And Laban answered and said unto Jacob, [These] daughters [are] my daughters, and [these] children [are] my children, and [these] cattle [are] my cattle, and all that thou seest [is] mine: and what can I do this day unto these my daughters, or unto their children which they have born?
43. my daughters ] Laban’s reply, consisting of the claim of complete parental control over Leah and Rachel and their children and their husband’s flocks, is no sort of reply to Jacob’s complaint.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Gen 31:43-48
Let us make a covenant, I and thou; and let it be for a witness between me and thee
Labans covenant with Jacob
I.
IT WAS FORCED UPON HIM BY CIRCUMSTANCES.
1. His long journey in pursuit of Jacob.
2. The Divine warning.
3. His failure to criminate Jacob.
4. The overwhelming force of Jacobs self-defence.
II. IT SHOWED AN IMPERFECT SENSE OF RELIGIOUS DUTY AND OBLIGATION.
1. The natural love of kindred may exist apart from piety. The social affections are beautiful in themselves, but they may be exercised by those who have very imperfect notions of religion, or who even set it aside altogether.
2. The forms of religion may be used with but an imperfect recognition of their real significance. The setting up of this pillar, and the pious motto attached to it, seemed to indicate a most sacred friendship and a solemn regard to the realities of religion. The all-pervading presence and the power of God were recognized. God is regarded as One to whom men are ultimately accountable. But this transaction, though employing the sanctions of religion, shows but a very low apprehension of its nature. This heap was set up by enemies who called upon God to protect them, each from the encroachments of the other. (T. H. Leale.)
Bethel to Mizpah; or, Service in a strange land
I. JACOBS REMONSTRANCE WITH LABAN.
1. He had served a long time.
2. He had served Laban honestly.
3. He had undergone much toil.
II. JACOBS CONFIDENCE IN GOD.
III. JACOBS COVENANT WITH LABAN. Learn:
1. Gods providence.
2. Gods faithfulness. (W. S. Smith, B. D.)
Lessons
1. False accusers, though silent at a just defence, yet are not ready to clear the innocent.
2. Guilt makes wicked men dumb to answer the plea of the righteous. Laban knew his guilt, but owns it not.
3. Proud oppressors, when they cannot hurt, yet they brag all is theirs.
4. Unnatural parents, when found out, pretend nearness and interest in their offspring.
5. Cruelty is sometimes crafty to pretend to spare for relations sake (Gen 31:43).
6. Bloody men overawed by God are forced to seek peace with the righteous whom they hate.
7. Oppressors are wily to secure their peace by covenant with the innocent when forced to it.
8. Crafty persecutors overcome desire engagement from the persecuted for their safety (Gen 31:44). (G. Hughes, B. D.)
Lessons
1. The righteous and wicked in covenants of peace may agree in the same terms, but not in the same heart.
2. Good and bad have inclination to use terms consonant to their country and religion.
3. Imposition of names upon dead things may tend to the information of the living (Gen 31:47).
4. Visible tokens may lawfully bear the titles of things signified by them.
5. The worst souls may be ready in word to appeal to witness, but such as they conceive cannot hurt them.
6. Pillars and places may bear the name of memorable actions to teach posterity (Gen 31:48).
7. Titles and words enough the falsest hearts may use for their own ends.
8. Jehovah may be appealed unto by false hearts as to selfseeking and their own security.
9. Fair pretences and guilty fears may move wicked souls to lay bends from God upon the innocent for their own safety.
10. God doth oversee and watch all parties covenanted what they do when they are separated (Gen 31:49). (G. Hughes, B. D.)
The pillar a witness
The following story is told of a rich old citizen of Bermago. He had lent to one of his countrymen at Florence four hundred crowns, which he advanced without any witness, and without requiring a written acknowledgment. When the stipulated time had elapsed, the creditor required his money; but the borrower, well apprised that no proof could be brought against him, positively denied that he had ever received it. After many fruitless attempts to recover it, the lender was advised to resort to the duke, who would find some method of doing him justice. Alessandro accordingly ordered both the parties before him; and after hearing the assertions of the one, and the positive denial of the other, he turned to the creditor, saying, Is it possible, then, friend, that you can have lent your money when no one was present? There was no one, indeed, replied the creditor. I counted out the money to him on a post. Go, bring the post then, this instant, said the duke, and I will make it confess the truth. The creditor, though astonished at receiving such an order, hastened to obey, having first received a secret caution from the duke not to be very speedy in his return. Meantime the duke employed himself in transacting the affairs of his other suitors, till at length, turning to the borrower, he said, This man stays & long time with this post. It is so heavy, sir, replied the other, that he could not yet have brought it. Again Alessandro left him, and, returning some time afterward, carelessly exclaimed, What kind of men are they that lend their money without evidence? Was there no one present but the post. No, indeed, sir! replied the knave. The post is a good witness then, said the duke, and shall make thee pay the man his money.
