It used to be soap operas. Now it’s reality TV, sort of like soap operas lived out live before the camera. But sadly, when you meet today’s cast of characters in our Old Testament reading, you’ll realize soap operas and reality TV have nothing on our spiritual ancestors. The Bible is full of stories about love, sex, rejection, envy, jealousy, adultery, immorality, scheming, deceit, greed, thievery, contention, and even murder (and that’s the short list)! Why did God lay out humanity’s dirty laundry here and in other passages of Scripture?

Welcome, to “God’s Word Day by Day” where I blog through the Bible in a Year. I hope you’ll join me every day. If you’re not already signed up, you can do it here. This year I’ve added a couple of new features. First, check out the “Free Resources” tab at the top. You’ll find a downloadable, printable PDF with “Going Deeper Study Questions” for each day’s post. And … this year you’ll find the daily “Bible in a Year” posts on YouTube. The daily emails now have a link to both the Soul Survival posts here and the YouTube videos. I hope you’ll sign up. (If you already receive them, no need to sign up again.)

Today’s Readings:

Genesis 29 & 30
Psalm 8.1-5
Proverbs 3.13-18
Matthew 10.21-42

The Bible & Reality TV

Genesis 29 & 30:

Full Disclosure

As I said, reality TV and soap operas have nothing on our spiritual ancestors (or us, for that matter)! And God lays it out in His Word. God gives full disclosure when it comes to sin.

In yesterday’s reading, we witnessed how Isaac and Rebekah’s favoritism came to a head. Isaac favored his son Esau and Rachel his twin brother, Jacob. So much so, that Jacob deceived his father Isaac with his mother’s help and stole his brother Esau’s blessing. When the deceit was revealed, Rebekah convinced Isaac to send Jacob to her brother Laban in Padan Aram to protect him from Esau’s anger (Gen. 27.46, 28.1-5). The rift it caused in their family lasted for many years.

Leah, Rachel & Their Manipulative, Deceitful Father

Today’s reading picks up with Jacob’s arrival in his mother’s homeland. Genesis 29:

¹³ Then it came to pass, when Laban heard the report about Jacob his sister’s son, that he ran to meet him, and embraced him and kissed him, and brought him to his house. So he told Laban all these things. ¹⁴ And Laban said to him, “Surely you are my bone and my flesh.” And he stayed with him for a month.

¹⁵ Then Laban said to Jacob, “Because you are my relative, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what should your wages be?” ¹⁶ Now Laban had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. ¹⁷ Leah’s eyes were delicate, but Rachel was beautiful of form and appearance.

¹⁸ Now Jacob loved Rachel; so he said, “I will serve you seven years for Rachel your younger daughter.”

¹⁹ And Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you than that I should give her to another man. Stay with me.” ²⁰ So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed only a few days to him because of the love he had for her. ²¹ Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in to her.”

Seven years have passed, Jacob has fulfilled his promise, and plans are made for the wedding. But Jacob the deceiver is about to be deceived himself. Unbeknownst to Jacob, Laban plans to marry off his older daughter Leah, as well.

Leah

Read verse 17 again. Imagine for a minute you are Leah. Apparently, she wasn’t considered beautiful in that culture. It says her eyes were “delicate.” The NASB says they were weak.

The word translated “delicate” or “weak” probably meant pale and that may have been considered a blemish. The comparison to Rachel says it all, “… but Rachel was beautiful of form and face.”

The desire to look beautiful is nothing new. Even the serving women in Moses’ day had bronze mirrors (Ex. 38.8).

Leah probably felt the sting of comparison and the desire to have someone love her like Jacob loved her sister. I wonder how she felt as Rachel’s wedding date neared, being the older sister and still unmarried.

Laban’s Deceitful Plan

Now imagine: the wedding party is going on, the wine is flowing, people are singing and dancing.

And Leah’s father comes to her with a plan.

²² And Laban gathered together all the men of the place and made a feast. ²³ Now it came to pass in the evening, that he took Leah his daughter and brought her to Jacob; and he went in to her (29.22-23).

As we’ll see in the next few verses, Jacob didn’t have a clue who was waiting in the marriage bed.

