The Call of Abram

12 The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household^(A) to the land^(B) I will show you.^(C)

⁴ So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot^(I) went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old^(J) when he set out from Harran.^{(K) 5} He took his wife Sarai,^(L) his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated^(M) and the people^(N) they had acquired in Harran, and they set out for the land of Canaan,^(O) and they arrived there.

⁶ Abram traveled through the land^(P) as far as the site of the great tree of Moreh^(Q) at Shechem.^(R) At that time the Canaanites^(S) were in the land. ⁷ The Lord appeared to Abram^(T) and said, “To your offspring^[c] I will give this land.^(U)”^(V) So he built an altar there to the Lord,^(W) who had appeared to him.

⁸ From there he went on toward the hills east of Bethel^(X) and pitched his tent,^(Y) with Bethel on the west and Ai^(Z) on the east. There he built an altar to the Lord and called on the name of the Lord.^(AA)

⁹ Then Abram set out and continued toward the Negev.^(AB)

Abram in Egypt^(AC)

¹⁰ Now there was a famine in the land,^(AD) and Abram went down to Egypt to live there for a while because the famine was severe.^{(AE) 11} As he was about to enter Egypt, he said to his wife Sarai,^(AF) “I know what a beautiful woman^(AG) you are. ¹² When the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife.’ Then they will kill me but will let you live. ¹³ Say you are my sister,^(AH) so that I will be treated well for your sake and my life will be spared because of you.”

¹⁴ When Abram came to Egypt, the Egyptians saw that Sarai was a very beautiful woman.^{(AI) 15} And when Pharaoh’s officials saw her, they praised her to Pharaoh, and she was taken into his palace. ¹⁶ He treated Abram well for her sake, and Abram acquired sheep and cattle, male and female donkeys, male and female servants, and camels.^(AJ)

¹⁷ But the Lord inflicted^(AK) serious diseases on Pharaoh and his household^(AL) because of Abram’s wife Sarai. ¹⁸ So Pharaoh summoned Abram. “What have you done to me?”^(AM) he said. “Why didn’t you tell me she was your wife?^{(AN) 19} Why did you say, ‘She is my sister,’^(AO) so that I took her to be my wife? Now then, here is your wife. Take her and go!” ²⁰ Then Pharaoh gave orders about Abram to his men, and they sent him on his way, with his wife and everything he had.

Abram and Lot Separate

13 So Abram went up from Egypt^(AP) to the Negev,^(AQ) with his wife and everything he had, and Lot^(AR) went with him. ² Abram had become very wealthy^(AS) in livestock^(AT) and in silver and gold.

³ From the Negev^(AU) he went from place to place until he came to Bethel,^(AV) to the place between Bethel and Ai^(AW) where his tent had been earlier ⁴ and where he had first built an altar.^(AX) There Abram called on the name of the Lord.^(AY)

⁵ Now Lot,^(AZ) who was moving about with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents. ⁶ But the land could not support them while they stayed together, for their possessions were so great that they were not able to stay together.^{(BA) 7} And quarreling^(BB) arose between Abram’s herders and Lot’s. The Canaanites^(BC) and Perizzites^(BD) were also living in the land^(BE) at that time.

⁸ So Abram said to Lot,^(BF) “Let’s not have any quarreling between you and me,^(BG) or between your herders and mine, for we are close relatives.^{(BH) 9} Is not the whole land before you? Let’s part company. If you go to the left, I’ll go to the right; if you go to the right, I’ll go to the left.”^(BI)

¹⁰ Lot looked around and saw that the whole plain^(BJ) of the Jordan toward Zoar^(BK) was well watered, like the garden of the Lord,^(BL) like the land of Egypt.^(BM) (This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom^(BN) and Gomorrah.)^{(BO) 11} So Lot chose for himself the whole plain of the Jordan and set out toward the east. The two men parted company: ¹² Abram lived in the land of Canaan,^(BP) while Lot^(BQ) lived among the cities of the plain^(BR) and pitched his tents near Sodom.^{(BS) 13} Now the people of Sodom^(BT) were wicked and were sinning greatly against the Lord.^(BU)

