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Genesis 29-38
Christian Standard Bible

Jacob Meets Rachel

29 Jacob resumed his journey[a] and went to the eastern country.[b](A) 2 He looked and saw a well in a field. Three flocks of sheep were lying there beside it because the sheep were watered from this well. But a large stone covered the opening of the well. 3 The shepherds would roll the stone from the opening of the well and water the sheep when all the flocks[c] were gathered there. Then they would return the stone to its place over the well’s opening.

4 Jacob asked the men at the well, “My brothers! Where are you from?”

“We’re from Haran,” they answered.

5 “Do you know Laban, Nahor’s grandson?” Jacob asked them.

They answered, “We know him.”

6 “Is he well?” Jacob asked.

“Yes,” they said, “and here is his daughter Rachel, coming with his sheep.”

7 Then Jacob said, “Look, it is still broad daylight. It’s not time for the animals to be gathered. Water the flock, then go out and let them graze.”

8 But they replied, “We can’t until all the flocks have been gathered and the stone is rolled from the well’s opening. Then we will water the sheep.”

9 While he was still speaking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherdess. 10 As soon as Jacob saw his uncle Laban’s daughter Rachel with his sheep,[d] he went up and rolled the stone from the opening and watered his uncle Laban’s sheep. 11 Then Jacob kissed Rachel and wept loudly.[e] 12 He told Rachel that he was her father’s relative, Rebekah’s son. She ran and told her father.

Jacob Deceived

13 When Laban heard the news about his sister’s son Jacob, he ran to meet him, hugged him, and kissed him. Then he took him to his house, and Jacob told him all that had happened.

14 Laban said to him, “Yes, you are my own flesh and blood.”[f](B)

After Jacob had stayed with him a month, 15 Laban said to him, “Just because you’re my relative, should you work for me for nothing? Tell me what your wages should be.”

16 Now Laban had two daughters: the older was named Leah, and the younger was named Rachel. 17 Leah had tender eyes, but Rachel was shapely and beautiful. 18 Jacob loved Rachel, so he answered Laban, “I’ll work for you seven years for your younger daughter Rachel.”(C)

19 Laban replied, “Better that I give her to you than to some other man. Stay with me.” 20 So Jacob worked seven years for Rachel, and they seemed like only a few days to him because of his love for her.

21 Then Jacob said to Laban, “Since my time is complete, give me my wife, so I can sleep with[g] her.” 22 So Laban invited all the men of the place and sponsored a feast. 23 That evening, Laban took his daughter Leah and gave her to Jacob, and he slept with her. 24 And Laban gave his slave Zilpah to his daughter Leah as her slave.

25 When morning came, there was Leah! So he said to Laban, “What have you done to me? Wasn’t it for Rachel that I worked for you? Why have you deceived me?”

26 Laban answered, “It is not the custom in our country to give the younger daughter in marriage before the firstborn. 27 Complete this week of wedding celebration, and we will also give you this younger one in return for working yet another seven years for me.”

28 And Jacob did just that. He finished the week of celebration, and Laban gave him his daughter Rachel as his wife. 29 And Laban gave his slave Bilhah to his daughter Rachel as her slave. 30 Jacob slept with Rachel also, and indeed, he loved Rachel more than Leah. And he worked for Laban another seven years.(D)

Jacob’s Sons

31 When the Lord saw that Leah was neglected,(E) he opened her womb;(F) but Rachel was unable to conceive.(G) 32 Leah conceived, gave birth to a son, and named him Reuben,[h] for she said, “The Lord has seen my affliction;(H) surely my husband will love me now.”

33 She conceived again, gave birth to a son, and said, “The Lord heard that I am neglected and has given me this son also.” So she named him Simeon.[i]

34 She conceived again, gave birth to a son, and said, “At last, my husband will become attached to me because I have borne three sons for him.” Therefore he was named Levi.[j]

35 And she conceived again, gave birth to a son, and said, “This time I will praise the Lord.” Therefore she named him Judah.[k](I) Then Leah stopped having children.

30 When Rachel saw that she was not bearing Jacob any children, she envied her sister. “Give me sons, or I will die!” (J) she said to Jacob.

2 Jacob became angry with Rachel and said, “Am I in the place of God? He has withheld offspring[l] from you!”

3 Then she said, “Here is my maid Bilhah. Go sleep with her, and she’ll bear children for me[m](K) so that through her I too can build a family.” 4 So Rachel gave her slave Bilhah to Jacob as a wife, and he slept with her. 5 Bilhah conceived and bore Jacob a son. 6 Rachel said, “God has vindicated me; yes, he has heard me and given me a son,” so she named him Dan.[n]

7 Rachel’s slave Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son. 8 Rachel said, “In my wrestlings with God,[o] I have wrestled with my sister and won,” and she named him Naphtali.[p]

9 When Leah saw that she had stopped having children, she took her slave Zilpah and gave her to Jacob as a wife. 10 Leah’s slave Zilpah bore Jacob a son. 11 Then Leah said, “What good fortune!” [q] and she named him Gad.[r]

12 When Leah’s slave Zilpah bore Jacob a second son, 13 Leah said, “I am happy that the women call me happy,”(L) so she named him Asher.[s]

14 Reuben went out during the wheat harvest and found some mandrakes in the field.(M) When he brought them to his mother Leah, Rachel asked, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.”

15 But Leah replied to her, “Isn’t it enough that you have taken my husband? Now you also want to take my son’s mandrakes?”

“Well then,” Rachel said, “he can sleep with you tonight in exchange for your son’s mandrakes.”

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

17 God listened to Leah, and she conceived and bore Jacob a fifth son. 18 Leah said, “God has rewarded me for giving my slave to my husband,” and she named him Issachar.[t]

19 Then Leah conceived again and bore Jacob a sixth son. 20 “God has given me a good gift,” Leah said. “This time my husband will honor me because I have borne six sons for him,” and she named him Zebulun.[u] 21 Later, Leah bore a daughter and named her Dinah.

22 Then God remembered Rachel. He listened to her and opened her womb.(N) 23 She conceived and bore a son, and she said, “God has taken away my disgrace.”(O) 24 She named him Joseph[v] and said, “May the Lord add another son to me.”(P)

Jacob’s Flocks Multiply

25 After Rachel gave birth to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Send me on my way so that I can return to my homeland. 26 Give me my wives and my children that I have worked for, and let me go.(Q) You know how hard I have worked for you.”

27 But Laban said to him, “If I have found favor with you, stay. I have learned by divination that the Lord has blessed me because of you.” 28 Then Laban said, “Name your wages, and I will pay them.”(R)

29 So Jacob said to him, “You know how I have served you and how your herds have fared with me.(S) 30 For you had very little before I came, but now your wealth has increased. The Lord has blessed you because of me. And now, when will I also do something for my own family?”

31 Laban asked, “What should I give you?”

And Jacob said, “You don’t need to give me anything. If you do this one thing for me, I will continue to shepherd and keep your flock. 32 Let me go through all your sheep today and remove every sheep that is speckled or spotted, every dark-colored sheep among the lambs, and the spotted and speckled among the female goats. Such will be my wages. 33 In the future when you come to check on my wages, my honesty will testify for me. If I have any female goats that are not speckled or spotted, or any lambs that are not black, they will be considered stolen.”

34 “Good,” said Laban. “Let it be as you have said.”

35 That day Laban removed the streaked and spotted male goats and all the speckled and spotted female goats—every one that had any white on it—and every dark-colored one among the lambs, and he placed his sons in charge of them. 36 He put a three-day journey between himself and Jacob. Jacob, meanwhile, was shepherding the rest of Laban’s flock.

37 Jacob then took branches of fresh poplar, almond, and plane wood, and peeled the bark, exposing white stripes on the branches. 38 He set the peeled branches in the troughs in front of the sheep—in the water channels where the sheep came to drink. And the sheep bred when they came to drink. 39 The flocks bred in front of the branches and bore streaked, speckled, and spotted young.(T) 40 Jacob separated the lambs and made the flocks face the streaked sheep and the completely dark sheep in Laban’s flocks. Then he set his own stock apart and didn’t put them with Laban’s sheep.

41 Whenever the stronger of the flock were breeding, Jacob placed the branches in the troughs, in full view of the flocks, and they would breed in front of the branches. 42 As for the weaklings of the flocks, he did not put out the branches. So it turned out that the weak sheep belonged to Laban and the stronger ones to Jacob. 43 And the man became very rich.[w] He had many flocks, female and male slaves, and camels and donkeys.(U)

Jacob Separates from Laban

31 Now Jacob heard what Laban’s sons were saying: “Jacob has taken all that was our father’s and has built this wealth from what belonged to our father.” 2 And Jacob saw from Laban’s face that his attitude toward him was not the same as before.

