Was Jacob Punished for His Deception?

Let’s talk about Jacob acquiring the birthright from Esau.  Jacob had a right to the birthright because Esau sold it for a bowl of stew. (Gen 25:29-34) But he deceived his father, Isaac, by dressing up like Esau in order to get the blessing; which would be grain and riches etc. What I want to focus on is…does Jacob get punished by deceiving his father Isaac? I’m going to say ‘yes’ because if you compare the themes of Jacob & Isaac, and Jacob and Laban, you will see that it’s a perfect measure-for-measure judgment on Jacob.

In Gen 27:1, we see that Isaac had grown old and his eyes were ‘dim’ so that he couldn’t see. It was because of this that Jacob was able to deceive him.

Now look at Gen 29:33. Laban brings Leah to Jacob in the evening when it was dark, and Jacob couldn’t see. But in the morning, when he could see, he saw that it was Leah and not Rachel.

Do you see the thematic connection? Not only was Jacob deceived as he had deceived Isaac, but the way it happened was exactly the same….neither one of them could see.

Isaac couldn’t see due to his old age, and Jacob couldn’t see due to lack of light. And this is why I think Yahweh’s hand was in it. It’s just too perfect to chalk it up to chance. (not that I believe in that anyway).

Free Subscription

Why Did Rachel Steal Laban’s Idols?

There’s a couple of different theories as to why Rachel stole Laban’s idols.

• She was an idolator herself
• She was trying to prevent her father, Laban, from committing idolatry

Gen 31:19 doesn’t shed any light on this. It only states that she stole the idols.

But The Book of Jasher goes into detail.

How Could Jacob Not Know He Married Leah? Insights Into the Bride-Swap!

This one boggles the mind doesn’t it? How could Jacob not have known he had consummated the marriage with a different woman? The bible doesn’t say much but the Book of Jasher does…

Jasher 28:28 And Yahweh afterward remembered Adinah the wife of Laban, and she conceived and bore twin daughters, and Laban called the names of his daughters, the name of the elder Leah, and the name of the younger Rakhel.

They were twins? Well this changes everything doesn’t it?!!!? We don’t know if they were identical or fraternal but the bible talks about Leah’s eyes perhaps to differentiate between the two. Even identical twins can have a slightly different feature to tell them apart.

But let’s just say that they were fraternal. Jasher offers another explanation while recounting the events surrounding the wedding feast…

Jacob, Laban, and the Spotted Sheep

I’ve always found the passage in Genesis, where Jacob and Laban are setting Jacob’s wages for taking care of Laban’s flocks, to be very confusing.  It was hard to tell the difference between who took which sheep, whose sons watched the animals, etc.  Has anyone else been confused by this?

Today, we were reading the Torah portion for this week, and now I understand it better.  The Holy Spirit showed me the passage in Genesis 30:25-43 in a whole new light, and I got my learn on!  I want to share what I learned, but first, let’s refresh our memories on this passage (Genesis 30:25-43).

Labans’ Agenda

Laban was Rebecca’s brother and the head of her household, and she was subject to his will, until she was betrothed.  Rebecca became betrothed when she accepted the bracelets and rings from Abraham’s servant.  When she ran back home to tell her family what had just happened at the well, she was already betrothed to Isaac.

Laban certainly appeared to be a nice guy; he ran to meet the servant, offered his barn and feed for the camels, and a meal for Abraham’s servant and the men with him.  He did not object to the servant’s gifts, and he did not object tot Rebecca’s betrothal at that time (Gen. 24:42-51).  It seemed as if Laban was all in favor of yielding to the servant’s wishes.

The next morning, Abraham’s servant prepared to return to Canaan with Rebecca, and this is when Laban tried to throw a monkey wrench in Yahweh’s plan.  He wanted the servant and Rebecca to delay their return to Canaan by at least ten days, but the servant protested because he wanted to leave immediately.  The issue was only resolved when Rebecca herself agreed to leave at once (Gen. 24:58).  Rebecca was able to speak for herself because she was betrothed; Laban no longer had any say over what she did, although he tried his best to keep her under his control.

Why would Laban try to delay Rebecca’s marriage to Isaac?  I think that the evil one was behind this, and I’ll try to explain why…