20 And Abraham journeyed from thence toward the south country, and dwelled between Kadesh and Shur, and sojourned in Gerar.

And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, She is my sister: and Abimelech king of Gerar sent, and took Sarah.

But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, Behold, thou art but a dead man, for the woman which thou hast taken; for she is a man's wife.

But Abimelech had not come near her: and he said, Lord, wilt thou slay also a righteous nation?

Said he not unto me, She is my sister? and she, even she herself said, He is my brother: in the integrity of my heart and innocency of my hands have I done this.

And God said unto him in a dream, Yea, I know that thou didst this in the integrity of thy heart; for I also withheld thee from sinning against me: therefore suffered I thee not to touch her.

Now therefore restore the man his wife; for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for thee, and thou shalt live: and if thou restore her not, know thou that thou shalt surely die, thou, and all that are thine.

Therefore Abimelech rose early in the morning, and called all his servants, and told all these things in their ears: and the men were sore afraid.

Then Abimelech called Abraham, and said unto him, What hast thou done unto us? and what have I offended thee, that thou hast brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? thou hast done deeds unto me that ought not to be done.

10 And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What sawest thou, that thou hast done this thing?

11 And Abraham said, Because I thought, Surely the fear of God is not in this place; and they will slay me for my wife's sake.

12 And yet indeed she is my sister; she is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife.

13 And it came to pass, when God caused me to wander from my father's house, that I said unto her, This is thy kindness which thou shalt shew unto me; at every place whither we shall come, say of me, He is my brother.

14 And Abimelech took sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and womenservants, and gave them unto Abraham, and restored him Sarah his wife.

15 And Abimelech said, Behold, my land is before thee: dwell where it pleaseth thee.

16 And unto Sarah he said, Behold, I have given thy brother a thousand pieces of silver: behold, he is to thee a covering of the eyes, unto all that are with thee, and with all other: thus she was reproved.

17 So Abraham prayed unto God: and God healed Abimelech, and his wife, and his maidservants; and they bare children.

18 For the Lord had fast closed up all the wombs of the house of Abimelech, because of Sarah Abraham's wife.

21 And the Lord visited Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did unto Sarah as he had spoken.

For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.

And Abraham called the name of his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah bare to him, Isaac.

And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac being eight days old, as God had commanded him.

And Abraham was an hundred years old, when his son Isaac was born unto him.

And Sarah said, God hath made me to laugh, so that all that hear will laugh with me.

And she said, Who would have said unto Abraham, that Sarah should have given children suck? for I have born him a son in his old age.

And the child grew, and was weaned: and Abraham made a great feast the same day that Isaac was weaned.

And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, which she had born unto Abraham, mocking.

10 Wherefore she said unto Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac.

11 And the thing was very grievous in Abraham's sight because of his son.

12 And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called.

13 And also of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is thy seed.

14 And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle of water, and gave it unto Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child, and sent her away: and she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba.

15 And the water was spent in the bottle, and she cast the child under one of the shrubs.

16 And she went, and sat her down over against him a good way off, as it were a bow shot: for she said, Let me not see the death of the child. And she sat over against him, and lift up her voice, and wept.

17 And God heard the voice of the lad; and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said unto her, What aileth thee, Hagar? fear not; for God hath heard the voice of the lad where he is.

18 Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him in thine hand; for I will make him a great nation.

19 And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and gave the lad drink.

20 And God was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer.

21 And he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran: and his mother took him a wife out of the land of Egypt.

22 And it came to pass at that time, that Abimelech and Phichol the chief captain of his host spake unto Abraham, saying, God is with thee in all that thou doest:

23 Now therefore swear unto me here by God that thou wilt not deal falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my son's son: but according to the kindness that I have done unto thee, thou shalt do unto me, and to the land wherein thou hast sojourned.

24 And Abraham said, I will swear.

25 And Abraham reproved Abimelech because of a well of water, which Abimelech's servants had violently taken away.

26 And Abimelech said, I wot not who hath done this thing; neither didst thou tell me, neither yet heard I of it, but to day.

27 And Abraham took sheep and oxen, and gave them unto Abimelech; and both of them made a covenant.

28 And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves.

29 And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What mean these seven ewe lambs which thou hast set by themselves?

30 And he said, For these seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that they may be a witness unto me, that I have digged this well.

31 Wherefore he called that place Beersheba; because there they sware both of them.

32 Thus they made a covenant at Beersheba: then Abimelech rose up, and Phichol the chief captain of his host, and they returned into the land of the Philistines.

33 And Abraham planted a grove in Beersheba, and called there on the name of the Lord, the everlasting God.

34 And Abraham sojourned in the Philistines' land many days.

22 And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am.

And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.

And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him.

Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off.

And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you.

And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together.

And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?

And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.

And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood.

10 And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son.

11 And the angel of the Lord called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I.

12 And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me.

13 And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son.

14 And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovahjireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen.

15 And the angel of the Lord called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time,

16 And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son:

17 That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies;

18 And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.

19 So Abraham returned unto his young men, and they rose up and went together to Beersheba; and Abraham dwelt at Beersheba.

20 And it came to pass after these things, that it was told Abraham, saying, Behold, Milcah, she hath also born children unto thy brother Nahor;

21 Huz his firstborn, and Buz his brother, and Kemuel the father of Aram,

22 And Chesed, and Hazo, and Pildash, and Jidlaph, and Bethuel.

23 And Bethuel begat Rebekah: these eight Milcah did bear to Nahor, Abraham's brother.

24 And his concubine, whose name was Reumah, she bare also Tebah, and Gaham, and Thahash, and Maachah.

23 And Sarah was an hundred and seven and twenty years old: these were the years of the life of Sarah.

And Sarah died in Kirjatharba; the same is Hebron in the land of Canaan: and Abraham came to mourn for Sarah, and to weep for her.

And Abraham stood up from before his dead, and spake unto the sons of Heth, saying,

I am a stranger and a sojourner with you: give me a possession of a buryingplace with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.

And the children of Heth answered Abraham, saying unto him,

Hear us, my lord: thou art a mighty prince among us: in the choice of our sepulchres bury thy dead; none of us shall withhold from thee his sepulchre, but that thou mayest bury thy dead.

And Abraham stood up, and bowed himself to the people of the land, even to the children of Heth.

And he communed with them, saying, If it be your mind that I should bury my dead out of my sight; hear me, and intreat for me to Ephron the son of Zohar,

That he may give me the cave of Machpelah, which he hath, which is in the end of his field; for as much money as it is worth he shall give it me for a possession of a buryingplace amongst you.

10 And Ephron dwelt among the children of Heth: and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the audience of the children of Heth, even of all that went in at the gate of his city, saying,

11 Nay, my lord, hear me: the field give I thee, and the cave that is therein, I give it thee; in the presence of the sons of my people give I it thee: bury thy dead.

12 And Abraham bowed down himself before the people of the land.

13 And he spake unto Ephron in the audience of the people of the land, saying, But if thou wilt give it, I pray thee, hear me: I will give thee money for the field; take it of me, and I will bury my dead there.

14 And Ephron answered Abraham, saying unto him,

15 My lord, hearken unto me: the land is worth four hundred shekels of silver; what is that betwixt me and thee? bury therefore thy dead.

16 And Abraham hearkened unto Ephron; and Abraham weighed to Ephron the silver, which he had named in the audience of the sons of Heth, four hundred shekels of silver, current money with the merchant.

17 And the field of Ephron which was in Machpelah, which was before Mamre, the field, and the cave which was therein, and all the trees that were in the field, that were in all the borders round about, were made sure

18 Unto Abraham for a possession in the presence of the children of Heth, before all that went in at the gate of his city.

19 And after this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah before Mamre: the same is Hebron in the land of Canaan.

20 And the field, and the cave that is therein, were made sure unto Abraham for a possession of a buryingplace by the sons of Heth.

24 And Abraham was old, and well stricken in age: and the Lord had blessed Abraham in all things.

And Abraham said unto his eldest servant of his house, that ruled over all that he had, Put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh:

And I will make thee swear by the Lord, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell:

But thou shalt go unto my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son Isaac.

And the servant said unto him, Peradventure the woman will not be willing to follow me unto this land: must I needs bring thy son again unto the land from whence thou camest?

And Abraham said unto him, Beware thou that thou bring not my son thither again.

The Lord God of heaven, which took me from my father's house, and from the land of my kindred, and which spake unto me, and that sware unto me, saying, Unto thy seed will I give this land; he shall send his angel before thee, and thou shalt take a wife unto my son from thence.

And if the woman will not be willing to follow thee, then thou shalt be clear from this my oath: only bring not my son thither again.

And the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master, and sware to him concerning that matter.

10 And the servant took ten camels of the camels of his master, and departed; for all the goods of his master were in his hand: and he arose, and went to Mesopotamia, unto the city of Nahor.

11 And he made his camels to kneel down without the city by a well of water at the time of the evening, even the time that women go out to draw water.

12 And he said O Lord God of my master Abraham, I pray thee, send me good speed this day, and shew kindness unto my master Abraham.

13 Behold, I stand here by the well of water; and the daughters of the men of the city come out to draw water:

14 And let it come to pass, that the damsel to whom I shall say, Let down thy pitcher, I pray thee, that I may drink; and she shall say, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also: let the same be she that thou hast appointed for thy servant Isaac; and thereby shall I know that thou hast shewed kindness unto my master.

15 And it came to pass, before he had done speaking, that, behold, Rebekah came out, who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham's brother, with her pitcher upon her shoulder.

16 And the damsel was very fair to look upon, a virgin, neither had any man known her: and she went down to the well, and filled her pitcher, and came up.

17 And the servant ran to meet her, and said, Let me, I pray thee, drink a little water of thy pitcher.

18 And she said, Drink, my lord: and she hasted, and let down her pitcher upon her hand, and gave him drink.

19 And when she had done giving him drink, she said, I will draw water for thy camels also, until they have done drinking.

20 And she hasted, and emptied her pitcher into the trough, and ran again unto the well to draw water, and drew for all his camels.

21 And the man wondering at her held his peace, to wit whether the Lord had made his journey prosperous or not.

22 And it came to pass, as the camels had done drinking, that the man took a golden earring of half a shekel weight, and two bracelets for her hands of ten shekels weight of gold;

23 And said, Whose daughter art thou? tell me, I pray thee: is there room in thy father's house for us to lodge in?

24 And she said unto him, I am the daughter of Bethuel the son of Milcah, which she bare unto Nahor.

25 She said moreover unto him, We have both straw and provender enough, and room to lodge in.

26 And the man bowed down his head, and worshipped the Lord.

27 And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of my master Abraham, who hath not left destitute my master of his mercy and his truth: I being in the way, the Lord led me to the house of my master's brethren.

28 And the damsel ran, and told them of her mother's house these things.

29 And Rebekah had a brother, and his name was Laban: and Laban ran out unto the man, unto the well.

30 And it came to pass, when he saw the earring and bracelets upon his sister's hands, and when he heard the words of Rebekah his sister, saying, Thus spake the man unto me; that he came unto the man; and, behold, he stood by the camels at the well.

31 And he said, Come in, thou blessed of the Lord; wherefore standest thou without? for I have prepared the house, and room for the camels.

32 And the man came into the house: and he ungirded his camels, and gave straw and provender for the camels, and water to wash his feet, and the men's feet that were with him.

33 And there was set meat before him to eat: but he said, I will not eat, until I have told mine errand. And he said, Speak on.

34 And he said, I am Abraham's servant.

35 And the Lord hath blessed my master greatly; and he is become great: and he hath given him flocks, and herds, and silver, and gold, and menservants, and maidservants, and camels, and asses.

36 And Sarah my master's wife bare a son to my master when she was old: and unto him hath he given all that he hath.

37 And my master made me swear, saying, Thou shalt not take a wife to my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I dwell:

38 But thou shalt go unto my father's house, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son.

39 And I said unto my master, Peradventure the woman will not follow me.

40 And he said unto me, The Lord, before whom I walk, will send his angel with thee, and prosper thy way; and thou shalt take a wife for my son of my kindred, and of my father's house:

41 Then shalt thou be clear from this my oath, when thou comest to my kindred; and if they give not thee one, thou shalt be clear from my oath.

42 And I came this day unto the well, and said, O Lord God of my master Abraham, if now thou do prosper my way which I go:

43 Behold, I stand by the well of water; and it shall come to pass, that when the virgin cometh forth to draw water, and I say to her, Give me, I pray thee, a little water of thy pitcher to drink;

44 And she say to me, Both drink thou, and I will also draw for thy camels: let the same be the woman whom the Lord hath appointed out for my master's son.

45 And before I had done speaking in mine heart, behold, Rebekah came forth with her pitcher on her shoulder; and she went down unto the well, and drew water: and I said unto her, Let me drink, I pray thee.

46 And she made haste, and let down her pitcher from her shoulder, and said, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also: so I drank, and she made the camels drink also.

47 And I asked her, and said, Whose daughter art thou? And she said, the daughter of Bethuel, Nahor's son, whom Milcah bare unto him: and I put the earring upon her face, and the bracelets upon her hands.

48 And I bowed down my head, and worshipped the Lord, and blessed the Lord God of my master Abraham, which had led me in the right way to take my master's brother's daughter unto his son.

49 And now if ye will deal kindly and truly with my master, tell me: and if not, tell me; that I may turn to the right hand, or to the left.

50 Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, The thing proceedeth from the Lord: we cannot speak unto thee bad or good.

51 Behold, Rebekah is before thee, take her, and go, and let her be thy master's son's wife, as the Lord hath spoken.

52 And it came to pass, that, when Abraham's servant heard their words, he worshipped the Lord, bowing himself to the earth.

53 And the servant brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment, and gave them to Rebekah: he gave also to her brother and to her mother precious things.

54 And they did eat and drink, he and the men that were with him, and tarried all night; and they rose up in the morning, and he said, Send me away unto my master.

55 And her brother and her mother said, Let the damsel abide with us a few days, at the least ten; after that she shall go.

56 And he said unto them, Hinder me not, seeing the Lord hath prospered my way; send me away that I may go to my master.

57 And they said, We will call the damsel, and enquire at her mouth.

58 And they called Rebekah, and said unto her, Wilt thou go with this man? And she said, I will go.

59 And they sent away Rebekah their sister, and her nurse, and Abraham's servant, and his men.

60 And they blessed Rebekah, and said unto her, Thou art our sister, be thou the mother of thousands of millions, and let thy seed possess the gate of those which hate them.

61 And Rebekah arose, and her damsels, and they rode upon the camels, and followed the man: and the servant took Rebekah, and went his way.

62 And Isaac came from the way of the well Lahairoi; for he dwelt in the south country.

63 And Isaac went out to meditate in the field at the eventide: and he lifted up his eyes, and saw, and, behold, the camels were coming.

64 And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she lighted off the camel.

65 For she had said unto the servant, What man is this that walketh in the field to meet us? And the servant had said, It is my master: therefore she took a vail, and covered herself.

66 And the servant told Isaac all things that he had done.

67 And Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah's tent, and took Rebekah, and she became his wife; and he loved her: and Isaac was comforted after his mother's death.

25 Then again Abraham took a wife, and her name was Keturah.

And she bare him Zimran, and Jokshan, and Medan, and Midian, and Ishbak, and Shuah.

And Jokshan begat Sheba, and Dedan. And the sons of Dedan were Asshurim, and Letushim, and Leummim.

And the sons of Midian; Ephah, and Epher, and Hanoch, and Abidah, and Eldaah. All these were the children of Keturah.

And Abraham gave all that he had unto Isaac.

But unto the sons of the concubines, which Abraham had, Abraham gave gifts, and sent them away from Isaac his son, while he yet lived, eastward, unto the east country.

And these are the days of the years of Abraham's life which he lived, an hundred threescore and fifteen years.

Then Abraham gave up the ghost, and died in a good old age, an old man, and full of years; and was gathered to his people.

And his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah, in the field of Ephron the son of Zohar the Hittite, which is before Mamre;

10 The field which Abraham purchased of the sons of Heth: there was Abraham buried, and Sarah his wife.

11 And it came to pass after the death of Abraham, that God blessed his son Isaac; and Isaac dwelt by the well Lahairoi.

12 Now these are the generations of Ishmael, Abraham's son, whom Hagar the Egyptian, Sarah's handmaid, bare unto Abraham:

13 And these are the names of the sons of Ishmael, by their names, according to their generations: the firstborn of Ishmael, Nebajoth; and Kedar, and Adbeel, and Mibsam,

14 And Mishma, and Dumah, and Massa,

15 Hadar, and Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah:

16 These are the sons of Ishmael, and these are their names, by their towns, and by their castles; twelve princes according to their nations.

17 And these are the years of the life of Ishmael, an hundred and thirty and seven years: and he gave up the ghost and died; and was gathered unto his people.

18 And they dwelt from Havilah unto Shur, that is before Egypt, as thou goest toward Assyria: and he died in the presence of all his brethren.

19 And these are the generations of Isaac, Abraham's son: Abraham begat Isaac:

20 And Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah to wife, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Padanaram, the sister to Laban the Syrian.

21 And Isaac intreated the Lord for his wife, because she was barren: and the Lord was intreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived.

22 And the children struggled together within her; and she said, If it be so, why am I thus? And she went to enquire of the Lord.

23 And the Lord said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger.

24 And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb.

25 And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau.

26 And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called Jacob: and Isaac was threescore years old when she bare them.

27 And the boys grew: and Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of the field; and Jacob was a plain man, dwelling in tents.

28 And Isaac loved Esau, because he did eat of his venison: but Rebekah loved Jacob.

29 And Jacob sod pottage: and Esau came from the field, and he was faint:

30 And Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage; for I am faint: therefore was his name called Edom.

31 And Jacob said, Sell me this day thy birthright.

32 And Esau said, Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me?

33 And Jacob said, Swear to me this day; and he sware unto him: and he sold his birthright unto Jacob.

34 Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentiles; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: thus Esau despised his birthright.

26 And there was a famine in the land, beside the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went unto Abimelech king of the Philistines unto Gerar.

And the Lord appeared unto him, and said, Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of:

Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father;

And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed;

Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.

And Isaac dwelt in Gerar:

And the men of the place asked him of his wife; and he said, She is my sister: for he feared to say, She is my wife; lest, said he, the men of the place should kill me for Rebekah; because she was fair to look upon.

And it came to pass, when he had been there a long time, that Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out at a window, and saw, and, behold, Isaac was sporting with Rebekah his wife.

And Abimelech called Isaac, and said, Behold, of a surety she is thy wife; and how saidst thou, She is my sister? And Isaac said unto him, Because I said, Lest I die for her.

10 And Abimelech said, What is this thou hast done unto us? one of the people might lightly have lien with thy wife, and thou shouldest have brought guiltiness upon us.

11 And Abimelech charged all his people, saying, He that toucheth this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.

12 Then Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year an hundredfold: and the Lord blessed him.

13 And the man waxed great, and went forward, and grew until he became very great:

14 For he had possession of flocks, and possession of herds, and great store of servants: and the Philistines envied him.

15 For all the wells which his father's servants had digged in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped them, and filled them with earth.

16 And Abimelech said unto Isaac, Go from us; for thou art much mightier than we.

17 And Isaac departed thence, and pitched his tent in the valley of Gerar, and dwelt there.

18 And Isaac digged again the wells of water, which they had digged in the days of Abraham his father; for the Philistines had stopped them after the death of Abraham: and he called their names after the names by which his father had called them.

19 And Isaac's servants digged in the valley, and found there a well of springing water.

20 And the herdmen of Gerar did strive with Isaac's herdmen, saying, The water is ours: and he called the name of the well Esek; because they strove with him.

21 And they digged another well, and strove for that also: and he called the name of it Sitnah.

22 And he removed from thence, and digged another well; and for that they strove not: and he called the name of it Rehoboth; and he said, For now the Lord hath made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.

23 And he went up from thence to Beersheba.

24 And the Lord appeared unto him the same night, and said, I am the God of Abraham thy father: fear not, for I am with thee, and will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for my servant Abraham's sake.

25 And he builded an altar there, and called upon the name of the Lord, and pitched his tent there: and there Isaac's servants digged a well.

26 Then Abimelech went to him from Gerar, and Ahuzzath one of his friends, and Phichol the chief captain of his army.

27 And Isaac said unto them, Wherefore come ye to me, seeing ye hate me, and have sent me away from you?

28 And they said, We saw certainly that the Lord was with thee: and we said, Let there be now an oath betwixt us, even betwixt us and thee, and let us make a covenant with thee;

29 That thou wilt do us no hurt, as we have not touched thee, and as we have done unto thee nothing but good, and have sent thee away in peace: thou art now the blessed of the Lord.

30 And he made them a feast, and they did eat and drink.

31 And they rose up betimes in the morning, and sware one to another: and Isaac sent them away, and they departed from him in peace.

32 And it came to pass the same day, that Isaac's servants came, and told him concerning the well which they had digged, and said unto him, We have found water.

33 And he called it Shebah: therefore the name of the city is Beersheba unto this day.

34 And Esau was forty years old when he took to wife Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Bashemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite:

35 Which were a grief of mind unto Isaac and to Rebekah.

27 And it came to pass, that when Isaac was old, and his eyes were dim, so that he could not see, he called Esau his eldest son, and said unto him, My son: and he said unto him, Behold, here am I.

And he said, Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death:

Now therefore take, I pray thee, thy weapons, thy quiver and thy bow, and go out to the field, and take me some venison;

And make me savoury meat, such as I love, and bring it to me, that I may eat; that my soul may bless thee before I die.

And Rebekah heard when Isaac spake to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to hunt for venison, and to bring it.

And Rebekah spake unto Jacob her son, saying, Behold, I heard thy father speak unto Esau thy brother, saying,

Bring me venison, and make me savoury meat, that I may eat, and bless thee before the Lord before my death.

Now therefore, my son, obey my voice according to that which I command thee.