3 The Lord said to him, “Go back to the land of your ancestors and to your family, and I will be with you.”(V)

4 Jacob had Rachel and Leah called to the field where his flocks were. 5 He said to them, “I can see from your father’s face that his attitude toward me is not the same as before, but the God of my father has been with me. 6 You know that with all my strength I have served your father(W) 7 and that he has cheated me and changed my wages ten times. But God has not let him harm me. 8 If he said, ‘The spotted sheep will be your wages,’ then all the sheep were born spotted. If he said, ‘The streaked sheep will be your wages,’ then all the sheep were born streaked.(X) 9 God has taken away your father’s herds and given them to me.

10 “When the flocks were breeding, I saw in a dream that the streaked, spotted, and speckled males were mating with the females. 11 In that dream the angel of God said to me, ‘Jacob!’ and I said, ‘Here I am.’ 12 And he said, ‘Look up and see: all the males that are mating with the flocks are streaked, spotted, and speckled, for I have seen all that Laban has been doing to you.(Y) 13 I am the God of Bethel, where you poured oil on the stone marker and made a solemn vow to me.(Z) Get up, leave this land, and return to your native land.’”

14 Then Rachel and Leah answered him, “Do we have any portion or inheritance in our father’s family? 15 Are we not regarded by him as outsiders? For he has sold us(AA) and has certainly spent our purchase price. 16 In fact, all the wealth that God has taken away from our father belongs to us and to our children. So do whatever God has said to you.”

17 So Jacob got up and put his children and wives on the camels. 18 He took all the livestock and possessions he had acquired in Paddan-aram, and he drove his herds to go to the land of Canaan, to his father Isaac. 19 When Laban had gone to shear his sheep, Rachel stole her father’s household idols.(AB) 20 And Jacob deceived[x] Laban the Aramean, not telling him that he was fleeing. 21 He fled with all his possessions, crossed the Euphrates, and headed for[y] the hill country of Gilead.

Laban Overtakes Jacob

22 On the third day Laban was told that Jacob had fled. 23 So he took his relatives with him, pursued Jacob for seven days, and overtook him in the hill country of Gilead. 24 But God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream at night. “Watch yourself!” God warned him. “Don’t say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.”(AC)

25 When Laban overtook Jacob, Jacob had pitched his tent in the hill country, and Laban and his relatives also pitched their tents in the hill country of Gilead. 26 Laban said to Jacob, “What have you done? You have deceived me and taken my daughters away like prisoners of war! 27 Why did you secretly flee from me, deceive me, and not tell me? I would have sent you away with joy and singing, with tambourines and lyres, 28 but you didn’t even let me kiss my grandchildren and my daughters. You have acted foolishly. 29 I could do you great harm, but last night the God of your father said to me, ‘Watch yourself! Don’t say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.’ 30 Now you have gone off because you long for your father’s family—but why have you stolen my gods?” (AD)

31 Jacob answered, “I was afraid, for I thought you would take your daughters from me by force. 32 If you find your gods with anyone here, he will not live!(AE) Before our relatives, point out anything that is yours and take it.” Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen the idols.

33 So Laban went into Jacob’s tent, Leah’s tent, and the tents of the two concubines,[z] but he found nothing. When he left Leah’s tent, he went into Rachel’s tent. 34 Now Rachel had taken Laban’s household idols, put them in the saddlebag of the camel, and sat on them. Laban searched the whole tent but found nothing.

35 She said to her father, “Don’t be angry, my lord, that I cannot stand up in your presence;(AF) I am having my period.” So Laban searched, but could not find the household idols.

Jacob’s Covenant with Laban

36 Then Jacob became incensed and brought charges against Laban. “What is my crime?” he said to Laban. “What is my sin, that you have pursued me? 37 You’ve searched all my possessions! Have you found anything of yours?[aa] Put it here before my relatives and yours, and let them decide between the two of us. 38 I’ve been with you these twenty years. Your ewes and female goats have not miscarried, and I have not eaten the rams from your flock. 39 I did not bring you any of the flock torn by wild beasts; I myself bore the loss. You demanded payment from me for what was stolen by day or by night. 40 There I was—the heat consumed me by day and the frost by night, and sleep fled from my eyes. 41 For twenty years in your household I served you—fourteen years for your two daughters and six years for your flocks(AG)—and you have changed my wages ten times! 42 If the God of my father, the God of Abraham, the Fear of Isaac, had not been with me, certainly now you would have sent me off empty-handed. But God has seen my affliction and my hard work,[ab] and he issued his verdict last night.”

43 Then Laban answered Jacob, “The daughters are my daughters; the children, my children; and the flocks, my flocks! Everything you see is mine! But what can I do today for these daughters of mine or for the children they have borne? 44 Come now, let’s make a covenant, you and I.(AH) Let it be a witness between the two of us.”

45 So Jacob picked out a stone and set it up as a marker.(AI) 46 Then Jacob said to his relatives, “Gather stones.” And they took stones and made a mound, then ate there by the mound. 47 Laban named the mound Jegar-sahadutha, but Jacob named it Galeed.[ac]

48 Then Laban said, “This mound is a witness between you and me today.” Therefore the place was called Galeed 49 and also Mizpah,[ad](AJ) for he said, “May the Lord watch between you and me when we are out of each other’s sight. 50 If you mistreat my daughters or take other wives, though no one is with us, understand that God will be a witness between you and me.”(AK) 51 Laban also said to Jacob, “Look at this mound and the marker I have set up between you and me. 52 This mound is a witness and the marker is a witness that I will not pass beyond this mound to you, and you will not pass beyond this mound and this marker to do me harm. 53 The God of Abraham, and the gods(AL) of Nahor—the gods of their father[ae]—will judge between us.” And Jacob swore by the Fear of his father Isaac. 54 Then Jacob offered a sacrifice on the mountain and invited his relatives to eat a meal. So they ate a meal and spent the night on the mountain. 55 Laban got up early in the morning, kissed his grandchildren and daughters, and blessed them. Then Laban left to return home.

Preparing to Meet Esau

32 Jacob went on his way, and God’s angels met him.(AM) 2 When he saw them, Jacob said, “This is God’s camp.” So he called that place Mahanaim.[af](AN)

3 Jacob sent messengers ahead of him to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the territory of Edom. 4 He commanded them, “You are to say to my lord Esau, ‘This is what your servant Jacob says. I have been staying with Laban and have been delayed until now. 5 I have oxen, donkeys, flocks, and male and female slaves. I have sent this message to inform my lord, in order to seek your favor.’”(AO)

6 When the messengers returned to Jacob, they said, “We went to your brother Esau; he is coming to meet you—and he has four hundred men with him.”(AP) 7 Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed; he divided the people with him into two camps, along with the flocks, herds, and camels. 8 He thought, “If Esau comes to one camp and attacks it, the remaining one can escape.”(AQ)

9 Then Jacob said, “God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac,(AR) the Lord who said to me, ‘Go back to your land and to your family, and I will cause you to prosper,’(AS) 10 I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness you have shown your servant. Indeed, I crossed over the Jordan with my staff, and now I have become two camps. 11 Please rescue me from my brother Esau, for I am afraid of him; otherwise, he may come and attack me, the mothers, and their children. 12 You have said, ‘I will cause you to prosper, and I will make your offspring like the sand of the sea, too numerous to be counted.’”(AT)

13 He spent the night there and took part of what he had brought with him as a gift for his brother Esau:(AU) 14 two hundred female goats, twenty male goats, two hundred ewes, twenty rams, 15 thirty milk camels with their young, forty cows, ten bulls, twenty female donkeys, and ten male donkeys. 16 He entrusted them to his slaves as separate herds and said to them, “Go on ahead of me, and leave some distance between the herds.”

17 And he told the first one, “When my brother Esau meets you and asks, ‘Who do you belong to? Where are you going? And whose animals are these ahead of you?’ 18 then tell him, ‘They belong to your servant Jacob. They are a gift sent to my lord Esau. And look, he is behind us.’”

19 He also told the second one, the third, and everyone who was walking behind the animals, “Say the same thing to Esau when you find him. 20 You are also to say, ‘Look, your servant Jacob is right behind us.’” For he thought, “I want to appease Esau with the gift that is going ahead of me. After that, I can face him, and perhaps he will forgive me.”

21 So the gift was sent on ahead of him while he remained in the camp that night. 22 During the night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two slave women, and his eleven sons, and crossed the ford of Jabbok.(AV) 23 He took them and sent them across the stream, along with all his possessions.

Jacob Wrestles with God

24 Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until daybreak.(AW) 25 When the man saw that he could not defeat him, he struck Jacob’s hip socket as they wrestled and dislocated his hip. 26 Then he said to Jacob, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.”

But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”

27 “What is your name?” the man asked.

“Jacob,” he replied.

28 “Your name will no longer be Jacob,”(AX) he said. “It will be Israel[ag] because you have struggled with God(AY) and with men and have prevailed.”

