Beginning
27 Forsooth Isaac waxed eld, and his eyes dimmed, and he might not see. And he called Esau, his more son, and said to him, My son! Which answered, I am present. (And Isaac grew old, and his eyes dimmed, and he could not see. And he called his elder son Esau, and said to him, My son! And he answered, I am here.)
2 To whom the father said, Thou seest that I have waxed eld, and I know not the day of my death[a].
3 Take thine arms (Take thy weapons), (an) arrow case, and a bow, and go out; and when thou hast taken anything by hunting,
4 make me a stew thereof, as thou knowest that I will, and bring it to me that I eat, (so) that (afterward) my soul (can) bless thee before that I die. (make for me a stew out of it, as thou knowest that I like, and bring it to me so that I can eat it, and then I shall bless thee before that I die.)
5 And when Rebecca had heard this thing, and he had gone forth into the field that he fulfill the behest of his father,
6 she said to her son Jacob, I heard thy father speaking with Esau, thy brother, and saying to him,
7 Bring thou to me of thine hunting, and make thou meats, that I eat, and that I bless thee before the Lord before that I die. (Bring thou to me some of thy hunting, and make thou for me some stew, so that I can eat it, and then I shall bless thee before the Lord, before that I die.)
8 Now therefore, my son, assent to my counsels,
9 and go to the flock, and bring to me twain (of) the best kids, that I make meats of those to thy father, which he shall eat gladly; (and go to the flock, and bring me two of the best goat kids, so that I can make thy father’s favourite meal out of them, which I know that he shall gladly eat;)
10 and (so) that when thou hast brought in those meats, and he hath eaten, he (shall) bless thee before that he die.
11 To whom Jacob answered, Thou knowest that Esau my brother is an hairy man, and I am smooth;
12 (so) if my father shall touch (me), or draw me to him, and feel me, I dread lest he guess that I would scorn him, and he bring in cursing on me for blessing (and I bring in a curse upon myself, and not a blessing).
13 To whom his mother said, My son, this cursing be in me (My son, any curse shall be upon me); only hear thou my voice, and go, and bring that that I said.
14 (And so) He went, and brought it, and gave it to his mother. She made ready meats, as she knew that his father would have (And she prepared the meat, in the way that she knew that his father would like it),
15 and she clothed Jacob in [the] full good clothes of Esau, which she had at home with herself (which she had there at home with her).
16 And she wrapped his hands about with little skins of (goat) kids, and covered the nakedness of his neck;
17 and she gave to him the stew (and then she gave him the stew), and betook (to) him [the] loaves, which she had baked.
18 And when these were brought in, he said, My father! And he answered, I (am) here; (but) who art thou, my son?
19 And Jacob said, I am Esau, thy first begotten son. I have done to thee as thou commandedest to me; rise thou up, and sit, and eat of my venison, that thy soul bless me. (And Jacob said, I am Esau, thy first-born son. I have done for thee as thou commandedest me; rise thou up, and sit, and eat my venison, and then afterward thou can bless me.)
20 Again Isaac said to his son, My son, how mightest thou find (this) venison so soon? Which answered, It was God’s will, that this thing that I would, should come soon to me. (And Isaac said to his son, My son, how mightest thou find this venison so soon? And Jacob answered, It was God’s will, that what I desired, should come so soon to me.)
21 And Isaac said, My son, come thou hither, (so) that I (can) touch thee, and that I prove whether thou be my son Esau, or nay.
22 (And) Jacob nighed to his father; and when Isaac had feeled him, he said, Soothly the voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands be the hands of Esau.
23 And Isaac knew not Jacob, for the hairy hands showed the likeness of the elder son. Therefore Isaac blessed Jacob (And so that is why Isaac would soon bless Jacob),
24 and (so he) said (again), Art thou my son Esau? (And) Jacob answered, I am.
