Chapter 30

Chapter 30 is not considered pleasant reading, yet there is much for us here to learn. Have you ever come to a list of geneology or lists of births as we will see beginning at the end of 29 and continuing into 30 and had the urge to go on to the next passage? Well, if so, maybe this lesson will change your mind about that. But we do that because we do not see any meaning for us in it.

Do you remember that when we started this study I said that my primary goal for this class was that each one would have a deeper appreciation for the uniqueness of the Bible as the Word of God? So now we come to an exceptional example of what there is for us in a deep plunge into the Bible. We are going to look at the birth and naming of Jacob’s twelve sons by his several wives. Not only is the name of each child given, but in every case we are told the meaning of the name and the occasion for selecting that particular name.

Why would we be given all of this information, especially for twelve different children? We see here the twelve children from which came the twelve tribes of Israel. Then wouldn’t this cause us to suspect that the meaning of these names and the occasion for their selection, be closely associated with the early history of the Hebrew Nation?

Not only that, but we will see that these names correspond exactly with the order of the history of the children of Israel!!! Keep in mind as we go through this material that Jacob had four wives; Leah, Bilhah, Zilpah and Rachel.

Jacob’s first born was Reuben, which means, See, a Son. God says to us through the Gospel, “Behold the Lamb of God.” Next comes Simeon which means, hearing. This points to the reception of the Gospel by faith, “Hear, and your soul shall live.” Next was Levi, which means, Joined. This tells of the “Union” by which the Holy Spirit makes us one with Jesus through the hearing of the Word. Fourth was Judah which means, Praise. The life of a believer is a manifestation of “praise” out of gratitude.

These were his first four children born to Leah. Bilhah the gave birth to Dan which means, Judgment. The believer reckons judgment on himself to have died to sin. Bilhah then has a second son Naphtali, which means, Wrestling. How the believer wrestles with his sin and prays earnestly.

Then Leah gave her maidservant Zilpah to Jacob and she had children. The first was named Gad, which means a Troop or Company. This stands for believer in fellowship with God’s people. Next was Asher, which means, Happy. This tells us of the effect of fellowship with believers.

Now Leah has two more children. Next comes, Issachar, which means, Hire. Hire speaks of service in support of.

Her last child was named Zebulon, which means Dwelling. We are told in the Scriptures to “occupy” until the Jesus comes. (Leah then had a daughter named Dinah)

Finally Rachel, who had become jealous because she could not have children, did get pregnant. She gave birth to Joseph, which means Adding. This speaks of the “reward” that will be added to the faithful. Rachel gives birth to Benjamin, which means Son of my right hand. This is a reference to Jesus.

And so the firstborn Reuben, See, a Son, is the Alpha and the last, Benjamin, Son of my right hand, the Omega, closes the circle of the first and the last. So we see that there is a typical significance behind the meaning of the names of Jacob’s twelve sons and a prophetic significance behind the words used to record the mother’s naming of these twelve sons.

In the 32 chapter we are going to see that God changed Jacob’s name to Israel. In view of the fact that the Hebrew nation became known as the “children of Israel”, it is to be expected that we should look closely at the children of Jacob. And in view of the fact that Genesis 29 and 30 records the early history of Jacob’s twelve sons, we should expect to find their history in some way corresponds to the early history of the nation that was descended from them.

· Genesis 29:32-33 Leah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Reuben, for she said, “It is because the Lord has seen my misery. Surely my husband will love me now.” She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “Because the Lord heard that I am not loved, He gave me this one too.” So she named him Simeon.

There is a striking resemblance between the two comments of Leah and what is recorded in Exodus in connection with the sufferings of Israel in Egypt.

· Exodus 2:25 So God looked on the Israelites and was concerned about them.

Then to Moses:

· Exodus3:7 The Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering.”

Surely it is more than coincidence that at the birth of Jacob’s (Israel’s) first two sons, that their mother would speak of her misery which she said the Lord had looked upon and heard, and that these same words would be found in the passages where the first stage of the national history of the Children of Israel who were hated and afflicted by the cruel Egyptians. When the Lord told Moses He had seen the “affliction of His people Israel and had heard their cry, did He not have in mind the very words which Leah had spoken long years before.

· Genesis 29:34 Again she (Leah) conceived, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “Now at last my husband will become attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.” So she named him Levi.