29 Then Jacob asked him, “Please tell me your name.”

But he answered, “Why do you ask my name?” (AZ) And he blessed him there.

30 Jacob then named the place Peniel,[ah] “For I have seen God face to face,” he said, “yet my life has been spared.”(BA) 31 The sun shone on him as he passed by Penuel[ai](BB)—limping because of his hip. 32 That is why, still today, the Israelites don’t eat the thigh muscle that is at the hip socket: because he struck Jacob’s hip socket at the thigh muscle.[aj]

Jacob Meets Esau

33 Now Jacob looked up and saw Esau coming toward him with four hundred men. So he divided the children among Leah, Rachel, and the two slave women. 2 He put the slaves and their children first, Leah and her children next, and Rachel and Joseph last. 3 He himself went on ahead and bowed to the ground(BC) seven times until he approached his brother.

4 But Esau ran to meet him, hugged him, threw his arms around him, and kissed him. Then they wept.(BD) 5 When Esau looked up and saw the women and children, he asked, “Who are these with you?”

He answered, “The children God has graciously given your servant.”(BE) 6 Then the slaves and their children approached him and bowed down. 7 Leah and her children also approached and bowed down, and then Joseph and Rachel approached and bowed down.

8 So Esau said, “What do you mean by this whole procession[ak] I met?” (BF)

“To find favor with you, my lord,”(BG) he answered.

9 “I have enough, my brother,” Esau replied. “Keep what you have.”

10 But Jacob said, “No, please! If I have found favor with you, take this gift from me. For indeed, I have seen your face, and it is like seeing God’s face, since you have accepted me. 11 Please take my present that was brought to you, because God has been gracious to me and I have everything I need.” So Jacob urged him until he accepted.

12 Then Esau said, “Let’s move on, and I’ll go ahead of you.”

13 Jacob replied, “My lord knows that the children are weak, and I have nursing flocks and herds. If they are driven hard for one day, the whole herd will die. 14 Let my lord go ahead of his servant. I will continue on slowly, at a pace suited to the livestock and the children, until I come to my lord at Seir.”

15 Esau said, “Let me leave some of my people with you.”

But he replied, “Why do that? Please indulge me,[al] my lord.”(BH)

16 That day Esau started on his way back to Seir, 17 but Jacob went to Succoth. He built a house for himself and shelters for his livestock; that is why the place was called Succoth.[am](BI)

18 After Jacob came from Paddan-aram, he arrived safely(BJ) at Shechem(BK) in the land of Canaan and camped in front of the city. 19 He purchased a section of the field where he had pitched his tent from the sons of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for a hundred pieces of silver.[an](BL) 20 And he set up an altar there and called it God, the God of Israel.[ao]

Dinah Defiled

34 Leah’s daughter(BM) Dinah, whom Leah bore to Jacob, went out to see some of the young women of the area. 2 When Shechem—son of Hamor the Hivite, who was the region’s chieftain—saw her, he took her and raped her. 3 He became infatuated with Jacob’s daughter Dinah. He loved the young girl and spoke tenderly to her.[ap] 4 “Get me this girl as a wife,”(BN) he told his father.

5 Jacob heard that Shechem had defiled his daughter Dinah, but since his sons were with his livestock in the field, he remained silent until they returned. 6 Meanwhile, Shechem’s father Hamor came to speak with Jacob. 7 Jacob’s sons returned from the field when they heard about the incident. They were deeply grieved and very angry, for Shechem had committed an outrage against Israel by raping Jacob’s daughter,(BO) and such a thing should not be done.

8 Hamor said to Jacob’s sons, “My son Shechem has his heart set on your[aq] daughter. Please give her to him as a wife. 9 Intermarry with us; give your daughters to us, and take our daughters for yourselves. 10 Live with us. The land is before you. Settle here, move about, and acquire property in it.”

11 Then Shechem said to Dinah’s father and brothers, “Grant me this favor,[ar] and I’ll give you whatever you say. 12 Demand of me a high compensation[as] and gift; I’ll give you whatever you ask me. Just give the girl to be my wife!”

13 But Jacob’s sons answered Shechem and his father Hamor deceitfully because he had defiled their sister Dinah. 14 “We cannot do this thing,” they said to them. “Giving our sister to an uncircumcised man is a disgrace to us. 15 We will agree with you only on this condition: if all your males are circumcised as we are.(BP) 16 Then we will give you our daughters, take your daughters for ourselves, live with you, and become one people. 17 But if you will not listen to us and be circumcised, then we will take our daughter and go.”

18 Their words seemed good to Hamor and his son Shechem. 19 The young man did not delay doing this, because he was delighted with Jacob’s daughter. Now he was the most important in all his father’s family. 20 So Hamor and his son Shechem went to the gate of their city(BQ) and spoke to the men of their city.

21 “These men are peaceful toward us,” they said. “Let them live in our land and move about in it, for indeed, the region is large enough for them. Let’s take their daughters as our wives and give our daughters to them. 22 But the men will agree to live with us and be one people only on this condition: if all our men are circumcised as they are. 23 Won’t their livestock, their possessions, and all their animals become ours? Only let’s agree with them, and they will live with us.”

24 All the men(BR) who had come to the city gates listened to Hamor and his son Shechem, and all those men were circumcised. 25 On the third day, when they were still in pain, two of Jacob’s sons, Simeon and Levi,(BS) Dinah’s brothers, took their swords, went into the unsuspecting city, and killed every male. 26 They killed Hamor and his son Shechem with their swords, took Dinah from Shechem’s house, and went away. 27 Jacob’s sons came to the slaughter and plundered the city because their sister had been defiled. 28 They took their flocks, herds, donkeys, and whatever was in the city and in the field. 29 They captured all their possessions, dependents, and wives and plundered everything in the houses.

30 Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, “You have brought trouble on me,(BT) making me odious to the inhabitants of the land,(BU) the Canaanites and the Perizzites.(BV) We are few in number; if they unite against me and attack me, I and my household will be destroyed.”(BW)

31 But they answered, “Should he treat our sister like a prostitute?”

Return to Bethel

35 God said to Jacob, “Get up! Go to Bethel and settle there.(BX) Build an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau.”(BY)

2 So Jacob said to his family and all who were with him, “Get rid of the foreign gods that are among you.(BZ) Purify yourselves and change your clothes.(CA) 3 We must get up and go to Bethel. I will build an altar there to the God who answered me in my day of distress.(CB) He has been with me everywhere I have gone.”(CC)

4 Then they gave Jacob all their foreign gods and their earrings, and Jacob hid them under the oak near Shechem. 5 When they set out, a terror from God came over the cities around them, and they did not pursue Jacob’s sons.(CD) 6 So Jacob and all who were with him came to Luz (that is, Bethel(CE)) in the land of Canaan. 7 Jacob built an altar there and called the place El-bethel[at] because it was there that God had revealed himself to him when he was fleeing from his brother.

8 Deborah, the one who had nursed and raised Rebekah,[au](CF) died and was buried under the oak south of Bethel. So Jacob named it Allon-bacuth.[av]

9 God appeared to Jacob again after he returned from Paddan-aram, and he blessed him. 10 God said to him, “Your name is Jacob; you will no longer be named Jacob, but your name will be Israel.”(CG) So he named him Israel. 11 God also said to him, “I am God Almighty.(CH) Be fruitful and multiply.(CI) A nation, indeed an assembly of nations, will come from you,(CJ) and kings will descend from you.[aw](CK) 12 I will give to you the land that I gave to Abraham and Isaac.(CL) And I will give the land to your future descendants.” 13 Then God withdrew[ax](CM) from him at the place where he had spoken to him.

14 Jacob set up a marker at the place where he had spoken to him—a stone marker. He poured a drink offering on it and poured oil on it.(CN) 15 Jacob named the place where God had spoken with him Bethel.

Rachel’s Death

16 They set out from Bethel. When they were still some distance from Ephrath, Rachel began to give birth, and her labor was difficult. 17 During her difficult labor, the midwife said to her, “Don’t be afraid, for you have another son.”(CO) 18 With her last breath—for she was dying—she named him Ben-oni,[ay] but his father called him Benjamin.[az] 19 So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem(CP)). 20 Jacob set up a marker on her grave; it is the marker at Rachel’s grave still today.

Israel’s Sons

21 Israel set out again and pitched his tent beyond the Tower of Eder.[ba] 22 While Israel was living in that region, Reuben went in and slept with his father’s concubine Bilhah, and Israel heard about it.(CQ)

Jacob had twelve sons:(CR)

23 Leah’s sons were Reuben (Jacob’s firstborn),

Simeon, Levi, Judah,

Issachar, and Zebulun.

24 Rachel’s sons were

Joseph and Benjamin.

25 The sons of Rachel’s slave Bilhah

were Dan and Naphtali.

26 The sons of Leah’s slave Zilpah

were Gad and Asher.

These are the sons of Jacob, who were born to him in Paddan-aram.

