Seder 30: Gen 31---Jacob's Exodus from Haran

 As Jacob continued to prosper, the attitude of Laban's family toward him soured.  They were jealous of his success.  God let Jacob know that it was time to return home to Canaan (Gen 31:3,13).  

Jacob made the case to Leah and Rachel that is was time for them to go.  Apparently Laban had also cheated them, and they wholeheartedly agreed with Jacob (vv 4-16).  

Jacob felt that the only way he would ever be extricate himself from Laban would be to just leave, without telling his father-in-law.  Like the Pharaoh of the Exodus, Laban always had a way to put off Jacob's departure a little longer.  

When Jacob and his family left Haran, Rachel took the teraphim (household gods) of Laban.  We don't know the precise appearance or significance of these objects, but they probably represented Laban's ancestors, or patron gods of his ancestors, and Laban probably believed that they provided protection and promoted prosperity.  

We are not told why Rachel took the teraphim.  It may be that she took them as a way to get back at her father, knowing how much he valued them.  A number of other possibilities have also been suggested by commentators:

• The objects could have included some valuable precious metals or gems.  Perhaps Rachel took them as partial payment toward the amount out of which that Laban had cheated them.
• One midrash suggests that Laban used the teraphim in divination, and Rachel took them so that he would not have extra help in determining the location of Jacob's family after they fled from him.
• Another midrash suggests that Rachel felt they might promote fertility.
• The interpretation most favorable to Rachel is one that says Rachel took the teraphim because she wanted her father to quit following false gods.

When Laban found out that Jacob had left, he set out in pursuit.  Here Laban is a precursor of the Pharaoh of the Exodus, who pursued the Israelites as they were leaving Egypt.  There are a number of ways in which Jacob's departure foreshadows the Exodus.  The Israelites left Egypt with great wealth, and Jacob left Laban with wealth.  Egypt's gods were defeated in the Exodus, and Jacob left with Laban's teraphim.  Laban overtook Jacob, as Pharaoh did the Israelites, but in both cases God provided protection.  

The subsequent confrontation between Jacob and Laban showed how much relations between them had broken down.  But they made a covenant and enjoyed a final covenant meal before parting for good.

Laban had been untrustworthy in dealing with Jacob, often deceiving the deceptive Jacob.  But God had been faithful to his promise to be with Jacob and bring him back home (Gen 28:15; 31:3).  God continued with his promise to Abraham and plan to bring blessing to the whole world through his family.

Pentecost 2020: Psalm 68---Praising the Divine Warrior

Psalm 68 has been called a triumphal hymn.  It praises God as the Divine Warrior, celebrating his victories in the past and looking forward to the end of all opposition to God in the future. 

The psalm begins by quoting Num 10:35, the battle cry which which the Israelites broke camp in the wilderness during the Exodus years.  Verse 4 pictures God as the Cloud-Rider, rebutting Canaanite mythology that presented Baal in that manner.  Verses 5-6 state that from this exalted position, God acts as a defender and helper of those in need. 

Verses 7-18 recall the mighty deeds of the Divine Warrior, including the deliverance of Israel from Egypt, the revelation at Mt Sinai, and the conquest of Canaan.  God is pictured as a king taking captives, receiving gifts, and sharing the spoils of battle with his people. 

God's superiority over all other heavenly beings is emphasized in vv 15-18.  The mountain of Bashan (v 15) is associated with the rebellious sons of God who came to earth in the days before the flood and fathered the Nephilim (Gen 6:1-4). 

The rest of the Psalm looks forward to God's victory over all opposition in the future.

Seder 11: Gen 12-13--The Promise in Peril

At some point after Abram and Sarai arrived in the land of Canaan, they left during a time of severe famine and sought refuge in Egypt.  Fearing that the Pharaoh would have him killed in order to add Sarai to the royal harem, Abram pretended that Sarai was just his sister, not his wife.  Pharaoh then proceeded to add Sarai to his harem (Gen 12:10-16)

Abram's deception put his wife in great danger and jeopardized the future of his family.  But God intervened, striking Pharaoh with plagues because he had abducted Sarai.  Pharaoh then reprimanded Abram and threw them out of Egypt (vv 17-20).

In this episode we see an example of how God would deal with people according to their treatment of Abram's family.  Pharaoh threatened that family and suffered as a result.  We also see that God's promise to Abram depends upon his grace, not upon Abram's goodness.

This passage in Gen 12-13 also foreshadows the later Exodus.  Abram and Sarai travel to Egypt during a time of famine, as Jacob would later.  They are in danger there, as the Israelites would later be enslaved.  Pharaoh suffers plagues, as Egypt would later.  Abram and his family are thrown out of Egypt with great wealth (12:16; 13:2), as the Israelites would be later.  And Abram then journeys by stages (13:3), as the Israelites would on the Exodus (Num 33:1).  The repetition of exodus themes in the Bible sends the message that God is consistent.  As he has acted in the past, so he will act again in the future.

Back in the land of Canaan with increased wealth, Abram and Lot needed to spread out to provide more room for their flocks.  The strife among their herdsmen (13:7) foreshadowed later strife between Israelites and Moabites.  Lot chose to go east to a fertile area near Sodom and Gomorrah, a move that looked good at the time.  But as has been the case so far in the book of Genesis, people run into trouble when they head east in a direction away from the Promised Land. 

Here some have seen an analogy between Gen 13:10 and Gen 3:6.  In Genesis 3:6, Eve saw that the forbidden fruit looked good and gave it a try.  In Genesis 13:10, Lot saw that the Jordan Valley looked good and decided to go there.

Abram acts as peacemaker, reminding us of Matt 5:9.

After Abram and Lot parted ways, God reaffirmed the promise of the land (13:14-17).