12 JULY GENESIS 31

Time to Depart – God Delivers, Jacob Obeys

Genesis 31 records Jacob’s departure from Paddan Aram after twenty years of labour. Having endured Laban’s manipulation and exploitation, Jacob now hears the Lord’s call to return to Canaan. What unfolds is a powerful testimony of God’s faithfulness to protect and prosper His servant, even in the face of conflict and uncertainty.

Jacob Observes the Changing Attitude

Genesis 31:1–2 (NIV) “Jacob heard that Laban’s sons were saying, ‘Jacob has taken everything our father owned and has gained all this wealth from what belonged to our father.’ And Jacob noticed that Laban’s attitude toward him was not what it had been.” Though blessed by God, Jacob becomes the object of envy and accusation. This hostility signals a shift in season, God is about to lead him out.

God Commands Jacob to Return

Genesis 31:3 (NIV)“Then the Lord said to Jacob, ‘Go back to the land of your fathers and to your relatives, and I will be with you.’” This divine command recalls Genesis 28:15. God is calling Jacob back not only to place, but to promise. His presence is assured.

Jacob Calls Rachel and Leah

Genesis 31:4–5 (NIV) “So Jacob sent word to Rachel and Leah to come out to the fields where his flocks were. He said to them, ‘I see that your father’s attitude toward Me is not what it was before, but the God of My father has been with Me.’” Jacob frames the decision spiritually, attributing his success to God’s faithfulness, not his own craft. Genesis 31:6–7 (NIV)“You know that I’ve worked for your father with all My strength, yet your father has cheated Me by changing My wages ten times. However, God has not allowed him to harm Me.” God had preserved Jacob through injustice and exploitation. Now Jacob recalls a divine encounter. Genesis 31:10–13 (NIV) “In breeding season I once had a dream in which I looked up and saw that the male goats mating with the flock were streaked, speckled or spotted. The angel of God said to Me in the dream, ‘Jacob.’ I answered, ‘Here I am.’ And He said, ‘Look up and see that all the male goats mating with the flock are streaked, speckled or spotted, for I have seen all that Laban has been doing to you. I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a pillar and where you made a vow to Me. Now leave this land at once and go back to your native land.’” This dream is both revelation and reassurance. God had watched over Jacob’s mistreatment and now recalls His covenant name: “the God of Bethel.”

Rachel and Leah Agree

Genesis 31:14–16 (NIV) “Then Rachel and Leah replied, ‘Do we still have any share in the inheritance of our father’s estate? Does he not regard us as foreigners? Not only has he sold us, but he has used up what was paid for us. Surely all the wealth that God took away from our father belongs to us and our children. So do whatever God has told you.’” Both wives affirm their father’s betrayal and Jacob’s obedience to God. Their unity enables the family to depart.

Jacob Leaves Secretly Genesis 31:17–18 (NIV) “Then Jacob put his children and his wives on camels, and he drove all his livestock ahead of him, along with all the goods he had accumulated in Paddan Aram, to go to his father Isaac in the land of Canaan.” Genesis 31:19–20 (NIV) “When Laban had gone to shear his sheep, Rachel stole her father’s household gods. Moreover, Jacob deceived Laban the Aramean by not telling him he was running away.” Rachel’s theft introduces future tension. Meanwhile, Jacob leaves without confrontation, under divine instruction. Genesis 31:21 (NIV) “So he fled with all he had, crossed the Euphrates River, and headed for the hill country of Gilead.”

Laban Pursues Jacob

Genesis 31:22–23 (NIV) “On the third day Laban was told that Jacob had fled. Taking his relatives with him, he pursued Jacob for seven days and caught up with him in the hill country of Gilead.” Genesis 31:24 (NIV) “Then God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream at night and said to him, ‘Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.’” God intervenes here and although Laban has power, he is restrained by divine warning.

Laban Confronts Jacob

Genesis 31:26–27 (NIV) “Then Laban said to Jacob, ‘What have you done? You’ve deceived Me, and you’ve carried off My daughters like captives in war. Why did you run off secretly and deceive Me? Why didn’t you tell Me, so I could send you away with joy and singing…?’” Though his words sound fatherly, his intent is possessive. Laban had treated Jacob as property, not family. Genesis 31:29 (NIV)“I have the power to harm you; but last night the God of your father said to Me, ‘Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.’” God’s protection is Jacob’s security, not Laban’s morality.

The Search for the Household Gods

Genesis 31:30–32 (NIV) “‘Now you have gone off because you longed to return to your father’s household. But why did you steal My gods?’ Jacob answered Laban, ‘I was afraid, because I thought you would take your daughters away from Me by force. But if you find anyone who has your gods, that person shall not live.’” Jacob, unaware of Rachel’s theft, vows unknowingly against his own wife. Genesis 31:33–35 (NIV) “So Laban went into Jacob’s tent… but he did not find them… Now Rachel had taken the household gods and put them inside her camel’s saddle and was sitting on them. Laban searched everything in the tent but found nothing. Rachel said to her father, ‘Don’t be angry, My lord, that I cannot stand up in your presence; I’m having My period.’ So he searched but could not find the household gods.”

Rachel’s deception succeeds, but it foreshadows spiritual dysfunction that will surface later in Jacob’s house.

Jacob Rebukes Laban

Genesis 31:36–42 (NIV) “Jacob was angry and took Laban to task. ‘What is My crime? What sin have I committed that you hunt Me down?…I have been with you for twenty years now. Your sheep and goats have not miscarried…Yet you have changed My wages ten times. If the God of My father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had not been with Me, you would surely have sent Me away empty-handed. But God has seen My hardship and the toil of My hands, and last night He rebuked you.’ “Jacob defends his integrity. His words mark a turning point—he now speaks as one conscious of divine justice and calling.

Covenant at Mizpah

Genesis 31:44–46 (NIV) “‘Come now, let’s make a covenant, you and I, and let it serve as a witness between us. ‘So Jacob took a stone and set it up as a pillar. He said to his relatives, ‘Gather some stones.’ So they took stones and piled them in a heap, and they ate there by the heap.” This stone of witness marks the boundary of Laban’s control. Genesis 31:48–49 (NIV)“Laban said, ‘This heap is a witness between you and Me today.’… It was also called Mizpah, because he said, ‘May the Lord keep watch between you and Me when we are away from each other.’” Though often quoted romantically, Mizpah is a covenant of distrust, not affection.

Final Departure

Genesis 31:55 (NIV) “Early the next morning Laban kissed his grandchildren and his daughters and blessed them. Then he left and returned home.”

The last mention of Laban ends with departure. Jacob is finally free to return to Canaan, no longer a fugitive, but a man under divine commission.