to believe that this could happen. Wow! But Jacob, who had previously tricked his father and his brother, now has had a taste of his own medicine.
Read verses 25-27. Jacob discovers the deception the next morning, and he realizes he is married to Leah. He has slept with her. He demands an explanation from Laban. What is Laban’s explanation? Though Laban claims it is due to custom, I believe that Laban is all about getting another seven years of free labor from Jacob (Lev 19:13). He knows how much Jacob loves Rachel and that he will be willing to work another seven for her. What an opportunist!
We see in verses 28-30 that Jacob marries Rachel also. It was common back then for men to marry more than one wife. But just like today, things that are acceptable in the common culture are not necessarily acceptable to God (Lev 18:18). What is God’s position on polygamy (Matt 19:4-6)? God had established, way back at the beginning, that marriage was to be for one man and one woman (Gen 2:24). The marriage covenant represents Christ and the church, and it cannot do this with two wives, or any other combination other than one man and one woman (Eph 5:31-32). In this story of Jacob, the Bible is recording that polygamy occurred, not that God condoned it.
We also see, in verse 30, that Jacob loved Rachel more than Leah. He had two wives, and he treated one preferentially.
Though things seem to be going wrong for Jacob, he still has God’s covenant promise and the memory of God appearing to him on the ladder in his dream. God has promised to bring him back to Canaan. As Christians, God has made us a promise also. He has promised that He will bring us to Heaven (2 Tim 4:18). He also gave us the Holy Spirit which sealed the promise of our inheritance (Eph 1:13-14). And God keeps His promises.
Responding to God: Praise the Lord and thank Him for His unfailing love. Thank Him that He is with us always, no matter where we are or what we do. Thank Him for His grace and His forgiveness. Thank Him for His promises. Thank Him for the Savior who makes Heaven possible. Ask Him to help you to view people for more than their outward appearance. Ask Him to help you to always treat people fairly and to forgive those who have not treated you fairly. Ask for wisdom in choosing a spouse and in running your household. Pray for discernment when dealing with people you don’t know.
Further Research: Using a concordance, search for verses concerning God’s promises.
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