“Jacob Leaves Home’

 

As Jacob travelled, he had a dream one night. He thought he saw some stairs in front of him reaching to heaven, and angels were going up and down them. God stood at the top of the stairs and told Jacob about the country He was going to give him and his children. And God said He would be with Jacob and take care of him wherever he went and would bring him home safely again.

Jacob woke up, and was afraid because God had been there and had spoken to him. So, very early the next morning, he got up and worshipped the Lord. He called the place Bethel, which means “The House Of God.”

Jacob promised that if God would take care of him-if He would give him enough food and clothes and would keep him from harm until he got back to his fathers home again-then he would obey God and give Him a tenth of everything he had. Jacob meant he would help the poor and the sick with his money and would build altars and would sacrifice burnt offerings. That is the way he would give a tenth of all that he had to God.

Jacob kept travelling a long, long time until he came to Haran where Laban lived. He saw a well there in a field, three flocks of sheep lying around it, and the shepherds with their flocks. A large rock was rolled over the mouth of the well to cover it; when all the flocks arrived each evening, the shepherds would roll away the stone and get water for the sheep. Afterwards the stone would be rolled back over the mouth of the well again.

Jacob asked the shepherds where they lived, and they told him at Haran.

“Do you know Laban?” He asked them.

“Yes,” they said, “we surely do”

Jacob asked if he was well.

“Yes, he is,” they replied, “and look, here comes his daughter Rachel with his sheep.”

Jacob went over to the well and kissed Rachel, then rolled away the stone and wanted her sheep for her. He explained to her that he was her cousin, her Aunt Rebekah’s son, and she ran and told her father.

When Laban heard that his nephew had arrived, he ran out to meet him. He gave him a warm welcome and brought him home. After Jacob had been there about a month, Laban asked him to stay and work for him.

By this time Jacob was very much in love with Rachel, and he told Laban he would work for him seven years if he could marry Rachel afterwards.

Laban was delighted. So Jacob worked for him the next seven years. Even though it was a long time, the years went by so fast they seemed like only a few days to Jacob because he love Rachel so much.

But when the time was up Laban would not let him marry Rachel. He said her older sister Leah should be married first, so Jacob had to marry her in  order to marry Rachel afterwards. He had to work seven more years for Rachel. This was very unfair of Jacobs uncle, but Jacob agreed to it because of his love for Rachel. So he stayed and worked seven years more, and both Leah and Rachel were his wives. Afterwards, he married two more girls, so he had four wives in all.

Jacob wanted to take his wives and children and go back home to the land of Canaan to see if his father and mother was still alive. He also thought that perhaps after all of this time Esau would forgive him for stealing his blessing.

But Laban wouldn’t let Jacob go.

Laban said he realized that the Lord was blessing him because of Jacob’s being there, and he asked him what wages he wanted in order to stay longer.

Jacob said that if Laban would give him some of his sheep and goats he would stay. So Laban did. Jacob’s flock soon grew very large. After a while he was rich and had many slaves and camels and donkeys, as well as large flocks of sheep.

One day Jacob heard Laban’s sons talking angrily about him. They said he had stolen their father’s sheep and that was why he was so rich. Jacob noticed that Laban was not as friendly to him as he used to be.

Then God told Jacob to return home to his father in the land of Canaan. God said He would be with Jacob and take care of him and keep him from harm.

Jacob sent word for Rachel and Leah to meet him out in the field where he was caring for his flock. He wanted to talk with them where Laban couldn’t hear what he said. He told them that their father wasn’t friendly to him anymore and that the Lord had told him to go back to Canaan.

Rachel and Leah both agreed he must do whatever the Lord wanted him to do.

What was Jacob’s dream?

What was the name of the girl Jacob met at the well?

What did Laban say Jacob had to do before he married Rachel?

Who was Leah?

Why did Jacob decide to return home to is father?