25 And Isaac said, My son, bring thou to me meats of thine hunting, that my soul bless thee. And when Isaac had eaten these meats brought (to him), Jacob brought also wine to Isaac, and when this was drunken, (And Isaac said, My son, bring thou to me the meats of thy hunting, and then afterward I shall bless thee. And when Isaac had eaten the meat brought to him, Jacob also brought him some wine, and when he had drunk it,)
26 Isaac said to him, My son, come thou hither, and give to me a kiss.
27 Jacob nighed, and kissed him; and anon as Isaac feeled the odour of his clothes, he blessed him, and said, Lo! the odour of my son as the odour of a plenteous field which the Lord hath blessed. (And Jacob came over, and kissed him; and when Isaac smelled the aroma of his clothes, at once he blessed him, saying, Lo! the aroma of my son is like the aroma of a plentiful field which the Lord hath blessed.)
28 God give to thee of the dew of heaven, and of the fatness of [the] earth, (and of the) abundance of wheat, and of wine, and of oil; (May God give thee the dew from heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and an abundance of corn, or of grain, and wine, and oil;)
29 and (may) peoples serve thee, and lineages worship thee; be thou lord of thy brethren, and the sons of thy mother be bowed (low) before thee; be he cursed that curseth thee, and he that blesseth thee, be he [full-]filled with blessings (be they cursed who curse thee, but let those who bless thee, be filled full with blessings).
30 Scarcely Isaac had filled the word, and when Jacob was gone out, Esau came, (Scarcely had Isaac finished speaking, and Jacob had gone out, then Esau came in from his hunting,)
31 and brought in meats sodden of the hunting to the father, and said, My father, rise thou, and eat of the hunting of thy son, that thy soul bless me. (and he brought in boiled meats for his father, and said, My father, rise thou up, and eat of thy son’s hunting, and then afterward thou can bless me.)
32 And Isaac said, Who art thou? Which answered, I am Esau, thy first begotten son. (And Isaac said, Who art thou? And Esau answered, I am Esau, thy first-born son.)
33 Isaac dreaded with a great astonishing; and he wondered more than it may be believed, and said, Who therefore is he which a while ago brought to me venison taken, and I ate of all things before that thou camest; and I blessed him? and he shall be blessed. (And Isaac dreaded with great astonishment; and he wondered more than it can be imagined, and he said, Then who was it, who just a short while ago, brought me the newly caught venison, and I ate all of it before that thou camest in; and I blessed him? and yea, he shall be blessed.)
34 When the words of the father were heard, Esau roared with a great cry, and was astonished, and said, My father, bless thou also me. (And when he heard his father’s words, Esau roared with a great cry, and was astonished, and said, My father, thou must also bless me!)
35 Which said (And Jacob said), Thy brother came prudently [Thy brother came (be)guilingly], and took (away) thy blessing.
36 And Esau added, Justly his name is called Jacob, for lo! he [hath] supplanted me (yet) another time; before he took away my first begotten things, and now the second time, he [hath] ravished privily my blessing. And again he said to the father, Whether thou hast not reserved a blessing also to me? (And Esau added, His name is rightly called Jacob, that is, the Heel, or the Supplanter, for lo! now he hath supplanted me the second time; first he took away my birthright as the first-born son, and now he hath cheated me out of my blessing. And again he said to his father, Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me?)
37 Isaac answered, I have made him thy lord, and I have made subject all his brethren to his servage; I have stablished him in wheat, and wine, and oil; and (so), my son, what shall I do to thee after these things? (Isaac answered, I have made him thy lord, and I have made all of his brothers to be in servitude to him, that is, to be his slaves; I have established him with corn, or with grain, and wine, and oil; and so now, my son, after all these things, what is left that I can do for thee?)
38 To whom Esau said, Father, whether thou hast only one blessing? I beseech thee, that also thou bless me. And when Esau wept with great yelling, (To whom Esau said, Father, hast thou only one blessing? I beseech thee, that thou also bless me. And when Esau wept with great yelling,)
39 Isaac was stirred, and said to him, Thy blessing shall be (not) in the fatness of [the] earth, and in the dew of heaven from above; (Isaac was stirred, and said to him, Thy dwelling shall be far from the fatness of the earth, and far from the dew of heaven above;)
40 thou shalt live by (the) sword, and thou shalt serve thy brother, and (then the) time shall come when thou shalt shake away, and unbind his yoke from [off] thy nolls.
