the Second Week after Easter
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Genesis 31:30
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- CondensedParallel Translations
Now, you want to be gone, because you sore longed after your father's house, but why have you stolen my gods?"
And now, though thou wouldest needs be gone, because thou sore longedst after thy father's house, yet wherefore hast thou stolen my gods?
Now, you have surely gone because you desperately longed for the house of your father, but why did you steal my gods?"
I know you want to go back to your home, but why did you steal my idols?"
"Now [I suppose] you felt you must go because you were homesick for your father's house and family; but why did you steal my [household] gods?"
"Now you have indeed gone away because you longed greatly for your father's house; but why did you steal my gods?"
Nowe though thou wentest thy way, because thou greatly longedst after thy fathers house, yet wherefore hast thou stollen my gods?
So now you have indeed gone away because you longed greatly for your father's house; but why did you steal my gods?"
I can understand why you were eager to return to your father, but why did you have to steal my idols?
Granted that you had to leave, because you longed so deeply for your father's house; but why did you steal my gods?"
And now that thou must needs be gone, because thou greatly longedst after thy father's house, why hast thou stolen my gods?
I know that you want to go back to your home. That is why you left. But why did you steal the gods from my house?"
And now you have gone away because you longed greatly for your father's house, but why did you steal my gods?"
And now you are on your way, because you longed for your fathers house; yet why did you steal my gods?
I know that you left because you were so anxious to get back home, but why did you steal my household gods?"
Now you have gone off because you long for your father’s family—but why have you stolen my gods?”
And now surely you have gone because you have longed after your father's house. Why have you stolen my gods?
And for so moch then as thou woldest nedes departe, and longedest sore after yi fathers house, why hast thou stollen away my goddes?
And now, though thou wouldest needs be gone, because thou sore longedst after thy father's house, yet wherefore hast thou stolen my gods?
And now, it seems, you are going because your heart's desire is for your father's house; but why have you taken my gods?
And nowe though thou wouldest nedes be gone away, because thou sore longest after thy fathers house, yet wherfore hast thou stollen my gods?
And now that thou art surely gone, because thou sore longest after thy father's house, wherefore hast thou stolen my gods?'
And now though thou wouldest needes bee gone, because thou sore longedst after thy fathers house; yet wherefore hast thou stollen my gods?
Now then go on thy way, for thou hast earnestly desired to depart to the house of thy father; wherefore hast thou stolen my gods?
And now, though thou wouldest needs be gone, because thou sore longedst after thy father's house, yet wherefore hast thou stolen my gods?
Now you have gone off because you long for your father's house. But why have you stolen my gods?"
Suppose, if thou coueitedist to go to thi kynesmen, and the hows of thi fadir was in desir to thee, whi hast thou stole my goddis?
`And now, thou hast certainly gone, because thou hast been very desirous for the house of thy father; why hast thou stolen my gods?'
And now, [though] you would surely be gone, because you intensely longed after your father's house, [yet] why have you stolen my gods?
And now, [though] thou wouldest needs be gone, because thou didst earnestly long after thy father's house; [yet] why hast thou stolen my gods?
Now, you want to be gone, because you sore longed after your father's house, but why have you stolen my gods?"
And now you have surely gone because you greatly long for your father's house, but why did you steal my gods?"
I can understand your feeling that you must go, and your intense longing for your father's home. But why have you stolen my gods?"
Now you have gone away because you had a desire for your father's house. But why did you steal my gods?"
Even though you had to go because you longed greatly for your father's house, why did you steal my gods?"
But, now, though thou, didst even take thy journey, because thou, didst sorely long, for the house of thy father,, wherefore didst thou steal away my gods?
Suppose thou didst desire to go to thy friends, and hadst a longing after thy father’s house: why hast thou stolen away my gods?
And now you have gone away because you longed greatly for your father's house, but why did you steal my gods?"
"Now you have indeed gone away because you longed greatly for your father's house; but why did you steal my gods?"
Contextual Overview
Bible Verse Review
from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge
my gods: Genesis 31:19, Exodus 12:12, Numbers 33:4, Judges 6:31, Judges 18:24, 1 Samuel 5:2-6, 2 Samuel 5:21, Isaiah 37:19, Isaiah 46:1, Isaiah 46:2, Jeremiah 10:11, Jeremiah 43:12
Reciprocal: Genesis 31:32 - whomsoever Numbers 10:30 - General Deuteronomy 12:20 - I will Joshua 24:2 - served other gods Judges 17:5 - an house of gods 2 Samuel 13:39 - the soul of Isaiah 44:13 - that it may Ezekiel 21:21 - images Daniel 11:8 - their gods Romans 1:11 - I long 1 Thessalonians 2:17 - endeavoured
Cross-References
Jacob heard that Laban's sons were complaining, "Jacob has taken everything that belonged to our father! He has gotten rich at our father's expense!"
When Jacob saw the look on Laban's face, he could tell his attitude toward him had changed.
You know that I've worked for your father as hard as I could,
While Laban had gone to shear his sheep, Rachel stole the household idols that belonged to her father.
