Daily Scripture Reading Genesis 30:27 - 31:3

Modern science has given us great insight into how to be successful farmers and ranchers. Whether it is crops or animals, there are best practices for producing plentiful and healthy herds and harvests. Because we have abundant biological knowledge, it is easy to forget God’s role in giving us success.

Jacob was a successful shepherd. The 30th chapter of Genesis gives us some insight into what made him successful. However, the chapter also reminds us that ultimately God is the One who gives success, something we should remember in the 21st century.

When Jacob fled from Esau, he went to live with Laban and worked for him. After working 7 years he married Leah and Rachel. In the years following, Leah had 4 sons, then Bilhah had two sons, then Zilpah had two sons, and then Leah had two more sons. Finally, Rachel gave birth to a son. At that point, Jacob had probably been with Laban for around 18 years. After the birth of Joseph, Jacob asked Laban for permission to go back to his home.

Gen. 30:27 But Laban said to him, “If now I have found favor in your sight, stay with me; I have interpreted an omen that Yahweh has blessed me on your account.”

Look at the phrase “Yahweh has blessed me.” Laban gave Yahweh the credit for being blessed.

Gen. 30:28 And he continued to say, “Name me your wages, and I will give it.”

Gen. 30:29 But he said to him, “You yourself know how I have served you and how your livestock have fared with me.

The pronoun “he” refers to Jacob.

Gen. 30:30 For you had little before I came, but it has spread out to a multitude, and Yahweh has blessed you at every step of mine. But now, when shall I provide for my own household also?”

Apparently, Jacob was a successful shepherd, but all his success was making Laban wealthy. Jacob had 11 sons at this point and needed to build wealth for them.

Notice the phrase “Yahweh has blessed you”. Jacob gave Yahweh the credit for his success.

Gen. 30:31 So he said, “What shall I give you?” And Jacob said, “You shall not give me anything. If you will do this one thing for me, I will again pasture and keep your flock:

Gen. 30:32 let me pass through your entire flock today, removing from there every speckled and spotted sheep and every black one among the lambs and the spotted and speckled among the goats; and such shall be my wages.

Jacob had served Laban 14 years for his two wives, but at this point Jacob had been serving Laban for around 18 years. Jacob’s requested wages for the years beyond the first 14 were the speckled and spotted sheep, the black lambs, and the spotted and speckled goats.

Gen. 30:33 So my righteousness will answer for me later, when you come concerning my wages. Every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats and black among the lambs, if found with me, will be considered stolen.”

Gen. 30:34 And Laban said, “Behold, let it be according to your word.”

Gen. 30:35 So he removed on that day the striped and spotted male goats and all the speckled and spotted female goats, every one with white in it, and all the black ones among the sheep, and gave them into the care of his sons.

At first glance, it may appear the pronoun “he” refers to Jacob. After all, Jacob was the one who was supposed to get the speckled and spotted animals. However, the pronoun “he” refers to Laban. Laban had just agreed to give Jacob the speckled and spotted, but Laban gave those animals to his sons.m Just as Laban had deceived Jacob by tricking him into marrying Leah, now Laban was stealing Jacob’s wages.

Gen. 30:36 And he put a distance of three days’ journey between himself and Jacob, and Jacob was pasturing the rest of Laban’s flocks.

One again the pronoun “he” refers to Laban. We know this because the person represented by the pronoun “he” put a three days’ journey between himself and Jacob.

Gen. 30:37 ¶ Then Jacob took fresh rods of poplar and almond and plane trees, and he peeled white stripes in them, exposing the white which was in the rods.

Gen. 30:38 And he set the rods which he had peeled in front of the flocks in the trough, that is, in the watering channels, where the flocks came to drink; and they mated when they came to drink.

Notice the phrase “in the trough”. Jacob put the branches in the water. I assume there was a substance in the branches which had medicinal properties, and Jacob got the medicine into the flock by putting it in the water.

Gen. 30:39 So the flocks mated by the rods, and the flocks brought forth striped, speckled, and spotted.

The text is not clear if the substance in the branches caused the striped, speckled, and spotted, or if Yahweh was miraculously causing that. Perhaps the substance in the branches made the flock more fertile, or worked as an aphrodisiac.

Gen. 30:40 And Jacob separated the lambs, and he made the flocks face toward the striped and all the black in the flock of Laban; and he set his own herds apart and did not set them with Laban’s flock.

Gen. 30:41 Now it would be that, whenever the stronger of the flock were mating, Jacob would place the rods in the sight of the flock in the trough, so that they might mate by the rods;

Gen. 30:42 but when the flock was feeble, he did not put them in; so the feebler were Laban’s and the stronger Jacob’s.

Somehow the substance in the branches was causing Jacob’s flock to be strong and Laban’s flock to be weak.

Modern scientists are not sure how Jacob’s methods influenced the health or traits of his flocks. What is clear is that while Jacob had methods for selective breeding and producing strong flocks, he also recognized that ultimately it was Yahweh who was blessing his labors.

That is something modern farmers and ranchers should keep in mind. 21st century science gives us great insight into how to grow plentiful crops and healthy herds, and there are best practices that farmers and ranchers should follow. At the same time, ultimately, it is God who gives us abundance or lack of abundance.

Gen. 30:43 So the man spread out exceedingly and had large flocks and female and male servants and camels and donkeys.

Gen. 31:1 ¶ Then Jacob heard the words of Laban’s sons, saying, “Jacob has taken away all that belonged to our father, and from what belonged to our father he has made all this wealth.”

Gen. 31:2 And Jacob saw the face of Laban, and behold, it was not friendly toward him as formerly.

Gen. 31:3 Then Yahweh said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your fathers and to your kin, and I will be with you.”

Modern science has given us great insight into how to be successful farmers and ranchers. Whether it is crops or animals, there are best practices for producing plentiful and healthy herds and harvests.

Jacob practiced selective breeding and had methods for producing strong animals. However, he recognized that Yahweh was the one who made him successful. The same is true today. All of us in the 21st century should remind ourselves that, despite our vast scientific knowledge, ultimately, it is God who gives us success.

What are best practices you follow to be successful in your life?

In what ways is God still in control and the One who determines your success or failure?

Thanks for visiting Bible Mountain. If you have already joined my email list, thank you and please tell others about Bible Mountain. If you have not joined my email list yet, please do so now. In order to join, go to Bible Mountain dotcom, click on subscribe, and that will take you to a page where you can sign up. Your email address will not be sold nor given away. Once again, thanks for visiting Bible Mountain.

“Scripture quotations taken from the (LSB®) Legacy Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2021 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org and 316publishing.com.”