26:1 There was a famine in the land, subsequent to the earlier famine that occurred 1 in the days of Abraham. 2 Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Philistines at Gerar. 26:2 The Lord appeared to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; 3 settle down in the land that I will point out to you. 4 26:3 Stay 5 in this land. Then I will be with you and will bless you, 6 for I will give all these lands to you and to your descendants, 7 and I will fulfill 8 the solemn promise I made 9 to your father Abraham. 26:4 I will multiply your descendants so they will be as numerous as the stars in the sky, and I will give them 10 all these lands. All the nations of the earth will pronounce blessings on one another using the name of your descendants. 11 26:5 All this will come to pass 12 because Abraham obeyed me 13 and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.” 14 26:6 So Isaac settled in Gerar.
26:7 When the men of that place asked him about his wife, he replied, “She is my sister.” 15 He was afraid to say, “She is my wife,” for he thought to himself, 16 “The men of this place will kill me to get 17 Rebekah because she is very beautiful.”
26:8 After Isaac 18 had been there a long time, 19 Abimelech king of the Philistines happened to look out a window and observed 20 Isaac caressing 21 his wife Rebekah. 26:9 So Abimelech summoned Isaac and said, “She is really 22 your wife! Why did you say, ‘She is my sister’?” Isaac replied, “Because I thought someone might kill me to get her.” 23
26:10 Then Abimelech exclaimed, “What in the world have you done to us? 24 One of the men 25 might easily have had sexual relations with 26 your wife, and you would have brought guilt on us!” 26:11 So Abimelech commanded all the people, “Whoever touches 27 this man or his wife will surely be put to death.” 28
26:12 When Isaac planted in that land, he reaped in the same year a hundred times what he had sown, 29 because the Lord blessed him. 30 26:13 The man became wealthy. 31 His influence continued to grow 32 until he became very prominent. 26:14 He had 33 so many sheep 34 and cattle 35 and such a great household of servants that the Philistines became jealous 36 of him. 26:15 So the Philistines took dirt and filled up 37 all the wells that his father’s servants had dug back in the days of his father Abraham.
26:16 Then Abimelech said to Isaac, “Leave us and go elsewhere, 38 for you have become much more powerful 39 than we are.” 26:17 So Isaac left there and settled in the Gerar Valley. 40 26:18 Isaac reopened 41 the wells that had been dug 42 back in the days of his father Abraham, for the Philistines had stopped them up 43 after Abraham died. Isaac 44 gave these wells 45 the same names his father had given them. 46
26:19 When Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and discovered a well with fresh flowing 47 water there, 26:20 the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled 48 with Isaac’s herdsmen, saying, “The water belongs to us!” So Isaac 49 named the well 50 Esek 51 because they argued with him about it. 52 26:21 His servants 53 dug another well, but they quarreled over it too, so Isaac named it 54 Sitnah. 55 26:22 Then he moved away from there and dug another well. They did not quarrel over it, so Isaac 56 named it 57 Rehoboth, 58 saying, “For now the Lord has made room for us, and we will prosper in the land.”
26:23 From there Isaac 59 went up to Beer Sheba. 26:24 The Lord appeared to him that night and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham. Do not be afraid, for I am with you. I will bless you and multiply your descendants for the sake of my servant Abraham.” 26:25 Then Isaac built an altar there and worshiped 60 the Lord. He pitched his tent there, and his servants dug a well. 61
26:26 Now Abimelech had come 62 to him from Gerar along with 63 Ahuzzah his friend 64 and Phicol the commander of his army. 26:27 Isaac asked them, “Why have you come to me? You hate me 65 and sent me away from you.” 26:28 They replied, “We could plainly see 66 that the Lord is with you. So we decided there should be 67 a pact between us 68 – between us 69 and you. Allow us to make 70 a treaty with you 26:29 so that 71 you will not do us any harm, just as we have not harmed 72 you, but have always treated you well 73 before sending you away 74 in peace. Now you are blessed by the Lord.” 75
26:30 So Isaac 76 held a feast for them and they celebrated. 77 26:31 Early in the morning the men made a treaty with each other. 78 Isaac sent them off; they separated on good terms. 79
26:32 That day Isaac’s servants came and told him about the well they had dug. “We’ve found water,” they reported. 80 26:33 So he named it Shibah; 81 that is why the name of the city has been Beer Sheba 82 to this day.
26:34 When 83 Esau was forty years old, 84 he married 85 Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, as well as Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite. 26:35 They caused Isaac and Rebekah great anxiety. 86
27:1 When 87 Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he was almost blind, 88 he called his older 89 son Esau and said to him, “My son!” “Here I am!” Esau 90 replied. 27:2 Isaac 91 said, “Since 92 I am so old, I could die at any time. 93 27:3 Therefore, take your weapons – your quiver and your bow – and go out into the open fields and hunt down some wild game 94 for me. 27:4 Then prepare for me some tasty food, the kind I love, and bring it to me. Then 95 I will eat it so that I may bless you 96 before I die.”
27:5 Now Rebekah had been listening while Isaac spoke to his son Esau. 97 When Esau went out to the open fields to hunt down some wild game and bring it back, 98 27:6 Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “Look, I overheard your father tell your brother Esau, 27:7 ‘Bring me some wild game and prepare for me some tasty food. Then I will eat 99 it and bless you 100 in the presence of the Lord 101 before I die.’ 27:8 Now then, my son, do 102 exactly what I tell you! 103 27:9 Go to the flock and get me two of the best young goats. I’ll prepare 104 them in a tasty way for your father, just the way he loves them. 27:10 Then you will take 105 it to your father. Thus he will eat it 106 and 107 bless you before he dies.”
27:11 “But Esau my brother is a hairy man,” Jacob protested to his mother Rebekah, “and I have smooth skin! 108 27:12 My father may touch me! Then he’ll think I’m mocking him 109 and I’ll bring a curse on myself instead of a blessing.” 27:13 So his mother told him, “Any curse against you will fall on me, 110 my son! Just obey me! 111 Go and get them for me!”
27:14 So he went and got the goats 112 and brought them to his mother. She 113 prepared some tasty food, just the way his father loved it. 27:15 Then Rebekah took her older son Esau’s best clothes, which she had with her in the house, and put them on her younger son Jacob. 27:16 She put the skins of the young goats 114 on his hands 115 and the smooth part of his neck. 27:17 Then she handed 116 the tasty food and the bread she had made to her son Jacob.
27:18 He went to his father and said, “My father!” Isaac 117 replied, “Here I am. Which are you, my son?” 118 27:19 Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau, your firstborn. I’ve done as you told me. Now sit up 119 and eat some of my wild game so that you can bless me.” 120 27:20 But Isaac asked his son, “How in the world 121 did you find it so quickly, 122 my son?” “Because the Lord your God brought it to me,” 123 he replied. 124 27:21 Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Come closer so I can touch you, 125 my son, and know for certain if you really are my son Esau.” 126 27:22 So Jacob went over to his father Isaac, who felt him and said, “The voice is Jacob’s, but the hands are Esau’s.” 27:23 He did not recognize him because his hands were hairy, like his brother Esau’s hands. So Isaac blessed Jacob. 127 27:24 Then he asked, “Are you really my son Esau?” “I am,” Jacob 128 replied. 27:25 Isaac 129 said, “Bring some of the wild game for me to eat, my son. 130 Then I will bless you.” 131 So Jacob 132 brought it to him, and he ate it. He also brought him wine, and Isaac 133 drank. 27:26 Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come here and kiss me, my son.” 27:27 So Jacob 134 went over and kissed him. When Isaac caught the scent 135 of his clothing, he blessed him, saying,
“Yes, 136 my son smells
like the scent of an open field
which the Lord has blessed.
27:28 May God give you
the dew of the sky 137
and the richness 138 of the earth,
and plenty of grain and new wine.
27:29 May peoples serve you
and nations bow down to you.
You will be 139 lord 140 over your brothers,
and the sons of your mother will bow down to you. 141
May those who curse you be cursed,
and those who bless you be blessed.”
27:30 Isaac had just finished blessing Jacob, and Jacob had scarcely left 142 his father’s 143 presence, when his brother Esau returned from the hunt. 144 27:31 He also prepared some tasty food and brought it to his father. Esau 145 said to him, “My father, get up 146 and eat some of your son’s wild game. Then you can bless me.” 147 27:32 His father Isaac asked, 148 “Who are you?” “I am your firstborn son,” 149 he replied, “Esau!” 27:33 Isaac began to shake violently 150 and asked, “Then who else hunted game and brought it to me? I ate all of it just before you arrived, and I blessed him. 151 He will indeed be blessed!”
27:34 When Esau heard 152 his father’s words, he wailed loudly and bitterly. 153 He said to his father, “Bless me too, my father!” 27:35 But Isaac 154 replied, “Your brother came in here deceitfully and took away 155 your blessing.” 27:36 Esau exclaimed, “‘Jacob’ is the right name for him! 156 He has tripped me up 157 two times! He took away my birthright, and now, look, he has taken away my blessing!” Then he asked, “Have you not kept back a blessing for me?”
27:37 Isaac replied to Esau, “Look! I have made him lord over you. I have made all his relatives his servants and provided him with grain and new wine. What is left that I can do for you, my son?” 27:38 Esau said to his father, “Do you have only that one blessing, my father? Bless me too!” 158 Then Esau wept loudly. 159
27:39 So his father Isaac said to him,
“Indeed, 160 your home will be
away from the richness 161 of the earth,
and away from the dew of the sky above.
27:40 You will live by your sword
but you will serve your brother.
When you grow restless,
you will tear off his yoke
from your neck.” 162
27:41 So Esau hated 163 Jacob because of the blessing his father had given to his brother. 164 Esau said privately, 165 “The time 166 of mourning for my father is near; then I will kill 167 my brother Jacob!”
27:42 When Rebekah heard what her older son Esau had said, 168 she quickly summoned 169 her younger son Jacob and told him, “Look, your brother Esau is planning to get revenge by killing you. 170 27:43 Now then, my son, do what I say. 171 Run away immediately 172 to my brother Laban in Haran. 27:44 Live with him for a little while 173 until your brother’s rage subsides. 27:45 Stay there 174 until your brother’s anger against you subsides and he forgets what you did to him. Then I’ll send someone to bring you back from there. 175 Why should I lose both of you in one day?” 176
27:46 Then Rebekah said to Isaac, “I am deeply depressed 177 because of these daughters of Heth. 178 If Jacob were to marry one of these daughters of Heth who live in this land, I would want to die!” 179
28:1 So Isaac called for Jacob and blessed him. Then he commanded him, “You must not marry a Canaanite woman! 180 28:2 Leave immediately 181 for Paddan Aram! Go to the house of Bethuel, your mother’s father, and find yourself a wife there, among the daughters of Laban, your mother’s brother. 28:3 May the sovereign God 182 bless you! May he make you fruitful and give you a multitude of descendants! 183 Then you will become 184 a large nation. 185 28:4 May he give you and your descendants the blessing he gave to Abraham 186 so that you may possess the land 187 God gave to Abraham, the land where you have been living as a temporary resident.” 188 28:5 So Isaac sent Jacob on his way, and he went to Paddan Aram, to Laban son of Bethuel the Aramean and brother of Rebekah, the mother of Jacob and Esau.
28:6 Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him off to Paddan Aram to find a wife there. 189 As he blessed him, 190 Isaac commanded him, “You must not marry a Canaanite woman.” 191 28:7 Jacob obeyed his father and mother and left for Paddan Aram. 28:8 Then Esau realized 192 that the Canaanite women 193 were displeasing to 194 his father Isaac. 28:9 So Esau went to Ishmael and married 195 Mahalath, the sister of Nebaioth and daughter of Abraham’s son Ishmael, along with the wives he already had.
28:10 Meanwhile Jacob left Beer Sheba and set out for Haran. 28:11 He reached a certain place 196 where he decided to camp because the sun had gone down. 197 He took one of the stones 198 and placed it near his head. 199 Then he fell asleep 200 in that place 28:12 and had a dream. 201 He saw 202 a stairway 203 erected on the earth with its top reaching to the heavens. The angels of God were going up and coming down it 28:13 and the Lord stood at its top. He said, “I am the Lord, the God of your grandfather Abraham and the God of your father Isaac. 204 I will give you and your descendants the ground 205 you are lying on. 28:14 Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, 206 and you will spread out 207 to the west, east, north, and south. All the families of the earth will pronounce blessings on one another 208 using your name and that of your descendants. 209 28:15 I am with you! 210 I will protect you wherever you go and will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I promised you!”
28:16 Then Jacob woke up 211 and thought, 212 “Surely the Lord is in this place, but I did not realize it!” 28:17 He was afraid and said, “What an awesome place this is! This is nothing else than the house of God! This is the gate of heaven!”
28:18 Early 213 in the morning Jacob 214 took the stone he had placed near his head 215 and set it up as a sacred stone. 216 Then he poured oil on top of it. 28:19 He called that place Bethel, 217 although the former name of the town was Luz. 28:20 Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God is with me and protects me on this journey I am taking and gives me food 218 to eat and clothing to wear, 28:21 and I return safely to my father’s home, 219 then the Lord will become my God. 28:22 Then this stone 220 that I have set up as a sacred stone will be the house of God, and I will surely 221 give you back a tenth of everything you give me.” 222
29:1 So Jacob moved on 223 and came to the land of the eastern people. 224 29:2 He saw 225 in the field a well with 226 three flocks of sheep lying beside it, because the flocks were watered from that well. Now 227 a large stone covered the mouth of the well. 29:3 When all the flocks were gathered there, the shepherds 228 would roll the stone off the mouth of the well and water the sheep. Then they would put the stone back in its place over the well’s mouth.
