Genesis 29.25-30-Jacob is Disciplined by the Lord
Tuesday June 27, 2006
Genesis: Genesis 29:25-30-Jacob is Disciplined by the Lord
Lesson # 169
Please turn in your Bibles to Genesis 29:15.
On Tuesday we studied Genesis 29:1-12, which records Jacob finally arriving in Paddan Aram and meeting the shepherds from Haran and the daughter of his uncle Laban and future wife, Rachel.
On Wednesday evening we noted Genesis 29:13-14, which gives us the record of Jacob meeting Laban for the first time and staying with Laban for a month.
On Thursday we studied Genesis 29:15-20, which records Jacob agreeing to work for Laban for seven years in exchange for being betrothed to Rachel.
On Sunday morning we noted Genesis 29:21-24 where we saw Laban deceiving Jacob on his wedding night by sending into his tent Leah and not Rachel whom he desired to marry.
This evening, we will study Genesis 29:25-30, which records Jacob discovering the next morning that he has been deceived by Laban and is trapped by him into agreeing to another seven years of service as the bride-price for marrying Rachel.
The fact that Jacob is trapped into another seven years of service was a manifestation of divine discipline in the life of Jacob for his deception of his father Isaac and cheating Esau.
Genesis 29:25, “So it came about in the morning that, behold, it was Leah! And he said to Laban, ‘What is this you have done to me? Was it not for Rachel that I served with you? Why then have you deceived me?’”
Just imagine the scene, it is early the next morning and Jacob awakes from the most restful sleep of his life after a night of making love to who he assumed was Rachel.
Jacob would open his eyes and say to himself “what a beautiful day, what a won¬derful night and what an exciting future there is for me with my wife!”
But what a shock it must have been as the first ray of sunlight burst into the tent to reveal that the woman that was in his arms was Leah, not Rachel!
The expression “behold it was Leah” describes the shock from Jacob’s perspective in his thinking.
The question “What is this you have done to me,” expresses verbally Jacob’s shock as to Laban’s deception.
Jacob’s next question “Was it not for Rachel that I served with you” reminds Laban of the terms of their agreement.
Jacob’s third and final question “Why then have you deceived me” echoes the words of Esau upon learning that Jacob had deceived their father and cheated him out of the blessings of the birthright (See Genesis 27:35-36).
Just as Jacob deceived his father in order to cheat his older brother Esau from receiving the blessing of the birthright, so now Jacob is deceived by Laban so that Jacob sleeps with Laban’s oldest daughter Leah rather than the younger daughter Rachel.
The shoe is now on the other foot; the deceiver has now been deceived.
Jacob has reaped what he has sowed.
Galatians 6:7, “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.”
Galatians 6:8, “For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.”
Jacob sowed the seeds of deception by obeying his mother Rebekah and deceiving his blind father Isaac into cheating Esau out of the blessing of the birthright.
Jacob has reaped the seeds of deception which he sowed by being deceived by Leah and Laban.
It is interesting that in both deceptions, Jacob and Rebekah’s and Laban and Leah’s, the deception had been commanded by a parent and in both cases the purpose of the deception was to acquire something desperately desired.
In their case with Esau and Isaac, Jacob and Rebekah were convinced that their deception was a case of the ends justifying the means.
In the case of Jacob and Rachel, Laban and Leah were convinced that their deception was also a case of the ends justifying the means since the custom was that the older daughter be married first and not be preceded by the younger.
So Jacob is understandably shocked as to what has happened to him and demands an explanation for the deception.
Genesis 29:26, “But Laban said, ‘It is not the practice in our place to marry off the younger before the firstborn.’”
If Laban was an honorable and honest man he should have informed Jacob of this local custom.
Notice that Laban’s response to Jacob demand for an explanation as to why Leah was in his tent and not Rachel was not to deny that he had deceived Jacob but simply refers to the local tradition of marrying off the firstborn before the younger.
There are no apologies from Laban and in fact he attempts to turn the tables on Jacob and make him out to be the bad guy.
Laban’s response to Jacob feigns moral outrage and makes Jacob out to be the guilty one for asking such questions.
Hypocritically, Laban hides behind local tradition to mask his guilt and dishonorable conduct.
Laban’s response reveals that he thought that the ends justify the means.
The terms “younger” and “firstborn” are unknowingly employed by Laban under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to remind Jacob of the deception of his older brother Esau and stunned Jacob into silence so that he does not reprove Laban for not having informed him of the local custom in the first place.
Jacob knows now first hand what it feels like to be deceived and cheated.
Here we see that the Lord is teaching Jacob that the ends does “not” justify the means!
This, the Holy Spirit convicts Jacob of since Jacob’s anger subsides and he agrees to work another seven years for Laban to consummate his love for Rachel.
Now, he knows how his brother Esau and his father Isaac felt.
God the Holy Spirit has rebuked and disciplined Jacob for deceiving his father Isaac and cheating his brother Esau in order to advance him to further spiritual growth.
This discipline was a demonstration of the Lord’s love for Jacob.
God disciplines His disobedient children by permitting adversity, trials, and irritations to come into their lives that are beyond their capacity to handle in order to get their attention and to focus upon their number one priority in life as children of God, which is conformity to the Father’s will.
God disciplines His disobedient children by permitting them to reap the fruits of their bad decisions so that they might learn that conformity to His will is the only way to true joy and happiness and blessing in life (Ezek. 16:43; Gal. 6:7-8).
The Holy Spirit disciplines the disobedient child of God by rebuking them with the Word of God as it is communicated by the pastor-teacher in the local assembly and the purpose of such rebuke is to conform the believer to the will of his heavenly Father, which results in blessing and true happiness.
