The Imperfect Witness to the God He Says He Believes In

The storyteller whispers in our ears here. He says, they knew he was running away from Yahweh because he had already told them that. This is one of the most tragic ironies at this part of the story. It's often people who are completely outside the people of God who can see on full display the deep contradiction between what God's people say they believe and how they actually behave.