Go now to the flock, and fetch me from thence two good kids of the goats; and I will make them savoury meat for thy father, such as he loveth:

10 And thou shalt bring it to thy father, that he may eat, and that he may bless thee before his death.

11 And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, Behold, Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man:

12 My father peradventure will feel me, and I shall seem to him as a deceiver; and I shall bring a curse upon me, and not a blessing.

13 And his mother said unto him, Upon me be thy curse, my son: only obey my voice, and go fetch me them.

14 And he went, and fetched, and brought them to his mother: and his mother made savoury meat, such as his father loved.

15 And Rebekah took goodly raiment of her eldest son Esau, which were with her in the house, and put them upon Jacob her younger son:

16 And she put the skins of the kids of the goats upon his hands, and upon the smooth of his neck:

17 And she gave the savoury meat and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob.

18 And he came unto his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I; who art thou, my son?

19 And Jacob said unto his father, I am Esau thy first born; I have done according as thou badest me: arise, I pray thee, sit and eat of my venison, that thy soul may bless me.

20 And Isaac said unto his son, How is it that thou hast found it so quickly, my son? And he said, Because the Lord thy God brought it to me.

21 And Isaac said unto Jacob, Come near, I pray thee, that I may feel thee, my son, whether thou be my very son Esau or not.

22 And Jacob went near unto Isaac his father; and he felt him, and said, The voice is Jacob's voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau.

23 And he discerned him not, because his hands were hairy, as his brother Esau's hands: so he blessed him.

24 And he said, Art thou my very son Esau? And he said, I am.

25 And he said, Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son's venison, that my soul may bless thee. And he brought it near to him, and he did eat: and he brought him wine and he drank.

26 And his father Isaac said unto him, Come near now, and kiss me, my son.

27 And he came near, and kissed him: and he smelled the smell of his raiment, and blessed him, and said, See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field which the Lord hath blessed:

28 Therefore God give thee of the dew of heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and plenty of corn and wine:

29 Let people serve thee, and nations bow down to thee: be lord over thy brethren, and let thy mother's sons bow down to thee: cursed be every one that curseth thee, and blessed be he that blesseth thee.

30 And it came to pass, as soon as Isaac had made an end of blessing Jacob, and Jacob was yet scarce gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunting.

31 And he also had made savoury meat, and brought it unto his father, and said unto his father, Let my father arise, and eat of his son's venison, that thy soul may bless me.

32 And Isaac his father said unto him, Who art thou? And he said, I am thy son, thy firstborn Esau.

33 And Isaac trembled very exceedingly, and said, Who? where is he that hath taken venison, and brought it me, and I have eaten of all before thou camest, and have blessed him? yea, and he shall be blessed.

34 And when Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with a great and exceeding bitter cry, and said unto his father, Bless me, even me also, O my father.

35 And he said, Thy brother came with subtilty, and hath taken away thy blessing.

36 And he said, Is not he rightly named Jacob? for he hath supplanted me these two times: he took away my birthright; and, behold, now he hath taken away my blessing. And he said, Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me?

37 And Isaac answered and said unto Esau, Behold, I have made him thy lord, and all his brethren have I given to him for servants; and with corn and wine have I sustained him: and what shall I do now unto thee, my son?

38 And Esau said unto his father, Hast thou but one blessing, my father? bless me, even me also, O my father. And Esau lifted up his voice, and wept.

39 And Isaac his father answered and said unto him, Behold, thy dwelling shall be the fatness of the earth, and of the dew of heaven from above;

40 And by thy sword shalt thou live, and shalt serve thy brother; and it shall come to pass when thou shalt have the dominion, that thou shalt break his yoke from off thy neck.

41 And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing wherewith his father blessed him: and Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob.

42 And these words of Esau her elder son were told to Rebekah: and she sent and called Jacob her younger son, and said unto him, Behold, thy brother Esau, as touching thee, doth comfort himself, purposing to kill thee.

43 Now therefore, my son, obey my voice; arise, flee thou to Laban my brother to Haran;

44 And tarry with him a few days, until thy brother's fury turn away;

45 Until thy brother's anger turn away from thee, and he forget that which thou hast done to him: then I will send, and fetch thee from thence: why should I be deprived also of you both in one day?

46 And Rebekah said to Isaac, I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth: if Jacob take a wife of the daughters of Heth, such as these which are of the daughters of the land, what good shall my life do me?

28 And Isaac called Jacob, and blessed him, and charged him, and said unto him, Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan.

Arise, go to Padanaram, to the house of Bethuel thy mother's father; and take thee a wife from thence of the daughers of Laban thy mother's brother.

And God Almighty bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a multitude of people;

And give thee the blessing of Abraham, to thee, and to thy seed with thee; that thou mayest inherit the land wherein thou art a stranger, which God gave unto Abraham.

And Isaac sent away Jacob: and he went to Padanaram unto Laban, son of Bethuel the Syrian, the brother of Rebekah, Jacob's and Esau's mother.

When Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob, and sent him away to Padanaram, to take him a wife from thence; and that as he blessed him he gave him a charge, saying, Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughers of Canaan;

And that Jacob obeyed his father and his mother, and was gone to Padanaram;

And Esau seeing that the daughters of Canaan pleased not Isaac his father;

Then went Esau unto Ishmael, and took unto the wives which he had Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael Abraham's son, the sister of Nebajoth, to be his wife.

10 And Jacob went out from Beersheba, and went toward Haran.

11 And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in that place to sleep.

12 And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it.

13 And, behold, the Lord stood above it, and said, I am the Lord God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed;

14 And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.

15 And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.

16 And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the Lord is in this place; and I knew it not.

17 And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.

18 And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it.

19 And he called the name of that place Bethel: but the name of that city was called Luz at the first.

20 And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on,

21 So that I come again to my father's house in peace; then shall the Lord be my God:

22 And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God's house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.

29 Then Jacob went on his journey, and came into the land of the people of the east.

And he looked, and behold a well in the field, and, lo, there were three flocks of sheep lying by it; for out of that well they watered the flocks: and a great stone was upon the well's mouth.

And thither were all the flocks gathered: and they rolled the stone from the well's mouth, and watered the sheep, and put the stone again upon the well's mouth in his place.

And Jacob said unto them, My brethren, whence be ye? And they said, Of Haran are we.

And he said unto them, Know ye Laban the son of Nahor? And they said, We know him.

And he said unto them, Is he well? And they said, He is well: and, behold, Rachel his daughter cometh with the sheep.

And he said, Lo, it is yet high day, neither is it time that the cattle should be gathered together: water ye the sheep, and go and feed them.

And they said, We cannot, until all the flocks be gathered together, and till they roll the stone from the well's mouth; then we water the sheep.

And while he yet spake with them, Rachel came with her father's sheep; for she kept them.

10 And it came to pass, when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother's brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother's brother, that Jacob went near, and rolled the stone from the well's mouth, and watered the flock of Laban his mother's brother.

11 And Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice, and wept.

12 And Jacob told Rachel that he was her father's brother, and that he was Rebekah's son: and she ran and told her father.

13 And it came to pass, when Laban heard the tidings of Jacob his sister's son, that he ran to meet him, and embraced him, and kissed him, and brought him to his house. And he told Laban all these things.

14 And Laban said to him, Surely thou art my bone and my flesh. And he abode with him the space of a month.

15 And Laban said unto Jacob, Because thou art my brother, shouldest thou therefore serve me for nought? tell me, what shall thy wages be?

16 And Laban had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel.

17 Leah was tender eyed; but Rachel was beautiful and well favoured.

18 And Jacob loved Rachel; and said, I will serve thee seven years for Rachel thy younger daughter.

19 And Laban said, It is better that I give her to thee, than that I should give her to another man: abide with me.

20 And Jacob served seven years for Rachel; and they seemed unto him but a few days, for the love he had to her.

21 And Jacob said unto Laban, Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in unto her.

22 And Laban gathered together all the men of the place, and made a feast.

23 And it came to pass in the evening, that he took Leah his daughter, and brought her to him; and he went in unto her.

24 And Laban gave unto his daughter Leah Zilpah his maid for an handmaid.

25 And it came to pass, that in the morning, behold, it was Leah: and he said to Laban, What is this thou hast done unto me? did not I serve with thee for Rachel? wherefore then hast thou beguiled me?

26 And Laban said, It must not be so done in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn.

27 Fulfil her week, and we will give thee this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years.

28 And Jacob did so, and fulfilled her week: and he gave him Rachel his daughter to wife also.

29 And Laban gave to Rachel his daughter Bilhah his handmaid to be her maid.

30 And he went in also unto Rachel, and he loved also Rachel more than Leah, and served with him yet seven other years.

31 And when the Lord saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb: but Rachel was barren.

32 And Leah conceived, and bare a son, and she called his name Reuben: for she said, Surely the Lord hath looked upon my affliction; now therefore my husband will love me.

33 And she conceived again, and bare a son; and said, Because the Lord hath heard I was hated, he hath therefore given me this son also: and she called his name Simeon.

34 And she conceived again, and bare a son; and said, Now this time will my husband be joined unto me, because I have born him three sons: therefore was his name called Levi.

35 And she conceived again, and bare a son: and she said, Now will I praise the Lord: therefore she called his name Judah; and left bearing.

30 And when Rachel saw that she bare Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister; and said unto Jacob, Give me children, or else I die.

And Jacob's anger was kindled against Rachel: and he said, Am I in God's stead, who hath withheld from thee the fruit of the womb?

And she said, Behold my maid Bilhah, go in unto her; and she shall bear upon my knees, that I may also have children by her.

And she gave him Bilhah her handmaid to wife: and Jacob went in unto her.

And Bilhah conceived, and bare Jacob a son.

And Rachel said, God hath judged me, and hath also heard my voice, and hath given me a son: therefore called she his name Dan.

And Bilhah Rachel's maid conceived again, and bare Jacob a second son.

And Rachel said, With great wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and I have prevailed: and she called his name Naphtali.

When Leah saw that she had left bearing, she took Zilpah her maid, and gave her Jacob to wife.

10 And Zilpah Leah's maid bare Jacob a son.

11 And Leah said, A troop cometh: and she called his name Gad.

12 And Zilpah Leah's maid bare Jacob a second son.

13 And Leah said, Happy am I, for the daughters will call me blessed: and she called his name Asher.

14 And Reuben went in the days of wheat harvest, and found mandrakes in the field, and brought them unto his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, Give me, I pray thee, of thy son's mandrakes.

15 And she said unto her, Is it a small matter that thou hast taken my husband? and wouldest thou take away my son's mandrakes also? And Rachel said, Therefore he shall lie with thee to night for thy son's mandrakes.

16 And Jacob came out of the field in the evening, and Leah went out to meet him, and said, Thou must come in unto me; for surely I have hired thee with my son's mandrakes. And he lay with her that night.

17 And God hearkened unto Leah, and she conceived, and bare Jacob the fifth son.

18 And Leah said, God hath given me my hire, because I have given my maiden to my husband: and she called his name Issachar.

19 And Leah conceived again, and bare Jacob the sixth son.

20 And Leah said, God hath endued me with a good dowry; now will my husband dwell with me, because I have born him six sons: and she called his name Zebulun.

21 And afterwards she bare a daughter, and called her name Dinah.

22 And God remembered Rachel, and God hearkened to her, and opened her womb.

23 And she conceived, and bare a son; and said, God hath taken away my reproach:

24 And she called his name Joseph; and said, The Lord shall add to me another son.

25 And it came to pass, when Rachel had born Joseph, that Jacob said unto Laban, Send me away, that I may go unto mine own place, and to my country.

26 Give me my wives and my children, for whom I have served thee, and let me go: for thou knowest my service which I have done thee.

27 And Laban said unto him, I pray thee, if I have found favour in thine eyes, tarry: for I have learned by experience that the Lord hath blessed me for thy sake.

28 And he said, Appoint me thy wages, and I will give it.

29 And he said unto him, Thou knowest how I have served thee, and how thy cattle was with me.

30 For it was little which thou hadst before I came, and it is now increased unto a multitude; and the Lord hath blessed thee since my coming: and now when shall I provide for mine own house also?

31 And he said, What shall I give thee? And Jacob said, Thou shalt not give me any thing: if thou wilt do this thing for me, I will again feed and keep thy flock.

32 I will pass through all thy flock to day, removing from thence all the speckled and spotted cattle, and all the brown cattle among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats: and of such shall be my hire.

33 So shall my righteousness answer for me in time to come, when it shall come for my hire before thy face: every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and brown among the sheep, that shall be counted stolen with me.

34 And Laban said, Behold, I would it might be according to thy word.

35 And he removed that day the he goats that were ringstraked and spotted, and all the she goats that were speckled and spotted, and every one that had some white in it, and all the brown among the sheep, and gave them into the hand of his sons.

36 And he set three days' journey betwixt himself and Jacob: and Jacob fed the rest of Laban's flocks.

37 And Jacob took him rods of green poplar, and of the hazel and chesnut tree; and pilled white strakes in them, and made the white appear which was in the rods.

38 And he set the rods which he had pilled before the flocks in the gutters in the watering troughs when the flocks came to drink, that they should conceive when they came to drink.

39 And the flocks conceived before the rods, and brought forth cattle ringstraked, speckled, and spotted.

40 And Jacob did separate the lambs, and set the faces of the flocks toward the ringstraked, and all the brown in the flock of Laban; and he put his own flocks by themselves, and put them not unto Laban's cattle.

41 And it came to pass, whensoever the stronger cattle did conceive, that Jacob laid the rods before the eyes of the cattle in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods.

42 But when the cattle were feeble, he put them not in: so the feebler were Laban's, and the stronger Jacob's.

43 And the man increased exceedingly, and had much cattle, and maidservants, and menservants, and camels, and asses.

31 And he heard the words of Laban's sons, saying, Jacob hath taken away all that was our father's; and of that which was our father's hath he gotten all this glory.

And Jacob beheld the countenance of Laban, and, behold, it was not toward him as before.

And the Lord said unto Jacob, Return unto the land of thy fathers, and to thy kindred; and I will be with thee.

And Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah to the field unto his flock,

And said unto them, I see your father's countenance, that it is not toward me as before; but the God of my father hath been with me.

And ye know that with all my power I have served your father.

And your father hath deceived me, and changed my wages ten times; but God suffered him not to hurt me.

If he said thus, The speckled shall be thy wages; then all the cattle bare speckled: and if he said thus, The ringstraked shall be thy hire; then bare all the cattle ringstraked.

Thus God hath taken away the cattle of your father, and given them to me.

10 And it came to pass at the time that the cattle conceived, that I lifted up mine eyes, and saw in a dream, and, behold, the rams which leaped upon the cattle were ringstraked, speckled, and grisled.

11 And the angel of God spake unto me in a dream, saying, Jacob: And I said, Here am I.

12 And he said, Lift up now thine eyes, and see, all the rams which leap upon the cattle are ringstraked, speckled, and grisled: for I have seen all that Laban doeth unto thee.

13 I am the God of Bethel, where thou anointedst the pillar, and where thou vowedst a vow unto me: now arise, get thee out from this land, and return unto the land of thy kindred.

14 And Rachel and Leah answered and said unto him, Is there yet any portion or inheritance for us in our father's house?

15 Are we not counted of him strangers? for he hath sold us, and hath quite devoured also our money.

16 For all the riches which God hath taken from our father, that is ours, and our children's: now then, whatsoever God hath said unto thee, do.

17 Then Jacob rose up, and set his sons and his wives upon camels;

18 And he carried away all his cattle, and all his goods which he had gotten, the cattle of his getting, which he had gotten in Padanaram, for to go to Isaac his father in the land of Canaan.

19 And Laban went to shear his sheep: and Rachel had stolen the images that were her father's.

20 And Jacob stole away unawares to Laban the Syrian, in that he told him not that he fled.

21 So he fled with all that he had; and he rose up, and passed over the river, and set his face toward the mount Gilead.

22 And it was told Laban on the third day that Jacob was fled.

23 And he took his brethren with him, and pursued after him seven days' journey; and they overtook him in the mount Gilead.

24 And God came to Laban the Syrian in a dream by night, and said unto him, Take heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad.

25 Then Laban overtook Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the mount: and Laban with his brethren pitched in the mount of Gilead.

26 And Laban said to Jacob, What hast thou done, that thou hast stolen away unawares to me, and carried away my daughters, as captives taken with the sword?

27 Wherefore didst thou flee away secretly, and steal away from me; and didst not tell me, that I might have sent thee away with mirth, and with songs, with tabret, and with harp?

28 And hast not suffered me to kiss my sons and my daughters? thou hast now done foolishly in so doing.

29 It is in the power of my hand to do you hurt: but the God of your father spake unto me yesternight, saying, Take thou heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad.

30 And now, though thou wouldest needs be gone, because thou sore longedst after thy father's house, yet wherefore hast thou stolen my gods?

31 And Jacob answered and said to Laban, Because I was afraid: for I said, Peradventure thou wouldest take by force thy daughters from me.

32 With whomsoever thou findest thy gods, let him not live: before our brethren discern thou what is thine with me, and take it to thee. For Jacob knew not that Rachel had stolen them.

33 And Laban went into Jacob's tent, and into Leah's tent, and into the two maidservants' tents; but he found them not. Then went he out of Leah's tent, and entered into Rachel's tent.

34 Now Rachel had taken the images, and put them in the camel's furniture, and sat upon them. And Laban searched all the tent, but found them not.

35 And she said to her father, Let it not displease my lord that I cannot rise up before thee; for the custom of women is upon me. And he searched but found not the images.

36 And Jacob was wroth, and chode with Laban: and Jacob answered and said to Laban, What is my trespass? what is my sin, that thou hast so hotly pursued after me?

37 Whereas thou hast searched all my stuff, what hast thou found of all thy household stuff? set it here before my brethren and thy brethren, that they may judge betwixt us both.

38 This twenty years have I been with thee; thy ewes and thy she goats have not cast their young, and the rams of thy flock have I not eaten.

39 That which was torn of beasts I brought not unto thee; I bare the loss of it; of my hand didst thou require it, whether stolen by day, or stolen by night.

40 Thus I was; in the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night; and my sleep departed from mine eyes.

41 Thus have I been twenty years in thy house; I served thee fourteen years for thy two daughters, and six years for thy cattle: and thou hast changed my wages ten times.

42 Except the God of my father, the God of Abraham, and the fear of Isaac, had been with me, surely thou hadst sent me away now empty. God hath seen mine affliction and the labour of my hands, and rebuked thee yesternight.

43 And Laban answered and said unto Jacob, These daughters are my daughters, and these children are my children, and these cattle are my cattle, and all that thou seest is mine: and what can I do this day unto these my daughters, or unto their children which they have born?

44 Now therefore come thou, let us make a covenant, I and thou; and let it be for a witness between me and thee.

45 And Jacob took a stone, and set it up for a pillar.

46 And Jacob said unto his brethren, Gather stones; and they took stones, and made an heap: and they did eat there upon the heap.

47 And Laban called it Jegarsahadutha: but Jacob called it Galeed.

48 And Laban said, This heap is a witness between me and thee this day. Therefore was the name of it called Galeed;

49 And Mizpah; for he said, The Lord watch between me and thee, when we are absent one from another.

50 If thou shalt afflict my daughters, or if thou shalt take other wives beside my daughters, no man is with us; see, God is witness betwixt me and thee.

51 And Laban said to Jacob, Behold this heap, and behold this pillar, which I have cast betwixt me and thee:

52 This heap be witness, and this pillar be witness, that I will not pass over this heap to thee, and that thou shalt not pass over this heap and this pillar unto me, for harm.

53 The God of Abraham, and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge betwixt us. And Jacob sware by the fear of his father Isaac.

54 Then Jacob offered sacrifice upon the mount, and called his brethren to eat bread: and they did eat bread, and tarried all night in the mount.

55 And early in the morning Laban rose up, and kissed his sons and his daughters, and blessed them: and Laban departed, and returned unto his place.

32 And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him.

And when Jacob saw them, he said, This is God's host: and he called the name of that place Mahanaim.

And Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother unto the land of Seir, the country of Edom.

And he commanded them, saying, Thus shall ye speak unto my lord Esau; Thy servant Jacob saith thus, I have sojourned with Laban, and stayed there until now:

And I have oxen, and asses, flocks, and menservants, and womenservants: and I have sent to tell my lord, that I may find grace in thy sight.

And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, We came to thy brother Esau, and also he cometh to meet thee, and four hundred men with him.

Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed: and he divided the people that was with him, and the flocks, and herds, and the camels, into two bands;

And said, If Esau come to the one company, and smite it, then the other company which is left shall escape.

And Jacob said, O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, the Lord which saidst unto me, Return unto thy country, and to thy kindred, and I will deal well with thee:

10 I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which thou hast shewed unto thy servant; for with my staff I passed over this Jordan; and now I am become two bands.

11 Deliver me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau: for I fear him, lest he will come and smite me, and the mother with the children.

12 And thou saidst, I will surely do thee good, and make thy seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.

13 And he lodged there that same night; and took of that which came to his hand a present for Esau his brother;

14 Two hundred she goats, and twenty he goats, two hundred ewes, and twenty rams,

15 Thirty milch camels with their colts, forty kine, and ten bulls, twenty she asses, and ten foals.

16 And he delivered them into the hand of his servants, every drove by themselves; and said unto his servants, Pass over before me, and put a space betwixt drove and drove.

17 And he commanded the foremost, saying, When Esau my brother meeteth thee, and asketh thee, saying, Whose art thou? and whither goest thou? and whose are these before thee?

18 Then thou shalt say, They be thy servant Jacob's; it is a present sent unto my lord Esau: and, behold, also he is behind us.

19 And so commanded he the second, and the third, and all that followed the droves, saying, On this manner shall ye speak unto Esau, when ye find him.

20 And say ye moreover, Behold, thy servant Jacob is behind us. For he said, I will appease him with the present that goeth before me, and afterward I will see his face; peradventure he will accept of me.

21 So went the present over before him: and himself lodged that night in the company.

22 And he rose up that night, and took his two wives, and his two womenservants, and his eleven sons, and passed over the ford Jabbok.