41 Therefore Esau hated evermore Jacob for the blessing by which the father had blessed him; and Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning of my father shall come, and (then) I shall slay Jacob, my brother. (And so Esau hated Jacob even more for the blessing with which his father had blessed him; and Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning for my father shall come, and then I shall kill my brother Jacob.)
42 These things were told to Rebecca, and she sent, and called (for) her son Jacob, and said to him, Lo! Esau, thy brother, menaceth to slay thee (Lo! Esau, thy brother, hath threatened to kill thee);
43 now therefore, my son, hear thou my voice, and rise thou up, and flee to Laban, my brother, into Haran (and flee to my brother Laban, in Haran);
44 and thou shalt dwell with him (for) a few days, till the strong vengeance of thy brother rest, and his indignation cease,
45 and till he forget those things which thou hast done against him. Afterward I shall send, and I shall bring thee from thence hither. Why shall I be made sonless of ever either son in one day? (and until he forget those things which thou hast done against him. And then afterward I shall send for thee, and I shall bring thee back here. For why should I be deprived of both sons in one day?)
46 And Rebecca said to Isaac, It annoyeth me of my life for the daughters of Heth (I am weary to death of the daughters of the Hittites); if Jacob take a wife of the kindred of this land, I will not live.
28 And so Isaac called Jacob, and blessed him, and commanded to him, and said, Do not thou take a wife of the kin of Canaan;
2 but go thou, and walk forth into Mesopotamia of Syria, to the house of Bethuel, [the] father of thy mother, and take to thee from thence a wife of the daughters of Laban, thine uncle. (but go thou forth to Paddan-aram, to the house of Bethuel, the father of thy mother, and get a wife for thyself from there, of one of the daughters of thy uncle Laban.)
3 Soothly Almighty God bless thee (And may Almighty God bless thee), and make thee to increase, and multiply thee, (so) that thou be into companies of peoples;
4 and God give to thee the blessing of Abraham, and to thy seed after thee, that thou wield the land of thy pilgrimage, which he promised to thy grand-sire. (and may God give thee the blessing of Abraham, and thy descendants after thee, so that thou possessest this land where thou art now living, which he promised to thy grandfather.)
5 And when Isaac had let go Jacob, Jacob went forth, and came into Mesopotamia of Syria, to Laban, the son of Bethuel of Syria, the brother of Rebecca, his mother. (And so when Isaac had let Jacob go, he went forth, and came to Paddan-aram, and to Laban, the son of Bethuel the Syrian, the brother of his mother Rebecca.)
6 Forsooth Esau saw that his father had blessed Jacob, and had sent him (away) into Mesopotamia of Syria, that he should wed a wife of thence, and that after the blessing he commanded to Jacob, and said, Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan; (And Esau saw that his father had blessed Jacob, and had sent him away to Paddan-aram, so that he would wed a wife from there, and that after his blessing he had commanded to Jacob, and said, Thou shalt not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan;)
7 and that Jacob obeyed to his father and mother, and went into Syria; (and that Jacob had obeyed his father and mother, and had gone away to Paddan-aram;)
8 also Esau proved thereby that his father beheld not gladly the daughters of Canaan. (and so Esau understood by this that his father did not approve of the daughters of Canaan.)
9 And (so) Esau went to Ishmael, and wedded a(nother) wife, without these which he had before (in addition to the two whom he had already wed), Mahalath[b], the daughter of Ishmael, son of Abraham, the sister of Nebajoth.
10 Therefore Jacob went out of Beersheba, and went to Haran. (And so Jacob left Beersheba, and went toward Haran.)
11 And when he had come to some place, and would rest therein after the going down of the sun, he took (some) of the stones that lay there, and he put (them) under his head, and slept in the same place.
