The Patriarchs and Their Desperate Housewives: Jacob, Leah and Rachel

The Patriarchs and Their Desperate Housewives: Jacob, Leah and Rachel

Episode 6 - Part Five

Hello, and welcome to this special presentation of Heroes of the Old Testament brought to you by In the Lighthouse: your safe harbor from the storm. This is Daphne Collins, your Lighthouse Keeper and host for our time together. Today, I will bring you the final installment and Part Five of our series, “The Patriarchs and their Desperate Housewives,” featuring our third patriarch, Jacob, and his desperate housewives, Leah and Rachel. In the last episode, we presented some background information to give you further insight into the Patriarch’s life before he departed Beersheba as directed by his father, Isaac, to sojourn to Paddan-aram and his Uncle Laban’s home. His commission was two-fold: to get him as far away from his brother Esau, who had intentions of murdering Jacob after their father’s death. Secondly, Jacob was decades past his duty to marry and bring children into the world. Therefore, at his mother’s behest, he was sent to her brother, Laban, to choose a young woman from his family as a bride. 

       The Scriptures do not provide information about the last time Rebekah saw or spoke with her brother Laban or if Isaac had ever met his brother-in-law. Rebekah’s knowledge of Laban and his life in Paddan-aram would have only come from her childhood memories of him. Any reference to difficulties and challenges that shape our lives would not have been the same for her brother because he didn’t live under the same abundant blessings that she and Isaac enjoyed through the years. I told you, listener, that Isaac and Rebekah had relatively worry-free years of God’s protection and bounty. Two notable instances were from their sojourn into Gerar when their sons were teenagers, and another was the ongoing issue of rivalry between their twin sons. Other than these, Isaac and Rebekah thanked God for keeping their years peaceful. What was the reason for their peace? The answer is simple: obedience to God. Yes, the answer sounds simple, but reality demonstrates that for humans, it’s very difficult to live obediently when you have this little problem of sin. 

        Jacob's story as a patriarch demonstrates the difference between a life of obedience to God and a life of obedience to man. The family trait of deception and opportunism took center stage during the twenty years of indentured servitude to Laban. It was not only practiced in the immediate family of Jacob but also in the extended one. Under the protective bubble of his parents’ blessings from God, Jacob thought he could escape the consequences of his deception of his father. The outcome was God’s will and purpose, and Isaac accepted this with peace in his heart. As exemplified in Jacob’s story, listener, you are shown that, unlike his father and grandfather, Jacob’s difficulties stem from his inability to trust and obey God. Like anyone who struggles, Jacob does not surrender his fear and tries to do things according to how he understands it. God was allowing Jacob to be tested to strengthen him as the patriarch of the nation that would carry his name. Jacob loved hearing this and was amazed to see the ladder that gave him access to God, but when the tests came, he forgot that he had access, unlike anyone else. Despite this, God delivered Jacob and his family from Paddan-aram and the abusive machinations of his deceptive uncle. A covenant was made between them never to attack the other. But old habits are hard to break. What Jacob did not know was that his uncle sent one of his sons ahead to inform Esau of his brother Jacob’s imminent return to Canaan and that his entourage was presently in the hill country in Gilead. How will Esau respond to this bit of information? Laban has proven himself to be a master schemer, but there is a purpose for everything under the sun. Let’s remember, listener, God is working in the background.  

Okay, let’s get started!

Show Notes

All Scripture references have been taken from the ESV Bible (www.biblehub.com )

All music themes used in this story are taken from Envato Elements

Opening Theme: Heroes of the Old Testament

1.     Theme 1:   Persian Sunset by MatthewPablo

2.     Theme 2:   Nimrod’s Folly by Envato Music

3.     Theme 3:   Sahara Vocal by LukePN

4.     Theme 4:   Egypt by rasberrymusic

5.     Theme 5:   Middle-Eastern Flute Solo by Orchestralis

6.     Theme 6:   Ancient Egypt by iCENTURY

7.     Theme 7:   Middle-Eastern Female Vocal by Orchestralis

8.     Theme 8:   Middle Eastern by iCENTURY

9.     Theme 9:   Desert in Egypt by iCENTURY

10.  Theme 10: Persian Streets by tunestogo

Transcript of “Jacob, Leah and Rachel” - Part Five by Daphne Collins

Transcript of “Created With Purpose” by Melissa Saenz