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
He pretends that to be an act of his natural affection and kindness which was indeed the effect of his fear.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
And Laban answered and said unto Jacob,…. Not denying the truth of what he had said, nor acknowledging any fault he had been guilty of, or asking forgiveness for it, though he seemed to be convicted in his own conscience of it:
[these] daughters [are] my daughters: though thy wives, they are my own flesh and blood, and must be dear to me; so pretending strong natural affections for them:
and [these] children [are] my children; his grandchildren, for whom also he professed great love and affection:
and [these] cattle [are] my cattle; or of my cattle, as the Targum of Jonathan, sprung from them, as indeed they did:
and all that thou seest [is] mine; all this he observed in a bragging way, that it might be thought that he was generous in not insisting upon having it, but giving all back to Jacob again:
and what can I do this day unto these my daughters, or unto their children which they have born? I cannot find in my heart to do them any hurt, or wrong them of anything, and am therefore willing all should be theirs.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
These words of Jacob “cut Laban to the heart with their truth, so that he turned round, offered his hand, and proposed a covenant.” Jacob proceeded at once to give a practical proof of his assent to this proposal of his father-in-law, by erecting a stone as a memorial, and calling upon his relations also (“his brethren,” as in Gen 31:23, by whom Laban and the relations who came with him are intended, as Gen 31:54 shows) to gather stones into a heap, which formed a table, as is briefly observed in Gen 31:46, for the covenant meal (Gen 31:54). This stone-heap was called Jegar-Sahadutha by Laban, and Galeed by Jacob (the former is the Chaldee, the latter the Hebrew; they have both the same meaning, viz., “heaps of witness”),
(Note: These words are the oldest proof, that in the native country of the patriarchs, Mesopotamia, Aramaean or Chaldaean was spoken, and Hebrew in Jacob’s native country, Canaan; from which we may conclude that Abraham’s family first acquired the Hebrew in Canaan from the Canaanites (Phoenicians).)
because, as Laban, who spoke first, as being the elder, explained, the heap was to be a “witness between him and Jacob.” The historian then adds this explanation: “ therefore they called his name Gal’ed,” and immediately afterwards introduces a second name, which the heap received from words that were spoken by Laban at the conclusion of the covenant (Gen 31:49): “ And Mizpah, ” i.e., watch, watch-place (sc., he called it), “ for he (Laban) said, Jehovah watch between me and thee; for we are hidden from one another (from the face of one another), if thou shalt oppress my daughters, and if thou shalt take wives to my daughters! No man is with us, behold God is witness between me and thee! ” (Gen 31:49, Gen 31:50). After these words of Laban, which are introduced parenthetically,
(Note: There can be no doubt that Gen 31:49 and Gen 31:50 bear the marks of a subsequent insertion. But there is nothing in the nature of this interpolation to indicate a compilation of the history from different sources. That Laban, when making this covenant, should have spoken of the future treatment of his daughters, is a thing so natural, that there would have been something strange in the omission. And it is not less suitable to the circumstances, that he calls upon the God of Jacob, i.e., Jehovah, to watch in this affair. And apart from the use of the name Jehovah, which is perfectly suitable here, there is nothing whatever to point to a different source; to say nothing of the fact that the critics themselves cannot agree as to the nature of the source supposed.)
and in which he enjoined upon Jacob fidelity to his daughters, the formation of the covenant of reconciliation and peace between them is first described, according to which, neither of them ( sive ego sive tu , as in Exo 19:13) was to pass the stone-heap and memorial-stone with a hostile intention towards the other. Of this the memorial was to serve as a witness, and the God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, the God of their father (Terah), would be umpire between them. To this covenant, in which Laban, according to his polytheistic views, placed the God of Abraham upon the same level with the God of Nahor and Terah, Jacob swore by “the Fear of Isaac” (Gen 31:42), the God who was worshipped by his father with sacred awe. He then offered sacrifices upon the mountain, and invited his relations to eat, i.e., to partake of a sacrificial meal, and seal the covenant by a feast of love.
The geographical names Gilead and Ramath-mizpeh (Jos 13:26), also Mizpeh-Gilead (Jdg 11:29), sound so obviously like Gal’ed and Mizpah, that they are no doubt connected, and owe their origin to the monument erected by Jacob and Laban; so that it was by prolepsis that the scene of this occurrence was called “the mountains of Gilead” in Gen 31:21, Gen 31:23, Gen 31:25. By the mount or mountains of Gilead we are not to understand the mountain range to the south of the Jabbok (Zerka), the present Jebel Jelaad, or Jebel es Salt. The name Gilead has a much more comprehensive signification in the Old Testament; and the mountains to the south of the Jabbok are called in Deu 3:12 the half of Mount Gilead; the mountains to the north of the Jabbok, the Jebel-Ajlun, forming the other half. In this chapter the name is used in the broader sense, and refers primarily to the northern half of the mountains (above the Jabbok); for Jacob did not cross the Jabbok till afterwards (Gen 32:23-24). There is nothing in the names Ramath-mizpeh, which Ramoth in Gilead bears in Jos 13:26, and Mizpeh-Gilead, which it bears in Jdg 11:29, to compel us to place Laban’s meeting with Jacob in the southern portion of the mountains of Gilead. For even if this city is to be found in the modern Salt, and was called Ramath-mizpeh from the even recorded here, all that can be inferred from that is, that the tradition of Laban’s covenant with Jacob was associated in later ages with Ramoth in Gilead, without the correctness of the association being thereby established.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
| Jacob’s Covenant with Laban. | B. C. 1739. |
43 And Laban answered and said unto Jacob, These daughters are my daughters, and these children are my children, and these cattle are my cattle, and all that thou seest is mine: and what can I do this day unto these my daughters, or unto their children which they have born? 44 Now therefore come thou, let us make a covenant, I and thou; and let it be for a witness between me and thee. 45 And Jacob took a stone, and set it up for a pillar. 46 And Jacob said unto his brethren, Gather stones; and they took stones, and made an heap: and they did eat there upon the heap. 47 And Laban called it Jegar-sahadutha: but Jacob called it Galeed. 48 And Laban said, This heap is a witness between me and thee this day. Therefore was the name of it called Galeed; 49 And Mizpah; for he said, The LORD watch between me and thee, when we are absent one from another. 50 If thou shalt afflict my daughters, or if thou shalt take other wives beside my daughters, no man is with us; see, God is witness betwixt me and thee. 51 And Laban said to Jacob, Behold this heap, and behold this pillar, which I have cast betwixt me and thee; 52 This heap be witness, and this pillar be witness, that I will not pass over this heap to thee, and that thou shalt not pass over this heap and this pillar unto me, for harm. 53 The God of Abraham, and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge betwixt us. And Jacob sware by the fear of his father Isaac. 54 Then Jacob offered sacrifice upon the mount, and called his brethren to eat bread: and they did eat bread, and tarried all night in the mount. 55 And early in the morning Laban rose up, and kissed his sons and his daughters, and blessed them: and Laban departed, and returned unto his place.