¹⁴ The Lord said to Abram after Lot had parted from him, “Look around from where you are, to the north and south, to the east and west.^{(BV) 15} All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring^[d] forever.^{(BW) 16} I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust, then your offspring could be counted.^{(BX) 17} Go, walk through the length and breadth of the land,^(BY) for I am giving it to you.”^(BZ)

¹⁸ So Abram went to live near the great trees of Mamre^(CA) at Hebron,^(CB) where he pitched his tents. There he built an altar to the Lord.^(CC)

The Lord’s Covenant With Abram

15 After this, the word of the Lord came to Abram^(A) in a vision:^(B)

² But Abram said, “Sovereign Lord,^(F) what can you give me since I remain childless^(G) and the one who will inherit^[c] my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?^(H)” ³ And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servant^(I) in my household^(J) will be my heir.”

⁴ Then the word of the Lord came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.^(K)” ⁵ He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars^(L)—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring^[d] be.”^(M)

⁶ Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.^(N)

⁷ He also said to him, “I am the Lord, who brought you out^(O) of Ur of the Chaldeans^(P) to give you this land to take possession of it.”^(Q)

⁸ But Abram said, “Sovereign Lord,^(R) how can I know^(S) that I will gain possession of it?”^(T)

⁹ So the Lord said to him, “Bring me a heifer,^(U) a goat and a ram, each three years old,^(V) along with a dove and a young pigeon.^(W)”

¹⁰ Abram brought all these to him, cut them in two and arranged the halves opposite each other;^(X) the birds, however, he did not cut in half.^{(Y) 11} Then birds of prey came down on the carcasses,^(Z) but Abram drove them away.

¹² As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a deep sleep,^(AA) and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him. ¹³ Then the Lord said to him, “Know for certain that for four hundred years^(AB) your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own and that they will be enslaved^(AC) and mistreated there. ¹⁴ But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out^(AD) with great possessions.^{(AE) 15} You, however, will go to your ancestors^(AF) in peace and be buried at a good old age.^{(AG) 16} In the fourth generation^(AH) your descendants will come back here,^(AI) for the sin of the Amorites^(AJ) has not yet reached its full measure.”

¹⁷ When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot with a blazing torch^(AK) appeared and passed between the pieces.^{(AL) 18} On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram^(AM) and said, “To your descendants I give this land,^(AN) from the Wadi^[e] of Egypt^(AO) to the great river, the Euphrates^(AP)— ¹⁹ the land of the Kenites,^(AQ) Kenizzites, Kadmonites, ²⁰ Hittites,^(AR) Perizzites,^(AS) Rephaites,^{(AT) 21} Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites.”^(AU)

Hagar and Ishmael

16 Now Sarai,^(AV) Abram’s wife, had borne him no children.^(AW) But she had an Egyptian slave^(AX) named Hagar;^{(AY) 2} so she said to Abram, “The Lord has kept me from having children.^(AZ) Go, sleep with my slave; perhaps I can build a family through her.”^(BA)

Abram agreed to what Sarai said. ³ So after Abram had been living in Canaan^(BB) ten years,^(BC) Sarai his wife took her Egyptian slave Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his wife. ⁴ He slept with Hagar,^(BD) and she conceived.

When she knew she was pregnant, she began to despise her mistress.^{(BE) 5} Then Sarai said to Abram, “You are responsible for the wrong I am suffering. I put my slave in your arms, and now that she knows she is pregnant, she despises me. May the Lord judge between you and me.”^(BF)

⁶ “Your slave is in your hands,^(BG)” Abram said. “Do with her whatever you think best.” Then Sarai mistreated^(BH) Hagar; so she fled from her.

⁷ The angel of the Lord^(BI) found Hagar near a spring^(BJ) in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur.^{(BK) 8} And he said, “Hagar,^(BL) slave of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?”^(BM)

“I’m running away from my mistress Sarai,” she answered.

