Laban

Laban, or Jacob's uncle Laban is an important figure in the life Jacob, as recorded in the Book of Genesis. He was the brother of Rebekah, the wife of his Isaac and mother of Jacob. Laban welcomed his nephew as a young man, and set him the stipulation of seven years' labour before he permitted him to marry his daughter Rachel. However, a trickster just like Jacob, Laban tricked his nephew into marrying the former's elder daughter Leah instead. Jacob eventually was able to take both women as wives.

Laban and his family were described as dwelling in Paddan Aram, in Mesopotamia. Though the Old Testament text does not attest to this, Apocryphal sources also identify him as the father of Bilhah and Zilpah, the two concubines with whom Jacob also has children (in Genesis 24).

Biography
Laban first appears in the Bible in Genesis 24:29–60 as the spokesman for his father Bethuel's house. He was impressed by the gold jewelry given to his sister on behalf of Isaac, and played a key part in arranging their marriage. Twenty years later, Laban's nephew Jacob was born to Isaac and Rebekah.

When grown, Jacob comes to work for Laban. The biblical narrative provides a framework for dating these events: Jacob "begat" Joseph 14 years after his flight to Laban; Joseph entered Pharaoh's service at age 30; and from that point, after seven years of plenty and two years of famine, Jacob met Pharaoh and stated his age as 130. Subtracting yields an age of 77 (Jacob at his flight to Laban). Laban was more than 30 years older than Jacob, and employed him for 20 years.

Laban promised his younger daughter Rachel to Jacob in return for seven years' service, only to trick him into marrying his elder daughter Leah instead. Jacob then served another seven years in exchange for the right to marry his choice, Rachel, as well (Genesis 29). Laban's flocks and fortunes increased under Jacob's skilled care, but there was much further trickery between them. Six years after his promised service has ended, Jacob, having prospered largely by proving more cunning than his father-in-law, finally left. Laban pursued him, but they eventually parted on good terms (Genesis 31).