Genesis 27:1--33:20

Jacob Cheats Esau out of the Blessing

27:1 When ¹  Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he was almost blind, ²  he called his older ³  son Esau and said to him, “My son!” “Here I am!” Esau ⁴  replied. 27:2 Isaac ⁵  said, “Since ⁶  I am so old, I could die at any time. ⁷  27:3 Therefore, take your weapons – your quiver and your bow – and go out into the open fields and hunt down some wild game ⁸  for me. 27:4 Then prepare for me some tasty food, the kind I love, and bring it to me. Then ⁹  I will eat it so that I may bless you ¹⁰  before I die.”

27:5 Now Rebekah had been listening while Isaac spoke to his son Esau. ¹¹  When Esau went out to the open fields to hunt down some wild game and bring it back, ¹²  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 ¹³  it and bless you ¹⁴  in the presence of the Lord ¹⁵  before I die.’ 27:8 Now then, my son, do ¹⁶  exactly what I tell you! ¹⁷  27:9 Go to the flock and get me two of the best young goats. I’ll prepare ¹⁸  them in a tasty way for your father, just the way he loves them. 27:10 Then you will take ¹⁹  it to your father. Thus he will eat it ²⁰  and ²¹  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! ²²  27:12 My father may touch me! Then he’ll think I’m mocking him ²³  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, ²⁴  my son! Just obey me! ²⁵  Go and get them for me!”

27:14 So he went and got the goats ²⁶  and brought them to his mother. She ²⁷  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 ²⁸  on his hands ²⁹  and the smooth part of his neck. 27:17 Then she handed ³⁰  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 ³¹  replied, “Here I am. Which are you, my son?” ³²  27:19 Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau, your firstborn. I’ve done as you told me. Now sit up ³³  and eat some of my wild game so that you can bless me.” ³⁴  27:20 But Isaac asked his son, “How in the world ³⁵  did you find it so quickly, ³⁶  my son?” “Because the Lord your God brought it to me,” ³⁷  he replied. ³⁸  27:21 Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Come closer so I can touch you, ³⁹  my son, and know for certain if you really are my son Esau.” ⁴⁰  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. ⁴¹  27:24 Then he asked, “Are you really my son Esau?” “I am,” Jacob ⁴²  replied. 27:25 Isaac ⁴³  said, “Bring some of the wild game for me to eat, my son. ⁴⁴  Then I will bless you.” ⁴⁵  So Jacob ⁴⁶  brought it to him, and he ate it. He also brought him wine, and Isaac ⁴⁷  drank. 27:26 Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come here and kiss me, my son.” 27:27 So Jacob ⁴⁸  went over and kissed him. When Isaac caught the scent ⁴⁹  of his clothing, he blessed him, saying,

“Yes, ⁵⁰  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 ⁵¹ 

and the richness ⁵²  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 ⁵³  lord ⁵⁴  over your brothers,

and the sons of your mother will bow down to you. ⁵⁵ 

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 ⁵⁶  his father’s ⁵⁷  presence, when his brother Esau returned from the hunt. ⁵⁸  27:31 He also prepared some tasty food and brought it to his father. Esau ⁵⁹  said to him, “My father, get up ⁶⁰  and eat some of your son’s wild game. Then you can bless me.” ⁶¹  27:32 His father Isaac asked, ⁶²  “Who are you?” “I am your firstborn son,” ⁶³  he replied, “Esau!” 27:33 Isaac began to shake violently ⁶⁴  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. ⁶⁵  He will indeed be blessed!”

27:34 When Esau heard ⁶⁶  his father’s words, he wailed loudly and bitterly. ⁶⁷  He said to his father, “Bless me too, my father!” 27:35 But Isaac ⁶⁸  replied, “Your brother came in here deceitfully and took away ⁶⁹  your blessing.” 27:36 Esau exclaimed, “‘Jacob’ is the right name for him! ⁷⁰  He has tripped me up ⁷¹  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!” ⁷²  Then Esau wept loudly. ⁷³ 

27:39 So his father Isaac said to him,

“Indeed, ⁷⁴  your home will be

away from the richness ⁷⁵  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.” ⁷⁶ 

27:41 So Esau hated ⁷⁷  Jacob because of the blessing his father had given to his brother. ⁷⁸  Esau said privately, ⁷⁹  “The time ⁸⁰  of mourning for my father is near; then I will kill ⁸¹  my brother Jacob!”

27:42 When Rebekah heard what her older son Esau had said, ⁸²  she quickly summoned ⁸³  her younger son Jacob and told him, “Look, your brother Esau is planning to get revenge by killing you. ⁸⁴  27:43 Now then, my son, do what I say. ⁸⁵  Run away immediately ⁸⁶  to my brother Laban in Haran. 27:44 Live with him for a little while ⁸⁷  until your brother’s rage subsides. 27:45 Stay there ⁸⁸  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. ⁸⁹  Why should I lose both of you in one day?” ⁹⁰ 

27:46 Then Rebekah said to Isaac, “I am deeply depressed ⁹¹  because of these daughters of Heth. ⁹²  If Jacob were to marry one of these daughters of Heth who live in this land, I would want to die!” ⁹³ 

28:1 So Isaac called for Jacob and blessed him. Then he commanded him, “You must not marry a Canaanite woman! ⁹⁴  28:2 Leave immediately ⁹⁵  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 ⁹⁶  bless you! May he make you fruitful and give you a multitude of descendants! ⁹⁷  Then you will become ⁹⁸  a large nation. ⁹⁹  28:4 May he give you and your descendants the blessing he gave to Abraham ¹⁰⁰  so that you may possess the land ¹⁰¹  God gave to Abraham, the land where you have been living as a temporary resident.” ¹⁰²  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. ¹⁰³  As he blessed him, ¹⁰⁴  Isaac commanded him, “You must not marry a Canaanite woman.” ¹⁰⁵  28:7 Jacob obeyed his father and mother and left for Paddan Aram. 28:8 Then Esau realized ¹⁰⁶  that the Canaanite women ¹⁰⁷  were displeasing to ¹⁰⁸  his father Isaac. 28:9 So Esau went to Ishmael and married ¹⁰⁹  Mahalath, the sister of Nebaioth and daughter of Abraham’s son Ishmael, along with the wives he already had.