I will pass through the land of Egypt in the same night, and I will attack all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both of humans and of animals, and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment. I am the Lord .
Now the Egyptians were burying all their firstborn, whom the Lord had killed among them; the Lord also executed judgments on their gods.
But Joash said to all those who confronted him, "Must you fight Baal's battles? Must you rescue him? Whoever takes up his cause will die by morning! If he really is a god, let him fight his own battles! After all, it was his altar that was pulled down."
He said, "You stole my gods that I made, as well as this priest, and then went away. What do I have left? How can you have the audacity to say to me, ‘What do you want?'"
The Philistines abandoned their idols there, and David and his men picked them up.
They have burned the gods of the nations, for they are not really gods, but only the product of human hands manufactured from wood and stone. That is why the Assyrians could destroy them.
Gill's Notes on the Bible
And now, [though] thou wouldest needs be gone,.... Or, "in going wouldest go" i, was determined upon it, and in haste to do it:
because thou sore longedst after thy father's house, or "desiring didst desire it" k; had a vehement desire for it, which Laban signifies he should not have opposed, if he had let him know his mind: but be it so that he had ever so great desire to leave him and return to his father's house, says he,
[yet], wherefore, hast thou stolen my gods? what reason had he for that? if he took away himself, his wives, his children, his goods, what business had he with his gods? he could not claim these as his, meaning the images or teraphim before mentioned, Genesis 31:19; by which it appears that Laban was some way or other guilty of idolatry in the use of these images; looking upon them as types, or representations of God, as Josephus l calls them, and worshipped God in them, or along with them and by them; for he could never think they were truly and really gods, that could not preserve themselves from being stolen away, and that must be a poor god that a man may be robbed of.
i ××× ×××ת "eundo ivisti", Pagninus, Montanus, Drusius. k ×סף × ××¡×¤×ª× "desiderando desiderabis", Pagninus, Montanus, Vatablus, Drusius, Piscator. l Antiqu. l. 1. c. 19. sect. 9.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
- Jacobâs Flight from Haran
19. תרפ×× teraÌpıÌym, Teraphim. This word occurs fifteen times in the Old Testament. It appears three times in this chapter, and nowhere else in the Pentateuch. It is always in the plural number. The root does not appear in Biblical Hebrew. It perhaps means âto live well,â intransitively (Gesenius, Roedig.), âto nourish,â transitively (Furst). The teraphim were symbols or representatives of the Deity, as Laban calls them his gods. They seem to have been busts (ÏÏοÏÎ¿Î¼Î±Î¹Ì protomai, Aquila) of the human form, sometimes as large as life 1 Samuel 19:13. Those of full size were probably of wood; the smaller ones may have been of metal. In two passages Judges 17:1-13; Judges 18:0; Hosea 3:4 they are six times associated with the ephod. This intimates either that they were worn on the ephod, like the Urim and Thummim, or more probably that the ephod was worn on them; in accordance with which they were employed for the purposes of divination Genesis 30:27; Zechariah 10:2. The employment of them in the worship of God, which Laban seems to have inherited from his fathers Joshua 24:2, is denounced as idolatry 1 Samuel 15:23; and hence, they are classed with the idols and other abominations put away by Josiah 2 Kings 23:24.
47. ש××××Ö¼×ª× ××ר yegar-sÌaÌhaÌduÌtaÌ', Jegar-sahadutha, âcairn of witnessâ in the Aramaic dialect of the old Hebrew or Shemite speech. ×××¢× galâeÌd, Galâed; and ×××¢× gıÌlâaÌd, Gilâad, âcairn of witnessâ in Hebrew especially so called (see Genesis 11:1-9).
49. ××¦×¤× mıÌtspaÌh, Mizpah, âwatch-tower.â
Jacob had now been twenty years in Labanâs service, and was therefore, ninety-six years of age. It has now become manifest that he cannot obtain leave of Laban to return home. He must, therefore, either come off by the high hand, or by secret flight. Jacob has many reasons for preferring the latter course.
Genesis 31:1-13
Circumstances at length induce Jacob to propose flight to his wives. His prosperity provokes the envy and slander of Labanâs sons, and Laban himself becomes estranged. The Lord now commands Jacob to return, and promises him his presence to protect him. Jacob now opens his mind fully to Rachel and Leah. Rachel, we observe, is put first. Several new facts come out in his discourse to them. Ye know - Jacob appeals to his wives on this point - âthat with all my might I served your father.â He means, of course, to the extent of his engagement. During the last six years he was to provide for his own house, as the Lord permitted him, with the full knowledge and concurrence of Laban. Beyond this, which is a fair and acknowledged exception, he has been faithful in keeping the cattle of Laban. âYour father deceived me, and changed my wages ten times;â that is, as often as he could.