We have here the compromising of the matter between Laban and Jacob. Laban had nothing to say in reply to Jacob’s remonstrance: he could neither justify himself nor condemn Jacob, but was convicted by his own conscience of the wrong he had done him; and therefore desires to hear no more of the matter He is not willing to own himself in a fault, nor to ask Jacob’s forgiveness, and make him satisfaction, as he ought to have done. But,
I. He turns it off with a profession of kindness for Jacob’s wives and children (v. 43): These daughters are my daughters. When he cannot excuse what he has done, he does, in effect, own what he should have done; he should have treated them as his own, but he had counted them as strangers, v. 15. Note, It is common for those who are without natural affection to pretend much to it when it will serve a turn. Or perhaps Laban said this in a vain-glorious say, as one that loved to talk big, and use great swelling words of vanity: “All that thou seest is mine.” It was not so, it was all Jacob’s, and he had paid dearly for it; yet Jacob let him have his saying, perceiving him coming into a better humour. Note, Property lies near the hearts of worldly people. They love to boast of it, “This is mine, and the other is mine,” as Nabal, 1 Sam. xxv. 11, my bread and my water.
II. He proposes a covenant of friendship between them, to which Jacob readily agrees, without insisting upon Laban’s submission, much less his restitution. Note, When quarrels happen, we should be willing to be friends again upon any terms: peace and love are such valuable jewels that we can scarcely buy them too dearly. Better sit down losers than go on in strife. Now observe here,
1. The substance of this covenant. Jacob left it wholly to Laban to settle it. The tenour of it was, (1.) That Jacob should be a good husband to his wives, that he should not afflict them, nor marry other wives besides them, v. 50. Jacob had never given him any cause to suspect that he would be any other than a kind husband; yet, as if he had, he was willing to come under this engagement. Though Laban had afflicted them himself, yet he will bind Jacob that he shall not afflict them. Note, Those that are injurious themselves are commonly most jealous of others, and those that do not do their own duty are most peremptory in demanding duty from others. (2.) That he should never be a bad neighbour to Laban, v. 52. It was agreed that no act of hostility should ever pass between them, that Jacob should forgive and forget all the wrongs he had received and not remember them against Laban or his family in after-times. Note, We may resent an injury which yet we may not revenge.
2. The ceremony of this covenant. It was made and ratified with great solemnity, according to the usages of those times. (1.) A pillar was erected (v. 45), and a heap of stones raised (v. 46), to perpetuate the memory or the thing, the way of recording agreements by writing being then either not known or not used. (2.) A sacrifice was offered (v. 54), a sacrifice of peace-offerings. Note, Our peace with God is that which puts true comfort into our peace with our friends. If parties contend, the reconciliation of both to him will facilitate their reconciliation one to another. (3.) They did eat bread together (v. 46), jointly partaking of the feast upon the sacrifice, v. 54. This was in token of a hearty reconciliation. Covenants of friendship were anciently ratified by the parties eating and drinking together. It was in the nature of a love-feast. (4.) They solemnly appealed to God concerning their sincerity herein, [1.] As a witness (v. 49): The Lord watch between me and thee, that is, “The Lord take cognizance of every thing that shall be done on either side in violation of this league. When we are out of one another’s sight, let his be a restraint upon us, that wherever we are we are under God’s eye.” This appeal is convertible into a prayer. Friends at a distance from each other may take the comfort of this, that when they cannot know or succour one another God watches between them, and has his eye on them both. [2.] As a Judge, v. 53. The God of Abraham (from whom Jacob descended), and the God of Nahor (from whom Laban descended), the God of their father (the common ancestor, form whom they both descended), judge betwixt us. God’s relation to them is thus expressed to intimate that they worshipped one and the same God, upon which consideration there ought to be no enmity between them. Note, Those that have one God should have one heart: those that agree in religion should strive to agree in every thing else. God is Judge between contending parties, and he will judge righteously; whoever does wrong, it is at his peril. (5.) They gave a new name to the place, Gen 31:47; Gen 31:48. Laban called it in Syriac, and Jacob in Hebrew, the heap of witness; and (v. 49) it was called Mizpah, a watch-tower. Posterity being included in the league, care was taken that thus the memory of it should be preserved. These names are applicable to the seals of the gospel covenant, which are witnesses to us if we be faithful, but witnesses to us if we be faithful, but witnesses against us if we be false. The name Jacob gave this heap (Galeed) stuck by it, not the name Laban gave it. In all this rencounter, Laban was noisy and full of words, affecting to say much; Jacob was silent, and said little. When Laban appealed to God under many titles, Jacob only swore by the fear of his father Isaac, that is, the God whom his father Isaac feared, who had never served other gods, as Abraham and Nahor had done. Two words of Jacob’s were more memorable than all Laban’s speeches and vain repetitions: for the words of wise men are heard in quiet, more than the cry of him that ruleth among fools, Eccl. ix. 17.