23 And he took them, and sent them over the brook, and sent over that he had.

24 And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.

25 And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob's thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him.

26 And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me.

27 And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob.

28 And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.

29 And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there.

30 And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.

31 And as he passed over Penuel the sun rose upon him, and he halted upon his thigh.

32 Therefore the children of Israel eat not of the sinew which shrank, which is upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day: because he touched the hollow of Jacob's thigh in the sinew that shrank.

33 And Jacob lifted up his eyes, and looked, and, behold, Esau came, and with him four hundred men. And he divided the children unto Leah, and unto Rachel, and unto the two handmaids.

And he put the handmaids and their children foremost, and Leah and her children after, and Rachel and Joseph hindermost.

And he passed over before them, and bowed himself to the ground seven times, until he came near to his brother.

And Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck, and kissed him: and they wept.

And he lifted up his eyes, and saw the women and the children; and said, Who are those with thee? And he said, The children which God hath graciously given thy servant.

Then the handmaidens came near, they and their children, and they bowed themselves.

And Leah also with her children came near, and bowed themselves: and after came Joseph near and Rachel, and they bowed themselves.

And he said, What meanest thou by all this drove which I met? And he said, These are to find grace in the sight of my lord.

And Esau said, I have enough, my brother; keep that thou hast unto thyself.

10 And Jacob said, Nay, I pray thee, if now I have found grace in thy sight, then receive my present at my hand: for therefore I have seen thy face, as though I had seen the face of God, and thou wast pleased with me.

11 Take, I pray thee, my blessing that is brought to thee; because God hath dealt graciously with me, and because I have enough. And he urged him, and he took it.

12 And he said, Let us take our journey, and let us go, and I will go before thee.

13 And he said unto him, My lord knoweth that the children are tender, and the flocks and herds with young are with me: and if men should overdrive them one day, all the flock will die.

14 Let my lord, I pray thee, pass over before his servant: and I will lead on softly, according as the cattle that goeth before me and the children be able to endure, until I come unto my lord unto Seir.

15 And Esau said, Let me now leave with thee some of the folk that are with me. And he said, What needeth it? let me find grace in the sight of my lord.

16 So Esau returned that day on his way unto Seir.

17 And Jacob journeyed to Succoth, and built him an house, and made booths for his cattle: therefore the name of the place is called Succoth.

18 And Jacob came to Shalem, a city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan, when he came from Padanaram; and pitched his tent before the city.

19 And he bought a parcel of a field, where he had spread his tent, at the hand of the children of Hamor, Shechem's father, for an hundred pieces of money.

20 And he erected there an altar, and called it EleloheIsrael.

34 And Dinah the daughter of Leah, which she bare unto Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land.

And when Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, prince of the country, saw her, he took her, and lay with her, and defiled her.

And his soul clave unto Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the damsel, and spake kindly unto the damsel.

And Shechem spake unto his father Hamor, saying, Get me this damsel to wife.

And Jacob heard that he had defiled Dinah his daughter: now his sons were with his cattle in the field: and Jacob held his peace until they were come.

And Hamor the father of Shechem went out unto Jacob to commune with him.

And the sons of Jacob came out of the field when they heard it: and the men were grieved, and they were very wroth, because he had wrought folly in Israel in lying with Jacob's daughter: which thing ought not to be done.

And Hamor communed with them, saying, The soul of my son Shechem longeth for your daughter: I pray you give her him to wife.

And make ye marriages with us, and give your daughters unto us, and take our daughters unto you.

10 And ye shall dwell with us: and the land shall be before you; dwell and trade ye therein, and get you possessions therein.

11 And Shechem said unto her father and unto her brethren, Let me find grace in your eyes, and what ye shall say unto me I will give.

12 Ask me never so much dowry and gift, and I will give according as ye shall say unto me: but give me the damsel to wife.

13 And the sons of Jacob answered Shechem and Hamor his father deceitfully, and said, because he had defiled Dinah their sister:

14 And they said unto them, We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one that is uncircumcised; for that were a reproach unto us:

15 But in this will we consent unto you: If ye will be as we be, that every male of you be circumcised;

Abraham and Abimelek(A)

20 Now Abraham moved on from there(B) into the region of the Negev(C) and lived between Kadesh(D) and Shur.(E) For a while(F) he stayed in Gerar,(G) and there Abraham said of his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.(H)” Then Abimelek(I) king of Gerar sent for Sarah and took her.(J)

But God came to Abimelek(K) in a dream(L) one night and said to him, “You are as good as dead(M) because of the woman you have taken; she is a married woman.”(N)

Now Abimelek had not gone near her, so he said, “Lord, will you destroy an innocent nation?(O) Did he not say to me, ‘She is my sister,(P)’ and didn’t she also say, ‘He is my brother’? I have done this with a clear conscience(Q) and clean hands.(R)

Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have kept(S) you from sinning against me.(T) That is why I did not let you touch her. Now return the man’s wife, for he is a prophet,(U) and he will pray for you(V) and you will live. But if you do not return her, you may be sure that you and all who belong to you will die.”(W)

Early the next morning Abimelek summoned all his officials, and when he told them all that had happened, they were very much afraid. Then Abimelek called Abraham in and said, “What have you done to us? How have I wronged you that you have brought such great guilt upon me and my kingdom? You have done things to me that should never be done.(X) 10 And Abimelek asked Abraham, “What was your reason for doing this?”

11 Abraham replied, “I said to myself, ‘There is surely no fear of God(Y) in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.’(Z) 12 Besides, she really is my sister,(AA) the daughter of my father though not of my mother; and she became my wife. 13 And when God had me wander(AB) from my father’s household,(AC) I said to her, ‘This is how you can show your love to me: Everywhere we go, say of me, “He is my brother.”’”

14 Then Abimelek(AD) brought sheep and cattle and male and female slaves and gave them to Abraham,(AE) and he returned Sarah his wife to him. 15 And Abimelek said, “My land is before you; live wherever you like.”(AF)

16 To Sarah he said, “I am giving your brother a thousand shekels[a] of silver. This is to cover the offense against you before all who are with you; you are completely vindicated.”

17 Then Abraham prayed to God,(AG) and God healed Abimelek, his wife and his female slaves so they could have children again, 18 for the Lord had kept all the women in Abimelek’s household from conceiving because of Abraham’s wife Sarah.(AH)

The Birth of Isaac

21 Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah(AI) as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised.(AJ) Sarah became pregnant and bore a son(AK) to Abraham in his old age,(AL) at the very time God had promised him.(AM) Abraham gave the name Isaac[b](AN) to the son Sarah bore him. When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him,(AO) as God commanded him. Abraham was a hundred years old(AP) when his son Isaac was born to him.

Sarah said, “God has brought me laughter,(AQ) and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me.” 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.”(AR)

Hagar and Ishmael Sent Away

The child grew and was weaned,(AS) and on the day Isaac was weaned Abraham held a great feast. But Sarah saw that the son whom Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abraham(AT) was mocking,(AU) 10 and she said to Abraham, “Get rid of that slave woman(AV) and her son, for that woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac.”(AW)

11 The matter distressed Abraham greatly because it concerned his son.(AX) 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[c] will be reckoned.(AY) 13 I will make the son of the slave into a nation(AZ) 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.(BA) 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.(BB)

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[d] began to sob.(BC)

17 God heard the boy crying,(BD) and the angel of God(BE) called to Hagar from heaven(BF) and said to her, “What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid;(BG) 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.(BH)

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

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

The Treaty at Beersheba

22 At that time Abimelek(BN) and Phicol the commander of his forces(BO) said to Abraham, “God is with you in everything you do.(BP) 23 Now swear(BQ) to me here before God that you will not deal falsely with me or my children or my descendants.(BR) Show to me and the country where you now reside as a foreigner the same kindness I have shown to you.”(BS)

24 Abraham said, “I swear it.”

25 Then Abraham complained to Abimelek about a well of water that Abimelek’s servants had seized.(BT) 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.(BU) 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(BV) that I dug this well.(BW)

31 So that place was called Beersheba,[e](BX) because the two men swore an oath(BY) there.

32 After the treaty(BZ) had been made at Beersheba,(CA) Abimelek and Phicol the commander of his forces(CB) returned to the land of the Philistines.(CC) 33 Abraham planted a tamarisk tree(CD) in Beersheba, and there he called on the name of the Lord,(CE) the Eternal God.(CF) 34 And Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistines(CG) for a long time.

Abraham Tested

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

“Here I am,”(CI) he replied.

Then God said, “Take your son(CJ), your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah.(CK) Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering(CL) on a mountain I will show you.(CM)

Early the next morning(CN) 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. On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 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.(CO)

Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac,(CP) and he himself carried the fire and the knife.(CQ) As the two of them went on together, 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(CR) for the burnt offering?”

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

When they reached the place God had told him about,(CU) Abraham built an altar(CV) there and arranged the wood(CW) on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar,(CX) on top of the wood. 10 Then he reached out his hand and took the knife(CY) to slay his son.(CZ) 11 But the angel of the Lord(DA) called out to him from heaven,(DB) “Abraham! Abraham!”(DC)

“Here I am,”(DD) 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,(DE) because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.(DF)

13 Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram[f] caught by its horns.(DG) He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son.(DH) 14 So Abraham called(DI) that place The Lord(DJ) Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.(DK)

15 The angel of the Lord(DL) called to Abraham from heaven(DM) a second time 16 and said, “I swear by myself,(DN) declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son,(DO) 17 I will surely bless you(DP) and make your descendants(DQ) as numerous as the stars in the sky(DR) and as the sand on the seashore.(DS) Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies,(DT) 18 and through your offspring[g] all nations on earth will be blessed,[h](DU) because you have obeyed me.”(DV)

19 Then Abraham returned to his servants, and they set off together for Beersheba.(DW) 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:(DX) 21 Uz(DY) the firstborn, Buz(DZ) his brother, Kemuel (the father of Aram), 22 Kesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph and Bethuel.(EA) 23 Bethuel became the father of Rebekah.(EB) Milkah bore these eight sons to Abraham’s brother Nahor.(EC) 24 His concubine,(ED) whose name was Reumah, also had sons: Tebah, Gaham, Tahash and Maakah.

The Death of Sarah

23 Sarah lived to be a hundred and twenty-seven years old. She died at Kiriath Arba(EE) (that is, Hebron)(EF) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went to mourn for Sarah and to weep over her.(EG)

Then Abraham rose from beside his dead wife and spoke to the Hittites.[i](EH) He said, “I am a foreigner and stranger(EI) among you. Sell me some property for a burial site here so I can bury my dead.(EJ)

The Hittites replied to Abraham, “Sir, listen to us. You are a mighty prince(EK) among us. Bury your dead in the choicest of our tombs. None of us will refuse you his tomb for burying your dead.”

Then Abraham rose and bowed down before the people of the land, the Hittites. He said to them, “If you are willing to let me bury my dead, then listen to me and intercede with Ephron son of Zohar(EL) on my behalf so he will sell me the cave of Machpelah,(EM) which belongs to him and is at the end of his field. Ask him to sell it to me for the full price as a burial site among you.”

10 Ephron the Hittite was sitting among his people and he replied to Abraham in the hearing of all the Hittites(EN) who had come to the gate(EO) of his city. 11 “No, my lord,” he said. “Listen to me; I give[j](EP) you the field, and I give[k] you the cave that is in it. I give[l] it to you in the presence of my people. Bury your dead.”

12 Again Abraham bowed down before the people of the land 13 and he said to Ephron in their hearing, “Listen to me, if you will. I will pay the price of the field. Accept it from me so I can bury my dead there.”

14 Ephron answered Abraham, 15 “Listen to me, my lord; the land is worth four hundred shekels[m] of silver,(EQ) but what is that between you and me? Bury your dead.”

16 Abraham agreed to Ephron’s terms and weighed out for him the price he had named in the hearing of the Hittites: four hundred shekels of silver,(ER) according to the weight current among the merchants.(ES)

17 So Ephron’s field in Machpelah(ET) near Mamre(EU)—both the field and the cave in it, and all the trees within the borders of the field—was deeded 18 to Abraham as his property(EV) in the presence of all the Hittites(EW) who had come to the gate(EX) of the city. 19 Afterward Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave in the field of Machpelah(EY) near Mamre (which is at Hebron(EZ)) in the land of Canaan.(FA) 20 So the field and the cave in it were deeded(FB) to Abraham by the Hittites as a burial site.(FC)

Isaac and Rebekah

24 Abraham was now very old,(FD) and the Lord had blessed(FE) him in every way.(FF) He said to the senior servant(FG) in his household, the one in charge of all that he had,(FH) “Put your hand under my thigh.(FI) I want you to swear(FJ) by the Lord, the God of heaven(FK) and the God of earth,(FL) that you will not get a wife for my son(FM) from the daughters of the Canaanites,(FN) among whom I am living,(FO) but will go to my country and my own relatives(FP) and get a wife for my son Isaac.(FQ)

The servant asked him, “What if the woman is unwilling to come back with me to this land?(FR) Shall I then take your son back to the country you came from?(FS)

“Make sure that you do not take my son back there,”(FT) Abraham said. “The Lord, the God of heaven,(FU) who brought me out of my father’s household and my native land(FV) and who spoke to me and promised me on oath, saying, ‘To your offspring[n](FW) I will give this land’(FX)—he will send his angel before you(FY) so that you can get a wife for my son from there. If the woman is unwilling to come back with you, then you will be released from this oath(FZ) of mine. Only do not take my son back there.”(GA) So the servant put his hand under the thigh(GB) of his master(GC) Abraham and swore an oath to him concerning this matter.

10 Then the servant left, taking with him ten of his master’s camels(GD) loaded with all kinds of good things(GE) from his master. He set out for Aram Naharaim[o](GF) and made his way to the town of Nahor.(GG) 11 He had the camels kneel down near the well(GH) outside the town; it was toward evening, the time the women go out to draw water.(GI)

12 Then he prayed, “Lord, God of my master Abraham,(GJ) make me successful(GK) today, and show kindness(GL) to my master Abraham. 13 See, I am standing beside this spring, and the daughters of the townspeople are coming out to draw water.(GM) 14 May it be that when I say to a young woman, ‘Please let down your jar that I may have a drink,’ and she says, ‘Drink,(GN) and I’ll water your camels too’(GO)—let her be the one you have chosen for your servant Isaac.(GP) By this I will know(GQ) that you have shown kindness to my master.”

15 Before he had finished praying,(GR) Rebekah(GS) came out with her jar on her shoulder. She was the daughter of Bethuel(GT) son of Milkah,(GU) who was the wife of Abraham’s brother Nahor.(GV) 16 The woman was very beautiful,(GW) a virgin;(GX) no man had ever slept with her. She went down to the spring, filled her jar and came up again.

17 The servant hurried to meet her and said, “Please give me a little water from your jar.”(GY)

18 “Drink,(GZ) my lord,” she said, and quickly lowered the jar to her hands and gave him a drink.

19 After she had given him a drink, she said, “I’ll draw water for your camels(HA) too,(HB) until they have had enough to drink.” 20 So she quickly emptied her jar into the trough, ran back to the well to draw more water, and drew enough for all his camels.(HC) 21 Without saying a word, the man watched her closely to learn whether or not the Lord had made his journey successful.(HD)

22 When the camels had finished drinking, the man took out a gold nose ring(HE) weighing a beka[p] and two gold bracelets(HF) weighing ten shekels.[q] 23 Then he asked, “Whose daughter are you?(HG) Please tell me, is there room in your father’s house for us to spend the night?(HH)

24 She answered him, “I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son that Milkah bore to Nahor.(HI) 25 And she added, “We have plenty of straw and fodder,(HJ) as well as room for you to spend the night.”

26 Then the man bowed down and worshiped the Lord,(HK) 27 saying, “Praise be to the Lord,(HL) the God of my master Abraham,(HM) who has not abandoned his kindness and faithfulness(HN) to my master. As for me, the Lord has led me on the journey(HO) to the house of my master’s relatives.”(HP)

28 The young woman ran and told her mother’s household about these things.(HQ) 29 Now Rebekah had a brother named Laban,(HR) and he hurried out to the man at the spring. 30 As soon as he had seen the nose ring, and the bracelets on his sister’s arms,(HS) and had heard Rebekah tell what the man said to her, he went out to the man and found him standing by the camels near the spring. 31 “Come, you who are blessed by the Lord,”(HT) he said. “Why are you standing out here? I have prepared the house and a place for the camels.”

32 So the man went to the house, and the camels were unloaded. Straw and fodder(HU) were brought for the camels, and water for him and his men to wash their feet.(HV) 33 Then food was set before him, but he said, “I will not eat until I have told you what I have to say.”

“Then tell us,” Laban said.

34 So he said, “I am Abraham’s servant.(HW) 35 The Lord has blessed(HX) my master abundantly,(HY) and he has become wealthy.(HZ) He has given him sheep and cattle, silver and gold, male and female servants, and camels and donkeys.(IA) 36 My master’s wife Sarah has borne him a son in her old age,(IB) and he has given him everything he owns.(IC) 37 And my master made me swear an oath,(ID) and said, ‘You must not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I live,(IE) 38 but go to my father’s family and to my own clan, and get a wife for my son.’(IF)

39 “Then I asked my master, ‘What if the woman will not come back with me?’(IG)

40 “He replied, ‘The Lord, before whom I have walked faithfully,(IH) will send his angel with you(II) and make your journey a success,(IJ) so that you can get a wife for my son from my own clan and from my father’s family.(IK) 41 You will be released from my oath if, when you go to my clan, they refuse to give her to you—then you will be released from my oath.’(IL)

42 “When I came to the spring today, I said, ‘Lord, God of my master Abraham, if you will, please grant success(IM) to the journey on which I have come. 43 See, I am standing beside this spring.(IN) If a young woman(IO) comes out to draw water and I say to her, “Please let me drink a little water from your jar,”(IP) 44 and if she says to me, “Drink, and I’ll draw water for your camels too,” let her be the one the Lord has chosen for my master’s son.’(IQ)

45 “Before I finished praying in my heart,(IR) Rebekah came out, with her jar on her shoulder.(IS) She went down to the spring and drew water, and I said to her, ‘Please give me a drink.’(IT)

46 “She quickly lowered her jar from her shoulder and said, ‘Drink, and I’ll water your camels too.’(IU) So I drank, and she watered the camels also.(IV)

47 “I asked her, ‘Whose daughter are you?’(IW)

“She said, ‘The daughter of Bethuel(IX) son of Nahor, whom Milkah bore to him.’(IY)

“Then I put the ring in her nose(IZ) and the bracelets on her arms,(JA) 48 and I bowed down and worshiped the Lord.(JB) I praised the Lord, the God of my master Abraham,(JC) who had led me on the right road to get the granddaughter of my master’s brother for his son.(JD) 49 Now if you will show kindness and faithfulness(JE) to my master, tell me; and if not, tell me, so I may know which way to turn.”

50 Laban and Bethuel(JF) answered, “This is from the Lord;(JG) we can say nothing to you one way or the other.(JH) 51 Here is Rebekah; take her and go, and let her become the wife of your master’s son, as the Lord has directed.(JI)

52 When Abraham’s servant heard what they said, he bowed down to the ground before the Lord.(JJ) 53 Then the servant brought out gold and silver jewelry and articles of clothing(JK) and gave them to Rebekah; he also gave costly gifts(JL) to her brother and to her mother. 54 Then he and the men who were with him ate and drank and spent the night there.

When they got up the next morning, he said, “Send me on my way(JM) to my master.”

55 But her brother and her mother replied, “Let the young woman remain with us ten days or so;(JN) then you[r] may go.”

56 But he said to them, “Do not detain me, now that the Lord has granted success(JO) to my journey. Send me on my way(JP) so I may go to my master.”

57 Then they said, “Let’s call the young woman and ask her about it.”(JQ) 58 So they called Rebekah and asked her, “Will you go with this man?”

“I will go,”(JR) she said.

59 So they sent their sister Rebekah on her way,(JS) along with her nurse(JT) and Abraham’s servant and his men. 60 And they blessed(JU) Rebekah and said to her,

“Our sister, may you increase
    to thousands upon thousands;(JV)
may your offspring possess
    the cities of their enemies.”(JW)

61 Then Rebekah and her attendants(JX) got ready and mounted the camels and went back with the man. So the servant took Rebekah and left.

62 Now Isaac had come from Beer Lahai Roi,(JY) for he was living in the Negev.(JZ) 63 He went out to the field one evening to meditate,[s](KA) and as he looked up,(KB) he saw camels approaching. 64 Rebekah also looked up and saw Isaac. She got down from her camel(KC) 65 and asked the servant, “Who is that man in the field coming to meet us?”

“He is my master,” the servant answered. So she took her veil(KD) and covered herself.

66 Then the servant told Isaac all he had done. 67 Isaac brought her into the tent(KE) of his mother Sarah,(KF) and he married Rebekah.(KG) So she became his wife, and he loved her;(KH) and Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.(KI)

The Death of Abraham(KJ)

25 Abraham had taken another wife, whose name was Keturah. She bore him Zimran,(KK) Jokshan, Medan, Midian,(KL) Ishbak and Shuah.(KM) Jokshan was the father of Sheba(KN) and Dedan;(KO) the descendants of Dedan were the Ashurites, the Letushites and the Leummites. The sons of Midian were Ephah,(KP) Epher, Hanok, Abida and Eldaah. All these were descendants of Keturah.

