Laban

After arriving at his uncle Laban’s home in Harran, Jacob falls in love with his cousin Rachel, the younger of Laban’s two daughters. He works for her father (his uncle) for seven years to obtain Rachel’s hand in marriage. It is said that his labors seemed a trifle because of…

…the household of his uncle Laban. There he fell in love with Laban’s younger daughter, Rachel, working for Laban seven years to win her hand. On the night of the nuptial feast, however, Laban deceived him by sending in the “tender-eyed” Leah (“tender-eyed” is an uncertain phrase, possibly denoting poor…

Genesis 31 portrays Jacob and Laban swearing by their respective ancestral gods: Jacob by the god(s) of Abraham and Laban by the god(s) of Nahor. Once a group expanded into a federation of clans or tribes, religious organization became necessary. A central shrine (such as the one at Shiloh in…