JACOB LEAVES BETHEL AND RESUMES HIS JOURNEY
Jacob was seventy-seven when he left Beersheba for Haran. He would spend twenty years serving his uncle Laban, thirty-three years back in Canaan, and the last seventeen years of his life in Egypt.
Arriving in Paddan Aram, he was guided to the very field where some shepherds from Haran were tending their flocks. After his journey east, Jacob arrives at the home of Laban, his mother’s brother.
Laban lives in Haran in Mesopotamia, outside of the land God has promised to Abraham, Isaac and, in the previous chapter, to Jacob. Jacob had left his homeland in Canaan, both to find a wife among his father’s people (Genesis 28:1–2) and to escape the murderous rage of his older twin brother, Esau (Genesis 27:41).
Jacob’s plan is to seek out the former household of his mother, Rebekah, and her brother, Laban. First, though, Jacob comes across a well in a field. He asks some shepherds gathered near the well with their flocks if they know Laban and if he is thriving.
They do know him and point to Laban’s daughter Rachel arriving with a flock of her own.
Genesis 29:1-8 KJV
[1] Then Jacob went on his journey, and came into the land of the people of the east.
[2] And he looked, and behold a well in the field, and, lo, there were three flocks of sheep lying by it; for out of that well they watered the flocks: and a great stone was upon the well’s mouth.
[3] And thither were all the flocks gathered: and they rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the sheep, and put the stone again upon the well’s mouth in his place.
[4] And Jacob said unto them, My brethren, whence be ye? And they said, Of Haran are we.
[5] And he said unto them, Know ye Laban the son of Nahor? And they said, We know him.
[6] And he said unto them, Is he well? And they said, He is well: and, behold, Rachel his daughter cometh with the sheep.
[7] And he said, Lo, it is yet high day, neither is it time that the cattle should be gathered together: water ye the sheep, and go and feed them.
[8] And they said, We cannot, until all the flocks be gathered together, and till they roll the stone from the well’s mouth; then we water the sheep.
Genesis 29:1 KJV
Then Jacob went on his journey, and came into the land of the people of the east.
Hebrew, “lifted up his feet.” He resumed his way next morning with a light heart and elastic step after the vision of the ladder; for tokens of the divine favor tend to quicken the discharge of duty (Nehemiah 8:10).
Mesopotamia and the whole region beyond the Euphrates are by the sacred writers designated “the East” (Judges 6:3; 1 Kings 4:30; Job 1:3). Between the first and the second clause of this verse is included a journey of four hundred miles.
The Lord appeared to Jacob in a dream (Genesis 28:10–12) as he was journeying from his father’s household toward Haran, where his mother’s brother lives. Jacob had two reasons for the journey.
One was to flee the wrath of his brother Esau, who planned to kill him (Genesis 27:41). The other reason was to look for wife. Isaac had told Jacob specifically to marry one of the daughters of Laban, Rebekah’s brother (Genesis 28:1–2).
So after vowing to make the Lord his God if the Lord would really be with him and care for him (Genesis 28:20–22), Jacob set out once again for Haran. The text literally reads that Jacob “picked up his feet.”
It’s like the meeting with God had filled him with new confidence about his purpose and future. In time, he came to the land of the people of the east, or the eastern lands. He had left behind the land of Canaan. He was closer to reaching his destination than he realized.
Genesis 29:2 KJV
And he looked, and behold a well in the field, and, lo, there were three flocks of sheep lying by it; for out of that well they watered the flocks: and a great stone was upon the well’s mouth.
As he approached the place of his destination, he, according to custom, repaired to the well adjoining the town where he would obtain an easy introduction to his relatives.
Jacob does not know it, yet, but he has reached his destination. He is not far from the town of Haran where his uncle Laban lives. As he nears the area, he comes to a well in a field. Wells were places of great significance in this region where water was life.
Wells were also often associated with God’s blessing. Jacob’s ancestor Abraham had gone through considerable trouble over wells during his time in Canaan (Genesis 21:25).
Jacob’s father, Isaac, as well, had experienced disputes over wells and access to water (Genesis 26:18–22). Three flocks of sheep and their shepherds are gathered near the well, which is covered with a large stone.
The shepherds are waiting for all the sheep to arrive, so they can be watered all at once.
Genesis 29:3 KJV
And thither were all the flocks gathered: and they rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the sheep, and put the stone again upon the well’s mouth in his place.
In Arabia, owing to the shifting sands and in other places, owing to the strong evaporation, the mouth of a well is generally covered, especially when it is private property.
Over many is laid a broad, thick, flat stone, with a round hole cut in the middle, forming the mouth of the cistern. This hole is covered with a heavy stone which it would require two or three men to roll away.
Such was the description of the well at Haran. Jacob has traveled from the home of his father to find the household of his mother’s brother Laban. At the command of Isaac, Jacob has come with a mission to marry one of Laban’s daughters (Genesis 28:1–2).
Of course, Jacob is also escaping the rage of his older twin brother, Esau, whom he’d cheated out of a blessing (Genesis 27:41). He has also recently been assured by God, in a dream, that he will have numerous offspring (Genesis 28:10–12).
Jacob arrives at a well in a field, near which are gathered three flocks of sheep. The shepherds are waiting for the remaining sheep to arrive before rolling the large stone away from the mouth of the well to provide water for the sheep.
This stone would have served to keep dirt and dust from collecting in the well. It would also have prevented wild animals from using it as a water source. In order to be of any use, the stone covering the mouth of the well would have been both large and difficult to move.
