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There is a famous saying “What goes around comes around”. Usually, when people quote it they mean in in a negative way, saying something like, “all the pain that person caused me will come back to them someday”.  Ever heard that?  All of us have, I’m sure. My question is, is it true? Is it true that what goes around comes around? Is there a payback time?  But is it true in any case, or is it even true in every case? Is it true sometimes, is it true all of the time?  What does the Bible say about the concept of what goes around comes around? 

There is a story in the Book of Genesis that I think answers that question, at least to some degree. It is one of the most interesting stories in all of the book of Genesis. So, will you join me in Genesis chapter 29?  This again is a long passage, so rather than read it all at once, I’m going to us through it verse by verse  over the next couple of episodes. So I’m going to begin with the opening verses.

“Then Jacob continued on his journey and came to the land of the eastern peoples. There he saw a well in the open country, with three flocks of sheep lying near it because the flocks were watered from that well. The stone over the mouth of the well was large. When all the flocks were gathered there, the shepherds would roll the stone away from the well’s mouth and water the sheep. Then they would return the stone to its place over the mouth of the well”.

(Genesis 29: 1-3)

Let me pause here for a moment and suggest that in order to understand this chapter, we really need to understand what happened in the previous chapter. Verse, one says so he continued his journey to the land of the Eastern people. Where is he going and why is he going there? Those questions were answered in the previous chapter. Now you might remember, especially if you’ve been following me through the Book of Genesis, what happened in Genesis chapter 28? It all began that with help from his mother, Rebecca, Jacob deceived his brother Esau. In those days, the oldest brother got the blessing from the father but on this occasion, Jacob went in and tricked his father. He got the blessing by deception when his father had planned to give it to his brother Esau. When Esau found out about that, he threatened to kill Jacob, and Jacob and his mother Rebecca thought his best option was to get out of town. That takes us to chapter 29, verse one.

Jacob is on his journey of escape , he is getting out of town before his brother find him and kills him and he comes to the land of the people of the east. At this point, we have been given a very general statement about he’s headed east. Later in this passage, the people of the East will be identified as Nahor, and you might remember that Abraham’s family was from there. When Abraham wanted a wife for his son Isaac, he sent his servants to Nahor, to get it.  The fact that he’s headed east, and he’s headed to Nahor is very significant in the overall context of the Book of Genesis. So, he’s somewhere near Nahor and the Bible says in verse two that he sees a well in the field and saw there were flocks of sheep around the well and they came and watered the flocks there. Then it says something interesting, it says in verse three, there was a stone on the wells mouth. That seems almost a little out of place in the narrative, but the author particularly makes note of a stone covering the well, so this is flagging up something that will come back later. It doesn’t have a great significance at this point, it has a part to play. We are then told in verse three that when the flocks gathered together they would roll they stone off the mouth of the well and when they had finishing watering the sheep, they would roll the stone back again. That’s the setting of the story, Jacob stops at this well. The story continues in verse four. 

“Jacob asked the shepherds, “My brothers, where are you from?” “We’re from Harran,” they replied, He said to them, “Do you know Laban, Nahor’s grandson? ”Yes, we know him,” they answered Then Jacob asked them, “Is he well?” “Yes, he is,” they said, “and here comes his daughter Rachel with the sheep.”

(Genesis 29: 4-6)

Jacob is anticipating meeting his father’s family and so he says, do you know Laban?  The shepherds say yes, we know him, and they say, by the way, look, here comes Rachel, Laban’s daughter, she looks after his sheep. Then he says.

“Look,” he said, “the sun is still high; it is not time for the flocks to be gathered. Water the sheep and take them back to pasture.” “We can’t,” they replied, “until all the flocks are gathered, and the stone has been rolled away from the mouth of the well. Then we will water the sheep.”

(Genesis 29: 7-8)

I take it by the fact that it says all the flocks have to be gathered, that they do this not because the stone was too heavy to move, it is probably because they have some kind of agreement in place, that they wouldn’t move the stone until all the flocks were gathered. That is apparently what is going here. The story continues in verse 9 

“While he was still talking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherd. When Jacob saw Rachel daughter of his uncle Laban, and Laban’s sheep, he went over and rolled the stone away from the mouth of the well and watered his uncle’s sheep. Then Jacob kissed Rachel and began to weep aloud”.

