Jacob: Our Patriarch of TruthSample

I have been with you for twenty years now. Your sheep and goats have not miscarried, nor have I eaten rams from your flocks. I did not bring you animals torn by wild beasts; I bore the loss myself. And you demanded payment from me for whatever was stolen by day or night. — GENESIS 31:38-39

A Model of Integrity

In life, how a person behaves reveals his or her true character. In fact, Jewish tradition teaches that people will be judged according to how they dealt with others specifically in their business affairs.

Jacob was completely honest in his business dealings. The Bible records the honorable way that Jacob worked for Laban three times: First, after Jacob fulfilled his 14-year agreement to work for his father-in-law and wanted to return to his homeland (Genesis 30:25-29); second, when 20 years later, Jacob told Rachel and Leah that the time had come to leave their father’s home (Genesis 31:4-16); and third, when Laban confronted Jacob as he fled with his entire family (Genesis 31:38-42).

In each instance, there is a common theme: integrity.

In Genesis 30, Jacob informed Laban that he had given his all while tending Laban’s sheep. In fact, Laban had enjoyed great prosperity due to Jacob’s efforts. As Jacob told Laban, “You know how I have worked for you and how your livestock has fared under my care. The little you had before I came has increased greatly, and the Lord has blessed you wherever I have been” (vv. 29-30). Jacob had worked hard, and it showed.

When Jacob tried to return to his homeland a second time, he explained to his wives that he had worked diligently, despite Laban treating him badly: “You know that I’ve worked for your father with all my strength, yet your father has cheated me by changing my wages ten times. However, God has not allowed him to harm me” (31:6-7). In spite of Laban’s dishonesty, Jacob kept his integrity and did his job to the best of his ability.

And when Laban confronted Jacob, Jacob declared: “I have been with you for twenty years now. Your sheep and goats have not miscarried, nor have I eaten rams from your flocks. I did not bring you animals torn by wild beasts; I bore the loss myself. And you demanded payment from me for whatever was stolen by day or night” (Genesis 31:38-39). Jacob upheld his honesty even when it cost him.

In contrast, Laban was deceptive and dishonest, even doing business with his own son-in-law. Before Jacob began working for him, Laban had very few sheep (Genesis 30:30). Laban’s dishonesty reaped few rewards. But Jacob, who worked with integrity, was blessed by God and prospered.

Jacob knew that God intended for him to return to “the land of your fathers” and that God was with him (Genesis 31:3). He knew that it was God who had enabled him to prosper and succeed despite Laban’s attempt to cheat him. As Jacob told Laban, “If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had not been with me, you would surely have sent me away empty-handed” (Genesis 31:42).

Jacob understood that man does not succeed because of schemes and swindles intended to make money at the expense of others. People are successful when they recognize God as the source of all blessings and work according to His ethics, even when it is difficult to do so.

Jacob’s commitment to truthfulness, integrity, and obedience to God were the “secrets” of his success. His life serves as a reminder for how we should conduct ourselves today. As Solomon wrote, “He [the Lord] holds success in store for the upright, he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless [tam]” (Proverbs 2:7).