⁹ Then the angel of the Lord told her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her.” ¹⁰ The angel added, “I will increase your descendants so much that they will be too numerous to count.”^(BN)

¹¹ The angel of the Lord^(BO) also said to her:

¹³ She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,^(BV)” for she said, “I have now seen^[h] the One who sees me.”^{(BW) 14} That is why the well^(BX) was called Beer Lahai Roi^[i];^(BY) it is still there, between Kadesh^(BZ) and Bered.

¹⁵ So Hagar^(CA) bore Abram a son,^(CB) and Abram gave the name Ishmael^(CC) to the son she had borne. ¹⁶ Abram was eighty-six years old^(CD) when Hagar bore him Ishmael.

The Covenant of Circumcision

17 When Abram was ninety-nine years old,^(CE) the Lord appeared to him^(CF) and said, “I am God Almighty^[j];^(CG) walk before me faithfully and be blameless.^{(CH) 2} Then I will make my covenant between me and you^(CI) and will greatly increase your numbers.”^(CJ)

³ Abram fell facedown,^(CK) and God said to him, ⁴ “As for me, this is my covenant with you:^(CL) You will be the father of many nations.^{(CM) 5} No longer will you be called Abram^[k]; your name will be Abraham,^[l](CN) for I have made you a father of many nations.^{(CO) 6} I will make you very fruitful;^(CP) I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you.^{(CQ) 7} I will establish my covenant^(CR) as an everlasting covenant^(CS) between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God^(CT) and the God of your descendants after you.^{(CU) 8} The whole land of Canaan,^(CV) where you now reside as a foreigner,^(CW) I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you;^(CX) and I will be their God.^(CY)”

⁹ Then God said to Abraham, “As for you, you must keep my covenant,^(CZ) you and your descendants after you for the generations to come.^{(DA) 10} This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised.^{(DB) 11} You are to undergo circumcision,^(DC) and it will be the sign of the covenant^(DD) between me and you. ¹² For the generations to come^(DE) every male among you who is eight days old must be circumcised,^(DF) including those born in your household or bought with money from a foreigner—those who are not your offspring. ¹³ Whether born in your household or bought with your money, they must be circumcised.^(DG) My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting covenant.^{(DH) 14} Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised^(DI) in the flesh, will be cut off from his people;^(DJ) he has broken my covenant.^(DK)”

¹⁵ God also said to Abraham, “As for Sarai^(DL) your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah.^{(DM) 16} I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her.^(DN) I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations;^(DO) kings of peoples will come from her.”

¹⁷ Abraham fell facedown;^(DP) he laughed^(DQ) and said to himself, “Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old?^(DR) Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?”^{(DS) 18} And Abraham said to God, “If only Ishmael^(DT) might live under your blessing!”^(DU)

¹⁹ Then God said, “Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son,^(DV) and you will call him Isaac.^[m](DW) I will establish my covenant with him^(DX) as an everlasting covenant^(DY) for his descendants after him. ²⁰ And as for Ishmael, I have heard you: I will surely bless him; I will make him fruitful and will greatly increase his numbers.^(DZ) He will be the father of twelve rulers,^(EA) and I will make him into a great nation.^{(EB) 21} But my covenant^(EC) I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you^(ED) by this time next year.”^{(EE) 22} When he had finished speaking with Abraham, God went up from him.^(EF)

²³ On that very day Abraham took his son Ishmael and all those born in his household^(EG) or bought with his money, every male in his household, and circumcised them, as God told him.^{(EH) 24} Abraham was ninety-nine years old^(EI) when he was circumcised,^{(EJ) 25} and his son Ishmael^(EK) was thirteen; ²⁶ Abraham and his son Ishmael were both circumcised on that very day. ²⁷ And every male in Abraham’s household^(EL), including those born in his household or bought from a foreigner, was circumcised with him.

The Birth of Isaac

21 Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah^(A) as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised.^{(B) 2} Sarah became pregnant and bore a son^(C) to Abraham in his old age,^(D) at the very time God had promised him.^{(E) 3} Abraham gave the name Isaac^[a](F) to the son Sarah bore him. ⁴ When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him,^(G) as God commanded him. ⁵ Abraham was a hundred years old^(H) when his son Isaac was born to him.

