< Back

Jacob’s Speckled & Spotted Flock

A Sermon by Rev. Jong-Ui Lee

“Let me pass through all your flock today, removing from there all the speckled and spotted sheep, and all the black ones among the lambs, and the spotted and speckled among the goats; and these shall be my wages” (Genesis 30:32).

Are you living a balanced life? We try but we are juggling too many things; for example between our work and our family; between ourselves and others; between spiritual responsibilities and the natural duties. In loving someone we also need a balanced approach. We supposedly have some ideal images and figures into which our loved one will be transformed someday on the one hand. On the other hand we like to accept who he or she is now and love that person as is. Perhaps by having balance between the actual and the ideal we can love our spouse, our children, and our neighbor more fully. What about our loving God? We are grateful for the Lord’s love and mercy. Our Lord also balances between both expectation and acceptance. He obviously wants us to be perfect like Him; but at the same time He loves us in spite of our imperfections and shortcomings. He understands finite human conditions as He blessed shrewd Jacob.

Jacob took his refuge at his uncle Laban’s in Haran, escaping angry Esau. He married Laban’s daughters, Leah and Rachel. Then Jacob wanted to go back home with his family and livestock, but Laban wanted to keep him working for himself. Laban knew that the Lord blessed him because of Jacob’s working for him. Laban, who wished to retain a good worker, came to bargain Jacob’s wage. Laban asked Jacob what he wanted. Jacob answered, “Let me pass through all your flock today, removing from there all the speckled and spotted sheep, and all the black ones among the lambs, and the spotted and speckled among the goats; and these shall be my wages” (Genesis 30:32).

In appearance, Jacob didn’t want much, but in reality he hid a shrewd scheme in the guise of moderation. In a deeper sense what Jacob requested was what we are to obtain in our spiritual labor, regeneration, in order to return to Canaan. Here, the flock where various male and female animals are symbolically means what is good and true in a collective form. Male animals indicate various types of faith and truth we have, and female animals denote different types of love and goodness we have. Curiously Jacob chose speckled, spotted, and variegated sheep and goats, though they were fewer. These colors are spiritually meaningful because they show their characteristics.

Colors in the spiritual world are beautiful and splendid beyond description. The light that proceeds from the Lord appears in the highest heaven as flame, and it appears as bright in the middle heaven (AC 9865:2). Divine light is distinguished variegation of light and shade in white and black (AC 3993:6). Speckles, spots, and variegations happen from the modifications and alterations of the colors, especially black and white. Speckled, or marked and dotted with black and white specks reflect good with which evil has been mingled, and also what is meant by spotted, namely truth with which falsity has been mingled (AC 3993:7).

These partially colored sheep and goats were taken from Laban’s flock. Laban’s flock was used as a medium that served Jacob’s prosperity. These animals represent good and truth, which we get in our early stage of regeneration, and they serve in the introduction of genuine good and truth. Our truth and goodness keep on changing. They become more and more pure and clean as we spiritually grow. During such modifications and developments they cannot be faultless.

While good and truth we have are varied, no pure good, or good with which evil is not mingled, exists with anyone. In the same way neither does any pure truth, or truth with which falsity is not mingled, exist with us. This is because our will is nothing but evil. From it falsity is constantly passing into our understanding from our hereditary evil that has been accumulated consecutively by all our ancestors. From this inheritance we bring out evil into our own actions and make it our own, adding more evil that we have acquired to our inheritance (AC 3993:8).

Perhaps such mingling between what is holy and what is evil and false concerns us. It reminds us of the fear of profanation, which is sternly prohibited by the Lord. Actually there are some kinds of evils and falsities that can be placed next to goodness and truth, not necessarily corrupting them. This arrangement seems to be Divine mercy for our salvation The Heavenly Doctrines for the New Church state, “There are evils with which goods cannot be mingled and there are evils with which they can. And the same applies to falsities. If this were not so, nobody could ever have been regenerated. The evils and falsities with which goods and truths cannot be mingled are ones that are contrary to love to God and love towards the neighbour - forms of hatred, revenge, and cruelty, and consequent contempt for others in comparison with oneself, and also consequent false persuasions. But the evils and falsities with which goods and truths can be mingled are ones that are not contrary to love to God and love towards the neighbour” (AC 3993:8).

We can find some examples of evils and falsities that go with goods and truths in our life. One who loves oneself more than others is able to be useful and to do charitable acts for others. This person strives to excel others in one’s private and public lives from the love of self. This person may excel in knowledge and skill from one’s strong urge and be promoted to a higher position and become successful. If at the same time one acknowledges and adores the Lord, from the heart performs acts of kindness to the neighbour, and from conscience behaves justly and fairly, the evil that belongs to his self-love is such that good and truth can be mingled with it (AC 3993:9).

Let’s take another illustration about the same sort of falsity. Anyone, who believes that the Lord punishes the evil and casts them into hell at the end of life, might lead a good life. This person may fear God and be cautious in thought and desire; and try to help other people simply not to be punished and not to be cast into hell. Though it is a false idea that the Lord brings misfortunes and disasters, and punishes and casts the wicked into hell, this false idea is such that good and truth can be mingled with it.

