פירוש על בראשית 31:23

את אחיו HIS BRETHREN — i.e. his kinsmen.

AND HE OVERTOOK HIM IN THE MOUNTAIN OF GILEAD. For on the eve of the seventh day Laban reached the base of the mountain, and he saw Jacob encamped at a distance. That night he slept below Jacob’s camp and the dream came to him.

דרך שבעת ימים. Yaakov was forced to travel very slowly on account of his herds and flocks, so that although he traveled away from Lavan who had been three days’; journey away from him at the start, he could catch up with him within one week. Clearly, Lavan rode after Yaakov at full speed.

דרך שבעת ימים. a distance of seven days. We must examine why the earth did not "fold" under Jacob on this occasion to facilitate his journey (in response to the urging of the angel) as it had done when he was on the way to Charan at the beginning of our פרשה. If the earth even "folded" for Eliezer, Abraham's servant at the time (as we know from Bereshit Rabbah 59,11), it would certainly have seemed appropriate that the same should happen to the righteous Jacob, especially since he then would have been out of danger of pursuit. Perhaps the failure of the earth to "fold" was a way of G'd telling Jacob that he did not need to flee, that even if Laban were to catch up with him he would not even be able to speak to him offensively or threateningly. Had G'd made the earth "fold" for him, Jacob might have thought that G'd had no other means of putting him out of Laban's reach. If G'd had not spoken to Laban even קפיצת הדרך would not have sufficed to allow Jacob to escape Laban and his sons. The greatness of the miracle was that although Laban possessed freedom of choice he was prevented from exercising it against Jacob.

ויקח את אחיו, his relatives.

וידבק אותו בהר הגלעד, “He caught up with him at Mount Gilead.” Lavan reached the slopes of the mountain on the evening of the sixth day after Yaakov’s departure and he saw Yaakov’s encampment from a distance. During the night G’d appeared to him and warned him not to molest Yaakov in any shape or form. Ibn Ezra explains the sequence וידבק, “he caught up,” followed by ויבא, “he arrived,” as one of many examples in the Torah when a major point is being made before something which actually had happened earlier, but was subordinate in importance.

The entire distance that Yaakov traveled in seven days... Rashi means: if Yaakov would have traveled from the place of Lavan’s flock, it would have taken him seven days.

Das Mitnehmen der Genossen zeigt, dass die Absicht gewesen, Gewalt zu gebrauchen. Labans gemeine Natur erkannte, wie das im Verfolge ja klar heraustritt, in Jakobs ganzer Habe nicht dessen mit seiner Kraft redlich erworbenes Eigentum, ist ja die Arbeitskraft kein sichtbares Kapital — sondern nur vom Wohlwollen des Dienstherrn bewilligte, noch dessen Belieben unterstehende und nur mit dessen Einwilligung fortzunehmende Güter.

וירדוף אחריו, “he chased after him. According to Rashi, the distance that Yaakov with all his sheep and cattle had covered in seven days, Lavan, riding, had been able to cover in a single day. Yaakov had taken seven days to get from Padan Arom to Har Gilead. Different commentators disagree on how long it took Yaakov. Considering that we have been told in Genesis 30,36, that he had put three days walk between himself and Lavan, he had only travelled for 4 days before Lavan caught up with him. At any rate Lavan’s catching up with Yaakov is not surprising due to his riding either on camels or donkeys, and not being slowed down by animals and other heavy luggage.

דרך שבעת ימים SEVEN DAY’S JOURNEY — During all the three days during which the messenger had gone to tell Laban Jacob had proceeded on his journey. Consequently Jacob was then six days distance from Laban. On the seventh day i.e. on the day when Jacob covered that stretch of ground which made him seven days distant from Laban’s starting point Laban overtook him. We may infer, therefore, that all the distance that Jacob would have taken seven days to cover Laban covered in one day. And thus it states: “and he pursued after him seven day’s journey” and it does not say “and he pursued after him for seven days” (Genesis Rabbah 74:6).

The fact that G'd chose not to let the earth "fold" for Jacob on this occasion also became important historically. It led to Rachel being buried in a place where her prayers would intercede on behalf of the Jewish people going into exile, Midrash Hagadol Vayishlach 35,18; according to Sanhedrin 105 Laban is identical with Bileam and Cushan Rishotayim who attacked the Israelites in the time of Othniel. If the Israelites defeated him (Judges 3,10) it may have been because he breached the covenant that Jacob and Laban concluded at Galed. Had the encounter of Laban and Jacob not taken place at that time, there would not have been a breach of an agreement not to attack the descendants of Jacob in their own country.