In my reading, I have been working through Genesis. And Genesis in many ways is a difficult book. Not because I struggle to believe it, but because we see things in the lives of some of the patriarchs that are so different from our own culture that we are not sure how to handle them.
For example, I my previous entry (Fetching Rebekah…) we have the swearing of an oath by the putting of a hand on the inner thigh….how strange. And in Genesis 30, we have Jacob increasing his flock by what appears to be, at the very least, deceptive.
Jacob comes to an agreement with Laban that he will get all the spotted and speckled goats and sheep. But in the making of the deal he says “my honesty will testify for me in the future” (30:33). However, the story suggests that he takes intentional measures to insure that he comes out ahead in the deal by manipulating the breeding process in his favor. This seems less than “honest.” Yet, Jacob receives God’s blessing. So, were Jacob’s actions questionable? Or are they simply recorded as fact and not evaluated in the text? Good questions to ask in heaven.
Jason Cooper
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