(Genesis) Genesis 31:7-13

And in verse 7, as we left off last time, he says, "...and your father hath deceived me, and changed my wages ten times, but God suffered him not to hurt me." Now, is Jacob beginning to complain? I think so, and we're going to see that later on in this chapter. Now, will you notice, he goes on to explain to these wives, that they'll understand, of actually what has happened, that the thing that he has done, has in it the element of, not trickery, but of taking advantage of his opportunity in a business way. I don't want to say he's dishonest here, because I don't think that he is.

He's been dishonest in so many things, but I think here, he was just using a method that I'm sure any businessman would have used, and it would have been legitimate. He's certainly not hurting Laban at all. But God has blessed him to the extent that Laban now and his sons become very jealous of him, and they hate him.

And you'll notice, as he goes on to explain all of this, he tells now, actually, why he wants to leave. Because he says in verse 11 of Genesis 31, "...and the angel of God spake unto me in a dream, saying, Jacob, and I said, Here am I. And he said, Lift up now thine eyes, and see, all the rams which leap upon the cattle are wringed, strait, speckled, and grizzled. For I have seen all that Laban doeth unto thee." Now, probably you thought last time, that I was not giving a satisfactory answer to what had taken place, because I recognize that there are several explanations of why these animals were speckled.

But I was waiting till we could get right here, because why were they that way? God says, I did it. May I say that I, therefore, don't need to look for these natural explanations, although I'm confident that God probably used one of them. But since God didn't tell me which one it is, I'm of the opinion that we don't know.

There are several explanations, and you can take the one you want, but I like this one. God says, I saw what Laban was doing to you, and I blessed you. Now, verse 13, and this is what's important.

I am the God of Bethel. Now, you see, God goes back to where He appeared to this boy when He was running away from home, His first night away from home, that He spent at Bethel. And He says now, I'm the God of Bethel, where thou anointest the pillar, where thou vowest a vow unto Me.

Now arise, get thee out from this land, and return unto the land of thy kindred. Now, God wants him out of that land, because He's got twelve boys that are growing up, and they are already beginning to learn some things that they should not be learning. And they are there in the place of idolatry and heathenism.

And so God wants to get Jacob and these boys away from there, just as He got Abraham out of a home of idolatry.