Lastly, After all this angry parley, they part friends, v. 55. Laban very affectionately kissed his sons and his daughters, and blessed them, and then went back in peace. Note, God is often better to us than our fears, and strangely overrules the spirits of men in our favour, beyond what we could have expected; for it is not in vain to trust in him.
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
Verses 43-55:
Jacob’s angry speech had little effect upon Laban, as evidenced by his words in verse 43. He claimed legal right to all that Jacob had: the two daughters who were Jacob’s wives, their maidservants, the children born to Jacob and his wives, the livestock which Jacob claimed – all these belonged to Laban by the custom of the times. In this claim, Laban acknowledged that by doing anything to harm these, he would only be hurting himself. So, he proposed that there be a covenant “made” or “cut” between him and Jacob, a proposal which Jacob readily accepted.
Jacob found a stone, probably a large, elongated shape, and set it up as a pillar, matzebah, or monument to the covenant about to be made. He then instructed the kinsmen to gather stones and make a “heap,” gal, from galal meaning to roll (the word from which Gilgal comes, see Jos 5:9). This “heap” was probably a circular cairn, to serve as altar, table, and witness. There on this “heap” Jacob and Laban ratified the covenant with a solemn banquet, in keeping with the custom of the time. Both men acknowledged the terms of the agreement as binding not only upon themselves but upon their posterity.
Laban gave a Chaldaic name to the monument: Jaegar-sahadutha, meaning “heap of testimony” in the language of Mesopotamia. Jacob called the place “Galeed,” a compound of gal and ed, meaning “heap of witness” in the Hebrew. Jacob also called the place “Mizpah,” or “watch-tower,” from tsaphah, “to watch.” This later was the site of a town in Gilead (Jg 10:17; 11:11, 19, 34). The reason for this latter name: a solemn affirmation that Jehovah Himself would watch over both Jacob and Laban and enforce the terms of the agreement.
The covenant between Jacob and Laban provided that: (1) neither Laban nor Jacob (nor their descendants) would cross over this boundary with hostile intent against the other; and (2) Jacob would deal kindly and justly with the daughters of Laban; and (3) that Jacob would not take other wives either in the place of or in addition to Laban’s daughters (this would assure their inheritance rights). Jacob and Laban ratified the covenant with a solemn vow: Laban to the God of Nahor and his father; and Jacob by the fear and reverence of his father Isaac. The transaction was concluded with a banquet. Early the next morning, Laban said farewell to his daughters and grandchildren, pronounced a benediction upon them, and turned eastward to Mesopotamia. In parting, it is implied that there was reconciliation at last between Laban and the family of Jacob.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
43. These daughters are my daughters. Laban begins now to speak in a manner very different from before: he sees that he has no farther ground of contention. Therefore, being convinced, he buries all strife, and glides into placid and amicable discourse. “Why,” he asks, “should I be hostile to thee, when all things between us are common? Shall I rage against my own bowels? For both thy wives and thy children are my own blood; wherefore I ought to be affected towards you, as if you all were part of myself.” (99) He now answers like an honorable man. Whence, then, has this humanity so suddenly sprung up in the breast of him who lately had been hurried onward, without any respect to right or wrong, to ruin Jacob; unless it were, that he knew Jacob to have acted towards him with fidelity, and to have been at length compelled by necessity to adopt the design of departing by stealth? And this was an indication that he was not absolutely desperate: for we may find many persons of such abandoned impudence, that though overcome and silenced by arguments, they yet do not cease to rush headlong in insane rebellion. From this passage we infer, that although avarice and other sinful affections take away judgment and soundness of mind; there yet remains a knowledge of truth engraven on the souls of men, which being stirred up emits scintillations, to prevent the universal triumph of depravity. If any one before had said, What does thou, Laban? What brutality is this to rage against thine own bowels? the remonstrance would not have been heard, for he burned with headstrong fury. But now he voluntarily suggests this to himself, and proclaims what he would have been unwilling to hear from another. It appears, then, that the light of justice which now breaks forth, had been smothered in his mind. In short, it is self-love alone which blinds us; because we all judge aright where personal interests are not concerned. If, however, it should so happen that we are for a time in perplexity, we must still seek to obey the dictates of reason and justice. But if any one hardens himself in wickedness, the interior and hidden knowledge, of which I have spoken, will yet remain engraven in his mind, and will suffice for his condemnation.
