“You shall not steal.
Exodus 20:15
Such a simple command. Do not take what is not yours. This is probably the most basic of all rules – and most certainly the one that every human recognizes from infancy on. What I have is mine – not yours; you cannot have it. And yet; other than lying, it is also likely the most broken “action” command of all. But is God speaking of the simple act of taking someone else’s property? Certainly this aspect of the command is appropriate. But is there something more? And if so, how did Jesus fulfill this simple command? As has been the case in the past, we will answer these questions by turning to the scriptural roots.
The Hebrew word for steal is גְנֹֽ֔ב (ganab). The first time this word is used in the Bible is the 30th chapter of Genesis. And it occurs in a very strange passage; one that leaves a lot of Bible students perplexed.
A very challenging passage, the context is fairly straightforward; Jacob has left his home and traveled to the family of his father in order to find a bride. He has chosen his wife from the family of a man named Laban, whom he agrees to serve for seven years in exchange for her hand in marriage. Through deception and trickery on the part of Laban, Jacob ends up with two wives – both daughters of Laban. Jacob loves the younger (Rachel) much more than the older (Leah), and significant strife exists in the family. Yet, Jacob faithfully serves his Father in Law, as they had agreed.
It is very interesting to note that God greatly prospered Laban’s flocks under the watchful eye of Jacob. It is equally interesting that Jacob never asked for wages until pressed by Laban to stay and work longer for him. But Jacob had a plan that ultimately set the stage for our own precious story of God’s redemption. Let’s take a look at the passage:
And it came to pass, when Rachel had borne Joseph, that Jacob said to Laban, “Send me away, that I may go to my own place and to my country. Give me my wives and my children for whom I have served you, and let me go; for you know my service which I have done for you.”
And Laban said to him, “Please stay, if I have found favor in your eyes, for I have learned by experience that the Lord has blessed me for your sake.” Then he said, “Name me your wages, and I will give it.”
So Jacob said to him, “You know how I have served you and how your livestock has been with me. For what you had before I came was little, and it has increased to a great amount; the Lord has blessed you since my coming. And now, when shall I also provide for my own house?”So he said, “What shall I give you?”
And Jacob said, “You shall not give me anything. If you will do this thing for me, I will again feed and keep your flocks: Let me pass through all your flock today, removing from there all the speckled and spotted sheep, and all the brown ones among the lambs, and the spotted and speckled among the goats; and these shall be my wages. So my righteousness will answer for me in time to come, when the subject of my wages comes before you: every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and brown among the lambs, will be considered stolen, [ganab] if it is with me.”
And Laban said, “Oh, that it were according to your word!” So he removed that day the male goats that were speckled and spotted, all the female goats that were speckled and spotted, every one that had some white in it, and all the brown ones among the lambs, and gave them into the hand of his sons. Then he put three days’ journey between himself and Jacob, and Jacob fed the rest of Laban’s flocks.
Now Jacob took for himself rods of green poplar and of the almond and chestnut trees, peeled white strips in them, and exposed the white which was in the rods. And the rods which he had peeled, he set before the flocks in the gutters, in the watering troughs where the flocks came to drink, so that they should conceive when they came to drink. So the flocks conceived before the rods, and the flocks brought forth streaked, speckled, and spotted. Then Jacob separated the lambs, and made the flocks face toward the streaked and all the brown in the flock of Laban; but he put his own flocks by themselves and did not put them with Laban’s flock.
And it came to pass, whenever the stronger livestock conceived, that Jacob placed the rods before the eyes of the livestock in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods. But when the flocks were feeble, he did not put them in; so the feebler were Laban’s and the stronger Jacob’s. Thus the man became exceedingly prosperous, and had large flocks, female and male servants, and camels and donkeys.
Genesis 30:25-43
Notice that Laban’s deception largely returned upon him through the course of this story. Jacob agreed to receive the “inferior” sheep and goats, while giving the “perfect” ones to Laban.
Let me pass through all your flock today, removing from there all the speckled and spotted sheep, and all the brown ones among the lambs, and the spotted and speckled among the goats; and these shall be my wages. So my righteousness will answer for me in time to come, when the subject of my wages comes before you: every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and brown among the lambs, will be considered stolen, if it is with me.”