Isaac’s Death

27 Jacob came to his father Isaac at Mamre(CS) in Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron(CT)), where Abraham and Isaac had stayed. 28 Isaac lived 180 years. 29 He took his last breath and died, and was gathered to his people,(CU) old and full of days. His sons Esau and Jacob buried him.

Esau’s Family

36 These are the family records(CV) of Esau (that is, Edom(CW)). 2 Esau took his wives from the Canaanite women: Adah daughter of Elon the Hethite,(CX) Oholibamah daughter of Anah and granddaughter[bb] of Zibeon the Hivite, 3 and Basemath daughter of Ishmael and sister of Nebaioth.(CY) 4 Adah bore Eliphaz to Esau, Basemath bore Reuel, 5 and Oholibamah bore Jeush, Jalam, and Korah. These were Esau’s sons, who were born to him in the land of Canaan.

6 Esau took his wives, sons, daughters, and all the people of his household, as well as his herds, all his livestock, and all the property he had acquired in Canaan; he went to a land away from his brother Jacob. 7 For their possessions were too many for them to live together,(CZ) and because of their herds, the land where they stayed could not support them.(DA) 8 So Esau (that is, Edom) lived in the mountains of Seir.(DB)

9 These are the family records of Esau, father of the Edomites in the mountains of Seir.

10 These are the names of Esau’s sons:(DC)

Eliphaz son of Esau’s wife Adah,

and Reuel son of Esau’s wife Basemath.

11 The sons of Eliphaz were

Teman, Omar, Zepho, Gatam, and Kenaz.

12 Timna, a concubine of Esau’s son Eliphaz,

bore Amalek to Eliphaz.

These are the sons of Esau’s wife Adah.

13 These are Reuel’s sons:

Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah.

These are the sons of Esau’s wife Basemath.

14 These are the sons of Esau’s wife Oholibamah

daughter of Anah and granddaughter[bc] of Zibeon:

She bore Jeush, Jalam, and Korah to Edom.

15 These are the chiefs among Esau’s sons:

the sons of Eliphaz, Esau’s firstborn:

chief Teman, chief Omar, chief Zepho, chief Kenaz,

16 chief Korah,[bd] chief Gatam, and chief Amalek.

These are the chiefs descended from Eliphaz

in the land of Edom.

These are the sons of Adah.

17 These are the sons of Reuel, Esau’s son:

chief Nahath, chief Zerah, chief Shammah, and chief Mizzah.

These are the chiefs descended from Reuel

in the land of Edom.

These are the sons of Esau’s wife Basemath.

18 These are the sons of Esau’s wife Oholibamah:

chief Jeush, chief Jalam, and chief Korah.

These are the chiefs descended from Esau’s wife Oholibamah

daughter of Anah.

19 These are the sons of Esau (that is, Edom),

and these are their chiefs.

Seir’s Family

20 These are the sons of Seir the Horite,(DD)

the inhabitants of the land:

Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah,

21 Dishon, Ezer, and Dishan.

These are the chiefs among the Horites,

the sons of Seir, in the land of Edom.

22 The sons of Lotan were Hori and Heman.

Timna was Lotan’s sister.

23 These are Shobal’s sons:

Alvan, Manahath, Ebal, Shepho, and Onam.

24 These are Zibeon’s sons: Aiah and Anah.

This was the Anah who found the hot springs[be] in the wilderness

while he was pasturing the donkeys of his father Zibeon.

25 These are the children of Anah:

Dishon and Oholibamah daughter of Anah.

26 These are Dishon’s sons:

Hemdan, Eshban, Ithran, and Cheran.

27 These are Ezer’s sons:

Bilhan, Zaavan, and Akan.

28 These are Dishan’s sons: Uz and Aran.

29 These are the chiefs among the Horites:

chief Lotan, chief Shobal, chief Zibeon, chief Anah,

30 chief Dishon, chief Ezer, and chief Dishan.

These are the chiefs among the Horites,

clan by clan,[bf] in the land of Seir.

Rulers of Edom

31 These are the kings who reigned in the land of Edom(DE)

before any king reigned over the Israelites:

32 Bela son of Beor reigned in Edom;

the name of his city was Dinhabah.

33 When Bela died, Jobab son of Zerah from Bozrah reigned in his place.

34 When Jobab died, Husham from the land of the Temanites reigned in his place.

35 When Husham died, Hadad son of Bedad reigned in his place.

He defeated Midian in the field of Moab;

the name of his city was Avith.

36 When Hadad died, Samlah from Masrekah reigned in his place.

37 When Samlah died, Shaul from Rehoboth on the Euphrates River reigned in his place.

38 When Shaul died, Baal-hanan son of Achbor reigned in his place.

39 When Baal-hanan son of Achbor died, Hadar[bg] reigned in his place.

His city was Pau, and his wife’s name was Mehetabel

daughter of Matred daughter of Me-zahab.

40 These are the names of Esau’s chiefs,

according to their families and their localities,

by their names:

chief Timna, chief Alvah, chief Jetheth,

41 chief Oholibamah, chief Elah, chief Pinon,

42 chief Kenaz, chief Teman, chief Mibzar,

43 chief Magdiel, and chief Iram.

These are Edom’s chiefs,

according to their settlements in the land they possessed.

Esau[bh] was father of the Edomites.

Joseph’s Dreams

37 Jacob lived in the land where his father had stayed, the land of Canaan.(DF) 2 These are the family records of Jacob.

At seventeen years of age, Joseph tended sheep with his brothers. The young man was working with the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father’s wives,(DG) and he brought a bad report about them to their father.(DH)

3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than his other sons because Joseph was a son born to him in his old age,(DI) and he made a long-sleeved robe[bi] for him. 4 When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not bring themselves to speak peaceably to him.

5 Then Joseph had a dream. When he told it to his brothers, they hated him even more. 6 He said to them, “Listen to this dream I had: 7 There we were, binding sheaves of grain in the field. Suddenly my sheaf stood up, and your sheaves gathered around it and bowed down to my sheaf.”(DJ)

8 “Are you really going to reign over us?” his brothers asked him. “Are you really going to rule us?” So they hated him even more because of his dream and what he had said.

9 Then he had another dream and told it to his brothers. “Look,” he said, “I had another dream, and this time the sun, moon, and eleven stars were bowing down to me.”

10 He told his father and brothers, and his father rebuked him. “What kind of dream is this that you have had?” he said. “Am I and your mother and your brothers really going to come and bow down to the ground before you?” 11 His brothers were jealous of him,(DK) but his father kept the matter in mind.(DL)

Joseph Sold into Slavery

12 His brothers had gone to pasture their father’s flocks at Shechem. 13 Israel said to Joseph, “Your brothers, you know, are pasturing the flocks at Shechem. Get ready. I’m sending you to them.”

“I’m ready,” Joseph replied.

14 Then Israel said to him, “Go and see how your brothers and the flocks are doing, and bring word back to me.” So he sent him from the Hebron(DM) Valley, and he went to Shechem.

15 A man found him there, wandering in the field, and asked him, “What are you looking for?”

16 “I’m looking for my brothers,” Joseph said. “Can you tell me where they are pasturing their flocks?”

17 “They’ve moved on from here,” the man said. “I heard them say, ‘Let’s go to Dothan.’”(DN) So Joseph set out after his brothers and found them at Dothan.

18 They saw him in the distance, and before he had reached them, they plotted to kill him.(DO) 19 They said to one another, “Oh, look, here comes that dream expert![bj] 20 So now, come on, let’s kill him and throw him into one of the pits.[bk] We can say that a vicious animal ate him. Then we’ll see what becomes of his dreams!”

21 When Reuben heard this, he tried to save him from them.[bl] He said, “Let’s not take his life.”(DP) 22 Reuben also said to them, “Don’t shed blood. Throw him into this pit in the wilderness, but don’t lay a hand on him”—intending to rescue him from them and return him to his father.

23 When Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped off Joseph’s robe, the long-sleeved robe that he had on. 24 Then they took him and threw him into the pit. The pit was empty, without water.(DQ)

25 They sat down to eat a meal,(DR) and when they looked up, there was a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead.(DS) Their camels were carrying aromatic gum, balsam, and resin, going down to Egypt.(DT)

26 Judah said to his brothers, “What do we gain if we kill our brother and cover up his blood? 27 Come on, let’s sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay a hand on him, for he is our brother, our own flesh,” and his brothers agreed. 28 When Midianite(DU) traders passed by, his brothers pulled Joseph out of the pit and sold him for twenty pieces of silver to the Ishmaelites, who took Joseph to Egypt.(DV)

29 When Reuben returned to the pit and saw that Joseph was not there, he tore his clothes.(DW) 30 He went back to his brothers and said, “The boy is gone! What am I going to do?” [bm] 31 So they took Joseph’s robe, slaughtered a male goat, and dipped the robe in its blood. 32 They sent the long-sleeved robe to their father and said, “We found this. Examine it. Is it your son’s robe or not?”

