Free Bible Commentary
“Genesis 29:1-12”
Categories: Genesis“Then Jacob went on his journey, and came to the land of the sons of the east. He looked, and saw a well in the field, and behold, three flocks of sheep were lying there beside it, for from that well they watered the flocks. Now the stone on the mouth of the well was large. When all the flocks were gathered there, they would then roll the stone from the mouth of the well and water the sheep, and put the stone back in its place on the mouth of the well. Jacob said to them, 'My brothers, where are you from?' And they said, 'We are from Haran.' He said to them, 'Do you know Laban the son of Nahor?' And they said, 'We know him.' And he said to them, 'Is it well with him?' And they said, 'It is well, and here is Rachel his daughter coming with the sheep.' He said, 'Behold, it is still high day; it is not time for the livestock to be gathered. Water the sheep, and go, pasture them'” But they said, 'We cannot, until all the flocks are gathered, and they roll the stone from the mouth of the well; then we water the sheep.' While he was still speaking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherdess. When Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother, Jacob went up and rolled the stone from the mouth of the well and watered the flock of Laban his mother’s brother. Then Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted his voice and wept. Jacob told Rachel that he was a relative of her father and that he was Rebekah’s son, and she ran and told her father.”
---End of Scripture verses---
“Jacob went on his journey...” (verse 1) “Literally, 'lifted up his feet,' a phrase found nowhere else. It has variously been interpreted to mean that (i) the going was now easier; (ii) he directed his feet, that is, he went with resolve and confidence; (iii) he had to force himself to leave the site of the theophany.” (Nahum Sarna) “And came to the land of the sons of the east.” (verse 1) This is an indefinite term referring to terrain east of the land of Canaan, but Jacob's eastward travels ultimately brought him to Haran, or “the land of Aram” (Hosea 12:12) where his mother's people resided.
“He looked, and saw a well in the field, and behold, three flocks of sheep were lying there beside it, for from that well they watered the flocks.” (verse 2) Could this have been the same well that God's providence had directed Abraham's servant to so many decades before when he found Rebekah as a wife for Isaac? There is no way to know for certain, but you would think if it was the inspired writer would have designated it as such. Whether it was a different well or not, there are many similarities between these two noteworthy events. Three shepherds had their respective flocks already lying beside the well when Jacob arrived, awaiting their turn to refresh themselves and their sheep at the time the great and heavy stone was rolled away.
“Now the stone on the mouth of the well was large.” (verse 2) “The stone restricted the use of the well to a closed group, and outsiders were required to pay for water. At the same time, the cover would serve as a protection against dust and filth and as a guard against accidental fall by man or beast. The prominence given to 'the stone' in this episode...provides a link with the important stone of Bethel...a reminder that the God who there promised Jacob protection now endows the weary fugitive with superhuman strength.” (Nahum Sarna)
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers has a different take on the well and the stone: “As the proper translation is the stone upon the well’s mouth was great, it would also serve to prevent the well from being used, except at fixed times; for it probably required the strength of two or three men...to remove it; nor does the language of Genesis 29:10 necessarily imply that Jacob rolled it away without the aid of others. Besides this, the stone may have marked that the well was private property: for, as we have seen in the account of the covenants of Abraham and Isaac with Abimelech, no possession was more valued than that of wells. And as we find the shepherds all waiting for Rachel, and that immediately on her arrival the stone is rolled away, and her sheep watered first, while the rest, though they had been there long before her, yet have to bide their time till her wants are supplied, it is probable that Laban had at least a first claim upon its enjoyment.”
“Jacob said to them, 'My brothers, where are you from?'” (verse 4) From one fellow shepherd to another, Jacob hailed his new acquaintances as “brothers” in the business. He asked them where they were from, not realizing that he was already standing upon the soil of his desired destination. Lo and behold and praise be to God, these men lived in Haran, they knew Laban well, and all was well with the family of his future father-in law. Jacob referred to Laban as “the son of Nahor” (verse 5), even though Bethuel was actually Laban's father and Nahor was his grandfather. “Bethuel...is ignored here as he practically was in chapter 24. Nahor, the grandfather, was the head of the clan and the most notable figure.” (Nahum Sarna)
“Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherdess.” (verse 9) Like her aunt Rebekah, she was beautiful and strong, and a worker in the field, and Jacob seemed destined to love her dearly. Her name appropriately matched her vocation, the word “Rachel” meaning “ewe” or female sheep. After Jacob “ rolled the stone from the mouth of the well and watered the flock of Laban” (verse 10), in his utter joy and relief and exuberance, he “kissed Rachel, and lifted his voice and wept” (verse 11). Little did he know the treachery he would encounter to secure the hand of his true love, and the grief he would endure tending Laban's flocks for the next two decades.
Please read Genesis 29:13-20 for tomorrow.
Have a blessed day!
- Louie Taylor