29:4 Jacob asked them, “My brothers, where are you from?” They replied, “We’re from Haran.” 29:5 So he said to them, “Do you know Laban, the grandson 229 of Nahor?” “We know him,” 230 they said. 29:6 “Is he well?” 231 Jacob asked. They replied, “He is well. 232 Now look, here comes his daughter Rachel with the sheep.” 29:7 Then Jacob 233 said, “Since it is still the middle of the day, 234 it is not time for the flocks to be gathered. You should water the sheep and then go and let them graze some more.” 235 29:8 “We can’t,” they said, “until all the flocks are gathered and the stone is rolled off the mouth of the well. Then we water 236 the sheep.”
29:9 While he was still speaking with them, Rachel arrived with her father’s sheep, for she was tending them. 237 29:10 When Jacob saw Rachel, the daughter of his uncle Laban, 238 and the sheep of his uncle Laban, he 239 went over 240 and rolled the stone off the mouth of the well and watered the sheep of his uncle Laban. 241 29:11 Then Jacob kissed Rachel and began to weep loudly. 242 29:12 When Jacob explained 243 to Rachel that he was a relative of her father 244 and the son of Rebekah, she ran and told her father. 29:13 When Laban heard this news about Jacob, his sister’s son, he rushed out to meet him. He embraced him and kissed him and brought him to his house. Jacob 245 told Laban how he was related to him. 246 29:14 Then Laban said to him, “You are indeed my own flesh and blood.” 247 So Jacob 248 stayed with him for a month. 249
29:15 Then Laban said to Jacob, “Should you work 250 for me for nothing because you are my relative? 251 Tell me what your wages should be.” 29:16 (Now Laban had two daughters; 252 the older one was named Leah, and the younger one Rachel. 29:17 Leah’s eyes were tender, 253 but Rachel had a lovely figure and beautiful appearance.) 254 29:18 Since Jacob had fallen in love with 255 Rachel, he said, “I’ll serve you seven years in exchange for your younger daughter Rachel.” 29:19 Laban replied, “I’d rather give her to you than to another man. 256 Stay with me.” 29:20 So Jacob worked for seven years to acquire Rachel. 257 But they seemed like only a few days to him 258 because his love for her was so great. 259
29:21 Finally Jacob said 260 to Laban, “Give me my wife, for my time of service is up. 261 I want to have marital relations with her.” 262 29:22 So Laban invited all the people 263 of that place and prepared a feast. 29:23 In the evening he brought his daughter Leah 264 to Jacob, 265 and Jacob 266 had marital relations with her. 267 29:24 (Laban gave his female servant Zilpah to his daughter Leah to be her servant.) 268
29:25 In the morning Jacob discovered it was Leah! 269 So Jacob 270 said to Laban, “What in the world have you done to me! 271 Didn’t I work for you in exchange for Rachel? Why have you tricked 272 me?” 29:26 “It is not our custom here,” 273 Laban replied, “to give the younger daughter in marriage 274 before the firstborn. 29:27 Complete my older daughter’s bridal week. 275 Then we will give you the younger one 276 too, in exchange for seven more years of work.” 277
29:28 Jacob did as Laban said. 278 When Jacob 279 completed Leah’s bridal week, 280 Laban gave him his daughter Rachel to be his wife. 281 29:29 (Laban gave his female servant Bilhah to his daughter Rachel to be her servant.) 282 29:30 Jacob 283 had marital relations 284 with Rachel as well. He loved Rachel more than Leah, so he worked for Laban 285 for seven more years. 286
29:31 When the Lord saw that Leah was unloved, 287 he enabled her to become pregnant 288 while Rachel remained childless. 29:32 So Leah became pregnant 289 and gave birth to a son. She named him Reuben, 290 for she said, “The Lord has looked with pity on my oppressed condition. 291 Surely my husband will love me now.”
29:33 She became pregnant again and had another son. She said, “Because the Lord heard that I was unloved, 292 he gave me this one too.” So she named him Simeon. 293
29:34 She became pregnant again and had another son. She said, “Now this time my husband will show me affection, 294 because I have given birth to three sons for him.” That is why he was named Levi. 295
29:35 She became pregnant again and had another son. She said, “This time I will praise the Lord.” That is why she named him Judah. 296 Then she stopped having children.
30:1 When Rachel saw that she could not give Jacob children, she 297 became jealous of her sister. She said to Jacob, “Give me children 298 or I’ll die!” 30:2 Jacob became furious 299 with Rachel and exclaimed, “Am I in the place of God, who has kept you from having children?” 300 30:3 She replied, “Here is my servant Bilhah! Have sexual relations with 301 her so that she can bear 302 children 303 for me 304 and I can have a family through her.” 305
30:4 So Rachel 306 gave him her servant Bilhah as a wife, and Jacob had marital relations with 307 her. 30:5 Bilhah became pregnant 308 and gave Jacob a son. 309 30:6 Then Rachel said, “God has vindicated me. He has responded to my prayer 310 and given me a son.” That is why 311 she named him Dan. 312
30:7 Bilhah, Rachel’s servant, became pregnant again and gave Jacob another son. 313 30:8 Then Rachel said, “I have fought a desperate struggle with my sister, but I have won.” 314 So she named him Naphtali. 315
30:9 When Leah saw that she had stopped having children, she gave 316 her servant Zilpah to Jacob as a wife. 30:10 Soon Leah’s servant Zilpah gave Jacob a son. 317 30:11 Leah said, “How fortunate!” 318 So she named him Gad. 319
30:12 Then Leah’s servant Zilpah gave Jacob another son. 320 30:13 Leah said, “How happy I am, 321 for women 322 will call me happy!” So she named him Asher. 323
30:14 At the time 324 of the wheat harvest Reuben went out and found some mandrake plants 325 in a field and brought them to his mother Leah. Rachel said to Leah, “Give me some of your son’s mandrakes.” 30:15 But Leah replied, 326 “Wasn’t it enough that you’ve taken away my husband? Would you take away my son’s mandrakes too?” “All right,” 327 Rachel said, “he may sleep 328 with you tonight in exchange for your son’s mandrakes.” 30:16 When Jacob came in from the fields that evening, Leah went out to meet him and said, “You must sleep 329 with me because I have paid for your services 330 with my son’s mandrakes.” So he had marital relations 331 with her that night. 30:17 God paid attention 332 to Leah; she became pregnant 333 and gave Jacob a son for the fifth time. 334 30:18 Then Leah said, “God has granted me a reward 335 because I gave my servant to my husband as a wife.” 336 So she named him Issachar. 337
30:19 Leah became pregnant again and gave Jacob a son for the sixth time. 338 30:20 Then Leah said, “God has given me a good gift. Now my husband will honor me because I have given him six sons.” So she named him Zebulun. 339
30:21 After that she gave birth to a daughter and named her Dinah.
30:22 Then God took note of 340 Rachel. He paid attention to her and enabled her to become pregnant. 341 30:23 She became pregnant 342 and gave birth to a son. Then she said, “God has taken away my shame.” 343 30:24 She named him Joseph, 344 saying, “May the Lord give me yet another son.”
30:25 After Rachel had given birth 345 to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Send 346 me on my way so that I can go 347 home to my own country. 348 30:26 Let me take my wives and my children whom I have acquired by working for you. 349 Then I’ll depart, 350 because you know how hard I’ve worked for you.” 351
30:27 But Laban said to him, “If I have found favor in your sight, please stay here, 352 for I have learned by divination 353 that the Lord has blessed me on account of you.” 30:28 He added, “Just name your wages – I’ll pay whatever you want.” 354
30:29 “You know how I have worked for you,” Jacob replied, 355 “and how well your livestock have fared under my care. 356 30:30 Indeed, 357 you had little before I arrived, 358 but now your possessions have increased many times over. 359 The Lord has blessed you wherever I worked. 360 But now, how long must it be before I do something for my own family too?” 361
30:31 So Laban asked, 362 “What should I give you?” “You don’t need to give me a thing,” 363 Jacob replied, 364 “but if you agree to this one condition, 365 I will continue to care for 366 your flocks and protect them: 30:32 Let me walk among 367 all your flocks today and remove from them every speckled or spotted sheep, every dark-colored lamb, 368 and the spotted or speckled goats. 369 These animals will be my wages. 370 30:33 My integrity will testify for me 371 later on. 372 When you come to verify that I’ve taken only the wages we agreed on, 373 if I have in my possession any goat that is not speckled or spotted or any sheep that is not dark-colored, it will be considered stolen.” 374 30:34 “Agreed!” said Laban, “It will be as you say.” 375
30:35 So that day Laban 376 removed the male goats that were streaked or spotted, all the female goats that were speckled or spotted (all that had any white on them), and all the dark-colored lambs, and put them in the care 377 of his sons. 30:36 Then he separated them from Jacob by a three-day journey, 378 while 379 Jacob was taking care of the rest of Laban’s flocks.
30:37 But Jacob took fresh-cut branches from poplar, almond, and plane trees. He made white streaks by peeling them, making the white inner wood in the branches visible. 30:38 Then he set up the peeled branches in all the watering troughs where the flocks came to drink. He set up the branches in front of the flocks when they were in heat and came to drink. 380 30:39 When the sheep mated 381 in front of the branches, they 382 gave birth to young that were streaked or speckled or spotted. 30:40 Jacob removed these lambs, but he made the rest of the flock face 383 the streaked and completely dark-colored animals in Laban’s flock. So he made separate flocks for himself and did not mix them with Laban’s flocks. 30:41 When the stronger females were in heat, 384 Jacob would set up the branches in the troughs in front of the flock, so they would mate near the branches. 30:42 But if the animals were weaker, he did not set the branches there. 385 So the weaker animals ended up belonging to Laban 386 and the stronger animals to Jacob. 30:43 In this way Jacob 387 became extremely prosperous. He owned 388 large flocks, male and female servants, camels, and donkeys.
31:1 Jacob heard that Laban’s sons were complaining, 389 “Jacob has taken everything that belonged to our father! He has gotten rich 390 at our father’s expense!” 391 31:2 When Jacob saw the look on Laban’s face, he could tell his attitude toward him had changed. 392
31:3 The Lord said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your fathers 393 and to your relatives. I will be with you.” 394 31:4 So Jacob sent a message for Rachel and Leah 395 to come to the field 396 where his flocks were. 397 31:5 There he said to them, “I can tell that your father’s attitude toward me has changed, 398 but the God of my father has been with me. 31:6 You know that I’ve worked for your father as hard as I could, 399 31:7 but your father has humiliated 400 me and changed my wages ten times. But God has not permitted him to do me any harm. 31:8 If he said, 401 ‘The speckled animals 402 will be your wage,’ then the entire flock gave birth to speckled offspring. But if he said, ‘The streaked animals will be your wage,’ then the entire flock gave birth to streaked offspring. 31:9 In this way God has snatched away your father’s livestock and given them to me.
31:10 “Once 403 during breeding season I saw 404 in a dream that the male goats mating with 405 the flock were streaked, speckled, and spotted. 31:11 In the dream the angel of God said to me, ‘Jacob!’ ‘Here I am!’ I replied. 31:12 Then he said, ‘Observe 406 that all the male goats mating with 407 the flock are streaked, speckled, or spotted, for I have observed all that Laban has done to you. 31:13 I am the God of Bethel, 408 where you anointed 409 the sacred stone and made a vow to me. 410 Now leave this land immediately 411 and return to your native land.’”
31:14 Then Rachel and Leah replied to him, “Do we still have any portion or inheritance 412 in our father’s house? 31:15 Hasn’t he treated us like foreigners? He not only sold us, but completely wasted 413 the money paid for us! 414 31:16 Surely all the wealth that God snatched away from our father belongs to us and to our children. So now do everything God has told you.”
31:17 So Jacob immediately put his children and his wives on the camels. 415 31:18 He took 416 away all the livestock he had acquired in Paddan Aram and all his moveable property that he had accumulated. Then he set out toward the land of Canaan to return to his father Isaac. 417
31:19 While Laban had gone to shear his sheep, 418 Rachel stole the household idols 419 that belonged to her father. 31:20 Jacob also deceived 420 Laban the Aramean by not telling him that he was leaving. 421 31:21 He left 422 with all he owned. He quickly crossed 423 the Euphrates River 424 and headed for 425 the hill country of Gilead.
31:22 Three days later Laban discovered Jacob had left. 426 31:23 So he took his relatives 427 with him and pursued Jacob 428 for seven days. 429 He caught up with 430 him in the hill country of Gilead. 31:24 But God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream at night and warned him, 431 “Be careful 432 that you neither bless nor curse Jacob.” 433
31:25 Laban overtook Jacob, and when Jacob pitched his tent in the hill country of Gilead, Laban and his relatives set up camp there too. 434 31:26 “What have you done?” Laban demanded of Jacob. “You’ve deceived me 435 and carried away my daughters as if they were captives of war! 436 31:27 Why did you run away secretly 437 and deceive me? 438 Why didn’t you tell me so I could send you off with a celebration complete with singing, tambourines, and harps? 439 31:28 You didn’t even allow me to kiss my daughters and my grandchildren 440 good-bye. You have acted foolishly! 31:29 I have 441 the power to do you harm, but the God of your father told me last night, ‘Be careful 442 that you neither bless nor curse Jacob.’ 443 31:30 Now I understand that 444 you have gone away 445 because you longed desperately 446 for your father’s house. Yet why did you steal my gods?” 447
31:31 “I left secretly because I was afraid!” 448 Jacob replied to Laban. “I thought 449 you might take your daughters away from me by force. 450 31:32 Whoever has taken your gods will be put to death! 451 In the presence of our relatives 452 identify whatever is yours and take it.” 453 (Now Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen them.) 454
31:33 So Laban entered Jacob’s tent, and Leah’s tent, and the tent of the two female servants, but he did not find the idols. 455 Then he left Leah’s tent and entered Rachel’s. 456 31:34 (Now Rachel had taken the idols and put them inside her camel’s saddle 457 and sat on them.) 458 Laban searched the whole tent, but did not find them. 459 31:35 Rachel 460 said to her father, “Don’t be angry, 461 my lord. I cannot stand up 462 in your presence because I am having my period.” 463 So he searched thoroughly, 464 but did not find the idols.
