An Idol Interlude (Genesis 31:22-35)
As Jacob and company flee from Laban’s territory, Rachel steals some idols from her father. Why? There are any number of possibilities. Perhaps she wanted to prevent her father from consulting them to find to where they had fled. Perhaps she took them for their material value. Or, it could be that she had a religious attachment to them.
One thing we see again and again in the Old Testament is that God’s people are ever prone to worshiping idols. It is the prevailing conflict in Scripture. Our sin nature can be boiled down to the draw of idolatry. We owe our creator all worship, honor, glory, and trust, but we are constantly pulled to other things: to our idols.
Here in Genesis 31, the Bible dwells on the otherwise inconsequential scene because this idolatry conflict is a key concept in salvation history. And it is a memorable and entertaining moment revealing the impotence of false gods. The shame and disrespect suffered upon the idols along with their inability to do anything against Jacob or for Laban is a powerful picture.
One thing we see again and again in the Old Testament is that God’s people are ever prone to worshiping idols. It is the prevailing conflict in Scripture. Our sin nature can be boiled down to the draw of idolatry. We owe our creator all worship, honor, glory, and trust, but we are constantly pulled to other things: to our idols.
Here in Genesis 31, the Bible dwells on the otherwise inconsequential scene because this idolatry conflict is a key concept in salvation history. And it is a memorable and entertaining moment revealing the impotence of false gods. The shame and disrespect suffered upon the idols along with their inability to do anything against Jacob or for Laban is a powerful picture.
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