Genesis 31

that he had taken unfair advantages of their father, and observed that Laban’s looks and conduct recently had expressed the same sentiment, thinks it now expedient for him to return to his father’s house; at the same time being aware that, as in a former instance, some plan would be proposed to detain him, and, perhaps, under one pretence or another, to keep back his wives, he resolves on withdrawing privately, when Laban was absent shearing his sheep, (ver. 19.) probably with his sons, at three days’ journey distance. ((Genesis 30:36).) These circumstances he lays before his two wives, the daughters of Laban; and at the same time relates to them a vision, in which he had been encouraged to act as he had done with respect to the cattle; and that he was now commanded, by the God of Bethel, to return home.

His wives perfectly agree with him, as to the disposition and conduct of their father, and express the utmost readiness to accompany him wherever he might go, having no longer any portion or interest in their father’s house, but treated by him as strangers: “‘Now, therefore,” say they, “whatsoever God hath said unto thee, do.” Jacob, therefore, immediately collects together his property, places his wives and children upon camels, and sets off privately with his cattle and other property, to go to the land of Canaan, and had proceeded as far as mount Gilead before Laban could overtake him. This journey must have taken Jacob ten days, incumbered as he was with the cattle; though it took Laban but seven, accompanied only by his sons and other male relatives, here called his brethren: (See (Genesis 29:15).) it was, no doubt, Laban’s object to carry back Jacob’s property, and perhaps his wives; but on the night preceding their meeting, he had been warned of God not to injure him: “Take heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad;” which, in our idiom, means, Do nothing to vex or grieve him. The most mysterious circumstance in this section of the sacred narrative is, that Rachel stole Laban’s images; in the Hebrew, Teraphim. The word differs but in one letter from Seraphim, and some think they were images resembling the sacred Cherubim, or the human form in them. (See (1 Samuel 19:13-16).) Not public idols, but images of superstition; a sort of household gods, consulted, perhaps, as oracles, or used as instruments of divination.

In this view they might have been employed by Laban; and Rachel may have been induced to take them, to prevent his employing them to direct him in his pursuit. This is the notion of some of the Rabbins, and the interpretation most favourable to Rachel, who, it should be remembered, lived in a pagan country, and whose father probably divided his devotions between the God of Abraham and the gods of Nahor and of Terah. (See ver. 53.) From her taking these secretly, it is evident that she knew Jacob would have disapproved of her conduct; and if she made use of them hereafter, it must be by stealth. This, however, it should seem she did, and they proved such a snare, that Jacob insisted on their being buried beneath the oak in Shechem.

(Chapter Ver. 25—42. Laban overtakes Jacob.—Laban is so far softened by the vision of the preceding night, that, instead of an hostile attack, he only reproaches Jacob with unkindness; and complains that, by stealing away thus privately, he had deprived him of the pleasure of taking leave of his daughters and his sons, (that is, his grandchildren;) and that, instead of being attended “with mirth and songs,” his daughters were sent off clandestinely, as if they had been captives taken in war. “In this (said he,) thou hast done foolishly.” And he tells Jacob, that now it was in his power to “do him hurt;” but he had received a divine admonition to the contrary. “And now, (continues he,) though thou wouldest needs be gone, because thou sore longest after thy father’s house, yet wherefore hast thou stolen my gods?” To all the other charges Jacob pleads a justification; but on this he is indignant, and challenges the search, declaring his readiness to give up the thief, when discovered; little thinking that it was one so dear to him as his beloved Rachel.

She, however, by artifice, concealed them. Jacob, now, in his turn, was wroth, and reproached Laban with unkind and ungenerous treatment; justifying his own fidelity, and ascribing all that he possessed, not to the generosity of his father-in-law, but to the mercy of God, even “the God of his father Abraham, and the fear of Isaac,” but for whose bounty he should have been sent “away empty.” The Patriarch then adds, “God hath seen my affliction and the labour of my hands, and rebuked thee yesternight.” Laban evidently wished to make a merit of his kindness; but Jacob gives him to understand, that it was no thanks to him: he had gone as far as he dare go, after the rebuke he had met with from the Almighty.

Sleeping or waking, what easy access has the Almighty to the mind of man, to withdraw him from his purpose. (See (Genesis 20:3). and Exposition.) Ver. 43—55. The covenant between Laban and Jacob.—God having warned Laban, he now drops all hostile language, and wisely proposes a covenant with Jacob, reminding him that they were all one family: “These daughters are my daughters,” &c. and what can I do this day unto (or rather for) these my daughters,” &c. At the same time he insinuates, there was little need for him to do any thing, as all which Jacob now possessed he had received from him—his wives and children, his cattle, and all his property. “‘Now, therefore, come thou, (said he,) let us make a covenant, I and thou.” Jacob, therefore, takes a great stone, and sets it up for a pillar, and directs his kinsmen to gather other stones, till they formed a kind of round table, or altar, out of a heap of stones, and ate and sacrificed thereon, both necessary ceremonies in all covenants of those early ages, as we have before observed.

And here we have the first instance of distinct and different languages; Laban naming this “heap of witness” in Chaldee, while Jacob named it in Hebrew, both names signifying the same thing. Another name, given to it by both, is Hebrew, namely, Mizpah, which signifies “a watch-tower;” for Laban said, “JEHOVAH watch between me and thee, if thou shalt afflict,” or [if thou shalt] risk [harm] seem [to] D Alcoa baat foe Bsa Brea Mic ec a a

Notes on the verses

So in the original of (Genesis 13)we read, Abraham was very weighty. This phrase originated in paying money by weight. Ver. 2. As before.—Hebrew, “As yesterday and the day before;” meaning some time since. 5 Wages changed my wages ten times.—That is, frequently. See (Numbers 14:22). (Job 19:3). Ver. 19. Grisled.—(The original word beroodim, from barad, “hail,” means marked with white spots like hail; to which our word grisled, from the old French gresle, now grele, hail, perfectly agrees; hence gresle, spotted with white on a dark ground.]—Bagster. Ver. 15. And devoured also our money.—Money (Heb. silver) must be taken in the general sense of price, and is so rendered by Dr. Boothroyd: for Jacob paid for his wives by labour, not by silver.

