And Jacob said unto them, My brethren, whence [be] ye? And they said, Of Haran [are] we.
4. unto them ] i.e. the shepherds of the three flocks mentioned in Gen 29:2.
Of Haran ] See Gen 27:43. There is nothing to shew whether Haran, the town, was near or far off.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Verse 4. My brethren, whence be ye?] The language of Laban and his family was Chaldee and not Hebrew; (see Ge 31:47); but from the names which Leah gave to her children we see that the two languages had many words in common, and therefore Jacob and the shepherds might understand each other with little difficulty. It is possible also that Jacob might have learned the Chaldee or Aramitish language from his mother, as this was his mother’s tongue.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
He calls them
my brethren, partly in token of respect and affection, and partly because they were of the same nature and employment with himself.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
4. Jacob said, My brethrenFindingfrom the shepherds who were reposing there with flocks and who allbelonged to Haran, that his relatives in Haran were well and that oneof the family was shortly expected, he enquired why they were idlingthe best part of the day there instead of watering their flocks andsending them back to pasture.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And Jacob said unto them,…. To the shepherds, though not expressly mentioned; it cannot be imagined he spoke to the flocks, but to the keepers of them:
my brethren, whence [be] ye? a kind and affable way of speaking, used even to strangers, since all men are brethren by nature; or might be used by Jacob, because they were of the same occupation with himself, shepherds, asking them of what city they were, and from whence they came? and which being answered, would lead on to a conversation, which was what he wanted:
and they said, of Haran [are] we; the very place he was bound for, and was sent unto, Ge 27:43.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
4. My brethren, whence be ye? The great frankness of that age appears in this manner of meeting together; for, though the fraternal name is often abused by dishonest and wicked men, it is yet not to be doubted that friendly intercourse was then more faithfully cultivated than it is now. This was the reason why Jacob salutes unknown men as brethren, undoubtedly according to received custom. Frugality also is apparent, in that Rachel sometimes pays attention to the flock; for, since Laban abounds with servants, how does it happen that he employs his own daughter in a vile and sordid service, except that it was deemed disgraceful to educate children in idleness, softness, and indulgence? Whereas, on the contrary, at this day, since ambition, pride, and refinement, have rendered manners effeminate, the care of domestic concerns is held in such contempt, that women, for the most part, are ashamed of their proper office. It followed, from the same purity of manners which has been mentioned, that Jacob ventured so unceremoniously to kiss his cousin; for much greater liberty was allowed in their chaste and modest mode of living. (63) In our times, impurity and ungovernable lusts are the cause why not only kisses are suspected, but even looks are dreaded; and not unjustly, since the world is filled with every kind of corruption, and such perfidy prevails, that the intercourse between men and women is seldom conducted with modesty: (64) wherefore, that ancient simplicity ought to cause us deeply to mourn; so that this vile corruption into which the world has fallen may be distasteful to us, and that the contagion of it may not affect us and our families. The order of events, however, is inverted in the narration of Moses; for Jacob did not kiss Rachel till he had informed her that he was her relative. Hence also his weeping; for, partly through joy, partly through the memory of his father’s house, and through natural affection, he burst into tears.
(63) Nam in vita casta et modesta multo major erat libertas. Car la liberte estoit beaucoup plus grande en leur facon de vivre, chaste et modeste. — Fr. Tr.
(64) It is scarcely to be doubted that, notwithstanding Calvin’s sweeping charge, there were many exceptions to this general dissoluteness of manners in his days, as we must thankfully acknowledge there are in our own times, however extensively the evil he reprobates may have prevailed. — Ed.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
‘And Jacob said to them, “My brothers, from where are you?” And they said, “We are from Haran.” And he said to them, “Do you know Laban, the son of Nahor?” And they said, “We know him.” And he said to them, “Is it well with him?” And they said, “It is well, and look, Rachel his daughter is coming with the sheep.”
Although it is still before evening three flocks have already gathered there. So by questioning their keepers Jacob discovers he has arrived at his destination, Haran, and asks after the man he seeks. A water-source was the natural place to find people to question, for it was a place where many would come. We note elsewhere how many meetings take place at water-sources. (One way of ensuring you met people was to wait at a water-source).