Jacob’s Dream at Bethel

28:10 Meanwhile Jacob left Beer Sheba and set out for Haran. 28:11 He reached a certain place ¹¹⁰  where he decided to camp because the sun had gone down. ¹¹¹  He took one of the stones ¹¹²  and placed it near his head. ¹¹³  Then he fell asleep ¹¹⁴  in that place 28:12 and had a dream. ¹¹⁵  He saw ¹¹⁶  a stairway ¹¹⁷  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. ¹¹⁸  I will give you and your descendants the ground ¹¹⁹  you are lying on. 28:14 Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, ¹²⁰  and you will spread out ¹²¹  to the west, east, north, and south. All the families of the earth will pronounce blessings on one another ¹²²  using your name and that of your descendants. ¹²³  28:15 I am with you! ¹²⁴  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 ¹²⁵  and thought, ¹²⁶  “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 ¹²⁷  in the morning Jacob ¹²⁸  took the stone he had placed near his head ¹²⁹  and set it up as a sacred stone. ¹³⁰  Then he poured oil on top of it. 28:19 He called that place Bethel, ¹³¹  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 ¹³²  to eat and clothing to wear, 28:21 and I return safely to my father’s home, ¹³³  then the Lord will become my God. 28:22 Then this stone ¹³⁴  that I have set up as a sacred stone will be the house of God, and I will surely ¹³⁵  give you back a tenth of everything you give me.” ¹³⁶ 

The Marriages of Jacob

29:1 So Jacob moved on ¹³⁷  and came to the land of the eastern people. ¹³⁸  29:2 He saw ¹³⁹  in the field a well with ¹⁴⁰  three flocks of sheep lying beside it, because the flocks were watered from that well. Now ¹⁴¹  a large stone covered the mouth of the well. 29:3 When all the flocks were gathered there, the shepherds ¹⁴²  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 ¹⁴³  of Nahor?” “We know him,” ¹⁴⁴  they said. 29:6 “Is he well?” ¹⁴⁵  Jacob asked. They replied, “He is well. ¹⁴⁶  Now look, here comes his daughter Rachel with the sheep.” 29:7 Then Jacob ¹⁴⁷  said, “Since it is still the middle of the day, ¹⁴⁸  it is not time for the flocks to be gathered. You should water the sheep and then go and let them graze some more.” ¹⁴⁹  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 ¹⁵⁰  the sheep.”

29:9 While he was still speaking with them, Rachel arrived with her father’s sheep, for she was tending them. ¹⁵¹  29:10 When Jacob saw Rachel, the daughter of his uncle Laban, ¹⁵²  and the sheep of his uncle Laban, he ¹⁵³  went over ¹⁵⁴  and rolled the stone off the mouth of the well and watered the sheep of his uncle Laban. ¹⁵⁵  29:11 Then Jacob kissed Rachel and began to weep loudly. ¹⁵⁶  29:12 When Jacob explained ¹⁵⁷  to Rachel that he was a relative of her father ¹⁵⁸  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 ¹⁵⁹  told Laban how he was related to him. ¹⁶⁰  29:14 Then Laban said to him, “You are indeed my own flesh and blood.” ¹⁶¹  So Jacob ¹⁶²  stayed with him for a month. ¹⁶³ 

29:15 Then Laban said to Jacob, “Should you work ¹⁶⁴  for me for nothing because you are my relative? ¹⁶⁵  Tell me what your wages should be.” 29:16 (Now Laban had two daughters; ¹⁶⁶  the older one was named Leah, and the younger one Rachel. 29:17 Leah’s eyes were tender, ¹⁶⁷  but Rachel had a lovely figure and beautiful appearance.) ¹⁶⁸  29:18 Since Jacob had fallen in love with ¹⁶⁹  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. ¹⁷⁰  Stay with me.” 29:20 So Jacob worked for seven years to acquire Rachel. ¹⁷¹  But they seemed like only a few days to him ¹⁷²  because his love for her was so great. ¹⁷³ 

29:21 Finally Jacob said ¹⁷⁴  to Laban, “Give me my wife, for my time of service is up. ¹⁷⁵  I want to have marital relations with her.” ¹⁷⁶  29:22 So Laban invited all the people ¹⁷⁷  of that place and prepared a feast. 29:23 In the evening he brought his daughter Leah ¹⁷⁸  to Jacob, ¹⁷⁹  and Jacob ¹⁸⁰  had marital relations with her. ¹⁸¹  29:24 (Laban gave his female servant Zilpah to his daughter Leah to be her servant.) ¹⁸² 

29:25 In the morning Jacob discovered it was Leah! ¹⁸³  So Jacob ¹⁸⁴  said to Laban, “What in the world have you done to me! ¹⁸⁵  Didn’t I work for you in exchange for Rachel? Why have you tricked ¹⁸⁶  me?” 29:26 “It is not our custom here,” ¹⁸⁷  Laban replied, “to give the younger daughter in marriage ¹⁸⁸  before the firstborn. 29:27 Complete my older daughter’s bridal week. ¹⁸⁹  Then we will give you the younger one ¹⁹⁰  too, in exchange for seven more years of work.” ¹⁹¹ 

29:28 Jacob did as Laban said. ¹⁹²  When Jacob ¹⁹³  completed Leah’s bridal week, ¹⁹⁴  Laban gave him his daughter Rachel to be his wife. ¹⁹⁵  29:29 (Laban gave his female servant Bilhah to his daughter Rachel to be her servant.) ¹⁹⁶  29:30 Jacob ¹⁹⁷  had marital relations ¹⁹⁸  with Rachel as well. He loved Rachel more than Leah, so he worked for Laban ¹⁹⁹  for seven more years. ²⁰⁰ 

The Family of Jacob

29:31 When the Lord saw that Leah was unloved, ²⁰¹  he enabled her to become pregnant ²⁰²  while Rachel remained childless. 29:32 So Leah became pregnant ²⁰³  and gave birth to a son. She named him Reuben, ²⁰⁴  for she said, “The Lord has looked with pity on my oppressed condition. ²⁰⁵  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, ²⁰⁶  he gave me this one too.” So she named him Simeon. ²⁰⁷ 

29:34 She became pregnant again and had another son. She said, “Now this time my husband will show me affection, ²⁰⁸  because I have given birth to three sons for him.” That is why he was named Levi. ²⁰⁹ 

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. ²¹⁰  Then she stopped having children.

30:1 When Rachel saw that she could not give Jacob children, she ²¹¹  became jealous of her sister. She said to Jacob, “Give me children ²¹²  or I’ll die!” 30:2 Jacob became furious ²¹³  with Rachel and exclaimed, “Am I in the place of God, who has kept you from having children?” ²¹⁴  30:3 She replied, “Here is my servant Bilhah! Have sexual relations with ²¹⁵  her so that she can bear ²¹⁶  children ²¹⁷  for me ²¹⁸  and I can have a family through her.” ²¹⁹ 

30:4 So Rachel ²²⁰  gave him her servant Bilhah as a wife, and Jacob had marital relations with ²²¹  her. 30:5 Bilhah became pregnant ²²²  and gave Jacob a son. ²²³  30:6 Then Rachel said, “God has vindicated me. He has responded to my prayer ²²⁴  and given me a son.” That is why ²²⁵  she named him Dan. ²²⁶ 

30:7 Bilhah, Rachel’s servant, became pregnant again and gave Jacob another son. ²²⁷  30:8 Then Rachel said, “I have fought a desperate struggle with my sister, but I have won.” ²²⁸  So she named him Naphtali. ²²⁹ 

30:9 When Leah saw that she had stopped having children, she gave ²³⁰  her servant Zilpah to Jacob as a wife. 30:10 Soon Leah’s servant Zilpah gave Jacob a son. ²³¹  30:11 Leah said, “How fortunate!” ²³²  So she named him Gad. ²³³ 