Genesis 30:32-33
In order for us to understand the importance of the lambs and goats that Jacob chose, we need to move forward several hundred years to the time of the Exodus. My readers might remember the story of the Passover, and the feast that God implemented in order to celebrate it. Passover marks the salvation of God’s people from the hand of Pharoah, and the beginning of their journey through the wilderness to the Promised Land. In order for a family to escape God’s wrath that was poured out on Egypt, they had to slaughter a lamb and paint its blood on the lintel of their door. When the Angel of Death saw the blood of the innocent lamb, he passed over that household and continued on. It was the blood of an innocent lamb that saved the house from wrath. But the lamb had to be perfect in order to be seen as a sufficient substitute. Let’s look at the definition of a “perfect lamb”:
Now the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, “This month shall be your beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year to you. Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying: “On the tenth of this month every man shall take for himself a lamb, according to the house of his father, a lamb for a household. And if the household is too small for the lamb, let him and his neighbor next to his house take it according to the number of the persons; according to each man’s need you shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats.
Exodus 12:1-5
The lamb had to be one “without blemish”. Leviticus 22 gives us some information regarding the definition of a blemish. Hebrew sages amplified on these definitions through a fairly complex inspection of each animal. While the rules for blemishes were meant to primarily guard against physical bodily defects, it seems clear that lambs that were spotted and speckled would largely be seen as imperfect.
So, in essence, Jacob was asking for only those lambs and goats that many would consider blemished, while leaving the visibly perfect lambs and goats for Laban. From Laban’s perspective, this was a great deal! In fact, Jacob agreed that if he was found with a non-speckled or spotted animal, it would be considered stolen. In essence, the first use of “steal” refers to the taking of lambs that are not yours; or more specifically, the taking of lambs that are visibly perfect. We will return to this thought later in this post. We will now tackle the most challenging aspect of this passage.
Now Jacob took for himself rods of green poplar and of the almond and chestnut trees, peeled white strips in them, and exposed the white which was in the rods. And the rods which he had peeled, he set before the flocks in the gutters, in the watering troughs where the flocks came to drink, so that they should conceive when they came to drink. So the flocks conceived before the rods, and the flocks brought forth streaked, speckled, and spotted. Then Jacob separated the lambs, and made the flocks face toward the streaked and all the brown in the flock of Laban; but he put his own flocks by themselves and did not put them with Laban’s flock.
And it came to pass, whenever the stronger livestock conceived, that Jacob placed the rods before the eyes of the livestock in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods. But when the flocks were feeble, he did not put them in; so the feebler were Laban’s and the stronger Jacob’s.
Genesis 30:37-42
While this story sounds much like magic or sorcery to some of my readers, many cultures through history have believed that whatever a mother looks at when she conceives will be impressed on the offspring. So in the mind of Jacob, it is likely that he was simply using science to increase his wages. And whether he was right or wrong in what he was doing or whether the rods actually had an impact on the conceptions or not, we know that God worked to give Jacob the results that he was seeking. Was Jacob being deceitful? Possibly. Regardless of intent, Jacob had made an agreement with Laban for his wages, and God blessed Jacob’s side such that his flocks and herds continually increases while those of Laban decreased:
Thus [Jacob] became exceedingly prosperous, and had large flocks, female and male servants, and camels and donkeys.
Genesis 30:43
At this point, it is worth taking a small journey into the details of the story. Notice the details around Jacob’s actions:
Now Jacob took for himself rods of green poplar and of the almond and chestnut trees, peeled white strips in them, and exposed the white which was in the rods. And the rods which he had peeled, he set before the flocks in the gutters, in the watering troughs where the flocks came to drink, so that they should conceive when they came to drink.
Genesis 30:37-38
The rods that he used were from poplar, almond and chestnut trees. The Hebrew words for these types of trees are:
לִבְנֶ֛ה (libneh – poplar), ל֣וּז (luz – believed to be almond), and עֶרְמ֑וֹן (armon – chestnut)
While the root and meaning is not clear for the almond tree, luz, the other two are more clearly understood. Libneh comes from the root laban, which means white, or to make bricks. And armon likely comes from the root aram which means to make bare – to be cunning or crafty.
Did you notice the irony? Read that again…
“Libneh (לִבְנֶ֛ה) comes from the root laban, which means white, or to make bricks.” Do you see it? If not, let’s go back and reread part of the passage:
And it came to pass, whenever the stronger livestock conceived, that Jacob placed the rods before the eyes of the livestock in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods. But when the flocks were feeble, he did not put them in; so the feebler were Laban’s and the stronger Jacob’s.
Genesis 30:41-42
Who was Jacob’s father in law? Laban! What does Laban mean? White, or, secondarily, to make bricks. This is quite interesting. Was it intentional that Jacob chose a “laban tree” to gain the upper hand from his father in law, Laban? This is impossible to tell, although it would be a very comical and ironic thing for him to do. We cannot tell the intent of Jacob’s heart. But we can, in fact, make some sense of this incredible story, and the unbelievable tale that God is weaving “under the surface”.
