Genesis 31:36-42 – Jacob Provoked

After twenty years of lies, mistreatment, and accusations, Jacob has had enough. The final straw is Laban’s desire to search through everything belonging to Jacob in order to find his stolen idols. Generally, Jacob has preferred to avoid confrontation, both with his brother Esau and with his father-in-law. But Laban’s unreasonableness is too much this time, and Jacob is furious. Instead of patiently bearing with these false accusations, he lashes out. He has the comfort of having a good conscience. He knows that he has stolen nothing, and this helps him when Laban accuses him. Knowing that we have acted the right way will help us bear our troubles easier.

In most things Jacob had shown himself to be a good servant and a faithful shepherd. He was very careful, treating his master’s things as though they were his own. He was honest and took nothing which was not allowed him. He was careful not to covet what Laban had, being content with what he had. He was hard-working, sticking with his job even under uncomfortable circumstances.

Laban, however, is the perfect example of a bad master. He took away from Jacob unjustly, making him pay for what he had not damaged. He did not treat Jacob equally and robbed him by changing his wages.

But in all of this, God was preserving Jacob and taking notice of Laban. Jacob calls God the God of his father – Jacob knows he is loved by God for his father’s sake. We know we are loved by God for Jesus’ sake.