30:12 Then Leah’s servant Zilpah gave Jacob another son. ²³⁴  30:13 Leah said, “How happy I am, ²³⁵  for women ²³⁶  will call me happy!” So she named him Asher. ²³⁷ 

30:14 At the time ²³⁸  of the wheat harvest Reuben went out and found some mandrake plants ²³⁹  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, ²⁴⁰  “Wasn’t it enough that you’ve taken away my husband? Would you take away my son’s mandrakes too?” “All right,” ²⁴¹  Rachel said, “he may sleep ²⁴²  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 ²⁴³  with me because I have paid for your services ²⁴⁴  with my son’s mandrakes.” So he had marital relations ²⁴⁵  with her that night. 30:17 God paid attention ²⁴⁶  to Leah; she became pregnant ²⁴⁷  and gave Jacob a son for the fifth time. ²⁴⁸  30:18 Then Leah said, “God has granted me a reward ²⁴⁹  because I gave my servant to my husband as a wife.” ²⁵⁰  So she named him Issachar. ²⁵¹ 

30:19 Leah became pregnant again and gave Jacob a son for the sixth time. ²⁵²  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. ²⁵³ 

30:21 After that she gave birth to a daughter and named her Dinah.

30:22 Then God took note of ²⁵⁴  Rachel. He paid attention to her and enabled her to become pregnant. ²⁵⁵  30:23 She became pregnant ²⁵⁶  and gave birth to a son. Then she said, “God has taken away my shame.” ²⁵⁷  30:24 She named him Joseph, ²⁵⁸  saying, “May the Lord give me yet another son.”

The Flocks of Jacob

30:25 After Rachel had given birth ²⁵⁹  to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Send ²⁶⁰  me on my way so that I can go ²⁶¹  home to my own country. ²⁶²  30:26 Let me take my wives and my children whom I have acquired by working for you. ²⁶³  Then I’ll depart, ²⁶⁴  because you know how hard I’ve worked for you.” ²⁶⁵ 

30:27 But Laban said to him, “If I have found favor in your sight, please stay here, ²⁶⁶  for I have learned by divination ²⁶⁷  that the Lord has blessed me on account of you.” 30:28 He added, “Just name your wages – I’ll pay whatever you want.” ²⁶⁸ 

30:29 “You know how I have worked for you,” Jacob replied, ²⁶⁹  “and how well your livestock have fared under my care. ²⁷⁰  30:30 Indeed, ²⁷¹  you had little before I arrived, ²⁷²  but now your possessions have increased many times over. ²⁷³  The Lord has blessed you wherever I worked. ²⁷⁴  But now, how long must it be before I do something for my own family too?” ²⁷⁵ 

30:31 So Laban asked, ²⁷⁶  “What should I give you?” “You don’t need to give me a thing,” ²⁷⁷  Jacob replied, ²⁷⁸  “but if you agree to this one condition, ²⁷⁹  I will continue to care for ²⁸⁰  your flocks and protect them: 30:32 Let me walk among ²⁸¹  all your flocks today and remove from them every speckled or spotted sheep, every dark-colored lamb, ²⁸²  and the spotted or speckled goats. ²⁸³  These animals will be my wages. ²⁸⁴  30:33 My integrity will testify for me ²⁸⁵  later on. ²⁸⁶  When you come to verify that I’ve taken only the wages we agreed on, ²⁸⁷  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.” ²⁸⁸  30:34 “Agreed!” said Laban, “It will be as you say.” ²⁸⁹ 

30:35 So that day Laban ²⁹⁰  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 ²⁹¹  of his sons. 30:36 Then he separated them from Jacob by a three-day journey, ²⁹²  while ²⁹³  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. ²⁹⁴  30:39 When the sheep mated ²⁹⁵  in front of the branches, they ²⁹⁶  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 ²⁹⁷  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, ²⁹⁸  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. ²⁹⁹  So the weaker animals ended up belonging to Laban ³⁰⁰  and the stronger animals to Jacob. 30:43 In this way Jacob ³⁰¹  became extremely prosperous. He owned ³⁰²  large flocks, male and female servants, camels, and donkeys.

Jacob’s Flight from Laban

31:1 Jacob heard that Laban’s sons were complaining, ³⁰³  “Jacob has taken everything that belonged to our father! He has gotten rich ³⁰⁴  at our father’s expense!” ³⁰⁵  31:2 When Jacob saw the look on Laban’s face, he could tell his attitude toward him had changed. ³⁰⁶ 

31:3 The Lord said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your fathers ³⁰⁷  and to your relatives. I will be with you.” ³⁰⁸  31:4 So Jacob sent a message for Rachel and Leah ³⁰⁹  to come to the field ³¹⁰  where his flocks were. ³¹¹  31:5 There he said to them, “I can tell that your father’s attitude toward me has changed, ³¹²  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, ³¹³  31:7 but your father has humiliated ³¹⁴  me and changed my wages ten times. But God has not permitted him to do me any harm. 31:8 If he said, ³¹⁵  ‘The speckled animals ³¹⁶  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 ³¹⁷  during breeding season I saw ³¹⁸  in a dream that the male goats mating with ³¹⁹  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 ³²⁰  that all the male goats mating with ³²¹  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, ³²²  where you anointed ³²³  the sacred stone and made a vow to me. ³²⁴  Now leave this land immediately ³²⁵  and return to your native land.’”

31:14 Then Rachel and Leah replied to him, “Do we still have any portion or inheritance ³²⁶  in our father’s house? 31:15 Hasn’t he treated us like foreigners? He not only sold us, but completely wasted ³²⁷  the money paid for us! ³²⁸  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. ³²⁹  31:18 He took ³³⁰  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. ³³¹ 

31:19 While Laban had gone to shear his sheep, ³³²  Rachel stole the household idols ³³³  that belonged to her father. 31:20 Jacob also deceived ³³⁴  Laban the Aramean by not telling him that he was leaving. ³³⁵  31:21 He left ³³⁶  with all he owned. He quickly crossed ³³⁷  the Euphrates River ³³⁸  and headed for ³³⁹  the hill country of Gilead.