31:36 Jacob became angry 465 and argued with Laban. “What did I do wrong?” he demanded of Laban. 466 “What sin of mine prompted you to chase after me in hot pursuit? 467 31:37 When you searched through all my goods, did you find anything that belonged to you? 468 Set it here before my relatives and yours, 469 and let them settle the dispute between the two of us! 470
31:38 “I have been with you for the past twenty years. Your ewes and female goats have not miscarried, nor have I eaten rams from your flocks. 31:39 Animals torn by wild beasts I never brought to you; I always absorbed the loss myself. 471 You always made me pay for every missing animal, 472 whether it was taken by day or at night. 31:40 I was consumed by scorching heat 473 during the day and by piercing cold 474 at night, and I went without sleep. 475 31:41 This was my lot 476 for twenty years in your house: I worked like a slave 477 for you – fourteen years for your two daughters and six years for your flocks, but you changed my wages ten times! 31:42 If the God of my father – the God of Abraham, the one whom Isaac fears 478 – had not been with me, you would certainly have sent me away empty-handed! But God saw how I was oppressed and how hard I worked, 479 and he rebuked you last night.”
31:43 Laban replied 480 to Jacob, “These women 481 are my daughters, these children are my grandchildren, 482 and these flocks are my flocks. All that you see belongs to me. But how can I harm these daughters of mine today 483 or the children to whom they have given birth? 31:44 So now, come, let’s make a formal agreement, 484 you and I, and it will be 485 proof that we have made peace.” 486
31:45 So Jacob took a stone and set it up as a memorial pillar. 31:46 Then he 487 said to his relatives, “Gather stones.” So they brought stones and put them in a pile. 488 They ate there by the pile of stones. 31:47 Laban called it Jegar Sahadutha, 489 but Jacob called it Galeed. 490
31:48 Laban said, “This pile of stones is a witness of our agreement 491 today.” That is why it was called Galeed. 31:49 It was also called Mizpah 492 because he said, “May the Lord watch 493 between us 494 when we are out of sight of one another. 495 31:50 If you mistreat my daughters or if you take wives besides my daughters, although no one else is with us, realize 496 that God is witness to your actions.” 497
31:51 “Here is this pile of stones and this pillar I have set up between me and you,” Laban said to Jacob. 498 31:52 “This pile of stones and the pillar are reminders that I will not pass beyond this pile to come to harm you and that you will not pass beyond this pile and this pillar to come to harm me. 499 31:53 May the God of Abraham and the god of Nahor, 500 the gods of their father, judge between us.” Jacob took an oath by the God whom his father Isaac feared. 501 31:54 Then Jacob offered a sacrifice 502 on the mountain and invited his relatives to eat the meal. 503 They ate the meal and spent the night on the mountain.
31:55 (32:1) 504 Early in the morning Laban kissed 505 his grandchildren 506 and his daughters goodbye and blessed them. Then Laban left and returned home. 507
32:1 So Jacob went on his way and the angels of God 508 met him. 32:2 When Jacob saw them, he exclaimed, 509 “This is the camp of God!” So he named that place Mahanaim. 510
32:3 Jacob sent messengers on ahead 511 to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the region 512 of Edom. 32:4 He commanded them, “This is what you must say to my lord Esau: ‘This is what your servant 513 Jacob says: I have been staying with Laban until now. 32:5 I have oxen, donkeys, sheep, and male and female servants. I have sent 514 this message 515 to inform my lord, so that I may find favor in your sight.’”
32:6 The messengers returned to Jacob and said, “We went to your brother Esau. He is coming to meet you and has four hundred men with him.” 32:7 Jacob was very afraid and upset. So he divided the people who were with him into two camps, as well as the flocks, herds, and camels. 32:8 “If Esau attacks one camp,” 516 he thought, 517 “then the other camp will be able to escape.” 518
32:9 Then Jacob prayed, 519 “O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, O Lord, you said 520 to me, ‘Return to your land and to your relatives and I will make you prosper.’ 521 32:10 I am not worthy of all the faithful love 522 you have shown 523 your servant. With only my walking stick 524 I crossed the Jordan, 525 but now I have become two camps. 32:11 Rescue me, 526 I pray, from the hand 527 of my brother Esau, 528 for I am afraid he will come 529 and attack me, as well as the mothers with their children. 530 32:12 But you 531 said, ‘I will certainly make you prosper 532 and will make 533 your descendants like the sand on the seashore, too numerous to count.’” 534
32:13 Jacob 535 stayed there that night. Then he sent 536 as a gift 537 to his brother Esau 32:14 two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams, 32:15 thirty female camels with their young, forty cows and ten bulls, and twenty female donkeys and ten male donkeys. 32:16 He entrusted them to 538 his servants, who divided them into herds. 539 He told his servants, “Pass over before me, and keep some distance between one herd and the next.” 32:17 He instructed the servant leading the first herd, 540 “When my brother Esau meets you and asks, ‘To whom do you belong? 541 Where are you going? Whose herds are you driving?’ 542 32:18 then you must say, 543 ‘They belong 544 to your servant Jacob. 545 They have been sent as a gift to my lord Esau. 546 In fact Jacob himself is behind us.’” 547
32:19 He also gave these instructions to the second and third servants, as well as all those who were following the herds, saying, “You must say the same thing to Esau when you meet him. 548 32:20 You must also say, ‘In fact your servant Jacob is behind us.’” 549 Jacob thought, 550 “I will first appease him 551 by sending a gift ahead of me. 552 After that I will meet him. 553 Perhaps he will accept me.” 554 32:21 So the gifts were sent on ahead of him 555 while he spent that night in the camp. 556
32:22 During the night Jacob quickly took 557 his two wives, his two female servants, and his eleven sons 558 and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. 559 32:23 He took them and sent them across the stream along with all his possessions. 560 32:24 So Jacob was left alone. Then a man 561 wrestled 562 with him until daybreak. 563 32:25 When the man 564 saw that he could not defeat Jacob, 565 he struck 566 the socket of his hip so the socket of Jacob’s hip was dislocated while he wrestled with him.
32:26 Then the man 567 said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking.” 568 “I will not let you go,” Jacob replied, 569 “unless you bless me.” 570 32:27 The man asked him, 571 “What is your name?” 572 He answered, “Jacob.” 32:28 “No longer will your name be Jacob,” the man told him, 573 “but Israel, 574 because you have fought 575 with God and with men and have prevailed.”
32:29 Then Jacob asked, “Please tell me your name.” 576 “Why 577 do you ask my name?” the man replied. 578 Then he blessed 579 Jacob 580 there. 32:30 So Jacob named the place Peniel, 581 explaining, 582 “Certainly 583 I have seen God face to face 584 and have survived.” 585
32:31 The sun rose 586 over him as he crossed over Penuel, 587 but 588 he was limping because of his hip. 32:32 That is why to this day 589 the Israelites do not eat the sinew which is attached to the socket of the hip, because he struck 590 the socket of Jacob’s hip near the attached sinew.
33:1 Jacob looked up 591 and saw that Esau was coming 592 along with four hundred men. So he divided the children among Leah, Rachel, and the two female servants. 33:2 He put the servants and their children in front, with Leah and her children behind them, and Rachel and Joseph behind them. 593 33:3 But Jacob 594 himself went on ahead of them, and he bowed toward the ground seven times as he approached 595 his brother. 33:4 But Esau ran to meet him, embraced him, hugged his neck, and kissed him. Then they both wept. 33:5 When Esau 596 looked up 597 and saw the women and the children, he asked, “Who are these people with you?” Jacob 598 replied, “The children whom God has graciously given 599 your servant.” 33:6 The female servants came forward with their children and bowed down. 600 33:7 Then Leah came forward with her children and they bowed down. Finally Joseph and Rachel came forward and bowed down.
33:8 Esau 601 then asked, “What did you intend 602 by sending all these herds to meet me?” 603 Jacob 604 replied, “To find favor in your sight, my lord.” 33:9 But Esau said, “I have plenty, my brother. Keep what belongs to you.” 33:10 “No, please take them,” Jacob said. 605 “If I have found favor in your sight, accept 606 my gift from my hand. Now that I have seen your face and you have accepted me, 607 it is as if I have seen the face of God. 608 33:11 Please take my present 609 that was brought to you, for God has been generous 610 to me and I have all I need.” 611 When Jacob urged him, he took it. 612
33:12 Then Esau 613 said, “Let’s be on our way! 614 I will go in front of you.” 33:13 But Jacob 615 said to him, “My lord knows that the children are young, 616 and that I have to look after the sheep and cattle that are nursing their young. 617 If they are driven too hard for even a single day, all the animals will die. 33:14 Let my lord go on ahead of his servant. I will travel more slowly, at the pace of the herds and the children, 618 until I come to my lord at Seir.”
33:15 So Esau said, “Let me leave some of my men with you.” 619 “Why do that?” Jacob replied. 620 “My lord has already been kind enough to me.” 621
33:16 So that same day Esau made his way back 622 to Seir. 33:17 But 623 Jacob traveled to Succoth 624 where he built himself a house and made shelters for his livestock. That is why the place was called 625 Succoth. 626
33:18 After he left Paddan Aram, Jacob came safely to the city of Shechem in the land of Canaan, and he camped near 627 the city. 33:19 Then he purchased the portion of the field where he had pitched his tent; he bought it 628 from the sons of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for a hundred pieces of money. 629 33:20 There he set up an altar and called it “The God of Israel is God.” 630
11:1 The whole earth 631 had a common language and a common vocabulary. 632
1:5 The reason I left you in Crete was to set in order the remaining matters and to appoint elders in every town, as I directed you.
1 tn Heb “in addition to the first famine which was.”
2 sn This account is parallel to two similar stories about Abraham (see Gen 12:10-20; 20:1-18). Many scholars do not believe there were three similar incidents, only one that got borrowed and duplicated. Many regard the account about Isaac as the original, which then was attached to the more important person, Abraham, with supernatural elements being added. For a critique of such an approach, see R. Alter, The Art of Biblical Narrative, 47-62. It is more likely that the story illustrates the proverb “like father, like son” (see T. W. Mann, The Book of the Torah, 53). In typical human fashion the son follows his father’s example of lying to avoid problems. The appearance of similar events reported in a similar way underscores the fact that the blessing has now passed to Isaac, even if he fails as his father did.
3 sn Do not go down to Egypt. The words echo Gen 12:10, which reports that “Abram went down to Egypt,” but state the opposite.
4 tn Heb “say to you.”
5 tn The Hebrew verb גּוּר (gur) means “to live temporarily without ownership of land.” Abraham’s family will not actually possess the land of Canaan until the Israelite conquest hundreds of years later.
6 tn After the imperative “stay” the two prefixed verb forms with prefixed conjunction here indicate consequence.
7 tn The Hebrew term זֶרַע (zera’) occurring here and in v. 18 may mean “seed” (for planting), “offspring” (occasionally of animals, but usually of people), or “descendants” depending on the context.
8 tn The Hiphil stem of the verb קוּם (qum) here means “to fulfill, to bring to realization.” For other examples of this use of this verb form, see Lev 26:9; Num 23:19; Deut 8:18; 9:5; 1 Sam 1:23; 1 Kgs 6:12; Jer 11:5.
9 tn Heb “the oath which I swore.”
10 tn Heb “your descendants.”
11 tn Traditionally the verb is taken as passive (“will be blessed”) here, as if Abraham’s descendants were going to be a channel or source of blessing to the nations. But the Hitpael is better understood here as reflexive/reciprocal, “will bless [i.e., pronounce blessings on] themselves/one another” (see also Gen 22:18). Elsewhere the Hitpael of the verb “to bless” is used with a reflexive/reciprocal sense in Deut 29:18; Ps 72:17; Isa 65:16; Jer 4:2. Gen 12:2 predicts that Abram will be held up as a paradigm of divine blessing and that people will use his name in their blessing formulae. For examples of blessing formulae utilizing an individual as an example of blessing see Gen 48:20 and Ruth 4:11. Earlier formulations of this promise (see Gen 12:2; 18:18) use the Niphal stem. (See also Gen 28:14.)
12 tn The words “All this will come to pass” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied for stylistic reasons.
13 tn Heb “listened to my voice.”
14 sn My charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws. The language of this verse is clearly interpretive, for Abraham did not have all these laws. The terms are legal designations for sections of the Mosaic law and presuppose the existence of the law. Some Rabbinic views actually conclude that Abraham had fulfilled the whole law before it was given (see m. Qiddushin 4:14). Some scholars argue that this story could only have been written after the law was given (C. Westermann, Genesis, 2:424-25). But the simplest explanation is that the narrator (traditionally taken to be Moses the Lawgiver) elaborated on the simple report of Abraham’s obedience by using terms with which the Israelites were familiar. In this way he depicts Abraham as the model of obedience to God’s commands, whose example Israel should follow.
15 sn Rebekah, unlike Sarah, was not actually her husband’s sister.
16 tn Heb “lest.” The words “for he thought to himself” are supplied because the next clause is written with a first person pronoun, showing that Isaac was saying or thinking this.
17 tn Heb “kill me on account of.”
18 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
19 tn Heb “and it happened when the days were long to him there.”
20 tn Heb “look, Isaac.” By the use of the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”), the narrator invites the audience to view the scene through Abimelech’s eyes.
21 tn Or “fondling.”
22 tn Heb “Surely, look!” See N. H. Snaith, “The meaning of Hebrew ‘ak,” VT 14 (1964): 221-25.
