Thought for the Day - Saturday 25 July

Thought for the Day – Saturday 25^th July

‘Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. Leah’s eyes were lovely, and Rachel was graceful and beautiful. Jacob loved Rachel; so he said, “I will serve you seven years for your younger daughter Rachel.” Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you than that I should give her to any other man; stay with me.” So Jacob served seven

years for Rachel, and they seemed to him but a few days because of the love he had for her. Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife that I may go in to her, for my time is completed.” So Laban gathered together all the people of the place, and made a feast. But in the evening he took his daughter Leah and brought her to Jacob; and he went in to her.  When morning came, it was Leah!’

(Genesis 29: 16-23, 25a)

They say your sins will find you out, don’t they – whoever they are!?

I wonder if that is always true.

Well it certainly was for Jacob!

However, you cannot fail to feel a little sorry for him being deceived as he was on his very wedding day by Laban, particularly after he had kept his half of the bargain so well and worked away for Laban for those seven years just to be able to one day marry the ‘graceful and beautiful’ Rachel. He made a promise to Laban, he was so true to his word, he never reneged on his agreement, he never felt the need to make any excuses to get out of the promise – he displayed honesty and integrity and he fully expected Laban to keep his word.

I think Jacob must truly have fallen for Rachel hook, line and sinker to offer to serve Laban for those seven years and when you read that those seven years ‘seemed to him but a few days because of the love he had for her’ – well does your heart not just melt!  Then having fulfilled his promise - he is duped!

Yet, there is a great irony to this story is there not – for within it we see the great deceiver Jacob, the Jacob who cynically deceived his father, the Jacob who hoodwinked his own brother and cheated him out of his birthright here being himself hoodwinked in much the same way by Laban.

Whether as a kinsman of Jacob Laban, no doubt knowing the story of Jacob’s deception, decided to mete some restorative justice upon him or whether we are actually glimpsing here God displaying a sense of humour by treating Jacob as he had treated his own father we will never know but suffice to say Jacob received, as they say, some of his own medicine. Although if you read on you will see that a week later he is indeed given Rachel as his wife too – but only once he has spent a full week with Leah and only in return for serving Laban for another seven years! 

Let us not jump to any simplistic conclusions here about this story though – for sadly we know that in life sometimes cheats can actually prosper, corruption can go unnoticed and ill-gotten rewards are gained.

However, there is certainly enough in this story to convince us that we need to be accountable for all of our actions is this life and that those actions can have consequences for our next life. If we decide at any time to spin a web of deceit then we may just end up getting caught up in that web ourselves!

Prayer

Loving Lord,

We may not always understand why things happen the way they do; why our plans and dreams fail, and why we find ourselves facing challenge after challenge, and disappointment after disappointment. Yet, we believe that you are always at work in our lives, and that you have a larger plan and purpose for each one of us. Give us faith to trust in you, no matter the challenges we face.

Give us courage to place our dreams and ambitions in your hands and the honesty and integrity to then follow where you lead without hesitation, confident that your loving presence goes with us. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.