The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 471

Ver. 2.-Jacob's preparation for acceptable woraHp. "Put away the strange gods that are among you, and be ye clean, and change your gannente: and let us arise, and go up to BetheV' "When thou vowest a vow, defer not to pay it," says Ecclesiastes (eh. v, 4); but Jacob had deferred. He made a vow at Bethel, and he seems afterwards to have ignored it. If he thought of it, a number of things had been ever ready to present themselves as excuses for delay. His faithful services given con- stantly to Laban, hie efforts to make good hie position in the land, and then to avert 1he anger of Esau, had apparently absorbed so much of hie attention that he had forgotten his vows. These solemn promises had been made at a very critical period of his life, and. God had not forgotten them. He reminds Jacob of them in a very emphatic manner. Jacob had failed to see in the circumstances in which he was placed with respect to the people among whom he dwelt that there was a hint of neglected duty. God permitted Jacob to be made uncomfortable that he might be made considerate. The way in which his sons· had treated the Shechemites had brought him into great danger. He and all his were likely to be cut off by these enraged inhabitants of the land. He is reminded of the danger in which he was once placed from the vengeance of Esau. The similarity of the circumstances forcibly and very naturally tum his thoughts to the One who alone can be his defence. 'l'hus circumstances and Divine communications impel to the performance of duty. How merciful is God in his treatment of souls I how he leads the wanderer back to duty I Jacob, when about to strike hie tents and remove to Bethel, wishes that his sons o.nd servants should go up with him, e.nd the.t they should go up in the right spirit. He therefore so.ye to them, "Put away the strange gods," &c. 1. NEGLECTED DUTY IS A HINDRANCE TO APPROPRIATE AND ACCEPTABLE WORSIIIP. Thut Jucob should have been obliged to give such an injunction to hie household ehows that he bad not sufficiently kept before his sons and servants the duty they owed to God. He he.d allowed himself to strive for worldly success until they might have even imagined that he wns no better than the rest of them or their neighbours ; but deep down in the heart of this man was o. reverence for God and a desire to do his will. His neglect to carefully instruct hie sons bad borne bitter fruit. Had he instilled into his sons ideas more in o.ccordance with the character of the God he served, they would not have taken such mean methods as are mentioned of reveng- ing themselves on those they bad come to dislike, His neglect necessitates the sudden nnd difficult effort now put forth to induce hie sons to seek with him to serve God. He feels that he cannot rightly worship God unless his children and household nre with him in spirit. He wishes to foster in them a belief in his own sincerity. To huve one in 11 family looking on indifferently or sneeringly is death to successful worship. Ja.cob's neglect had led to carelessness by his sons of the Divine service. llo could not himself enter heartily on the service until he hnd discharged, in 11 measure, his duty us guide nnd instructor to his family. II. ANOTHER HINDRANCE IS THE ATTACHMENT TO OBJECTS WRONGLY HELD IN REVERENCE, The sons of Jacob had o.dmitted false gods into their affections. Idolatry was rife among them. Even his wife Rachel had so much foith in her father's idols that she stole them when she left borne. The sons caught the spirit of the mother, o.nd indulged in the worship of strange gods. Perhups they worshipped secretly the gods which Rachel cherished, or they may have given udomtion to the idols they found among the spoils of the Shechemites. They may have had little images which they carried about with them, as many superstitious Christians curry tho crucifix. Amulets and charms they seem to have worn on their hands uncl in their ears, all indicating superstition, false worship, and wrong ideas. God is spoken of in the Bible as "jealouR." This is with. respect to worship given to represent,. utions of gods having no existence. The jealousy is right, becauso it would ho an evil thing for man himself to think there were many gods, or to select his own god. When, in after ages, the doscendnnts of these son~ of Jacob yielded to the 8ill of (16 THE BOOK OF GENESIS. [en. XXXV. 16-29,