Hebrews 4:12, “The Word of God is alive and powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of the soul and the spirit, and of the joints and the marrow, and is a critic of thoughts and intents of the heart.”
2 Timothy 3:16-17, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.”
The Lord Jesus Christ disciplines the believer in the sense that He rebukes, punishes and trains the believer because He personally and affectionately loves the believer.
Revelation 3:19, “Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent.”
Hebrews 12:5, “and you have forgotten the exhortation, which is addressed to you as sons, ‘MY SON, DO NOT REGARD LIGHTLY THE DISCIPLINE OF THE LORD, NOR FAINT WHEN YOU ARE REPROVED BY HIM.’”
Hebrews 12:6, “FOR THOSE WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES, AND HE SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES.”
Hebrews 12:7, “It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline?”
Hebrews 12:8, “But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.”
Hebrews 12:9, “Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live?”
Hebrews 12:10, “For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness.”
Hebrews 12:11, “All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.”
Hebrews 12:10 teaches us that ultimately, God disciplines us because He wants us to share in His character and integrity, which is meant by the phrase “share His holiness.”
We are not to get angry or bitter when God disciplines us through the Word, or adversity and underserved suffering but rather we are to listen to what God is trying to say to us and to learn the lesson that He is teaching us so that we might acquire the character of our heavenly Father.
Ecclesiastes 7:14, “In the day of prosperity be happy, but in the day of adversity consider -- God has made the one as well as the other so that man will not discover anything that will be after him.”
In order to receive discipline without getting bitter and complaining, the believer must recognize and submit to the authority of the Word of God, the delegated authority of the pastor-teacher and the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ who controls history and therefore the believer’s circumstances.
Proverbs 3:11-12, “My son, do not reject the discipline of the LORD or loathe His reproof, for whom the LORD loves He reproves, even as a father corrects the son in whom he delights.”
Job 5:17-18, “Behold, how happy is the man whom God reproves, so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty. For He inflicts pain, and gives relief; He wounds, and His hands also heal.”
Proverbs 15:32-33, “He who neglects discipline despises himself, but he who listens to reproof acquires understanding. The fear of the LORD is the instruction for wisdom, and before honor comes humility.”
Genesis 29:27, “Complete the week of this one, and we will give you the other also for the service which you shall serve with me for another seven years.”
“Complete the week of this one” refers to fulfilling Leah’s week and “the other” refers to Rachel.
The fact that Laban does not use their names reveals that Laban was not a very good father since he is treating daughters like property rather than his children.
Laban proposes that Jacob fulfill the week with Leah and then he will give Rachel to him as well in exchange for another seven years of service.
He is trying to make himself appears generous by offering to give Jacob Rachel and then letting him fulfill the seven years of service.
There are several reasons why Jacob agrees to Laban’s ridiculous and unreasonable and unjust proposal.
The first is that Jacob turns Laban down he will lose Rachel whom he loves.
Secondly, he was isolated and therefore without family support.
Thirdly, Jacob recognizes at this point that the Lord is disciplining him through this injustice.
The fourth reason that Jacob does not object to Laban’s proposal was that he would only have to wait a week before he could consummate his marriage to Rachel.
Lastly, Jacob does not object to Laban’s proposal out of respect for Leah and does not want to dishonor her and himself before the men of the city of Nahor.
Although, Jacob was prone to deception and lying, it can be said that he fulfilled his family responsibilities and honored his agreements.
The fact that he honored his agreements is indicated in that Laban trusts Jacob to honor his contract with him by first giving him Rachel before he had fulfilled the seven year contract (See Genesis 29:30).
Genesis 29:28, “Jacob did so and completed her week, and he gave him his daughter Rachel as his wife.”
The only good thing about Laban’s proposal was that Jacob did not have to wait another seven years to finally consummate his love for Rachel but only had to wait until the week with Leah was over.
The fact that Jacob did not have to wait another seven years until he could consummate his marriage with Rachel is indicated by a comparison of Genesis 29:28 and 30, which records that he consummated his marriage to Rachel first and then he served Laban for another seven years.
Genesis 29:29, “Laban also gave his maid Bilhah to his daughter Rachel as her maid.”
The name “Bilhah” is the proper noun bilhah (hh*l!B!), whose name means, “carefree” and who later bore Jacob two sons, who were named “Dan” and “Naphtali.”
Genesis 29:30, “So Jacob went in to Rachel also, and indeed he loved Rachel more than Leah, and he served with Laban for another seven years.”
So after finally consummating his marriage with Rachel, Jacob served Laban another seven years.
However, this would result in a bitter rivalry and unhappiness in Jacob’s home for years to come since he loved Rachel more than Leah.
The fact that Jacob loved Rachel more than Leah would be a cause of jealousy and bitterness between the two women resulting in division and unhappiness in the home of Jacob for years to come.
Notice, that the Word of God does not say that Jacob did not love Leah but rather he loved Rachel “more” than Leah implying obviously that he did have love for Leah but it was not as passionate as his love for Rachel.
Throughout all of the problems that Jacob had with Laban and Rachel and Leah, the Lord was still accomplishing His purposes to bring in the Savior of the world and fulfilling His promises to Abraham, Isaac and now Jacob.
The Lord promised Jacob that he would have numerous descendants and this would be fulfilled through both Leah and her maid Zilpah, from whom eight of the twelve tribes traced their descent.
Thus not even the deceitfulness of Jacob and Laban could overrule or prevent the fulfillment of the divine promises and plan of salvation.