Jacob takes his family and flees toward Canaan without informing his father-in-law. Why does Jacob leave Laban secretly? Although Laban claims that he would have sent Jacob away with a celebration (31:27), clearly Laban has not been willing to let Jacob go. Jacob expects that Laban would send him away empty (31:42) and even forcibly take back his daughters (31:31). The language of “fleeing” (31:20-22, 27) normally connotes at least strongly perceived danger, such as when Jacob fled to Haran from Esau (27:43; 35:1, 7).
Even now Laban would have harmed him had God not spoken on Jacob’s behalf (31:29)—though this may be partly because of the alleged theft of his gods, since Jacob can appeal to the kin’s recognition that this pursuit was not justifiable otherwise (31:36-37). (Could Laban’s relatives be expected to side with Jacob here? My wife Médine tells me of similar situations in Africa, where respectable kin judging an intrafamily case will sometimes evaluate a situation fairly. Their own reputation for wisdom and fairness is at stake in such cases.)
How can Jacob hope to succeed in his escape? Jacob cannot hope, with his flocks and herds with him (cf. later Israel leaving Egypt), to outpace Laban if he pursues. Although Jacob waits until Laban is several days’ journey away with his flocks (31:19, 22), if Laban decides to pursue him there will be little doubt which way Jacob has gone, and no way to keep such a massive caravan secret. Jacob is loaded down with children and flocks; Laban and his relatives can pursue with faster animals.
So why does Jacob even attempt to escape with his flocks? Jacob will lose everything if he goes away on Laban’s terms; nor can he simply wait for Laban’s death, for Laban now has sons who will inherit his property (31:1). Still, Jacob risks violence if he goes, and that risk seems higher than the probability of reaching Canaan safely. So why does he go? God has told him to return home (31:13). Jacob and his wives understand that only God can protect them, and that is in fact what happens (31:24, 42). (That an angry Esau awaits him if he escapes Laban may be another incentive to depend solely on God; see chaps. 32—33, esp. 32:6.)
Laban pursues and “overtakes” Jacob (31:25), the sort of dramatic language used for Joseph’s steward overtaking his brothers (44:4, 6, though the hostility there is feigned) and Pharaoh’s army pursuing Israel (Exod 14:9; 15:9). Catching up with Jacob, he declares openly that he would have harmed him had not God restrained him in a dream (Gen 31:29). Jacob now experiences the same sort of protection through a potential enemy’s dream that his grandparents had experienced with Abimelech (20:3-7)!
Although Jacob returns to Canaan partly because of God’s promise and command (28:13, 15; 31:13), Laban claims that Jacob left because he longed for his father’s household (31:30). This explanation is not completely false, but Laban has a reason for attributing such motives to Jacob: Jacob will accuse Laban of exploiting him (31:38-42), and Laban protects his honor by attributing different motives to Jacob (Jacob’s kin ties, which Jacob had mentioned in a more conciliatory conversation in 30:25). Laban also guards his honor by making sure that he does not appear weak for not attacking Jacob; this was because of God’s voice in 31:29 and because he would not risk harming his daughters and grandchildren in 31:43. So he settles for making sure that Jacob, who is leaving anyway, cannot come back to cause him more trouble (31:52).
Sometimes there are multiple reasons for something. In this case, Jacob could not have hoped to escape apart from God’s promise and call. God proved faithful in fulfilling this promise. But now that Laban would release him and Jacob would return to Canaan, he had another matter to face: Esau. (Next installment.)
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