12 And he saw in [his] sleep a ladder standing on the earth, and the top thereof touching heaven; and he saw God’s angels going up and going down thereby,
13 and the Lord nighed to the ladder, saying to him, I am the Lord God of Abraham, thy father, and (the) God of Isaac; I shall give to thee and to thy seed the land in which thou sleepest.
14 And thy seed shall be as the dust of [the] earth, (and) thou shalt be alarged to the east, and west, and to the north, and south; and all the lineages of [the] earth shall be blessed in thee and in thy seed (and all the families of the earth shall pray to be blessed as thee and thy descendants be blessed/and through thee and thy descendants, I shall bless all the families of the earth).
15 And I shall be thy keeper, whither ever thou shalt go; and I shall lead thee again into this land, and I shall not leave thee, no but I shall fulfill all [the] things which I have said (and I shall not leave thee, until I have fulfilled all the things which I have promised).
16 And when Jacob had waked of [the] sleep, he said, Verily the Lord is in this place, and I knew not. (And when Jacob had awakened from his sleep, he said, Truly the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.)
17 And he said dreading, How fearedful, or worshipful, is this place! Here is none other thing, no but the house of God, and the gate of heaven. (And he said with fear, or with reverence, How fearful, or how worshipful, is this place! This is nothing else, but the House of God, or Bethel, yea, the gateway to heaven/yea, heaven’s gate!)
18 Therefore Jacob rose early, and took the stone which he had put under his head, and raised (it) up into a title, or (a) sign, and poured out oil (from) above. (And so Jacob rose up early, and took the stone which he had put under his head, and set it up as a sacred pillar, and poured oil on top of it.)
19 And he called the name of that city Bethel, which was called Luz before. (And he called the name of that place Bethel; but the city that was there before was called Luz.)
20 Also Jacob avowed a vow, and said, If God is with me, and keepeth me in the way in which I go (And Jacob vowed a vow, and said, If God is with me, and keepeth me safe on the way on which I go), and giveth to me loaves to eat, and clothes to be clothed with,
21 and I turn again in prosperity to the house of my father, the Lord shall be into God to me. (and I return safety to my father’s house, then the Lord shall be my God.)
22 And this stone, which I raised into a title, shall be called the house of God; and I shall offer tithes to thee of all things which thou shalt give to me. (And this stone, which I raised up as a sacred pillar, shall be called the House of God; and I shall offer a tithe, or a tenth, to thee, of all the things which thou shalt give me.)
29 Therefore Jacob passed forth, and came into the east land;
2 and he saw a well in the field, and three flocks of sheep resting beside it, for why (the) sheep were watered thereof, and the mouth thereof was closed with a great stone.
3 And the custom was that when all the sheep were gathered together, they should turn away the stone, and when the flocks were watered, they should put it (back) again on the mouth of the well.
4 And Jacob said to the shepherds, Brethren, of whence be ye? Which answered, Of Haran (And they answered, We come from Haran).
5 And he asked them and said, Whether ye know Laban, the son of Nahor? (And) They said, We know him.
6 Jacob said, Is he whole? (Jacob asked, Is he well?) (And) They said, He is in (a) good state; and lo! Rachel, his daughter, cometh with his flock.
7 And Jacob said, Yet much of the day is to come, and it is not (the) time that the flocks be led again to the folds; soothly give ye drink to the sheep, and so lead ye them again to meat (and then take ye them back to the pasture).
8 Which answered, We may not till all the sheep be gathered together, and till we remove the stone from the mouth of the well, to water the flocks (then we shall water the flocks).
9 Yet (while) they spake, and lo! Rachel came with the sheep of her father.
10 And when Jacob saw her, and knew (her to be) the daughter of (Laban,) his mother’s brother, and the sheep (to be) of Laban his uncle, he removed the stone with which the well was closed; and when the flock was watered,
11 he kissed her, and he wept with voice raised (and with his voice raised up, he wept for joy).