23 tn Heb “Because I said, ‘Lest I die on account of her.’” Since the verb “said” probably means “said to myself” (i.e., “thought”) here, the direct discourse in the Hebrew statement has been converted to indirect discourse in the translation. In addition the simple prepositional phrase “on account of her” has been clarified in the translation as “to get her” (cf. v. 7).
24 tn Heb “What is this you have done to us?” The Hebrew demonstrative pronoun “this” adds emphasis: “What in the world have you done to us?” (R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 24, §118).
25 tn Heb “people.”
26 tn The Hebrew verb means “to lie down.” Here the expression “lie with” or “sleep with” is euphemistic for “have sexual relations with.”
27 tn Heb “strikes.” Here the verb has the nuance “to harm in any way.” It would include assaulting the woman or killing the man.
28 tn The use of the infinitive absolute before the imperfect makes the construction emphatic.
29 tn Heb “a hundredfold.”
30 tn This final clause explains why Isaac had such a bountiful harvest.
31 tn Heb “great.” In this context the statement refers primarily to Isaac’s material wealth, although reputation and influence are included.
32 tn Heb “and he went, going and becoming great.” The construction stresses that his growth in possessions and power continued steadily.
33 tn Heb “and there was to him.”
34 tn Heb “possessions of sheep.”
35 tn Heb “possessions of cattle.”
36 tn The Hebrew verb translated “became jealous” refers here to intense jealousy or envy that leads to hostile action (see v. 15).
37 tn Heb “and the Philistines stopped them up and filled them with dirt.”
38 tn Heb “Go away from us.”
39 sn You have become much more powerful. This explanation for the expulsion of Isaac from Philistine territory foreshadows the words used later by the Egyptians to justify their oppression of Israel (see Exod 1:9).
40 tn Heb “and he camped in the valley of Gerar and he lived there.”
41 tn Heb “he returned and dug,” meaning “he dug again” or “he reopened.”
42 tn Heb “that they dug.” Since the subject is indefinite, the verb is translated as passive.
43 tn Heb “and the Philistines had stopped them up.” This clause explains why Isaac had to reopen them.
44 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
45 tn Heb “them”; the referent (the wells) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
46 tn Heb “called names to them according to the names that his father called them.”
47 tn Heb “living.” This expression refers to a well supplied by subterranean streams (see Song 4:15).
48 tn The Hebrew verb translated “quarreled” describes a conflict that often has legal ramifications.
49 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
50 tn Heb “and he called the name of the well.”
51 sn The name Esek means “argument” in Hebrew. The following causal clause explains that Isaac gave the well this name as a reminder of the conflict its discovery had created. In the Hebrew text there is a wordplay, for the name is derived from the verb translated “argued.”
52 tn The words “about it” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
53 tn Heb “they”; the referent (Isaac’s servants) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
54 tn Heb “and he called its name.” The referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
55 sn The name Sitnah (שִׂטְנָה, sitnah) is derived from a Hebrew verbal root meaning “to oppose; to be an adversary” (cf. Job 1:6). The name was a reminder that the digging of this well caused “opposition” from the Philistines.
56 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
57 tn Heb “and he called its name.”
58 sn The name Rehoboth (רְהֹבוֹת, rehovot) is derived from a verbal root meaning “to make room.” The name was a reminder that God had made room for them. The story shows Isaac’s patience with the opposition; it also shows how God’s blessing outdistanced the men of Gerar. They could not stop it or seize it any longer.
59 tn Heb “and he went up from there”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
60 tn Heb “called in the name of.” The expression refers to worshiping the
61 tn Heb “and they dug there, the servants of Isaac, a well.”
62 tn The disjunctive clause supplies pertinent supplemental information. The past perfect is used because the following narrative records the treaty at Beer Sheba. Prior to this we are told that Isaac settled in Beer Sheba; presumably this treaty would have allowed him to do that. However, it may be that he settled there and then made the treaty by which he renamed the place Beer Sheba. In this case one may translate “Now Abimelech came to him.”
63 tn Heb “and.”
64 tn Many modern translations render the Hebrew term מֵרֵעַ (merea’) as “councillor” or “adviser,” but the term may not designate an official position but simply a close personal friend.
65 tn The disjunctive clause is circumstantial, expressing the reason for his question.
66 tn The infinitive absolute before the verb emphasizes the clarity of their perception.
67 tn Heb “And we said, ‘Let there be.’” The direct discourse in the Hebrew text has been rendered as indirect discourse in the translation for stylistic reasons.
68 tn The pronoun “us” here is inclusive – it refers to the Philistine contingent on the one hand and Isaac on the other.
69 tn The pronoun “us” here is exclusive – it refers to just the Philistine contingent (the following “you” refers to Isaac).
70 tn The translation assumes that the cohortative expresses their request. Another option is to understand the cohortative as indicating resolve: “We want to make.’”
71 tn The oath formula is used: “if you do us harm” means “so that you will not do.”
72 tn Heb “touched.”
73 tn Heb “and just as we have done only good with you.”
74 tn Heb “and we sent you away.”
75 tn The Philistine leaders are making an observation, not pronouncing a blessing, so the translation reads “you are blessed” rather than “may you be blessed” (cf. NAB).
76 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
77 tn Heb “and they ate and drank.”
78 tn Heb “and they got up early and they swore an oath, a man to his brother.”
79 tn Heb “and they went from him in peace.”
80 tn Heb “and they said to him, ‘We have found water.’” The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.
81 sn The name Shibah (שִׁבְעָה, shiv’ah) means (or at least sounds like) the word meaning “oath.” The name was a reminder of the oath sworn by Isaac and the Philistines to solidify their treaty.
82 sn The name Beer Sheba (בְּאֵר שָׁבַע, bÿ’er shava’) means “well of an oath” or “well of seven.” According to Gen 21:31 Abraham gave Beer Sheba its name when he made a treaty with the Philistines. Because of the parallels between this earlier story and the account in 26:26-33, some scholars see chaps. 21 and 26 as two versions (or doublets) of one original story. However, if one takes the text as it stands, it appears that Isaac made a later treaty agreement with the people of the land that was similar to his father’s. Abraham dug a well at the site and named the place Beer Sheba; Isaac dug another well there and named the well Shibah. Later generations then associated the name Beer Sheba with Isaac, even though Abraham gave the place its name at an earlier time.
83 tn The sentence begins with the temporal indicator (“and it happened”), making this clause subordinate to the next.
84 tn Heb “the son of forty years.”
85 tn Heb “took as a wife.”
86 tn Heb “And they were [a source of ] bitterness in spirit to Isaac and to Rebekah.”
87 tn The clause begins with the temporal indicator (“and it happened”), making it subordinate to the main clause that follows later in the sentence.
88 tn Heb “and his eyes were weak from seeing.”
89 tn Heb “greater” (in terms of age).
90 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Esau) is specified in the translation for clarity.
91 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Isaac) is specified in the translation for clarity.
92 tn The particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”) here introduces a logically foundational statement, upon which the coming instruction will be based.
93 tn Heb “I do not know the day of my death.”
94 tn The Hebrew word is to be spelled either צַיִד (tsayid) following the marginal reading (Qere), or צֵידָה (tsedah) following the consonantal text (Kethib). Either way it is from the same root as the imperative צוּדָה (tsudah, “hunt down”).
95 tn Following the imperative, the cohortative (with the prefixed conjunction) indicates purpose or result.
96 tn Heb “so that my soul may bless you.” The use of נַפְשִׁי (nafshi, “my soul”) as the subject emphasizes that the blessing will be made with all Isaac’s desire and vitality. The conjunction “so that” closely relates the meal to the blessing, suggesting that this will be a ritual meal in conjunction with the giving of a formal blessing.
97 tn The disjunctive clause (introduced by a conjunction with the subject, followed by the predicate) here introduces a new scene in the story.
98 tc The LXX adds here “to his father,” which may have been accidentally omitted in the MT.
99 tn Following the imperative, the cohortative (with the prefixed conjunction) indicates purpose or result.
100 tn The cohortative, with the prefixed conjunction, also expresses logical sequence. See vv. 4, 19, 27.
101 tn In her report to Jacob, Rebekah plays down Isaac’s strong desire to bless Esau by leaving out נַפְשִׁי (nafshi, “my soul”), but by adding the phrase “in the presence of the
102 tn Heb “listen to my voice.” The Hebrew idiom means “to comply; to obey.”
103 tn Heb “to that which I am commanding you.”
104 tn Following the imperative, the cohortative (with the prefixed conjunction) indicates purpose or result.
105 tn The form is the perfect tense with the vav (ו) consecutive. It carries forward the tone of instruction initiated by the command to “go…and get” in the preceding verse.
106 tn The form is the perfect with the vav (ו) consecutive; it carries the future nuance of the preceding verbs of instruction, but by switching the subject to Jacob, indicates the expected result of the subterfuge.
107 tn Heb “so that.” The conjunction indicates purpose or result.
108 tn Heb “And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, ‘Look, Esau my brother is a hairy man, but I am a smooth [skinned] man.’” The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.
109 tn Heb “Perhaps my father will feel me and I will be in his eyes like a mocker.” The Hebrew expression “I will be in his eyes like” means “I would appear to him as.”
110 tn Heb “upon me your curse.”
111 tn Heb “only listen to my voice.”
112 tn The words “the goats” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
113 tn Heb “his mother.” This has been replaced by the pronoun “she” in the translation for stylistic reasons.
114 tn In the Hebrew text the object (“the skins of the young goats”) precedes the verb. The disjunctive clause draws attention to this key element in the subterfuge.
115 tn The word “hands” probably includes the forearms here. How the skins were attached is not specified in the Hebrew text; cf. NLT “she made him a pair of gloves.”
116 tn Heb “gave…into the hand of.”
117 tn Heb “and he said”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
118 sn Which are you, my son? Isaac’s first question shows that the deception is going to require more subterfuge than Rebekah had anticipated. Jacob will have to pull off the deceit.
119 tn Heb “get up and sit.” This may mean simply “sit up,” or it may indicate that he was to get up from his couch and sit at a table.
120 tn Heb “so that your soul may bless me.” These words, though not reported by Rebekah to Jacob (see v. 7) accurately reflect what Isaac actually said to Esau (see v. 4). Perhaps Jacob knew more than Rebekah realized, but it is more likely that this was an idiom for sincere blessing with which Jacob was familiar. At any rate, his use of the precise wording was a nice, convincing touch.
121 tn Heb “What is this?” The enclitic pronoun “this” adds emphasis to the question, which is comparable to the English rhetorical question, “How in the world?”
122 tn Heb “you hastened to find.” In translation the infinitive becomes the main verb and the first verb becomes adverbial.
123 tn Heb “caused to meet before me.”
124 tn Heb “and he said, ‘Because the
125 tn Following the imperative, the cohortative (with prefixed conjunction) indicates purpose or result.
126 tn Heb “Are you this one, Esau, my son, or not?” On the use of the interrogative particle here, see BDB 210 s.v. הֲ.
127 tn Heb “and he blessed him.” The referents of the pronouns “he” (Isaac) and “him” (Jacob) have been specified in the translation for clarity.
128 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
129 tn Heb “and he said”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
130 tn Heb “Bring near to me and I will eat of the wild game, my son.” Following the imperative, the cohortative with the prefixed conjunction indicates purpose or result.
131 tn Heb “so that my soul may bless you.” The presence of נַפְשִׁי (nafshi, “my soul”) as subject emphasizes Isaac’s heartfelt desire to do this. The conjunction indicates that the ritual meal must be first eaten before the formal blessing may be given.
132 tn Heb “and he brought”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
133 tn Heb “and he drank”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
134 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
135 tn Heb “and he smelled the smell”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
136 tn Heb “see.”
137 tn Heb “and from the dew of the sky.”
138 tn Heb “and from the fatness.”
139 tn Heb “and be.” The verb is an imperative, which is used rhetorically in this oracle of blessing. It is an invitation to exercise authority his brothers and indicates that he is granted such authority by the patriarch of the family. Furthermore, the blessing enables the recipient to accomplish this.
140 tn The Hebrew word is גְבִיר (gevir, “lord, mighty one”). The one being blessed will be stronger and therefore more powerful than his brother. See Gen 25:23. The feminine form of this rare noun means “mistress” or “queen-mother.”
141 tn Following the imperative, the prefixed verbal form (which is either an imperfect or a jussive) with the prefixed conjunction indicates purpose or result.
142 tn The use of the infinitive absolute before the finite form of the verb makes the construction emphatic.
143 tn Heb “the presence of Isaac his father.” The repetition of the proper name (“Isaac”) was
144 tn Heb “and Esau his brother came from his hunt.”
145 tn Heb “and he said to his father”; the referent of “he” (Esau) has been specified in the translation for clarity, while the words “his father” have been replaced by the pronoun “him” for stylistic reasons.
146 tn Or “arise” (i.e., sit up).
147 tn Heb “so that your soul may bless me.”
148 tn Heb “said.”
149 tn Heb “and he said, ‘I [am] your son, your firstborn.’” The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged for stylistic reasons.
150 tn Heb “and Isaac trembled with a great trembling to excess.” The verb “trembled” is joined with a cognate accusative, which is modified by an adjective “great,” and a prepositional phrase “to excess.” All of this is emphatic, showing the violence of Isaac’s reaction to the news.
151 tn Heb “Who then is he who hunted game and brought [it] to me so that I ate from all before you arrived and blessed him?”
152 tn The temporal clause is introduced with the temporal indicator and has the infinitive as its verb.
153 tn Heb “and he yelled [with] a great and bitter yell to excess.”
154 tn Heb “and he said”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
155 tn Or “took”; “received.”
156 tn Heb “Is he not rightly named Jacob?” The rhetorical question, since it expects a positive reply, has been translated as a declarative statement.
