Genesis 31

Jacob’s Flight from Laban

1 Jacob heard that Laban’s sons were complaining,t “Jacob has taken everything that belonged to our father! He has gotten richs at our father’s expense!”t

2 When Jacob saw the look on Laban’s face, he could tell his attitude toward him had changed.t
3 The Lord said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your fatherst and to your relatives. I will be with you.”s4 So Jacob sent a message for Rachel and Leaht to come to the fieldt where his flocks were.t5 There he said to them, “I can tell that your father’s attitude toward me has changed,t but the God of my father has been with me.6 You know that I’ve worked for your father as hard as I could,t7 but your father has humiliatedt me and changed my wages ten times. But God has not permitted him to do me any harm.8 If he said,t ‘The speckled animalst will be your wage,’ then the entire flock gave birth to speckled offspring. But if he said, ‘The streaked animals will be your wage,’ then the entire flock gave birth to streaked offspring.

9 In this way God has snatched away your father’s livestock and given them to me.
10 “Oncet during breeding season I sawt in a dream that the male goats mating witht the flock were streaked, speckled, and spotted.11 In the dream the angel of God said to me, ‘Jacob!’ ‘Here I am!’ I replied.12 Then he said, ‘Observet that all the male goats mating witht the flock are streaked, speckled, or spotted, for I have observed all that Laban has done to you.

13 I am the God of Bethel,s where you anointeds the sacred stone and made a vow to me.s Now leave this land immediatelyts and return to your native land.’”
14 Then Rachel and Leah replied to him, “Do we still have any portion or inheritancet in our father’s house?15 Hasn’t he treated us like foreigners? He not only sold us, but completely wastedts the money paid for us!t

16 Surely all the wealth that God snatched away from our father belongs to us and to our children. So now do everything God has told you.”
17 So Jacob immediately put his children and his wives on the camels.t

18 He tookt away all the livestock he had acquired in Paddan Aram and all his moveable property that he had accumulated. Then he set out toward the land of Canaan to return to his father Isaac.t
19 While Laban had gone to shear his sheep,t Rachel stole the household idolst that belonged to her father.20 Jacob also deceivedt Laban the Aramean by not telling him that he was leaving.t

21 He leftt with all he owned. He quickly crossedt the Euphrates Rivert and headed fort the hill country of Gilead.
22 Three days later Laban discovered Jacob had left.t23 So he took his relativest with him and pursued Jacobt for seven days.t He caught up witht him in the hill country of Gilead.

24 But God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream at night and warned him,t “Be carefult that you neither bless nor curse Jacob.”t
25 Laban overtook Jacob, and when Jacob pitched his tent in the hill country of Gilead, Laban and his relatives set up camp there too.t26 “What have you done?” Laban demanded of Jacob. “You’ve deceived met and carried away my daughters as if they were captives of war!t27 Why did you run away secretlyt and deceive me?t Why didn’t you tell me so I could send you off with a celebration complete with singing, tambourines, and harps?t28 You didn’t even allow me to kiss my daughters and my grandchildrent good-bye. You have acted foolishly!29 I havet the power to do you harm, but the God of your father told me last night, ‘Be carefult that you neither bless nor curse Jacob.’t

30 Now I understand thatt you have gone awayt because you longed desperatelyt for your father’s house. Yet why did you steal my gods?”s
31 “I left secretly because I was afraid!”t Jacob replied to Laban. “I thoughtt you might take your daughters away from me by force.t

32 Whoever has taken your gods will be put to death!t In the presence of our relativest identify whatever is yours and take it.”t (Now Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen them.)t
33 So Laban entered Jacob’s tent, and Leah’s tent, and the tent of the two female servants, but he did not find the idols.t Then he left Leah’s tent and entered Rachel’s.t34 (Now Rachel had taken the idols and put them inside her camel’s saddlet and sat on them.)t Laban searched the whole tent, but did not find them.t

35 Rachelt said to her father, “Don’t be angry,t my lord. I cannot stand upt in your presence because I am having my period.”t So he searched thoroughly,t but did not find the idols.
36 Jacob became angryt and argued with Laban. “What did I do wrong?” he demanded of Laban.t “What sin of mine prompted you to chase after me in hot pursuit?t

