גנב (to steal) Tanakh Lab points out that the root “גנב” (steal) comes up eight times in this chapter.1 This verb is used in several different contexts, describing both Yaakov’s experience of injustice in Lavan’s house as well as Yaakov’s deceit of Lavan and Rachel’s stealing of Lavan’s household idols. The repeated usage of this root emphasizes the web of deceit, suspicion, and mistrust that characterizes the relationship of Lavan and Yaakov, and that surfaces in numerous ways in this chapter.