31:22 Three days later Laban discovered Jacob had left. ³⁴⁰  31:23 So he took his relatives ³⁴¹  with him and pursued Jacob ³⁴²  for seven days. ³⁴³  He caught up with ³⁴⁴  him in the hill country of Gilead. 31:24 But God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream at night and warned him, ³⁴⁵  “Be careful ³⁴⁶  that you neither bless nor curse Jacob.” ³⁴⁷ 

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. ³⁴⁸  31:26 “What have you done?” Laban demanded of Jacob. “You’ve deceived me ³⁴⁹  and carried away my daughters as if they were captives of war! ³⁵⁰  31:27 Why did you run away secretly ³⁵¹  and deceive me? ³⁵²  Why didn’t you tell me so I could send you off with a celebration complete with singing, tambourines, and harps? ³⁵³  31:28 You didn’t even allow me to kiss my daughters and my grandchildren ³⁵⁴  good-bye. You have acted foolishly! 31:29 I have ³⁵⁵  the power to do you harm, but the God of your father told me last night, ‘Be careful ³⁵⁶  that you neither bless nor curse Jacob.’ ³⁵⁷  31:30 Now I understand that ³⁵⁸  you have gone away ³⁵⁹  because you longed desperately ³⁶⁰  for your father’s house. Yet why did you steal my gods?” ³⁶¹ 

31:31 “I left secretly because I was afraid!” ³⁶²  Jacob replied to Laban. “I thought ³⁶³  you might take your daughters away from me by force. ³⁶⁴  31:32 Whoever has taken your gods will be put to death! ³⁶⁵  In the presence of our relatives ³⁶⁶  identify whatever is yours and take it.” ³⁶⁷  (Now Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen them.) ³⁶⁸ 

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. ³⁶⁹  Then he left Leah’s tent and entered Rachel’s. ³⁷⁰  31:34 (Now Rachel had taken the idols and put them inside her camel’s saddle ³⁷¹  and sat on them.) ³⁷²  Laban searched the whole tent, but did not find them. ³⁷³  31:35 Rachel ³⁷⁴  said to her father, “Don’t be angry, ³⁷⁵  my lord. I cannot stand up ³⁷⁶  in your presence because I am having my period.” ³⁷⁷  So he searched thoroughly, ³⁷⁸  but did not find the idols.

31:36 Jacob became angry ³⁷⁹  and argued with Laban. “What did I do wrong?” he demanded of Laban. ³⁸⁰  “What sin of mine prompted you to chase after me in hot pursuit? ³⁸¹  31:37 When you searched through all my goods, did you find anything that belonged to you? ³⁸²  Set it here before my relatives and yours, ³⁸³  and let them settle the dispute between the two of us! ³⁸⁴ 

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. ³⁸⁵  You always made me pay for every missing animal, ³⁸⁶  whether it was taken by day or at night. 31:40 I was consumed by scorching heat ³⁸⁷  during the day and by piercing cold ³⁸⁸  at night, and I went without sleep. ³⁸⁹  31:41 This was my lot ³⁹⁰  for twenty years in your house: I worked like a slave ³⁹¹  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 ³⁹²  – 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, ³⁹³  and he rebuked you last night.”

31:43 Laban replied ³⁹⁴  to Jacob, “These women ³⁹⁵  are my daughters, these children are my grandchildren, ³⁹⁶  and these flocks are my flocks. All that you see belongs to me. But how can I harm these daughters of mine today ³⁹⁷  or the children to whom they have given birth? 31:44 So now, come, let’s make a formal agreement, ³⁹⁸  you and I, and it will be ³⁹⁹  proof that we have made peace.” ⁴⁰⁰ 

31:45 So Jacob took a stone and set it up as a memorial pillar. 31:46 Then he ⁴⁰¹  said to his relatives, “Gather stones.” So they brought stones and put them in a pile. ⁴⁰²  They ate there by the pile of stones. 31:47 Laban called it Jegar Sahadutha, ⁴⁰³  but Jacob called it Galeed. ⁴⁰⁴ 

31:48 Laban said, “This pile of stones is a witness of our agreement ⁴⁰⁵  today.” That is why it was called Galeed. 31:49 It was also called Mizpah ⁴⁰⁶  because he said, “May the Lord watch ⁴⁰⁷  between us ⁴⁰⁸  when we are out of sight of one another. ⁴⁰⁹  31:50 If you mistreat my daughters or if you take wives besides my daughters, although no one else is with us, realize ⁴¹⁰  that God is witness to your actions.” ⁴¹¹ 

31:51 “Here is this pile of stones and this pillar I have set up between me and you,” Laban said to Jacob. ⁴¹²  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. ⁴¹³  31:53 May the God of Abraham and the god of Nahor, ⁴¹⁴  the gods of their father, judge between us.” Jacob took an oath by the God whom his father Isaac feared. ⁴¹⁵  31:54 Then Jacob offered a sacrifice ⁴¹⁶  on the mountain and invited his relatives to eat the meal. ⁴¹⁷  They ate the meal and spent the night on the mountain.

31:55 (32:1) ⁴¹⁸  Early in the morning Laban kissed ⁴¹⁹  his grandchildren ⁴²⁰  and his daughters goodbye and blessed them. Then Laban left and returned home. ⁴²¹ 

Jacob Wrestles at Peniel

32:1 So Jacob went on his way and the angels of God ⁴²²  met him. 32:2 When Jacob saw them, he exclaimed, ⁴²³  “This is the camp of God!” So he named that place Mahanaim. ⁴²⁴ 

32:3 Jacob sent messengers on ahead ⁴²⁵  to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the region ⁴²⁶  of Edom. 32:4 He commanded them, “This is what you must say to my lord Esau: ‘This is what your servant ⁴²⁷  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 ⁴²⁸  this message ⁴²⁹  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,” ⁴³⁰  he thought, ⁴³¹  “then the other camp will be able to escape.” ⁴³² 

32:9 Then Jacob prayed, ⁴³³  “O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, O Lord, you said ⁴³⁴  to me, ‘Return to your land and to your relatives and I will make you prosper.’ ⁴³⁵  32:10 I am not worthy of all the faithful love ⁴³⁶  you have shown ⁴³⁷  your servant. With only my walking stick ⁴³⁸  I crossed the Jordan, ⁴³⁹  but now I have become two camps. 32:11 Rescue me, ⁴⁴⁰  I pray, from the hand ⁴⁴¹  of my brother Esau, ⁴⁴²  for I am afraid he will come ⁴⁴³  and attack me, as well as the mothers with their children. ⁴⁴⁴  32:12 But you ⁴⁴⁵  said, ‘I will certainly make you prosper ⁴⁴⁶  and will make ⁴⁴⁷  your descendants like the sand on the seashore, too numerous to count.’” ⁴⁴⁸ 

32:13 Jacob ⁴⁴⁹  stayed there that night. Then he sent ⁴⁵⁰  as a gift ⁴⁵¹  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 ⁴⁵²  his servants, who divided them into herds. ⁴⁵³  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, ⁴⁵⁴  “When my brother Esau meets you and asks, ‘To whom do you belong? ⁴⁵⁵  Where are you going? Whose herds are you driving?’ ⁴⁵⁶  32:18 then you must say, ⁴⁵⁷  ‘They belong ⁴⁵⁸  to your servant Jacob. ⁴⁵⁹  They have been sent as a gift to my lord Esau. ⁴⁶⁰  In fact Jacob himself is behind us.’” ⁴⁶¹ 

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. ⁴⁶²  32:20 You must also say, ‘In fact your servant Jacob is behind us.’” ⁴⁶³  Jacob thought, ⁴⁶⁴  “I will first appease him ⁴⁶⁵  by sending a gift ahead of me. ⁴⁶⁶  After that I will meet him. ⁴⁶⁷  Perhaps he will accept me.” ⁴⁶⁸  32:21 So the gifts were sent on ahead of him ⁴⁶⁹  while he spent that night in the camp. ⁴⁷⁰ 

32:22 During the night Jacob quickly took ⁴⁷¹  his two wives, his two female servants, and his eleven sons ⁴⁷²  and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. ⁴⁷³  32:23 He took them and sent them across the stream along with all his possessions. ⁴⁷⁴  32:24 So Jacob was left alone. Then a man ⁴⁷⁵  wrestled ⁴⁷⁶  with him until daybreak. ⁴⁷⁷  32:25 When the man ⁴⁷⁸  saw that he could not defeat Jacob, ⁴⁷⁹  he struck ⁴⁸⁰  the socket of his hip so the socket of Jacob’s hip was dislocated while he wrestled with him.

