Genesis 31
Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition
31 But after that he heard the words of the sons of Laban, saying: Jacob hath taken away all that was our father's, and being enriched by his substance is become great:
2 And perceiving also that Laban's countenance was not towards him as yesterday and the other day,
3 Especially the Lord saying to him: Return into the land of thy fathers, and to thy kindred, and I will be with thee.
4 He sent, and called Rachel and Lia into the field, where he fed the flocks,
5 And said to them: I see your father's countenance is not towards me as yesterday and the other day: but the God of my father hath been with me.
6 And you know that I have served your father to the uttermost of my power.
7 Yea, your father also hath overreached me, and hath changed my wages ten times: and yet God hath not suffered him to hurt me.
8 If at any time he said: The speckled shall be thy wages: all the sheep brought forth speckled: but when he said on the contrary: Thou shalt take all the white ones for thy wages: all the flocks brought forth white ones.
9 And God hath taken your father's substance, and given it to me.
10 For after that time came of the ewes conceiving, I lifted up my eyes, and saw in my sleep that the males which leaped upon the females were of divers colours, and spotted, and speckled.
11 And the angel of God said to me in my sleep: Jacob? And I answered: Here I am.
12 And he said: Lift up thy eyes, and see that all the males leaping upon the females, are of divers colours, spotted, and speckled. For I have seen all that Laban hath done to thee.
13 I am the God of Bethel, where thou didst anoint the stone, and make a vow to me. Now therefore arise, and go out of this land, and return into thy native country.
14 And Rachel and Lia answered: Have we any thing left among the goods and inheritance of our father's house?
15 Hath he not counted us as strangers and sold us, and eaten up the price of us?
16 But God hath taken our father's riches, and delivered them to us, and to our children: wherefore do all that God hath commanded thee.
17 Then Jacob rose up, and having set his children and wives upon camels, went his way.
18 And he took all his substance, and flocks, and whatsoever he had gotten in Mesopotamia, and went forward to Isaac his father to the land of Chanaan.
19 At that time Laban was gone to shear his sheep, and Rachel stole away her father's idols.
20 And Jacob would not confess to his father in law that he was flying away.
21 And when he was gone, together with all that belonged to him, and having passed the river, was going on towards mount Galaad,
22 It was told Laban on the third day that Jacob fled.
23 And he took his brethren with him, and pursued after him seven days; and overtook him in the mount of Galaad.
24 And he saw in a dream God saying to him: Take heed thou speak not any thing harshly against Jacob.
25 Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the mountain: and when he with his brethren had overtaken him, he pitched his tent in the same mount of Galaad.
26 And he said to Jacob: Why hast thou done thus, to carry away, without my knowledge, my daughters, as captives taken with the sword.
27 Why wouldst thou run away privately and not acquaint me, that I might have brought thee on the way with joy, and with songs, and with timbrels, and with harps?
28 Thou hast not suffered me to kiss my sons and daughters: thou hast done foolishly: and now, indeed,
29 It is in my power to return thee evil: but the God of your father said to me yesterday: Take heed thou speak not any thing harshly against Jacob.
30 Suppose thou didst desire to go to thy friends, and hadst a longing after thy father's house: why hast thou stolen away my gods?
31 Jacob answered: That I departed unknown to thee, it was for fear lest thou wouldst take away thy daughters by force.
32 But whereas thou chargest me with theft: with whomsoever thou shalt find thy gods, let him be slain before our brethren. Search, and if thou find any of thy things with me, take them away. Now when he said this, he knew not that Rachel had stolen the idols.
33 So Laban went into the tent of Jacob, and of Lia, and of both the handmaids, and found them not. And when he was entered into Rachel's tent,
34 She in haste hid the idols under the camel's furniture, and sat upon them: and when he had searched all the tent, and found nothing,
35 She said: Let not my lord be angry that I cannot rise up before thee, because it has now happened to me, according to the custom of women, So his careful search was in vain.
