Genesis 31-38

New International Version

Jacob Flees From Laban

31 Jacob heard that Laban’s sons^(A) were saying, “Jacob has taken everything our father owned and has gained all this wealth from what belonged to our father.”^{(B) 2} And Jacob noticed that Laban’s attitude toward him was not what it had been.^(C)

³ Then the Lord said to Jacob, “Go back^(D) to the land of your fathers and to your relatives, and I will be with you.”^(E)

⁴ So Jacob sent word to Rachel and Leah to come out to the fields where his flocks were. ⁵ He said to them, “I see that your father’s^(F) attitude toward me is not what it was before,^(G) but the God of my father has been with me.^{(H) 6} You know that I’ve worked for your father with all my strength,^{(I) 7} yet your father has cheated^(J) me by changing my wages^(K) ten times.^(L) However, God has not allowed him to harm me.^{(M) 8} If he said, ‘The speckled ones will be your wages,’ then all the flocks gave birth to speckled young; and if he said, ‘The streaked ones will be your wages,’^(N) then all the flocks bore streaked young. ⁹ So God has taken away your father’s livestock^(O) and has given them to me.^(P)

¹⁰ “In breeding season I once had a dream^(Q) in which I looked up and saw that the male goats mating with the flock were streaked, speckled or spotted. ¹¹ The angel of God^(R) said to me in the dream,^(S) ‘Jacob.’ I answered, ‘Here I am.’^{(T) 12} And he said, ‘Look up and see that all the male goats mating with the flock are streaked, speckled or spotted,^(U) for I have seen all that Laban has been doing to you.^{(V) 13} I am the God of Bethel,^(W) where you anointed a pillar^(X) and where you made a vow^(Y) to me. Now leave this land at once and go back to your native land.^(Z)’”

¹⁴ Then Rachel and Leah replied, “Do we still have any share^(AA) in the inheritance of our father’s estate? ¹⁵ Does he not regard us as foreigners?^(AB) Not only has he sold us, but he has used up what was paid for us.^{(AC) 16} Surely all the wealth that God took away from our father belongs to us and our children.^(AD) So do whatever God has told you.”

¹⁷ Then Jacob put his children and his wives^(AE) on camels,^{(AF) 18} and he drove all his livestock ahead of him, along with all the goods he had accumulated^(AG) in Paddan Aram,^[a](AH) to go to his father Isaac^(AI) in the land of Canaan.^(AJ)

¹⁹ When Laban had gone to shear his sheep,^(AK) Rachel stole her father’s household gods.^{(AL) 20} Moreover, Jacob deceived^(AM) Laban the Aramean^(AN) by not telling him he was running away.^{(AO) 21} So he fled^(AP) with all he had, crossed the Euphrates River,^(AQ) and headed for the hill country of Gilead.^(AR)

Laban Pursues Jacob

²² On the third day^(AS) Laban was told that Jacob had fled.^{(AT) 23} Taking his relatives^(AU) with him^(AV), he pursued Jacob for seven days and caught up with him in the hill country of Gilead.^{(AW) 24} Then God came to Laban the Aramean^(AX) in a dream at night and said to him,^(AY) “Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.”^(AZ)

²⁵ Jacob had pitched his tent in the hill country of Gilead^(BA) when Laban overtook him, and Laban and his relatives camped there too. ²⁶ Then Laban said to Jacob, “What have you done?^(BB) You’ve deceived me,^(BC) and you’ve carried off my daughters like captives in war.^{(BD) 27} Why did you run off secretly and deceive me? Why didn’t you tell me,^(BE) so I could send you away with joy and singing to the music of timbrels^(BF) and harps?^{(BG) 28} You didn’t even let me kiss my grandchildren and my daughters goodbye.^(BH) You have done a foolish thing. ²⁹ I have the power to harm you;^(BI) but last night the God of your father^(BJ) said to me, ‘Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.’^{(BK) 30} Now you have gone off because you longed to return to your father’s household.^(BL) But why did you steal^(BM) my gods?^(BN)”

³¹ Jacob answered Laban, “I was afraid, because I thought you would take your daughters away from me by force.^{(BO) 32} But if you find anyone who has your gods, that person shall not live.^(BP) In the presence of our relatives, see for yourself whether there is anything of yours here with me; and if so, take it.” Now Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen the gods.^(BQ)

³³ So Laban went into Jacob’s tent and into Leah’s tent^(BR) and into the tent of the two female servants,^(BS) but he found nothing.^(BT) After he came out of Leah’s tent, he entered Rachel’s tent. ³⁴ Now Rachel had taken the household gods^(BU) and put them inside her camel’s saddle^(BV) and was sitting on them. Laban searched^(BW) through everything in the tent but found nothing.