(Genesis 29: 9-12)

Three times, he mentioned the family relationship. This is his uncle, and he's making a big issue out that, but he has now stumbled upon the family he was looking for them. In this case, he comes upon them by finding the well first.  The text points out the fact that this all belonged to his uncle. Then Jacob kissed Rachel, lifted up his voice and wept. The Bible only rarely says anything about a man kissing a woman, this is a highly unusual statement. He just met her, was this a romantic kiss, or was it more like a family greeting, like a handshake? Personally I am highly sceptical of love at first sight, but I am not at all sceptical of attraction at first sight. You need to really know a person before you can truly say you really love them. Many people have said that there was a natural chemistry between them and there future wife the minute they met and the y do indeed end up getting married?  That indeed was what I experienced, so perhaps something like that’s happening, anyway the text says he kissed her.

.“He had told Rachel that he was a relative of her father and a son of Rebekah. So she ran and told her father”. As soon as Laban heard the news about Jacob, his sister’s son, he hurried to meet him. He embraced him and kissed him and brought him to his home, and there Jacob told him all these things. Then Laban said to him, “You are my own flesh and blood. After Jacob had stayed with him for a whole month”.

(Genesis 29: 12-14)

So, Rachael gets all excited and leaves the sheep and runs and tells her father his nephew has shown up. Laban is the uncle and Jacob is the nephew. This passage is very clear about laying out all the relationships that are in the passage, and the fact that they haven’t heard details about each other’s families for a long time. Jacob fills him in and they catch up with the family history and n invites Jacob to stay with him. Then he says this.

“Laban said to him, “Just because you are a relative of mine, should you work for me for nothing? Tell me what your wages should be.”

(Genesis 29: 15)

In other words, I want you to stay for me, with me for a month, and I’m going to pay you while you’re here. It’s not right that you should contribute to my family, and I not pay you anything, so tell me, what should your wages be? Let’s negotiate you working for me for a month and how much I pay you. So now we’re going to enter into the negotiation phase of this story, they’re going to negotiate his wages.

“Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. Leah had weak eyes, but Rachel had a lovely figure and was beautiful.

(Genesis 29: 16-17)

Let me explain something, folks, Laban has two daughters. Leah is the oldest, and she is said to have poor eyesight which would have been a significant disability in the times before glasses. Some commentators just go nuts trying to explain exactly what this means; some think this statement just refers to how unattractive she was and it just means her eyes were not sparkling and there was not a lot of expression on her face.  I’m not sure about that, but however, you explain it, the real point is in the latter part of these verses it tells us about Racheal. The text says was beautiful in form and appearance. These words say she had a beautiful face, and an attractive physique. 

“Jacob was in love with Rachel and said, “I’ll work for you seven years in return for your younger daughter Rachel.” Laban said, “It’s better that I give her to you than to some other man. Stay here with me.” So, Jacob served seven years to get Rachel, but they seemed like only a few days to him because of his love for her. Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife. My time is completed, and I want to make love to her.”

(Genesis 29: 18-21)

So, it says Jacob loved Rachel. He just met her, there may have been there a day or two, but this was attraction was almost immediate. Remember, the elder would normally be married first, but Jacob wants the younger one and he will work for you for seven years if he gives her to him. He is putting a high price on her by the standards of the day, seven years of work was a much higher price than usual for a wife, but he is so in love with her he is willing to do that.  Laban say OK, for that is better that I give it to you than some other man who is a stranger. I think seven years would feel like forever to a relatively young man. Alright. I put in my 7 years he says, then you can give me her as my wife. 

“So, Laban brought together all the people of the place and gave a feast. But when evening came, he took his daughter Leah and brought her to Jacob, and Jacob made love to her. And Laban gave his servant Zilpah to his daughter as her attendant.

(Genesis 29: 22-24)

So, they throw a party, all the men come. It says, Laban took his daughter and brought her to Jacob, and Jacob went into her in the tent. Who is he in love with?, answer Rachel. Who did we have a wedding feast for? Jacob and Rachel.  Who does he get? Leah. This is the interesting part of the passage

“And Laban gave his servant Zilpah to his daughter as her attendant. When morning came, there was Leah!”

(Genesis 29: 24)

How do you explain that? This is this is where it gets to be fun to read how all the different commentaries try to explain this. But we will begin to do that in the next episode.