Genesis 29:4 KJV
And Jacob said unto them, My brethren, whence be ye? And they said, Of Haran are we.
Finding from the shepherds who were reposing there with flocks and who all belonged to Haran, that his relatives in Haran were well and that one of the family was shortly expected, he enquired why they were idling the best part of the day there instead of watering their flocks and sending them back to pasture.
Jacob has traveled from his home in Canaan, escaping his brother (Genesis 27:41) and searching for a wife (Genesis 28:1–2). He has come to this region looking for the town of Haran, where his uncle Laban lives.
Coming across a well in a field, he strikes up a conversation with some shepherds gathered nearby with their sheep. He asks where they’re from; they tell him Haran. Jacob must have been glad to learn he was so near to his destination.
The fact that this meeting takes place by a well is no accident. In that era, water was important enough to fight over (Genesis 21:25–27), and wells would have been natural meeting places.
Because they represent life and nourishment, wells are often used in Scripture to symbolize God’s blessing. The shepherds here are waiting for all of the sheep to arrive before drawing water (Genesis 29:3).
This well is capped with a large stone, probably to keep other animals and debris out of it (Genesis 29:3).
Genesis 29:5 KJV
And he said unto them, Know ye Laban the son of Nahor? And they said, We know him.
Oh yes, they knew him. But Jacob didn’t know him—yet. But, oh my, Jacob is going to get acquainted with him. Jacob has just learned that the shepherds gathered near this well are from Haran, the very town he has traveled so far to find.
Now he asks them if they know Laban, the man he has come to find and hopefully stay with. They do know him.
Is Jacob beginning to sense that God is truly with him “on the way,” leading him where he should go?
Jacob’s quest was to find this very family, in order to seek out a wife (Genesis 28:1–2). Just as God led the servant of Abraham directly to a well, in order to find a wife for Isaac (Genesis 24:12–16), perhaps God has led Jacob to the right place at the right time.
Genesis 29:6 KJV
And he said unto them, Is he well? And they said, He is well: and, behold, Rachel his daughter cometh with the sheep.
Here Jacob has just arrived in the land and he is telling them how to water their sheep and what they should do! This is typical of him, by the way. Jacob is speaking with shepherds as they wait for their flocks to assemble near a well.
Jacob is looking for the family of his mother’s brother, Laban, and the men he has found know exactly who Jacob seeks.
Not only do they know him, and know that he’s doing well, the shepherds surprise Jacob pointing out Laban’s daughter Rachel is just arriving at the well with her own flock of sheep.
At this point, it must be obvious to Jacob that the Lord is keeping His promise to be with Jacob on his journey (Genesis 28:15). God has brought Jacob to this well, in this field, at the exact moment one of the daughters of Laban arrives.
Jacob’s purpose for coming here, in part, was to marry one of the daughters of Laban at the urging of his father Isaac (Genesis 28:1–2).
Jacob’s father, as well, found a wife when God intervened to bring the right woman to a well at just the right moment (Genesis 24:12–16). Jacob can likely see the plan for his life beginning to come together.
Genesis 29:7 KJV
And he said, Lo, it is yet high day, neither is it time that the cattle should be gathered together: water ye the sheep, and go and feed them.
An insight into Jacob’s personality and his interest in Rachel. The conversation between Jacob and the shepherds has provided him with what must have been shocking and welcome information.
They were from Haran, precisely where he is headed (Genesis 28:1–2). They knew Laban. Laban’s daughter, a perspective wife for Jacob, was just arriving with a flock of sheep.
We don’t know why, exactly, but for some reason Jacob addresses the shepherds with what seems like a challenge. In fact, he gives them an order.
Some commentators suggest perhaps the shepherds were being short with Jacob, not giving the stranger much respect. From Jacob’s perspective, it’s too early in the day to gather the separate flocks of sheep into a single herd for the night.
They should still be out with their flocks grazing on the vegetation in this region. Jacob tells the shepherds, in essence, to stop hanging out, to water the sheep, and to get back to the pasture.
Is Jacob just the kind of guy who tells other people what to do or is he beginning to assert himself as a relative of an important man in the region?
Or does he perhaps wish for these shepherds to go away so he can meet and get to know his cousin and prospective wife Rachel?
Genesis 29:8 KJV
And they said, We cannot, until all the flocks be gathered together, and till they roll the stone from the well’s mouth; then we water the sheep.
In order to prevent the consequences of too frequent exposure in places where water is scarce, the well is not only covered, but it is customary to have all the flocks collected round it before the covering is removed in presence of the owner or one of his representatives.
And it was for this reason that those who were reposing at the well of Haran with the three flocks were waiting the arrival of Rachel. Jacob has just learned several things at once.
His journey has brought him near his destination of Haran and the household of his uncle Laban (Genesis 28:1–2). According to the shepherds standing around a well, Laban is in good health, and his daughter is approaching with a flock of sheep (Genesis 29:5–6).
In the previous verse, Jacob seems to have taken some borrowed ownership of the situation around the well. He ordered the shepherds gathered with their flocks to water the sheep and get back to the pasture.
This seems like a brash statement from a stranger, so perhaps the other men were being rude to Jacob. Or, he’s simply trying to assert himself in an effort to win over Rachel. Here, the shepherds respond that Jacob’s plan is not how they do things.
They wait until all of the sheep have arrived, all of the flocks, then they roll away the well’s heavy stone covering and water all of the flocks at once. It’s not clear exactly why they do it this way.
Some commentators suggest, however, that the first flocks to arrive would usually be the first to be watered. Laban won’t follow that practice in the following verses.
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