³⁵ Rachel said to her father, “Don’t be angry, my lord, that I cannot stand up in your presence;^(BX) I’m having my period.^(BY)” So he searched but could not find the household gods.^(BZ)

³⁶ Jacob was angry and took Laban to task. “What is my crime?” he asked Laban. “How have I wronged^(CA) you that you hunt me down?^{(CB) 37} Now that you have searched through all my goods, what have you found that belongs to your household?^(CC) Put it here in front of your relatives^(CD) and mine, and let them judge between the two of us.^(CE)

³⁸ “I have been with you for twenty years now.^(CF) Your sheep and goats have not miscarried,^(CG) nor have I eaten rams from your flocks. ³⁹ I did not bring you animals torn by wild beasts; I bore the loss myself. And you demanded payment from me for whatever was stolen^(CH) by day or night.^{(CI) 40} This was my situation: The heat consumed me in the daytime and the cold at night, and sleep fled from my eyes.^{(CJ) 41} It was like this for the twenty years^(CK) I was in your household. I worked for you fourteen years for your two daughters^(CL) and six years for your flocks,^(CM) and you changed my wages^(CN) ten times.^{(CO) 42} If the God of my father,^(CP) the God of Abraham^(CQ) and the Fear of Isaac,^(CR) had not been with me,^(CS) you would surely have sent me away empty-handed. But God has seen my hardship and the toil of my hands,^(CT) and last night he rebuked you.^(CU)”

⁴³ Laban answered Jacob, “The women are my daughters, the children are my children, and the flocks are my flocks.^(CV) All you see is mine. Yet what can I do today about these daughters of mine, or about the children they have borne? ⁴⁴ Come now, let’s make a covenant,^(CW) you and I, and let it serve as a witness between us.”^(CX)

⁴⁵ So Jacob took a stone and set it up as a pillar.^{(CY) 46} He said to his relatives, “Gather some stones.” So they took stones and piled them in a heap,^(CZ) and they ate there by the heap. ⁴⁷ Laban called it Jegar Sahadutha, and Jacob called it Galeed.^[b](DA)

⁴⁸ Laban said, “This heap^(DB) is a witness between you and me today.”^(DC) That is why it was called Galeed. ⁴⁹ It was also called Mizpah,^[c](DD) because he said, “May the Lord keep watch between you and me when we are away from each other. ⁵⁰ If you mistreat^(DE) my daughters or if you take any wives besides my daughters, even though no one is with us, remember that God is a witness^(DF) between you and me.”^(DG)

⁵¹ Laban also said to Jacob, “Here is this heap,^(DH) and here is this pillar^(DI) I have set up between you and me. ⁵² This heap is a witness, and this pillar is a witness,^(DJ) that I will not go past this heap to your side to harm you and that you will not go past this heap^(DK) and pillar to my side to harm me.^{(DL) 53} May the God of Abraham^(DM) and the God of Nahor,^(DN) the God of their father, judge between us.”^(DO)

So Jacob took an oath^(DP) in the name of the Fear of his father Isaac.^{(DQ) 54} He offered a sacrifice^(DR) there in the hill country and invited his relatives to a meal.^(DS) After they had eaten, they spent the night there.