Again these words of the mother point toward the beginning of Israel’s national history. When was it that Jehovah was “attached” to Israel, and became her husband? It was on the eve of their leaving Egypt on the night of the Passover when the lamb was slain and its blood shed and sprinkled on the door posts. Then it was that God joined Himself to His people just as now God is joined to us and becomes one with us in Jesus.

· Genesis 29:35 She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “This time I will praise the Lord.” So she named him Judah. Then she stopped having children.

So Jacob’s fourth son was Judah, and at his birth Leah said she would praise the Lord. As Leah’s words at Levi’s birth point us back to the Passover, so her words at Judah’s birth carry us forward to the crossing of the Red Sea, where Israel celebrated God’s victory over their enemies in song and praised God for delivering them. It was at this time that Israel sang:

· Exodus 15:11 “Who among the gods is like you O Lord? Who is like you—Majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, working wonders?

· Genesis 30:4-6 So she (Rachel) gave him her servant Bilhah as a wife. Jacob slept with her, and she became pregnant and bore him a son. Then Rachel said, “God has vindicated me; He has listened to my plea and given me a son.” Because of this she named him Dan.

Other versions of the Bible in verse 6 use the word judged instead of vindicated, and judged seems to fit the context better. We are seeing the birth, the names and the order of the births of Jacobs’s sons as a picture of the unfolding of the events of the early history of Israel. We have just seen the birth of Judah to represent the crossing of the Red Sea and the celebrating at God’s deliverance. In this case we see represented the way God responded to the murmuring of the Israelites in the wilderness by sending quails for them to eat and when they again provoked His wrath at the waters of Massah and Merribah. This doesn’t seem to make a lot of sense does it? But God showed compassion on them even in the face of their sinfulness.

· Genesis 30:7-8 Rachel’s servant Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son. Then Rachel said, “I have a great struggle with my sister, and I have won.” So she named him Naphtali.

The very next thing we read after God judged Israel for their sin at Merribah was their conflict or wrestling with Amalek, and again note that the word used by Rachel at the birth of Naphtali is used in describing the wrestling between Israel and Amalek.

· Exodus 17:11 And as long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning.

Surely it is more than coincidence that the concept of “prevailing” expressed prophetically by Rachel at the birth of this son, also occurs as the Israelites “prevailed against the Amalekites, especially so, that it agrees accurately with the order of events in Israel’s history.

· Genesis 30:9-11 When Leah saw that she had stopped having children, she took her maidservant Zilpah and gave her to Jacob as a wife. Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a son. Then Leah said, “What good fortune!” So she named him Gad.

The words of Leah, the mother of the seventh and eighth sons may be coupled together, as may also those connected with the birth of his ninth and tenth sons. “Gad” can mean “troop” or “fortune”. After the Wilderness experience was behind them and the Jordan crossed, a “troop” did come to meet Israel, the seven nations of Canaanites.

· Genesis 30:12-13, Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a second son. Then Leah said, “How happy I am! The women will call me happy.” So she named him Asher.

This tells of Israel’s joy following the defeat of their enemies.

· Genesis 30:17-18, God listened to Leah, and she became pregnant and bore Jacob a fifth son. Then Leah said, “God has rewarded me for giving my maidservant to my husband.” So she named him Issachar.

A better version has verse 18 like this, And Leah said, “God has given me my hire, because I have given my maiden to my husband…”. This indicates that she felt well paid for the mandrakes.

The words of the mothers of Jacob’s sons were so many prophetic pictures of the history of the nation that descended from them, and the order of the sayings of these mothers corresponds to the order of Israel’s future, outlining the history from its beginning in Egypt until the undivided Kingdom in the days of Solomon.

To complete this prophecy, particular attention should be paid to the way in which Jacob’s sons were grouped under the different mothers, because this too, corresponds to the grouping of the outstanding events in Israel’s history.

The first four were all born by Leah, and her utterances pointed forward to Israel’s deliverance from Egypt and the Egyptians. The fifth and sixth sons were borne by a different mother, Bilhah, and her utterances pointed to Israel’s experiences in the wilderness. The seventh and eighth sons were borne by Zilpah, and the ninth and tenth by Leah, and their utterances pointed to Israel’s occupation and enjoyment of Canaan. The eleventh and twelfth sons were separated from all the others, being borne by Rachael, pointed to the separation of the early events and showing the establishment of the Kingdom in the days of David and Solomon.

