We understand from an earlier study that Jacob had grown rich during the six years he was with Laban, after he had served him for fourteen years for the right to marry Leah and Rachel, Laban’s daughters. Jacob’s wealth included many sheep, male and female servants, camels and beasts of burden (Genesis 30:43). In fact, Jacob had grown so wealthy in six short years, that Laban and his sons considered Jacob’s wages were really theft, and they believed the glory that came with such wealth belonged to Laban (Genesis 31:1-2), not Jacob, who had served Laban for fourteen years for nothing more than his meals and the right to marry his two daughters. So, Jacob came to Padan-aram with nothing, but he left a rich man, blessed by the God of his fathers, Abraham and Isaac.
After preparations had been made to leave, Jacob waited for an opportune time to flee his father-in-law. Therefore, after Laban had left his camp to shear his sheep, which he had placed in the hands of his sons to graze at a distance of a three days’ journey (Genesis 30:36), Jacob left the rest of Laban’s sheep in the care of Laban’s servants, and he fled with his family and all his own sheep, which the Lord had given him as his wages from Laban’s flocks (cp. Genesis 31:12, 16). He placed his wives and their sons on the camels, which he had bought with his own money, and he took them, the servants, he acquired in Haran, and all his goods, which he had placed upon his own beasts of burden, and left to go to Isaac, his father, in the Land of Canaan (Genesis 31:17-18; cp. 30:43).
We are told in the text, that Rachel had entered her father’s tent and stole his gods (H8655; teraphim), which seem to be household gods, or images, perhaps of one’s ancestors, concerning which many ancients believed would protect and bless them (Genesis 31:19). Moreover, these images were consulted as oracles, when important decisions were made etc. Thus, before pursuing after Jacob, Laban had to have wished to consult these gods, otherwise, how would he have known they were taken? Whether or not Rachel believed in their power is not the point of the text. Laban believed in their power, so Rachel’s decision to take them seems to indicate her desire to confuse and weaken her father’s resolve in his pursuit of Jacob.
Assuming that Jacob waited a day after Laban went to shear his sheep, this would account for the greatest distance that he could put between his caravan and his father-in-law. If Laban went on a three-day journey to shear his sheep, Jacob’s choice to remain one day in Haran would keep any of Laban’s servants from overtaking him to tell him of Jacob’s departure. Therefore, Laban was gone three days and spent a day shearing sheep, before any of his servants could have a arrived to tell him, what Jacob had done. This accounts for four days, minus the day Jacob remained in Haran. Add to this the fact it would take another three days for Laban to return to his camp, and an additional day to prepare for the pursuit, and we have the seven days distance between him and his sons from Jacob and his family (cp. Genesis 31:23).
So, Jacob fled Laban, secretly, without his knowledge, and he journeyed toward Gilead, which was the boundary between the Land of Canaan and Lebanon (Genesis 31:20-21). The fact that he did reach Gilead, before being overtaken by his father-in-law and his sons, may be important, because, although Laban was a powerful and important man in his own country, by failing to reach Jacob, before he entered the Land of Canaan, could be understood as a victory for Jacob, because Laban was not as influential here, and may have had need to reconsider any vengeful thoughts of punishing Jacob for leaving without a word. Thus, only the theft of his gods is mentioned (Genesis 31:30), even though he considered everything Jacob had as his own (cp. Genesis 31:43), something which the Canaanites probably wouldn’t support. So, although Jacob obeyed and trusted in the protection of the Lord, he also put himself in the best place he could for his own protection and that of his family.
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