33 His father recognized it. “It is my son’s robe,” he said. “A vicious animal has devoured him. Joseph has been torn to pieces!” (DX) 34 Then Jacob tore his clothes, put sackcloth around his waist, and mourned for his son many days. 35 All his sons and daughters tried to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. “No,” he said. “I will go down to Sheol to my son, mourning.” And his father wept for him.

36 Meanwhile, the Midianites sold Joseph in Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and the captain of the guards.

Judah and Tamar

38 At that time Judah left his brothers and settled near an Adullamite(DY) named Hirah. 2 There Judah saw the daughter of a Canaanite named Shua; he took her as a wife and slept with her. 3 She conceived and gave birth to a son, and he named him Er.(DZ) 4 She conceived again, gave birth to a son, and named him Onan. 5 She gave birth to another son and named him Shelah. It was at Chezib that[bn][bo] she gave birth to him.

6 Judah got a wife for Er, his firstborn, and her name was Tamar. 7 Now Er, Judah’s firstborn, was evil in the Lord’s sight, and the Lord put him to death.(EA) 8 Then Judah said to Onan, “Sleep with your brother’s wife. Perform your duty as her brother-in-law(EB) and produce offspring for your brother.”(EC) 9 But Onan knew that the offspring would not be his, so whenever he slept with his brother’s wife, he released his semen on the ground so that he would not produce offspring for his brother. 10 What he did was evil in the Lord’s sight, so he put him to death also.

11 Then Judah said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, “Remain a widow in your father’s house until my son Shelah grows up.”(ED) For he thought, “He might die too, like his brothers.” So Tamar went to live in her father’s house.

12 After a long time[bp] Judah’s wife, the daughter of Shua, died. When Judah had finished mourning, he and his friend Hirah the Adullamite went up to Timnah(EE) to his sheepshearers. 13 Tamar was told, “Your father-in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his sheep.” 14 So she took off her widow’s clothes, veiled her face,(EF) covered herself, and sat at the entrance to Enaim, which is on the way to Timnah. For she saw that, though Shelah had grown up, she had not been given to him as a wife. 15 When Judah saw her, he thought she was a prostitute, for she had covered her face.

16 He went over to her and said, “Come, let me sleep with you,” for he did not know that she was his daughter-in-law.(EG)

She said, “What will you give me for sleeping with me?”

17 “I will send you a young goat from my flock,” he replied.

But she said, “Only if you leave something with me until you send it.”

18 “What should I give you?” he asked.

She answered, “Your signet ring, your cord, and the staff in your hand.” So he gave them to her and slept with her, and she became pregnant by him. 19 She got up and left, then removed her veil and put her widow’s clothes back on.

20 When Judah sent the young goat by his friend the Adullamite in order to get back the items he had left with the woman, he could not find her. 21 He asked the men of the place, “Where is the cult prostitute who was beside the road at Enaim?”

“There has been no cult prostitute here,” they answered.

22 So the Adullamite returned to Judah, saying, “I couldn’t find her, and besides, the men of the place said, ‘There has been no cult prostitute here.’”

23 Judah replied, “Let her keep the items for herself; otherwise we will become a laughingstock. After all, I did send this young goat, but you couldn’t find her.”

24 About three months later Judah was told, “Your daughter-in-law, Tamar, has been acting like a prostitute, and now she is pregnant.”

“Bring her out,” Judah said, “and let her be burned to death!” (EH)

25 As she was being brought out, she sent her father-in-law this message: “I am pregnant by the man to whom these items belong.” And she added, “Examine them. Whose signet ring, cord, and staff are these?”

26 Judah recognized them and said, “She is more in the right[bq] than I,(EI) since I did not give her to my son Shelah.” And he did not know her intimately again.

27 When the time came for her to give birth, there were twins in her womb. 28 As she was giving birth, one of them put out his hand, and the midwife took it and tied a scarlet thread around it, announcing, “This one came out first.” 29 But then he pulled his hand back, out came his brother, and she said, “What a breakout you have made for yourself!” So he was named Perez.[br](EJ) 30 Then his brother, who had the scarlet thread tied to his hand, came out, and was named Zerah.[bs]

Footnotes

  1. 29:1 Lit Jacob picked up his feet
  2. 29:1 Lit the land of the children of the east
  3. 29:3 Sam, some LXX mss read flocks and the shepherds
  4. 29:10 Lit with the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother
  5. 29:11 Lit and he lifted his voice and wept
  6. 29:14 Lit my bone and my flesh
  7. 29:21 Lit can go to
  8. 29:32 = See, a Son; in Hb, the name Reuben sounds like “has seen my affliction.”
  9. 29:33 In Hb, the name Simeon sounds like “has heard.”
  10. 29:34 In Hb, the name Levi sounds like “attached to.”
  11. 29:35 In Hb, the name Judah sounds like “praise.”
  12. 30:2 Lit the fruit of the womb
  13. 30:3 Lit bear on my knees
  14. 30:6 In Hb, the name Dan sounds like “has vindicated,” or “has judged.”
  15. 30:8 Or “With mighty wrestlings
  16. 30:8 In Hb, the name Naphtali sounds like “my wrestling.”
  17. 30:11 Alt Hb tradition, LXX, Vg read “Good fortune has come!”
  18. 30:11 = Good Fortune
  19. 30:13 = Happy
  20. 30:18 In Hb, the name Issachar sounds like “reward.”
  21. 30:20 In Hb, the name Zebulun sounds like “honored.”
  22. 30:24 = He Adds
  23. 30:43 Lit The man spread out very much, very much
  24. 31:20 Lit And he stole the heart of
  25. 31:21 Lit and set his face to
  26. 31:33 Lit servants
  27. 31:37 Lit What have you found from all of the possessions of your house?
  28. 31:42 Lit and the work of my hands
  29. 31:47 Jegar-sahadutha is Aramaic, and Galeed is Hb; both names = Mound of Witness
  30. 31:49 = Watchtower
  31. 31:53 Two Hb mss, LXX omit the gods of their father
  32. 32:2 = Two Camps
  33. 32:28 In Hb, the name Israel sounds like “he struggled (with) God.”
  34. 32:30 = Face of God
  35. 32:31 Variant of Peniel
  36. 32:32 Or tendon
  37. 33:8 Lit camp
  38. 33:15 Lit May I find favor in your eyes
  39. 33:17 = Stalls or Huts
  40. 33:19 Lit 100 qesitahs; the value of this currency is unknown
  41. 33:20 = El-Elohe-Israel
  42. 34:3 Lit spoke to her heart
  43. 34:8 The Hb word for your is pl, showing that Hamor is speaking to Jacob and his sons.
  44. 34:11 Lit “May I find favor in your eyes
  45. 34:12 Or bride-price, or betrothal present
  46. 35:7 = God of Bethel
  47. 35:8 Lit Deborah, Rebekah’s wet nurse; Gn 24:59
  48. 35:8 = Oak of Weeping
  49. 35:11 Lit will come from your loins
  50. 35:13 Lit went up
  51. 35:18 = Son of My Sorrow
  52. 35:18 = Son of the Right Hand
  53. 35:21 Or beyond Migdal-eder
  54. 36:2 Sam, LXX read Anah son
  55. 36:14 Sam, LXX read Anah son
  56. 36:16 Sam omits Korah
  57. 36:24 Syr, Vg; Tg reads the mules; Hb obscure
  58. 36:30 Lit Horites, for their chiefs
  59. 36:39 Many Hb mss, Sam, Syr read Hadad
  60. 36:43 Lit He Esau
  61. 37:3 Or an ornate robe; see 2Sm 13:18,19
  62. 37:19 Lit comes the lord of the dreams
  63. 37:20 Or cisterns
  64. 37:21 Lit their hands
  65. 37:30 Lit And I, where am I going?
  66. 38:5 LXX reads She was at Chezib when
  67. 38:5 Or He was at Chezib when
  68. 38:12 Lit And there were many days, and
  69. 38:26 Or more righteous
  70. 38:29 = Breaking Out
  71. 38:30 = Brightness of Sunrise; perhaps related to the scarlet thread
Listen to Genesis 29-36
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Genesis 29-36
New International Version

Jacob Arrives in Paddan Aram

29 Then Jacob continued on his journey and came to the land of the eastern peoples.(A) 2 There he saw a well in the open country, with three flocks of sheep lying near it because the flocks were watered from that well.(B) The stone(C) over the mouth of the well was large. 3 When all the flocks were gathered there, the shepherds would roll the stone(D) away from the well’s mouth and water the sheep.(E) Then they would return the stone to its place over the mouth of the well.

4 Jacob asked the shepherds, “My brothers, where are you from?”(F)

“We’re from Harran,(G)” they replied.

