Jacob Meets Rachel

29 Then Jacob ^[a]set out on his journey, and went to the land of ^(A)the ^[b]people of the east. ² He looked, and ^[c]saw ^(B)a well in the field, and behold, three flocks of sheep were lying there beside it, because they watered the flocks from that well. Now the stone on the mouth of the well was large. ³ When all the flocks were gathered there, they would roll the stone from the mouth of the well and water the sheep. Then they would put the stone back in its place on the mouth of the well.

⁴ Jacob said to them, “My brothers, where are you from?” And they said, “We are from ^(C)Haran.” ⁵ So he said to them, “Do you know Laban the ^(D)son of Nahor?” And they said, “We know him.” ⁶ And he said to them, “Is it well with him?” And they said, “It is well, and here is his daughter ^(E)Rachel coming with the sheep.” ⁷ Then he said, “Look, it is still high day; it is not time for the livestock to be gathered. Water the sheep, and go, pasture them.” ⁸ But they said, “We cannot, until all the flocks are gathered, and they roll the stone from the mouth of the well; then we water the sheep.”

⁹ While he was still speaking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherdess. ¹⁰ When Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of his mother’s brother Laban, and the sheep of his mother’s brother Laban, Jacob went up and rolled the stone from the mouth of the well, and watered the flock of his mother’s brother Laban. ¹¹ Then Jacob ^(F)kissed Rachel, and raised his voice and wept. ¹² Jacob told Rachel that he was a ^(G)relative of her father and that he was Rebekah’s son, and ^(H)she ran and told her father.

¹³ So when ^(I)Laban heard the news about Jacob, his sister’s son, he ran to meet him, and ^(J)embraced him and kissed him, and brought him to his house. Then he told Laban all these things. ¹⁴ And Laban said to him, “You certainly are ^(K)my bone and my flesh.” And he stayed with him a month.