32:26 Then the man ⁴⁸¹  said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking.” ⁴⁸²  “I will not let you go,” Jacob replied, ⁴⁸³  “unless you bless me.” ⁴⁸⁴  32:27 The man asked him, ⁴⁸⁵  “What is your name?” ⁴⁸⁶  He answered, “Jacob.” 32:28 “No longer will your name be Jacob,” the man told him, ⁴⁸⁷  “but Israel, ⁴⁸⁸  because you have fought ⁴⁸⁹  with God and with men and have prevailed.”

32:29 Then Jacob asked, “Please tell me your name.” ⁴⁹⁰  “Why ⁴⁹¹  do you ask my name?” the man replied. ⁴⁹²  Then he blessed ⁴⁹³  Jacob ⁴⁹⁴  there. 32:30 So Jacob named the place Peniel, ⁴⁹⁵  explaining, ⁴⁹⁶  “Certainly ⁴⁹⁷  I have seen God face to face ⁴⁹⁸  and have survived.” ⁴⁹⁹ 

32:31 The sun rose ⁵⁰⁰  over him as he crossed over Penuel, ⁵⁰¹  but ⁵⁰²  he was limping because of his hip. 32:32 That is why to this day ⁵⁰³  the Israelites do not eat the sinew which is attached to the socket of the hip, because he struck ⁵⁰⁴  the socket of Jacob’s hip near the attached sinew.

Jacob Meets Esau

33:1 Jacob looked up ⁵⁰⁵  and saw that Esau was coming ⁵⁰⁶  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. ⁵⁰⁷  33:3 But Jacob ⁵⁰⁸  himself went on ahead of them, and he bowed toward the ground seven times as he approached ⁵⁰⁹  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 ⁵¹⁰  looked up ⁵¹¹  and saw the women and the children, he asked, “Who are these people with you?” Jacob ⁵¹²  replied, “The children whom God has graciously given ⁵¹³  your servant.” 33:6 The female servants came forward with their children and bowed down. ⁵¹⁴  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 ⁵¹⁵  then asked, “What did you intend ⁵¹⁶  by sending all these herds to meet me?” ⁵¹⁷  Jacob ⁵¹⁸  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. ⁵¹⁹  “If I have found favor in your sight, accept ⁵²⁰  my gift from my hand. Now that I have seen your face and you have accepted me, ⁵²¹  it is as if I have seen the face of God. ⁵²²  33:11 Please take my present ⁵²³  that was brought to you, for God has been generous ⁵²⁴  to me and I have all I need.” ⁵²⁵  When Jacob urged him, he took it. ⁵²⁶ 

33:12 Then Esau ⁵²⁷  said, “Let’s be on our way! ⁵²⁸  I will go in front of you.” 33:13 But Jacob ⁵²⁹  said to him, “My lord knows that the children are young, ⁵³⁰  and that I have to look after the sheep and cattle that are nursing their young. ⁵³¹  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, ⁵³²  until I come to my lord at Seir.”

33:15 So Esau said, “Let me leave some of my men with you.” ⁵³³  “Why do that?” Jacob replied. ⁵³⁴  “My lord has already been kind enough to me.” ⁵³⁵ 

33:16 So that same day Esau made his way back ⁵³⁶  to Seir. 33:17 But ⁵³⁷  Jacob traveled to Succoth ⁵³⁸  where he built himself a house and made shelters for his livestock. That is why the place was called ⁵³⁹  Succoth. ⁵⁴⁰ 

33:18 After he left Paddan Aram, Jacob came safely to the city of Shechem in the land of Canaan, and he camped near ⁵⁴¹  the city. 33:19 Then he purchased the portion of the field where he had pitched his tent; he bought it ⁵⁴²  from the sons of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for a hundred pieces of money. ⁵⁴³  33:20 There he set up an altar and called it “The God of Israel is God.” ⁵⁴⁴ 

[27:1]  ¹ tn The clause begins with the temporal indicator (“and it happened”), making it subordinate to the main clause that follows later in the sentence.

[27:1]  ² tn Heb “and his eyes were weak from seeing.”

[27:1]  ³ tn Heb “greater” (in terms of age).

[27:1]  ⁴ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Esau) is specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:2]  ⁵ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Isaac) is specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:2]  ⁶ tn The particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”) here introduces a logically foundational statement, upon which the coming instruction will be based.

[27:2]  ⁷ tn Heb “I do not know the day of my death.”

[27:3]  ⁸ 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”).

[27:4]  ⁹ tn Following the imperative, the cohortative (with the prefixed conjunction) indicates purpose or result.

[27:4]  ¹⁰ 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.

[27:5]  ¹¹ tn The disjunctive clause (introduced by a conjunction with the subject, followed by the predicate) here introduces a new scene in the story.

[27:5]  ¹² tc The LXX adds here “to his father,” which may have been accidentally omitted in the MT.

[27:7]  ¹³ tn Following the imperative, the cohortative (with the prefixed conjunction) indicates purpose or result.

[27:7]  ¹⁴ tn The cohortative, with the prefixed conjunction, also expresses logical sequence. See vv. 4, 19, 27.

[27:7]  ¹⁵ 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 Lord,” she stresses how serious this matter is.

[27:8]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “listen to my voice.” The Hebrew idiom means “to comply; to obey.”

[27:8]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “to that which I am commanding you.”

[27:9]  ¹⁸ tn Following the imperative, the cohortative (with the prefixed conjunction) indicates purpose or result.

[27:10]  ¹⁹ 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.

[27:10]  ²⁰ 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.

[27:10]  ²¹ tn Heb “so that.” The conjunction indicates purpose or result.

[27:11]  ²² 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.

[27:12]  ²³ 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.”

[27:13]  ²⁴ tn Heb “upon me your curse.”

[27:13]  ²⁵ tn Heb “only listen to my voice.”

[27:14]  ²⁶ tn The words “the goats” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[27:14]  ²⁷ tn Heb “his mother.” This has been replaced by the pronoun “she” in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[27:16]  ²⁸ 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.

[27:16]  ²⁹ 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.”

[27:17]  ³⁰ tn Heb “gave…into the hand of.”

[27:18]  ³¹ tn Heb “and he said”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:18]  ³² 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.

[27:19]  ³³ 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.

[27:19]  ³⁴ 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.

[27:20]  ³⁵ 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?”

