JACOB VS. LABAN – Genesis 30:25-31

This chapter signals a change in Jacob's life. He begins to trust the Lord, returning to the God of his fathers. Life circumstances are instruments in the hands of Yahweh, guiding His covenant son back to his calling and communion with the Almighty. As his story continues, Jacob is older than we might imagine. Commentators estimate from 77 – 90 plus years at this juncture. If this account were merely about Jacob, the turning of events in his favor might appear to be too little, too late to make for a compelling ending (falling woefully short of the classic fairy tale: 'happy ever after'). Jacob himself recounts his years in (Gen 47:9) “...the days of the years of my sojourning are 130 years. Few and evil have been the days of the years of my life, and they have not attained to the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their sojourning.” Nevertheless, as obscure as our text may seem at first glance, this chapter in Jacob's life is rich with redeeming allusions to God's future plans and purposes for His covenant people and His covenant Son. Unbeknownst to Jacob, he is foreshadowing the greatest of legacies to come! Matthew Henry notes: “The 14 years being gone, Jacob was willing to depart without any provision except God's promise.” This is where we pick up on his story in chapter 30, verse 25 as his troubled relationship with Laban culminates in Jacob's long anticipated return to the land of promise...