⁵⁵ Early the next morning Laban kissed his grandchildren and his daughters^(DT) and blessed^(DU) them. Then he left and returned home.^[d](DV)

Jacob Prepares to Meet Esau

32 ^[e]Jacob also went on his way, and the angels of God^(DW) met him. ² When Jacob saw them, he said, “This is the camp of God!”^(DX) So he named that place Mahanaim.^[f](DY)

³ Jacob sent messengers^(DZ) ahead of him to his brother Esau^(EA) in the land of Seir,^(EB) the country of Edom.^{(EC) 4} He instructed them: “This is what you are to say to my lord^(ED) Esau: ‘Your servant^(EE) Jacob says, I have been staying with Laban^(EF) and have remained there till now. ⁵ I have cattle and donkeys, sheep and goats, male and female servants.^(EG) Now I am sending this message to my lord,^(EH) that I may find favor in your eyes.^(EI)’”

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.”^(EJ)

⁷ In great fear^(EK) and distress^(EL) Jacob divided the people who were with him into two groups,^[g](EM) and the flocks and herds and camels as well. ⁸ He thought, “If Esau comes and attacks one group,^[h] the group^[i] that is left may escape.”

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

¹³ He spent the night there, and from what he had with him he selected a gift^(EY) for his brother Esau: ¹⁴ two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams,^{(EZ) 15} thirty female camels with their young, forty cows and ten bulls, and twenty female donkeys and ten male donkeys.^{(FA) 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.”^(FB)

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^(FC) Jacob. They are a gift^(FD) 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^(FE) Jacob is coming behind us.’” For he thought, “I will pacify him with these gifts^(FF) I am sending on ahead;^(FG) later, when I see him, perhaps he will receive me.”^{(FH) 21} So Jacob’s gifts^(FI) 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^(FJ) and crossed the ford of the Jabbok.^{(FK) 23} After he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his possessions.^{(FL) 24} So Jacob was left alone,^(FM) and a man^(FN) wrestled with him till daybreak. ²⁵ When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip^(FO) 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.”^(FP)

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

“Jacob,”^(FQ) he answered.

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

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

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

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

³¹ The sun rose above him as he passed Peniel,^[l](FY) 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,^(FZ) 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;^(GA) so he divided the children among Leah, Rachel and the two female servants.^{(GB) 2} He put the female servants and their children^(GC) in front, Leah and her children next, and Rachel and Joseph^(GD) in the rear. ³ He himself went on ahead and bowed down to the ground^(GE) seven times^(GF) as he approached his brother.

⁴ But Esau^(GG) ran to meet Jacob and embraced him; he threw his arms around his neck and kissed him.^(GH) And they wept.^{(GI) 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.^(GJ)”

⁶ Then the female servants and their children^(GK) approached and bowed down.^{(GL) 7} Next, Leah and her children^(GM) came and bowed down.^(GN) Last of all came Joseph and Rachel,^(GO) and they too bowed down.

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

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

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

¹⁰ “No, please!” said Jacob. “If I have found favor in your eyes,^(GS) accept this gift^(GT) from me. For to see your face is like seeing the face of God,^(GU) now that you have received me favorably.^{(GV) 11} Please accept the present^(GW) that was brought to you, for God has been gracious to me^(GX) and I have all I need.”^(GY) And because Jacob insisted,^(GZ) 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^(HA) knows that the children are tender and that I must care for the ewes and cows that are nursing their young.^(HB) 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^(HC) before me and the pace of the children, until I come to my lord in Seir.^(HD)”

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.”^(HE)

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

¹⁸ After Jacob came from Paddan Aram,^[n](HH) he arrived safely at the city of Shechem^(HI) in Canaan and camped within sight of the city. ¹⁹ For a hundred pieces of silver,^[o] he bought from the sons of Hamor,^(HJ) the father of Shechem,^(HK) the plot of ground^(HL) where he pitched his tent.^{(HM) 20} There he set up an altar^(HN) and called it El Elohe Israel.^[p]

Dinah and the Shechemites

34 Now Dinah,^(HO) the daughter Leah had borne to Jacob, went out to visit the women of the land. ² When Shechem^(HP) son of Hamor^(HQ) the Hivite,^(HR) the ruler of that area, saw her, he took her and raped her.^{(HS) 3} His heart was drawn to Dinah^(HT) daughter of Jacob;^(HU) he loved^(HV) the young woman and spoke tenderly^(HW) to her. ⁴ And Shechem said to his father Hamor, “Get me this girl as my wife.”^(HX)

⁵ When Jacob heard that his daughter Dinah had been defiled,^(HY) his sons were in the fields with his livestock; so he did nothing about it until they came home.