157 sn He has tripped me up. When originally given, the name Jacob was a play on the word “heel” (see Gen 25:26). The name (since it is a verb) probably means something like “may he protect,” that is, as a rearguard, dogging the heels. This name was probably chosen because of the immediate association with the incident of grabbing the heel. Esau gives the name “Jacob” a negative connotation here, the meaning “to trip up; to supplant.”
158 tn Heb “Bless me, me also, my father.” The words “my father” have not been repeated in the translation for stylistic reasons.
159 tn Heb “and Esau lifted his voice and wept.”
160 tn Heb “look.”
161 tn Heb “from the fatness.”
162 sn You will tear off his yoke from your neck. It may be that this prophetic blessing found its fulfillment when Jerusalem fell and Edom got its revenge. The oracle makes Edom subservient to Israel and suggests the Edomites would live away from the best land and be forced to sustain themselves by violent measures.
163 tn Or “bore a grudge against” (cf. NAB, NASB, NIV). The Hebrew verb שָׂטַם (satam) describes persistent hatred.
164 tn Heb “because of the blessing which his father blessed him.”
165 tn Heb “said in his heart.” The expression may mean “said to himself.” Even if this is the case, v. 42 makes it clear that he must have shared his intentions with someone, because the news reached Rebekah.
166 tn Heb “days.”
167 tn The cohortative here expresses Esau’s determined resolve to kill Jacob.
168 tn Heb “and the words of Esau her older son were told to Rebekah.”
169 tn Heb “she sent and called for.”
170 tn Heb “is consoling himself with respect to you to kill you.” The only way Esau had of dealing with his anger at the moment was to plan to kill his brother after the death of Isaac.
171 tn Heb “listen to my voice.”
172 tn Heb “arise, flee.”
173 tn Heb “a few days.” Rebekah probably downplays the length of time Jacob will be gone, perhaps to encourage him and assure him that things will settle down soon. She probably expects Esau’s anger to die down quickly. However, Jacob ends up being gone twenty years and he never sees Rebekah again.
174 tn The words “stay there” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
175 tn Heb “and I will send and I will take you from there.” The verb “send” has no object in the Hebrew text; one must be supplied in the translation. Either “someone” or “a message” could be supplied, but since in those times a message would require a messenger, “someone” has been used.
176 tn If Jacob stayed, he would be killed and Esau would be forced to run away.
177 tn Heb “loathe my life.” The Hebrew verb translated “loathe” refers to strong disgust (see Lev 20:23).
178 tn Some translate the Hebrew term “Heth” as “Hittites” here (see also Gen 23:3), but this gives the impression that these people were the classical Hittites of Anatolia. However, there is no known connection between these sons of Heth, apparently a Canaanite group (see Gen 10:15), and the Hittites of Asia Minor. See H. A. Hoffner, Jr., “Hittites,” Peoples of the Old Testament World, 152-53.
179 tn Heb “If Jacob takes a wife from the daughters of Heth, like these, from the daughters of the land, why to me life?”
180 tn Heb “you must not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan.”
181 tn Heb “Arise! Go!” The first of the two imperatives is adverbial and stresses the immediacy of the departure.
182 tn Heb “El Shaddai.” See the extended note on the phrase “sovereign God” in Gen 17:1.
183 tn Heb “and make you fruitful and multiply you.” See Gen 17:6, 20 for similar terminology.
184 tn The perfect verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive here indicates consequence. The collocation הָיָה + preposition לְ (hayah + lÿ) means “become.”
185 tn Heb “an assembly of peoples.”
186 tn Heb “and may he give to you the blessing of Abraham, to you and to your offspring with you.” The name “Abraham” is an objective genitive here; this refers to the blessing that God gave to Abraham.
187 tn The words “the land” have been supplied in the translation for clarity.
188 tn Heb “the land of your sojournings,” that is, the land where Jacob had been living as a resident alien, as his future descendants would after him.
189 tn Heb “to take for himself from there a wife.”
190 tn The infinitive construct with the preposition and the suffix form a temporal clause.
191 tn Heb “you must not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan.”
192 tn Heb “saw.”
193 tn Heb “the daughters of Canaan.”
194 tn Heb “evil in the eyes of.”
195 tn Heb “took for a wife.”
196 tn Heb “the place.” The article may indicate simply that the place is definite in the mind of the narrator. However, as the story unfolds the place is transformed into a holy place. See A. P. Ross, “Jacob’s Vision: The Founding of Bethel,” BSac 142 (1985): 224-37.
197 tn Heb “and he spent the night there because the sun had gone down.”
198 tn Heb “he took from the stones of the place,” which here means Jacob took one of the stones (see v. 18).
199 tn Heb “and he put [it at] the place of his head.” The text does not actually say the stone was placed under his head to serve as a pillow, although most interpreters and translators assume this. It is possible the stone served some other purpose. Jacob does not seem to have been a committed monotheist yet (see v. 20-21) so he may have believed it contained some spiritual power. Note that later in the story he anticipates the stone becoming the residence of God (see v. 22). Many cultures throughout the world view certain types of stones as magical and/or sacred. See J. G. Fraser, Folklore in the Old Testament, 231-37.
200 tn Heb “lay down.”
201 tn Heb “and dreamed.”
202 tn Heb “and look.” The scene which Jacob witnessed is described in three clauses introduced with הִנֵּה (hinneh). In this way the narrator invites the reader to witness the scene through Jacob’s eyes. J. P. Fokkelman points out that the particle goes with a lifted arm and an open mouth: “There, a ladder! Oh, angels! and look, the
203 tn The Hebrew noun סֻלָּם (sullam, “ladder, stairway”) occurs only here in the OT, but there appears to be an Akkadian cognate simmiltu (with metathesis of the second and third consonants and a feminine ending) which has a specialized meaning of “stairway, ramp.” See H. R. Cohen, Biblical Hapax Legomena (SBLDS), 34. For further discussion see C. Houtman, “What Did Jacob See in His Dream at Bethel? Some Remarks on Genesis 28:10-22,” VT 27 (1977): 337-52; J. G. Griffiths, “The Celestial Ladder and the Gate of Heaven,” ExpTim 76 (1964/65): 229-30; and A. R. Millard, “The Celestial Ladder and the Gate of Heaven,” ExpTim 78 (1966/67): 86-87.
204 tn Heb “the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac.” The Hebrew word for “father” can typically be used in a broader sense than the English word, in this case referring to Abraham (who was Jacob’s grandfather). For stylistic reasons and for clarity, the words “your father” are supplied with “Isaac” in the translation.
205 tn The Hebrew term אֶרֶץ (’erets) can mean “[the] earth,” “land,” “region,” “piece of ground,” or “ground” depending on the context. Here the term specifically refers to the plot of ground on which Jacob was lying, but at the same time this stands by metonymy for the entire land of Canaan.
206 tn This is the same Hebrew word translated “ground” in the preceding verse.
207 tn The verb is singular in the Hebrew; Jacob is addressed as the representative of his descendants.
208 tn Theoretically the Niphal stem can be translated either as passive or reflexive/reciprocal. (The Niphal of “bless” is only used in formulations of the Abrahamic covenant. See Gen 12:2; 18:18; 28:14.) Traditionally the verb is taken as passive here, as if Jacob were going to be a channel or source of blessing. But in other formulations of the Abrahamic covenant (see Gen 22:18; 26:4) the Hitpael replaces this Niphal form, suggesting a translation “will bless (i.e., pronounce blessings upon) themselves/one another.” The Hitpael of “bless” is used with a reflexive/reciprocal sense in Deut 29:18; Ps 72:17; Isa 65:16; Jer 4:2. Gen 28:14 predicts that Jacob will be held up as a paradigm of divine blessing and that people will use his name in their blessing formulae (see Gen 12:2 and 18:18 as well, where Abram/Abraham receives this promise). For examples of blessing formulae utilizing an individual as an example of blessing see Gen 48:20 and Ruth 4:11.
209 tn Heb “and they will pronounce blessings by you, all the families of the earth, and by your offspring.”
210 tn Heb “Look, I [am] with you.” The clause is a nominal clause; the verb to be supplied could be present (as in the translation) or future, “Look, I [will be] with you” (cf. NEB).
211 tn Heb “woke up from his sleep.” This has been simplified in the translation for stylistic reasons.
212 tn Heb “said.”
213 tn Heb “and he got up early…and he took.”
214 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
215 tn See the note on this phrase in v. 11.
216 tn Heb “standing stone.”
217 tn The name Bethel means “house of God” in Hebrew (see v. 17).
218 tn Heb “bread,” although the term can be used for food in general.
219 tn Heb “and I return in peace to the house of my father.”
220 tn The disjunctive clause structure (conjunction + noun/subject) is used to highlight the statement.
221 tn The infinitive absolute is used before the finite verb for emphasis.
222 tn Heb “and all which you give to me I will surely give a tenth of it to you.” The disjunctive clause structure (conjunction + noun/object) highlights this statement as well.
223 tn Heb “and Jacob lifted up his feet.” This unusual expression suggests that Jacob had a new lease on life now that God had promised him the blessing he had so desperately tried to gain by his own efforts. The text portrays him as having a new step in his walk.
224 tn Heb “the land of the sons of the east.”
225 tn Heb “and he saw, and look.” As in Gen 28:12-15, the narrator uses the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”) here and in the next clause to draw the reader into the story.
226 tn Heb “and look, there.”
227 tn The disjunctive clause (introduced by the noun with the prefixed conjunction) provides supplemental information that is important to the story.
228 tn Heb “they”; the referent (the shepherds) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
229 tn Heb “son.”
230 tn Heb “and they said, ‘We know.’” The word “him” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. In the translation several introductory clauses throughout this section have been placed after the direct discourse they introduce for stylistic reasons as well.
231 tn Heb “and he said to them, ‘Is there peace to him?’”
232 tn Heb “peace.”
233 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
234 tn Heb “the day is great.”
235 tn Heb “water the sheep and go and pasture [them].” The verbal forms are imperatives, but Jacob would hardly be giving direct orders to someone else’s shepherds. The nuance here is probably one of advice.
236 tn The perfect verbal forms with the vav (ו) consecutive carry on the sequence begun by the initial imperfect form.
237 tn Heb “was a shepherdess.”
238 tn Heb “Laban, the brother of his mother” (twice in this verse).
239 tn Heb “Jacob.” The proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.
240 tn Heb “drew near, approached.”
241 tn Heb “Laban, the brother of his mother.” The text says nothing initially about the beauty of Rachel. But the reader is struck by the repetition of “Laban the brother of his mother.” G. J. Wenham is no doubt correct when he observes that Jacob’s primary motive at this stage is to ingratiate himself with Laban (Genesis [WBC], 2:231).
242 tn Heb “and he lifted up his voice and wept.” The idiom calls deliberate attention to the fact that Jacob wept out loud.
243 tn Heb “declared.”
244 tn Heb “that he [was] the brother of her father.”
245 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
246 tn Heb “and he told to Laban all these things.” This might mean Jacob told Laban how he happened to be there, but Laban’s response (see v. 14) suggests “all these things” refers to what Jacob had previously told Rachel (see v. 12).
247 tn Heb “indeed, my bone and my flesh are you.” The expression sounds warm enough, but the presence of “indeed” may suggest that Laban had to be convinced of Jacob’s identity before permitting him to stay. To be one’s “bone and flesh” is to be someone’s blood relative. For example, the phrase describes the relationship between Abimelech and the Shechemites (Judg 9:2; his mother was a Shechemite); David and the Israelites (2 Sam 5:1); David and the elders of Judah (2 Sam 19:12,); and David and his nephew Amasa (2 Sam 19:13, see 2 Sam 17:2; 1 Chr 2:16-17).
248 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
249 tn Heb “a month of days.”
250 tn The verb is the perfect with the vav (ו) consecutive; the nuance in the question is deliberative.
251 tn Heb “my brother.” The term “brother” is used in a loose sense; actually Jacob was Laban’s nephew.
252 tn Heb “and to Laban [there were] two daughters.” The disjunctive clause (introduced here by a conjunction and a prepositional phrase) provides supplemental material that is important to the story. Since this material is parenthetical in nature, vv. 16-17 have been set in parentheses in the translation.
253 tn Heb “and the eyes of Leah were tender.” The disjunctive clause (introduced here by a conjunction and a noun) continues the parenthesis begun in v. 16. It is not clear what is meant by “tender” (or “delicate”) eyes. The expression may mean she had appealing eyes (cf. NAB, NRSV, NLT), though some suggest that they were plain, not having the brightness normally expected. Either way, she did not measure up to her gorgeous sister.
254 tn Heb “and Rachel was beautiful of form and beautiful of appearance.”
255 tn Heb “Jacob loved.”
256 tn Heb “Better my giving her to you than my giving her to another man.”
257 tn Heb “in exchange for Rachel.”
258 sn But they seemed like only a few days to him. This need not mean that the time passed quickly. More likely it means that the price seemed insignificant when compared to what he was getting in the bargain.
259 tn Heb “because of his love for her.” The words “was so great” are supplied for stylistic reasons.
260 tn Heb “and Jacob said.”
261 tn Heb “my days are fulfilled.”
262 tn Heb “and I will go in to her.” The verb is a cohortative; it may be subordinated to the preceding request, “that I may go in,” or it may be an independent clause expressing his desire. The verb “go in” in this context refers to sexual intercourse (i.e., the consummation of the marriage).
263 tn Heb “men.”
264 tn Heb “and it happened in the evening that he took Leah his daughter and brought her.”
265 tn Heb “to him”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
266 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
267 tn Heb “went in to her.” The expression “went in to” in this context refers to sexual intercourse, i.e., the consummation of the marriage.