Imagine how that conversation between Leah and her father might have gone if it took place today:

Dad: “Honey, I’ve got an idea. I haven’t told your mom yet, but since you haven’t been able to attract a man, I’m going to take care of it. I’ll sneak you into the bridal chamber in place of your sister.”

Leah: “But, Dad, what about Rachel?”

Dad: “Don’t worry about your sister. I told her this is the way it has to be. It’s not right that she should be married first.”

Leah: “But, Dad, what if he knows it’s me?”

Dad: “Don’t worry. We’ll give him plenty of wine and it’ll be dark. Just don’t say much.”

The Next Morning

And what about the next morning?

Imagine Leah waking early, waiting for Jacob to wake up. What might she have been thinking? Maybe things like … “What will he say? What will he do? How angry will he be? Will he throw me out? Where will I go (no longer a virgin in a culture that made chastity a high priority for marriageable material)? What will Rachel say? And our friends and neighbors? Pretty soon everyone will know.”

And then that moment when he woke up and saw her next to him … think about it. Jacob had to be bribed with the offer of getting Rachel, too, just to complete the honeymoon!

²⁵ So it came to pass in the morning, that behold, it was Leah. And he said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Was it not for Rachel that I served you? Why then have you deceived me?”

²⁶ And Laban said, “It must not be done so in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn. ²⁷ Fulfill her week, and we will give you this one also for the service which you will serve with me still another seven years.”

²⁸ Then Jacob did so and fulfilled her week. So he gave him his daughter Rachel as wife also (29.25-28).

Rachel

And Rachel—her knight in shining armor—well, her knight on camelback—had shown up and he was smitten with her. When he saw her taking care of her father’s sheep, it appears he tried to get rid of the other shepherds so he could talk to her alone (Gen. 29.7). Was he trying to impress her when he rolled the stone off the well by himself (Gen. 29.10)? Then he was willing to work seven years just to get her. How romantic was that! But her dad had a different plan. Was she angry over the unfairness? Did she think her father had ruined everything?

We don’t know. I’m only surmising as to how those conversations went. But what we do know is that the years that followed were filled with jealousy and competition between the two sisters because of their polygamous marriage (Gen. 29.30).

Jacob

And then there’s Jacob. I wonder if he remembered the shock and anger his brother and father had felt when he deceived them, now that he, too, had been deceived.

Polygamy & Full Disclosure

As I’ve said before, though the Bible does include polygamy, it doesn’t paint a pretty picture of it. Over and over again we see why it is wrong.

In another context, Jesus said, “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other …” (Matt. 6.24). Even though He was speaking there of God and money, the principle is true in marriages and relationships, as well.

Divine Purposes … This Bunch?

Despite all this, God was going to use this family for His divine purposes. This bunch? Jacob the deceiver? The beautiful but, as we’ll see, selfish Rachel? The less-than-beautiful Leah? And Laban? But first, they would be tested and tried and allowed to suffer the consequences of their choices before they would be usable.

So why does God lay out these stories and let us see all their warts and blemishes?

He didn’t include them for entertainment value. He included them so we could learn from their examples, good and bad, and so we might be encouraged and have hope (Rom. 15.4). Among other things, it should give us hope that He can and will use us.

It’s often the things we least want to remember about our past or we least want to embrace in our present circumstances that God will redeem in the most miraculous ways (Rom. 8.28-29).

Maybe it’s our family, or how we’ve been sinned against, or maybe it’s something we did or didn’t do. But, if we belong to Him, God will use everything in our lives for His divine purposes, too (Jer. 29.11).

Today’s Other Readings:

Psalm 8.1-5:

Is He My Lord?

This psalm begins “O Lord, our Lord …”

“Our Lord,” that’s personal. He’s not just “the” Lord, but our Lord … my Lord.

It’s so important to guard against believing general truths about God without coming to understand them in a personal way. The Lord who is God must also be Lord of my life … personally … and your life … personally. Are there areas where you have failed to allow Him to be the Lord and Master of your life? In your finances? With your children? In your marriage? In your singleness? With your health? Important questions to consider.