⁶ Then Shechem’s father Hamor went out to talk with Jacob.^{(HZ) 7} Meanwhile, Jacob’s sons had come in from the fields as soon as they heard what had happened. They were shocked^(IA) and furious,^(IB) because Shechem had done an outrageous thing in^[q] Israel^(IC) by sleeping with Jacob’s daughter—a thing that should not be done.^(ID)

⁸ But Hamor said to them, “My son Shechem has his heart set on your daughter. Please give her to him as his wife.^{(IE) 9} Intermarry with us; give us your daughters and take our daughters for yourselves.^{(IF) 10} You can settle among us;^(IG) the land is open to you.^(IH) Live in it, trade^[r] in it,^(II) and acquire property in it.^(IJ)”

¹¹ Then Shechem said to Dinah’s father and brothers, “Let me find favor in your eyes,^(IK) and I will give you whatever you ask. ¹² Make the price for the bride^(IL) and the gift I am to bring as great as you like, and I’ll pay whatever you ask me. Only give me the young woman as my wife.”

¹³ Because their sister Dinah had been defiled,^(IM) Jacob’s sons replied deceitfully^(IN) as they spoke to Shechem and his father Hamor. ¹⁴ They said to them, “We can’t do such a thing; we can’t give our sister to a man who is not circumcised.^(IO) That would be a disgrace to us. ¹⁵ We will enter into an agreement with you on one condition^(IP) only: that you become like us by circumcising all your males.^{(IQ) 16} Then we will give you our daughters and take your daughters for ourselves.^(IR) We’ll settle among you and become one people with you.^{(IS) 17} But if you will not agree to be circumcised, we’ll take our sister and go.”

¹⁸ Their proposal seemed good to Hamor and his son Shechem. ¹⁹ The young man, who was the most honored^(IT) of all his father’s family, lost no time in doing what they said, because he was delighted with Jacob’s daughter.^{(IU) 20} So Hamor and his son Shechem went to the gate of their city^(IV) to speak to the men of their city. ²¹ “These men are friendly toward us,” they said. “Let them live in our land and trade in it;^(IW) the land has plenty of room for them. We can marry their daughters and they can marry ours.^{(IX) 22} But the men will agree to live with us as one people only on the condition that our males be circumcised,^(IY) as they themselves are. ²³ Won’t their livestock, their property and all their other animals become ours?^(IZ) So let us agree to their terms, and they will settle among us.^(JA)”

²⁴ All the men who went out of the city gate^(JB) agreed with Hamor and his son Shechem, and every male in the city was circumcised.

²⁵ Three days later, while all of them were still in pain,^(JC) two of Jacob’s sons, Simeon^(JD) and Levi,^(JE) Dinah’s brothers, took their swords^(JF) and attacked the unsuspecting city,^(JG) killing every male.^{(JH) 26} They put Hamor and his son Shechem to the sword^(JI) and took Dinah^(JJ) from Shechem’s house and left. ²⁷ The sons of Jacob came upon the dead bodies and looted the city^(JK) where^[s] their sister had been defiled.^{(JL) 28} They seized their flocks and herds and donkeys^(JM) and everything else of theirs in the city and out in the fields.^{(JN) 29} They carried off all their wealth and all their women and children,^(JO) taking as plunder^(JP) everything in the houses.^(JQ)

³⁰ Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, “You have brought trouble^(JR) on me by making me obnoxious^(JS) to the Canaanites and Perizzites, the people living in this land.^(JT) We are few in number,^(JU) and if they join forces against me and attack me, I and my household will be destroyed.”

