现在我们来看受拉班压榨的雅各，有办法偷取拉班的财富，使自己富有。当拉班问当给他甚么为工价时，他说，“甚么你也不必给我，只有一件事你若应承，我便仍旧牧放你的羊群。今天我要走遍你的羊群，把绵羊中凡有点的、有斑的、和黑色的，并山羊中凡有斑的、有点的，都挑出来，将来这一等的，就算我的工价。以后你来查看我的工价，我的义将要为我作证；凡在我手里的山羊不是有点有斑的，绵羊不是黑色的，那就算是我偷的。”（创三十31-33，另译）。雅各似乎说，“拉班舅舅，你答应我一件事，我就留下。把你羊群中凡有斑的、有点的、和黑色的，都挑出来，留下白色的给我。从今以后，有斑有点和黑色的才是我的。”拉班认为这是极好的题议，因为他知道白的只能生白的，不会生出有点有斑或黑色的。于是拉班把羊群中凡不是纯白的都挑出来，交在他儿子们的手下（创三十34-35），留给雅各的羊群是纯白的。
雅各玩弄诡计，拿杨树、杏树、枫树的树枝，“将皮剥成白纹，使枝子露出白的来。”（创三十37）。然后雅各将剥了皮的枝子对着羊群插在饮羊的水沟里，“羊来喝的时候牝牡配合。”（创三十38）。创世记三十章三十九节告诉我们，“羊对着枝子配合，就生下有纹的、有点的、有斑的来。”然后雅各把他的羊和拉班的羊分开。此外，到羊群肥壮配合的时候，“雅各就把枝子插在水沟里，使羊对着枝子配合。只是到羊瘦弱配合的时候，就不插枝子；这样，瘦弱的就归拉班，肥壮的就归雅各。”（创三十41-42）。因此，有点、有斑、有纹的都是强壮的；白的都是瘦弱的。我不信雅各这种谋略真有甚么功效；这不过是他聪明头脑的发明。但不管这诡计有没有功效，结果就是这样，雅各认为他的计画已经成功。
信息重点：雅各虽然受到拉班的压榨，仍然倚靠自己的聪明和诡计。表面上雅各用诡计得着羊群，实际上结果来自神的主宰。
应用祷告：主啊，求你光照我，使我脱离自己的办法和诡计，学习信靠你的主宰和祝福。
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Jacob’s Schemes — Gen. 30:31-33
Now let us see how Jacob, exploited by Laban, found a way to take Laban’s wealth for himself and become rich. When Laban asked what he should give him as wages, Jacob said, “You do not need to give me anything; if you will do this one thing for me, I will again pasture and keep your flock. Let me pass through your entire flock today, removing from there every speckled and spotted sheep and every black one among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats; and such shall be my wages. So my honesty will answer for me later, when you come concerning my wages. Every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats and black among the sheep, if found with me, shall be considered stolen” (Gen. 30:31-33). Jacob seemed to say, “Uncle Laban, if you agree to this one thing, I will stay. Take out every speckled, spotted and black one from your flock, and leave the white ones for me. From now on, the speckled, spotted and black ones will be mine.” Laban thought this was an excellent proposal, because he knew that white sheep could only produce white offspring, not speckled, spotted or black ones. So Laban removed every animal from the flock that was not purely white and put them under the care of his sons (Gen. 30:34-35), leaving Jacob with a flock that was entirely white.
Jacob then played a trick, taking branches of poplar, almond and plane trees and “peeled white stripes in them, exposing the white which was in the branches” (Gen. 30:37). Jacob then set the peeled branches in front of the flocks in the watering troughs, “and they mated when they came to drink” (Gen. 30:38). Genesis 30:39 tells us, “The flocks mated by the branches, and the flocks brought forth striped, speckled and spotted.” Then Jacob separated his flock from Laban’s. Furthermore, whenever the stronger of the flock were mating, “Jacob would place the rods in the sight of the flock in the gutters, so that they would mate by the rods; but when the flock was feeble, he did not put them in; so the feebler were Laban’s and the stronger Jacob’s” (Gen. 30:41-42). Therefore, all the striped, speckled and spotted ones were the stronger; the white ones were the weaker. I do not believe Jacob’s scheme actually had any real effect; it was merely the invention of his clever mind. But whether or not this scheme was effective, the result was that Jacob believed his plan had succeeded.
Message Focus: Although Jacob was exploited by Laban, he still relied on his own cleverness and schemes. On the surface Jacob obtained the flocks through scheming, but in reality the outcome came from God’s sovereignty.
Prayer: Lord, enlighten me that I may be freed from my own methods and schemes, and learn to trust in Your sovereignty and blessing.