268 tn Heb “and Laban gave to her Zilpah his female servant, to Leah his daughter [for] a servant.” This clause gives information parenthetical to the narrative.
269 tn Heb “and it happened in the morning that look, it was Leah.” By the use of the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”), the narrator invites the reader to view the scene through Jacob’s eyes.
270 tn Heb “and he said”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
271 tn Heb What is this you have done to me?” The use of the pronoun “this” is enclitic, adding emphasis to the question: “What in the world have you done to me?”
272 sn The Hebrew verb translated tricked here (רָמָה, ramah) is cognate to the noun used in Gen 27:35 to describe Jacob’s deception of Esau. Jacob is discovering that what goes around, comes around. See J. A. Diamond, “The Deception of Jacob: A New Perspective on an Ancient Solution to the Problem,” VT 34 (1984): 211-13.
273 tn Heb “and Laban said, ‘It is not done so in our place.’” The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.
274 tn Heb “to give the younger.” The words “daughter” and “in marriage” are supplied in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.
275 tn Heb “fulfill the period of seven of this one.” The referent of “this one” has been specified in the translation as “my older daughter” for clarity.
276 tn Heb “this other one.”
277 tn Heb “and we will give to you also this one in exchange for labor which you will work with me, still seven other years.”
278 tn Heb “and Jacob did so.” The words “as Laban said” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
279 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
280 tn Heb “the seven of this one.” The referent of “this one” has been specified in the translation as Leah to avoid confusion with Rachel, mentioned later in the verse.
281 tn Heb “and he gave to him Rachel his daughter for him for a wife.” The referent of the pronoun “he” (Laban) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
282 tn Heb “and Laban gave to Rachel his daughter Bilhah his female servant, for her for a servant.”
283 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
284 tn Heb “went in also to Rachel.” The expression “went in to” in this context refers to sexual intercourse, i.e., the consummation of the marriage.
285 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Laban) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
286 tn Heb “and he loved also Rachel, more than Leah, and he served with him still seven other years.”
287 tn Heb “hated.” The rhetorical device of overstatement is used (note v. 30, which says simply that Jacob loved Rachel more than he did Leah) to emphasize that Rachel, as Jacob’s true love and the primary object of his affections, had an advantage over Leah.
288 tn Heb “he opened up her womb.”
289 tn Or “Leah conceived” (also in vv. 33, 34, 35).
290 sn The name Reuben (רְאוּבֵן, rÿ’uven) means “look, a son.”
291 tn Heb “looked on my affliction.”
292 tn Heb “hated.” See the note on the word “unloved” in v. 31.
293 sn The name Simeon (שִׁמְעוֹן, shim’on) is derived from the verbal root שָׁמַע (shama’) and means “hearing.” The name is appropriate since it is reminder that the
294 tn Heb “will be joined to me.”
295 sn The name Levi (לֵוִי, levi), the precise meaning of which is debated, was appropriate because it sounds like the verb לָוָה (lavah, “to join”), used in the statement recorded earlier in the verse.
296 sn The name Judah (יְהוּדָה, yÿhudah) means “he will be praised” and reflects the sentiment Leah expresses in the statement recorded earlier in the verse. For further discussion see W. F. Albright, “The Names ‘Israel’ and ‘Judah’ with an Excursus on the Etymology of Todah and Torah,” JBL 46 (1927): 151-85; and A. R. Millard, “The Meaning of the Name Judah,” ZAW 86 (1974): 216-18.
297 tn Heb “Rachel.” The proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“she”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.
298 tn Heb “sons.”
299 tn Heb “and the anger of Jacob was hot.”
300 tn Heb “who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb.”
301 tn Heb “go in to.” The expression “go in to” in this context refers to sexual intercourse.
302 tn After the imperative, the prefixed verbal form with the conjunction indicates the immediate purpose of the proposed activity.
303 tn The word “children” is not in the Hebrew text but has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
304 tn Heb “upon my knees.” This is an idiomatic way of saying that Bilhah will be simply a surrogate mother. Rachel will adopt the child as her own.
305 tn Heb “and I will be built up, even I, from her.” The prefixed verbal form with the conjunction is subordinated to the preceding prefixed verbal form and gives the ultimate purpose for the proposed action. The idiom of “built up” here refers to having a family (see Gen 16:2, as well as Ruth 4:11 and BDB 125 s.v. בָנָה).
306 tn Heb “and she”; the referent (Rachel) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
307 tn Heb “went in to.” The expression “went in to” in this context refers to sexual intercourse.
308 tn Or “Bilhah conceived” (also in v. 7).
309 tn Heb “and she bore for Jacob a son.”
310 tn Heb “and also he has heard my voice.” The expression means that God responded positively to Rachel’s cry and granted her request.
311 tn Or “therefore.”
312 sn The name Dan means “he vindicated” or “he judged.” The name plays on the verb used in the statement which appears earlier in the verse. The verb translated “vindicated” is from דִּין (din, “to judge, to vindicate”), the same verbal root from which the name is derived. Rachel sensed that God was righting the wrong.
313 tn Heb “and she became pregnant again and Bilhah, the servant of Rachel, bore a second son for Jacob.”
314 tn Heb “[with] a mighty struggle I have struggled with my sister, also I have prevailed.” The phrase “mighty struggle” reads literally “struggles of God.” The plural participle “struggles” reflects the ongoing nature of the struggle, while the divine name is used here idiomatically to emphasize the intensity of the struggle. See J. Skinner, Genesis (ICC), 387.
315 sn The name Naphtali (נַפְתָּלִי, naftali) must mean something like “my struggle” in view of the statement Rachel made in the preceding clause. The name plays on this earlier statement, “[with] a mighty struggle I have struggled with my sister.”
316 tn Heb “she took her servant Zilpah and gave her.” The verbs “took” and “gave” are treated as a hendiadys in the translation: “she gave.”
317 tn Heb “and Zilpah, the servant of Leah, bore for Jacob a son.”
318 tc The statement in the Kethib (consonantal text) appears to mean literally “with good fortune,” if one takes the initial בְּ (bet) as a preposition indicating accompaniment. The Qere (marginal reading) means “good fortune has arrived.”
319 sn The name Gad (גָּד, gad) means “good fortune.” The name reflects Leah’s feeling that good fortune has come her way, as expressed in her statement recorded earlier in the verse.
320 tn Heb “and Zilpah, the servant of Leah, bore a second son for Jacob.”
321 tn The Hebrew statement apparently means “with my happiness.”
322 tn Heb “daughters.”
323 sn The name Asher (אָשֶׁר, ’asher) apparently means “happy one.” The name plays on the words used in the statement which appears earlier in the verse. Both the Hebrew noun and verb translated “happy” and “call me happy,” respectively, are derived from the same root as the name Asher.
324 tn Heb “during the days.”
325 sn Mandrake plants were popularly believed to be an aphrodisiac in the culture of the time.
326 tn Heb “and she said to her”; the referent of the pronoun “she” (Leah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
327 tn Heb “therefore.”
328 tn Heb “lie down.” The expression “lie down with” in this context (here and in the following verse) refers to sexual intercourse. The imperfect verbal form has a permissive nuance here.
329 tn Heb “must come in to me.” The imperfect verbal form has an obligatory nuance here. She has acquired him for the night and feels he is obligated to have sexual relations with her.
330 tn Heb “I have surely hired.” The infinitive absolute precedes the finite verbal form for emphasis. The name Issachar (see v. 18) seems to be related to this expression.
331 tn This is the same Hebrew verb (שָׁכַב, shakhav) translated “sleep with” in v. 15. In direct discourse the more euphemistic “sleep with” was used, but here in the narrative “marital relations” reflects more clearly the emphasis on sexual intercourse.
332 tn Heb “listened to.”
333 tn Or “she conceived” (also in v. 19).
334 tn Heb “and she bore for Jacob a fifth son,” i.e., this was the fifth son that Leah had given Jacob.
335 tn Heb “God has given my reward.”
336 tn The words “as a wife” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied for clarity (cf. v. 9).
337 sn The name Issachar (יְשָּׁשכָר, yishakhar) appears to mean “man of reward” or possibly “there is reward.” The name plays on the word used in the statement made earlier in the verse. The Hebrew noun translated “reward” is derived from the same root as the name Issachar. The irony is that Rachel thought the mandrakes would work for her, and she was willing to trade one night for them. But in that one night Leah became pregnant.
338 tn Heb “and she bore a sixth son for Jacob,” i.e., this was the sixth son that Leah had given Jacob.
339 sn The name Zebulun (זְבֻלוּן, zevulun) apparently means “honor.” The name plays on the verb used in the statement made earlier in the verse. The Hebrew verb translated “will honor” and the name Zebulun derive from the same root.
340 tn Heb “remembered.”
341 tn Heb “and God listened to her and opened up her womb.” Since “God” is the subject of the previous clause, the noun has been replaced by the pronoun “he” in the translation for stylistic reasons
342 tn Or “conceived.”
343 tn Heb “my reproach.” A “reproach” is a cutting taunt or painful ridicule, but here it probably refers by metonymy to Rachel’s barren condition, which was considered shameful in this culture and was the reason why she was the object of taunting and ridicule.
344 sn The name Joseph (יוֹסֵף, yoseph) means “may he add.” The name expresses Rachel’s desire to have an additional son. In Hebrew the name sounds like the verb (אָסַף,’asasf) translated “taken away” in the earlier statement made in v. 23. So the name, while reflecting Rachel’s hope, was also a reminder that God had removed her shame.
345 tn The perfect verbal form is translated as a past perfect because Rachel’s giving birth to Joseph preceded Jacob’s conversation with Laban.
346 tn The imperatival form here expresses a request.
347 tn Following the imperative, the cohortative with the prefixed conjunction indicates purpose or result.
348 tn Heb “to my place and to my land.”
349 tn Heb “give my wives and my children, for whom I have served you.” In one sense Laban had already “given” Jacob his two daughters as wives (Gen 29:21, 28). Here Jacob was asking for permission to take his own family along with him on the journey back to Canaan.
350 tn Following the imperative, the cohortative with the prefixed conjunction indicates purpose or result.
351 tn Heb “for you, you know my service [with] which I have served you.”
352 tn The words “please stay here” have been supplied in the translation for clarification and for stylistic reasons.
353 tn Or perhaps “I have grown rich and the
354 tn Heb “set your wage for me so I may give [it].”
355 tn Heb “and he said to him, ‘You know how I have served you.’” The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons, and the referent of the pronoun “he” (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
356 tn Heb “and how your cattle were with me.”
357 tn Or “for.”
358 tn Heb “before me.”
359 tn Heb “and it has broken out with respect to abundance.”
360 tn Heb “at my foot.”
361 tn Heb “How long [until] I do, also I, for my house?”
362 tn Heb “and he said.” The referent (Laban) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
363 tn The negated imperfect verbal form has an obligatory nuance.
364 tn The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.
365 tn Heb “If you do for me this thing.”
366 tn Heb “I will return, I will tend,” an idiom meaning “I will continue tending.”
367 tn Heb “pass through.”
368 tn Or “every black lamb”; Heb “and every dark sheep among the lambs.”
369 tn Heb “and the spotted and speckled among the goats.”
370 tn Heb “and it will be my wage.” The referent collective singular pronoun (“it) has been specified as “these animals” in the translation for clarity.
371 tn Heb “will answer on my behalf.”
372 tn Heb “on the following day,” or “tomorrow.”
373 tn Heb “when you come concerning my wage before you.”
374 tn Heb “every one which is not speckled and spotted among the lambs and dark among the goats, stolen it is with me.”
375 tn Heb “and Laban said, ‘Good, let it be according to your word.’” On the asseverative use of the particle לוּ (lu) here, see HALOT 521 s.v. לוּ.
376 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Laban) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
377 tn Heb “and he gave [them] into the hand.”
378 tn Heb “and he put a journey of three days between himself and Jacob.”
379 tn The disjunctive clause (introduced by the vav with subject) is circumstantial/temporal; Laban removed the animals while Jacob was taking care of the rest.
380 sn He put the branches in front of the flocks…when they came to drink. It was generally believed that placing such “visual aids” before the animals as they were mating, it was possible to influence the appearance of their offspring. E. A. Speiser notes that “Jacob finds a way to outwit his father-in-law, through prenatal conditioning of the flock by visual aids – in conformance with universal folk beliefs” (Genesis [AB], 238). Nevertheless, in spite of Jacob’s efforts at animal husbandry, he still attributes the resulting success to God (see 31:5).
381 tn The Hebrew verb used here can mean “to be in heat” (see v. 38) or “to mate; to conceive; to become pregnant.” The latter nuance makes better sense in this verse, for the next clause describes them giving birth.
382 tn Heb “the sheep.” The noun has been replaced by the pronoun (“they”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.
383 tn Heb “and he set the faces of.”
384 tn Heb “and at every breeding-heat of the flock.”
385 tn Heb “he did not put [them] in.” The referent of the [understood] direct object, “them,” has been specified as “the branches” in the translation for clarity.
386 tn Heb “were for Laban.”
387 tn Heb “the man”; Jacob’s name has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
388 tn Heb “and there were to him.”
389 tn Heb “and he heard the words of the sons of Laban, saying.”
390 sn The Hebrew word translated “gotten rich” (כָּבוֹד, cavod) has the basic idea of “weight.” If one is heavy with possessions, then that one is wealthy (13:2). Abraham, Jacob, and Joseph all became wealthy when they left the promised land. Jacob’s wealth foreshadows what will happen to Israel when they leave the land of Egypt (Exod 12:35-38).
391 tn Heb “and from that which belonged to our father he has gained all this wealth.”
392 tn Heb “and Jacob saw the face of Laban, and look, he was not with him as formerly.” Jacob knew from the expression on Laban’s face that his attitude toward him had changed – Jacob had become persona non grata.