³¹ But they replied, “Should he have treated our sister like a prostitute?^(JV)”

Jacob Returns to Bethel

35 Then God said to Jacob, “Go up to Bethel^(JW) and settle there, and build an altar^(JX) there to God,^(JY) who appeared to you^(JZ) when you were fleeing from your brother Esau.”^(KA)

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

⁶ Jacob and all the people with him came to Luz^(KM) (that is, Bethel) in the land of Canaan.^{(KN) 7} There he built an altar,^(KO) and he called the place El Bethel,^[t](KP) because it was there that God revealed himself to him^(KQ) when he was fleeing from his brother.^(KR)

⁸ Now Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse,^(KS) died and was buried under the oak^(KT) outside Bethel.^(KU) So it was named Allon Bakuth.^[u]

⁹ After Jacob returned from Paddan Aram,^[v](KV) God appeared to him again and blessed him.^{(KW) 10} God said to him, “Your name is Jacob,^[w] but you will no longer be called Jacob; your name will be Israel.^[x]”^(KX) So he named him Israel.

¹¹ And God said to him, “I am God Almighty^[y];^(KY) be fruitful and increase in number.^(KZ) A nation^(LA) and a community of nations will come from you, and kings will be among your descendants.^{(LB) 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.^(LC)”^{(LD) 13} Then God went up from him^(LE) at the place where he had talked with him.

¹⁴ Jacob set up a stone pillar^(LF) at the place where God had talked with him, and he poured out a drink offering^(LG) on it; he also poured oil on it.^{(LH) 15} Jacob called the place where God had talked with him Bethel.^[z](LI)

The Deaths of Rachel and Isaac^(LJ)

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

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

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

Jacob had twelve sons:

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

²⁷ Jacob came home to his father Isaac^(MK) in Mamre,^(ML) near Kiriath Arba^(MM) (that is, Hebron),^(MN) where Abraham and Isaac had stayed.^{(MO) 28} Isaac lived a hundred and eighty years.^{(MP) 29} Then he breathed his last and died and was gathered to his people,^(MQ) old and full of years.^(MR) And his sons Esau and Jacob buried him.^(MS)

Esau’s Descendants^(MT)(MU)

36 This is the account^(MV) of the family line of Esau (that is, Edom).^(MW)

⁹ This is the account^(NM) of the family line of Esau the father of the Edomites^(NN) in the hill country of Seir.

¹⁵ These were the chiefs^(NY) among Esau’s descendants:

¹⁹ These were the sons of Esau^(OI) (that is, Edom),^(OJ) and these were their chiefs.^(OK)

²⁰ These were the sons of Seir the Horite,^(OL) who were living in the region:

The Rulers of Edom^(OV)

³¹ These were the kings who reigned in Edom before any Israelite king^(OW) reigned:

⁴⁰ These were the chiefs^(PC) descended from Esau, by name, according to their clans and regions:

This is the family line of Esau, the father of the Edomites.^(PD)

Joseph’s Dreams

37 Jacob lived in the land where his father had stayed,^(PE) the land of Canaan.^(PF)

² This is the account^(PG) of Jacob’s family line.

Joseph,^(PH) a young man of seventeen,^(PI) was tending the flocks^(PJ) with his brothers, the sons of Bilhah^(PK) and the sons of Zilpah,^(PL) his father’s wives, and he brought their father a bad report^(PM) about them.

³ Now Israel^(PN) loved Joseph more than any of his other sons,^(PO) because he had been born to him in his old age;^(PP) and he made an ornate^[ah] robe^(PQ) for him.^{(PR) 4} When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him^(PS) and could not speak a kind word to him.

⁵ Joseph had a dream,^(PT) and when he told it to his brothers,^(PU) they hated him all the more.^{(PV) 6} He said to them, “Listen to this dream I had: ⁷ We were binding sheaves^(PW) of grain out in the field when suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright, while your sheaves gathered around mine and bowed down to it.”^(PX)

⁸ His brothers said to him, “Do you intend to reign over us? Will you actually rule us?”^(PY) And they hated him all the more^(PZ) because of his dream and what he had said.

