LESSON 5: Jacob and Laban (Genesis Chapters 27-31)

(Genesis Chapters 27–31)

Isaac had two sons, Esau and Jacob. They were twins, but they were very different! Esau had red, hairy skin and loved to go hunting. Jacob was quiet and liked to stay close to home with his mother.

One day, Jacob was cooking a tasty soup when Esau came home from hunting. Esau was very hungry! Jacob told him, “I will give you this soup if you give me your rights as the firstborn son.” Esau was so hungry that he didn’t think about how important those rights were, so he agreed and ate the soup.

Later, their father, Isaac, wanted to bless Esau before he died. He told Esau, “Go hunt some meat, cook it for me, and I will bless you.” But Jacob’s mother helped him trick Isaac. She cooked two goats and gave the food to Jacob. Then, Jacob went to Isaac pretending to be Esau. Isaac, who was old and could not see well, blessed Jacob instead of Esau.

When Esau found out, he was very angry. He wanted to hurt Jacob! So, Jacob decided to run away to stay safe. With his father’s permission, he traveled to his uncle Laban’s house in a place called Padan Aram.

On his way, Jacob stopped at a well where shepherds were giving water to their sheep. He asked them about his uncle Laban. They told him that Laban’s daughter, Rachel, was coming with her sheep. When Rachel arrived, she and Jacob talked, and she ran home to tell her father. Laban was happy to welcome Jacob into his house.

Jacob worked hard for Laban, so Laban wanted to give him a reward. Jacob said, “I would like to marry your younger daughter, Rachel.” Laban agreed but said, “You must work for me for 7 years first.” Jacob loved Rachel, so he worked for 7 years.

After 7 years, there was a wedding, but the next morning, Jacob saw that he had married Rachel’s older sister, Leah, instead! Laban had tricked him. When Jacob complained, Laban said, “The older sister must marry first. But if you work 7 more years, you can marry Rachel too.” Jacob agreed and worked another 7 years. After that, he finally married Rachel.