393 tn Or perhaps “ancestors” (so NRSV), although the only “ancestors” Jacob had there were his grandfather Abraham and his father Isaac.
394 sn I will be with you. Though Laban was no longer “with him,” the
395 tn Heb “sent and called for Rachel and for Leah.” Jacob did not go in person, but probably sent a servant with a message for his wives to meet him in the field.
396 tn Heb “the field.” The word is an adverbial accusative, indicating that this is where Jacob wanted them to meet him. The words “to come to” are supplied in the translation for clarification and stylistic reasons.
397 tn Heb “to his flock.”
398 tn Heb “I see the face of your father, that he is not toward me as formerly.”
399 tn Heb “with all my strength.”
400 tn This rare verb means “to make a fool of” someone. It involves deceiving someone so that their public reputation suffers (see Exod 8:25).
401 tn In the protasis (“if” section) of this conditional clause, the imperfect verbal form has a customary nuance – whatever he would say worked to Jacob’s benefit.
402 tn Heb “speckled” (twice this verse). The word “animals” (after the first occurrence of “speckled”) and “offspring” (after the second) have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. The same two terms (“animals” and “offspring”) have been supplied after the two occurrences of “streaked” later in this verse.
403 tn The sentence begins with the temporal indicator, “and it happened at the time of.”
404 tn Heb “in the time of the breeding of the flock I lifted up my eyes and I saw.”
405 tn Heb “going up on,” that is, mounting for intercourse.
406 tn Heb “lift up (now) your eyes and see.”
407 tn Heb “going up on,” that is, mounting for intercourse.
408 map For location see Map4-G4; Map5-C1; Map6-E3; Map7-D1; Map8-G3.
409 sn You anointed the sacred stone. In Gen 28:18 the text simply reported that Jacob poured oil on top of the stone. Now that pouring is interpreted by the
410 sn And made a vow to me. The second clause reminds Jacob of the vow he made to the
411 tn Heb “arise, leave!” The first imperative draws attention to the need for immediate action.
412 tn The two nouns may form a hendiadys, meaning “a share in the inheritance” or “a portion to inherit.”
413 tn Heb “and he devoured, even devouring.” The infinitive absolute (following the finite verb here) is used for emphasis.
414 tn Heb “our money.” The word “money” is used figuratively here; it means the price paid for Leah and Rachel. A literal translation (“our money”) makes it sound as if Laban wasted money that belonged to Rachel and Leah, rather than the money paid for them.
415 tn Heb “and Jacob arose and he lifted up his sons and his wives on to the camels.”
416 tn Heb “drove,” but this is subject to misunderstanding in contemporary English.
417 tn Heb “and he led away all his cattle and all his moveable property which he acquired, the cattle he obtained, which he acquired in Paddan Aram to go to Isaac his father to the land of Canaan.”
418 tn This disjunctive clause (note the pattern conjunction + subject + verb) introduces a new scene. In the English translation it may be subordinated to the following clause.
419 tn Or “household gods.” Some translations merely transliterate the Hebrew term תְּרָפִים (tÿrafim) as “teraphim,” which apparently refers to household idols. Some contend that possession of these idols guaranteed the right of inheritance, but it is more likely that they were viewed simply as protective deities. See M. Greenberg, “Another Look at Rachel’s Theft of the Teraphim,” JBL 81 (1962): 239-48.
420 tn Heb “stole the heart of,” an expression which apparently means “to deceive.” The repetition of the verb “to steal” shows that Jacob and Rachel are kindred spirits. Any thought that Laban would have resigned himself to their departure was now out of the question.
421 tn Heb “fleeing,” which reflects Jacob’s viewpoint.
422 tn Heb “and he fled.”
423 tn Heb “he arose and crossed.” The first verb emphasizes that he wasted no time in getting across.
424 tn Heb “the river”; the referent (the Euphrates) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
425 tn Heb “he set his face.”
426 tn Heb “and it was told to Laban on the third day that Jacob had fled.”
427 tn Heb “his brothers.”
428 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
429 tn Heb “and he pursued after him a journey of seven days.”
430 tn Heb “drew close to.”
431 tn Heb “said to him.”
432 tn Heb “watch yourself,” which is a warning to be on guard against doing something that is inappropriate.
433 tn Heb “lest you speak with Jacob from good to evil.” The precise meaning of the expression, which occurs only here and in v. 29, is uncertain. Since Laban proceeded to speak to Jacob at length, it cannot mean to maintain silence. Nor does it seem to be a prohibition against criticism (see vv. 26-30). Most likely it refers to a formal pronouncement, whether it be a blessing or a curse. Laban was to avoid saying anything to Jacob that would be intended to enhance him or to harm him.
434 tn Heb “and Jacob pitched his tent in the hill country, and Laban pitched with his brothers in the hill country of Gilead.” The juxtaposition of disjunctive clauses (note the pattern conjunction + subject + verb in both clauses) indicates synchronism of action.
435 tn Heb “and you have stolen my heart.” This expression apparently means “to deceive” (see v. 20).
436 tn Heb “and you have led away my daughters like captives of a sword.”
437 tn Heb “Why did you hide in order to flee?” The verb “hide” and the infinitive “to flee” form a hendiadys, the infinitive becoming the main verb and the other the adverb: “flee secretly.”
438 tn Heb “and steal me.”
439 tn Heb “And [why did] you not tell me so I could send you off with joy and with songs, with a tambourine and with a harp?”
440 tn Heb “my sons and my daughters.” Here “sons” refers to “grandsons,” and has been translated “grandchildren” since at least one granddaughter, Dinah, was involved. The order has been reversed in the translation for stylistic reasons.
441 tn Heb “there is to my hand.”
442 tn Heb “watch yourself,” which is a warning to be on guard against doing something that is inappropriate.
443 tn Heb “from speaking with Jacob from good to evil.” The precise meaning of the expression, which occurs only here and in v. 24, is uncertain. See the note on the same phrase in v. 24.
444 tn Heb “and now.” The words “I understand that” have been supplied in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.
445 tn The infinitive absolute appears before the perfect verbal form to emphasize the certainty of the action.
446 tn The infinitive absolute appears before the perfect verbal form to emphasize the degree of emotion involved.
447 sn Yet why did you steal my gods? This last sentence is dropped into the speech rather suddenly. See C. Mabee, “Jacob and Laban: The Structure of Judicial Proceedings,” VT 30 (1980): 192-207, and G. W. Coats, “Self-Abasement and Insult Formulas,” JBL 91 (1972): 90-92.
448 tn Heb “and Jacob answered and said to Laban, ‘Because I was afraid.’” This statement is a not a response to the question about Laban’s household gods that immediately precedes, but to the earlier question about Jacob’s motivation for leaving so quickly and secretly (see v. 27). For this reason the words “I left secretly” are supplied in the translation to indicate the connection to Laban’s earlier question in v. 27. Additionally the order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse have been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.
449 tn Heb “for I said.”
450 tn Heb “lest you steal your daughters from with me.”
451 tn Heb “With whomever you find your gods, he will not live.”
452 tn Heb “brothers.”
453 tn Heb “recognize for yourself what is with me and take for yourself.”
454 tn The disjunctive clause (introduced here by a vav [ו] conjunction) provides supplemental material that is important to the story. Since this material is parenthetical in nature, it has been placed in parentheses in the translation.
455 tn No direct object is specified for the verb “find” in the Hebrew text. The words “the idols” have been supplied in the translation for clarification.
456 tn Heb “and he went out from the tent of Leah and went into the tent of Rachel.”
457 tn The “camel’s saddle” was probably some sort of basket-saddle, a cushioned saddle with a basket bound on. Cf. NAB “inside a camel cushion.”
458 tn The disjunctive clause (introduced by a vav [ו] conjunction) provides another parenthetical statement necessary to the storyline.
459 tn The word “them” has been supplied in the translation for clarification.
460 tn Heb “she”; the referent (Rachel) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
461 tn Heb “let it not be hot in the eyes of my lord.” This idiom refers to anger, in this case as a result of Rachel’s failure to stand in the presence of her father as a sign of respect.
462 tn Heb “I am unable to rise.”
463 tn Heb “the way of women is to me.” This idiom refers to a woman’s menstrual period.
464 tn The word “thoroughly” is not in the Hebrew text, but is implied.
465 tn Heb “it was hot to Jacob.” This idiom refers to anger.
466 tn Heb “and Jacob answered and said to Laban, ‘What is my sin?’” The proper name “Jacob” has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation and the order of the introductory clause and direct discourse rearranged for stylistic reasons.
467 tn Heb “What is my sin that you have hotly pursued after me.” The Hebrew verb translated “pursue hotly” is used elsewhere of soldiers chasing defeated enemies (1 Sam 17:53).
468 tn Heb “what did you find from all the goods of your house?”
469 tn Heb “your relatives.” The word “relatives” has not been repeated in the translation here for stylistic reasons.
470 tn Heb “that they may decide between us two.”
471 tn The imperfect verbal form indicates that this was a customary or typical action.
472 tn Heb “from my hand you exacted it.” The imperfect verbal form again indicates that this was a customary or typical action. The words “for every missing animal” are supplied in the translation for clarity; the following clause in Hebrew, “stolen by day or stolen by night,” probably means “stolen by wild beasts” and refers to the same animals “torn by wild beasts” in the previous clause, although it may refer to animals stolen by people. The translation used here, “missing,” is ambiguous enough to cover either eventuality.
473 tn Or “by drought.”
474 tn Heb “frost, ice,” though when contrasted with the חֹרֶב (khorev, “drought, parching heat”) of the day, “piercing cold” is more appropriate as a contrast.
475 tn Heb “and my sleep fled from my eyes.”
476 tn Heb “this to me.”
477 tn Heb “served you,” but in this accusatory context the meaning is more “worked like a slave.”
478 tn Heb “the fear of Isaac,” that is, the one whom Isaac feared and respected. For further discussion of this title see M. Malul, “More on pahad yitschaq (Gen. 31:42,53) and the Oath by the Thigh,” VT 35 (1985): 192-200.
479 tn Heb “My oppression and the work of my hands God saw.”
480 tn Heb “answered and said.”
481 tn Heb “daughters.”
482 tn Heb “children.”
483 tn Heb “but to my daughters what can I do to these today?”
484 tn Heb “cut a covenant.”
485 tn The verb הָיָה (hayah) followed by the preposition לְ (lÿ) means “become.”
486 tn Heb “and it will become a witness between me and you.”
487 tn Heb “Jacob”; the proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.
488 sn The Hebrew word for “pile” is גַּל (gal), which sounds like the name “Galeed” (גַּלְעֵד, gal’ed). See v. 48.
489 sn Jegar Sahadutha. Laban the Aramean gave the place an Aramaic name which means “witness pile” or “the pile is a witness.”
490 sn Galeed also means “witness pile” or “the pile is a witness,” but this name is Canaanite or Western Semitic and closer to later Hebrew. Jacob, though certainly capable of speaking Aramaic, here prefers to use the western dialect.
491 tn Heb “a witness between me and you.”
492 tn Heb “and Mizpah.”
493 sn The name Mizpah (מִצְפָּה, mitspah), which means “watchpost,” sounds like the verb translated “may he watch” (יִצֶף, yitsef). Neither Laban nor Jacob felt safe with each other, and so they agreed to go their separate ways, trusting the
494 tn Heb “between me and you.”
495 tn Heb “for we will be hidden, each man from his neighbor.”
496 tn Heb “see.”
497 tn Heb “between me and you.”
498 tn Heb “and Laban said to Jacob, ‘Behold this heap and behold the pillar which I have set between men and you.’” The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.
499 tn Heb “This pile is a witness and the pillar is a witness, if I go past this pile to you and if you go past this pile and this pillar to me for harm.”
500 tn The God of Abraham and the god of Nahor. The Hebrew verb translated “judge” is plural, suggesting that Laban has more than one “god” in mind. The Samaritan Pentateuch and the LXX, apparently in an effort to make the statement monotheistic, have a singular verb. In this case one could translate, “May the God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us.” However, Laban had a polytheistic world view, as evidenced by his possession of household idols (cf. 31:19). The translation uses “God” when referring to Abraham’s God, for Genesis makes it clear that Abraham worshiped the one true God. It employs “god” when referring to Nahor’s god, for in the Hebrew text Laban refers to a different god here, probably one of the local deities.
501 tn Heb “by the fear of his father Isaac.” See the note on the word “fears” in v. 42.
502 tn The construction is a cognate accusative with the verb, expressing a specific sacrifice.
503 tn Heb “bread, food.” Presumably this was a type of peace offering, where the person bringing the offering ate the animal being sacrificed.
504 sn Beginning with 31:55, the verse numbers in the English Bible through 32:32 differ by one from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with 31:55 ET = 32:1 HT, 32:1 ET = 32:2 HT, etc., through 32:32 ET = 32:33 HT. From 33:1 the verse numbers in the ET and HT are again the same.
505 tn Heb “and Laban got up early in the morning and he kissed.”
506 tn Heb “his sons.”
507 tn Heb “to his place.”
508 sn The phrase angels of God occurs only here and in Gen 28:12 in the OT. Jacob saw a vision of angels just before he left the promised land. Now he encounters angels as he prepares to return to it. The text does not give the details of the encounter, but Jacob’s response suggests it was amicable. This location was a spot where heaven made contact with earth, and where God made his presence known to the patriarch. See C. Houtman, “Jacob at Mahanaim: Some Remarks on Genesis XXXII 2-3,” VT 28 (1978): 37-44.
509 tn Heb “and Jacob said when he saw them.”
510 sn The name Mahanaim apparently means “two camps.” Perhaps the two camps were those of God and of Jacob.
511 tn Heb “before him.”
512 tn Heb “field.”
513 sn Your servant. The narrative recounts Jacob’s groveling in fear before Esau as he calls his brother his “lord,” as if to minimize what had been done twenty years ago.
