“Oh, what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive!” ~ Walter Scott
Not all things in life happen with equality. Some rewards and punishments must wait for the final judgment.
But deception sometimes brings earthly results and Scripture gives us an excellent example: Jacob and his mother successfully tricked Isaac into giving Jacob his older brother's inheritance (Genesis 27).
Fast forward seven years and Jacob meets his match. After working seven years to marry Rachel, her father Laban tricks Jacob into marrying her older sister Leah.
There are remarkable similarities. Jacob concealed his identity to make his father think he was his older brother. Laban concealed Leah's identity to make Jacob think she was her younger sister (Genesis 29:16-27).
When Laban lets Jacob marry both Rachel and Leah, the deception becomes generational. Joseph's brothers sell him into slavery, telling Jacob that Joseph is dead (Genesis 37).
We don't always see such excellent examples, but Galatians 6:7-8 will eventually prove true, either here on earth or in heaven: “God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.”
“Oh, what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive!”
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I encourage you to read Recognizing Our Enemy and Don't Lose Your Way for additional insights. And please check out the Bite Size Study What a Tangled Web Jacob Created for a fuller understanding of this interesting story in Scripture.
WOW! Comforting and sobering at the same time.
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