Abraham left everything he owned to Isaac.(KQ) But while he was still living, he gave gifts to the sons of his concubines(KR) and sent them away from his son Isaac(KS) to the land of the east.(KT)

Abraham lived a hundred and seventy-five years.(KU) Then Abraham breathed his last and died at a good old age,(KV) an old man and full of years; and he was gathered to his people.(KW) His sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him(KX) in the cave of Machpelah(KY) near Mamre,(KZ) in the field of Ephron(LA) son of Zohar the Hittite,(LB) 10 the field Abraham had bought from the Hittites.[t](LC) There Abraham was buried with his wife Sarah. 11 After Abraham’s death, God blessed his son Isaac,(LD) who then lived near Beer Lahai Roi.(LE)

Ishmael’s Sons(LF)

12 This is the account(LG) of the family line of Abraham’s son Ishmael, whom Sarah’s slave, Hagar(LH) the Egyptian, bore to Abraham.(LI)

13 These are the names of the sons of Ishmael, listed in the order of their birth: Nebaioth(LJ) the firstborn of Ishmael, Kedar,(LK) Adbeel, Mibsam, 14 Mishma, Dumah,(LL) Massa, 15 Hadad, Tema,(LM) Jetur,(LN) Naphish and Kedemah. 16 These were the sons of Ishmael, and these are the names of the twelve tribal rulers(LO) according to their settlements and camps.(LP) 17 Ishmael lived a hundred and thirty-seven years. He breathed his last and died, and he was gathered to his people.(LQ) 18 His descendants(LR) settled in the area from Havilah to Shur,(LS) near the eastern border of Egypt, as you go toward Ashur. And they lived in hostility toward[u] all the tribes related to them.(LT)

Jacob and Esau

19 This is the account(LU) of the family line of Abraham’s son Isaac.

Abraham became the father of Isaac, 20 and Isaac was forty years old(LV) when he married Rebekah(LW) daughter of Bethuel(LX) the Aramean from Paddan Aram[v](LY) and sister of Laban(LZ) the Aramean.(MA)

21 Isaac prayed to the Lord on behalf of his wife, because she was childless.(MB) The Lord answered his prayer,(MC) and his wife Rebekah became pregnant. 22 The babies jostled each other within her, and she said, “Why is this happening to me?” So she went to inquire of the Lord.(MD)

23 The Lord said to her,

“Two nations(ME) are in your womb,
    and two peoples from within you will be separated;
one people will be stronger than the other,
    and the older will serve the younger.(MF)

24 When the time came for her to give birth,(MG) there were twin boys in her womb.(MH) 25 The first to come out was red,(MI) and his whole body was like a hairy garment;(MJ) so they named him Esau.[w](MK) 26 After this, his brother came out,(ML) with his hand grasping Esau’s heel;(MM) so he was named Jacob.[x](MN) Isaac was sixty years old(MO) when Rebekah gave birth to them.

27 The boys grew up, and Esau became a skillful hunter,(MP) a man of the open country,(MQ) while Jacob was content to stay at home among the tents. 28 Isaac, who had a taste for wild game,(MR) loved Esau, but Rebekah loved Jacob.(MS)

29 Once when Jacob was cooking some stew,(MT) Esau came in from the open country,(MU) famished. 30 He said to Jacob, “Quick, let me have some of that red stew!(MV) I’m famished!” (That is why he was also called Edom.[y])(MW)

31 Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.(MX)

32 “Look, I am about to die,” Esau said. “What good is the birthright to me?”

33 But Jacob said, “Swear(MY) to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright(MZ) to Jacob.

34 Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew.(NA) He ate and drank, and then got up and left.

So Esau despised his birthright.

Isaac and Abimelek(NB)

26 Now there was a famine in the land(NC)—besides the previous famine in Abraham’s time—and Isaac went to Abimelek king of the Philistines(ND) in Gerar.(NE) The Lord appeared(NF) to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt;(NG) live in the land where I tell you to live.(NH) Stay in this land for a while,(NI) and I will be with you(NJ) and will bless you.(NK) For to you and your descendants I will give all these lands(NL) and will confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham.(NM) I will make your descendants(NN) as numerous as the stars in the sky(NO) and will give them all these lands,(NP) and through your offspring[z] all nations on earth will be blessed,[aa](NQ) because Abraham obeyed me(NR) and did everything I required of him, keeping my commands, my decrees(NS) and my instructions.(NT) So Isaac stayed in Gerar.(NU)

When the men of that place asked him about his wife, he said, “She is my sister,(NV)” because he was afraid to say, “She is my wife.” He thought, “The men of this place might kill me on account of Rebekah, because she is beautiful.”

When Isaac had been there a long time, Abimelek king of the Philistines(NW) looked down from a window and saw Isaac caressing his wife Rebekah. So Abimelek summoned Isaac and said, “She is really your wife! Why did you say, ‘She is my sister’?(NX)

Isaac answered him, “Because I thought I might lose my life on account of her.”

10 Then Abimelek said, “What is this you have done to us?(NY) One of the men might well have slept with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us.”

11 So Abimelek gave orders to all the people: “Anyone who harms(NZ) this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.”(OA)

12 Isaac planted crops in that land and the same year reaped a hundredfold,(OB) because the Lord blessed him.(OC) 13 The man became rich, and his wealth continued to grow until he became very wealthy.(OD) 14 He had so many flocks and herds and servants(OE) that the Philistines envied him.(OF) 15 So all the wells(OG) that his father’s servants had dug in the time of his father Abraham, the Philistines stopped up,(OH) filling them with earth.

16 Then Abimelek said to Isaac, “Move away from us;(OI) you have become too powerful for us.(OJ)

17 So Isaac moved away from there and encamped in the Valley of Gerar,(OK) where he settled. 18 Isaac reopened the wells(OL) that had been dug in the time of his father Abraham, which the Philistines had stopped up after Abraham died, and he gave them the same names his father had given them.

19 Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and discovered a well of fresh water there. 20 But the herders of Gerar quarreled(OM) with those of Isaac and said, “The water is ours!”(ON) So he named the well Esek,[ab] because they disputed with him. 21 Then they dug another well, but they quarreled(OO) over that one also; so he named it Sitnah.[ac] 22 He moved on from there and dug another well, and no one quarreled over it. He named it Rehoboth,[ad](OP) saying, “Now the Lord has given us room(OQ) and we will flourish(OR) in the land.”

23 From there he went up to Beersheba.(OS) 24 That night the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham.(OT) Do not be afraid,(OU) for I am with you;(OV) I will bless you and will increase the number of your descendants(OW) for the sake of my servant Abraham.”(OX)

25 Isaac built an altar(OY) there and called on the name of the Lord.(OZ) There he pitched his tent, and there his servants dug a well.(PA)

26 Meanwhile, Abimelek had come to him from Gerar, with Ahuzzath his personal adviser and Phicol the commander of his forces.(PB) 27 Isaac asked them, “Why have you come to me, since you were hostile to me and sent me away?(PC)

28 They answered, “We saw clearly that the Lord was with you;(PD) so we said, ‘There ought to be a sworn agreement between us’—between us and you. Let us make a treaty(PE) with you 29 that you will do us no harm,(PF) just as we did not harm you but always treated you well and sent you away peacefully. And now you are blessed by the Lord.”(PG)

30 Isaac then made a feast(PH) for them, and they ate and drank. 31 Early the next morning the men swore an oath(PI) to each other. Then Isaac sent them on their way, and they went away peacefully.

32 That day Isaac’s servants came and told him about the well(PJ) they had dug. They said, “We’ve found water!” 33 He called it Shibah,[ae] and to this day the name of the town has been Beersheba.[af](PK)

Jacob Takes Esau’s Blessing

34 When Esau was forty years old,(PL) he married Judith daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and also Basemath daughter of Elon the Hittite.(PM) 35 They were a source of grief to Isaac and Rebekah.(PN)

27 When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see,(PO) he called for Esau his older son(PP) and said to him, “My son.”

“Here I am,” he answered.

Isaac said, “I am now an old man and don’t know the day of my death.(PQ) Now then, get your equipment—your quiver and bow—and go out to the open country(PR) to hunt some wild game for me. Prepare me the kind of tasty food I like(PS) and bring it to me to eat, so that I may give you my blessing(PT) before I die.”(PU)

Now Rebekah was listening as Isaac spoke to his son Esau. When Esau left for the open country(PV) to hunt game and bring it back, Rebekah said to her son Jacob,(PW) “Look, I overheard your father say to your brother Esau, ‘Bring me some game and prepare me some tasty food to eat, so that I may give you my blessing in the presence of the Lord before I die.’(PX) Now, my son, listen carefully and do what I tell you:(PY) Go out to the flock and bring me two choice young goats,(PZ) so I can prepare some tasty food for your father, just the way he likes it.(QA) 10 Then take it to your father to eat, so that he may give you his blessing(QB) before he dies.”

11 Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, “But my brother Esau is a hairy man(QC) while I have smooth skin. 12 What if my father touches me?(QD) I would appear to be tricking him and would bring down a curse(QE) on myself rather than a blessing.”

13 His mother said to him, “My son, let the curse fall on me.(QF) Just do what I say;(QG) go and get them for me.”

14 So he went and got them and brought them to his mother, and she prepared some tasty food, just the way his father liked it.(QH) 15 Then Rebekah took the best clothes(QI) of Esau her older son,(QJ) which she had in the house, and put them on her younger son Jacob. 16 She also covered his hands and the smooth part of his neck with the goatskins.(QK) 17 Then she handed to her son Jacob the tasty food and the bread she had made.

18 He went to his father and said, “My father.”

“Yes, my son,” he answered. “Who is it?”(QL)

Footnotes

  1. Genesis 20:16 That is, about 25 pounds or about 12 kilograms
  2. Genesis 21:3 Isaac means he laughs.
  3. Genesis 21:12 Or seed
  4. Genesis 21:16 Hebrew; Septuagint the child
  5. Genesis 21:31 Beersheba can mean well of seven and well of the oath.
  6. Genesis 22:13 Many manuscripts of the Masoretic Text, Samaritan Pentateuch, Septuagint and Syriac; most manuscripts of the Masoretic Text a ram behind him
  7. Genesis 22:18 Or seed
  8. Genesis 22:18 Or and all nations on earth will use the name of your offspring in blessings (see 48:20)
  9. Genesis 23:3 Or the descendants of Heth; also in verses 5, 7, 10, 16, 18 and 20
  10. Genesis 23:11 Or sell
  11. Genesis 23:11 Or sell
  12. Genesis 23:11 Or sell
  13. Genesis 23:15 That is, about 10 pounds or about 4.6 kilograms
  14. Genesis 24:7 Or seed
  15. Genesis 24:10 That is, Northwest Mesopotamia
  16. Genesis 24:22 That is, about 1/5 ounce or about 5.7 grams
  17. Genesis 24:22 That is, about 4 ounces or about 115 grams
  18. Genesis 24:55 Or she
  19. Genesis 24:63 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
  20. Genesis 25:10 Or the descendants of Heth
  21. Genesis 25:18 Or lived to the east of
  22. Genesis 25:20 That is, Northwest Mesopotamia
  23. Genesis 25:25 Esau may mean hairy.
  24. Genesis 25:26 Jacob means he grasps the heel, a Hebrew idiom for he deceives.
  25. Genesis 25:30 Edom means red.
  26. Genesis 26:4 Or seed
  27. Genesis 26:4 Or and all nations on earth will use the name of your offspring in blessings (see 48:20)
  28. Genesis 26:20 Esek means dispute.
  29. Genesis 26:21 Sitnah means opposition.
  30. Genesis 26:22 Rehoboth means room.
  31. Genesis 26:33 Shibah can mean oath or seven.
  32. Genesis 26:33 Beersheba can mean well of the oath and well of seven.

Abraham and Abimelech

20 And Abraham journeyed from (A)there to the South, and dwelt between (B)Kadesh and Shur, and (C)stayed in Gerar. Now Abraham said of Sarah his wife, (D)“She is my sister.” And Abimelech king of Gerar sent and (E)took Sarah.

But (F)God came to Abimelech (G)in a dream by night, and said to him, (H)“Indeed you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is [a]a man’s wife.”

But Abimelech had not come near her; and he said, “Lord, (I)will You slay a righteous nation also? Did he not say to me, ‘She is my sister’? And she, even she herself said, ‘He is my brother.’ (J)In the [b]integrity of my heart and innocence of my hands I have done this.”

And God said to him in a dream, “Yes, I know that you did this in the integrity of your heart. For (K)I also withheld you from sinning (L)against Me; therefore I did not let you touch her. Now therefore, restore the man’s wife; (M)for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you shall live. But if you do not restore her, (N)know that you shall surely die, you (O)and all who are yours.”

So Abimelech rose early in the morning, called all his servants, and told all these things in their hearing; and the men were very much afraid. And Abimelech called Abraham and said to him, “What have you done to us? How have I [c]offended you, (P)that you have brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? You have done deeds to me (Q)that ought not to be done.” 10 Then Abimelech said to Abraham, “What did you have in view, that you have done this thing?”

11 And Abraham said, “Because I thought, surely (R)the fear of God is not in this place; and (S)they will kill me on account of my wife. 12 But indeed (T)she is truly my sister. She is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife. 13 And it came to pass, when (U)God caused me to wander from my father’s house, that I said to her, ‘This is your kindness that you should do for me: in every place, wherever we go, (V)say of me, “He is my brother.” ’ ”

14 Then Abimelech (W)took sheep, oxen, and male and female servants, and gave them to Abraham; and he restored Sarah his wife to him. 15 And Abimelech said, “See, (X)my land is before you; dwell where it pleases you.” 16 Then to Sarah he said, “Behold, I have given your brother a thousand pieces of silver; (Y)indeed this [d]vindicates you (Z)before all who are with you and before everybody.” Thus she was [e]rebuked.

17 So Abraham (AA)prayed to God; and God (AB)healed Abimelech, his wife, and his female servants. Then they bore children; 18 for the Lord (AC)had closed up all the wombs of the house of Abimelech because of Sarah, Abraham’s wife.

Isaac Is Born(AD)

21 And the Lord (AE)visited Sarah as He had said, and the Lord did for Sarah (AF)as He had spoken. For Sarah (AG)conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, (AH)at the set time of which God had spoken to him. And Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him—whom Sarah bore to him—(AI)Isaac.[f] Then Abraham (AJ)circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, (AK)as God had commanded him. Now (AL)Abraham was one hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. And Sarah said, (AM)“God has [g]made me laugh, and all who hear (AN)will laugh with me.” She also said, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? (AO)For I have borne him a son in his old age.”

Hagar and Ishmael Depart(AP)

So the child grew and was weaned. And Abraham made a great feast on the same day that Isaac was weaned.

And Sarah saw the son of Hagar (AQ)the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, (AR)scoffing.[h] 10 Therefore she said to Abraham, (AS)“Cast out this bondwoman and her son; for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, namely with Isaac.” 11 And the matter was very [i]displeasing in Abraham’s sight (AT)because of his son.

12 But God said to Abraham, “Do not let it be displeasing in your sight because of the lad or because of your bondwoman. Whatever Sarah has said to you, listen to her voice; for (AU)in Isaac your seed shall be called. 13 Yet I will also make (AV)a nation of the son of the bondwoman, because he is your [j]seed.”

14 So Abraham rose early in the morning, and took bread and [k]a skin of water; and putting it on her shoulder, he gave it and the boy to Hagar, and (AW)sent her away. Then she departed and wandered in the Wilderness of Beersheba. 15 And the water in the skin was used up, and she placed the boy under one of the shrubs. 16 Then she went and sat down across from him at a distance of about a bowshot; for she said to herself, “Let me not see the death of the boy.” So she sat opposite him, and lifted her voice and wept.

17 And (AX)God heard the voice of the lad. Then the (AY)angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said to her, “What ails you, Hagar? Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the lad where he is. 18 Arise, lift up the lad and hold him with your hand, for (AZ)I will make him a great nation.”

19 Then (BA)God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. And she went and filled the skin with water, and gave the lad a drink. 20 So God (BB)was with the lad; and he grew and dwelt in the wilderness, (BC)and became an archer. 21 He dwelt in the Wilderness of Paran; and his mother (BD)took a wife for him from the land of Egypt.

A Covenant with Abimelech

22 And it came to pass at that time that (BE)Abimelech and Phichol, the commander of his army, spoke to Abraham, saying, (BF)“God is with you in all that you do. 23 Now therefore, (BG)swear[l] to me by God that you will not deal falsely with me, with my offspring, or with my posterity; but that according to the kindness that I have done to you, you will do to me and to the land in which you have dwelt.”

24 And Abraham said, “I will swear.”

25 Then Abraham rebuked Abimelech because of a well of water which Abimelech’s servants (BH)had seized. 26 And Abimelech said, “I do not know who has done this thing; you did not tell me, nor had I heard of it until today.” 27 So Abraham took sheep and oxen and gave them to Abimelech, and the two of them (BI)made a [m]covenant. 28 And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves.

29 Then Abimelech asked Abraham, (BJ)“What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs which you have set by themselves?”

30 And he said, “You will take these seven ewe lambs from my hand, that (BK)they may be my witness that I have dug this well.” 31 Therefore he (BL)called that place [n]Beersheba, because the two of them swore an oath there.

32 Thus they made a covenant at Beersheba. So Abimelech rose with Phichol, the commander of his army, and they returned to the land of the Philistines. 33 Then Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba, and (BM)there called on the name of the Lord, (BN)the Everlasting God. 34 And Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistines many days.

Abraham’s Faith Confirmed(BO)

22 Now it came to pass after these things that (BP)God tested Abraham, and said to him, “Abraham!”

And he said, “Here I am.”

Then He said, “Take now your son, (BQ)your only son Isaac, whom you (BR)love, and go (BS)to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a (BT)burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”

So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son; and he split the wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him. Then on the third day Abraham lifted his eyes and saw the place afar off. And Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey; the [o]lad and I will go yonder and worship, and we will (BU)come back to you.”

So Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and (BV)laid it on Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife, and the two of them went together. But Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, “My father!”

And he said, “Here I am, my son.”

Then he said, “Look, the fire and the wood, but where is the [p]lamb for a burnt offering?”

And Abraham said, “My son, God will provide for Himself the (BW)lamb for a (BX)burnt offering.” So the two of them went together.

Then they came to the place of which God had told him. And Abraham built an altar there and placed the wood in order; and he bound Isaac his son and (BY)laid him on the altar, upon the wood. 10 And Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.

11 But the (BZ)Angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!”

So he said, “Here I am.”

12 And He said, (CA)“Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for (CB)now I know that you fear God, since you have not (CC)withheld your son, your only son, from Me.”

13 Then Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 And Abraham called the name of the place, [q]The-Lord-Will-Provide; as it is said to this day, “In the Mount of the Lord it shall be provided.”

15 Then the Angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time out of heaven, 16 and said: (CD)“By Myself I have sworn, says the Lord, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son 17 blessing I will (CE)bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants (CF)as the stars of the heaven (CG)and as the sand which is on the seashore; and (CH)your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies. 18 (CI)In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, (CJ)because you have obeyed My voice.” 19 So Abraham returned to his young men, and they rose and went together to (CK)Beersheba; and Abraham dwelt at Beersheba.

The Family of Nahor

20 Now it came to pass after these things that it was told Abraham, saying, “Indeed (CL)Milcah also has borne children to your brother Nahor: 21 (CM)Huz his firstborn, Buz his brother, Kemuel the father (CN)of Aram, 22 Chesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph, and Bethuel.” 23 And (CO)Bethuel begot [r]Rebekah. These eight Milcah bore to Nahor, Abraham’s brother. 24 His concubine, whose name was Reumah, also bore Tebah, Gaham, Thahash, and Maachah.

Sarah’s Death and Burial

23 Sarah lived one hundred and twenty-seven years; these were the years of the life of Sarah. So Sarah died in (CP)Kirjath Arba (that is, (CQ)Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham came to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her.

Then Abraham stood up from before his dead, and spoke to the sons of (CR)Heth, saying, (CS)“I am a foreigner and a visitor among you. (CT)Give me property for a burial place among you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.”

And the sons of Heth answered Abraham, saying to him, “Hear us, my lord: You are (CU)a [s]mighty prince among us; bury your dead in the choicest of our burial places. None of us will withhold from you his burial place, that you may bury your dead.”

Then Abraham stood up and bowed himself to the people of the land, the sons of Heth. And he spoke with them, saying, “If it is your wish that I bury my dead out of my sight, hear me, and [t]meet with Ephron the son of Zohar for me, that he may give me the cave of (CV)Machpelah which he has, which is at the end of his field. Let him give it to me at the full price, as property for a burial place among you.”

10 Now Ephron dwelt among the sons of Heth; and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the presence of the sons of Heth, all who (CW)entered at the gate of his city, saying, 11 (CX)“No, my lord, hear me: I give you the field and the cave that is in it; I give it to you in the presence of the sons of my people. I give it to you. Bury your dead!”

12 Then Abraham bowed himself down before the people of the land; 13 and he spoke to Ephron in the hearing of the people of the land, saying, “If you will give it, please hear me. I will give you money for the field; take it from me and I will bury my dead there.”

14 And Ephron answered Abraham, saying to him, 15 “My lord, listen to me; the land is worth four hundred (CY)shekels of silver. What is that between you and me? So bury your dead.” 16 And Abraham listened to Ephron; and Abraham (CZ)weighed out the silver for Ephron which he had named in the hearing of the sons of Heth, four hundred shekels of silver, currency of the merchants.

17 So (DA)the field of Ephron which was in Machpelah, which was before Mamre, the field and the cave which was in it, and all the trees that were in the field, which were within all the surrounding borders, were deeded 18 to Abraham as a possession in the presence of the sons of Heth, before all who went in at the gate of his city.

19 And after this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah, before Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan. 20 So the field and the cave that is in it (DB)were deeded to Abraham by the sons of Heth as property for a burial place.

A Bride for Isaac

24 Now Abraham (DC)was old, well advanced in age; and the Lord (DD)had blessed Abraham in all things. So Abraham said (DE)to the oldest servant of his house, who (DF)ruled over all that he had, “Please, (DG)put your hand under my thigh, and I will make you (DH)swear[u] by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of the earth, that (DI)you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell; (DJ)but you shall go (DK)to my country and to my family, and take a wife for my son Isaac.”

And the servant said to him, “Perhaps the woman will not be willing to follow me to this land. Must I take your son back to the land from which you came?”

But Abraham said to him, “Beware that you do not take my son back there. The Lord God of heaven, who (DL)took me from my father’s house and from the land of my family, and who spoke to me and swore to me, saying, (DM)‘To your [v]descendants I give this land,’ (DN)He will send His angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there. And if the woman is not willing to follow you, then (DO)you will be released from this oath; only do not take my son back there.” So the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master, and swore to him concerning this matter.