[27:20]  ³⁶ tn Heb “you hastened to find.” In translation the infinitive becomes the main verb and the first verb becomes adverbial.

[27:20]  ³⁷ tn Heb “caused to meet before me.”

[27:20]  ³⁸ tn Heb “and he said, ‘Because the Lord your God….’” The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[27:21]  ³⁹ tn Following the imperative, the cohortative (with prefixed conjunction) indicates purpose or result.

[27:21]  ⁴⁰ 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.

[27:23]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “and he blessed him.” The referents of the pronouns “he” (Isaac) and “him” (Jacob) have been specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:24]  ⁴² tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:25]  ⁴³ tn Heb “and he said”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:25]  ⁴⁴ 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.

[27:25]  ⁴⁵ 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.

[27:25]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “and he brought”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:25]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “and he drank”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:27]  ⁴⁸ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:27]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “and he smelled the smell”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:27]  ⁵⁰ tn Heb “see.”

[27:28]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “and from the dew of the sky.”

[27:28]  ⁵² tn Heb “and from the fatness.”

[27:29]  ⁵³ 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.

[27:29]  ⁵⁴ 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.”

[27:29]  ⁵⁵ tn Following the imperative, the prefixed verbal form (which is either an imperfect or a jussive) with the prefixed conjunction indicates purpose or result.

[27:30]  ⁵⁶ tn The use of the infinitive absolute before the finite form of the verb makes the construction emphatic.

[27:30]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “the presence of Isaac his father.” The repetition of the proper name (“Isaac”) was

[27:30]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “and Esau his brother came from his hunt.”

[27:31]  ⁵⁹ 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.

[27:31]  ⁶⁰ tn Or “arise” (i.e., sit up).

[27:31]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “so that your soul may bless me.”

[27:32]  ⁶² tn Heb “said.”

[27:32]  ⁶³ 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.

[27:33]  ⁶⁴ 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.

[27:33]  ⁶⁵ 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?”

[27:34]  ⁶⁶ tn The temporal clause is introduced with the temporal indicator and has the infinitive as its verb.

[27:34]  ⁶⁷ tn Heb “and he yelled [with] a great and bitter yell to excess.”

[27:35]  ⁶⁸ tn Heb “and he said”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:35]  ⁶⁹ tn Or “took”; “received.”

[27:36]  ⁷⁰ tn Heb “Is he not rightly named Jacob?” The rhetorical question, since it expects a positive reply, has been translated as a declarative statement.

[27:36]  ⁷¹ 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.”

[27:38]  ⁷² tn Heb “Bless me, me also, my father.” The words “my father” have not been repeated in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[27:38]  ⁷³ tn Heb “and Esau lifted his voice and wept.”

[27:39]  ⁷⁴ tn Heb “look.”

[27:39]  ⁷⁵ tn Heb “from the fatness.”

[27:40]  ⁷⁶ 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.

[27:41]  ⁷⁷ tn Or “bore a grudge against” (cf. NAB, NASB, NIV). The Hebrew verb שָׂטַם (satam) describes persistent hatred.

[27:41]  ⁷⁸ tn Heb “because of the blessing which his father blessed him.”

[27:41]  ⁷⁹ 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.

[27:41]  ⁸⁰ tn Heb “days.”

[27:41]  ⁸¹ tn The cohortative here expresses Esau’s determined resolve to kill Jacob.

[27:42]  ⁸² tn Heb “and the words of Esau her older son were told to Rebekah.”

[27:42]  ⁸³ tn Heb “she sent and called for.”

[27:42]  ⁸⁴ 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.

[27:43]  ⁸⁵ tn Heb “listen to my voice.”

[27:43]  ⁸⁶ tn Heb “arise, flee.”

[27:44]  ⁸⁷ 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.

[27:45]  ⁸⁸ tn The words “stay there” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[27:45]  ⁸⁹ 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.

[27:45]  ⁹⁰ tn If Jacob stayed, he would be killed and Esau would be forced to run away.

[27:46]  ⁹¹ tn Heb “loathe my life.” The Hebrew verb translated “loathe” refers to strong disgust (see Lev 20:23).

[27:46]  ⁹² 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.

[27:46]  ⁹³ tn Heb “If Jacob takes a wife from the daughters of Heth, like these, from the daughters of the land, why to me life?”

[28:1]  ⁹⁴ tn Heb “you must not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan.”

[28:2]  ⁹⁵ tn Heb “Arise! Go!” The first of the two imperatives is adverbial and stresses the immediacy of the departure.

[28:3]  ⁹⁶ tn Heb “El Shaddai.” See the extended note on the phrase “sovereign God” in Gen 17:1.

[28:3]  ⁹⁷ tn Heb “and make you fruitful and multiply you.” See Gen 17:6, 20 for similar terminology.

[28:3]  ⁹⁸ tn The perfect verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive here indicates consequence. The collocation הָיָה + preposition לְ (hayah + lÿ) means “become.”

[28:3]  ⁹⁹ tn Heb “an assembly of peoples.”

[28:4]  ¹⁰⁰ 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.

[28:4]  ¹⁰¹ tn The words “the land” have been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[28:4]  ¹⁰² 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.

[28:6]  ¹⁰³ tn Heb “to take for himself from there a wife.”

[28:6]  ¹⁰⁴ tn The infinitive construct with the preposition and the suffix form a temporal clause.

[28:6]  ¹⁰⁵ tn Heb “you must not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan.”

[28:8]  ¹⁰⁶ tn Heb “saw.”

[28:8]  ¹⁰⁷ tn Heb “the daughters of Canaan.”

[28:8]  ¹⁰⁸ tn Heb “evil in the eyes of.”

[28:9]  ¹⁰⁹ tn Heb “took for a wife.”

[28:11]  ¹¹⁰ 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.

[28:11]  ¹¹¹ tn Heb “and he spent the night there because the sun had gone down.”

[28:11]  ¹¹² tn Heb “he took from the stones of the place,” which here means Jacob took one of the stones (see v. 18).

[28:11]  ¹¹³ 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.

[28:11]  ¹¹⁴ tn Heb “lay down.”

[28:12]  ¹¹⁵ tn Heb “and dreamed.”

[28:12]  ¹¹⁶ 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 Lord himself” (Narrative Art in Genesis [SSN], 51-52).

[28:12]  ¹¹⁷ 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.

[28:13]  ¹¹⁸ 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.

[28:13]  ¹¹⁹ 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.

[28:14]  ¹²⁰ tn This is the same Hebrew word translated “ground” in the preceding verse.

[28:14]  ¹²¹ tn The verb is singular in the Hebrew; Jacob is addressed as the representative of his descendants.

[28:14]  ¹²² 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.

[28:14]  ¹²³ tn Heb “and they will pronounce blessings by you, all the families of the earth, and by your offspring.”

[28:15]  ¹²⁴ 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).

[28:16]  ¹²⁵ tn Heb “woke up from his sleep.” This has been simplified in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[28:16]  ¹²⁶ tn Heb “said.”

[28:18]  ¹²⁷ tn Heb “and he got up early…and he took.”