36 And Jacob being angry, said in a chiding manner: For what fault of mine, and for what offence on my part hast thou so hotly pursued me,
37 And searched all my household stuff? What hast thou found of all the substance of thy house? lay it here before my brethren, and thy brethren, and let them judge between me and thee.
38 Have I therefore been with thee twenty years? thy ewes and goats were not barren, the rams of thy flocks I did not eat:
39 Neither did I shew thee that which the beast had torn, I made good all the damage: whatsoever was lost by theft, thou didst exact it of me:
40 Day and night was I parched with heat, and with frost, and sleep departed from my eyes.
41 And in this manner have I served thee in thy house twenty years, fourteen for thy daughters, and six for thy flocks: thou hast changed also my wages ten times.
42 Unless the God of my father Abraham, and the fear of Isaac had stood by me, peradventure now thou hadst sent me away naked: God beheld my affliction and the labour of my hands, and rebuked thee yesterday.
43 Laban answered him: The daughters are mine and the children, and thy flocks, and all things that thou seest are mine: what can I do to my children, and grandchildren?
44 Come therefore, let us enter into a league: that it may be for a testimony between me and thee.
45 And Jacob took a stone, and set it up for a title:
46 And he said to his brethren: Bring hither stones. And they gathering stones together, made a heap, and they ate upon it.
47 And Laban called it The witness heap: and Jacob, The hillock of testimony: each of them according to the propriety of his language.
48 And Laban said: This heap shall be a witness between me and thee this day, and therefore the name thereof was called Galaad, that is, The witness heap.
49 The Lord behold and judge between us when we shall be gone one from the other.
50 If thou afflict my daughters, and if thou bring in other wives over them: none is witness of our speech but God, who is present and beholdeth.
51 And he said again to Jacob: Behold, this heap, and the stone which I have set up between me and thee,
52 Shall be a witness: this heap, I say, and the stone, be they for a testimony, if either I shall pass beyond it going towards thee, or thou shalt pass beyond it, thinking harm to me.
53 The God of Abraham, and the God of Nachor, the God of their father, judge between us. And Jacob swore by the fear of his father Isaac.
54 And after he had offered sacrifices in the mountain, he called his brethren to eat bread. And when they had eaten, they lodged there:
55 But Laban arose in the night, and kissed his sons, and daughters, and blessed them: and returned to his place.
Genesis 31
English Standard Version
Jacob Flees from Laban
31 Now Jacob heard that the sons of Laban were saying, “Jacob has taken all that was our father's, and from what was our father's he has gained all this wealth.” 2 And Jacob saw (A)that Laban did not regard him with favor as before. 3 Then the Lord said to Jacob, (B)“Return to the land of your fathers and to your kindred, and I will be with you.”
4 So Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah into the field where his flock was 5 and said to them, (C)“I see that your father does not regard me with favor as he did before. But the God of my father (D)has been with me. 6 (E)You know that I have served your father with all my strength, 7 yet your father has cheated me and changed my wages (F)ten times. But God did not permit him to harm me. 8 If he said, (G)‘The spotted shall be your wages,’ then all the flock bore spotted; and if he said, ‘The striped shall be your wages,’ then all the flock bore striped. 9 Thus God has (H)taken away the livestock of your father and given them to me. 10 In the breeding season of the flock I lifted up my eyes and saw in a dream that the goats that mated with the flock were striped, spotted, and mottled. 11 Then the angel of God said to me in the dream, ‘Jacob,’ and I said, ‘Here I am!’ 12 And he said, ‘Lift up your eyes and see, all the goats that mate with the flock are striped, spotted, and mottled, for (I)I have seen all that Laban is doing to you. 13 I am the God of Bethel, (J)where you anointed a pillar and made a vow to me. Now (K)arise, go out from this land and return to the land of your kindred.’” 14 Then Rachel and Leah answered and said to him, “Is there (L)any portion or inheritance left to us in our father's house? 15 Are we not regarded by him as foreigners? For (M)he has sold us, and he has indeed devoured our money. 16 All the wealth that God has taken away from our father belongs to us and to our children. Now then, whatever God has said to you, do.”