514 tn Or “I am sending.” The form is a preterite with the vav consecutive; it could be rendered as an English present tense – as the Hebrew perfect/preterite allows – much like an epistolary aorist in Greek. The form assumes the temporal perspective of the one who reads the message.
515 tn The words “this message” are not in the Hebrew text, but have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
516 tn Heb “If Esau comes to one camp and attacks it.”
517 tn Heb “and he said, ‘If Esau comes to one camp and attacks it.” The Hebrew verb אָמַר (’amar) here represents Jacob’s thought or reasoning, and is therefore translated “he thought.” The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.
518 tn Heb “the surviving camp will be for escape.” The word “escape” is a feminine noun. The term most often refers to refugees from war.
519 tn Heb “said.”
520 tn Heb “the one who said.”
521 tn Heb “I will cause good” or “I will treat well [or “favorably”].” The idea includes more than prosperity, though that is its essential meaning. Here the form is subordinated to the preceding imperative and indicates purpose or result. Jacob is reminding God of his promise in the hope that God will honor his word.
522 tn Heb “the loving deeds and faithfulness” (see 24:27, 49).
523 tn Heb “you have done with.”
524 tn Heb “for with my staff.” The Hebrew word מַקֵל (maqel), traditionally translated “staff,” has been rendered as “walking stick” because a “staff” in contemporary English refers typically to the support personnel in an organization.
525 tn Heb “this Jordan.”
526 tn The imperative has the force of a prayer here, not a command.
527 tn The “hand” here is a metonymy for “power.”
528 tn Heb “from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau.”
529 tn Heb “for I am afraid of him, lest he come.”
530 sn Heb “me, [the] mother upon [the] sons.” The first person pronoun “me” probably means here “me and mine,” as the following clause suggests.
531 tn Heb “But you, you said.” One of the occurrences of the pronoun “you” has been left untranslated for stylistic reasons.
532 tn Or “will certainly deal well with you.” The infinitive absolute appears before the imperfect, underscoring God’s promise to bless. The statement is more emphatic than in v. 9.
533 tn The form is the perfect tense with a vav (ו) consecutive, carrying the nuance of the preceding verb forward.
534 tn Heb “which cannot be counted because of abundance.” The imperfect verbal form indicates potential here.
535 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
536 tn Heb “and he took from that which was going into his hand,” meaning that he took some of what belonged to him.
537 sn The Hebrew noun translated gift can in some contexts refer to the tribute paid by a subject to his lord. Such a nuance is possible here, because Jacob refers to Esau as his lord and to himself as Esau’s servant (v. 4).
538 tn Heb “and he put them in the hand of.”
539 tn Heb “a herd, a herd, by itself,” or “each herd by itself.” The distributive sense is expressed by repetition.
540 tn Heb “the first”; this has been specified as “the servant leading the first herd” in the translation for clarity.
541 tn Heb “to whom are you?”
542 tn Heb “and to whom are these before you?”
543 tn The form is the perfect tense with the vav (ו) consecutive; it has the nuance of an imperfect of instruction.
544 tn The words “they belong” have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
545 tn Heb “to your servant, to Jacob.”
546 tn Heb “to my lord, to Esau.”
547 tn Heb “and look, also he [is] behind us.” The referent of the pronoun “he” (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
548 tn Heb “And he commanded also the second, also the third, also all the ones going after the herds, saying: ‘According to this word you will speak when you find him.’”
549 tn Heb “and look, your servant Jacob [is] behind us.”
550 tn Heb “for he said.” The referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity. The Hebrew word מַקֵל (maqel), traditionally represents Jacob’s thought or reasoning, and is therefore translated “thought.”
551 tn Heb “I will appease his face.” The cohortative here expresses Jacob’s resolve. In the Book of Leviticus the Hebrew verb translated “appease” has the idea of removing anger due to sin or guilt, a nuance that fits this passage very well. Jacob wanted to buy Esau off with a gift of more than five hundred and fifty animals.
552 tn Heb “with a gift going before me.”
553 tn Heb “I will see his face.”
554 tn Heb “Perhaps he will lift up my face.” In this context the idiom refers to acceptance.
555 tn Heb “and the gift passed over upon his face.”
556 tn The disjunctive clause is circumstantial/temporal.
557 tn Heb “and he arose in that night and he took.” The first verb is adverbial, indicating that he carried out the crossing right away.
558 tn The Hebrew term used here is יֶלֶד (yeled) which typically describes male offspring. Some translations render the term “children” but this is a problem because by this time Jacob had twelve children in all, including one daughter, Dinah, born to Leah (Gen 30:21). Benjamin, his twelfth son and thirteenth child, was not born until later (Gen 35:16-19).
559 sn Hebrew narrative style often includes a summary statement of the whole passage followed by a more detailed report of the event. Here v. 22 is the summary statement, while v. 23 begins the detailed account.
560 tn Heb “and he sent across what he had.”
561 sn Reflecting Jacob’s perspective at the beginning of the encounter, the narrator calls the opponent simply “a man.” Not until later in the struggle does Jacob realize his true identity.
562 sn The verb translated “wrestled” (וַיֵּאָבֵק, vayye’aveq) sounds in Hebrew like the names “Jacob” (יַעֲקֹב, ya’aqov) and “Jabbok” (יַבֹּק, yabboq). In this way the narrator links the setting, the main action, and the main participant together in the mind of the reader or hearer.
563 tn Heb “until the rising of the dawn.”
564 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the man) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
565 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
566 tn Or “injured”; traditionally “touched.” The Hebrew verb translated “struck” has the primary meanings “to touch; to reach; to strike.” It can, however, carry the connotation “to harm; to molest; to injure.” God’s “touch” cripples Jacob – it would be comparable to a devastating blow.
567 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the man) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
568 tn Heb “dawn has arisen.”
569 tn Heb “and he said, ‘I will not let you go.’” The referent of the pronoun “he” (Jacob) has been specified for clarity, and the order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.
570 sn Jacob wrestled with a man thinking him to be a mere man, and on that basis was equal to the task. But when it had gone on long enough, the night visitor touched Jacob and crippled him. Jacob’s request for a blessing can only mean that he now knew that his opponent was supernatural. Contrary to many allegorical interpretations of the passage that make fighting equivalent to prayer, this passage shows that Jacob stopped fighting, and then asked for a blessing.
571 tn Heb “and he said to him.” The referent of the pronoun “he” (the man who wrestled with Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
572 sn What is your name? The question is rhetorical, since the
573 tn Heb “and he said.” The referent of the pronoun “he” (the man who wrestled with Jacob) has been specified for clarity, and the order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.
574 sn The name Israel is a common construction, using a verb with a theophoric element (אֵל, ’el) that usually indicates the subject of the verb. Here it means “God fights.” This name will replace the name Jacob; it will be both a promise and a call for faith. In essence, the
575 sn You have fought. The explanation of the name Israel includes a sound play. In Hebrew the verb translated “you have fought” (שָׂרִיתָ, sarita) sounds like the name “Israel” (יִשְׂרָאֵל, yisra’el ), meaning “God fights” (although some interpret the meaning as “he fights [with] God”). The name would evoke the memory of the fight and what it meant. A. Dillmann says that ever after this the name would tell the Israelites that, when Jacob contended successfully with God, he won the battle with man (Genesis, 2:279). To be successful with God meant that he had to be crippled in his own self-sufficiency (A. P. Ross, “Jacob at the Jabboq, Israel at Peniel,” BSac 142 [1985]: 51-62).
576 sn Tell me your name. In primitive thought to know the name of a deity or supernatural being would enable one to use it for magical manipulation or power (A. S. Herbert, Genesis 12-50 [TBC], 108). For a thorough structural analysis of the passage discussing the plays on the names and the request of Jacob, see R. Barthes, “The Struggle with the Angel: Textual Analysis of Genesis 32:23-33,” Structural Analysis and Biblical Exegesis (PTMS), 21-33.
577 tn The question uses the enclitic pronoun “this” to emphasize the import of the question.
578 tn Heb “and he said, ‘Why is it that you ask my name?’” The referent of the pronoun “he” (the man who wrestled with Jacob) has been specified for clarity, and the order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.
579 tn The verb here means that the
580 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
581 sn The name Peniel means “face of God.” Since Jacob saw God face to face here, the name is appropriate.
582 tn The word “explaining” is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
583 tn Or “because.”
584 sn I have seen God face to face. See the note on the name “Peniel” earlier in the verse.
585 tn Heb “and my soul [= life] has been preserved.”
586 tn Heb “shone.”
587 sn The name is spelled Penuel here, apparently a variant spelling of Peniel (see v. 30).
588 tn The disjunctive clause draws attention to an important fact: He may have crossed the stream, but he was limping.
589 sn On the use of the expression to this day, see B. S. Childs, “A Study of the Formula ‘Until This Day’,” JBL 82 (1963): 279-92.
590 tn Or “because the socket of Jacob’s hip was struck.” Some translations render this as an impersonal passive. On the translation of the word “struck” see the note on this term in v. 25.
591 tn Heb “and Jacob lifted up his eyes.”
592 tn Or “and look, Esau was coming.” By the use of the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”), the narrator invites the reader to view the scene through Jacob’s eyes.
593 sn This kind of ranking according to favoritism no doubt fed the jealousy over Joseph that later becomes an important element in the narrative. It must have been painful to the family to see that they were expendable.
594 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
595 tn Heb “until his drawing near unto his brother.” The construction uses the preposition with the infinitive construct to express a temporal clause.
596 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Esau) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
597 tn Heb “lifted up his eyes.”
598 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
599 tn The Hebrew verb means “to be gracious; to show favor”; here it carries the nuance “to give graciously.”
600 tn Heb “and the female servants drew near, they and their children and they bowed down.”
601 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Esau) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
602 tn Heb “Who to you?”
603 tn Heb “all this camp which I met.”
604 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
605 tn Heb “and Jacob said, ‘No, please.’” The words “take them” have been supplied in the translation for clarity, and the order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse rearranged for stylistic reasons.
606 tn The form is the perfect tense with a vav (ו) consecutive, expressing a contingent future nuance in the “then” section of the conditional sentence.
607 tn The verbal form is the preterite with a vav (ו) consecutive, indicating result here.
608 tn Heb “for therefore I have seen your face like seeing the face of God and you have accepted me.”
609 tn Heb “blessing.” It is as if Jacob is trying to repay what he stole from his brother twenty years earlier.
610 tn Or “gracious,” but in the specific sense of prosperity.
611 tn Heb “all.”
612 tn Heb “and he urged him and he took.” The referent of the first pronoun in the sequence (“he”) has been specified as “Jacob” in the translation for clarity.
613 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Esau) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
614 tn Heb “let us travel and let us go.” The two cohortatives are used in combination with the sense, “let’s travel along, get going, be on our way.”
615 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
616 tn Heb “weak.”
617 tn Heb “and the sheep and the cattle nursing [are] upon me.”
618 tn Heb “and I, I will move along according to my leisure at the foot of the property which is before me and at the foot of the children.”
619 tn The cohortative verbal form here indicates a polite offer of help.
620 tn Heb “and he said, ‘Why this?’” The referent of the pronoun “he” (Jacob) has been specified for clarity, and the order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.
621 tn Heb “I am finding favor in the eyes of my lord.”
622 tn Heb “returned on his way.”
623 tn The disjunctive clause contrasts Jacob’s action with Esau’s.
624 sn But Jacob traveled to Succoth. There are several reasons why Jacob chose not to go to Mt. Seir after Esau. First, as he said, his herds and children probably could not keep up with the warriors. Second, he probably did not fully trust his brother. The current friendliness could change, and he could lose everything. And third, God did tell him to return to his land, not Seir. But Jacob is still not able to deal truthfully, probably because of fear of Esau.
625 tn Heb “why he called.” One could understand “Jacob” as the subject of the verb, but it is more likely that the subject is indefinite, in which case the verb is better translated as passive.
626 sn The name Succoth means “shelters,” an appropriate name in light of the shelters Jacob built there for his livestock.
627 tn Heb “in front of.”
628 tn The words “he bought it” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. In the Hebrew text v. 19 is one long sentence.
629 tn The Hebrew word קְשִׂיטָה (qÿsitah) is generally understood to refer to a unit of money, but the value is unknown. (However, cf. REB, which renders the term as “sheep”).
630 tn Heb “God, the God of Israel.” Rather than translating the name, a number of modern translations merely transliterate it from the Hebrew as “El Elohe Israel” (cf. NIV, NRSV, REB). It is not entirely clear how the name should be interpreted grammatically. One option is to supply an equative verb, as in the translation: “The God of Israel [is] God.” Another interpretive option is “the God of Israel [is] strong [or “mighty”].” Buying the land and settling down for a while was a momentous step for the patriarch, so the commemorative naming of the altar is significant.
631 sn The whole earth. Here “earth” is a metonymy of subject, referring to the people who lived in the earth. Genesis 11 begins with everyone speaking a common language, but chap. 10 has the nations arranged by languages. It is part of the narrative art of Genesis to give the explanation of the event after the narration of the event. On this passage see A. P. Ross, “The Dispersion of the Nations in Genesis 11:1-9,” BSac 138 (1981): 119-38.
632 tn Heb “one lip and one [set of] words.” The term “lip” is a metonymy of cause, putting the instrument for the intended effect. They had one language. The term “words” refers to the content of their speech. They had the same vocabulary.
633 tn The conditional particle εἰ (ei) together with καί (kai) here indicates a first class condition in Greek and carries a concessive force, especially when seen in contrast to the following phrase which begins with ἀλλά (alla).
634 tn Grk “rejoicing and seeing.”
635 tn The Greek word τάξις can mean “order,” “discipline,” or even “unbroken ranks” (REB).