⁹ Then he had another dream,^(QA) and he told it to his brothers. “Listen,” he said, “I had another dream, and this time the sun and moon and eleven stars^(QB) were bowing down to me.”^(QC)

¹⁰ When he told his father as well as his brothers,^(QD) his father rebuked^(QE) him and said, “What is this dream you had? Will your mother and I and your brothers actually come and bow down to the ground before you?”^{(QF) 11} His brothers were jealous of him,^(QG) but his father kept the matter in mind.^(QH)

Joseph Sold by His Brothers

¹² Now his brothers had gone to graze their father’s flocks near Shechem,^{(QI) 13} and Israel^(QJ) said to Joseph, “As you know, your brothers are grazing the flocks near Shechem.^(QK) Come, I am going to send you to them.”

“Very well,” he replied.

¹⁴ So he said to him, “Go and see if all is well with your brothers^(QL) and with the flocks, and bring word back to me.” Then he sent him off from the Valley of Hebron.^(QM)

When Joseph arrived at Shechem, ¹⁵ a man found him wandering around in the fields and asked him, “What are you looking for?”

¹⁶ He replied, “I’m looking for my brothers. Can you tell me where they are grazing their flocks?”

¹⁷ “They have moved on from here,” the man answered. “I heard them say, ‘Let’s go to Dothan.^(QN)’”

So Joseph went after his brothers and found them near Dothan. ¹⁸ But they saw him in the distance, and before he reached them, they plotted to kill him.^(QO)

¹⁹ “Here comes that dreamer!^(QP)” they said to each other. ²⁰ “Come now, let’s kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns^(QQ) and say that a ferocious animal^(QR) devoured him.^(QS) Then we’ll see what comes of his dreams.”^(QT)

²¹ When Reuben^(QU) heard this, he tried to rescue him from their hands. “Let’s not take his life,” he said.^{(QV) 22} “Don’t shed any blood. Throw him into this cistern^(QW) here in the wilderness, but don’t lay a hand on him.” Reuben said this to rescue him from them and take him back to his father.^(QX)

²³ So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe—the ornate robe^(QY) he was wearing— ²⁴ and they took him and threw him into the cistern.^(QZ) The cistern was empty; there was no water in it.

²⁵ As they sat down to eat their meal, they looked up and saw a caravan of Ishmaelites^(RA) coming from Gilead.^(RB) Their camels were loaded with spices, balm^(RC) and myrrh,^(RD) and they were on their way to take them down to Egypt.^(RE)

²⁶ Judah^(RF) said to his brothers, “What will we gain if we kill our brother and cover up his blood?^{(RG) 27} Come, let’s sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him; after all, he is our brother,^(RH) our own flesh and blood.^(RI)” His brothers agreed.

²⁸ So when the Midianite^(RJ) merchants came by, his brothers pulled Joseph up out of the cistern^(RK) and sold^(RL) him for twenty shekels^[ai] of silver^(RM) to the Ishmaelites,^(RN) who took him to Egypt.^(RO)

²⁹ When Reuben returned to the cistern and saw that Joseph was not there, he tore his clothes.^{(RP) 30} He went back to his brothers and said, “The boy isn’t there! Where can I turn now?”^(RQ)

³¹ Then they got Joseph’s robe,^(RR) slaughtered a goat and dipped the robe in the blood.^{(RS) 32} They took the ornate robe^(RT) back to their father and said, “We found this. Examine it to see whether it is your son’s robe.”

³³ He recognized it and said, “It is my son’s robe! Some ferocious animal^(RU) has devoured him. Joseph has surely been torn to pieces.”^(RV)

³⁴ Then Jacob tore his clothes,^(RW) put on sackcloth^(RX) and mourned for his son many days.^{(RY) 35} All his sons and daughters came to comfort him,^(RZ) but he refused to be comforted.^(SA) “No,” he said, “I will continue to mourn until I join my son^(SB) in the grave.^(SC)” So his father wept for him.

³⁶ Meanwhile, the Midianites^[aj](SD) sold Joseph^(SE) in Egypt to Potiphar, one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard.^(SF)

Judah and Tamar

38 At that time, Judah^(SG) left his brothers and went down to stay with a man of Adullam^(SH) named Hirah.^{(SI) 2} There Judah met the daughter of a Canaanite man named Shua.^(SJ) He married her and made love to her; ³ she became pregnant and gave birth to a son, who was named Er.^{(SK) 4} She conceived again and gave birth to a son and named him Onan.^(SL)