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25 And it came to pass, when Rachel had borne Joseph, that Jacob said to Laban, "Send me away, that I may go to my own place and to my country. 26 Give me my wives and my children for whom I have served you, and let me go; for you know my service which I have done for you." 27 And Laban said to him, "Please stay, if I have found favor in your eyes, for I have learned by experience that the Lord has blessed me for your sake." 28 Then he said, "Name me your wages, and I will give it." 29 So Jacob said to him, "You know how I have served you and how your livestock has been with me. 30 For what you had before I came was little, and it has increased to a great amount; the Lord has blessed you since my coming. And now, when shall I also provide for my own house?" 31 So he said, "What shall I give you?"And Jacob said, "You shall not give me anything. If you will do this thing for me, I will again feed and keep your flocks: 32 Let me pass through all your flock today, removing from there all the speckled and spotted sheep, and all the brown ones among the lambs, and the spotted and speckled among the goats; and these shall be my wages. 33 So my righteousness will answer for me in time to come, when the subject of my wages comes before you: every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and brown among the lambs, will be considered stolen, if it is with me." ~ Genesis 30:25-33
Today, we continue our study of Genesis 30 where Jacob has in a period of fourteen years gone from a man with no wife to a man with four wives and twelve children. But the wages of his fourteen years of work came at quite a cost. While back in Canaan Jacob was quite the scoundrel, in today's passage we discover him to be quite a different man.
In v.25-26 of today's passage we read, "25 And it came to pass, when Rachel had borne Joseph, that Jacob said to Laban, 'Send me away, that I may go to my own place and to my country. 26 Give me my wives and my children for whom I have served you, and let me go; for you know my service which I have done for you.'"
It was 2259 BC and in today's passage we see Jacob as a 91 year old man. In just seven years, Jacob had at least 12 children born to him. Due to the fact that he had worked the first seven years before getting married to his first wife Leah, all of his children had been born in the second 7-year period that he was in Laban's home.
Jacob had served his full term for the price of a bride and his 14 years of labor was complete. At this point in the narrative Jacob wanted to return home and start his life in the land of promise. He had every right to leave without permission, but as a courtesy he went to Laban and asked for his blessing. This was the first hint that Jacob was somewhat of a changed man.
In v.27-28 of today's passage we read, "27 And Laban said to him, 'Please stay, if I have found favor in your eyes, for I have learned by experience that the Lord has blessed me for your sake.' 28 Then he said, 'Name me your wages, and I will give it.'"
Laban begged Jacob to stay in Haran because he had observed the Lord's blessing upon Jacob’s hard work and he had benefitted greatly. Worldly men, like Laban, are often the recipients of blessings because of the hard working people around them. One thing they often lack though, but which Laban figured out, is actually discerning where the blessings come from and admitting it. We live in a land that has been abundantly blessed by the influence of the teachings of Christianity. But as the years have gone by, these great characteristics of hard work and honesty have increasingly been forsaken. In fact, we now live among a people who are increasingly being defined by a culture of selfishness and greed.
Another sign that Jacob was a somewhat of a changed man is seen in his response to Laban when Laban asked Jacob to name his price that would keep him in town. Laban certainly knew Jacob's value and when he asked Jacob to name his price, Laban knew in advance that Jacob's price would be less than Jacob was worth. And, sure enough that was what came to fruition.
In v.29-30 of today's passage we read, "29 So Jacob said to him, 'You know how I have served you and how your livestock has been with me. 30 For what you had before I came was little, and it has increased to a great amount; the Lord has blessed you since my coming. And now, when shall I also provide for my own house?'"
Jacob responded out of his integrity. In fact, he used his integrity as the benchmark of his offer and his request from Laban. This was quite a difference from the Jacob that lived in Canaan. Here, Jacob asked Laban to reflect on the state of his wealth from the time he arrived until that point which was a result of his work. He basically said that the amount he could set as his wages could be huge and it wouldn’t harm Laban at all. Jacob was clearly showing to Laban that he had the upper hand.
Jacob’s words stood as a testimony to the truth they conveyed. If what he had said wasn’t true, he wouldn’t have made the claim. When Jacob met Rachel at the well 14 years before, she tended a single flock. This was probably all the flocks Laban owned and Rachel being a young girl, it probably wasn’t a very big flock. Jacob used his words prior to making his offer to show that his offer was both fair and trustworthy. It was a claim of the future results that Laban could expect based on his past performance.
In v.31-33 of today's passage we read, "31 So he said, 'What shall I give you?' And Jacob said, 'You shall not give me anything. If you will do this thing for me, I will again feed and keep your flocks: 32 Let me pass through all your flock today, removing from there all the speckled and spotted sheep, and all the brown ones among the lambs, and the spotted and speckled among the goats; and these shall be my wages. 33 So my righteousness will answer for me in time to come, when the subject of my wages comes before you: every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and brown among the lambs, will be considered stolen, if it is with me.'"
Laban's response proved Jacob's appeal. There was no note of denial. What Jacob had stated was true and accurate. Laban’s wealth had increased because of Jacob. And, Jacob’s answer was confident and definite. Jacob didn’t demand anything new from Laban, instead what he proposed was exceptionally fair. So, Jacob proposed an incredible offer, he proposed that all of the lesser desired sheep and goats be taken out for him. And all of the more desired sheep and goats would remain as Laban's possession. By taking out the less desired animals and giving to Laban the best was to be a testimony to Jacob's righteousness. In time, Jacob would learn that it was the righteousness of the God who had all along pursued a personal relationship with him.
What a transformation that had taken place in the deceiver's life over the last fourteen years. Jacob had come to Laban's home just on the heels of deceiving away his brother's blessing from his dad and now he spoke of his righteousness. In the Bible "transformation" means the change in a life that no longer conforms to the ways of the world but to the one that is defined by God. Jacob was once blind to his sin, but now he spoke as a man who had met God. The proof of Jacob's deepening trust in the Lord is seen in how he left the choice of the sheep and the goats to his deceitful father-in-law, Laban.
We easily can fall into the trap of thinking that our ultimate goal is becoming better people. However, no amount of determined obedience on our behalf will ever change us into what God created us to be. God does not want to make us into a better version of our old self, He desires to transform us into a new creation. This means a change at the heart of who we really are. This was part of the reason God allowed Jacob to go to Laban's house in the first place because in Laban Jacob saw himself and through seeing himself, Jacob was positioned to see God.
Biblical transformation is built on the introduction of the very life of God into our lives. At the heart of this transformation is the arrival of the Lord Jesus Christ facilitating a life-giving relationship into the broken sinner's life. It is only in this way that we can reach the potential that God had in mind when He created us. While at Laban's house God obviously brought some brokenness into the life of Jacob and it shows as he reveled to Laban a man who was being embraced by his Maker.
Spiritual transformation must always begin with brokenness. It begins with a deepening understanding of our own spiritual poverty and desire for intimacy with God. Those who encounter the Lord Jesus are those who are desperate enough to be honest with Him and themselves. This, as a result, opens the floodgates to His transformative power to be released in our lives as we learn from Him how to die to ourselves. And, as Jacob's life will reveal in time, an ever increasing understanding of our wickedness serves us to yield to God as His transforming life overcomes ours.