⁶ Sarah said, “God has brought me laughter,^(I) and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me.” ⁷ And she added, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”^(J)

Hagar and Ishmael Sent Away

⁸ The child grew and was weaned,^(K) and on the day Isaac was weaned Abraham held a great feast. ⁹ But Sarah saw that the son whom Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abraham^(L) was mocking,^{(M) 10} and she said to Abraham, “Get rid of that slave woman^(N) and her son, for that woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac.”^(O)

¹¹ The matter distressed Abraham greatly because it concerned his son.^{(P) 12} But God said to him, “Do not be so distressed about the boy and your slave woman. Listen to whatever Sarah tells you, because it is through Isaac that your offspring^[b] will be reckoned.^{(Q) 13} I will make the son of the slave into a nation^(R) also, because he is your offspring.”

¹⁴ Early the next morning Abraham took some food and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar.^(S) He set them on her shoulders and then sent her off with the boy. She went on her way and wandered in the Desert of Beersheba.^(T)

¹⁵ When the water in the skin was gone, she put the boy under one of the bushes. ¹⁶ Then she went off and sat down about a bowshot away, for she thought, “I cannot watch the boy die.” And as she sat there, she^[c] began to sob.^(U)

¹⁷ God heard the boy crying,^(V) and the angel of God^(W) called to Hagar from heaven^(X) and said to her, “What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid;^(Y) God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. ¹⁸ Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.^(Z)”

¹⁹ Then God opened her eyes^(AA) and she saw a well of water.^(AB) So she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink.

²⁰ God was with the boy^(AC) as he grew up. He lived in the desert and became an archer. ²¹ While he was living in the Desert of Paran,^(AD) his mother got a wife for him^(AE) from Egypt.

The Treaty at Beersheba

²² At that time Abimelek^(AF) and Phicol the commander of his forces^(AG) said to Abraham, “God is with you in everything you do.^{(AH) 23} Now swear^(AI) to me here before God that you will not deal falsely with me or my children or my descendants.^(AJ) Show to me and the country where you now reside as a foreigner the same kindness I have shown to you.”^(AK)

²⁴ Abraham said, “I swear it.”

²⁵ Then Abraham complained to Abimelek about a well of water that Abimelek’s servants had seized.^{(AL) 26} But Abimelek said, “I don’t know who has done this. You did not tell me, and I heard about it only today.”

²⁷ So Abraham brought sheep and cattle and gave them to Abimelek, and the two men made a treaty.^{(AM) 28} Abraham set apart seven ewe lambs from the flock, ²⁹ and Abimelek asked Abraham, “What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs you have set apart by themselves?”

³⁰ He replied, “Accept these seven lambs from my hand as a witness^(AN) that I dug this well.^(AO)”

³¹ So that place was called Beersheba,^[d](AP) because the two men swore an oath^(AQ) there.

³² After the treaty^(AR) had been made at Beersheba,^(AS) Abimelek and Phicol the commander of his forces^(AT) returned to the land of the Philistines.^{(AU) 33} Abraham planted a tamarisk tree^(AV) in Beersheba, and there he called on the name of the Lord,^(AW) the Eternal God.^{(AX) 34} And Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistines^(AY) for a long time.

Abraham Tested

22 Some time later God tested^(AZ) Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!”

“Here I am,”^(BA) he replied.

² Then God said, “Take your son^(BB), your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah.^(BC) Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering^(BD) on a mountain I will show you.^(BE)”

³ Early the next morning^(BF) Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. ⁴ On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. ⁵ He said to his servants, “Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.^(BG)”

⁶ Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac,^(BH) and he himself carried the fire and the knife.^(BI) As the two of them went on together, ⁷ Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, “Father?”

“Yes, my son?” Abraham replied.

“The fire and wood are here,” Isaac said, “but where is the lamb^(BJ) for the burnt offering?”

⁸ Abraham answered, “God himself will provide^(BK) the lamb^(BL) for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together.