17 So Jacob arose and set his sons and his wives on camels. 18 He drove away all his livestock, all his property that he had gained, the livestock in his possession that he had acquired in (N)Paddan-aram, to go to the land of Canaan to his father Isaac. 19 Laban had gone to shear his sheep, and Rachel stole her father's (O)household gods. 20 And Jacob tricked[a] Laban the Aramean, by not telling him that he intended to flee. 21 He fled with all that he had and arose and crossed the (P)Euphrates,[b] and (Q)set his face toward the hill country of Gilead.
22 When it was told Laban on the third day that Jacob had fled, 23 he took his kinsmen with him and pursued him for seven days and followed close after him into the hill country of Gilead. 24 But God came to Laban the Aramean (R)in a dream by night and said to him, “Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, (S)either good or bad.”
25 And Laban overtook Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the hill country, and Laban with his kinsmen pitched tents in the hill country of Gilead. 26 And Laban said to Jacob, “What have you done, that you have (T)tricked me and driven away my daughters like captives of the sword? 27 Why did you flee secretly (U)and trick me, and did not tell me, so that I might have sent you away with mirth and songs, with tambourine and lyre? 28 And why did you not permit me (V)to kiss my sons and my daughters farewell? Now you have done foolishly. 29 It is (W)in my power to do you harm. But the (X)God of your[c] father spoke to me last night, saying, ‘Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, (Y)either good or bad.’ 30 And now you have gone away because you longed greatly for your father's house, but why did you (Z)steal my gods?” 31 Jacob answered and said to Laban, “Because I was afraid, for I thought that you would take your daughters from me by force. 32 (AA)Anyone with whom you find your gods shall not live. In the presence of our kinsmen point out what I have that is yours, and take it.” Now Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen them.
33 So Laban went into Jacob's tent and into Leah's tent and into the tent of the two female servants, but he did not find them. And he went out of Leah's tent and entered Rachel's. 34 Now Rachel had taken the household gods and put them in the camel's saddle and sat on them. Laban felt all about the tent, but did not find them. 35 And she said to her father, “Let not my lord be angry that I cannot (AB)rise before you, for the way of women is upon me.” So he searched but did not find the household gods.
36 Then Jacob became angry and berated Laban. Jacob said to Laban, “What is my offense? What is my sin, that you have hotly pursued me? 37 For you have felt through all my goods; what have you found of all your household goods? Set it here before my kinsmen and (AC)your kinsmen, that they may decide between us two. 38 These twenty years I have been with you. Your ewes and your female goats have not miscarried, and I have not eaten the rams of your flocks. 39 What was torn by wild beasts I did not bring to you. I bore the loss of it myself. (AD)From my hand you required it, whether stolen by day or stolen by night. 40 There I was: by day the heat consumed me, and the cold by night, and my sleep fled from my eyes. 41 These twenty years I have been in your house. (AE)I served you fourteen years for your two daughters, and six years for your flock, and (AF)you have changed my wages ten times. 42 (AG)If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the (AH)Fear of Isaac, had not been on my side, surely now you would have sent me away empty-handed. (AI)God saw my affliction and the labor of my hands and (AJ)rebuked you last night.”
43 Then Laban answered and said to Jacob, “The daughters are my daughters, the children are my children, the flocks are my flocks, and all that you see is mine. But what can I do this day for these my daughters or for their children whom they have borne? 44 Come now, (AK)let us make a covenant, you and I. (AL)And let it be a witness between you and me.” 45 So Jacob (AM)took a stone and set it up as a pillar. 46 And Jacob said to his kinsmen, “Gather stones.” And they took stones and made a heap, and they ate there by the heap. 47 Laban called it Jegar-sahadutha,[d] but Jacob called it Galeed.[e] 48 Laban said, (AN)“This heap is a witness between you and me today.” Therefore he named it Galeed, 49 (AO)and Mizpah,[f] for he said, “The Lord watch between you and me, when we are out of one another's sight. 50 If you oppress my daughters, or if you take wives besides my daughters, although no one is with us, see, (AP)God is witness between you and me.”