In summary, first, what a striking proof of the Divine inspiration of the Scripture. No uninspired writer would have taken the trouble to give us the words of the mothers in naming these boys. The Holy Spirit recorded their words because they carried with them a hidden, but real prophetic agreement with the events of the history of Israel.

Second, what an object lesson there is for us here that nothing in Scripture is trivial. All Scripture is inspired by God. Who would have thought that there was any significance to the meaning of the names of Jacob’s children? Who would have supposed that it was of first importance that we should notice the order in which the boys were born?

Finally, what a remarkable demonstration of the absolute sovereignty of God in these last two chapters. These wives of Jacob, in naming their babies and in stating the reasons for the names, were outlining the Gospel of God’s grace and were prophetically foreshadowing the early history of the nation that descended from them.

Chapter 31

The time has come for Jacob to leave Laban and return to his own land. But first, notice:

· Genesis 30:27 But Laban said to him (Jacob),”If I have found favor in your eyes, please stay. I learned by divination that the Lord has blessed me because of you.”

Here God was setting forth in type the principle by which He was going to bless sinners, namely, for the sake of His own dear Son, Jesus. These words point forward to a time when we read:

· Ephesians 4:32, Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

Some versions say, for Christ’s sake. God blessed Laban for Jacob’s sake.

As chapter 31 opens we see that Laban’s family was very unhappy with Jacob.

· Genesis 31:3 Then the Lord said to Jacob, “Go back to the land of your fathers and to your relatives, and I will be with you.”

In all that is told us about Jacob in the twenty years he spent at Padam-Aram there was not one word which indicates that he had any dealings with God. Why would we draw such a conclusion? Because there is never any mention of an altar, no mention of prayer, nothing to distinguish him from a worldly person. We should remember that the “altar” speaks of “communion” and “sacrifice”. So we are justified in believing that during this time he was out of communion with God.

But if Jacob had forgotten God, God had not forgotten him. But there is another side. Jacob, using his usual cunning, waited until Laban was on a trip away from home, took his wives, children and his flocks and stole away. Furthermore we read:

· Genesis 31:19-20, When Laban had gone to shear his sheep, Rachael stole her father’s gods. Moreover, Jacob deceived Laban the Aramean by not telling him that he was running away.

So when Laban returns and finds Jacob gone and his gods gone he goes out looking for them. The reason that Rachael took the “terephim” is that she knew Laban would seek answers from the terephim as to where they were going.

This is quite a long story and I will shorten it in this way: God forbid Laban from saying anything good or bad to Jacob when he found him. After much conversation they made peace with each other and piled up stones to make a pillar. This covenant of peace was ratified with a sacrifice and commemorated with a feast. Likewise, God entered into a covenant of peace before the foundation of the world, and in His own time, the Great Sacrifice was made and accepted, and is now commemorated at the feast of the Lord’s Supper.

It has been suggested that this incident supplies us with valuable principles for the believer in our daily life concerning the will of God. Have you ever asked yourself the question, “How can I be sure of God’s will concerning some issue in my life?”

Surely God has not left us without guidance. We will not always find a passage of Scripture that exactly fits our situation, but we should search for some passage that defines principles which meet our case. Let’s use Jacob’s case as an example. He was in a strange land. How much longer must he stay there? When should he start home? How could he be sure when God’s time for him to move had arrived?

The answers are found in three things. First, a definite desire arose in Jacob’s heart to return home. But this is not enough. Second, circumstances became such that a move seemed to be a good thing. Jealousy arose in the household of Laban. Still, something more was needed. Third, there was a clear word from God. God does not always give us a manifestation of these three principles, but when they do combine and are evident, we may be sure of His will.

But you say, “God doesn’t speak to me very often, in fact seldom.” Then you speak to Him. If the first two conditions exist, then PRAY and ask God to lead you by the movement of His Spirit. And wait on Him. Tell Him of your perplexity, ask Him to prevent you from making a mistake and ask Him to make plain His will for you.

If you are patient and sincere, and pray in faith, then in His own good time and way, He will answer, either by removing the conviction or desire from your heart, and arranging your circumstances in such a way that your way is blocked---and you will know that His time for you has not arrived---or by deepening your desire and reordering your circumstances so that the way is open without you doing anything yourself.