⁹ When they reached the place God had told him about,^(BM) Abraham built an altar^(BN) there and arranged the wood^(BO) on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar,^(BP) on top of the wood. ¹⁰ Then he reached out his hand and took the knife^(BQ) to slay his son.^{(BR) 11} But the angel of the Lord^(BS) called out to him from heaven,^(BT) “Abraham! Abraham!”^(BU)

“Here I am,”^(BV) he replied.

¹² “Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God,^(BW) because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.^(BX)”

¹³ Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram^[e] caught by its horns.^(BY) He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son.^{(BZ) 14} So Abraham called^(CA) that place The Lord^(CB) Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.^(CC)”

¹⁵ The angel of the Lord^(CD) called to Abraham from heaven^(CE) a second time ¹⁶ and said, “I swear by myself,^(CF) declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son,^{(CG) 17} I will surely bless you^(CH) and make your descendants^(CI) as numerous as the stars in the sky^(CJ) and as the sand on the seashore.^(CK) Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies,^{(CL) 18} and through your offspring^[f] all nations on earth will be blessed,^[g](CM) because you have obeyed me.”^(CN)

¹⁹ Then Abraham returned to his servants, and they set off together for Beersheba.^(CO) And Abraham stayed in Beersheba.

Nahor’s Sons

²⁰ Some time later Abraham was told, “Milkah is also a mother; she has borne sons to your brother Nahor:^{(CP) 21} Uz^(CQ) the firstborn, Buz^(CR) his brother, Kemuel (the father of Aram), ²² Kesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph and Bethuel.^(CS)” ²³ Bethuel became the father of Rebekah.^(CT) Milkah bore these eight sons to Abraham’s brother Nahor.^{(CU) 24} His concubine,^(CV) whose name was Reumah, also had sons: Tebah, Gaham, Tahash and Maakah.

Jacob Prepares to Meet Esau

32 ^[a]Jacob also went on his way, and the angels of God^(A) met him. ² When Jacob saw them, he said, “This is the camp of God!”^(B) So he named that place Mahanaim.^[b](C)

³ Jacob sent messengers^(D) ahead of him to his brother Esau^(E) in the land of Seir,^(F) the country of Edom.^{(G) 4} He instructed them: “This is what you are to say to my lord^(H) Esau: ‘Your servant^(I) Jacob says, I have been staying with Laban^(J) and have remained there till now. ⁵ I have cattle and donkeys, sheep and goats, male and female servants.^(K) Now I am sending this message to my lord,^(L) that I may find favor in your eyes.^(M)’”

⁶ When the messengers returned to Jacob, they said, “We went to your brother Esau, and now he is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.”^(N)

⁷ In great fear^(O) and distress^(P) Jacob divided the people who were with him into two groups,^[c](Q) and the flocks and herds and camels as well. ⁸ He thought, “If Esau comes and attacks one group,^[d] the group^[e] that is left may escape.”

⁹ Then Jacob prayed, “O God of my father Abraham,^(R) God of my father Isaac,^(S) Lord, you who said to me, ‘Go back to your country and your relatives, and I will make you prosper,’^{(T) 10} I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness^(U) you have shown your servant. I had only my staff^(V) when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two camps.^{(W) 11} Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid^(X) he will come and attack me,^(Y) and also the mothers with their children.^{(Z) 12} But you have said, ‘I will surely make you prosper and will make your descendants like the sand^(AA) of the sea, which cannot be counted.^(AB)’”

¹³ He spent the night there, and from what he had with him he selected a gift^(AC) for his brother Esau: ¹⁴ two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams,^{(AD) 15} thirty female camels with their young, forty cows and ten bulls, and twenty female donkeys and ten male donkeys.^{(AE) 16} He put them in the care of his servants, each herd by itself, and said to his servants, “Go ahead of me, and keep some space between the herds.”^(AF)

¹⁷ He instructed the one in the lead: “When my brother Esau meets you and asks, ‘Who do you belong to, and where are you going, and who owns all these animals in front of you?’ ¹⁸ then you are to say, ‘They belong to your servant^(AG) Jacob. They are a gift^(AH) sent to my lord Esau, and he is coming behind us.’”

