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14 Then Rachel and Leah answered and said to him, "Is there still any portion or inheritance for us in our father’s house? 15 Are we not considered strangers by him? For he has sold us, and also completely consumed our money. 16 For all these riches which God has taken from our father are really ours and our children’s; now then, whatever God has said to you, do it." 17 Then Jacob rose and set his sons and his wives on camels. 18 And he carried away all his livestock and all his possessions which he had gained, his acquired livestock which he had gained in Padan Aram, to go to his father Isaac in the land of Canaan. ~ Genesis 31:14-18
Today, we return to our study of Genesis 31 where after 20 years of serving Laban and being conned by him for that long, Jacob is leaving town for the promised land. The people of Israel are a people united to each other and to God in a singularly unique way. But Israel is more than a people, Israel is a concept of uniting and restoring God to the people of the world. For 20 years Jacob had been in a form of exile and will now he will follow the leading of God and return home.
In v.14-16 of today's passage we read, "14 Then Rachel and Leah answered and said to him, 'Is there still any portion or inheritance for us in our father’s house? 15 Are we not considered strangers by him? For he has sold us, and also completely consumed our money. 16 For all these riches which God has taken from our father are really ours and our children’s; now then, whatever God has said to you, do it.'"
When Rachel and Leah got married, their dad, Laban, gave each of them one maidservant. He could have given them more and they knew it but he didn't. They felt that they had gotten a raw deal from their dad. They knew that whatever inheritance they otherwise could have gotten would never come. They knew that they were entirely excluded from the inheritance. They didn't need Jacob to convince them that their father was a selfish man, they knew that all of their lives.
When Jacob showed up, Rachel and Leah were given a great contrast to their dad. These two girls believed in Jacob so much, they quickly were ready to follow him. When God created this world, He put into place a spiritual law called the law of sowing and reaping which applies to every aspect of our lives. A farmer sows cotton seed in the ground and eventually reaps a harvest of cotton. When we sow our time and energy into reading Scripture, we will reap the fruit of faith, wisdom, and understanding.
The father of Rachel and Leah was a man who fed the flesh regularly. When we feed a stray cat, we know it’s going to come back. The truth is whatever we feed follows us. The same principle applies to feeding fleshly desires. The Bible says that feeding the flesh leads to death and destruction. The fruit of feeding our desires becomes rotten and is out to destroy us. However, when we feed the Spirit, He leads to life, peace, and joy.
As Laban's daughters looked back over the past 20 years they realized that their father actually sold each one of them for Jacob’s labors. They were his hired hands, just like Jacob. As Jacob’s wives, they were in the same position that he was. Just as Jacob was a stranger, they are reckoned in the same way. And Laban didn’t only sell them, he consumed all the profit he made off of them. This is where feeding the flesh gets us with those whom we "love."
Jacob had acquired all of his livestock and wealth from Laban’s flocks. These were his wages and what came about was agreed on in advance, even though Laban changed the terms time and time again. Laban was a manipulative man but the Lord made sure that everything always came out in the favor of Jacob. God was with Jacob and He surely had blessed him.
In v.17-18 of today's passage we read, "17 Then Jacob rose and set his sons and his wives on camels. 18 And he carried away all his livestock and all his possessions which he had gained, his acquired livestock which he had gained in Padan Aram, to go to his father Isaac in the land of Canaan."
Once the decision was made, the action is taken. It didn’t matter how large Jacob's camp was, they completely emptied it in just a few hours. There was nothing left but holes in the ground where the tent posts had been. At this time, the oldest son, Reuben, was no more than about 12 years old and the youngest, Joseph, was about 6. So all the family mounted camels and started their journey towards Canaan.
It is very clear that Jacob hadn’t swindled Laban to gain his wealth. He had "gained" or "acquired" his family and possessions legitimately. The word "gained" in v.18 which is used five times in the whole Bible is used twice in this verse to indicate that Jacob took only what he had gained. Everything that went with him was acquired by him and nothing stolen. Later, we will see later that Jacob left with enough to give away more than 580 animals as a present. That, along with everything else he had would have made him a very wealthy man.
As we look back on Jacob's twenty years in Haran, we see that he had learned the importance of obeying the Lord. This is why he separated himself from Laban, who was a picture of the world without the Lord. This story demonstrates the foolishness of idolatry and the need for believers to separate ourselves from the world. Oh, we must maintain relationships with the people of the world but we must not be defined by the world. The Lord said it plainly, "Be in the world but not of it."
Jacob's story while in Haran demonstrates also the protective hand of God in his life. In the same way that God protected Jacob in his departure from Haran to return to Canaan, so He had protected others, like the nation Israel in its departure from Egypt to return to Canaan. All of them were prone to idolatry but the Lord was committed to them. He is no different toward you and me and we are no different than those in the Bible. We will never earn His favor, we don't even maintain His favor. But, if we do not obey Him, we can surely miss out on His blessings.