5 He said to them, “Do you know Laban, Nahor’s grandson?”(H)

“Yes, we know him,” they answered.

6 Then Jacob asked them, “Is he well?”

“Yes, he is,” they said, “and here comes his daughter Rachel(I) with the sheep.(J)”

7 “Look,” he said, “the sun is still high; it is not time for the flocks to be gathered. Water the sheep and take them back to pasture.”

8 “We can’t,” they replied, “until all the flocks are gathered and the stone(K) has been rolled away from the mouth of the well. Then we will water(L) the sheep.”

9 While he was still talking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep,(M) for she was a shepherd. 10 When Jacob saw Rachel(N) daughter of his uncle Laban, and Laban’s sheep, he went over and rolled the stone(O) away from the mouth of the well and watered(P) his uncle’s sheep.(Q) 11 Then Jacob kissed(R) Rachel and began to weep aloud.(S) 12 He had told Rachel that he was a relative(T) of her father and a son of Rebekah.(U) So she ran and told her father.(V)

13 As soon as Laban(W) heard the news about Jacob, his sister’s son, he hurried to meet him. He embraced him(X) and kissed him and brought him to his home, and there Jacob told him all these things. 14 Then Laban said to him, “You are my own flesh and blood.”(Y)

Jacob Marries Leah and Rachel

After Jacob had stayed with him for a whole month, 15 Laban said to him, “Just because you are a relative(Z) of mine, should you work for me for nothing? Tell me what your wages(AA) should be.”

16 Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the older was Leah,(AB) and the name of the younger was Rachel.(AC) 17 Leah had weak[a] eyes, but Rachel(AD) had a lovely figure and was beautiful.(AE) 18 Jacob was in love with Rachel(AF) and said, “I’ll work for you seven years in return for your younger daughter Rachel.”(AG)

19 Laban said, “It’s better that I give her to you than to some other man. Stay here with me.” 20 So Jacob served seven years to get Rachel,(AH) but they seemed like only a few days to him because of his love for her.(AI)

21 Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife. My time is completed, and I want to make love to her.(AJ)”

22 So Laban brought together all the people of the place and gave a feast.(AK) 23 But when evening came, he took his daughter Leah(AL) and brought her to Jacob, and Jacob made love to her. 24 And Laban gave his servant Zilpah(AM) to his daughter as her attendant.(AN)

25 When morning came, there was Leah! So Jacob said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me?(AO) I served you for Rachel, didn’t I? Why have you deceived me?(AP)”

26 Laban replied, “It is not our custom here to give the younger daughter in marriage before the older one.(AQ) 27 Finish this daughter’s bridal week;(AR) then we will give you the younger one also, in return for another seven years of work.(AS)”

28 And Jacob did so. He finished the week with Leah, and then Laban gave him his daughter Rachel to be his wife.(AT) 29 Laban gave his servant Bilhah(AU) to his daughter Rachel as her attendant.(AV) 30 Jacob made love to Rachel also, and his love for Rachel was greater than his love for Leah.(AW) And he worked for Laban another seven years.(AX)

Jacob’s Children

31 When the Lord saw that Leah was not loved,(AY) he enabled her to conceive,(AZ) but Rachel remained childless. 32 Leah became pregnant and gave birth to a son.(BA) She named him Reuben,[b](BB) for she said, “It is because the Lord has seen my misery.(BC) Surely my husband will love me now.”

33 She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “Because the Lord heard that I am not loved,(BD) he gave me this one too.” So she named him Simeon.[c](BE)

34 Again she conceived, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “Now at last my husband will become attached to me,(BF) because I have borne him three sons.” So he was named Levi.[d](BG)

35 She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “This time I will praise the Lord.” So she named him Judah.[e](BH) Then she stopped having children.(BI)

30 When Rachel saw that she was not bearing Jacob any children,(BJ) she became jealous of her sister.(BK) So she said to Jacob, “Give me children, or I’ll die!”

2 Jacob became angry with her and said, “Am I in the place of God,(BL) who has kept you from having children?”(BM)

3 Then she said, “Here is Bilhah,(BN) my servant.(BO) Sleep with her so that she can bear children for me and I too can build a family through her.”(BP)

4 So she gave him her servant Bilhah as a wife.(BQ) Jacob slept with her,(BR) 5 and she became pregnant and bore him a son. 6 Then Rachel said, “God has vindicated me;(BS) he has listened to my plea and given me a son.”(BT) Because of this she named him Dan.[f](BU)

7 Rachel’s servant Bilhah(BV) conceived again and bore Jacob a second son. 8 Then Rachel said, “I have had a great struggle with my sister, and I have won.”(BW) So she named him Naphtali.[g](BX)

9 When Leah(BY) saw that she had stopped having children,(BZ) she took her servant Zilpah(CA) and gave her to Jacob as a wife.(CB) 10 Leah’s servant Zilpah(CC) bore Jacob a son. 11 Then Leah said, “What good fortune!”[h] So she named him Gad.[i](CD)

12 Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a second son. 13 Then Leah said, “How happy I am! The women will call me(CE) happy.”(CF) So she named him Asher.[j](CG)

14 During wheat harvest,(CH) Reuben went out into the fields and found some mandrake plants,(CI) which he brought to his mother Leah. Rachel said to Leah, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.”

15 But she said to her, “Wasn’t it enough(CJ) that you took away my husband? Will you take my son’s mandrakes too?”

“Very well,” Rachel said, “he can sleep with you tonight in return for your son’s mandrakes.”(CK)

16 So when Jacob came in from the fields that evening, Leah went out to meet him. “You must sleep with me,” she said. “I have hired you with my son’s mandrakes.”(CL) So he slept with her that night.

17 God listened to Leah,(CM) and she became pregnant and bore Jacob a fifth son. 18 Then Leah said, “God has rewarded me for giving my servant to my husband.”(CN) So she named him Issachar.[k](CO)

19 Leah conceived again and bore Jacob a sixth son. 20 Then Leah said, “God has presented me with a precious gift. This time my husband will treat me with honor,(CP) because I have borne him six sons.” So she named him Zebulun.[l](CQ)

21 Some time later she gave birth to a daughter and named her Dinah.(CR)

22 Then God remembered Rachel;(CS) he listened to her(CT) and enabled her to conceive.(CU) 23 She became pregnant and gave birth to a son(CV) and said, “God has taken away my disgrace.”(CW) 24 She named him Joseph,[m](CX) and said, “May the Lord add to me another son.”(CY)

Jacob’s Flocks Increase

25 After Rachel gave birth to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Send me on my way(CZ) so I can go back to my own homeland.(DA) 26 Give me my wives and children, for whom I have served you,(DB) and I will be on my way. You know how much work I’ve done for you.”

27 But Laban said to him, “If I have found favor in your eyes,(DC) please stay. I have learned by divination(DD) that the Lord has blessed me because of you.”(DE) 28 He added, “Name your wages,(DF) and I will pay them.”

29 Jacob said to him, “You know how I have worked for you(DG) and how your livestock has fared under my care.(DH) 30 The little you had before I came has increased greatly, and the Lord has blessed you wherever I have been.(DI) But now, when may I do something for my own household?(DJ)”

31 “What shall I give you?” he asked.

“Don’t give me anything,” Jacob replied. “But if you will do this one thing for me, I will go on tending your flocks and watching over them: 32 Let me go through all your flocks today and remove from them every speckled or spotted sheep, every dark-colored lamb and every spotted or speckled goat.(DK) They will be my wages.(DL) 33 And my honesty will testify for me in the future, whenever you check on the wages you have paid me. Any goat in my possession that is not speckled or spotted, or any lamb that is not dark-colored,(DM) will be considered stolen.(DN)”

34 “Agreed,” said Laban. “Let it be as you have said.” 35 That same day he removed all the male goats that were streaked or spotted, and all the speckled or spotted female goats (all that had white on them) and all the dark-colored lambs,(DO) and he placed them in the care of his sons.(DP) 36 Then he put a three-day journey(DQ) between himself and Jacob, while Jacob continued to tend the rest of Laban’s flocks.