51 Then Laban said to Jacob, “See this heap and the pillar, which I have set between you and me. 52 (AQ)This heap is a witness, and the pillar is a witness, that I will not pass over this heap to you, and you will not pass over this heap and this pillar to me, to do harm. 53 The God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us.” So Jacob swore by the (AR)Fear of his father Isaac, 54 and Jacob offered a sacrifice in the hill country and called (AS)his kinsmen to eat bread. They ate bread and spent the night in the hill country.
55 [g] Early in the morning Laban arose and kissed (AT)his grandchildren and his daughters and blessed them. Then Laban departed and returned home.
Footnotes
- Genesis 31:20 Hebrew stole the heart of; also verses 26, 27
- Genesis 31:21 Hebrew the River
- Genesis 31:29 The Hebrew for your is plural here
- Genesis 31:47 Aramaic the heap of witness
- Genesis 31:47 Hebrew the heap of witness
- Genesis 31:49 Mizpah means watchpost
- Genesis 31:55 Ch 32:1 in Hebrew
Genesis 31
Revised Geneva Translation
31 Now he heard the words of Laban’s sons, saying, “Jacob has taken away all that was our father’s, and he has gotten all this honor from our father’s goods.”
2 Also Jacob beheld the face of Laban, that it was not towards him as in times past.
3 And the LORD said to Jacob, “Return into the land of your fathers, and to your kindred, and I will be with you.”
4 Therefore, Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah to the field, to his flock.
5 Then he said to them, “I see your father’s face, that it is not towards me as it used to be. But the God of my father has been with me.
6 “And you know that I have served your father with all my might.
7 “But your father has deceived me and changed my wages ten times. Yet God did not allow him to hurt me.
8 “If he said thus: ‘The spotted shall be your wages’, then all the sheep bore spotted. And if he said thus: ‘The parti-colored shall be your reward’, then all the sheep bore parti-colored.
9 “Thus has God taken away your father’s substance and given it to me.
10 “For in breeding time, I lifted up my eyes and saw in a dream, and behold, the male goats lept upon the female goats that were parti-colored with little and great spots spotted.
11 “And the Angel of God said to me in a dream, ‘Jacob.’ And I answered, ‘Lo, I am here.’
12 “And he said, ‘Lift up your eyes, now, and see all the male goats leaping upon the female goats that are parti-colored, spotted with little and great spots. For I have seen all that Laban does to you.
13 ‘I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed the pillar, where you vowed a vow to Me. Now arise, get out of this country and return to the land where you were born.’”
14 Then Rachel and Leah answered, and said to him, “Do we have any more portion and inheritance in our father’s house?
15 “Does he not count us as strangers? For he has sold us and has eaten up and consumed our money.
16 “Therefore, all the riches which God has taken from our father is ours and our children’s. Now, then, whatever God has said to you, do it.”
17 Then Jacob rose up and set his sons and his wives upon camels.
18 And he carried away all his flocks, and all his substance which he had gotten (his riches which he had gotten in Padan Aram) to go to Isaac, his father, to the land of Canaan.
19 When Laban was gone to sheer his sheep, then Rachel stole her father’s idols.
20 Thus, Jacob stole away the heart of Laban the Aramite. For he did not tell him that he fled.
21 So he fled with all that he had; and he rose up and passed the river and set his face toward Mount Gilead.
22 And three days later, Laban was told that Jacob fled.
23 Then he took his brothers with him and followed after him seven days’ journey and overtook him at Mount Gilead.
24 And God came to Laban the Aramite in a dream by night, and said to him, “Be careful that you speak to Jacob neither good nor bad.”
25 Then Laban overtook Jacob; and Jacob had pitched his tent on the Mount. And Laban, with his brothers, pitched upon Mount Gilead.
26 Then Laban said to Jacob, “What have you done? You have even stolen away my heart and carried away my daughters, as though they had been taken captives with the sword.
27 “Why did you flee so secretly and steal away from me, and did not tell me, so that I might have sent you forth with mirth and with songs, with timbrel and with harp?
28 “But you have not allowed me to kiss my sons and my daughters. Now, you have done foolishly in doing so.
29 “I am able to do you evil. But the God of your father spoke to me last night, saying, ‘Be careful that you speak neither good nor bad to Jacob.’
30 “Now, you went your way because you greatly longed after your father’s house. Yet why have you stolen my gods?”
31 Then Jacob answered, and said to Laban, “Because I was afraid and thought that you would have taken your daughters from me.
32 “With whomever you find your gods, let him not live. Search what I have in the presence of my brothers and take what is yours, (but Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen them.)
33 Then Laban went into Jacob’s tent, and into Leah’s tent, and into the two maid’s tents, but did not find them. So, he went out of Leah’s tent and entered into Rachel’s tent
34 (now Rachel had taken the idols and put them in the camel’s straw and sat down upon them). And Laban searched the entire tent but did not find them.
35 Then she said to her father, “My Lord, do not be angry but I cannot rise up before you. For the custom of women is upon me.” So, he searched but did not find the idols.
36 Then Jacob was angry and argued with Laban. Jacob also answered and said to Laban, “What have I trespassed? What have I offended, that you have pursued after me?
37 “Seeing you have searched all my stuff, what have you found of all your household stuff? Put it here before my brothers and your brothers, so that they may judge between us both.
38 “This past twenty years I have been with you. Your ewes and your goats have not miscarried their young; and I have not eaten the rams of your flock.
39 “Whatever was torn by beasts I did not bring to you but made it good myself. Of my hand did you require it, were it stolen by day or stolen by night.
40 “I was consumed with heat in the day, and with frost in the night, and my sleep departed from my eyes.
41 “Thus have I been in your house twenty years. I served you fourteen years for your two daughters, and six years for your sheep; and you have changed my wages ten times.
42 “Unless the God of my father, the God of Abraham, and the fear of Isaac had been with me, surely you would have sent me away now empty. But God beheld my tribulation, and the labor of my hands, and rebuked you last night.”
43 Then Laban answered, and said to Jacob, “These daughters are my daughters, and these sons are my sons, and these sheep are my sheep, and all that you see is mine. And what can I do this day to these, my daughters, or to their sons which they have borne?
44 “Now, therefore, come let us make a covenant, you and I, which may be a witness between me and you.”
45 Then Jacob took a stone and set it up as a pillar:
46 And Jacob said to his brothers, “Gather stones.” Who brought stones and made a heap; and they ate there upon the heap.
47 And Laban called it Jegar Sahadutha; and Jacob called it Galeed.
48 For Laban said, “This heap is witness between me and you this day.” Therefore, he called the name of it Galeed.
49 He also called it Mizpah, because he said, “The LORD keep watch between me and him, when we shall be departed one from another.
50 “If you shall afflict my daughters, or shall take wives beside my daughters, though no man with us, behold, God is witness between me and you.”
51 Moreover, Laban said to Jacob, “Behold this heap, and behold the pillar which I have set between me and you.
52 “This heap shall be witness, and the pillar shall be witness, so that I will not come over this heap to you, and so that you shall not pass over this heap and this pillar to me for evil.
53 “The God of Abraham, and the God of Nahor, the God of their father be judge between us.” And Jacob swore by the fear of his father, Isaac.
54 Then Jacob offered a sacrifice upon the Mount, and called his brothers to eat bread; and they ate bread and stayed on the Mount all night.
55 And early in the morning, Laban rose up and kissed his sons and his daughters, and blessed them; and Laban, departing, returned to his place.
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