10 Then the servant took ten of his master’s camels and departed, (DP)for all his master’s goods were in his hand. And he arose and went to Mesopotamia, to (DQ)the city of Nahor. 11 And he made his camels kneel down outside the city by a well of water at evening time, the time (DR)when women go out to draw water. 12 Then he (DS)said, “O Lord God of my master Abraham, please (DT)give me success this day, and show kindness to my master Abraham. 13 Behold, here (DU)I stand by the well of water, and (DV)the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water. 14 Now let it be that the young woman to whom I say, ‘Please let down your pitcher that I may drink,’ and she says, ‘Drink, and I will also give your camels a drink’—let her be the one You have appointed for Your servant Isaac. And (DW)by this I will know that You have shown kindness to my master.”

15 And it happened, (DX)before he had finished speaking, that behold, (DY)Rebekah,[w] who was born to Bethuel, son of (DZ)Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham’s brother, came out with her pitcher on her shoulder. 16 Now the young woman (EA)was very beautiful to behold, a virgin; no man had known her. And she went down to the well, filled her pitcher, and came up. 17 And the servant ran to meet her and said, “Please let me drink a little water from your pitcher.”

18 (EB)So she said, “Drink, my lord.” Then she quickly let her pitcher down to her hand, and gave him a drink. 19 And when she had finished giving him a drink, she said, “I will draw water for your camels also, until they have finished drinking.” 20 Then she quickly emptied her pitcher into the trough, ran back to the well to draw water, and drew for all his camels. 21 And the man, wondering at her, remained silent so as to know whether (EC)the Lord had made his journey prosperous or not.

22 So it was, when the camels had finished drinking, that the man took a golden (ED)nose ring weighing half a shekel, and two bracelets for her wrists weighing ten shekels of gold, 23 and said, “Whose daughter are you? Tell me, please, is there room in your father’s house for us [x]to lodge?”

24 So she said to him, (EE)“I am the daughter of Bethuel, Milcah’s son, whom she bore to Nahor.” 25 Moreover she said to him, “We have both straw and feed enough, and room to lodge.”

26 Then the man (EF)bowed down his head and worshiped the Lord. 27 And he said, (EG)“Blessed be the Lord God of my master Abraham, who has not forsaken (EH)His mercy and His truth toward my master. As for me, being on the way, the Lord (EI)led me to the house of my master’s brethren.” 28 So the young woman ran and told her mother’s household these things.

29 Now Rebekah had a brother whose name was (EJ)Laban, and Laban ran out to the man by the well. 30 So it came to pass, when he saw the nose ring, and the bracelets on his sister’s wrists, and when he heard the words of his sister Rebekah, saying, “Thus the man spoke to me,” that he went to the man. And there he stood by the camels at the well. 31 And he said, “Come in, (EK)O blessed of the Lord! Why do you stand outside? For I have prepared the house, and a place for the camels.”

32 Then the man came to the house. And he unloaded the camels, and (EL)provided straw and feed for the camels, and water to (EM)wash his feet and the feet of the men who were with him. 33 Food was set before him to eat, but he said, (EN)“I will not eat until I have told about my errand.”

And he said, “Speak on.”

34 So he said, “I am Abraham’s servant. 35 The Lord (EO)has blessed my master greatly, and he has become great; and He has given him flocks and herds, silver and gold, male and female servants, and camels and donkeys. 36 And Sarah my master’s wife (EP)bore a son to my master when she was old; and (EQ)to him he has given all that he has. 37 Now my master (ER)made me swear, saying, ‘You shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I dwell; 38 (ES)but you shall go to my father’s house and to my family, and take a wife for my son.’ 39 (ET)And I said to my master, ‘Perhaps the woman will not follow me.’ 40 (EU)But he said to me, ‘The Lord, (EV)before whom I walk, will send His angel with you and [y]prosper your way; and you shall take a wife for my son from my family and from my father’s house. 41 (EW)You will be clear from this oath when you arrive among my family; for if they will not give her to you, then you will be released from my oath.’

42 “And this day I came to the well and said, (EX)‘O Lord God of my master Abraham, if You will now prosper the way in which I go, 43 (EY)behold, I stand by the well of water; and it shall come to pass that when the virgin comes out to draw water, and I say to her, “Please give me a little water from your pitcher to drink,” 44 and she says to me, “Drink, and I will draw for your camels also,”—let her be the woman whom the Lord has appointed for my master’s son.’

45 (EZ)“But before I had finished (FA)speaking in my heart, there was Rebekah, coming out with her pitcher on her shoulder; and she went down to the well and drew water. And I said to her, ‘Please let me drink.’ 46 And she made haste and let her pitcher down from her shoulder, and said, ‘Drink, and I will give your camels a drink also.’ So I drank, and she gave the camels a drink also. 47 Then I asked her, and said, ‘Whose daughter are you?’ And she said, ‘The daughter of Bethuel, Nahor’s son, whom Milcah bore to him.’ So I put the nose ring on her nose and the bracelets on her wrists. 48 (FB)And I bowed my head and worshiped the Lord, and blessed the Lord God of my master Abraham, who had led me in the way of truth to (FC)take the daughter of my master’s brother for his son. 49 Now if you will (FD)deal kindly and truly with my master, tell me. And if not, tell me, that I may turn to the right hand or to the left.”

50 Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, (FE)“The thing comes from the Lord; we cannot (FF)speak to you either bad or good. 51 (FG)Here is Rebekah before you; take her and go, and let her be your master’s son’s wife, as the Lord has spoken.”

52 And it came to pass, when Abraham’s servant heard their words, that (FH)he worshiped the Lord, bowing himself to the earth. 53 Then the servant brought out (FI)jewelry of silver, jewelry of gold, and clothing, and gave them to Rebekah. He also gave (FJ)precious things to her brother and to her mother.

54 And he and the men who were with him ate and drank and stayed all night. Then they arose in the morning, and he said, (FK)“Send me away to my master.”

55 But her brother and her mother said, “Let the young woman stay with us a few days, at least ten; after that she may go.”

56 And he said to them, “Do not [z]hinder me, since the Lord has prospered my way; send me away so that I may go to my master.”

57 So they said, “We will call the young woman and ask her personally.” 58 Then they called Rebekah and said to her, “Will you go with this man?”

And she said, “I will go.”

59 So they sent away Rebekah their sister (FL)and her nurse, and Abraham’s servant and his men. 60 And they blessed Rebekah and said to her:

“Our sister, may you become
(FM)The mother of thousands of ten thousands;
(FN)And may your descendants possess
The gates of those who hate them.”

61 Then Rebekah and her maids arose, and they rode on the camels and followed the man. So the servant took Rebekah and departed.

62 Now Isaac came from the way of (FO)Beer Lahai Roi, for he dwelt in the South. 63 And Isaac went out (FP)to meditate in the field in the evening; and he lifted his eyes and looked, and there, the camels were coming. 64 Then Rebekah lifted her eyes, and when she saw Isaac (FQ)she dismounted from her camel; 65 for she had said to the servant, “Who is this man walking in the field to meet us?”

The servant said, “It is my master.” So she took a veil and covered herself.

66 And the servant told Isaac all the things that he had done. 67 Then Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah’s tent; and he (FR)took Rebekah and she became his wife, and he loved her. So Isaac (FS)was comforted after his mother’s death.

Abraham and Keturah(FT)

25 Abraham again took a wife, and her name was (FU)Keturah. And (FV)she bore him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. Jokshan begot Sheba and Dedan. And the sons of Dedan were Asshurim, Letushim, and Leummim. And the sons of Midian were Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abidah, and Eldaah. All these were the children of Keturah.

And (FW)Abraham gave all that he had to Isaac. But Abraham gave gifts to the sons of the concubines which Abraham had; and while he was still living he (FX)sent them eastward, away from Isaac his son, to (FY)the country of the east.

Abraham’s Death and Burial

This is the sum of the years of Abraham’s life which he lived: one hundred and seventy-five years. Then Abraham breathed his last and (FZ)died in a good old age, an old man and full of years, and (GA)was gathered to his people. And (GB)his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of (GC)Machpelah, which is before Mamre, in the field of Ephron the son of Zohar the Hittite, 10 (GD)the field which Abraham purchased from the sons of Heth. (GE)There Abraham was buried, and Sarah his wife. 11 And it came to pass, after the death of Abraham, that God blessed his son Isaac. And Isaac dwelt at (GF)Beer Lahai Roi.

The Families of Ishmael and Isaac(GG)

12 Now this is the (GH)genealogy of Ishmael, Abraham’s son, whom Hagar the Egyptian, Sarah’s maidservant, bore to Abraham. 13 And (GI)these were the names of the sons of Ishmael, by their names, according to their generations: The firstborn of Ishmael, Nebajoth; then Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, 14 Mishma, Dumah, Massa, 15 [aa]Hadar, Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah. 16 These were the sons of Ishmael and these were their names, by their towns and their [ab]settlements, (GJ)twelve princes according to their nations. 17 These were the years of the life of Ishmael: one hundred and thirty-seven years; and (GK)he breathed his last and died, and was gathered to his people. 18 (GL)(They dwelt from Havilah as far as Shur, which is east of Egypt as you go toward Assyria.) He [ac]died (GM)in the presence of all his brethren.

19 This is the (GN)genealogy of Isaac, Abraham’s son. (GO)Abraham begot Isaac. 20 Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah as wife, (GP)the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Padan Aram, (GQ)the sister of Laban the Syrian. 21 Now Isaac pleaded with the Lord for his wife, because she was barren; (GR)and the Lord granted his plea, (GS)and Rebekah his wife conceived. 22 But the children struggled together within her; and she said, “If all is well, why am I like this?” (GT)So she went to inquire of the Lord.

23 And the Lord said to her:

(GU)“Two nations are in your womb,
Two peoples shall be separated from your body;
One people shall be stronger than (GV)the other,
(GW)And the older shall serve the younger.”

24 So when her days were fulfilled for her to give birth, indeed there were twins in her womb. 25 And the first came out red. He was (GX)like a hairy garment all over; so they called his name [ad]Esau. 26 Afterward his brother came out, and (GY)his hand took hold of Esau’s heel; so (GZ)his name was called [ae]Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when she bore them.

27 So the boys grew. And Esau was (HA)a skillful hunter, a man of the field; but Jacob was (HB)a [af]mild man, (HC)dwelling in tents. 28 And Isaac loved Esau because he (HD)ate of his game, (HE)but Rebekah loved Jacob.

Esau Sells His Birthright(HF)

29 Now Jacob cooked a stew; and Esau came in from the field, and he was weary. 30 And Esau said to Jacob, “Please feed me with that same red stew, for I am weary.” Therefore his name was called [ag]Edom.

31 But Jacob said, “Sell me your birthright as of this day.”

32 And Esau said, “Look, I am about to die; so (HG)what is this birthright to me?”

33 Then Jacob said, [ah]“Swear to me as of this day.”

So he swore to him, and (HH)sold his birthright to Jacob. 34 And Jacob gave Esau bread and stew of lentils; then (HI)he ate and drank, arose, and went his way. Thus Esau (HJ)despised his birthright.

Isaac and Abimelech

26 There was a famine in the land, besides (HK)the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to (HL)Abimelech king of the Philistines, in Gerar.

Then the Lord appeared to him and said: (HM)“Do not go down to Egypt; live in (HN)the land of which I shall tell you. (HO)Dwell in this land, and (HP)I will be with you and (HQ)bless you; for to you and your descendants (HR)I give all these lands, and I will perform (HS)the oath which I swore to Abraham your father. And (HT)I will make your descendants multiply as the stars of heaven; I will give to your descendants all these lands; (HU)and in your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed; (HV)because Abraham obeyed My voice and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My laws.”

So Isaac dwelt in Gerar. And the men of the place asked about his wife. And (HW)he said, “She is my sister”; for (HX)he was afraid to say, “She is my wife,” because he thought, “lest the men of the place kill me for Rebekah, because she is (HY)beautiful to behold.” Now it came to pass, when he had been there a long time, that Abimelech king of the Philistines looked through a window, and saw, and there was Isaac, [ai]showing endearment to Rebekah his wife. Then Abimelech called Isaac and said, “Quite obviously she is your wife; so how could you say, ‘She is my sister’?”

Isaac said to him, “Because I said, ‘Lest I die on account of her.’ ”

10 And Abimelech said, “What is this you have done to us? One of the people might soon have lain with your wife, and (HZ)you would have brought guilt on us.” 11 So Abimelech charged all his people, saying, “He who (IA)touches this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.”

12 Then Isaac sowed in that land, and reaped in the same year (IB)a hundredfold; and the Lord (IC)blessed him. 13 The man (ID)began to prosper, and continued prospering until he became very prosperous; 14 for he had possessions of flocks and possessions of herds and a great number of servants. So the Philistines (IE)envied him. 15 Now the Philistines had stopped up all the wells (IF)which his father’s servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, and they had filled them with earth. 16 And Abimelech said to Isaac, “Go away from us, for (IG)you are much mightier than we.”

17 Then Isaac departed from there and [aj]pitched his tent in the Valley of Gerar, and dwelt there. 18 And Isaac dug again the wells of water which they had dug in the days of Abraham his father, for the Philistines had stopped them up after the death of Abraham. (IH)He called them by the names which his father had called them.

19 Also Isaac’s servants dug in the valley, and found a well of running water there. 20 But the herdsmen of Gerar (II)quarreled with Isaac’s herdsmen, saying, “The water is ours.” So he called the name of the well [ak]Esek, because they quarreled with him. 21 Then they dug another well, and they quarreled over that one also. So he called its name [al]Sitnah. 22 And he moved from there and dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it. So he called its name [am]Rehoboth, because he said, “For now the Lord has made room for us, and we shall (IJ)be fruitful in the land.”

23 Then he went up from there to Beersheba. 24 And the Lord (IK)appeared to him the same night and said, (IL)“I am the God of your father Abraham; (IM)do not fear, for (IN)I am with you. I will bless you and multiply your descendants for My servant Abraham’s sake.” 25 So he (IO)built an altar there and (IP)called on the name of the Lord, and he pitched his tent there; and there Isaac’s servants dug a well.

26 Then Abimelech came to him from Gerar with Ahuzzath, one of his friends, (IQ)and Phichol the commander of his army. 27 And Isaac said to them, “Why have you come to me, (IR)since you hate me and have (IS)sent me away from you?”

28 But they said, “We have certainly seen that the Lord (IT)is with you. So we said, ‘Let there now be an oath between us, between you and us; and let us make a [an]covenant with you, 29 that you will do us no harm, since we have not touched you, and since we have done nothing to you but good and have sent you away in peace. (IU)You are now the blessed of the Lord.’ ”

30 (IV)So he made them a feast, and they ate and drank. 31 Then they arose early in the morning and (IW)swore an oath with one another; and Isaac sent them away, and they departed from him in peace.

32 It came to pass the same day that Isaac’s servants came and told him about the well which they had dug, and said to him, “We have found water.” 33 So he called it [ao]Shebah. (IX)Therefore the name of the city is [ap]Beersheba to this day.

34 (IY)When Esau was forty years old, he took as wives Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite. 35 And (IZ)they were a grief of mind to Isaac and Rebekah.

Isaac Blesses Jacob

27 Now it came to pass, when Isaac was (JA)old and (JB)his eyes were so dim that he could not see, that he called Esau his older son and said to him, “My son.”

And he answered him, “Here I am.”

Then he said, “Behold now, I am old. I (JC)do not know the day of my death. (JD)Now therefore, please take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me. And make me [aq]savory food, such as I love, and bring it to me that I may eat, that my soul (JE)may bless you before I die.”

Now Rebekah was listening when Isaac spoke to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to hunt game and to bring it. So Rebekah spoke to Jacob her son, saying, “Indeed I heard your father speak to Esau your brother, saying, ‘Bring me game and make [ar]savory food for me, that I may eat it and bless you in the presence of the Lord before my death.’ Now therefore, my son, (JF)obey my voice according to what I command you. Go now to the flock and bring me from there two choice kids of the goats, and I will make (JG)savory food from them for your father, such as he loves. 10 Then you shall take it to your father, that he may eat it, and that he (JH)may bless you before his death.”

11 And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, “Look, (JI)Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth-skinned man. 12 Perhaps my father will (JJ)feel me, and I shall seem to be a deceiver to him; and I shall bring (JK)a curse on myself and not a blessing.”

13 But his mother said to him, (JL)Let your curse be on me, my son; only obey my voice, and go, get them for me.” 14 And he went and got them and brought them to his mother, and his mother (JM)made [as]savory food, such as his father loved. 15 Then Rebekah took (JN)the choice clothes of her elder son Esau, which were with her in the house, and put them on Jacob her younger son. 16 And she put the skins of the kids of the goats on his hands and on the smooth part of his neck. 17 Then she gave the savory food and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob.

18 So he went to his father and said, “My father.”

And he said, “Here I am. Who are you, my son?”

19 Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn; I have done just as you told me; please arise, sit and eat of my game, (JO)that your soul may bless me.”

20 But Isaac said to his son, “How is it that you have found it so quickly, my son?”

And he said, “Because the Lord your God brought it to me.”

21 Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come near, that I (JP)may feel you, my son, whether you are really my son Esau or not.” 22 So Jacob went near to Isaac his father, and he felt him and said, “The voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau.” 23 And he did not recognize him, because (JQ)his hands were hairy like his brother Esau’s hands; so he blessed him.

24 Then he said, “Are you really my son Esau?”

He said, “I am.

25 He said, “Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son’s game, so (JR)that my soul may bless you.” So he brought it near to him, and he ate; and he brought him wine, and he drank. 26 Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come near now and kiss me, my son.” 27 And he came near and (JS)kissed him; and he smelled the smell of his clothing, and blessed him and said:

“Surely, (JT)the smell of my son
Is like the smell of a field
Which the Lord has blessed.
28 Therefore may (JU)God give you
Of (JV)the dew of heaven,
Of (JW)the fatness of the earth,
And (JX)plenty of grain and wine.
29 (JY)Let peoples serve you,
And nations bow down to you.
Be master over your brethren,
And (JZ)let your mother’s sons bow down to you.
(KA)Cursed be everyone who curses you,
And blessed be those who bless you!”

Esau’s Lost Hope(KB)

30 Now it happened, as soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, and Jacob had scarcely gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunting. 31 He also had made [at]savory food, and brought it to his father, and said to his father, “Let my father arise and (KC)eat of his son’s game, that your soul may bless me.”

32 And his father Isaac said to him, “Who are you?”

So he said, “I am your son, your firstborn, Esau.”

33 Then Isaac trembled exceedingly, and said, “Who? Where is the one who hunted game and brought it to me? I ate all of it before you came, and I have blessed him—(KD)and indeed he shall be blessed.”

34 When Esau heard the words of his father, (KE)he cried with an exceedingly great and bitter cry, and said to his father, “Bless me—me also, O my father!”

35 But he said, “Your brother came with deceit and has taken away your blessing.”

36 And Esau said, (KF)“Is he not rightly named [au]Jacob? For he has supplanted me these two times. He took away my birthright, and now look, he has taken away my blessing!” And he said, “Have you not reserved a blessing for me?”

37 Then Isaac answered and said to Esau, (KG)“Indeed I have made him your master, and all his brethren I have given to him as servants; with (KH)grain and wine I have [av]sustained him. What shall I do now for you, my son?”

38 And Esau said to his father, “Have you only one blessing, my father? Bless me—me also, O my father!” And Esau lifted up his voice (KI)and wept.

39 Then Isaac his father answered and said to him:

“Behold, (KJ)your dwelling shall be of the [aw]fatness of the earth,
And of the dew of heaven from above.
40 By your sword you shall live,
And (KK)you shall serve your brother;
And (KL)it shall come to pass, when you become restless,
That you shall break his yoke from your neck.”

Jacob Escapes from Esau

41 So Esau (KM)hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father blessed him, and Esau said in his heart, (KN)“The days of mourning for my father [ax]are at hand; (KO)then I will kill my brother Jacob.”

42 And the words of Esau her older son were told to Rebekah. So she sent and called Jacob her younger son, and said to him, “Surely your brother Esau (KP)comforts himself concerning you by intending to kill you. 43 Now therefore, my son, obey my voice: arise, flee to my brother Laban (KQ)in Haran. 44 And stay with him a (KR)few days, until your brother’s fury turns away, 45 until your brother’s anger turns away from you, and he forgets what you have done to him; then I will send and bring you from there. Why should I be bereaved also of you both in one day?”

46 And Rebekah said to Isaac, (KS)“I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth; (KT)if Jacob takes a wife of the daughters of Heth, like these who are the daughters of the land, what good will my life be to me?”

Jacob Sent to His Uncle Laban

28 Then Isaac called Jacob and (KU)blessed him, and [ay]charged him, and said to him: (KV)“You shall not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan. (KW)Arise, go to (KX)Padan Aram, to the house of (KY)Bethuel your mother’s father; and take yourself a wife from there of the daughters of (KZ)Laban your mother’s brother.

“May (LA)God Almighty bless you,
And make you (LB)fruitful and multiply you,
That you may be an assembly of peoples;
And give you (LC)the blessing of Abraham,
To you and your descendants with you,
That you may inherit the land
(LD)In[az] which you are a stranger,
Which God gave to Abraham.”

So Isaac sent Jacob away, and he went to Padan Aram, to Laban the son of Bethuel the Syrian, the brother of Rebekah, the mother of Jacob and Esau.

Esau Marries Mahalath

Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him away to Padan Aram to take himself a wife from there, and that as he blessed him he gave him a charge, saying, “You shall not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan,” and that Jacob had obeyed his father and his mother and had gone to Padan Aram. Also Esau saw (LE)that the daughters of Canaan did not please his father Isaac. So Esau went to Ishmael and (LF)took (LG)Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham’s son, (LH)the sister of Nebajoth, to be his wife in addition to the wives he had.