Proverbs 3.13-18:

The Blessings of Wisdom

The Bible and Proverbs, in particular, have much to say about wisdom. We are reminded over and over of the importance of asking for it, seeking it earnestly, and “taking hold” of it (Prov. 3.18). In this portion of Scripture, we are told it brings happiness, that it is more valuable than gold or silver and more precious than rubies, that it will lengthen our lives, and that it brings peace to those who gain it and obey its instruction.

This is not speaking about man’s wisdom, the world’s wisdom, or the wisdom gained from hard knocks … this is God’s wisdom. It is gained by knowing Him through His Word and by applying it to our lives daily.

But we can’t truly know Him or understand His wisdom unless we first know Him, personally, as Savior and Lord. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 1:

¹⁸ For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. ¹⁹ For it is written:

“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
And bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.”

²⁰ Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? ²¹ For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.

Matthew 10.21-42:

Students Are Not Greater Than Their Teacher

God does not just give full disclosure about the sins of the people in the Bible, He also gives us full disclosure about what to expect as His followers. In chapter 10, Jesus had this to say:

²¹ A brother will betray his brother to death, a father will betray his own child, and children will rebel against their parents and cause them to be killed. ²² And all nations will hate you because you are my followers. But everyone who endures to the end will be saved. ²³ When you are persecuted in one town, flee to the next. I tell you the truth, the Son of Man will return before you have reached all the towns of Israel.

²⁴ Students are not greater than their teacher, and slaves are not greater than their master. ²⁵ Students are to be like their teacher, and slaves are to be like their master. And since I, the master of the household, have been called the prince of demons, the members of my household will be called by even worse names! (vss. 21-25 NLT)

Not for the Faint-Hearted

Have you ever been persecuted for your faith? Have you been criticized for “being excited about the things of God,” “becoming a fanatic,” or “actually believing the Bible”?

Once on a plane ride, a woman sat down next to me just before take-off. It was obvious that she had spent the last hour or so in the bar.

I was reading a book that had the word “sin” in the title. As we took off and started to gain altitude, I realized she was reading it over my shoulder, alternately looking up at me.

Finally, she asked me a question and I started to respond with, “The Bible says …” She quickly cut me off and at a volume that allowed half the passengers to hear, she said, “You look like an intelligent woman! I can’t believe you believe the Bible!” With that, she called for the flight attendant and simultaneously demanded a drink and another seat.

That is a rather trite example. It saddened me for her more than anything else. And while the alcohol level in her blood probably allowed her to say what she was thinking, most of us have experienced similar attitudes.

Jesus warned us that being a true believer—a disciple—is not for the faint-hearted. We shouldn’t be surprised and we should remember that the rewards and blessings are out of the world!

Coming Up:

In the coming days, we’ll talk about the danger of small compromises, the unpardonable sin, whether God can redeem the past, and ask the question “If we act badly because of hormonal issues, is it biology or sin?”

I hope you’ll join me and, if you haven’t already,  take the challenge to read through the Bible with me this year. Even though we may do it imperfectly or miss a day here and there, I find when we set it as a goal, we read far more of God’s Word than we would otherwise. I know we all get far too much email these days but having the daily devotion pop up in your inbox each day can serve as a general reminder to get into God’s Word. It goes out at 6 a.m. MST.

You can also follow me on Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest, and now listen on YouTube. Just click on the social media icons or go to my YouTube channel. 

Blessings as you grow in Christ,
Donna ♥

Note about this post:

I began blogging through the Bible in 2012 and have done so every year since then. These posts are the product of many edits and additions throughout those years. Some days I make major changes, other days fewer. 

I recently read Jen Wilkin’s book None Like Him about the attributes of God. One is His incomprehensibility. In it, she says, “God is incomprehensible. This does not mean that he is unknowable, but that he is unable to be fully known.”

I have found that to be true each year as I’ve gone back through the Bible. Sometimes I find myself feeling as if a passage just appeared there for the first time. I’m reminded that no matter how many times we read through the Bible, we have only scratched the surface. I hope you feel the same.

Indeed these are the mere edges of His ways,
And how small a whisper we hear of Him!
But the thunder of His power who can understand?” (Job 26.14)

I sometimes LINKUP with these blogs.