If, at the end of the first year, he found that Jacob had gained considerably, though he began with nothing, he might change his wages every following half-year, and so actually change them ten times in five years. In this case, the preceding chapter only records his original expedients, and then states the final result. âGod suffered him not to hurt me.â Jacob, we are to remember, left his hire to the providence of God. He thought himself bound at the same time to use all legitimate means for the attainment of the desired end. His expedients may have been perfectly legitimate in the circumstances, but they were evidently of no avail without the divine blessing. And they would become wholly ineffectual when his wages were changed. Hence, he says, God took the cattle and gave them to me. Jacob seems here to record two dreams, the former of which is dated at the rutting season. The dream indicates the result by a symbolic representation, which ascribes it rather to the God of nature than to the man of art. The second dream makes allusion to the former as a process still going on up to the present time. This appears to be an encouragement to Jacob now to commit himself to the Lord on his way home. The angel of the Lord, we observe, announces himself as the God of Bethel, and recalls to Jacob the pillar and the vow. The angel, then, is Yahweh manifesting himself to human apprehension.
Genesis 31:14-19
His wives entirely accord with his view of their fatherâs selfishness in dealing with his son-in-law, and approve of his intended departure. Jacob makes all the needful preparations for a hasty and secret flight. He avails himself of the occasion when Laban is at a distance probably of three or more daysâ journey, shearing his sheep. âRachel stole the teraphim.â It is not the business of Scripture to acquaint us with the kinds and characteristics of false worship. Hence, we know little of the teraphim, except that they were employed by those who professed to worship the true God. Rachel had a lingering attachment to these objects of her familyâs superstitious reverence, and secretly carried them away as relics of a home she was to visit no more, and as sources of safety to herself against the perils of her flight.
Genesis 31:20-24
Laban hears of his flight, pursues, and overtakes him. âStole the heart,â κλεÌÏÏειν Î½Î¿Ï Íν kleptein noun. The heart is the seat of the understanding in Scripture. To steal the heart of anyone is to act without his knowledge. The river. The Frat, near which, we may conclude, Jacob was tending his flocks. Haran was about seventy miles from the river, and therefore, Labanâs flocks were on the other side of Haran. âToward mount Gilead;â about three hundred miles from the Frat. âOn the third day.â This shows that Labanâs flocks kept by his sons were still three daysâ journey apart from Jacobâs. His brethren - his kindred and dependents. âSeven daysâ journey.â On the third day after the arrival of the messenger, Laban might return to the spot whence Jacob had taken his flight. In this case, Jacob would have at least five days of a start; which, added to the seven days of pursuit, would give him twelve days to travel three hundred English miles. To those accustomed to the pastoral life this was a possible achievement. God appears to Laban on behalf of Jacob, and warns him not to harm him. âNot to speak from good to badâ is merely to abstain from language expressing and prefacing violence.
Genesis 31:25-32
Labanâs expostulation and Jacobâs reply. What hast thou done? Laban intimates that he would have dismissed him honorably and affectionately, and therefore, that his flight was needless and unkind; and finally charges him with stealing his gods. Jacob gives him to understand that he did not expect fair treatment at his hands, and gives him leave to search for his gods, not knowing that Rachel had taken them.
Genesis 31:33-42
After the search for the teraphim has proved vain, Jacob warmly upbraids Laban. âThe camelâs saddle.â This was a pack-saddle, in the recesses of which articles might be deposited, and on which was a seat or couch for the rider. Rachel pleads the custom of women as an excuse for keeping her seat; which is admitted by Laban, not perhaps from the fear of ceremonial defilement Leviticus 15:19-27, as this law was not yet in force, but from respect to his daughter and the conviction that in such circumstances she would not sit upon the teraphim. âMy brethren and thy brethrenâ - their common kindred. Jacob recapitulates his services in feeling terms. âBy day the drought;â caused by the heat, which is extreme during the day, while the cold is not less severe in Palestine during the night. âThe fear of Isaacâ - the God whom Isaac fears. Judged - requited by restraining thee from wrong-doing.
Genesis 31:43-47
Laban, now pacified, if not conscience-stricken, proposes a covenant between them. Jacob erects a memorial pillar, around which the clan gather a cairn of stones, which serves by its name for a witness of their compact. âJegar-sahadutha.â Here is the first decided specimen of Aramaic, as contradistinguished 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 Jelâad, though the original spot was further north.
Genesis 31:48-54
The covenant is then completed. And Mizpah. This refers to some prominent cliff from which, as a watch-tower, an extensive view might be obtained. It was in the northern half of Gilead Deuteronomy 3:12-13, and is noticed in Judges 11:29. It is not to be confounded with other places called by the same name. The reference of this name to the present occurrence is explained in these two verses. The names Gilead and Mizpah may have arisen from this transaction, or received a new turn in consequence of its occurrence. The terms of the covenant are now formally stated. I have cast. The erection of the pillar was a joint act of the two parties; in which Laban proposes, Jacob performs, and all take part. âThe God of Abraham, Nahor, and Terah.â This is an interesting acknowledgment that their common ancestor Terah and his descendants down to Laban still acknowledged the true God even in their idolatry. Jacob swears by the fear of isaac, perhaps to rid himself of any error that had crept into Labanâs notions of God and his worship. The common sacrifice and the common meal ratify the covenant of reconciliation.