¹⁹ He also instructed the second, the third and all the others who followed the herds: “You are to say the same thing to Esau when you meet him. ²⁰ And be sure to say, ‘Your servant^(AI) Jacob is coming behind us.’” For he thought, “I will pacify him with these gifts^(AJ) I am sending on ahead;^(AK) later, when I see him, perhaps he will receive me.”^{(AL) 21} So Jacob’s gifts^(AM) went on ahead of him, but he himself spent the night in the camp.

Jacob Wrestles With God

²² That night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two female servants and his eleven sons^(AN) and crossed the ford of the Jabbok.^{(AO) 23} After he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his possessions.^{(AP) 24} So Jacob was left alone,^(AQ) and a man^(AR) wrestled with him till daybreak. ²⁵ When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip^(AS) so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. ²⁶ Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.”

But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”^(AT)

²⁷ The man asked him, “What is your name?”

“Jacob,”^(AU) he answered.

²⁸ Then the man said, “Your name^(AV) will no longer be Jacob, but Israel,^[f](AW) because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.”^(AX)

²⁹ Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.”^(AY)

But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?”^(AZ) Then he blessed^(BA) him there.

³⁰ So Jacob called the place Peniel,^[g] saying, “It is because I saw God face to face,^(BB) and yet my life was spared.”

³¹ The sun rose above him as he passed Peniel,^[h](BC) and he was limping because of his hip. ³² Therefore to this day the Israelites do not eat the tendon attached to the socket of the hip,^(BD) because the socket of Jacob’s hip was touched near the tendon.

Jacob Meets Esau

33 Jacob looked up and there was Esau, coming with his four hundred men;^(BE) so he divided the children among Leah, Rachel and the two female servants.^{(BF) 2} He put the female servants and their children^(BG) in front, Leah and her children next, and Rachel and Joseph^(BH) in the rear. ³ He himself went on ahead and bowed down to the ground^(BI) seven times^(BJ) as he approached his brother.

⁴ But Esau^(BK) ran to meet Jacob and embraced him; he threw his arms around his neck and kissed him.^(BL) And they wept.^{(BM) 5} Then Esau looked up and saw the women and children. “Who are these with you?” he asked.

Jacob answered, “They are the children God has graciously given your servant.^(BN)”

⁶ Then the female servants and their children^(BO) approached and bowed down.^{(BP) 7} Next, Leah and her children^(BQ) came and bowed down.^(BR) Last of all came Joseph and Rachel,^(BS) and they too bowed down.

⁸ Esau asked, “What’s the meaning of all these flocks and herds I met?”^(BT)

“To find favor in your eyes, my lord,”^(BU) he said.

⁹ But Esau said, “I already have plenty,^(BV) my brother. Keep what you have for yourself.”

¹⁰ “No, please!” said Jacob. “If I have found favor in your eyes,^(BW) accept this gift^(BX) from me. For to see your face is like seeing the face of God,^(BY) now that you have received me favorably.^{(BZ) 11} Please accept the present^(CA) that was brought to you, for God has been gracious to me^(CB) and I have all I need.”^(CC) And because Jacob insisted,^(CD) Esau accepted it.

¹² Then Esau said, “Let us be on our way; I’ll accompany you.”

¹³ But Jacob said to him, “My lord^(CE) knows that the children are tender and that I must care for the ewes and cows that are nursing their young.^(CF) If they are driven hard just one day, all the animals will die. ¹⁴ So let my lord go on ahead of his servant, while I move along slowly at the pace of the flocks and herds^(CG) before me and the pace of the children, until I come to my lord in Seir.^(CH)”

¹⁵ Esau said, “Then let me leave some of my men with you.”