37 When you searched through all my goods, did you find anything that belonged to you?t Set it here before my relatives and yours,t and let them settle the dispute between the two of us!t
38 “I have been with you for the past twenty years. Your ewes and female goats have not miscarried, nor have I eaten rams from your flocks.39 Animals torn by wild beasts I never brought to you; I always absorbed the loss myself.t You always made me pay for every missing animal,t whether it was taken by day or at night.40 I was consumed by scorching heatt during the day and by piercing coldt at night, and I went without sleep.t41 This was my lott for twenty years in your house: I worked like a slavet for you – fourteen years for your two daughters and six years for your flocks, but you changed my wages ten times!

42 If the God of my father – the God of Abraham, the one whom Isaac fearst – had not been with me, you would certainly have sent me away empty-handed! But God saw how I was oppressed and how hard I worked,t and he rebuked you last night.”
43 Laban repliedt to Jacob, “These woment are my daughters, these children are my grandchildren,t and these flocks are my flocks. All that you see belongs to me. But how can I harm these daughters of mine todayt or the children to whom they have given birth?

44 So now, come, let’s make a formal agreement,t you and I, and it will bet proof that we have made peace.”t
45 So Jacob took a stone and set it up as a memorial pillar.46 Then het said to his relatives, “Gather stones.” So they brought stones and put them in a pile.s They ate there by the pile of stones.

47 Laban called it Jegar Sahadutha,s but Jacob called it Galeed.s
48 Laban said, “This pile of stones is a witness of our agreementt today.” That is why it was called Galeed.49 It was also called Mizpaht because he said, “May the Lord watchs between ust when we are out of sight of one another.t

50 If you mistreat my daughters or if you take wives besides my daughters, although no one else is with us, realizet that God is witness to your actions.”t
51 “Here is this pile of stones and this pillar I have set up between me and you,” Laban said to Jacob.t52 “This pile of stones and the pillar are reminders that I will not pass beyond this pile to come to harm you and that you will not pass beyond this pile and this pillar to come to harm me.t53 May the God of Abraham and the god of Nahor,t the gods of their father, judge between us.” Jacob took an oath by the God whom his father Isaac feared.t

54 Then Jacob offered a sacrificet on the mountain and invited his relatives to eat the meal.t They ate the meal and spent the night on the mountain.

55 s Early in the morning Laban kissedt his grandchildrent and his daughters goodbye and blessed them. Then Laban left and returned home.t

Genesis 32

Jacob Wrestles at Peniel

1 So Jacob went on his way and the angels of Gods met him.

2 When Jacob saw them, he exclaimed,t “This is the camp of God!” So he named that place Mahanaim.s
3 Jacob sent messengers on aheadt to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the regiont of Edom.4 He commanded them, “This is what you must say to my lord Esau: ‘This is what your servants Jacob says: I have been staying with Laban until now.

5 I have oxen, donkeys, sheep, and male and female servants. I have sentt this messaget to inform my lord, so that I may find favor in your sight.’”
6 The messengers returned to Jacob and said, “We went to your brother Esau. He is coming to meet you and has four hundred men with him.”7 Jacob was very afraid and upset. So he divided the people who were with him into two camps, as well as the flocks, herds, and camels.

8 “If Esau attacks one camp,”t he thought,t “then the other camp will be able to escape.”t
9 Then Jacob prayed,t “O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, O Lord, you saidt to me, ‘Return to your land and to your relatives and I will make you prosper.’t10 I am not worthy of all the faithful lovet you have shownt your servant. With only my walking stickt I crossed the Jordan,t but now I have become two camps.11 Rescue me,t I pray, from the handt of my brother Esau,t for I am afraid he will comet and attack me, as well as the mothers with their children.s

12 But youts said, ‘I will certainly make you prospert and will maket your descendants like the sand on the seashore, too numerous to count.’”t
13 Jacobt stayed there that night. Then he sentt as a gifts to his brother Esau14 two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams,15 thirty female camels with their young, forty cows and ten bulls, and twenty female donkeys and ten male donkeys.16 He entrusted them tot his servants, who divided them into herds.t He told his servants, “Pass over before me, and keep some distance between one herd and the next.”17 He instructed the servant leading the first herd,t “When my brother Esau meets you and asks, ‘To whom do you belong?t Where are you going? Whose herds are you driving?’t