Think about what Jacob was doing. We will focus only on the laban (poplar) tree at this point. Jacob took rods of “white” (libneh, with root laban) wood, and made strips in them to create aesthetic defects. These rods were put in the troughs, in order to make the strong lambs bear streaked and spotted offspring, and removed from the troughs to make the weaker lambs breed and bear white offspring. At this point, we need to jump up a few levels to think about the symbolism of the color white.
Many of my readers may think of white as the pure color. And so they should. Brides often wear white in order to signify their purity. Snow is white (giving rise to the saying “pure as driven snow”). White seems to signify cleanliness. In fact, even scripture bears up this meaning:
Of cleansing from sin:
“Come now, and let us reason together,”
Says the Lord,
“Though your sins are like scarlet,
They shall be as white as snow;
Though they are red like crimson,
They shall be as wool.
Isaiah 1:18
Of our Creator God:
“I watched till thrones were put in place,
And the Ancient of Days was seated;
His garment was white as snow,
And the hair of His head was like pure wool.
Daniel 7:9
Of the Lord Jesus:
Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, led them up on a high mountain by themselves; and He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light.
Matthew 17:1-2
Of the saints martyred during the great tribulation:
And they cried with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” Then a white robe was given to each of them; and it was said to them that they should rest a little while longer, until both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed as they were, was completed.
Revelation 6:10-11
It seems, then, that the color white should indeed be seen as the pure and Godly color. However; scripture also makes it clear that this color may be misleading. Let’s examine some examples:
So the anger of the Lord was aroused against them, and He departed. And when the cloud departed from above the tabernacle, suddenly Miriam became leprous, as white as snow. Then Aaron turned toward Miriam, and there she was, a leper.
Numbers 12:9-10Therefore the leprosy of Naaman shall cling to you and your descendants forever.” And he went out from his presence leprous, as white as snow.
2 Kings 5:27“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness.
Matthew 23:27And the high priest Ananias commanded those who stood by him to strike him on the mouth. Then Paul said to him, “God will strike you, you whitewashed wall! For you sit to judge me according to the law, and do you command me to be struck contrary to the law?”
Acts 23:2-3
So while the color white does, indeed, represent Godliness and purity, it can also indicate the presence of sin (leprosy), and it is also used by the enemy to disguise himself – and his ambassadors – as good. With that on our minds, let’s return to the passage under study.
Jacob is taking rods that are white, scarring them to become mottled; and through them, he is causing good and strong lambs to look mottled. On the other hand, the lambs that look pure and good, are indeed weak and infirm. In this case, what you see is not exactly what you get!
While the story is a complex one, the result of this story is simple. Jacob ended up owning (through legal transaction) strong lambs that looked marred, while Laban (“White”) was left with outwardly good, but inwardly weak and ill lambs.
Now – what does any of this have to do with the commandment: “You shall not steal.”? Simply this: though Jacob was somewhat deceptive, he in fact gained great flocks through purely legal means. They were not stolen. As a secondary benefit, his lambs looked impure, but were strong and good. Jacob did not steal his lambs. And neither did Jesus.
Did you know that you were once owned by the enemy, Satan? But Jesus took those of us that were mottled and speckled with sin, and through the shedding of His blood, bought us and made us strong and whole. We, who look impure, are constantly being made Godly and pure on the inside, while those that remain the property of Satan may look white on the outside, but inside are weak and sick. They are full of dead men’s bones. Let us look at what scripture says:
Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20
We were bought for a price – not stolen. Did Jesus steal? No – He bought his flock with His own flesh and blood. Selah.
Just in order to bring this story to a full conclusion, I will leave my readers with three interesting questions. Seek the answers to these questions through prayer and scripture.
- Why was Laban named as he was (White)? What was the symbolism behind his name?
- What does the secondary meaning of Laban (to make bricks) have to do with the story and its undercurrents? And,
- How does the following passage relate to the above questions?
But what I do, I will also continue to do, that I may cut off the opportunity from those who desire an opportunity to be regarded just as we are in the things of which they boast. For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works.
2 Corinthians 11:12-15
There is certainly symbolism behind the other two types rods that Jacob used in the troughs. However; that thought can be left to the reader, or for future exploration.
Next, we will examine the commandment:
“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.”
Exodus 20:16
In the meantime, may God richly bless your study of His Word!
YouJi