Jacob, Laban, and the Secret of Success

Jacob Transformed at the Well

After the dream with the ladder and receiving God's promises, Jacob is no longer the same man. The next scene is that Jacob arrives in Haran, he is full of self-confidence and has the "brass" to alone pick up the heavy stone covering the water well in Haran, in order to impress the beautiful young shepherd girl that is bringing the flock of her father to drink from the well. Jacob is no longer the "mild man, dwelling in tents." It is because of this revelation of God assuring him of his future and the fulfillment of the promises.

All our most revered and honored patriarchs had what I would call "scandalous families." Jacob's family was no less than a super-scandalous family. I think that the Holy Spirit on purpose not only told us these stories but enhanced them with a magnifying glass.

Jacob, Laban, and Twenty-One Years of Work

The love of Jacob for Rachel — that he was willing to work for Rachel a total of 21 years before he would leave Laban's house in Syria and return to the land of promise — is one of the great love stories of the Bible. Jacob made the first agreement with Laban his uncle that he would work seven years for Rachel. Laban didn't keep his part of the agreement under the excuse that in that part of the world you must marry your oldest daughter first. Laban lied and cheated Jacob. But Jacob loved Rachel so much that he was willing to work another seven years for Laban in order to marry Rachel. Then Laban cheated Jacob a third time and essentially didn't give him any of the financial proceeds from his 14 years of work. So, Jacob agreed to work another seven years to produce some wealth so that he would not take his large family without some financial security to the land of Canaan.

Laban cheated Jacob. Now, the fact is, it's in our Israeli DNA not to cheat, but also not to be cheated — but to have a fair deal, to make a profit. I worked, I invested, I had agreed, I have a contract, verbal or not verbal, and I want to get my goods. Israelis and Jews generally have this attitude. I am worth something and I am worth what we agreed upon, and I want you to keep your word and your promise to what I agreed with you.

The Secret of Jacob's Wealth

Jacob is not a bad businessman. Remember that Jacob was a good businessman that purchased the inheritance of Esau for a bowl of soup. So, what was the secret of Jacob's wealth? Jacob comes to Laban and says,

Laban, who was a known trickster, says to Jacob, "Name your price and I will pay you!" Jacob's response is very interesting and extremely wise with divine wisdom:

Here is Jacob's divine wisdom and understanding of the genetics of sheep. Jacob puts his trust in the faithfulness of God's promises and the oath that he made to the Lord after the dream of the Ladder from Heaven to Earth. Jacob made a choice — a hard choice but a wise choice. It is better to trust the Lord to provide for me and my family than to be a recipient of charity from fellow men!

Then God Himself confirms what He is doing:

The lesson from Jacob's story is this: when people, even people who are your family, take advantage of your goodness and your kindness, the Lord sees these evil actions, and even if we have fallen into the hands of evil people, the Lord is faithful to His children to reward their good deeds, but He is also dedicated to give the evil people and the dishonest people their proper payment.

Every Shabbat we sing right in the beginning of our prayer service the prayer song that in Hebrew is called "Yigdal" — "The Increase!" This song is attributed to Maimonides, a great medical doctor, rabbi, and commentator of many Jewish rabbinical books. These are some of the words from the "Yigdal" of Maimonides:

I confess that in my lifetime and during the 57 years of ministry mostly in Israel, I have seen these words from the Yigdal prayer in reality.

Lessons From Jacob's Story

The story of the patriarchs is a real school for good people who make mistakes and God's grace expiates the mistakes and sins of the righteous. The Torah is a book for the education of our souls. Here are some practical lessons from the story of Vayetze:

Don't take advantage of your fellowman's weakness! You might get a good business deal for a moment but pay for it for the rest of your life. Good advertisement works, but if the intent of the seller is to deceive and cheat, it backfires in the long run. It is always better to make peace, but for peace you have to be willing to pay a high price. Always be ready to confess and apologize for wrongdoing, even to your enemy. Never trust your enemy, even if there is a process of negotiation. Always keep an ace in the hole — like Jacob did when he went to encounter Esau his brother.

Esau is sentimental, and when he meets his brother Jacob and sees that the Lord has blessed him and that he is not hostile toward him, Esau too hugs his brother and kisses him, and in a magnanimous way seems to forgive his brother Jacob. However, not for long did this reconciliation last — the sons of Esau carried their father's grievance for many generations.

We must not only think of learning "theology" and "religious" rules and regulations from God's word. The main thing that we ought to learn from God's word is to understand the Lord Himself and the way that He relates to us as His children, and how He works among us. I pray that I and you too will read the word of God to learn about how to live and do good and be a blessing for the people around us, and for our families, children, and grandchildren. The Torah is a book for the education of our souls.