“The son of Nahor.” Nahor is the head of the family. ‘Son of” means ‘descended from’. Laban is actually the son of Bethuel, and is Nahor’s grandson.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Gen 29:4. My brethren, whence, &c. Jacob, himself a shepherd, addresses his brethren of the same occupation with much courtesy; and either must have learned from his mother the language of this country, or they spoke the same language with the Abrahamic family. He calls Laban the son of Nahor, i.e.. the grandson, Gen 29:5 rather than the son of Bethuel, as the former was the founder of the family. See ch. Gen 31:53.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Act 7:2
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Gen 29:4 And Jacob said unto them, My brethren, whence [be] ye? And they said, Of Haran [are] we.
Ver. 4. And Jacob said. ] These petty passages are recorded, when the acts of mighty monarchs are unmentioned; to show God’s dear respect to his poor servants. The lion and eagle were not offered in sacrifice as the lamb and dove were. Mr Fox being asked, whether he knew such an honest poor man, answered, I remember him well: I tell you, I forget lords and ladies, to remember such. So doth God.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Gen 29:4-8
4Jacob said to them, “My brothers, where are you from?” And they said, “We are from Haran.” 5He said to them, “Do you know Laban the son of Nahor?” And they said, “We know him.” 6And he said to them, “Is it well with him?” And they said, “It is well, and here is Rachel his daughter coming with the sheep.” 7He said, “Behold, it is still high day; it is not time for the livestock to be gathered. Water the sheep, and go, pasture them.” 8But they said, “We cannot, until all the flocks are gathered, and they roll the stone from the mouth of the well; then we water the sheep.”
Gen 29:4 “brothers” This is the use of the term (BDB 26) for a greeting without implying a family relationship. We use this same greeting among fellow Christians in the southern USA today.
In Gen 29:12; Gen 29:15 the same term is used of a relative, but again not literally a “brother.” This recognition of family is called “my bone and my flesh” in Gen 29:14 (cf. Gen 2:23).
Gen 29:5 “Do you know Laban, the son of Nahor” Here is a good example where the word “son” (BDB 119) in Hebrew can refer to “father” or “grandfather.” Bethuel is Laban’s father and Nahor is his grandfather (cf. Gen 24:24; Gen 24:29).
Gen 29:6 “Is it well with him. . .It is well” This is the term shalom (BDB 1022). See Special Topic at Gen 15:15.
“Rachel his daughter coming with the sheep” There are no coincidences in the lives of God’s servants (cf. Gen 24:15; Exo 2:16, see The Christian’s Secret of a Happy Life by Hannah Whithall Smith). There is the unseen hand of God here, as with Joseph in Gen 37:15-17 (also in the book of Esther where God’s name never appears but His presence and guidance are obvious).
Gen 29:7 “Behold, it was still high day” Jacob was a shepherd and he knew that what was being done was against the best shepherding practices (this knowledge will impress Laban). This will allow him to show off his muscles (cf. Gen 29:10) for Rachel! Apparently, it worked! I bet Rachel was shocked at being kissed by this stranger (cf. Gen 29:11), but after he told her who he was there was great joy. The fact that Jacob weeps shows the cultural propensity of Oriental men to show their emotions much more than their western counterparts (cf. Gen 29:13).
Jacob addresses the other shepherds in idiomatic IMPERATIVES functioning as rhetorical questions.
1. water, BDB 1052, KB 1639, Hiphil IMPERATIVE
2. go, BDB 229, KB 246, Qal IMPERATIVE
3. pasture, BDB 944, KB 1258, Qal IMPERATIVE
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
Of Haran: Gen 11:31, Gen 24:10, Gen 27:43, Gen 28:10, Act 7:2, Act 7:4, Charran
Reciprocal: Gen 11:26 – Abram 2Ki 19:12 – Haran Isa 37:12 – Haran
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
29:4 And Jacob said unto them, My {c} brethren, whence [be] ye? And they said, Of Haran [are] we.
(c) It seems that in those days the custom was to call even strangers, brethren.