January 14 - Genesis 31-33:20

Jacob leaves Laban secretly.  And Rachel deceives her own father, stealing Laban's household gods.  And why did she steal them?  Their value?  As a rub to her father who tricked her husband into marrying her sister first?

Laban is quite a piece of work.  Tricks Jacob with his own daughters and then has the audacity to ask Jacob why he has deceived him and left in secret.

It's interesting that Laban has used "divination" to determine that the Lord has blessed him because of Jacob (Genesis 30:27).  Divination and household gods -- why didn't Laban just turn and worship the God of his brother Abraham?  Is there some sort of family tension there, too?  Perhaps it's this jealousy between Abraham and Laban that Laban's sons try to exploit claiming "Jacob has taken everything our father owned...."