Jacob’s Vow at Bethel

10 Now Jacob (LI)went out from Beersheba and went toward (LJ)Haran. 11 So he came to a certain place and stayed there all night, because the sun had set. And he took one of the stones of that place and put it at his head, and he lay down in that place to sleep. 12 Then he (LK)dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there (LL)the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.

13 (LM)And behold, the Lord stood above it and said: (LN)“I am the Lord God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; (LO)the land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants. 14 Also your (LP)descendants shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread abroad (LQ)to the west and the east, to the north and the south; and in you and (LR)in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed. 15 Behold, (LS)I am with you and will (LT)keep[ba] you wherever you go, and will (LU)bring you back to this land; for (LV)I will not leave you (LW)until I have done what I have spoken to you.”

16 Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in (LX)this place, and I did not know it. 17 And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!”

18 Then Jacob rose early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put at his head, (LY)set it up as a pillar, (LZ)and poured oil on top of it. 19 And he called the name of (MA)that place [bb]Bethel; but the name of that city had been Luz previously. 20 (MB)Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If (MC)God will be with me, and keep me in this way that I am going, and give me (MD)bread to eat and clothing to put on, 21 so that (ME)I come back to my father’s house in peace, (MF)then the Lord shall be my God. 22 And this stone which I have set as a pillar (MG)shall be God’s house, (MH)and of all that You give me I will surely give a [bc]tenth to You.”

Jacob Meets Rachel

29 So Jacob went on his journey (MI)and came to the land of the people of the East. And he looked, and saw a (MJ)well in the field; and behold, there were three flocks of sheep lying by it; for out of that well they watered the flocks. A large stone was on the well’s mouth. Now all the flocks would be gathered there; and they would roll the stone from the well’s mouth, water the sheep, and put the stone back in its place on the well’s mouth.

And Jacob said to them, “My brethren, where are you from?”

And they said, “We are from (MK)Haran.”

Then he said to them, “Do you know (ML)Laban the son of Nahor?”

And they said, “We know him.”

So he said to them, (MM)“Is he well?”

And they said, “He is well. And look, his daughter Rachel (MN)is coming with the sheep.”

Then he said, “Look, it is still [bd]high day; it is not time for the cattle to be gathered together. Water the sheep, and go and feed them.

But they said, “We cannot until all the flocks are gathered together, and they have rolled the stone from the well’s mouth; then we water the sheep.”

Now while he was still speaking with them, (MO)Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherdess. 10 And it came to pass, when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother, that Jacob went near and (MP)rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the flock of Laban his mother’s brother. 11 Then Jacob (MQ)kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice and wept. 12 And Jacob told Rachel that he was (MR)her father’s relative and that he was Rebekah’s son. (MS)So she ran and told her father.

13 Then it came to pass, when Laban heard the report about Jacob his sister’s son, that (MT)he ran to meet him, and embraced him and kissed him, and brought him to his house. So he told Laban all these things. 14 And Laban said to him, (MU)“Surely you are my bone and my flesh.” And he stayed with him for a month.

Jacob Marries Leah and Rachel

15 Then Laban said to Jacob, “Because you are my relative, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, (MV)what should your wages be? 16 Now Laban had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. 17 Leah’s eyes were [be]delicate, but Rachel was (MW)beautiful of form and appearance.

18 Now Jacob loved Rachel; so he said, (MX)“I will serve you seven years for Rachel your younger daughter.”

19 And Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you than that I should give her to another man. Stay with me.” 20 So Jacob (MY)served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed only a few days to him because of the love he had for her.

21 Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may (MZ)go in to her.” 22 And Laban gathered together all the men of the place and (NA)made a feast. 23 Now it came to pass in the evening, that he took Leah his daughter and brought her to Jacob; and he went in to her. 24 And Laban gave his maid (NB)Zilpah to his daughter Leah as a maid. 25 So it came to pass in the morning, that behold, it was Leah. And he said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Was it not for Rachel that I served you? Why then have you (NC)deceived me?”

26 And Laban said, “It must not be done so in our [bf]country, to give the younger before the firstborn. 27 (ND)Fulfill her week, and we will give you this one also for the service which you will serve with me still another seven years.”

28 Then Jacob did so and fulfilled her week. So he gave him his daughter Rachel as wife also. 29 And Laban gave his maid (NE)Bilhah to his daughter Rachel as a maid. 30 Then Jacob also went in to Rachel, and he also (NF)loved Rachel more than Leah. And he served with Laban (NG)still another seven years.

The Children of Jacob

31 When the Lord (NH)saw that Leah was [bg]unloved, He (NI)opened her womb; but Rachel was barren. 32 So Leah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name [bh]Reuben; for she said, “The Lord has surely (NJ)looked on my affliction. Now therefore, my husband will love me.” 33 Then she conceived again and bore a son, and said, “Because the Lord has heard that I am [bi]unloved, He has therefore given me this son also.” And she called his name [bj]Simeon. 34 She conceived again and bore a son, and said, “Now this time my husband will become attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.” Therefore his name was called [bk]Levi. 35 And she conceived again and bore a son, and said, “Now I will praise the Lord.” Therefore she called his name (NK)Judah.[bl] Then she stopped bearing.

Jacob’s Children

30 Now when Rachel saw that (NL)she bore Jacob no children, Rachel (NM)envied her sister, and said to Jacob, “Give me children, (NN)or else I die!”

And Jacob’s anger was aroused against Rachel, and he said, (NO)Am I in the place of God, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?”

So she said, “Here is (NP)my maid Bilhah; go in to her, (NQ)and she will bear a child on my knees, (NR)that I also may [bm]have children by her.” Then she gave him Bilhah her maid (NS)as wife, and Jacob went in to her. And Bilhah conceived and bore Jacob a son. Then Rachel said, “God has (NT)judged my case; and He has also heard my voice and given me a son.” Therefore she called his name [bn]Dan. And Rachel’s maid Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son. Then Rachel said, “With [bo]great wrestlings I have wrestled with my sister, and indeed I have prevailed.” So she called his name [bp]Naphtali.

When Leah saw that she had stopped bearing, she took Zilpah her maid and (NU)gave her to Jacob as wife. 10 And Leah’s maid Zilpah bore Jacob a son. 11 Then Leah said, [bq]“A troop comes!” So she called his name [br]Gad. 12 And Leah’s maid Zilpah bore Jacob a second son. 13 Then Leah said, “I am happy, for the daughters (NV)will call me blessed.” So she called his name [bs]Asher.

14 Now Reuben went in the days of wheat harvest and found mandrakes in the field, and brought them to his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, (NW)“Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.”

15 But she said to her, (NX)Is it a small matter that you have taken away my husband? Would you take away my son’s mandrakes also?”

And Rachel said, “Therefore he will lie with you tonight for your son’s mandrakes.”

16 When Jacob came out of the field in the evening, Leah went out to meet him and said, “You must come in to me, for I have surely hired you with my son’s mandrakes.” And he lay with her that night.

17 And God listened to Leah, and she conceived and bore Jacob a fifth son. 18 Leah said, “God has given me my wages, because I have given my maid to my husband.” So she called his name [bt]Issachar. 19 Then Leah conceived again and bore Jacob a sixth son. 20 And Leah said, “God has endowed me with a good endowment; now my husband will dwell with me, because I have borne him six sons.” So she called his name [bu]Zebulun. 21 Afterward she bore a (NY)daughter, and called her name [bv]Dinah.

22 Then God (NZ)remembered Rachel, and God listened to her and (OA)opened her womb. 23 And she conceived and bore a son, and said, “God has taken away (OB)my reproach.” 24 So she called his name [bw]Joseph, and said, (OC)“The Lord shall add to me another son.”

Jacob’s Agreement with Laban

25 And it came to pass, when Rachel had borne Joseph, that Jacob said to Laban, (OD)“Send me away, that I may go to (OE)my own place and to my country. 26 Give me my wives and my children (OF)for whom I have served you, and let me go; for you know my service which I have done for you.”

27 And Laban said to him, “Please stay, if I have found favor in your eyes, for (OG)I have learned by experience that the Lord has blessed me for your sake.” 28 Then he said, (OH)“Name me your wages, and I will give it.

29 So Jacob said to him, (OI)“You know how I have served you and how your livestock has been with me. 30 For what you had before I came was little, and it has increased to a great amount; the Lord has blessed you [bx]since my coming. And now, when shall I also (OJ)provide for my own house?”

31 So he said, “What shall I give you?”

And Jacob said, “You shall not give me anything. If you will do this thing for me, I will again feed and keep your flocks: 32 Let me pass through all your flock today, removing from there all the speckled and spotted sheep, and all the brown ones among the lambs, and the spotted and speckled among the goats; and (OK)these shall be my wages. 33 So my (OL)righteousness will answer for me in time to come, when the subject of my wages comes before you: every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and brown among the lambs, will be considered stolen, if it is with me.”

34 And Laban said, “Oh, that it were according to your word!” 35 So he removed that day the male goats that were (OM)speckled and spotted, all the female goats that were speckled and spotted, every one that had some white in it, and all the brown ones among the lambs, and gave them into the hand of his sons. 36 Then he put three days’ journey between himself and Jacob, and Jacob fed the rest of Laban’s flocks.

37 Now (ON)Jacob took for himself rods of green poplar and of the almond and chestnut trees, peeled white strips in them, and exposed the white which was in the rods. 38 And the rods which he had peeled, he set before the flocks in the gutters, in the watering troughs where the flocks came to drink, so that they should conceive when they came to drink. 39 So the flocks conceived before the rods, and the flocks brought forth streaked, speckled, and spotted. 40 Then Jacob separated the lambs, and made the flocks face toward the streaked and all the brown in the flock of Laban; but he put his own flocks by themselves and did not put them with Laban’s flock.

41 And it came to pass, whenever the stronger livestock conceived, that Jacob placed the rods before the eyes of the livestock in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods. 42 But when the flocks were feeble, he did not put them in; so the feebler were Laban’s and the stronger Jacob’s. 43 Thus the man (OO)became exceedingly prosperous, and (OP)had large flocks, female and male servants, and camels and donkeys.

Jacob Flees from Laban

31 Now Jacob heard the words of Laban’s sons, saying, “Jacob has taken away all that was our father’s, and from what was our father’s he has acquired all this (OQ)wealth.” And Jacob saw the (OR)countenance of Laban, and indeed it was not (OS)favorable toward him as before. Then the Lord said to Jacob, (OT)“Return to the land of your fathers and to your family, and I will (OU)be with you.”

So Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah to the field, to his flock, and said to them, (OV)“I see your father’s [by]countenance, that it is not favorable toward me as before; but the God of my father (OW)has been with me. And (OX)you know that with all my might I have served your father. Yet your father has deceived me and (OY)changed my wages (OZ)ten times, but God (PA)did not allow him to hurt me. If he said thus: (PB)‘The speckled shall be your wages,’ then all the flocks bore speckled. And if he said thus: ‘The streaked shall be your wages,’ then all the flocks bore streaked. So God has (PC)taken away the livestock of your father and given them to me.

10 “And it happened, at the time when the flocks conceived, that I lifted my eyes and saw in a dream, and behold, the rams which leaped upon the flocks were streaked, speckled, and gray-spotted. 11 Then (PD)the Angel of God spoke to me in a dream, saying, ‘Jacob.’ And I said, ‘Here I am.’ 12 And He said, ‘Lift your eyes now and see, all the rams which leap on the flocks are streaked, speckled, and gray-spotted; for (PE)I have seen all that Laban is doing to you. 13 I am the God of Bethel, (PF)where you anointed the pillar and where you made a vow to Me. Now (PG)arise, get out of this land, and return to the land of your family.’ ”

14 Then Rachel and Leah answered and said to him, (PH)“Is there still any portion or inheritance for us in our father’s house? 15 Are we not considered strangers by him? For (PI)he has sold us, and also completely consumed our money. 16 For all these riches which God has taken from our father are really ours and our children’s; now then, whatever God has said to you, do it.”

17 Then Jacob rose and set his sons and his wives on camels. 18 And he carried away all his livestock and all his possessions which he had gained, his acquired livestock which he had gained in Padan Aram, to go to his father Isaac in the land of (PJ)Canaan. 19 Now Laban had gone to shear his sheep, and Rachel had stolen the (PK)household[bz] idols that were her father’s. 20 And Jacob stole away, unknown to Laban the Syrian, in that he did not tell him that he intended to flee. 21 So he fled with all that he had. He arose and crossed the river, and (PL)headed[ca] toward the mountains of Gilead.

Laban Pursues Jacob

22 And Laban was told on the third day that Jacob had fled. 23 Then he took (PM)his brethren with him and pursued him for seven days’ journey, and he overtook him in the mountains of Gilead. 24 But God (PN)had come to Laban the Syrian in a dream by night, and said to him, “Be careful that you (PO)speak to Jacob neither good nor bad.”

25 So Laban overtook Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the mountains, and Laban with his brethren pitched in the mountains of Gilead.

26 And Laban said to Jacob: “What have you done, that you have stolen away unknown to me, and (PP)carried away my daughters like captives taken with the sword? 27 Why did you flee away secretly, and steal away from me, and not tell me; for I might have sent you away with joy and songs, with timbrel and harp? 28 And you did not allow me (PQ)to kiss my sons and my daughters. Now (PR)you have done foolishly in so doing. 29 It is in my power to do you harm, but the (PS)God of your father spoke to me (PT)last night, saying, ‘Be careful that you speak to Jacob neither good nor bad.’ 30 And now you have surely gone because you greatly long for your father’s house, but why did you (PU)steal my gods?”

31 Then Jacob answered and said to Laban, “Because I was (PV)afraid, for I said, ‘Perhaps you would take your daughters from me by force.’ 32 With whomever you find your gods, (PW)do not let him live. In the presence of our brethren, identify what I have of yours and take it with you.” For Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen them.

33 And Laban went into Jacob’s tent, into Leah’s tent, and into the two maids’ tents, but he did not find them. Then he went out of Leah’s tent and entered Rachel’s tent. 34 Now Rachel had taken the [cb]household idols, put them in the camel’s saddle, and sat on them. And Laban [cc]searched all about the tent but did not find them. 35 And she said to her father, “Let it not displease my lord that I cannot (PX)rise before you, for the manner of women is with me.” And he searched but did not find the [cd]household idols.

36 Then Jacob was angry and rebuked Laban, and Jacob answered and said to Laban: “What is my [ce]trespass? What is my sin, that you have so hotly pursued me? 37 Although you have searched all my things, what part of your household things have you found? Set it here before my brethren and your brethren, that they may judge between us both! 38 These twenty years I have been with you; your ewes and your female goats have not miscarried their young, and I have not eaten the rams of your flock. 39 (PY)That which was torn by beasts I did not bring to you; I bore the loss of it. (PZ)You required it from my hand, whether stolen by day or stolen by night. 40 There I was! In the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night, and my sleep departed from my eyes. 41 Thus I have been in your house twenty years; I (QA)served you fourteen years for your two daughters, and six years for your flock, and (QB)you have changed my wages ten times. 42 (QC)Unless the God of my father, the God of Abraham and (QD)the Fear of Isaac, had been with me, surely now you would have sent me away empty-handed. (QE)God has seen my affliction and the labor of my hands, and (QF)rebuked you last night.”

Laban’s Covenant with Jacob

43 And Laban answered and said to Jacob, “These daughters are my daughters, and these children are my children, and this flock is my flock; all that you see is mine. But what can I do this day to these my daughters or to their children whom they have borne? 44 Now therefore, come, (QG)let us make a [cf]covenant, (QH)you and I, and let it be a witness between you and me.”

45 So Jacob (QI)took a stone and set it up as a pillar. 46 Then Jacob said to his brethren, “Gather stones.” And they took stones and made a heap, and they ate there on the heap. 47 Laban called it [cg]Jegar Sahadutha, but Jacob called it [ch]Galeed. 48 And Laban said, (QJ)“This heap is a witness between you and me this day.” Therefore its name was called Galeed, 49 also (QK)Mizpah,[ci] because he said, “May the Lord watch between you and me when we are absent one from another. 50 If you afflict my daughters, or if you take other wives besides my daughters, although no man is with us—see, God is witness between you and me!”

51 Then Laban said to Jacob, “Here is this heap and here is this pillar, which I have placed between you and me. 52 This heap is a witness, and this pillar is a witness, that I will not pass beyond this heap to you, and you will not pass beyond this heap and this pillar to me, for harm. 53 The God of Abraham, the God of Nahor, and the God of their father (QL)judge between us.” And Jacob (QM)swore by (QN)the [cj]Fear of his father Isaac. 54 Then Jacob offered a sacrifice on the mountain, and called his brethren to eat bread. And they ate bread and stayed all night on the mountain. 55 And early in the morning Laban arose, and (QO)kissed his sons and daughters and (QP)blessed them. Then Laban departed and (QQ)returned to his place.

Esau Comes to Meet Jacob

32 So Jacob went on his way, and (QR)the angels of God met him. When Jacob saw them, he said, “This is God’s (QS)camp.” And he called the name of that place [ck]Mahanaim.

Then Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother (QT)in the land of Seir, (QU)the [cl]country of Edom. And he commanded them, saying, (QV)“Speak thus to my lord Esau, ‘Thus your servant Jacob says: “I have dwelt with Laban and stayed there until now. (QW)I have oxen, donkeys, flocks, and male and female servants; and I have sent to tell my lord, that (QX)I may find favor in your sight.” ’ ”

Then the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, “We came to your brother Esau, and (QY)he also is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.” So Jacob was greatly afraid and (QZ)distressed; and he divided the people that were with him, and the flocks and herds and camels, into two companies. And he said, “If Esau comes to the one company and [cm]attacks it, then the other company which is left will escape.”

(RA)Then Jacob said, (RB)“O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, the Lord (RC)who said to me, ‘Return to your country and to your family, and I will deal well with you’: 10 I am not worthy of the least of all the (RD)mercies and of all the truth which You have shown Your servant; for I crossed over this Jordan with (RE)my staff, and now I have become two companies. 11 (RF)Deliver me, I pray, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau; for I fear him, lest he come and [cn]attack me and (RG)the mother with the children. 12 For (RH)You said, ‘I will surely treat you well, and make your descendants as the (RI)sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.’ ”

13 So he lodged there that same night, and took what [co]came to his hand as (RJ)a present for Esau his brother: 14 two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams, 15 thirty milk camels with their colts, forty cows and ten bulls, twenty female donkeys and ten foals. 16 Then he delivered them to the hand of his servants, every drove by itself, and said to his servants, “Pass over before me, and put some distance between successive droves.” 17 And he commanded the first one, saying, “When Esau my brother meets you and asks you, saying, ‘To whom do you belong, and where are you going? Whose are these in front of you?’ 18 then you shall say, ‘They are your servant Jacob’s. It is a present sent to my lord Esau; and behold, he also is behind us.’ ” 19 So he commanded the second, the third, and all who followed the droves, saying, “In this manner you shall speak to Esau when you find him; 20 and also say, ‘Behold, your servant Jacob is behind us.’ ” For he said, “I will (RK)appease him with the present that goes before me, and afterward I will see his face; perhaps he will accept me.” 21 So the present went on over before him, but he himself lodged that night in the camp.

Wrestling with God

22 And he arose that night and took his two wives, his two female servants, and his eleven sons, (RL)and crossed over the ford of Jabbok. 23 He took them, sent them [cp]over the brook, and sent over what he had. 24 Then Jacob was left alone; and (RM)a Man wrestled with him until the [cq]breaking of day. 25 Now when He saw that He did not prevail against him, He [cr]touched the socket of his hip; and (RN)the socket of Jacob’s hip was out of joint as He wrestled with him. 26 And (RO)He said, “Let Me go, for the day breaks.”

But he said, (RP)“I will not let You go unless You bless me!”

27 So He said to him, “What is your name?”

He said, “Jacob.”

28 And He said, (RQ)“Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but [cs]Israel; for you have (RR)struggled with God and (RS)with men, and have prevailed.”

29 Then Jacob asked, saying, “Tell me Your name, I pray.”

And He said, (RT)“Why is it that you ask about My name?” And He (RU)blessed him there.

30 So Jacob called the name of the place [ct]Peniel: “For (RV)I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.” 31 Just as he crossed over [cu]Penuel the sun rose on him, and he limped on his hip. 32 Therefore to this day the children of Israel do not eat the muscle that shrank, which is on the hip socket, because He [cv]touched the socket of Jacob’s hip in the muscle that shrank.

Jacob and Esau Meet

33 Now Jacob lifted his eyes and looked, and there, (RW)Esau was coming, and with him were four hundred men. So he divided the children among Leah, Rachel, and the two maidservants. And he put the maidservants and their children in front, Leah and her children behind, and Rachel and Joseph last. Then he crossed over before them and (RX)bowed himself to the ground seven times, until he came near to his brother.

(RY)But Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, (RZ)and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept. And he lifted his eyes and saw the women and children, and said, “Who are these with you?”

So he said, “The children (SA)whom God has graciously given your servant.” Then the maidservants came near, they and their children, and bowed down. And Leah also came near with her children, and they bowed down. Afterward Joseph and Rachel came near, and they bowed down.

Then Esau said, “What do you mean by (SB)all this company which I met?”

And he said, “These are (SC)to find favor in the sight of my lord.”

But Esau said, “I have enough, my brother; keep what you have for yourself.”

10 And Jacob said, “No, please, if I have now found favor in your sight, then receive my present from my hand, inasmuch as I (SD)have seen your face as though I had seen the face of God, and you were pleased with me. 11 Please, take (SE)my blessing that is brought to you, because God has dealt (SF)graciously with me, and because I have [cw]enough.” (SG)So he urged him, and he took it.

12 Then Esau said, “Let us take our journey; let us go, and I will go before you.”

13 But Jacob said to him, “My lord knows that the children are weak, and the flocks and herds which are nursing are with me. And if the men should drive them hard one day, all the flock will die. 14 Please let my lord go on ahead before his servant. I will lead on slowly at a pace which the livestock that go before me, and the children, [cx]are able to endure, until I come to my lord (SH)in Seir.”

