Genesis 31:3

31:3 The Lord said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your fathers ¹  and to your relatives. I will be with you.” ² 

Genesis 31:13

31:13 I am the God of Bethel, ³  where you anointed ⁴  the sacred stone and made a vow to me. ⁵  Now leave this land immediately ⁶  and return to your native land.’”

Genesis 31:42

31:42 If the God of my father – the God of Abraham, the one whom Isaac fears ⁷  – 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, ⁸  and he rebuked you last night.”

Genesis 31:53

31:53 May the God of Abraham and the god of Nahor, ⁹  the gods of their father, judge between us.” Jacob took an oath by the God whom his father Isaac feared. ¹⁰ 

Genesis 32:9

32:9 Then Jacob prayed, ¹¹  “O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, O Lord, you said ¹²  to me, ‘Return to your land and to your relatives and I will make you prosper.’ ¹³ 

Genesis 48:15

48:15 Then he blessed Joseph and said,

“May the God before whom my fathers

Abraham and Isaac walked –

the God who has been my shepherd ¹⁴ 

all my life long to this day,

Genesis 50:17

50:17 ‘Tell Joseph this: Please forgive the sin of your brothers and the wrong they did when they treated you so badly.’ Now please forgive the sin of the servants of the God of your father.” When this message was reported to him, Joseph wept. ¹⁵ 

¹ tn Or perhaps “ancestors” (so NRSV), although the only “ancestors” Jacob had there were his grandfather Abraham and his father Isaac.

² sn I will be with you. Though Laban was no longer “with him,” the Lord promised to be.

³ map For location see Map4-G4; Map5-C1; Map6-E3; Map7-D1; Map8-G3.

⁴ 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 Lord as an anointing. Jacob had consecrated the place.

⁵ sn And made a vow to me. The second clause reminds Jacob of the vow he made to the Lord when he anointed the stone (Gen 28:20-22). God is now going to take him back to the land, and so he will have to fulfill his vow.

⁶ tn Heb “arise, leave!” The first imperative draws attention to the need for immediate action.

⁷ 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.

⁸ tn Heb “My oppression and the work of my hands God saw.”

⁹ 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.

¹⁰ tn Heb “by the fear of his father Isaac.” See the note on the word “fears” in v. 42.

¹¹ tn Heb “said.”

¹² tn Heb “the one who said.”

¹³ 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.

¹⁴ tn Heb “shepherded me.” The verb has been translated as an English noun for stylistic reasons.

¹⁵ tn Heb “and Joseph wept when they spoke to him.”