Deception and Idols of this World

Yes, I have mentioned several times now about the dangers of deception. But again, the issue comes up in this family. Jacob deceived his father Isaac. Laban deceives Jacob. And now we will see how Rachel deceives her father Laban. It is one big huge circle of deception.

The Lord tells Jacob to return to the land of his fathers. So, he and his household and livestock all fled Laban's land. They deceived Laban by not telling him that they were leaving, and Rachel stole her father's household god's. The passage is not clear as to why she did this or what exactly they were. My study Bible gives a little insight. They may have been small figurines depicting particular gods. Rachel may have taken them to prevent Laban from using their power to overcome Jacob or she may have thought they would bring her good fortune or she simply only wanted them for their inherent value if they were made from costly materials. Either way, Jacob had no idea that she had taken these gods. If Rachel took them because she thought they might bring her good fortune or wealth she was looking toward the wrong things to fulfill these desires.

Do we have our own "god's" that no one knows about? Or maybe people know about them, but they are our 'security blanket' when it comes to good fortune or wealth. Either way, we need to be careful that we do not elevate the things of this world above God. We need to trust that God will be our 'security blanket' in times of need, and that when we rely on Him he will make our path straight! We do not need 'good fortune' when we are following God's perfect will for our lives. He has promised to meet our needs and to never leave us or forsake us. We need to trust his promise and follow Him with our lives.

Laban was told three days after Jacob and his family had left. So, Laban goes after Jacob and confronts him concerning his deception in leaving. Jacob answers and says, "...I was afraid, for I thought that you would take your daughters from me by force." Laban also asks why Jacob stole his god's. Since jacob knows nothing about the stolen god's he tells Laban, "anyone with whom you find your gods shall not live." So, Laban searched Leah's tent and Rachel's tent. Rachel was in her tent and hid the gods in the camel's saddle and then sat on them. She then tells her father not to be angry that she cannot stand up because of her menstrual cycle. So, her father searches her tent and does not find the gods.

We must be so careful. If our children see deception in their parents they will reap deception in their own lives. Let us be women who strive to only speak the truth through our words and our actions so that these elements of deception are not found in our generation or our future generations.