Lesson 62, Boy Meets Girl, Genesis 29:1- 10

Go East Young Man: 29:1-8

English Standard Version (Chapter 29)

Then Jacob went on his journey and came to the land of the people of the east. 2 As he looked, he saw a well in the field, and behold, three flocks of sheep lying beside it, for out of that well the flocks were watered. The stone on the well’s mouth was large, 3 and when all the flocks were gathered there, the shepherds would roll the stone from the mouth of the well and water the sheep, and put the stone back in its place over the mouth of the well

.4 Jacob said to them, “My brothers, where do you come from?” They said, “We are from Haran.” 5 He said to them, “Do you know Laban the son of Nahor?” They said, “We know him.” 6 He said to them, “Is it well with him?” They said, “It is well; and see, Rachel his daughter is coming with the sheep!” 7 He said, “Behold, it is still high day; it is not time for the livestock to be gathered together. Water the sheep and go, pasture them.” 8 But they said, “We cannot until all the flocks are gathered together and the stone is rolled from the mouth of the well; then we water the sheep.”

After the amazing dream, Jacob heads east to Haran and finds a well where flocks are waiting to be watered. It’s a pretty straightforward story, not quite just counting sheep, but maybe a notch above that. It’s also sheep waiting to be watered and then pastured. Of course Jacob is not traveling with any livestock, sheep or otherwise. The well is not accessible during the heat of the day, by virtue of the large rock that is laid at the mouth of the well. Water is a precious resource in the arid countries.

Cue Jacob to conveniently arrive as three flocks are waiting for the well to be opened. Jacob makes himself known to the shepherds and gets into some conversation with them. “Hey where are you guys from?” They respond, “we are from Haran.” Jacob takes this just like Eliezer sought out his mother as a bride for Isaac. The story was majestic as Eliezer told it over and over.T No doubt Rebecca told Jacob her story as he sat at her feet growing up. Jacob grabs the opportunity and runs with it.

The watering trough was a great place to find family members. The shepherds were all in agreement, to the question, “do You know Laban, the son of Nahor?” They replied, “we know him well.” They also said “it is well with him. See, Rachel his daughter is coming with sheep!” Things seem to be falling into place nicely. Jacob urges them to water their sheep and pasture them, and basically get out of the way so I can talk to Laban’s daughter. But the shepherds would not do so until someone rolled the stone from the mouth of the well. It must have not been in their union contract to roll stones to get to water. They were content to wait. Jacob becomes his own aggressor, instead of his mom. He is becoming his own man and it must feel pretty good. He moves the stone for Rachel to water her sheep.

Close encounter with a Female Kind 29:9- 12

English Standard Version (Chapter 29)

9 While he was still speaking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherdess. 10 Now as soon as Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother, Jacob came near and rolled the stone from the well’s mouth and watered the flock of Laban his mother’s brother. 11 Then Jacob kissed Rachel and wept aloud. 12 And Jacob told Rachel that he was her father’s kinsman, and that he was Rebekah’s son, and she ran and told her father.

Rachel arrives with the sheep and little does she realize her life was never going to be the same. She is going to make history and more importantly, grace the Bible pages for centuries to come. She was just a rural girl who was a shepherdess, a daughter of Laban. Laban gave his sister Rachel to Eliezer to be Isaac’s wife and Jacob’s mother. The chickens are coming home to roost. Now he is soon to be giving away his daughters to his daughter’s son. Laban is about to reap what he has sowed. As soon as Jacob saw Rachel, he sprung into action and rolled the stone away from the mouth of the well, (probably with the help of the other shepherds) and Rachel’s flocks get first dibs.

Boom! Jacob kisses Rachel! He wastes no time in making his moves but now he is weeping aloud. Here he reveals he is a near kinsman and that he was Rebekah's son. She did not wait around, she ran and told her father. She probably said, “I got my first kiss from a cousin.” No prom, no dating, no exchange of serious loot. This was just a kiss that turned the tide and frees her from a life with the sheep. From here on out Jacob tends to the sheep and does the job his brother did back home. My, how the tables have turned and he does so weeping for joy.

Laban Comes Back into the Story 29:13- 14

English Standard Version (Chapter 29)

13 As soon as Laban heard the news about Jacob, his sister’s son, he ran to meet him and embraced him and kissed him and brought him to his house. Jacob told Laban all these things, 14 and Laban said to him, “Surely you are my bone and my flesh!” And he stayed with him a month.

Laban has had a chance to observe Jacob over the month and I can’t help but think he sees a lot of Jacob’s mother and himself in this young man by what he says. As soon as he heard the news, he runs out to greet Jacob, embraces him, and kisses him. I imagine Jacob got a different kiss from him than he did from Rachel. Laban gets the the scoop from Jacob as says you are surely “my bone and my flesh.” Jacob stayed with them for the thirty days. Now, we are at the moment of truth for the extended visitor, you need to prove if you can support my daughter (or something like that)!

English Standard Version (Chapter 29)

15 Then Laban said to Jacob, “Because you are my kinsman, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what shall your wages be?” 16 Now Laban had two daughters. The name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. 17 Leah’s eyes were weak, but Rachel was beautiful in form and appearance. 18 Jacob loved Rachel. And he said, “I will serve you seven years for your younger daughter Rachel.” 19 Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you than that I should give her to any other man; stay with me.” 20 So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed to him but a few days because of the love he had for her.

Now we see Rachel has an older sister, and this is where the story starts to get complicated for Jacob, but he is in this thing because he loves Rachel so much! The Anchor Yale Dictionary says that Rachel’s name means “ewe- as in sheep.” But Leah’s name probably means “cow.” You get the picture. Over the years, somewhere I read that this name Leah means closer to something like “bleary-eyed.” That’s why verse 17 says her eyes were weak but Rachel really was the looker!

Now, as we speak of Leah and her sister, while the one was a knockout, it could mean that Leah was the sensitive one and more caring. The weakness of eyes could mean tenderness and soft. Men in those days may have not regarded the tenderness and sensitivity if compared to to the bombshell. At least, that is what Jacob saw. In the culture of these times, the girls had to be married off in order, with the oldest being the first. That is probably why both girls were still at home. Apparently, no one wanted to take the oldest. That’s why the family is handy and Laban lays out a plan for Jacob: “Tell me what you want for wages!”

After he finds out that Jacob wants Rachel, he is not on the spot like he was for his sister, Rebekah. He is in the drivers seat. He tells Jacob to stay because it is better for him to giver her to Jacob than to any of these guys around here. Jacob serves seven years for Rachel. It seemed like no time at all. Wow, he was really head over heels for this girl. And, he was a guest in Laban’s house. If we could only hear how this made Leah feel. If anybody would feel inadequate, it must be her. But the girl who was not perfect turns out to be one of the mainstays of Jacob’s life with Laban and the largest contributor to the 12 tribes of Israel.