Ver. 19. Laban went to shear his sheep.—The time of sheep-shearing, according to Harmer, is in March; this, therefore, marks the time when Jacob fled.—Rachel had stolen the images; ‘in Hebrew, Teraphim. Having expressed above what we think most probable, we only add, from Rosenmuller, that the Persians have small images, used in the Sabian worship, and called Telafim, made of metal, for the most part in the human form, and cast under particular aspects of the planets, and inscribed with magical characters. They See Ainsworth. were said to make oracular answers, and discover lost goods, &c. The Pagan nations of the north of Europe had similar superstitions.—Orient. Lit. Ver. 20. Stole away unawares.—Margin, ‘Stolen away the heart of Laban.’ But Ainsworth reads, “Stolen (from) the heart of Laban;”

meaning, without his knowledge. We have a vulgar phrase somewhat similar: to steal a march, is to decamp privately. Ver. 21. He passed over the river.—This was the river Perath, or Euphrates, sometimes called the great river.—Univer. Hist. Dr. Clarke thinks, that notwithstanding the greatness of this river, there might be fords passable, at least at times.—Set his face toward mount Gilead. We have remarked before, that Moses often names places, not as they were previously known, but subsequently; so the name Gilead is applied to a considerable range of mountains S. E. of Lebanon, and to the adjacent country, all which doubtless were named from Galeed, the heap of witness.—Hales’ Geog. Ver. 24.

Either good or bad.—Hebrew, ‘From good to bad.” Dr. Clarke thinks the meaning is not to begin with smooth and kind language, (as Laban was wont to do,) and end with severe and harsh. But Ainsworth thinks the meaning to be, that he was to say nothing as to his main design of forcing them to return.—See (2 Samuel 13:22). Ver. 34. Furniture.—(The word car, rendered “furniture,” from the Arabic root ‘to be round,” properly denotes ‘a large round panier,” as cur, and karr, also signify in Arabic, placed one on each side of a camel, for a person, especially women, to ride in. It is a hamper, like a cradle, having a back, head, and sides like a great chair. Moryson describes them as ‘‘two long chairs like cradles, covered with red cloth, to hang on the two sides of the camel.”

—Journey from Aleppo to Jerusalem. Hanway, (Travels,) calls them kedgavays, which “are a kind of covered chairs, which the Persians hang over their camels in the manner of panniers, and are big enough for one person to sit in.” Thevenot, who calls them counes, says that they lay over them a covering which keeps them both from the rain and sun; and Maillet describes them as covered cages, hanging on each side of a camel. (See Harmer, Obs.) The late editor of Calmet has furnished a correct delineation of these cars, as seen on one side of a camel, copied from Dalton’s Prints of Egyptian Figures.—Bagster. Ver. 35. Let it not displease my lord.—This very respectful address of Rachel to her father, seems to have disarmed his suspicions as to her; and not only was it indelicate to disturb her, but defiling even to touch her.

Besides, he would be unwilling to suppose she would treat his domestic gods with such contempt. See Dr. Clarke. Ver. 40. In the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night.—Col. Campbell, travelling in Mesopotamia, says, ‘‘At night we found the weather as piercing cold, as it was distressfully hot in the day time.” Ver. 46. Jacob said unto his brethren, Gather stones, &c.—Niebuhr, relating his audience with the Iman of Yeman, says, ‘I found near the door some of the principal officers of the court, who were sitting in the shade upon stones, by the side of the wall. Among them was the Nakib, (or master of the house)… He immediately resigned his place to me, and applied himself to draw together stones into a heap, in order to build himself a new seat….

The stones are often flat and smooth.”—Harmer.—Made a heap.—(The word gal, rendered “heap,” properly signifies a round heap or circle; probably like the Druidical remains in England, which have been traced in India, Persia, Western Asia, Greece, and Northern Europe. These usually consist of irregular circles of large stones, with a principal one in the midst; the former probably being used for seats, (See Harmer,) and the latter for an altar; corresponding to the stone set up as a pillar by Jacob, and the heap of stones collected by his brethren. They appear to have been used, as Gil- [gap] he wrestleth with an angel at Peniel, where he is called Israel. AND Jacob went on his way, and the angels [of God met him.]

€ country of Edom. treat, “my daughters:” and this be witness that “I will not pass over this “heap to thee,” nor shalt “thou unto me, for harm.” The original term also implies a curse or imprecation on the party who should violate this covenant. ‘The God of Abraham, the God of Nahor, and the God of their father, judge betwixt us.” This language, while it is a most solemn appeal to heaven, seems also to imply, as already intimated, that Laban worshipped other gods besides Jehovah; like many persons halting between two opinions, and wishing “to serve” both “God and mammon.” Jacob, however, sware by “the fear of his father Isaac;” that is, by the God whom Isaac feared, who had never worshipped idols: and Jacob killed beasts, both for food and sacrifice, and they ate together, and “tarried all night in the mount.

And early in the morning Laban arose, and kissed his sons and his daughters, and blessed them, and returned to his own place.’ —“This parting,” says Fuller, “proved final. We hear no more of Laban, nor of the family of Nahor. They might for several ages retain some knowledge of Jehovah; but mixing with it the superstitions of the country, they would in the end sink into gross idolatry, and be lost among the heathen.”