15 And Esau said, “Now let me leave with you some of the people who are with me.”

But he said, “What need is there? (SI)Let me find favor in the sight of my lord.” 16 So Esau returned that day on his way to Seir. 17 And Jacob journeyed to (SJ)Succoth, built himself a house, and made [cy]booths for his livestock. Therefore the name of the place is called [cz]Succoth.

Jacob Comes to Canaan

18 Then Jacob came [da]safely to (SK)the city of (SL)Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan, when he came from Padan Aram; and he pitched his tent before the city. 19 And (SM)he bought the parcel of [db]land, where he had pitched his tent, from the children of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for one hundred pieces of money. 20 Then he erected an altar there and called it (SN)El[dc] Elohe Israel.

The Dinah Incident

34 Now (SO)Dinah the daughter of Leah, whom she had borne to Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land. And when Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, prince of the country, saw her, he (SP)took her and lay with her, and violated her. His soul [dd]was strongly attracted to Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the young woman and spoke [de]kindly to the young woman. So Shechem (SQ)spoke to his father Hamor, saying, “Get me this young woman as a wife.”

And Jacob heard that he had defiled Dinah his daughter. Now his sons were with his livestock in the field; so Jacob (SR)held[df] his peace until they came. Then Hamor the father of Shechem went out to Jacob to speak with him. And the sons of Jacob came in from the field when they heard it; and the men were grieved and very angry, because he (SS)had done a disgraceful thing in Israel by lying with Jacob’s daughter, (ST)a thing which ought not to be done. But Hamor spoke with them, saying, “The soul of my son Shechem longs for your daughter. Please give her to him as a wife. And make marriages with us; give your daughters to us, and take our daughters to yourselves. 10 So you shall dwell with us, and the land shall be before you. Dwell and trade in it, and acquire possessions for yourselves in it.”

11 Then Shechem said to her father and her brothers, “Let me find favor in your eyes, and whatever you say to me I will give. 12 Ask me ever so much (SU)dowry[dg] and gift, and I will give according to what you say to me; but give me the young woman as a wife.”

13 But the sons of Jacob answered Shechem and Hamor his father, and spoke (SV)deceitfully, because he had defiled Dinah their sister. 14 And they said to them, “We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one who is (SW)uncircumcised, for (SX)that would be a reproach to us. 15 But on this condition we will consent to you: If you will become as we are, if every male of you is circumcised, 16 then we will give our daughters to you, and we will take your daughters to us; and we will dwell with you, and we will become one people. 17 But if you will not heed us and be circumcised, then we will take our daughter and be gone.”

18 And their words pleased Hamor and Shechem, Hamor’s son. 19 So the young man did not delay to do the thing, because he delighted in Jacob’s daughter. He was (SY)more honorable than all the household of his father.

20 And Hamor and Shechem his son came to the (SZ)gate of their city, and spoke with the men of their city, saying: 21 “These men are at peace with us. Therefore let them dwell in the land and trade in it. For indeed the land is large enough for them. Let us take their daughters to us as wives, and let us give them our daughters. 22 Only on this condition will the men consent to dwell with us, to be one people: if every male among us is circumcised as they are circumcised. 23 Will not their livestock, their property, and every animal of theirs be ours? Only let us consent to them, and they will dwell with us.” 24 And all who went out of the gate of his city heeded Hamor and Shechem his son; every male was circumcised, all who (TA)went out of the gate of his city.

25 Now it came to pass on the third day, when they were in pain, that two of the sons of Jacob, (TB)Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brothers, each took his sword and came boldly upon the city and killed all the males. 26 And they (TC)killed Hamor and Shechem his son with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah from Shechem’s house, and went out. 27 The sons of Jacob came upon the slain, and plundered the city, because their sister had been defiled. 28 They took their sheep, their oxen, and their donkeys, what was in the city and what was in the field, 29 and all their wealth. All their little ones and their wives they took captive; and they plundered even all that was in the houses.

30 Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, (TD)“You have (TE)troubled me (TF)by making me obnoxious among the inhabitants of the land, among the Canaanites and the Perizzites; (TG)and since I am few in number, they will gather themselves together against me and kill me. I shall be destroyed, my household and I.”

31 But they said, “Should he treat our sister like a harlot?”

Footnotes

  1. Genesis 20:3 Lit. married to a husband
  2. Genesis 20:5 innocence
  3. Genesis 20:9 sinned against
  4. Genesis 20:16 Lit. is a covering of the eyes for you to all
  5. Genesis 20:16 Or justified
  6. Genesis 21:3 Lit. Laughter
  7. Genesis 21:6 Lit. made laughter for me
  8. Genesis 21:9 Lit. laughing
  9. Genesis 21:11 distressing
  10. Genesis 21:13 descendant
  11. Genesis 21:14 A water bottle made of skins
  12. Genesis 21:23 take an oath
  13. Genesis 21:27 treaty
  14. Genesis 21:31 Lit. Well of the Oath or Well of the Seven
  15. Genesis 22:5 Or young man
  16. Genesis 22:7 Or goat
  17. Genesis 22:14 Heb. YHWH Yireh
  18. Genesis 22:23 Rebecca, Rom. 9:10
  19. Genesis 23:6 Lit. prince of God
  20. Genesis 23:8 entreat
  21. Genesis 24:3 take an oath
  22. Genesis 24:7 Lit. seed
  23. Genesis 24:15 Rebecca, Rom. 9:10
  24. Genesis 24:23 to spend the night
  25. Genesis 24:40 make your way successful
  26. Genesis 24:56 delay
  27. Genesis 25:15 MT Hadad
  28. Genesis 25:16 camps
  29. Genesis 25:18 fell
  30. Genesis 25:25 Lit. Hairy
  31. Genesis 25:26 Supplanter or Deceitful, lit. One Who Takes the Heel
  32. Genesis 25:27 Lit. complete
  33. Genesis 25:30 Lit. Red
  34. Genesis 25:33 Take an oath
  35. Genesis 26:8 caressing
  36. Genesis 26:17 camped
  37. Genesis 26:20 Lit. Quarrel
  38. Genesis 26:21 Lit. Enmity
  39. Genesis 26:22 Lit. Spaciousness
  40. Genesis 26:28 treaty
  41. Genesis 26:33 Lit. Oath or Seven
  42. Genesis 26:33 Lit. Well of the Oath or Well of the Seven
  43. Genesis 27:4 tasty
  44. Genesis 27:7 tasty
  45. Genesis 27:14 tasty
  46. Genesis 27:31 tasty
  47. Genesis 27:36 Supplanter or Deceitful, lit. One Who Takes the Heel
  48. Genesis 27:37 provided support for
  49. Genesis 27:39 fertility
  50. Genesis 27:41 are soon here
  51. Genesis 28:1 commanded
  52. Genesis 28:4 Lit. Of your sojournings
  53. Genesis 28:15 protect
  54. Genesis 28:19 Lit. House of God
  55. Genesis 28:22 tithe
  56. Genesis 29:7 early in the day
  57. Genesis 29:17 Or weak
  58. Genesis 29:26 Lit. place
  59. Genesis 29:31 Lit. hated
  60. Genesis 29:32 Lit. See, a Son
  61. Genesis 29:33 Lit. hated
  62. Genesis 29:33 Lit. Heard
  63. Genesis 29:34 Lit. Attached
  64. Genesis 29:35 Lit. Praise
  65. Genesis 30:3 Lit. be built up by her
  66. Genesis 30:6 Lit. Judge
  67. Genesis 30:8 Lit. wrestlings of God
  68. Genesis 30:8 Lit. My Wrestling
  69. Genesis 30:11 So with Qr., Syr., Tg.; Kt., LXX, Vg. in fortune
  70. Genesis 30:11 Lit. Troop or Fortune
  71. Genesis 30:13 Lit. Happy
  72. Genesis 30:18 Lit. Wages
  73. Genesis 30:20 Lit. Dwelling
  74. Genesis 30:21 Lit. Judgment
  75. Genesis 30:24 Lit. He Will Add
  76. Genesis 30:30 Lit. at my foot
  77. Genesis 31:5 Lit. face
  78. Genesis 31:19 Heb. teraphim
  79. Genesis 31:21 Lit. set his face toward
  80. Genesis 31:34 Heb. teraphim
  81. Genesis 31:34 Lit. felt
  82. Genesis 31:35 Heb. teraphim
  83. Genesis 31:36 transgression
  84. Genesis 31:44 treaty
  85. Genesis 31:47 Lit., in Aram., Heap of Witness
  86. Genesis 31:47 Lit., in Heb., Heap of Witness
  87. Genesis 31:49 Lit. Watch
  88. Genesis 31:53 A reference to God
  89. Genesis 32:2 Lit. Double Camp
  90. Genesis 32:3 Lit. field
  91. Genesis 32:8 Lit. strikes
  92. Genesis 32:11 Lit. strike
  93. Genesis 32:13 he had received
  94. Genesis 32:23 across
  95. Genesis 32:24 dawn
  96. Genesis 32:25 struck
  97. Genesis 32:28 Lit. Prince with God
  98. Genesis 32:30 Lit. Face of God
  99. Genesis 32:31 Lit. Face of God; same as Peniel, v. 30
  100. Genesis 32:32 struck
  101. Genesis 33:11 Lit. all
  102. Genesis 33:14 can stand
  103. Genesis 33:17 shelters
  104. Genesis 33:17 Lit. Booths
  105. Genesis 33:18 Or to Shalem, a city of
  106. Genesis 33:19 Lit. the field
  107. Genesis 33:20 Lit. God, the God of Israel
  108. Genesis 34:3 Lit. clung to
  109. Genesis 34:3 tenderly
  110. Genesis 34:5 kept silent
  111. Genesis 34:12 bride-price
'Genesis 20-27' not found for the version: King James Version.
'Genesis 20-27' not found for the version: New International Version.

Abraham and Abimelech

20 And Abraham journeyed from (A)there to the South, and dwelt between (B)Kadesh and Shur, and (C)stayed in Gerar. Now Abraham said of Sarah his wife, (D)“She is my sister.” And Abimelech king of Gerar sent and (E)took Sarah.

But (F)God came to Abimelech (G)in a dream by night, and said to him, (H)“Indeed you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is [a]a man’s wife.”

But Abimelech had not come near her; and he said, “Lord, (I)will You slay a righteous nation also? Did he not say to me, ‘She is my sister’? And she, even she herself said, ‘He is my brother.’ (J)In the [b]integrity of my heart and innocence of my hands I have done this.”

And God said to him in a dream, “Yes, I know that you did this in the integrity of your heart. For (K)I also withheld you from sinning (L)against Me; therefore I did not let you touch her. Now therefore, restore the man’s wife; (M)for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you shall live. But if you do not restore her, (N)know that you shall surely die, you (O)and all who are yours.”

So Abimelech rose early in the morning, called all his servants, and told all these things in their hearing; and the men were very much afraid. And Abimelech called Abraham and said to him, “What have you done to us? How have I [c]offended you, (P)that you have brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? You have done deeds to me (Q)that ought not to be done.” 10 Then Abimelech said to Abraham, “What did you have in view, that you have done this thing?”

11 And Abraham said, “Because I thought, surely (R)the fear of God is not in this place; and (S)they will kill me on account of my wife. 12 But indeed (T)she is truly my sister. She is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife. 13 And it came to pass, when (U)God caused me to wander from my father’s house, that I said to her, ‘This is your kindness that you should do for me: in every place, wherever we go, (V)say of me, “He is my brother.” ’ ”

14 Then Abimelech (W)took sheep, oxen, and male and female servants, and gave them to Abraham; and he restored Sarah his wife to him. 15 And Abimelech said, “See, (X)my land is before you; dwell where it pleases you.” 16 Then to Sarah he said, “Behold, I have given your brother a thousand pieces of silver; (Y)indeed this [d]vindicates you (Z)before all who are with you and before everybody.” Thus she was [e]rebuked.

17 So Abraham (AA)prayed to God; and God (AB)healed Abimelech, his wife, and his female servants. Then they bore children; 18 for the Lord (AC)had closed up all the wombs of the house of Abimelech because of Sarah, Abraham’s wife.

Isaac Is Born(AD)

21 And the Lord (AE)visited Sarah as He had said, and the Lord did for Sarah (AF)as He had spoken. For Sarah (AG)conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, (AH)at the set time of which God had spoken to him. And Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him—whom Sarah bore to him—(AI)Isaac.[f] Then Abraham (AJ)circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, (AK)as God had commanded him. Now (AL)Abraham was one hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. And Sarah said, (AM)“God has [g]made me laugh, and all who hear (AN)will laugh with me.” She also said, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? (AO)For I have borne him a son in his old age.”

Hagar and Ishmael Depart(AP)

So the child grew and was weaned. And Abraham made a great feast on the same day that Isaac was weaned.

And Sarah saw the son of Hagar (AQ)the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, (AR)scoffing.[h] 10 Therefore she said to Abraham, (AS)“Cast out this bondwoman and her son; for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, namely with Isaac.” 11 And the matter was very [i]displeasing in Abraham’s sight (AT)because of his son.

12 But God said to Abraham, “Do not let it be displeasing in your sight because of the lad or because of your bondwoman. Whatever Sarah has said to you, listen to her voice; for (AU)in Isaac your seed shall be called. 13 Yet I will also make (AV)a nation of the son of the bondwoman, because he is your [j]seed.”

14 So Abraham rose early in the morning, and took bread and [k]a skin of water; and putting it on her shoulder, he gave it and the boy to Hagar, and (AW)sent her away. Then she departed and wandered in the Wilderness of Beersheba. 15 And the water in the skin was used up, and she placed the boy under one of the shrubs. 16 Then she went and sat down across from him at a distance of about a bowshot; for she said to herself, “Let me not see the death of the boy.” So she sat opposite him, and lifted her voice and wept.

17 And (AX)God heard the voice of the lad. Then the (AY)angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said to her, “What ails you, Hagar? Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the lad where he is. 18 Arise, lift up the lad and hold him with your hand, for (AZ)I will make him a great nation.”

19 Then (BA)God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. And she went and filled the skin with water, and gave the lad a drink. 20 So God (BB)was with the lad; and he grew and dwelt in the wilderness, (BC)and became an archer. 21 He dwelt in the Wilderness of Paran; and his mother (BD)took a wife for him from the land of Egypt.

A Covenant with Abimelech

22 And it came to pass at that time that (BE)Abimelech and Phichol, the commander of his army, spoke to Abraham, saying, (BF)“God is with you in all that you do. 23 Now therefore, (BG)swear[l] to me by God that you will not deal falsely with me, with my offspring, or with my posterity; but that according to the kindness that I have done to you, you will do to me and to the land in which you have dwelt.”

24 And Abraham said, “I will swear.”

25 Then Abraham rebuked Abimelech because of a well of water which Abimelech’s servants (BH)had seized. 26 And Abimelech said, “I do not know who has done this thing; you did not tell me, nor had I heard of it until today.” 27 So Abraham took sheep and oxen and gave them to Abimelech, and the two of them (BI)made a [m]covenant. 28 And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves.

29 Then Abimelech asked Abraham, (BJ)“What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs which you have set by themselves?”

30 And he said, “You will take these seven ewe lambs from my hand, that (BK)they may be my witness that I have dug this well.” 31 Therefore he (BL)called that place [n]Beersheba, because the two of them swore an oath there.

32 Thus they made a covenant at Beersheba. So Abimelech rose with Phichol, the commander of his army, and they returned to the land of the Philistines. 33 Then Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba, and (BM)there called on the name of the Lord, (BN)the Everlasting God. 34 And Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistines many days.

Abraham’s Faith Confirmed(BO)

22 Now it came to pass after these things that (BP)God tested Abraham, and said to him, “Abraham!”

And he said, “Here I am.”

Then He said, “Take now your son, (BQ)your only son Isaac, whom you (BR)love, and go (BS)to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a (BT)burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”

So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son; and he split the wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him. Then on the third day Abraham lifted his eyes and saw the place afar off. And Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey; the [o]lad and I will go yonder and worship, and we will (BU)come back to you.”

So Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and (BV)laid it on Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife, and the two of them went together. But Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, “My father!”

And he said, “Here I am, my son.”

Then he said, “Look, the fire and the wood, but where is the [p]lamb for a burnt offering?”

And Abraham said, “My son, God will provide for Himself the (BW)lamb for a (BX)burnt offering.” So the two of them went together.

Then they came to the place of which God had told him. And Abraham built an altar there and placed the wood in order; and he bound Isaac his son and (BY)laid him on the altar, upon the wood. 10 And Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.

11 But the (BZ)Angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!”

So he said, “Here I am.”

12 And He said, (CA)“Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for (CB)now I know that you fear God, since you have not (CC)withheld your son, your only son, from Me.”

13 Then Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 And Abraham called the name of the place, [q]The-Lord-Will-Provide; as it is said to this day, “In the Mount of the Lord it shall be provided.”

15 Then the Angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time out of heaven, 16 and said: (CD)“By Myself I have sworn, says the Lord, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son 17 blessing I will (CE)bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants (CF)as the stars of the heaven (CG)and as the sand which is on the seashore; and (CH)your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies. 18 (CI)In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, (CJ)because you have obeyed My voice.” 19 So Abraham returned to his young men, and they rose and went together to (CK)Beersheba; and Abraham dwelt at Beersheba.

The Family of Nahor

20 Now it came to pass after these things that it was told Abraham, saying, “Indeed (CL)Milcah also has borne children to your brother Nahor: 21 (CM)Huz his firstborn, Buz his brother, Kemuel the father (CN)of Aram, 22 Chesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph, and Bethuel.” 23 And (CO)Bethuel begot [r]Rebekah. These eight Milcah bore to Nahor, Abraham’s brother. 24 His concubine, whose name was Reumah, also bore Tebah, Gaham, Thahash, and Maachah.

Sarah’s Death and Burial

23 Sarah lived one hundred and twenty-seven years; these were the years of the life of Sarah. So Sarah died in (CP)Kirjath Arba (that is, (CQ)Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham came to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her.

Then Abraham stood up from before his dead, and spoke to the sons of (CR)Heth, saying, (CS)“I am a foreigner and a visitor among you. (CT)Give me property for a burial place among you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.”

And the sons of Heth answered Abraham, saying to him, “Hear us, my lord: You are (CU)a [s]mighty prince among us; bury your dead in the choicest of our burial places. None of us will withhold from you his burial place, that you may bury your dead.”

Then Abraham stood up and bowed himself to the people of the land, the sons of Heth. And he spoke with them, saying, “If it is your wish that I bury my dead out of my sight, hear me, and [t]meet with Ephron the son of Zohar for me, that he may give me the cave of (CV)Machpelah which he has, which is at the end of his field. Let him give it to me at the full price, as property for a burial place among you.”

10 Now Ephron dwelt among the sons of Heth; and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the presence of the sons of Heth, all who (CW)entered at the gate of his city, saying, 11 (CX)“No, my lord, hear me: I give you the field and the cave that is in it; I give it to you in the presence of the sons of my people. I give it to you. Bury your dead!”

12 Then Abraham bowed himself down before the people of the land; 13 and he spoke to Ephron in the hearing of the people of the land, saying, “If you will give it, please hear me. I will give you money for the field; take it from me and I will bury my dead there.”

14 And Ephron answered Abraham, saying to him, 15 “My lord, listen to me; the land is worth four hundred (CY)shekels of silver. What is that between you and me? So bury your dead.” 16 And Abraham listened to Ephron; and Abraham (CZ)weighed out the silver for Ephron which he had named in the hearing of the sons of Heth, four hundred shekels of silver, currency of the merchants.

17 So (DA)the field of Ephron which was in Machpelah, which was before Mamre, the field and the cave which was in it, and all the trees that were in the field, which were within all the surrounding borders, were deeded 18 to Abraham as a possession in the presence of the sons of Heth, before all who went in at the gate of his city.

19 And after this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah, before Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan. 20 So the field and the cave that is in it (DB)were deeded to Abraham by the sons of Heth as property for a burial place.

A Bride for Isaac

24 Now Abraham (DC)was old, well advanced in age; and the Lord (DD)had blessed Abraham in all things. So Abraham said (DE)to the oldest servant of his house, who (DF)ruled over all that he had, “Please, (DG)put your hand under my thigh, and I will make you (DH)swear[u] by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of the earth, that (DI)you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell; (DJ)but you shall go (DK)to my country and to my family, and take a wife for my son Isaac.”

And the servant said to him, “Perhaps the woman will not be willing to follow me to this land. Must I take your son back to the land from which you came?”

But Abraham said to him, “Beware that you do not take my son back there. The Lord God of heaven, who (DL)took me from my father’s house and from the land of my family, and who spoke to me and swore to me, saying, (DM)‘To your [v]descendants I give this land,’ (DN)He will send His angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there. And if the woman is not willing to follow you, then (DO)you will be released from this oath; only do not take my son back there.” So the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master, and swore to him concerning this matter.

10 Then the servant took ten of his master’s camels and departed, (DP)for all his master’s goods were in his hand. And he arose and went to Mesopotamia, to (DQ)the city of Nahor. 11 And he made his camels kneel down outside the city by a well of water at evening time, the time (DR)when women go out to draw water. 12 Then he (DS)said, “O Lord God of my master Abraham, please (DT)give me success this day, and show kindness to my master Abraham. 13 Behold, here (DU)I stand by the well of water, and (DV)the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water. 14 Now let it be that the young woman to whom I say, ‘Please let down your pitcher that I may drink,’ and she says, ‘Drink, and I will also give your camels a drink’—let her be the one You have appointed for Your servant Isaac. And (DW)by this I will know that You have shown kindness to my master.”

15 And it happened, (DX)before he had finished speaking, that behold, (DY)Rebekah,[w] who was born to Bethuel, son of (DZ)Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham’s brother, came out with her pitcher on her shoulder. 16 Now the young woman (EA)was very beautiful to behold, a virgin; no man had known her. And she went down to the well, filled her pitcher, and came up. 17 And the servant ran to meet her and said, “Please let me drink a little water from your pitcher.”

