Rebekah received the word that Jacob was coming home with great joy. “He has two wives, two concubines, and eleven children,” she told Isaac. “Imagine so many children when I was barely able to have the twins.” Every afternoon she came to sit with Isaac and brought him some savory stew or ash cakes with honey. She tried to tell him what was happening around them, the changing of the seasons, the birthing of new lambs, and the news that came with the caravans. They were now living just outside of Kiriath-arba by the oaks of Mamre. Esau was taking care of their flocks with his own, and there was no need for them to live in the barren desert of the Negev.
Since Isaac couldn’t see, he was unaware that Rebekah had grown thin and ill. The winter cold and rains had left her with a cough and then fever that she had not been able to shake. To Isaac she was always the young, vibrant beauty he had fallen in love with. He would not believe it when she tried to tell him differently. “You are the most beautiful woman in the world,” he would say when he was especially pleased with something she had baked.
She would laugh and pat his hand. “I have no intention of spoiling your illusion,” she would say.
When Esau came that evening, she told him that Jacob was coming home and then watched to see his reaction. His face clouded, his eyes became thin slits, his teeth clenched, and the tic in his cheek muscle twitched. “Why are you telling me this?” he snapped. “Do you think I’ll call for a celebration?”
Rebekah stifled a sob, but she could not stop the tears from rolling down her wrinkled cheeks. “He has been gone so long. We must welcome him properly,” she managed to whisper.
“Of course, he must be welcomed and praised, and we must all celebrate as though we are glad to have him back.” Esau’s words were sharp with a cruel bite. “I’ll welcome him with my army of bowmen. He may as well know right from the start how I feel.”
Rebekah sobbed and coughed, becoming so weak that Esau was frightened and Isaac grew nervous wondering what was happening.
“Please, Esau,” Rebekah said, “can’t you forget the past and be glad that your brother is coming?”
“It’s always been Jacob you’ve loved. You never loved me. The blessing meant nothing to me, but for you to love him so … sticks in my throat like a thorn.”
“Oh, Esau,” she cried, “I loved you both … but your father loved you so much that Jacob seemed left out.”
She noticed that Esau looked surprised and then without a word turned and disappeared into the night. She sat for a long time pondering all that had happened. Why had it taken all these years for her to explain things to Esau? She had taken for granted that he understood the way things were in their family. It had been so obvious to her.
She quickly picked up the empty bowls and handed Isaac the linen square scented with rose water to wipe his hands. She could see that he was lost in his own thoughts and seemed not to have even been aware of Esau’s visit. She helped him stretch out on his straw mat and waited until she was sure he was asleep before tiptoeing out of the tent.
Back in her own tent she sank down among the cushions and for the first time admitted to herself that she was not feeling well. “I must get well. Jacob is coming home at last, and I must be well and strong when he comes.” She said the words but hoped that Jacob would come soon.
* * *
Back in Haran Jacob was wondering how he was going to manage such a big move. It was encouraging that his wives had agreed and were already making plans.
However, as the days passed, his situation grew steadily worse. Laban no longer bragged about having made such a brilliant bargain with Jacob, and Laban’s sons openly began to accuse Jacob of some treachery. “How can it be,” they questioned, “that so many of the sheep are suddenly speckled?” They confronted Jacob at every opportunity and were not satisfied with his answers.
They even complained to Leah and Rachel. “This fine husband of yours has to be cheating. He’s getting only the speckled animals, but there are now more of them, and they are the stronger, healthier ewes and rams.”
Finally Jacob sensed a growing hostility when he joined Laban’s sons or sat with Laban in the evenings. Leah had even told him that their complaint seemed to be logical. “They say that you are becoming wealthy at our father’s expense.”
He knew that with such feelings it would not be long before there would be a carefully constructed plot to get rid of him. At first he merely shrugged off the growing fear and anxiety. He rationalized but finally had to admit the situation was serious. He felt alone and vulnerable and soon began to feel trapped.