Genesis - Patriarchs: Jacob - week 3

WEDNESDAY STUDY & DEVOTIONAL

After Jacob and Rachel meet at her father’s well, she runs to tell Laban that his relative is here. He in turn runs to meet Jacob, later confirming that they are in fact related. Jacob stays for a month with Laban, during which time Laban and Jacob work out a deal. Jacob is no servant, but a relative, so he should not work for Laban for free, but wages aren’t necessarily appropriate either. Jacob decides he will work for Rachel, and serves Laban for seven years for her. But on the wedding night, Laban switches out the younger Rachel for her older sister Leah, tricking Jacob into marrying the wrong sister.

Marriage customs aside, it’s interesting to see the poetic justice served here. The deceiver of Esau is thus deceived by Laban; the fox being outwitted by his kinsman. Where Jacob did it by exploiting his father’s ailing senses and his brother’s careless gluttony, Laban does it by exploiting his own daughters, leveraging them for his own gain. This is not right for two reasons. First, it is not the first time a daughter or female family member was leveraged for the gain of the father or husband. Abraham, Lot, and Isaac had all committed this wrong and it continues to run in the family with Laban. Second, Laban and Jacob had a deal, but Laban tricked Jacob. Yes, Jacob deserved worse, but Laban also committed sin by his faithless and untrustworthy switcheroo.

However, God has the last word. The wrong done to Jacob (and his wives) was used by God to accomplish his will. Through Leah, Rachel, and their servant maidens, Jacob would have a large and prosperous family, the heads of the 12 tribes of Israel. God is good to Jacob and redeems the wrong done to him. Later, God will do even more through Jacob’s son Joseph’s suffering, and then ultimately through their descendant Jesus and his suffering.

When Christians suffer, we can have confidence that this is the worse we’ll ever have because our Father loves justice and demands it to be satisfied. Our own sins were satisfied by the blood of Jesus and we were rendered justified (Rom 4:5, 5:1-11), and therefore through Jesus, nothing can keep us from God (Rom 8:18, 31-39).

REFLECTION & NOTES

Have you suffered from someone else’s wrongdoing? How has God rescued you from that situation?

Think about justice. No one wants justice more than God. What does God’s justice look like?

Who do you need to forgive for a wrong they have committed against you?