(99) Acsi gererem omnium personam. “As if I bore the person or character of all,” perhaps, “as your representative — the one who personates you.” Yet, in the translation, the sense is given which will, perhaps, on the whole, be most intelligible to the reader. — Ed.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
CRITICAL NOTES.
Gen. 31:47. And Laban called it Jegar-sahadutha; but Jacob called it Galeed.] It is remarkable that in giving these names Laban chooses the Chaldee, Jacob the Hebrew, for the same meaning, the heap of witness. (Alford.)These words are the oldest testimony that in Mesopotamia, the mother country of the Patriarchs, Aramaic or Chaldee was spoken; while in Canaan, the country of Jacobs birth, Hebrew was the vernacular. And hence we may conclude that Abrahams family had adopted the Hebrew from the Canaanites (i.e., the Phnicians.) (Keil.)
Gen. 31:49. Mizpah.] A watch-tower or beacon. The pile of stones was to be not only a memorial but a sort of look outwhen they should be absent from each otherkeeping watch upon each of them for their fidelity. (Jacobus.) There were several places bearing this name in Palestine. (1Sa. 7:5-16; Jos. 15:28; Jos. 11:3-8.)
Gen. 31:53. The God of Abraham, and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge betwixt us. And Jacob sware by the fear of his father Isaac.] Laban calls to witness the Gods (the verb is in the plural in the original) of Abraham and Nahor and their father Terah; but Jacob swears only by the true God, Him whom Isaac, his father, feared. (Alford.)
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.Gen. 31:43-55
LABANS COVENANT WITH JACOB
Laban himself proposes this covenant, and imparts to it the sanctions of religion (Gen. 31:49-53). But
I. It was forced upon him by circumstances. This was no expression of a friendship which needed not an outward sign, but was rather an expedient to save further trouble. It was wrung from Laban by the hard necessity of his position. He had been in a great rage against Jacob, but now his temper is cooled. The circumstances which tamed his spirit, and brought him to a better mind were these:
1. His long journey in pursuit of Jacob. He pursued after him seven days journey (Gen. 31:23). Physical toil, the continued strain of anxiety, the proved impossibility of inflicting vengeance,all these tend to cool passion.
2. The Divine warning. God had appeared to Laban charging him that he should do no violence to Jacob (Gen. 31:29). This warning was really of the nature of a rebuke (Gen. 31:42).
3. His failure to criminate Jacob. He had charged Jacob with theft, and after a fruitless search, was mortified at finding no evidence of crime.
4. The overwhelming force of Jacobs self-defence (Gen. 31:36-42). Jacob recites the evidence of his faithful and laborious service for twenty years, and the facts to which he appealed could not be gainsaid. The truth of his reproaches against Laban was but too evident.
II. It showed an imperfect sense of religious duty and obligation. When it comes to the point, Laban cannot find it in his heart to do anything against his own flesh and blood. (Gen. 31:43.) The natural feelings of a father prevail. Laban and Jacob enter into a covenant. They set up a heap and call it Mizpah; for he said, the Lord watch between me and thee when we are absent one from another (Gen. 31:49.) But
1. The natural love of kindred may exist apart from piety. The social affections are beautiful in themselves, but they may be exercised by those who have very imperfect notions of religion, or who even set it aside altogether.
2. The forms of religion may be used with but an imperfect recognition of their real significance. The setting up of this pillar, and the pious motto attached to it, seemed to indicate a most sacred friendship and a solemn regard to the realities of religion. The all-pervading presence and the power of God were recognised. God is regarded as One to whom men are ultimately accountable. But this transaction, though employing the sanctions of religion, shows but a very low apprehension of its nature. This heap was set up by enemies who called upon God to protect them, each from the encroachments of the other. They seemed to think that the chief work of the Almighty in this world was to make them happy, to guard their interests, to avenge their private wrongs. They think little of Gods glory, or of their own perfection in godliness. This is a mean and selfish view of religion.
SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS ON THE VERSES
Gen. 31:43. Laban wishes to adjust matters in the best way he can. He cannot help prefacing his wish, however, by another sample of vain boasting and affected generosity. He attempts no defence against the charge of having repeatedly altered the terms of contract with Jacob, nor will conscience allow him to deny his secret purpose of sending him away empty. But this strange mixture of avarice, cunning, and effrontery is not without its parallel in every age and country.(Bush.)
Gen. 31:44. A fool is full of words, saith Solomon. Laban likewise talks a great deal here. A covenant he will have, a pillar he will have, a heap he will have; and that heap shall be a witness, and that pillar a witness, and God a witness, and a Judge too. There is no end of his discourse. The basest things are ever the most plentiful, so the least worth yields the most words.(Trapp.)
Jacob makes no reply to Labans boasting, but lets it pass; and though he had felt so keenly and spoken so warmly, yet he consents to a covenant of peace. His resentment is under the control of his moral principle. He said nothing, but expressed his mind by actions.(Bush.)