18 then you must say,t ‘They belongt to your servant Jacob.t They have been sent as a gift to my lord Esau.t In fact Jacob himself is behind us.’”t
19 He also gave these instructions to the second and third servants, as well as all those who were following the herds, saying, “You must say the same thing to Esau when you meet him.t20 You must also say, ‘In fact your servant Jacob is behind us.’”t Jacob thought,t “I will first appease himt by sending a gift ahead of me.t After that I will meet him.t Perhaps he will accept me.”t

21 So the gifts were sent on ahead of himt while he spent that night in the camp.t
22 During the night Jacob quickly tookt his two wives, his two female servants, and his eleven sonst and crossed the ford of the Jabbok.s23 He took them and sent them across the stream along with all his possessions.t24 So Jacob was left alone. Then a mans wrestleds with him until daybreak.t

25 When the mant saw that he could not defeat Jacob,t he struckt the socket of his hip so the socket of Jacob’s hip was dislocated while he wrestled with him.
26 Then the mant said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking.”t “I will not let you go,” Jacob replied,t “unless you bless me.”s27 The man asked him,t “What is your name?”s He answered, “Jacob.”

28 “No longer will your name be Jacob,” the man told him,t “but Israel,s because you have foughts with God and with men and have prevailed.”
29 Then Jacob asked, “Please tell me your name.”s “Whyt do you ask my name?” the man replied.t Then he blessedt Jacobt there.

30 So Jacob named the place Peniel,s explaining,t “Certainlyt I have seen God face to faces and have survived.”ts
31 The sun roset over him as he crossed over Penuel,s butt he was limping because of his hip.

32 That is why to this days the Israelites do not eat the sinew which is attached to the socket of the hip, because he struckt the socket of Jacob’s hip near the attached sinew.

Genesis 33

Jacob Meets Esau

1 Jacob looked upt and saw that Esau was comingt along with four hundred men. So he divided the children among Leah, Rachel, and the two female servants.2 He put the servants and their children in front, with Leah and her children behind them, and Rachel and Joseph behind them.s3 But Jacobt himself went on ahead of them, and he bowed toward the ground seven times as he approachedt his brother.4 But Esau ran to meet him, embraced him, hugged his neck, and kissed him. Then they both wept.5 When Esaut looked upt and saw the women and the children, he asked, “Who are these people with you?” Jacobt replied, “The children whom God has graciously givent your servant.”6 The female servants came forward with their children and bowed down.t

7 Then Leah came forward with her children and they bowed down. Finally Joseph and Rachel came forward and bowed down.
8 Esaut then asked, “What did you intendt by sending all these herds to meet me?”t Jacobt replied, “To find favor in your sight, my lord.”9 But Esau said, “I have plenty, my brother. Keep what belongs to you.”10 “No, please take them,” Jacob said.t “If I have found favor in your sight, acceptt my gift from my hand. Now that I have seen your face and you have accepted me,t it is as if I have seen the face of God.ts

11 Please take my presentt that was brought to you, for God has been generoust to me and I have all I need.”t When Jacob urged him, he took it.t
12 Then Esaut said, “Let’s be on our way!t I will go in front of you.”13 But Jacobt said to him, “My lord knows that the children are young,t and that I have to look after the sheep and cattle that are nursing their young.t If they are driven too hard for even a single day, all the animals will die.

14 Let my lord go on ahead of his servant. I will travel more slowly, at the pace of the herds and the children,t until I come to my lord at Seir.”

15 So Esau said, “Let me leave some of my men with you.”t “Why do that?” Jacob replied.t “My lord has already been kind enough to me.”t
16 So that same day Esau made his way backt to Seir.

17 Butt Jacob traveled to Succoths where he built himself a house and made shelters for his livestock. That is why the place was calledt Succoth.s
18 After he left Paddan Aram, Jacob came safely to the city of Shechem in the land of Canaan, and he camped neart the city.19 Then he purchased the portion of the field where he had pitched his tent; he bought itt from the sons of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for a hundred pieces of money.t

20 There he set up an altar and called it “The God of Israel is God.”t