37 Jacob, however, took fresh-cut branches from poplar, almond(DR) and plane trees(DS) and made white stripes on them by peeling the bark and exposing the white inner wood of the branches.(DT) 38 Then he placed the peeled branches(DU) in all the watering troughs,(DV) so that they would be directly in front of the flocks when they came to drink. When the flocks were in heat(DW) and came to drink, 39 they mated in front of the branches.(DX) And they bore young that were streaked or speckled or spotted.(DY) 40 Jacob set apart the young of the flock by themselves, but made the rest face the streaked and dark-colored animals(DZ) that belonged to Laban. Thus he made separate flocks for himself and did not put them with Laban’s animals. 41 Whenever the stronger females were in heat,(EA) Jacob would place the branches in the troughs in front of the animals so they would mate near the branches,(EB) 42 but if the animals were weak, he would not place them there. So the weak animals went to Laban and the strong ones to Jacob.(EC) 43 In this way the man grew exceedingly prosperous and came to own large flocks, and female and male servants, and camels and donkeys.(ED)

Jacob Flees From Laban

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

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

4 So Jacob sent word to Rachel and Leah to come out to the fields where his flocks were. 5 He said to them, “I see that your father’s(EJ) attitude toward me is not what it was before,(EK) but the God of my father has been with me.(EL) 6 You know that I’ve worked for your father with all my strength,(EM) 7 yet your father has cheated(EN) me by changing my wages(EO) ten times.(EP) However, God has not allowed him to harm me.(EQ) 8 If he said, ‘The speckled ones will be your wages,’ then all the flocks gave birth to speckled young; and if he said, ‘The streaked ones will be your wages,’(ER) then all the flocks bore streaked young. 9 So God has taken away your father’s livestock(ES) and has given them to me.(ET)

10 “In breeding season I once had a dream(EU) in which I looked up and saw that the male goats mating with the flock were streaked, speckled or spotted. 11 The angel of God(EV) said to me in the dream,(EW) ‘Jacob.’ I answered, ‘Here I am.’(EX) 12 And he said, ‘Look up and see that all the male goats mating with the flock are streaked, speckled or spotted,(EY) for I have seen all that Laban has been doing to you.(EZ) 13 I am the God of Bethel,(FA) where you anointed a pillar(FB) and where you made a vow(FC) to me. Now leave this land at once and go back to your native land.(FD)’”

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

17 Then Jacob put his children and his wives(FI) on camels,(FJ) 18 and he drove all his livestock ahead of him, along with all the goods he had accumulated(FK) in Paddan Aram,[n](FL) to go to his father Isaac(FM) in the land of Canaan.(FN)

19 When Laban had gone to shear his sheep,(FO) Rachel stole her father’s household gods.(FP) 20 Moreover, Jacob deceived(FQ) Laban the Aramean(FR) by not telling him he was running away.(FS) 21 So he fled(FT) with all he had, crossed the Euphrates River,(FU) and headed for the hill country of Gilead.(FV)

Laban Pursues Jacob

22 On the third day(FW) Laban was told that Jacob had fled.(FX) 23 Taking his relatives(FY) with him(FZ), he pursued Jacob for seven days and caught up with him in the hill country of Gilead.(GA) 24 Then God came to Laban the Aramean(GB) in a dream at night and said to him,(GC) “Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.”(GD)

25 Jacob had pitched his tent in the hill country of Gilead(GE) when Laban overtook him, and Laban and his relatives camped there too. 26 Then Laban said to Jacob, “What have you done?(GF) You’ve deceived me,(GG) and you’ve carried off my daughters like captives in war.(GH) 27 Why did you run off secretly and deceive me? Why didn’t you tell me,(GI) so I could send you away with joy and singing to the music of timbrels(GJ) and harps?(GK) 28 You didn’t even let me kiss my grandchildren and my daughters goodbye.(GL) You have done a foolish thing. 29 I have the power to harm you;(GM) but last night the God of your father(GN) said to me, ‘Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.’(GO) 30 Now you have gone off because you longed to return to your father’s household.(GP) But why did you steal(GQ) my gods?(GR)”

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

33 So Laban went into Jacob’s tent and into Leah’s tent(GV) and into the tent of the two female servants,(GW) but he found nothing.(GX) After he came out of Leah’s tent, he entered Rachel’s tent. 34 Now Rachel had taken the household gods(GY) and put them inside her camel’s saddle(GZ) and was sitting on them. Laban searched(HA) through everything in the tent but found nothing.

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

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

38 “I have been with you for twenty years now.(HJ) Your sheep and goats have not miscarried,(HK) nor have I eaten rams from your flocks. 39 I did not bring you animals torn by wild beasts; I bore the loss myself. And you demanded payment from me for whatever was stolen(HL) by day or night.(HM) 40 This was my situation: The heat consumed me in the daytime and the cold at night, and sleep fled from my eyes.(HN) 41 It was like this for the twenty years(HO) I was in your household. I worked for you fourteen years for your two daughters(HP) and six years for your flocks,(HQ) and you changed my wages(HR) ten times.(HS) 42 If the God of my father,(HT) the God of Abraham(HU) and the Fear of Isaac,(HV) had not been with me,(HW) you would surely have sent me away empty-handed. But God has seen my hardship and the toil of my hands,(HX) and last night he rebuked you.(HY)”

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

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

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

51 Laban also said to Jacob, “Here is this heap,(IL) and here is this pillar(IM) I have set up between you and me. 52 This heap is a witness, and this pillar is a witness,(IN) that I will not go past this heap to your side to harm you and that you will not go past this heap(IO) and pillar to my side to harm me.(IP) 53 May the God of Abraham(IQ) and the God of Nahor,(IR) the God of their father, judge between us.”(IS)

So Jacob took an oath(IT) in the name of the Fear of his father Isaac.(IU) 54 He offered a sacrifice(IV) there in the hill country and invited his relatives to a meal.(IW) After they had eaten, they spent the night there.

55 Early the next morning Laban kissed his grandchildren and his daughters(IX) and blessed(IY) them. Then he left and returned home.[q](IZ)

Jacob Prepares to Meet Esau

32 [r]Jacob also went on his way, and the angels of God(JA) met him. 2 When Jacob saw them, he said, “This is the camp of God!”(JB) So he named that place Mahanaim.[s](JC)

3 Jacob sent messengers(JD) ahead of him to his brother Esau(JE) in the land of Seir,(JF) the country of Edom.(JG) 4 He instructed them: “This is what you are to say to my lord(JH) Esau: ‘Your servant(JI) Jacob says, I have been staying with Laban(JJ) and have remained there till now. 5 I have cattle and donkeys, sheep and goats, male and female servants.(JK) Now I am sending this message to my lord,(JL) that I may find favor in your eyes.(JM)’”

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

7 In great fear(JO) and distress(JP) Jacob divided the people who were with him into two groups,[t](JQ) and the flocks and herds and camels as well. 8 He thought, “If Esau comes and attacks one group,[u] the group[v] that is left may escape.”

9 Then Jacob prayed, “O God of my father Abraham,(JR) God of my father Isaac,(JS) Lord, you who said to me, ‘Go back to your country and your relatives, and I will make you prosper,’(JT) 10 I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness(JU) you have shown your servant. I had only my staff(JV) when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two camps.(JW) 11 Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid(JX) he will come and attack me,(JY) and also the mothers with their children.(JZ) 12 But you have said, ‘I will surely make you prosper and will make your descendants like the sand(KA) of the sea, which cannot be counted.(KB)’”

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

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

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

Jacob Wrestles With God

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

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

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

“Jacob,”(KU) he answered.

28 Then the man said, “Your name(KV) will no longer be Jacob, but Israel,[w](KW) because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.”(KX)

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

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

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

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

Jacob Meets Esau

33 Jacob looked up and there was Esau, coming with his four hundred men;(LE) so he divided the children among Leah, Rachel and the two female servants.(LF) 2 He put the female servants and their children(LG) in front, Leah and her children next, and Rachel and Joseph(LH) in the rear. 3 He himself went on ahead and bowed down to the ground(LI) seven times(LJ) as he approached his brother.

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

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

6 Then the female servants and their children(LO) approached and bowed down.(LP) 7 Next, Leah and her children(LQ) came and bowed down.(LR) Last of all came Joseph and Rachel,(LS) and they too bowed down.

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

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

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

10 “No, please!” said Jacob. “If I have found favor in your eyes,(LW) accept this gift(LX) from me. For to see your face is like seeing the face of God,(LY) now that you have received me favorably.(LZ) 11 Please accept the present(MA) that was brought to you, for God has been gracious to me(MB) and I have all I need.”(MC) And because Jacob insisted,(MD) Esau accepted it.

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

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

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

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

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

18 After Jacob came from Paddan Aram,[aa](ML) he arrived safely at the city of Shechem(MM) in Canaan and camped within sight of the city. 19 For a hundred pieces of silver,[ab] he bought from the sons of Hamor,(MN) the father of Shechem,(MO) the plot of ground(MP) where he pitched his tent.(MQ) 20 There he set up an altar(MR) and called it El Elohe Israel.[ac]

Dinah and the Shechemites

34 Now Dinah,(MS) the daughter Leah had borne to Jacob, went out to visit the women of the land. 2 When Shechem(MT) son of Hamor(MU) the Hivite,(MV) the ruler of that area, saw her, he took her and raped her.(MW) 3 His heart was drawn to Dinah(MX) daughter of Jacob;(MY) he loved(MZ) the young woman and spoke tenderly(NA) to her. 4 And Shechem said to his father Hamor, “Get me this girl as my wife.”(NB)

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

6 Then Shechem’s father Hamor went out to talk with Jacob.(ND) 7 Meanwhile, Jacob’s sons had come in from the fields as soon as they heard what had happened. They were shocked(NE) and furious,(NF) because Shechem had done an outrageous thing in[ad] Israel(NG) by sleeping with Jacob’s daughter—a thing that should not be done.(NH)

8 But Hamor said to them, “My son Shechem has his heart set on your daughter. Please give her to him as his wife.(NI) 9 Intermarry with us; give us your daughters and take our daughters for yourselves.(NJ) 10 You can settle among us;(NK) the land is open to you.(NL) Live in it, trade[ae] in it,(NM) and acquire property in it.(NN)”

11 Then Shechem said to Dinah’s father and brothers, “Let me find favor in your eyes,(NO) and I will give you whatever you ask. 12 Make the price for the bride(NP) and the gift I am to bring as great as you like, and I’ll pay whatever you ask me. Only give me the young woman as my wife.”