18 (EB)So she said, “Drink, my lord.” Then she quickly let her pitcher down to her hand, and gave him a drink. 19 And when she had finished giving him a drink, she said, “I will draw water for your camels also, until they have finished drinking.” 20 Then she quickly emptied her pitcher into the trough, ran back to the well to draw water, and drew for all his camels. 21 And the man, wondering at her, remained silent so as to know whether (EC)the Lord had made his journey prosperous or not.

22 So it was, when the camels had finished drinking, that the man took a golden (ED)nose ring weighing half a shekel, and two bracelets for her wrists weighing ten shekels of gold, 23 and said, “Whose daughter are you? Tell me, please, is there room in your father’s house for us [x]to lodge?”

24 So she said to him, (EE)“I am the daughter of Bethuel, Milcah’s son, whom she bore to Nahor.” 25 Moreover she said to him, “We have both straw and feed enough, and room to lodge.”

26 Then the man (EF)bowed down his head and worshiped the Lord. 27 And he said, (EG)“Blessed be the Lord God of my master Abraham, who has not forsaken (EH)His mercy and His truth toward my master. As for me, being on the way, the Lord (EI)led me to the house of my master’s brethren.” 28 So the young woman ran and told her mother’s household these things.

29 Now Rebekah had a brother whose name was (EJ)Laban, and Laban ran out to the man by the well. 30 So it came to pass, when he saw the nose ring, and the bracelets on his sister’s wrists, and when he heard the words of his sister Rebekah, saying, “Thus the man spoke to me,” that he went to the man. And there he stood by the camels at the well. 31 And he said, “Come in, (EK)O blessed of the Lord! Why do you stand outside? For I have prepared the house, and a place for the camels.”

32 Then the man came to the house. And he unloaded the camels, and (EL)provided straw and feed for the camels, and water to (EM)wash his feet and the feet of the men who were with him. 33 Food was set before him to eat, but he said, (EN)“I will not eat until I have told about my errand.”

And he said, “Speak on.”

34 So he said, “I am Abraham’s servant. 35 The Lord (EO)has blessed my master greatly, and he has become great; and He has given him flocks and herds, silver and gold, male and female servants, and camels and donkeys. 36 And Sarah my master’s wife (EP)bore a son to my master when she was old; and (EQ)to him he has given all that he has. 37 Now my master (ER)made me swear, saying, ‘You shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I dwell; 38 (ES)but you shall go to my father’s house and to my family, and take a wife for my son.’ 39 (ET)And I said to my master, ‘Perhaps the woman will not follow me.’ 40 (EU)But he said to me, ‘The Lord, (EV)before whom I walk, will send His angel with you and [y]prosper your way; and you shall take a wife for my son from my family and from my father’s house. 41 (EW)You will be clear from this oath when you arrive among my family; for if they will not give her to you, then you will be released from my oath.’

42 “And this day I came to the well and said, (EX)‘O Lord God of my master Abraham, if You will now prosper the way in which I go, 43 (EY)behold, I stand by the well of water; and it shall come to pass that when the virgin comes out to draw water, and I say to her, “Please give me a little water from your pitcher to drink,” 44 and she says to me, “Drink, and I will draw for your camels also,”—let her be the woman whom the Lord has appointed for my master’s son.’

45 (EZ)“But before I had finished (FA)speaking in my heart, there was Rebekah, coming out with her pitcher on her shoulder; and she went down to the well and drew water. And I said to her, ‘Please let me drink.’ 46 And she made haste and let her pitcher down from her shoulder, and said, ‘Drink, and I will give your camels a drink also.’ So I drank, and she gave the camels a drink also. 47 Then I asked her, and said, ‘Whose daughter are you?’ And she said, ‘The daughter of Bethuel, Nahor’s son, whom Milcah bore to him.’ So I put the nose ring on her nose and the bracelets on her wrists. 48 (FB)And I bowed my head and worshiped the Lord, and blessed the Lord God of my master Abraham, who had led me in the way of truth to (FC)take the daughter of my master’s brother for his son. 49 Now if you will (FD)deal kindly and truly with my master, tell me. And if not, tell me, that I may turn to the right hand or to the left.”

50 Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, (FE)“The thing comes from the Lord; we cannot (FF)speak to you either bad or good. 51 (FG)Here is Rebekah before you; take her and go, and let her be your master’s son’s wife, as the Lord has spoken.”

52 And it came to pass, when Abraham’s servant heard their words, that (FH)he worshiped the Lord, bowing himself to the earth. 53 Then the servant brought out (FI)jewelry of silver, jewelry of gold, and clothing, and gave them to Rebekah. He also gave (FJ)precious things to her brother and to her mother.

54 And he and the men who were with him ate and drank and stayed all night. Then they arose in the morning, and he said, (FK)“Send me away to my master.”

55 But her brother and her mother said, “Let the young woman stay with us a few days, at least ten; after that she may go.”

56 And he said to them, “Do not [z]hinder me, since the Lord has prospered my way; send me away so that I may go to my master.”

57 So they said, “We will call the young woman and ask her personally.” 58 Then they called Rebekah and said to her, “Will you go with this man?”

And she said, “I will go.”

59 So they sent away Rebekah their sister (FL)and her nurse, and Abraham’s servant and his men. 60 And they blessed Rebekah and said to her:

“Our sister, may you become
(FM)The mother of thousands of ten thousands;
(FN)And may your descendants possess
The gates of those who hate them.”

61 Then Rebekah and her maids arose, and they rode on the camels and followed the man. So the servant took Rebekah and departed.

62 Now Isaac came from the way of (FO)Beer Lahai Roi, for he dwelt in the South. 63 And Isaac went out (FP)to meditate in the field in the evening; and he lifted his eyes and looked, and there, the camels were coming. 64 Then Rebekah lifted her eyes, and when she saw Isaac (FQ)she dismounted from her camel; 65 for she had said to the servant, “Who is this man walking in the field to meet us?”

The servant said, “It is my master.” So she took a veil and covered herself.

66 And the servant told Isaac all the things that he had done. 67 Then Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah’s tent; and he (FR)took Rebekah and she became his wife, and he loved her. So Isaac (FS)was comforted after his mother’s death.

Abraham and Keturah(FT)

25 Abraham again took a wife, and her name was (FU)Keturah. And (FV)she bore him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. Jokshan begot Sheba and Dedan. And the sons of Dedan were Asshurim, Letushim, and Leummim. And the sons of Midian were Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abidah, and Eldaah. All these were the children of Keturah.

And (FW)Abraham gave all that he had to Isaac. But Abraham gave gifts to the sons of the concubines which Abraham had; and while he was still living he (FX)sent them eastward, away from Isaac his son, to (FY)the country of the east.

Abraham’s Death and Burial

This is the sum of the years of Abraham’s life which he lived: one hundred and seventy-five years. Then Abraham breathed his last and (FZ)died in a good old age, an old man and full of years, and (GA)was gathered to his people. And (GB)his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of (GC)Machpelah, which is before Mamre, in the field of Ephron the son of Zohar the Hittite, 10 (GD)the field which Abraham purchased from the sons of Heth. (GE)There Abraham was buried, and Sarah his wife. 11 And it came to pass, after the death of Abraham, that God blessed his son Isaac. And Isaac dwelt at (GF)Beer Lahai Roi.

The Families of Ishmael and Isaac(GG)

12 Now this is the (GH)genealogy of Ishmael, Abraham’s son, whom Hagar the Egyptian, Sarah’s maidservant, bore to Abraham. 13 And (GI)these were the names of the sons of Ishmael, by their names, according to their generations: The firstborn of Ishmael, Nebajoth; then Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, 14 Mishma, Dumah, Massa, 15 [aa]Hadar, Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah. 16 These were the sons of Ishmael and these were their names, by their towns and their [ab]settlements, (GJ)twelve princes according to their nations. 17 These were the years of the life of Ishmael: one hundred and thirty-seven years; and (GK)he breathed his last and died, and was gathered to his people. 18 (GL)(They dwelt from Havilah as far as Shur, which is east of Egypt as you go toward Assyria.) He [ac]died (GM)in the presence of all his brethren.

19 This is the (GN)genealogy of Isaac, Abraham’s son. (GO)Abraham begot Isaac. 20 Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah as wife, (GP)the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Padan Aram, (GQ)the sister of Laban the Syrian. 21 Now Isaac pleaded with the Lord for his wife, because she was barren; (GR)and the Lord granted his plea, (GS)and Rebekah his wife conceived. 22 But the children struggled together within her; and she said, “If all is well, why am I like this?” (GT)So she went to inquire of the Lord.

23 And the Lord said to her:

(GU)“Two nations are in your womb,
Two peoples shall be separated from your body;
One people shall be stronger than (GV)the other,
(GW)And the older shall serve the younger.”

24 So when her days were fulfilled for her to give birth, indeed there were twins in her womb. 25 And the first came out red. He was (GX)like a hairy garment all over; so they called his name [ad]Esau. 26 Afterward his brother came out, and (GY)his hand took hold of Esau’s heel; so (GZ)his name was called [ae]Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when she bore them.

27 So the boys grew. And Esau was (HA)a skillful hunter, a man of the field; but Jacob was (HB)a [af]mild man, (HC)dwelling in tents. 28 And Isaac loved Esau because he (HD)ate of his game, (HE)but Rebekah loved Jacob.

Esau Sells His Birthright(HF)

29 Now Jacob cooked a stew; and Esau came in from the field, and he was weary. 30 And Esau said to Jacob, “Please feed me with that same red stew, for I am weary.” Therefore his name was called [ag]Edom.

31 But Jacob said, “Sell me your birthright as of this day.”

32 And Esau said, “Look, I am about to die; so (HG)what is this birthright to me?”

33 Then Jacob said, [ah]“Swear to me as of this day.”

So he swore to him, and (HH)sold his birthright to Jacob. 34 And Jacob gave Esau bread and stew of lentils; then (HI)he ate and drank, arose, and went his way. Thus Esau (HJ)despised his birthright.

Isaac and Abimelech

26 There was a famine in the land, besides (HK)the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to (HL)Abimelech king of the Philistines, in Gerar.

Then the Lord appeared to him and said: (HM)“Do not go down to Egypt; live in (HN)the land of which I shall tell you. (HO)Dwell in this land, and (HP)I will be with you and (HQ)bless you; for to you and your descendants (HR)I give all these lands, and I will perform (HS)the oath which I swore to Abraham your father. And (HT)I will make your descendants multiply as the stars of heaven; I will give to your descendants all these lands; (HU)and in your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed; (HV)because Abraham obeyed My voice and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My laws.”

So Isaac dwelt in Gerar. And the men of the place asked about his wife. And (HW)he said, “She is my sister”; for (HX)he was afraid to say, “She is my wife,” because he thought, “lest the men of the place kill me for Rebekah, because she is (HY)beautiful to behold.” Now it came to pass, when he had been there a long time, that Abimelech king of the Philistines looked through a window, and saw, and there was Isaac, [ai]showing endearment to Rebekah his wife. Then Abimelech called Isaac and said, “Quite obviously she is your wife; so how could you say, ‘She is my sister’?”

Isaac said to him, “Because I said, ‘Lest I die on account of her.’ ”

10 And Abimelech said, “What is this you have done to us? One of the people might soon have lain with your wife, and (HZ)you would have brought guilt on us.” 11 So Abimelech charged all his people, saying, “He who (IA)touches this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.”

12 Then Isaac sowed in that land, and reaped in the same year (IB)a hundredfold; and the Lord (IC)blessed him. 13 The man (ID)began to prosper, and continued prospering until he became very prosperous; 14 for he had possessions of flocks and possessions of herds and a great number of servants. So the Philistines (IE)envied him. 15 Now the Philistines had stopped up all the wells (IF)which his father’s servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, and they had filled them with earth. 16 And Abimelech said to Isaac, “Go away from us, for (IG)you are much mightier than we.”

17 Then Isaac departed from there and [aj]pitched his tent in the Valley of Gerar, and dwelt there. 18 And Isaac dug again the wells of water which they had dug in the days of Abraham his father, for the Philistines had stopped them up after the death of Abraham. (IH)He called them by the names which his father had called them.

19 Also Isaac’s servants dug in the valley, and found a well of running water there. 20 But the herdsmen of Gerar (II)quarreled with Isaac’s herdsmen, saying, “The water is ours.” So he called the name of the well [ak]Esek, because they quarreled with him. 21 Then they dug another well, and they quarreled over that one also. So he called its name [al]Sitnah. 22 And he moved from there and dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it. So he called its name [am]Rehoboth, because he said, “For now the Lord has made room for us, and we shall (IJ)be fruitful in the land.”

23 Then he went up from there to Beersheba. 24 And the Lord (IK)appeared to him the same night and said, (IL)“I am the God of your father Abraham; (IM)do not fear, for (IN)I am with you. I will bless you and multiply your descendants for My servant Abraham’s sake.” 25 So he (IO)built an altar there and (IP)called on the name of the Lord, and he pitched his tent there; and there Isaac’s servants dug a well.

26 Then Abimelech came to him from Gerar with Ahuzzath, one of his friends, (IQ)and Phichol the commander of his army. 27 And Isaac said to them, “Why have you come to me, (IR)since you hate me and have (IS)sent me away from you?”

28 But they said, “We have certainly seen that the Lord (IT)is with you. So we said, ‘Let there now be an oath between us, between you and us; and let us make a [an]covenant with you, 29 that you will do us no harm, since we have not touched you, and since we have done nothing to you but good and have sent you away in peace. (IU)You are now the blessed of the Lord.’ ”

30 (IV)So he made them a feast, and they ate and drank. 31 Then they arose early in the morning and (IW)swore an oath with one another; and Isaac sent them away, and they departed from him in peace.

32 It came to pass the same day that Isaac’s servants came and told him about the well which they had dug, and said to him, “We have found water.” 33 So he called it [ao]Shebah. (IX)Therefore the name of the city is [ap]Beersheba to this day.

34 (IY)When Esau was forty years old, he took as wives Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite. 35 And (IZ)they were a grief of mind to Isaac and Rebekah.

Isaac Blesses Jacob

27 Now it came to pass, when Isaac was (JA)old and (JB)his eyes were so dim that he could not see, that he called Esau his older son and said to him, “My son.”

And he answered him, “Here I am.”

Then he said, “Behold now, I am old. I (JC)do not know the day of my death. (JD)Now therefore, please take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me. And make me [aq]savory food, such as I love, and bring it to me that I may eat, that my soul (JE)may bless you before I die.”

Now Rebekah was listening when Isaac spoke to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to hunt game and to bring it. So Rebekah spoke to Jacob her son, saying, “Indeed I heard your father speak to Esau your brother, saying, ‘Bring me game and make [ar]savory food for me, that I may eat it and bless you in the presence of the Lord before my death.’ Now therefore, my son, (JF)obey my voice according to what I command you. Go now to the flock and bring me from there two choice kids of the goats, and I will make (JG)savory food from them for your father, such as he loves. 10 Then you shall take it to your father, that he may eat it, and that he (JH)may bless you before his death.”

11 And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, “Look, (JI)Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth-skinned man. 12 Perhaps my father will (JJ)feel me, and I shall seem to be a deceiver to him; and I shall bring (JK)a curse on myself and not a blessing.”

13 But his mother said to him, (JL)Let your curse be on me, my son; only obey my voice, and go, get them for me.” 14 And he went and got them and brought them to his mother, and his mother (JM)made [as]savory food, such as his father loved. 15 Then Rebekah took (JN)the choice clothes of her elder son Esau, which were with her in the house, and put them on Jacob her younger son. 16 And she put the skins of the kids of the goats on his hands and on the smooth part of his neck. 17 Then she gave the savory food and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob.

18 So he went to his father and said, “My father.”

And he said, “Here I am. Who are you, my son?”

19 Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn; I have done just as you told me; please arise, sit and eat of my game, (JO)that your soul may bless me.”

20 But Isaac said to his son, “How is it that you have found it so quickly, my son?”

And he said, “Because the Lord your God brought it to me.”

21 Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come near, that I (JP)may feel you, my son, whether you are really my son Esau or not.” 22 So Jacob went near to Isaac his father, and he felt him and said, “The voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau.” 23 And he did not recognize him, because (JQ)his hands were hairy like his brother Esau’s hands; so he blessed him.

24 Then he said, “Are you really my son Esau?”

He said, “I am.

25 He said, “Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son’s game, so (JR)that my soul may bless you.” So he brought it near to him, and he ate; and he brought him wine, and he drank. 26 Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come near now and kiss me, my son.” 27 And he came near and (JS)kissed him; and he smelled the smell of his clothing, and blessed him and said:

“Surely, (JT)the smell of my son
Is like the smell of a field
Which the Lord has blessed.
28 Therefore may (JU)God give you
Of (JV)the dew of heaven,
Of (JW)the fatness of the earth,
And (JX)plenty of grain and wine.
29 (JY)Let peoples serve you,
And nations bow down to you.
Be master over your brethren,
And (JZ)let your mother’s sons bow down to you.
(KA)Cursed be everyone who curses you,
And blessed be those who bless you!”

Esau’s Lost Hope(KB)

30 Now it happened, as soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, and Jacob had scarcely gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunting. 31 He also had made [at]savory food, and brought it to his father, and said to his father, “Let my father arise and (KC)eat of his son’s game, that your soul may bless me.”

32 And his father Isaac said to him, “Who are you?”

So he said, “I am your son, your firstborn, Esau.”

33 Then Isaac trembled exceedingly, and said, “Who? Where is the one who hunted game and brought it to me? I ate all of it before you came, and I have blessed him—(KD)and indeed he shall be blessed.”

34 When Esau heard the words of his father, (KE)he cried with an exceedingly great and bitter cry, and said to his father, “Bless me—me also, O my father!”

35 But he said, “Your brother came with deceit and has taken away your blessing.”

36 And Esau said, (KF)“Is he not rightly named [au]Jacob? For he has supplanted me these two times. He took away my birthright, and now look, he has taken away my blessing!” And he said, “Have you not reserved a blessing for me?”

37 Then Isaac answered and said to Esau, (KG)“Indeed I have made him your master, and all his brethren I have given to him as servants; with (KH)grain and wine I have [av]sustained him. What shall I do now for you, my son?”

38 And Esau said to his father, “Have you only one blessing, my father? Bless me—me also, O my father!” And Esau lifted up his voice (KI)and wept.

39 Then Isaac his father answered and said to him:

“Behold, (KJ)your dwelling shall be of the [aw]fatness of the earth,
And of the dew of heaven from above.
40 By your sword you shall live,
And (KK)you shall serve your brother;
And (KL)it shall come to pass, when you become restless,
That you shall break his yoke from your neck.”

Jacob Escapes from Esau

41 So Esau (KM)hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father blessed him, and Esau said in his heart, (KN)“The days of mourning for my father [ax]are at hand; (KO)then I will kill my brother Jacob.”

42 And the words of Esau her older son were told to Rebekah. So she sent and called Jacob her younger son, and said to him, “Surely your brother Esau (KP)comforts himself concerning you by intending to kill you. 43 Now therefore, my son, obey my voice: arise, flee to my brother Laban (KQ)in Haran. 44 And stay with him a (KR)few days, until your brother’s fury turns away, 45 until your brother’s anger turns away from you, and he forgets what you have done to him; then I will send and bring you from there. Why should I be bereaved also of you both in one day?”

46 And Rebekah said to Isaac, (KS)“I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth; (KT)if Jacob takes a wife of the daughters of Heth, like these who are the daughters of the land, what good will my life be to me?”

Footnotes

  1. Genesis 20:3 Lit. married to a husband
  2. Genesis 20:5 innocence
  3. Genesis 20:9 sinned against
  4. Genesis 20:16 Lit. is a covering of the eyes for you to all
  5. Genesis 20:16 Or justified
  6. Genesis 21:3 Lit. Laughter
  7. Genesis 21:6 Lit. made laughter for me
  8. Genesis 21:9 Lit. laughing
  9. Genesis 21:11 distressing
  10. Genesis 21:13 descendant
  11. Genesis 21:14 A water bottle made of skins
  12. Genesis 21:23 take an oath
  13. Genesis 21:27 treaty
  14. Genesis 21:31 Lit. Well of the Oath or Well of the Seven
  15. Genesis 22:5 Or young man
  16. Genesis 22:7 Or goat
  17. Genesis 22:14 Heb. YHWH Yireh
  18. Genesis 22:23 Rebecca, Rom. 9:10
  19. Genesis 23:6 Lit. prince of God
  20. Genesis 23:8 entreat
  21. Genesis 24:3 take an oath
  22. Genesis 24:7 Lit. seed
  23. Genesis 24:15 Rebecca, Rom. 9:10
  24. Genesis 24:23 to spend the night
  25. Genesis 24:40 make your way successful
  26. Genesis 24:56 delay
  27. Genesis 25:15 MT Hadad
  28. Genesis 25:16 camps
  29. Genesis 25:18 fell
  30. Genesis 25:25 Lit. Hairy
  31. Genesis 25:26 Supplanter or Deceitful, lit. One Who Takes the Heel
  32. Genesis 25:27 Lit. complete
  33. Genesis 25:30 Lit. Red
  34. Genesis 25:33 Take an oath
  35. Genesis 26:8 caressing
  36. Genesis 26:17 camped
  37. Genesis 26:20 Lit. Quarrel
  38. Genesis 26:21 Lit. Enmity
  39. Genesis 26:22 Lit. Spaciousness
  40. Genesis 26:28 treaty
  41. Genesis 26:33 Lit. Oath or Seven
  42. Genesis 26:33 Lit. Well of the Oath or Well of the Seven
  43. Genesis 27:4 tasty
  44. Genesis 27:7 tasty
  45. Genesis 27:14 tasty
  46. Genesis 27:31 tasty
  47. Genesis 27:36 Supplanter or Deceitful, lit. One Who Takes the Heel
  48. Genesis 27:37 provided support for
  49. Genesis 27:39 fertility
  50. Genesis 27:41 are soon here