“But why do that?” Jacob asked. “Just let me find favor in the eyes of my lord.”^(CI)

¹⁶ So that day Esau started on his way back to Seir.^{(CJ) 17} Jacob, however, went to Sukkoth,^(CK) where he built a place for himself and made shelters for his livestock. That is why the place is called Sukkoth.^[i]

¹⁸ After Jacob came from Paddan Aram,^[j](CL) he arrived safely at the city of Shechem^(CM) in Canaan and camped within sight of the city. ¹⁹ For a hundred pieces of silver,^[k] he bought from the sons of Hamor,^(CN) the father of Shechem,^(CO) the plot of ground^(CP) where he pitched his tent.^{(CQ) 20} There he set up an altar^(CR) and called it El Elohe Israel.^[l]

Jacob Returns to Bethel

35 Then God said to Jacob, “Go up to Bethel^(A) and settle there, and build an altar^(B) there to God,^(C) who appeared to you^(D) when you were fleeing from your brother Esau.”^(E)

² So Jacob said to his household^(F) and to all who were with him, “Get rid of the foreign gods^(G) you have with you, and purify yourselves and change your clothes.^{(H) 3} Then come, let us go up to Bethel, where I will build an altar to God,^(I) who answered me in the day of my distress^(J) and who has been with me wherever I have gone.^(K)” ⁴ So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods they had and the rings in their ears,^(L) and Jacob buried them under the oak^(M) at Shechem.^{(N) 5} Then they set out, and the terror of God^(O) fell on the towns all around them so that no one pursued them.^(P)

⁶ Jacob and all the people with him came to Luz^(Q) (that is, Bethel) in the land of Canaan.^{(R) 7} There he built an altar,^(S) and he called the place El Bethel,^[a](T) because it was there that God revealed himself to him^(U) when he was fleeing from his brother.^(V)

⁸ Now Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse,^(W) died and was buried under the oak^(X) outside Bethel.^(Y) So it was named Allon Bakuth.^[b]

⁹ After Jacob returned from Paddan Aram,^[c](Z) God appeared to him again and blessed him.^{(AA) 10} God said to him, “Your name is Jacob,^[d] but you will no longer be called Jacob; your name will be Israel.^[e]”^(AB) So he named him Israel.

¹¹ And God said to him, “I am God Almighty^[f];^(AC) be fruitful and increase in number.^(AD) A nation^(AE) and a community of nations will come from you, and kings will be among your descendants.^{(AF) 12} The land I gave to Abraham and Isaac I also give to you, and I will give this land to your descendants after you.^(AG)”^{(AH) 13} Then God went up from him^(AI) at the place where he had talked with him.

¹⁴ Jacob set up a stone pillar^(AJ) at the place where God had talked with him, and he poured out a drink offering^(AK) on it; he also poured oil on it.^{(AL) 15} Jacob called the place where God had talked with him Bethel.^[g](AM)

The Deaths of Rachel and Isaac^(AN)

¹⁶ Then they moved on from Bethel. While they were still some distance from Ephrath,^(AO) Rachel^(AP) began to give birth and had great difficulty. ¹⁷ And as she was having great difficulty in childbirth, the midwife^(AQ) said to her, “Don’t despair, for you have another son.”^{(AR) 18} As she breathed her last—for she was dying—she named her son Ben-Oni.^[h](AS) But his father named him Benjamin.^[i](AT)

¹⁹ So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath^(AU) (that is, Bethlehem^(AV)). ²⁰ Over her tomb Jacob set up a pillar, and to this day^(AW) that pillar marks Rachel’s tomb.^(AX)

²¹ Israel moved on again and pitched his tent beyond Migdal Eder.^{(AY) 22} While Israel was living in that region, Reuben went in and slept with his father’s concubine^(AZ) Bilhah,^(BA) and Israel heard of it.

Jacob had twelve sons:

These were the sons of Jacob,^(BM) who were born to him in Paddan Aram.^(BN)

²⁷ Jacob came home to his father Isaac^(BO) in Mamre,^(BP) near Kiriath Arba^(BQ) (that is, Hebron),^(BR) where Abraham and Isaac had stayed.^{(BS) 28} Isaac lived a hundred and eighty years.^{(BT) 29} Then he breathed his last and died and was gathered to his people,^(BU) old and full of years.^(BV) And his sons Esau and Jacob buried him.^(BW)