12 And Jacob showed to her that he was the brother of her father, and the son of Rebecca; and she hasted, and told to her father. (And Jacob told her that he was her father’s kinsman, and Rebecca’s son; and she hastened home, and told her father.)
13 And when he had heard, that Jacob, the son of his sister, came, he ran to meet him, and he embraced Jacob, and kissed him, and led him into his house. Forsooth when the causes of the journey were heard,
14 Laban answered, Thou art my bone and my flesh. And after that the days of a month were filled,
15 Laban said to Jacob, Whether for thou art my brother, thou shalt serve me freely? say thou what meed thou shalt take. (Laban said to Jacob, Though thou art my kinsman, shalt thou serve me for nothing? Nay! say what reward thou shalt take.)
16 Forsooth Laban had two daughters, the name of the elder was Leah, soothly the younger was called Rachel;
17 but Leah was bleary-eyed, and Rachel was of fair face, and lovely in sight. (and Leah was blurry-eyed, but Rachel had a beautiful face, and was lovely to look at.)
18 And Jacob loved Rachel, and (so he) said, I shall serve thee seven years for Rachel thy younger daughter.
19 Laban answered, It is better that I give her to thee than to another man; dwell thou with me.
20 Therefore Jacob served seven years for Rachel; and the days seemed few to him for the greatness of (his) love.
21 And (at last) he said to Laban, Give thou my wife to me, for the time is fulfilled that I enter [in] to her.
22 And (so) when many companies of friends were called to the feast, he made [the] weddings,
23 and in the eventide Laban brought in to him Leah his daughter, (but in the evening, Laban brought in his daughter Leah to Jacob, but Jacob was too drunk to know,)
24 and gave an handmaid (and Laban gave his slave-girl), Zilpah by name, to his daughter.
25 And when Jacob had entered [in] to her (as) by custom, when the morrowtide was made, he saw Leah, and he said to his wife’s father, What is it that thou wouldest do? whether I served not thee for Rachel? why hast thou deceived me? (And after Jacob had slept with his wife, as by custom, when the morning was made, he saw that it was Leah, and he said to his wife’s father, What hast thou done to me? did I not serve thee for Rachel? why hast thou deceived me?)
26 Laban answered, It is not custom in our place that we give first the younger daughter to weddings; (And Laban answered, It is not the custom in our place that we give the younger daughter first in a wedding;)
27 fulfill thou the week of days of this wedding, and I shall give to thee also this Rachel, for the work in which thou shalt serve me by other seven years. (so fulfill thou a week of days, or seven days, for this wedding, and then I shall also give thee Rachel, for the work in which thou shalt serve me for another seven years.)
28 Jacob assented to the covenant, and when the week was passed, he wedded Rachel,
29 to whom her father had given Bilhah (for) an handmaid. (to whom her father had given his slave-girl Bilhah.)
30 And at the last Jacob used the weddings desired, and set the love of the latter wife before the first; and Jacob served Laban seven other years. (And so at last Jacob had the desired wedding, and put the love of the latter wife ahead of the first wife; and Jacob served Laban for another seven years.)
31 Forsooth the Lord saw that Jacob despised Leah, that is, (that he) loved her less than Rachel, and (so) he opened Leah’s womb, while her sister dwelled barren.
32 And Leah childed a son conceived (And Leah conceived, and bare a son), and she called his name Reuben, and said, The Lord hath seen my meekness; now mine husband shall love me.
33 And again she conceived, and childed a son, and said, For the Lord saw that I was despised, he gave also this son to me (he also gave me this son); and she called his name Simeon.
34 And she conceived the third time, and childed another son, and she said also (and then she said), Now mine husband shall be coupled to me, for I have childed three sons to him; and therefore she called his name Levi.
35 The fourth time she conceived, and childed a son, and said, Now I shall acknowledge to the Lord; and therefore she called his name Judah; and ceased to child. (And the fourth time she conceived, and bare a son, she said, Now I shall praise the Lord; and so she called his name Judah; and ceased to bear any more children.)
2001 by Terence P. Noble