Even pretence and shrewdness, which have a good purpose in view, whether the good for the neighbour, or of one’s country, or of the church, can form prudence for a person. On the contrary pretence and shrewdness, which have an evil purpose in view, do not constitute prudence but trickery and deceit. Good cannot be possibly joined to these, for deceit which goes with an evil purpose in view brings hellish influence into every single part of a person and casts good away to the outskirts of the person’s life.

We’re going through many different stages in our process of regeneration. In an early stage it is impossible for us to have a correct understanding of the Lord’s truth and pure motivations in doing what we learn and understand. There must be many pitfalls on the way such as false ideas and impure desires. They are imperfect, but they help us continue and develop our spiritual capacity and strength. Those spotted, speckled, and variegated animals change our state from a state that is meant by Laban into a state that is represented by Jacob. Laban symbolically means our mediate good, and Jocob means genuine goodness. Thus they bring us into a higher spiritual state.

Such a mediate state can be acceptable as long as there is innocence and humility. Those colored sheep and goats were to be selected with black lambs from Laban’s flock. A black lamb represents our innocent own self or innocent proprium. Such innocence consists in knowing, acknowledging, and believing that nothing but evil originates in oneself and that everything good is from the Lord, not just by the lips but with the heart (AC 3994).

Black and shade happen when there is no light. Black means a state that lacks wisdom and love; thus a state of falsity and evil. Our own self, proprium, before regeneration, is completely blackened. It is described in the creation story likewise, “void and darkness was on the face of the deep” (Gen.1:2). Acknowledging our fallen condition and confessing it are inevitable while we are with those mixed goods and mingled truths. Though they are not genuine good and truth, there is hope that we might be better and change them into heavenly qualities, if we keep on working on them in our humiliation.

Jacob realized that Laban would not pay his wages, and devised a cunning plan that would make him prosperous. He made animals look toward a stripped rod of poplar, hazel and plane while they were mating. It seemed to be an ancient belief that what animals look toward when breeding determines the coloration of their offspring. Somehow it worked out, and Jacob became wealthy. Such a cunning device appears dishonest, but in its spiritual meaning it refers to the effort and actual work from the higher goodness, which is represented by Jacob (AC 4013). We need to strive to produce such spiritual qualities, though they are unsatisfactory.

The Lord knows our finite conditions and infirmities. He mercifully looks at us and kindly accepts us as who we are. Unless our selfish love breeds hatred and revenge against those who don’t respect us; unless our false idea blocks us from doing useful things, they are co-habitable with genuine goodness and truth; they can help us improve as the spiritual medium in the meantime. The Lord cannot take away these from us because it would be to put out the fire of life that burns in us and sustains us at first.

All these temporary methods are admitted by the Lord as far as they are accompanied by humble innocence. Speckled and spotted sheep and goats are accepted by the Lord while they are flocked with black lambs. We should be aware that we are imperfect and everything from us is unacceptable without huge transformation. What we desire, think, and actually do are all spotted, speckled, and variegated no matter how much we are regenerated. Our personal truth that is represented by a spotted male animal is mingled with false ideas; our goodness that is represented by a speckled female animal is mixed with evils; and some of our truth is interposed with evil that is represented by a variegated or partially colored animal (AC 4005). Jacob formulated a cunning plot to multiply his colored flock. The Lord seemed involved in this. Jacob’s mysterious method worked out very well, and his flock became prosperous. We also need to strive and devise to produce and multiply those in-between qualities, in spite of their blemishes. Those limited goods and truths are the necessary medium sustaining us in the wilderness and leading us to Canaan.

This shows the Lord’s infinite mercy and endless love toward us. Even though our best truth and goodness are mingled with falsity and evil, the Lord loves us and accepts us into heaven and Himself. Nevertheless, we should know that His merciful reception is not the whole picture of His love. The greater part of His love is shown in His design that every person is being perfected to eternity. The Writings teach us that “angels are forever becoming more perfect, that is, they grow constantly in goodness and truth; yet they cannot possibly attain a full degree of perfection” (AC 6232:2).

What we have within us today will be the base and foundation on which our eternal life will be built in the other world. What kind of flock do we have? How perfect are they? Are they flawed and defective animals? Our truths are spotted and variegated; and our goodness is speckled. We might feel guilty and shameful of what we offer to the Lord. Actually having unsatisfactory animals are not a sin or evil; it is our spiritual reality. Our Lord is aware of this and receives what we offer.
However, if we are proud of what we offer today, and lack any willingness to continue on perfecting our defects, the Lord cannot accept our blemished offering. In that arrogant heart the Lord cannot find any room for Himself and any possibility for improvement. We should acknowledge our possession of imperfect animals and confess their partial or complete blackness. He receives us not because we are perfect now, but we will be perfected perpetually. In this humble attitude the Lord sees hope for the future. Then He accepts us and gives us perpetual opportunity in the other life. We read, “I will accept you as a sweet aroma when I bring you out of the countries where you have been scattered; and I will be hollowed in you before the Gentiles. Then you shall know that I am the Lord” (Eze.20:41). Amen.

Lessons: Genesis 30:31-43; Matthew 13:24-30; AC 3993:8