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

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

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

25 Three days later, while all of them were still in pain,(OG) two of Jacob’s sons, Simeon(OH) and Levi,(OI) Dinah’s brothers, took their swords(OJ) and attacked the unsuspecting city,(OK) killing every male.(OL) 26 They put Hamor and his son Shechem to the sword(OM) and took Dinah(ON) from Shechem’s house and left. 27 The sons of Jacob came upon the dead bodies and looted the city(OO) where[af] their sister had been defiled.(OP) 28 They seized their flocks and herds and donkeys(OQ) and everything else of theirs in the city and out in the fields.(OR) 29 They carried off all their wealth and all their women and children,(OS) taking as plunder(OT) everything in the houses.(OU)

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

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

Jacob Returns to Bethel

35 Then God said to Jacob, “Go up to Bethel(PA) and settle there, and build an altar(PB) there to God,(PC) who appeared to you(PD) when you were fleeing from your brother Esau.”(PE)

2 So Jacob said to his household(PF) and to all who were with him, “Get rid of the foreign gods(PG) you have with you, and purify yourselves and change your clothes.(PH) 3 Then come, let us go up to Bethel, where I will build an altar to God,(PI) who answered me in the day of my distress(PJ) and who has been with me wherever I have gone.(PK)” 4 So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods they had and the rings in their ears,(PL) and Jacob buried them under the oak(PM) at Shechem.(PN) 5 Then they set out, and the terror of God(PO) fell on the towns all around them so that no one pursued them.(PP)

6 Jacob and all the people with him came to Luz(PQ) (that is, Bethel) in the land of Canaan.(PR) 7 There he built an altar,(PS) and he called the place El Bethel,[ag](PT) because it was there that God revealed himself to him(PU) when he was fleeing from his brother.(PV)

8 Now Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse,(PW) died and was buried under the oak(PX) outside Bethel.(PY) So it was named Allon Bakuth.[ah]

9 After Jacob returned from Paddan Aram,[ai](PZ) God appeared to him again and blessed him.(QA) 10 God said to him, “Your name is Jacob,[aj] but you will no longer be called Jacob; your name will be Israel.[ak]”(QB) So he named him Israel.

11 And God said to him, “I am God Almighty[al];(QC) be fruitful and increase in number.(QD) A nation(QE) and a community of nations will come from you, and kings will be among your descendants.(QF) 12 The land I gave to Abraham and Isaac I also give to you, and I will give this land to your descendants after you.(QG)”(QH) 13 Then God went up from him(QI) at the place where he had talked with him.

14 Jacob set up a stone pillar(QJ) at the place where God had talked with him, and he poured out a drink offering(QK) on it; he also poured oil on it.(QL) 15 Jacob called the place where God had talked with him Bethel.[am](QM)

The Deaths of Rachel and Isaac(QN)

16 Then they moved on from Bethel. While they were still some distance from Ephrath,(QO) Rachel(QP) began to give birth and had great difficulty. 17 And as she was having great difficulty in childbirth, the midwife(QQ) said to her, “Don’t despair, for you have another son.”(QR) 18 As she breathed her last—for she was dying—she named her son Ben-Oni.[an](QS) But his father named him Benjamin.[ao](QT)

19 So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath(QU) (that is, Bethlehem(QV)). 20 Over her tomb Jacob set up a pillar, and to this day(QW) that pillar marks Rachel’s tomb.(QX)

21 Israel moved on again and pitched his tent beyond Migdal Eder.(QY) 22 While Israel was living in that region, Reuben went in and slept with his father’s concubine(QZ) Bilhah,(RA) and Israel heard of it.

Jacob had twelve sons:

23 The sons of Leah:(RB)

Reuben the firstborn(RC) of Jacob,

Simeon, Levi, Judah,(RD) Issachar and Zebulun.(RE)

24 The sons of Rachel:

Joseph(RF) and Benjamin.(RG)

25 The sons of Rachel’s servant Bilhah:(RH)

Dan and Naphtali.(RI)

26 The sons of Leah’s servant Zilpah:(RJ)

Gad(RK) and Asher.(RL)

These were the sons of Jacob,(RM) who were born to him in Paddan Aram.(RN)

27 Jacob came home to his father Isaac(RO) in Mamre,(RP) near Kiriath Arba(RQ) (that is, Hebron),(RR) where Abraham and Isaac had stayed.(RS) 28 Isaac lived a hundred and eighty years.(RT) 29 Then he breathed his last and died and was gathered to his people,(RU) old and full of years.(RV) And his sons Esau and Jacob buried him.(RW)

Esau’s Descendants(RX)(RY)

36 This is the account(RZ) of the family line of Esau (that is, Edom).(SA)

2 Esau took his wives from the women of Canaan:(SB) Adah daughter of Elon the Hittite,(SC) and Oholibamah(SD) daughter of Anah(SE) and granddaughter of Zibeon the Hivite(SF)— 3 also Basemath(SG) daughter of Ishmael and sister of Nebaioth.(SH)

4 Adah bore Eliphaz to Esau, Basemath bore Reuel,(SI) 5 and Oholibamah bore Jeush, Jalam and Korah.(SJ) These were the sons of Esau, who were born to him in Canaan.

Footnotes

  1. Genesis 29:17 Or delicate
  2. Genesis 29:32 Reuben sounds like the Hebrew for he has seen my misery; the name means see, a son.
  3. Genesis 29:33 Simeon probably means one who hears.
  4. Genesis 29:34 Levi sounds like and may be derived from the Hebrew for attached.
  5. Genesis 29:35 Judah sounds like and may be derived from the Hebrew for praise.
  6. Genesis 30:6 Dan here means he has vindicated.
  7. Genesis 30:8 Naphtali means my struggle.
  8. Genesis 30:11 Or “A troop is coming!”
  9. Genesis 30:11 Gad can mean good fortune or a troop.
  10. Genesis 30:13 Asher means happy.
  11. Genesis 30:18 Issachar sounds like the Hebrew for reward.
  12. Genesis 30:20 Zebulun probably means honor.
  13. Genesis 30:24 Joseph means may he add.
  14. Genesis 31:18 That is, Northwest Mesopotamia
  15. Genesis 31:47 The Aramaic Jegar Sahadutha and the Hebrew Galeed both mean witness heap.
  16. Genesis 31:49 Mizpah means watchtower.
  17. Genesis 31:55 In Hebrew texts this verse (31:55) is numbered 32:1.
  18. Genesis 32:1 In Hebrew texts 32:1-32 is numbered 32:2-33.
  19. Genesis 32:2 Mahanaim means two camps.
  20. Genesis 32:7 Or camps
  21. Genesis 32:8 Or camp
  22. Genesis 32:8 Or camp
  23. Genesis 32:28 Israel probably means he struggles with God.
  24. Genesis 32:30 Peniel means face of God.
  25. Genesis 32:31 Hebrew Penuel, a variant of Peniel
  26. Genesis 33:17 Sukkoth means shelters.
  27. Genesis 33:18 That is, Northwest Mesopotamia
  28. Genesis 33:19 Hebrew hundred kesitahs; a kesitah was a unit of money of unknown weight and value.
  29. Genesis 33:20 El Elohe Israel can mean El is the God of Israel or mighty is the God of Israel.
  30. Genesis 34:7 Or against
  31. Genesis 34:10 Or move about freely; also in verse 21
  32. Genesis 34:27 Or because
  33. Genesis 35:7 El Bethel means God of Bethel.
  34. Genesis 35:8 Allon Bakuth means oak of weeping.
  35. Genesis 35:9 That is, Northwest Mesopotamia; also in verse 26
  36. Genesis 35:10 Jacob means he grasps the heel, a Hebrew idiom for he deceives.
  37. Genesis 35:10 Israel probably means he struggles with God.
  38. Genesis 35:11 Hebrew El-Shaddai
  39. Genesis 35:15 Bethel means house of God.
  40. Genesis 35:18 Ben-Oni means son of my trouble.
  41. Genesis 35:18 Benjamin means son of my right hand.
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