[28:18]  ¹²⁸ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[28:18]  ¹²⁹ tn See the note on this phrase in v. 11.

[28:18]  ¹³⁰ tn Heb “standing stone.”

[28:19]  ¹³¹ tn The name Bethel means “house of God” in Hebrew (see v. 17).

[28:20]  ¹³² tn Heb “bread,” although the term can be used for food in general.

[28:21]  ¹³³ tn Heb “and I return in peace to the house of my father.”

[28:22]  ¹³⁴ tn The disjunctive clause structure (conjunction + noun/subject) is used to highlight the statement.

[28:22]  ¹³⁵ tn The infinitive absolute is used before the finite verb for emphasis.

[28:22]  ¹³⁶ 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.

[29:1]  ¹³⁷ 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.

[29:1]  ¹³⁸ tn Heb “the land of the sons of the east.”

[29:2]  ¹³⁹ 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.

[29:2]  ¹⁴⁰ tn Heb “and look, there.”

[29:2]  ¹⁴¹ tn The disjunctive clause (introduced by the noun with the prefixed conjunction) provides supplemental information that is important to the story.

[29:3]  ¹⁴² tn Heb “they”; the referent (the shepherds) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[29:5]  ¹⁴³ tn Heb “son.”

[29:5]  ¹⁴⁴ 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.

[29:6]  ¹⁴⁵ tn Heb “and he said to them, ‘Is there peace to him?’”

[29:6]  ¹⁴⁶ tn Heb “peace.”

[29:7]  ¹⁴⁷ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[29:7]  ¹⁴⁸ tn Heb “the day is great.”

[29:7]  ¹⁴⁹ 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.

[29:8]  ¹⁵⁰ tn The perfect verbal forms with the vav (ו) consecutive carry on the sequence begun by the initial imperfect form.

[29:9]  ¹⁵¹ tn Heb “was a shepherdess.”

[29:10]  ¹⁵² tn Heb “Laban, the brother of his mother” (twice in this verse).

[29:10]  ¹⁵³ tn Heb “Jacob.” The proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[29:10]  ¹⁵⁴ tn Heb “drew near, approached.”

[29:10]  ¹⁵⁵ 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).

[29:11]  ¹⁵⁶ tn Heb “and he lifted up his voice and wept.” The idiom calls deliberate attention to the fact that Jacob wept out loud.

[29:12]  ¹⁵⁷ tn Heb “declared.”

[29:12]  ¹⁵⁸ tn Heb “that he [was] the brother of her father.”

[29:13]  ¹⁵⁹ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[29:13]  ¹⁶⁰ 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).

[29:14]  ¹⁶¹ 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).

[29:14]  ¹⁶² tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[29:14]  ¹⁶³ tn Heb “a month of days.”

[29:15]  ¹⁶⁴ tn The verb is the perfect with the vav (ו) consecutive; the nuance in the question is deliberative.

[29:15]  ¹⁶⁵ tn Heb “my brother.” The term “brother” is used in a loose sense; actually Jacob was Laban’s nephew.

[29:16]  ¹⁶⁶ 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.

[29:17]  ¹⁶⁷ 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.

[29:17]  ¹⁶⁸ tn Heb “and Rachel was beautiful of form and beautiful of appearance.”

[29:18]  ¹⁶⁹ tn Heb “Jacob loved.”

[29:19]  ¹⁷⁰ tn Heb “Better my giving her to you than my giving her to another man.”

[29:20]  ¹⁷¹ tn Heb “in exchange for Rachel.”

[29:20]  ¹⁷² 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.

[29:20]  ¹⁷³ tn Heb “because of his love for her.” The words “was so great” are supplied for stylistic reasons.

[29:21]  ¹⁷⁴ tn Heb “and Jacob said.”

[29:21]  ¹⁷⁵ tn Heb “my days are fulfilled.”

[29:21]  ¹⁷⁶ 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).

[29:22]  ¹⁷⁷ tn Heb “men.”

[29:23]  ¹⁷⁸ tn Heb “and it happened in the evening that he took Leah his daughter and brought her.”

[29:23]  ¹⁷⁹ tn Heb “to him”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[29:23]  ¹⁸⁰ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[29:23]  ¹⁸¹ 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.

[29:24]  ¹⁸² 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.

[29:25]  ¹⁸³ 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.

[29:25]  ¹⁸⁴ tn Heb “and he said”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[29:25]  ¹⁸⁵ 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?”

[29:25]  ¹⁸⁶ 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.

[29:26]  ¹⁸⁷ 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.

[29:26]  ¹⁸⁸ tn Heb “to give the younger.” The words “daughter” and “in marriage” are supplied in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.

[29:27]  ¹⁸⁹ 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.

[29:27]  ¹⁹⁰ tn Heb “this other one.”

[29:27]  ¹⁹¹ 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.”

[29:28]  ¹⁹² tn Heb “and Jacob did so.” The words “as Laban said” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[29:28]  ¹⁹³ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[29:28]  ¹⁹⁴ 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.

[29:28]  ¹⁹⁵ 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.

[29:29]  ¹⁹⁶ tn Heb “and Laban gave to Rachel his daughter Bilhah his female servant, for her for a servant.”

[29:30]  ¹⁹⁷ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[29:30]  ¹⁹⁸ 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.

[29:30]  ¹⁹⁹ tn Heb “him”; the referent (Laban) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[29:30]  ²⁰⁰ tn Heb “and he loved also Rachel, more than Leah, and he served with him still seven other years.”

[29:31]  ²⁰¹ 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.

[29:31]  ²⁰² tn Heb “he opened up her womb.”

[29:32]  ²⁰³ tn Or “Leah conceived” (also in vv. 33, 34, 35).

[29:32]  ²⁰⁴ sn The name Reuben (רְאוּבֵן, rÿ’uven) means “look, a son.”

[29:32]  ²⁰⁵ tn Heb “looked on my affliction.”

[29:33]  ²⁰⁶ tn Heb “hated.” See the note on the word “unloved” in v. 31.

[29:33]  ²⁰⁷ 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 Lord “heard” about Leah’s unloved condition and responded with pity.

[29:34]  ²⁰⁸ tn Heb “will be joined to me.”

[29:34]  ²⁰⁹ 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.

[29:35]  ²¹⁰ 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.

[30:1]  ²¹¹ tn Heb “Rachel.” The proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“she”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[30:1]  ²¹² tn Heb “sons.”

[30:2]  ²¹³ tn Heb “and the anger of Jacob was hot.”

[30:2]  ²¹⁴ tn Heb “who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb.”

[30:3]  ²¹⁵ tn Heb “go in to.” The expression “go in to” in this context refers to sexual intercourse.

[30:3]  ²¹⁶ tn After the imperative, the prefixed verbal form with the conjunction indicates the immediate purpose of the proposed activity.

[30:3]  ²¹⁷ tn The word “children” is not in the Hebrew text but has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[30:3]  ²¹⁸ 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.

[30:3]  ²¹⁹ 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).

