Genesis 31:1-21
New American Standard Bible
Jacob Leaves Secretly for Canaan
31 Now [a]Jacob heard the words of Laban’s sons, saying, “Jacob has taken away all that was our father’s, and from what belonged to our father he has made all this [b]wealth.” 2 And Jacob saw the [c]attitude of Laban, and behold, it was not friendly toward him as it had been before. 3 Then the Lord said to Jacob, “(A)Return to the land of your fathers and to your relatives, and (B)I will be with you.” 4 So Jacob sent word and called Rachel and Leah to his flock in the field, 5 and said to them, “(C)I see your father’s [d]attitude, that it is not friendly toward me as it was before, but (D)the God of my father has been with me. 6 (E)You know that I have served your father with all my strength. 7 Yet your father has (F)cheated me and (G)changed my wages ten times; however, (H)God did not allow him to do me harm. 8 If (I)he said this: ‘The speckled shall be your wages,’ then all the flock delivered speckled; and if he said this: ‘The striped shall be your wages,’ then all the flock delivered striped. 9 So God has (J)taken away your father’s livestock and given them to me. 10 And it came about at the time when the flock was breeding that I raised my eyes and saw in a dream—and behold—the male goats that were [e]mating were striped, speckled, or mottled. 11 Then (K)the angel of God said to me in the dream, ‘Jacob’; and I said, ‘Here I am.’ 12 He said, ‘Now raise your eyes and see that all the male goats that are [f]mating are striped, speckled, or mottled; for (L)I have seen everything that Laban has been doing to you. 13 I am (M)the God of Bethel, where you (N)anointed a memorial stone, where you made a vow to Me; now arise, [g]leave this land, and (O)return to the land of your birth.’” 14 Rachel and Leah said to him, “Do we still have any share or inheritance in our father’s house? 15 Are we not regarded by him as foreigners? For (P)he has sold us, and has also [h]entirely consumed our [i]purchase price. 16 Surely all the wealth which God has taken away from our father belongs to us and our children; now then, do whatever God has told you.”
17 Then Jacob stood up and put his children and his wives on camels; 18 and he drove away all his livestock and all his property which he had acquired, the livestock he possessed which he had acquired in Paddan-aram, (Q)to go to the land of Canaan to his father Isaac. 19 Laban had gone to shear his flock, and Rachel stole the [j](R)household idols that were her father’s. 20 And Jacob [k]deceived Laban the Aramean by not telling him that he was fleeing. 21 So he fled with all that he had; and he got up and crossed the Euphrates River, and set [l]out for the hill country of (S)Gilead.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Genesis 31:1 Lit he
- Genesis 31:1 Lit glory
- Genesis 31:2 Lit face
- Genesis 31:5 Lit face
- Genesis 31:10 Lit leaping upon the flock
- Genesis 31:12 Lit leaping upon the flock
- Genesis 31:13 Lit Go out from
- Genesis 31:15 I.e., enjoyed the benefit of
- Genesis 31:15 Lit money
- Genesis 31:19 Heb teraphim
- Genesis 31:20 Lit stole the heart of
- Genesis 31:21 Lit his face
Genesis 31:1-21
New Living Translation
Jacob Flees from Laban
31 But Jacob soon learned that Laban’s sons were grumbling about him. “Jacob has robbed our father of everything!” they said. “He has gained all his wealth at our father’s expense.” 2 And Jacob began to notice a change in Laban’s attitude toward him.
3 Then the Lord said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your father and grandfather and to your relatives there, and I will be with you.”
4 So Jacob called Rachel and Leah out to the field where he was watching his flock. 5 He said to them, “I have noticed that your father’s attitude toward me has changed. But the God of my father has been with me. 6 You know how hard I have worked for your father, 7 but he has cheated me, changing my wages ten times. But God has not allowed him to do me any harm. 8 For if he said, ‘The speckled animals will be your wages,’ the whole flock began to produce speckled young. And when he changed his mind and said, ‘The striped animals will be your wages,’ then the whole flock produced striped young. 9 In this way, God has taken your father’s animals and given them to me.
10 “One time during the mating season, I had a dream and saw that the male goats mating with the females were streaked, speckled, and spotted. 11 Then in my dream, the angel of God said to me, ‘Jacob!’ And I replied, ‘Yes, here I am.’
12 “The angel said, ‘Look up, and you will see that only the streaked, speckled, and spotted males are mating with the females of your flock. For I have seen how Laban has treated you. 13 I am the God who appeared to you at Bethel,[a] the place where you anointed the pillar of stone and made your vow to me. Now get ready and leave this country and return to the land of your birth.’”
14 Rachel and Leah responded, “That’s fine with us! We won’t inherit any of our father’s wealth anyway. 15 He has reduced our rights to those of foreign women. And after he sold us, he wasted the money you paid him for us. 16 All the wealth God has given you from our father legally belongs to us and our children. So go ahead and do whatever God has told you.”
17 So Jacob put his wives and children on camels, 18 and he drove all his livestock in front of him. He packed all the belongings he had acquired in Paddan-aram and set out for the land of Canaan, where his father, Isaac, lived. 19 At the time they left, Laban was some distance away, shearing his sheep. Rachel stole her father’s household idols and took them with her. 20 Jacob outwitted Laban the Aramean, for they set out secretly and never told Laban they were leaving. 21 So Jacob took all his possessions with him and crossed the Euphrates River,[b] heading for the hill country of Gilead.
Read full chapterNew American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
