Genesis 31:42 - Printer Friendly

ESV: If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had not been on my side, surely now you would have sent me away empty-handed. God saw my affliction and the labor of my hands and rebuked you last night."

NIV: 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."

NASB: If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the fear of Isaac, had not been for me, surely now you would have sent me away empty-handed. God has seen my affliction and the labor of my hands, so He rendered judgment last night.'

CSB: If the God of my father, the God of Abraham, the Fear of Isaac, had not been with me, certainly now you would have sent me off empty-handed. But God has seen my affliction and my hard work, and he issued his verdict last night."

NLT: In fact, if the God of my father had not been on my side — the God of Abraham and the fearsome God of Isaac — you would have sent me away empty-handed. But God has seen your abuse and my hard work. That is why he appeared to you last night and rebuked you!'

KJV: Except the God of my father, the God of Abraham, and the fear of Isaac, had been with me, surely thou hadst sent me away now empty. God hath seen mine affliction and the labour of my hands, and rebuked thee yesternight.

NKJV: Unless the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had been with me, surely now you would have sent me away empty-handed. God has seen my affliction and the labor of my hands, and rebuked you last night.”

Jacob had served Laban for some twenty years, during which time he was mistreated, cheated, and abused (Genesis 29:20–28; 30:31–36). Even Laban's two daughters, both wives of Jacob, agreed that their father was greedy and loveless (Genesis 31:14–16). When Jacob chose to leave, Laban confronted him and accused him of theft, not knowing that it was Rachel who'd stolen his house idols (Genesis 31:19). Jacob responds by denouncing Laban's abuse, especially given Jacob's exemplary record of service.

Here, Jacob is making the same closing argument he had made to his wives about Laban's mistreatment. He has said that Laban had changed his wages 10 times in hopes of reducing the number of animals that would belong to Jacob. Now Jacob shows how the Lord protected him from his own father-in-law.

It is a stinging rebuke both of Laban's faithlessness and God's ability to make Laban powerless. No matter how Laban tried to harm and cheat Jacob, the Lord would not allow it. If not for the Lord, Jacob says, Laban would still send Jacob away with nothing even after two decades of difficult and faithful service.

Jacob refers to the Lord as the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac. The name "Fear of Isaac" appears only in this chapter in the Bible. It may be a reference to the fear Laban himself experienced when the Lord told him to, in essence, leave Jacob alone. If the Lord had not seen Jacob's faithful and difficult service and his mistreatment by Laban—and had not stepped in even now to protect Jacob from Laban—Jacob understood he would have nothing.

With his condemnation of Laban's selfishness, greed, mistreatment, and now fearful powerlessness, Jacob ends his speech. How will Laban respond to this?

Genesis 31:22–42 recounts Laban's pursuit of Jacob and his large company, after learning his son-in-law has left for Canaan without telling him. It takes a week, but Laban catches up. Warned by God in a dream not to say anything to Jacob ''either good or bad,'' Laban instead expresses his hurt to Jacob and accuses him of stealing Laban's house idols. When a search for the idols—cleverly hidden by Rachel without Jacob's knowledge—turns up nothing, Jacob finally expresses all of his complaints about Laban's unfair treatment of him in spite of twenty years of faithful service.

Genesis 31 describes Jacob's difficult separation from Laban, his father-in-law, as well as his boss for twenty years. During that time, Jacob was routinely mistreated and cheated by his master. Commanded by God to return to the land of Canaan, Jacob packs up his wives, children, and all of his possessions and leaves without telling Laban. Laban soon catches up with the large company. Laban and Jacob confront each other bitterly. Eventually, though, they make a covenant of separation and peace.

Genesis 30 described the dramatic expansion of Jacob's family and property. Now, after twenty years of working for Laban, the time comes for Jacob to return to his own people. He attempts to sneak away without telling Laban, but Laban soon catches up with him. After bitter confrontations, father and son-in-law make a covenant of separation and peace. Jacob is finally free to begin the next chapter of his life in the Promised Land. First, though, he will need to deal with his brother Esau, whose rage was the main reason Jacob fled in the first place. That encounter is described over the following two chapters.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.