Now Laban had gone to shear his sheep; and Rachel stole the teraphim that were her father’s.
ExplanationCommentary
Verse 19. Her father’s idols. By this it appears that Laban was an idolater: and some of the fathers are of opinion, that Rachel stole away these idols, to withdraw him from idolatry, by removing the occasion of his sin. Challoner.—Others think she was herself infected with this superstition, until Jacob entirely banished it from his family in Chanaan. Calmet. 35:2. Tirinus.—The Hebrew Teraphim, is translated images by the Protestants in this place, though it certainly denotes idols. But Ose. 3:4, they leave it untranslated, lest they should be forced to allow that images pertain to religious service, as well as sacrifice, and so forth which are mentioned together, ( Worthington.) though they now indeed have images in the same verse of Osee for what the Vulgate renders altar. These teraphims are consequently taken in a good as well as in a bad sense. They were, perhaps, made of rich metal, and taken by Rachel and Lia to indemnify them for the want of a dowry. This, however, was wrong, and done without the participation of their husband. Bible.
teraphim were household idols that may have been associated with inheritance rights to the household property.