Genesis 31

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 31:4

And Jacob sent ,.... Having this encouragement and direction from the Lord, which seems to have been given him in the field, while he was attending his flocks, he dispatched a messenger home to his wives, one of his servants or under shepherds. The Targum of Jonathan says it was his son Naphtali, whom he sent, because he was a swift messenger; the Targumist alludes to Genesis 49:21 ; but the former is more probable: and called Rachel and Leah ; Rachel is mentioned first, as being his... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 31:5

And said unto them, I see your father's countenance, that it is not towards me as before ,.... See Gill on Genesis 31:2 ; no notice is taken of what their brethren, the sons of Laban, had said: but the God of my father hath been with me ; not only by affording him his gracious presence with him, which supported him under all his troubles; but by his good providence prospering and succeeding him in his outward affairs, as well as he had lately appeared to him, and encouraged him to... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 31:6

And ye know, that with all my power I have served your father. With all faithfulness and uprightness; with all diligence and industry; with all wisdom and prudence; with all my might and main, contriving the best methods, and sparing no pains by day or night to take care of his flocks, and increase his substance: of this his wives had been witnesses for twenty years past, and to them he appeals for the truth of it; so that there was no just reason for their father's behaviour towards him. read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 31:7

And your father hath deceived me ,.... In the bargain he had made with him about his wages for keeping his cattle the six years past, after the fourteen years' servitude were ended: and changed my wages ten times ; that is, either very often, many times, as the number ten is sometimes. Used for many, see Leviticus 26:26 ; or precisely ten times, since he repeats it afterwards in the same form to Laban's face, Genesis 31:41 ; he had now served him six years upon a new bargain; that he... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 31:8

If he said thus, the speckled shall be thy wages ,.... Sometimes Laban would say to Jacob, only the speckled lambs which the ewes shall bring forth shall be thine hire, and not the spotted; or the ringstraked, or the brown, which according to the bargain should have been his, the one and the other: then all the cattle bare speckled ; that season, God ordering it so in his providence, that Laban might be disappointed, and Jacob might have his full hire; that is, the greatest part of the... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 31:9

Thus God hath taken away the cattle of your father ,.... Not all of them, see Genesis 31:19 ; but a great part of them; his flock was much lessened by those means, and more were taken away, and came to Jacob's share, than if Laban had abode by the original agreement: and gave them to me ; who has the disposing of all things in the world, whose the world, and all in it, are, and gives of it to the sons of men as he pleases. Jacob takes no notice of any artifice of his, or of any means... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 31:10

And it came to pass, at the time that the cattle conceived ,.... Whether in spring or in autumn cannot be said, for it seems this was twice a year; this probably was at the beginning of the six years' servitude, or just before the agreement was made between Laban and Jacob, and was an instruction to the latter how to make his bargain with the former: that I lifted up mine eyes, and saw in a dream ; in a vision of the night, so things were represented to his fancy and imagination: and,... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 31:11

And the Angel of God spake unto me in a dream ,.... In the same dream before related, and to direct him to observe what was presented to him, and to confirm what he saw, and lead him to the design and use of it. This was not a created angel, but the eternal one, the Son of God, and who is afterwards called God, and to whom Jacob had made a vow, which he would never have done to an angel; but to God only, as Ben Melech observes: saying , Jacob; and I said, here am I ; the Angel called... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 31:12

And he said, lift up now thine eyes, and see ,.... This was all visionary, Jacob was still in a dream; but it was so impressed upon his mind, that he was spoke to, and bid to observe, and take notice, as follows: that all the rams that leap upon the cattle are ringstraked, speckled , and grisled ; thereby assuring him, that such would be those the ewes would bring forth, which would be right in him to agree with Laban for as his hire; and it is probable that there was some distance... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 31:13

I am the God of Bethel ,.... The same Angel that appeared to Jacob in a dream, at the beginning of his six years' servitude, now appeared to him at the close of it, declaring himself to be the God of Bethel; or that God that manifested himself to him at Bethel, as Onkelos and Jonathan paraphrase the words; for this is a distinct vision from that in the preceding verses, concerning the rams of different colours, and are both put together for the sake of brevity, and because they belong to... read more

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 31:4

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 31:5

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 31:6

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 31:7

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 31:8

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 31:9

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 31:10

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 31:11

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 31:12

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 31:13

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