[30:4]  ²²⁰ tn Heb “and she”; the referent (Rachel) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[30:4]  ²²¹ tn Heb “went in to.” The expression “went in to” in this context refers to sexual intercourse.

[30:5]  ²²² tn Or “Bilhah conceived” (also in v. 7).

[30:5]  ²²³ tn Heb “and she bore for Jacob a son.”

[30:6]  ²²⁴ tn Heb “and also he has heard my voice.” The expression means that God responded positively to Rachel’s cry and granted her request.

[30:6]  ²²⁵ tn Or “therefore.”

[30:6]  ²²⁶ 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.

[30:7]  ²²⁷ tn Heb “and she became pregnant again and Bilhah, the servant of Rachel, bore a second son for Jacob.”

[30:8]  ²²⁸ 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.

[30:8]  ²²⁹ 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.”

[30:9]  ²³⁰ 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.”

[30:10]  ²³¹ tn Heb “and Zilpah, the servant of Leah, bore for Jacob a son.”

[30:11]  ²³² 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.”

[30:11]  ²³³ 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.

[30:12]  ²³⁴ tn Heb “and Zilpah, the servant of Leah, bore a second son for Jacob.”

[30:13]  ²³⁵ tn The Hebrew statement apparently means “with my happiness.”

[30:13]  ²³⁶ tn Heb “daughters.”

[30:13]  ²³⁷ 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.

[30:14]  ²³⁸ tn Heb “during the days.”

[30:14]  ²³⁹ sn Mandrake plants were popularly believed to be an aphrodisiac in the culture of the time.

[30:15]  ²⁴⁰ tn Heb “and she said to her”; the referent of the pronoun “she” (Leah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[30:15]  ²⁴¹ tn Heb “therefore.”

[30:15]  ²⁴² 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.

[30:16]  ²⁴³ 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.

[30:16]  ²⁴⁴ 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.

[30:16]  ²⁴⁵ 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.

[30:17]  ²⁴⁶ tn Heb “listened to.”

[30:17]  ²⁴⁷ tn Or “she conceived” (also in v. 19).

[30:17]  ²⁴⁸ tn Heb “and she bore for Jacob a fifth son,” i.e., this was the fifth son that Leah had given Jacob.

[30:18]  ²⁴⁹ tn Heb “God has given my reward.”

[30:18]  ²⁵⁰ tn The words “as a wife” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied for clarity (cf. v. 9).

[30:18]  ²⁵¹ 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.

[30:19]  ²⁵² tn Heb “and she bore a sixth son for Jacob,” i.e., this was the sixth son that Leah had given Jacob.

[30:20]  ²⁵³ 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.

[30:22]  ²⁵⁴ tn Heb “remembered.”

[30:22]  ²⁵⁵ 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

[30:23]  ²⁵⁶ tn Or “conceived.”

[30:23]  ²⁵⁷ 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.

[30:24]  ²⁵⁸ 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.

[30:25]  ²⁵⁹ tn The perfect verbal form is translated as a past perfect because Rachel’s giving birth to Joseph preceded Jacob’s conversation with Laban.

[30:25]  ²⁶⁰ tn The imperatival form here expresses a request.

[30:25]  ²⁶¹ tn Following the imperative, the cohortative with the prefixed conjunction indicates purpose or result.

[30:25]  ²⁶² tn Heb “to my place and to my land.”

[30:26]  ²⁶³ 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.

[30:26]  ²⁶⁴ tn Following the imperative, the cohortative with the prefixed conjunction indicates purpose or result.

[30:26]  ²⁶⁵ tn Heb “for you, you know my service [with] which I have served you.”

[30:27]  ²⁶⁶ tn The words “please stay here” have been supplied in the translation for clarification and for stylistic reasons.

[30:27]  ²⁶⁷ tn Or perhaps “I have grown rich and the Lord has blessed me” (cf. NEB). See J. Finkelstein, “An Old Babylonian Herding Contract and Genesis 31:38f.,” JAOS 88 (1968): 34, n. 19.

[30:28]  ²⁶⁸ tn Heb “set your wage for me so I may give [it].”

[30:29]  ²⁶⁹ 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.

[30:29]  ²⁷⁰ tn Heb “and how your cattle were with me.”

[30:30]  ²⁷¹ tn Or “for.”

[30:30]  ²⁷² tn Heb “before me.”

[30:30]  ²⁷³ tn Heb “and it has broken out with respect to abundance.”

[30:30]  ²⁷⁴ tn Heb “at my foot.”

[30:30]  ²⁷⁵ tn Heb “How long [until] I do, also I, for my house?”

[30:31]  ²⁷⁶ tn Heb “and he said.” The referent (Laban) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[30:31]  ²⁷⁷ tn The negated imperfect verbal form has an obligatory nuance.

[30:31]  ²⁷⁸ tn The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[30:31]  ²⁷⁹ tn Heb “If you do for me this thing.”

[30:31]  ²⁸⁰ tn Heb “I will return, I will tend,” an idiom meaning “I will continue tending.”

[30:32]  ²⁸¹ tn Heb “pass through.”

[30:32]  ²⁸² tn Or “every black lamb”; Heb “and every dark sheep among the lambs.”

[30:32]  ²⁸³ tn Heb “and the spotted and speckled among the goats.”

[30:32]  ²⁸⁴ 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.

[30:33]  ²⁸⁵ tn Heb “will answer on my behalf.”

[30:33]  ²⁸⁶ tn Heb “on the following day,” or “tomorrow.”

[30:33]  ²⁸⁷ tn Heb “when you come concerning my wage before you.”

[30:33]  ²⁸⁸ tn Heb “every one which is not speckled and spotted among the lambs and dark among the goats, stolen it is with me.”

[30:34]  ²⁸⁹ 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.

[30:35]  ²⁹⁰ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Laban) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[30:35]  ²⁹¹ tn Heb “and he gave [them] into the hand.”

[30:36]  ²⁹² tn Heb “and he put a journey of three days between himself and Jacob.”

[30:36]  ²⁹³ 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.

[30:38]  ²⁹⁴ 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).

[30:39]  ²⁹⁵ 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.

[30:39]  ²⁹⁶ tn Heb “the sheep.” The noun has been replaced by the pronoun (“they”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[30:40]  ²⁹⁷ tn Heb “and he set the faces of.”

[30:41]  ²⁹⁸ tn Heb “and at every breeding-heat of the flock.”

[30:42]  ²⁹⁹ 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.

[30:42]  ³⁰⁰ tn Heb “were for Laban.”

[30:43]  ³⁰¹ tn Heb “the man”; Jacob’s name has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[30:43]  ³⁰² tn Heb “and there were to him.”

[31:1]  ³⁰³ tn Heb “and he heard the words of the sons of Laban, saying.”

[31:1]  ³⁰⁴ 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).

[31:1]  ³⁰⁵ tn Heb “and from that which belonged to our father he has gained all this wealth.”

[31:2]  ³⁰⁶ 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.

[31:3]  ³⁰⁷ tn Or perhaps “ancestors” (so NRSV), although the only “ancestors” