Read with Me
Genesis 29:1-8 (HCSB)
Jacob resumed his journey and went to the eastern country. He looked and saw a well in a field. Three flocks of sheep were lying there beside it because the sheep were watered from this well. A large stone covered the opening of the well. When all the flocks were gathered there, the shepherds would roll the stone from the opening of the well and water the sheep. The stone was then placed back on the well’s opening.
Jacob asked the men at the well, “My brothers! Where are you from?”
“We’re from Haran,” they answered.
“Do you know Laban grandson of Nahor?” Jacob asked them.
They answered, “We know him.”
“Is he well?” Jacob asked.
“Yes,” they said, “and here is his daughter Rachel, coming with his sheep.”
Then Jacob said, “Look, it is still broad daylight. It’s not time for the animals to be gathered. Water the flock, then go out and let them graze.”
But they replied, “We can’t until all the flocks have been gathered and the stone is rolled from the well’s opening. Then we will water the sheep.”
Listen with Me
It took a few weeks for Jacob to reach the area of Haran, a well-watered plain north of the Euphrates River. Jacob knew shepherding, so he was surprised to find a group of shepherds lolling around a stone-covered well in the middle of the day. There was abundant grass in the distance, but little grew next to the well, having been eaten down to the roots by the sheep over the years.
Jacob questioned the shepherds as to why they didn’t just water the sheep, then take them back out to graze for a few more hours. Were they ignorant of how to do things, or just lazy, taking an opportunity to sit and do nothing?
But it turned out that it was practicality that was to blame. The stone over the well’s mouth was large and heavy. So, rather than have a couple shepherds with one flock move the stone off and back again, and then immediately have another couple of shepherd do the same, they had agreed that they would gather at a couple points during the day, work together to remove a large stone, and water their sheep. Then, when they were done, they would work together to replace the stone and move their flocks on to graze some more. Such a procedure was also important, because the group of shepherds could lift the stone off the well instead of just shoving it to one side, damaging the mouth of the well and dropping dirt and rocks into the water.
While they waited, Jacob asked the shepherds if they knew Laban, and they quickly confirmed that he had indeed come to the right place. Laban lived nearby, and he was well. They even pointed out Laban’s daughter, Rebecca, the last of their group of shepherds approaching the well.
Pray with Me
Father, You had promised to be with Jacob on this journey to Haran, to protect him, and to provide for him. And, as always, You kept your word, whether Jacob realized it right then or not. You had brought him right to the town where his uncle Laban lived, and had even brought Laban’s daughter, Rachel right to him so that he would have an entry into the household. At that moment, merely seeing Rachel in the distance, Jacob had no idea that his life and hers would be indelibly woven together. But you knew. Thank You, Lord, for Your grace that still guides our steps even today. Amen.