Chapter 29
2024 - Vs 1 - The land of the sons of the east. I relate this to the Euphrates drying up in Revelation to make way for the Kings of the east. Why do we try to make this China or Russia? I think we need to look a lot closer to "home", and this verse is good evidence for that. Gesenius' Hebrew Chaldee dictionary, which looks to be pretty old, makes this translation pretty much correct. Newer definitions translate the word "before" rather than "east". They all migrated from the east, so where they were "before" is in fact the eastern part of the fertile crescent. But don't read just a whole lot into this.
Might be interesting to do a search on this word, Strong's H6924, and also a search on the English word "east" and see what might be learned about it's usual geographic meaning. Is it a direction, or is it a place?
Starts with Jacob arriving in the land of the "people of the East". Different culture and customs probably. They are not "occupied by the Hittites" as the place Jacob came from. This well used to water sheep was shared by many apparently. But not by all! Therefore it had this big rock over it. You had to have enough "manpower" to roll that rock off the well or you couldn't get to the water. Where Jacob came from, wells were in someone's territory and the water was not shared at all. So a difference here it seems. Jacob has a conversation with those gathered to water their sheep. Jacob tells them it is the wrong time of day to be watering sheep, the sheep should be out in the pasture eating and such. Jacob tells them to hurry up with this watering and get the sheep out to eat. But it seems all centered around rolling the stone off this well. It was only done once per day perhaps, and everyone had to be there when they did it. Local custom perhaps - but in contradiction to standard agricultural understanding. Jacob meets Rachel as she is bringing the sheep to water. Jacob is able to roll away this stone all by himself so that Rachel's flock can drink. So this is more about custom than requirement. The stone may have been large, but you didn't need several shepherds to roll it away, only one. So why were all these guys really standing around?
2023 - The key, I think, is in vs 3: 3 and when all the flocks were gathered there, the shepherds would roll the stone from the mouth of the well and water the sheep, and put the stone back in its place over the mouth of the well. [Gen 29:3 ESV]. They just waited to water the sheep until everyone was there. They were so backward in husbandry that they probably went to the well in the heat of the day and rested in the shade, rather than keeping the sheep eating all day and watering them at night. They just had no clue about sheep. Nor do I so this may be completely wrong.
After a month at Laban's place, Laban asks Jacob what wages will keep him there, in Laban's service. Perhaps the shepherding knowledge in the west far surpassed the knowledge in the east? For a month, Jacob had been showing Laban better theory and practice when it comes to sheep. So Laban wanted to retain Jacob to continue that! Oh my goodness!!!! That explains the whole rock of the well thing!!!! This is what this all about. Laban wants Jacob's expertise to improve his flocks, and consequently his wealth!!! Jacob says he will work 7 years for Rachel, Laban's younger daughter. There's this whole rolling away the stone from off the well so the sheep can drink thing. There were two other flocks already there, but they had not rolled the stone off. When Rachel comes, Jacob rolls the stone off. MSB says he asked the other two flocks to depart so he could be alone with Rachel. But they don't appear to have gone.
Laban deceives Jacob and gives him Leah instead. How does it feel, Jacob? This is the reason Laban gives:
26 Laban said, "It is not so done in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn. [Gen 29:26 ESV]. So just maybe Laban is not a crook. Maybe Jacob is cross ways with the customs of the East, and had requested something that just could not be done. Still...Laban didn't explain the custom. So...really it is hard to give Laban any slack. More likely Laban was greedy and wanted Jacob to continue instructing his herdsmen.
Laban requires a second 7 years, and Jacob ends up with sisters as wives, and loves Rachel more than Leah. This is fertile ground for problems if ever there was any. Jacob plays favorites. God makes Rachel barren, but Leah is not. This is sort of laid out there as if the favorites and the barrenness are related, but it doesn't really say so. You have to remember that Sarah was barren, Rebekah was barren, and now Rachel is barren. Either barrenness was not unusual in the east - which is where all these women, all related by blood in fact - were coming from. We also need to look at why God would repeatedly allow this barrenness as part of fulfilling his plan? This is the first time it has occurred to me that all these women are related. Most likely, the barrenness is a family problem, perhaps even part of the reason they left UR in the first place. If it was locally known that the women of this family tended to be barren, who would want them as wives? It would get to be a real problem. Never considered this before. Ahh...but then vs 31 trashes my latest insight: 31 When the LORD saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb, but Rachel was barren. [Gen 29:31 ESV]. Or maybe it just confirms it! This is worded almost as if both were barren initially, but God favored Leah and "fixed" her problem because of Jacob's favoritism.
Leah has four son's. Reuben (behold a son), Simeon (heard), Levi (joined to), and Judah (praised). Then no more. As each son is born, she says that maybe now her husband will love her. He still favors Rachel, and is only going in to Leah for the sons she bears him. No matter how many sons Leah has, Jacob still loves Rachel. At the birth of Judah, Leah leaves off looking for favor from Jacob, and instead praises God for her sons. Her attitude changes. Her focus changes. Interesting that she praised God for this son, and Judah plays such a role in the future of God's people. God blesses Leah for her praise, it seems, and for her perseverance in being the wife she should be, even in the face of disdain from her husband. I never noticed this before. I also never noticed that Judah was the fourth son of the less favored wife, born before any from the most favored wife. God chooses whom he will. David and Jesus are descended from the fourth son of the least favored wife. Nothing really here to recommend Judah by the standards of the time in which he was born.