Gen. 31:46-47. Jegarsahadutha. Here is the first decided specimen of Aramaic, as contra-distinguished from Hebrew. Its incidental appearance indicates a fully formed dialect known to Jacob, and distinct from his own. Gilead, or Galeed remains to this day in Jebel Jelad, though the original spot was further north.(Murphy.)
Gen. 31:48-49. The Lord takes cognisance of the conduct of men when they are absent one from another. The Most High is above all, and sees all.
The power of religion is extremely weak in our minds if the consideration of the all-seeing eye of Jehovah does not operate more strongly to restrain us from evil than the presence of the world of mortal men.(Bush.)
Gen. 31:50. Men are sometimes so situated that they are thrown upon their personal honour and fidelity, having no outward compulsion to make them do what is right. The only firm support for such honour is the practical recognition of the presence of a just and holy God.
This sentiment shews that some knowledge of the true God was extensively prevalent at that early period, though in Labans case it did not avail to extinguish the relics of his idolatrous propensities. Like thousands of others, he held the truth in unrighteousness.(Bush.)
Gen. 31:51-53. We are surprised to hear that a man who had been seven days in pursuit of certain stolen gods, speak so much, and in so solemn a manner about Jehovah: but wicked men will on some occasions utter excellent words. After all, he could not help manifesting his attachment to idolatry. When speaking to Jacob of Jehovah, he calls Him the God of your father, in a manner as if He was not his God. He does not appear to have invoked Jehovah as the only true God. It is very observable, that though he makes mention of the God of Abraham, yet it is in connection with Nahor, and their father, i.e. Terah: but when Abraham was with Nahor and Terah, they were idolaters. (Jos. 24:2). The God of Abraham, and Nahor, and Terah, were words capable of very ill construction. Nor does Jacob appear to be ignorant of Labans design in thus referring to their early ancestors; and therefore, that he might bear an unequivocal testimony against all idolatry, even that of Abraham in his younger years, he would swear only by the fear of his father Isaac, who had never worshipped any other than the true God. It were worth while for those who plead for antiquity as a mark of the true Church to consider that herein they follow the example of Laban, and not of Jacob.(Fuller.)
Gen. 31:54-55. Laban had professed his regret that he had not an opportunity to enjoy a day of feasting and of mirth at parting with his children. Such a parting would hardly have been seemly, even in a family which had no fear of God before their eyes. Jacob, however, makes a religious feast previous to the departure of his father-in-law. He offered sacrifices upon the Mount Galeed. Laban departed, and this parting proved final. We hear no more of Laban, nor of the family of Nahor. They might, for several ages retain some knowledge of Jehovah; but mixing with it the superstitions of the country, they would in the end sink into gross idolatry, and be lost among the heathen.(Fuller.)
Laban imitated the corruptions of his ancestors, some of whom were good men and had knowledge of the true God. His descendants followed his example unto greater corruption, until the knowledge of God was, at length, lost. This religious degeneration is often seen in families and nations.
Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell
(43) Laban answered . . . Laban does not attempt any reply to Jacobs angry invectives, but answers affectionately. Why should he wish to injure Jacob, and send him away empty? All that he had was still Labans in the best of senses; for were not Rachel and Leah his daughters? And were not their children his grandsons? How was it possible that he could wish to rob them? He proposes, therefore, that they should make a covenant, by which Jacob should bind himself to deal kindly with his daughters, and to take no other wife; while he promises for himself that he would do Jacob no wrong. Jacob therefore sets up a large stone, as a pillar and memorial; and Laban subsequently does the same; while, probably between the two hills on which they had severally encamped (Gen. 31:25), they collect a large mass of other stones, on which they feast together, in token of friendship (Gen. 26:30).
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
43. Laban answered Whether awed by Jacob’s words, or convinced of the folly of attempting to change his plans or purposes, he hastens to propose a covenant, to which Jacob readily agrees . Laban’s words may be rendered as follows:
The daughters my daughters,
And the sons my sons,
And the flock my flock,
And all which thou seest
Mine it is!
And to my daughters, what shall I do to them to-day?
Or to their sons, which they have borne?
And now come, let us cut a covenant,
I and thou;
And let it be for a witness
Between me and thee
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘And Laban answered and said to Jacob, “The daughters are my daughters and the children are my children and the flocks are my flocks, and all that you see is mine. And what can I do this day to these my daughters or to their children which they have borne.” ’
Laban’s case is based on recognised tribal custom. As head over the confederacy all that is in the confederacy is ‘his’, that is, belongs to the confederacy, and he is responsible for it. This is especially true in this case when they had all been personally his. While Jacob by his service has obtained certain proprietary rights over them they are still the confederacy’s and should remain within the confederacy. Indeed Laban as the patriarch has the responsibility for their protection and must watch over them, which he cannot do if they leave the confederacy. Compare how Delilah remains in her father’s house when married to Samson (Jdg 14:2 on; 15:1). But because God has spoken to him so vividly he is now prepared for these rights to be overridden.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
The Covenant on Mount Gilead
v. 43. And Laban answered and said unto Jacob, These daughters are my daughters, and these children are my children, and these cattle are my cattle, and all that thou seest is mine; and what can I do this day unto these my daughters or unto their children which they have born? v. 44. Now, therefore, come thou, let us make a covenant, I and thou; and let it be for a witness between me and thee. v. 45. And Jacob took a stone, and set it up for a pillar, v. 46. And Jacob said unto his brethren, v. 47. And Laban called it Jegarsahadutha; but Jacob called it Galeed, v. 48. And Laban said, This heap is a witness between me and thee this day. Therefore was the name of it called Galeed; v. 49. and Mizpah, v. 50. If thou shalt afflict my daughters, or if thou shalt take other wives beside my daughters, no man is with us; see, God is witness betwixt me and thee. v. 51. And Laban said to Jacob, Behold this heap, and behold this pillar, which I have cast betwixt me and thee; v. 52. this heap be witness, and this pillar be witness, that I will not pass over this heap to thee, and that thou shalt not pass over this heap and this pillar unto me, for harm. v. 53. The God of Abraham, and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, v. 54. Then Jacob offered sacrifice upon the mount, v. 55. And early in the morning Laban rose up, and kissed his sons and his daughters, and blessed them,
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
Gen 31:43 And Laban answered and said unto Jacob, [These] daughters [are] my daughters, and [these] children [are] my children, and [these] cattle [are] my cattle, and all that thou seest [is] mine: and what can I do this day unto these my daughters, or unto their children which they have born?
Ver. 43. These daughters are my daughters, &c. ] All this is a flaunt, or rather a flattery. Now he seeks to curry favour, where he could not exercise cruelty; smoothing over the matter, as if he meant them no harm; when he was merely bridled, and could not do them that harm that he desired. This is still the guise of hypocrites, and false brethren; they would be taken for friends, and seek to build up themselves upon better men’s ruins: as here Laban would render Jacob suspicious to his daughters, as one that would hereafter deal hardly with them, if not bound by him, in a covenant, to his good abearance toward them.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Gen 31:43-55
43Then Laban replied to Jacob, “The daughters are my daughters, and the children are my children, and the flocks are my flocks, and all that you see is mine. But what can I do this day to these my daughters or to their children whom they have borne? 44So now come, let us make a covenant, you and I, and let it be a witness between you and me.” 45Then Jacob took a stone and set it up as a pillar. 46Jacob said to his kinsmen, “Gather stones.” So they took stones and made a heap, and they ate there by the heap. 47Now Laban called it Jegar-sahadutha, but Jacob called it Galeed. 48Laban said, “This heap is a witness between you and me this day.” Therefore it was named Galeed, 49and Mizpah, for he said, “May the LORD watch between you and me when we are absent one from the other. 50If you mistreat my daughters, or if you take wives besides my daughters, although no man is with us, see, God is witness between you and me.” 51Laban said to Jacob, “Behold this heap and behold the pillar which I have set between you and me. 52This heap is a witness, and the pillar is a witness, that I will not pass by this heap to you for harm, and you will not pass by this heap and this pillar to me, for harm. 53The God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us.” So Jacob swore by the fear of his father Isaac. 54Then Jacob offered a sacrifice on the mountain, and called his kinsmen to the meal; and they ate the meal and spent the night on the mountain. 55Early in the morning Laban arose, and kissed his sons and his daughters and blessed them. Then Laban departed and returned to his place.
Gen 31:43 Laban tries to answer Jacob’s accusations.
Gen 31:44 “So now come, let us make a covenant, you and I, and let it be a witness between you and me” Although Laban offers to make a covenant, it is Jacob who sets up a pillar (Gen 31:45 [see Gen 28:18], although Laban claims to have done it in Gen 31:51) and gets the kinsmen to gather stones around it (Gen 31:46). There they ate the covenantal meal. Meals are often associated with the forming of a covenant in the OT.
The grammatical features of this verse are
1. “come,” BDB 229, KB 246, Qal IMPERATIVE
2. “let us make a covenant,” BDB 503, KB 500, Qal COHORTATIVE, (lit. “to cut,” see Special Topic at Gen 13:15)
3. “let it be a witness,” BDB 224, KB 243, Qal PERFECT, implicating a permanent witness of non-aggression (cf. Gen 31:52)
Gen 31:47 There are two names here. The first is Aramaic (BDB 1094 CONSTRUCT BDB 1113) and the second is Hebrew (BDB 165). They are parallel, referring to the heap of stones. Jacob named the place “Galeed” (BDB 165, “witness-pile”), which is related to where they were camped (i.e., “Gilead,” BDB 166, “a circle of stones” or “a circle of mountains”).
There has been much discussion over Aramaic vs. Hebrew as the language of the Patriarchs. It seems that Aramaic was spoken in Mesopotamia, the home of Abraham, but as he journeyed to Canaan he picked up a dialect of Aramaic which we know as Hebrew. This moves our linguistic understanding of these languages back in time.
Gen 31:49 “Mizpah” The term “Mizpah” (BDB 859) in Gen 31:49 is also a Hebrew term which speaks of a “watchtower” and is personified there to refer to God witnessing (BDB 859, KB 1044, Qal JUSSIVE, root related to Mizpah) between these two men. It is interesting to me that Laban really takes this opportunity to blast Jacob in all the stipulations he puts on him in the presence of their relatives, which seems to be totally inappropriate. An example of this would be his not marrying other wives. It is Jacob who has shown a concern for Leah and Rachel, as seen in Gen 31:31, and not Laban.
