Page "Jacob" Paragraph 26

In a rage, Laban pursued Jacob for seven days.

The night before he caught up to him, God appeared to Laban in a dream and warned him not to say anything good or bad to Jacob.

When the two met, Laban played the part of the injured father-in-law, demanding his teraphim back.

Knowing nothing about Rachel's theft, Jacob told Laban that whoever stole them should die and stood aside to let him search.

When Laban reached Rachel's tent, she hid the teraphim by sitting on them and stating she could not get up because she was menstruating ; this event was considered by the biblical audience as conveying significant defilement upon the teraphim.

Jacob and Laban then parted from each other with a pact to preserve the peace between them.

Laban returned to his home and Jacob continued on his way.