Gen 31:53 “The God of Abraham and God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us” The VERB here is PLURAL (BDB 1047, KB 1622, Qal IMPERFECT used in a JUSSIVE sense, PLURAL), which seems to imply that Laban is making a polytheistic statement. The Septuagint does not follow the MT here (it has the SINGULAR VERB). The book of Genesis seems to imply that Abraham became a YHWHist, but not Nahor. This seems to be an allusion to an agreement made in the names of several family gods. But, notice that Jacob only swears by the name of the God of his father, YHWH (“the fear of Isaac”).
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
This is a study guide commentary, which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.
These discussion questions are provided to help you think through the major issues of this section of the book. They are meant to be thought-provoking, not definitive.
1. Who is seen as the manipulator in this chapter?
2. List the ways that Laban had treated Jacob unfairly.
3. List the ways that Jacob had acted faithfully.
4. What was a teraphim (Gen 31:19)? What was its purpose?
5. List Laban’s accusations in Gen 31:26-30 and show how they are true or false.
6. Why did Rachel steal Laban’s household gods?
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
the Covenant between Jacob and Laban
Gen 31:43-55
In our time covenants are engrossed on parchment, so that there may be written documentary evidence accessible, to prove that certain transactions have taken place. The same object was conserved, where the art of writing was confined to the few, by the erection of monuments, whose existence was associated with the agreements into which men had entered with one another. Though these two men were far below the Christian ideal of character, it is evident that they lived in an habitual recognition of God and the eternal sanction of His presence. The Lord was to watch between them. God was to be witness and judge. The third generation looked back on the days of Terah with reverential awe and loyalty, and commemorated their grandfather Terahs God.
Fuente: F.B. Meyer’s Through the Bible Commentary
Reciprocal: Gen 37:35 – his daughters
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
The Covenant Between Jacob and Laban Though Jacob accused Laban of intending to do him harm if God had not warned him, Laban claimed he would not hurt his own family. Perhaps to save embarrassment before the male members of his family who he had assembled to pursue a thief, Laban, despite all previous contracts, claimed his daughters, their children and the flocks were his. However, he said he could do no harm to his own flesh and blood.
Instead, he asked Jacob to make a peace covenant with him. Jacob had his brethren gather stones and put them in a pile. Laban, in Aramaic, and Jacob, in Hebrew, named the place “heap of witness.” Jacob’s prayer was, “May the Lord watch between you and me when we are absent one from another.” He and Laban promised not to pass the heap on the way to do one another harm. Then, Jacob made a sacrifice and shared a meal with Laban and the rest of his kinsmen. The next morning, Laban kissed his family goodbye and returned to his home ( Gen 31:43-55 ).
Fuente: Gary Hampton Commentary on Selected Books
Gen 31:43-44. All is mine That is, came by me. Let us make a covenant It was made and ratified with great solemnity, according to the usages of those times. 1st, A pillar was erected, a heap of stones raised to perpetuate the memory of the thing, writing being then not known. 2d, A sacrifice was offered, a sacrifice of peace-offerings. 3d, They ate bread together, jointly partaking of the feast upon the sacrifice. This was in token of a hearty reconciliation. Covenants of friendship were anciently ratified by the parties eating and drinking together.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Jacob and Laban made a parity covenant, set up a stone pillar (Heb. misbah, standing stone) to mark the spot, and ate a meal together as part of the rite involved in establishing a covenant (Gen 31:44-48). They may have erected the heap of stones (Heb. gal, cairn, Gen 31:46) both as a table for the meal and as a memorial of the event. Standing stones sometimes marked supposed dwelling places of the gods (cf. Gen 28:17-18), and cairns often marked graves (cf. Jos 7:26; Jos 8:29; 2Sa 18:17).
Galeed ("witness heap," Gen 31:47) is the name from which Gilead came. Gilead became a common name for this mountainous area east of the Jordan River between the Sea of Galilee (Cinnereth, Hebrew for "lyre" denoting the shape of the lake) and the Dead (Salt) Sea (cf. Gen 31:21; Gen 31:23; Gen 31:25).
The so-called "Mizpah [lit. watchtower] blessing" was not really a promise between friends but a warning between antagonists who did not trust each other (Gen 31:49). They called on God to keep each other true to the terms of the covenant they had just made. They could not check on each other themselves.
"This covenant also might be called a nonaggression pact." [Note: H. Vos, p. 122.]
"It is impossible to avoid noticing the curious misconception of the term ’mizpah’ which characterizes its use today. As used for a motto on rings, Christmas cards, and even as the title of an organization, it is interpreted to mean union, trust, fellowship; while its original meaning was that of separation, distrust, and warning. Two men, neither of whom trusted the other, said in effect: ’I cannot trust you out of my sight. The Lord must be the watchman between us if we and our goods are to be kept safe from each other.’" [Note: Thomas, p. 287.]
Laban had two deities in mind when he said "The God of Abraham and the god of Nahor" (Gen 31:53), as the Hebrew plural verb translated "judge" indicates. Jacob swore by the "Awesome One of Isaac," which indicates that he was worshipping the God of his fathers. Laban also swore by the pagan god his fathers worshipped.
Those who are obediently following God’s call and are experiencing His blessing can be confident that He will protect them.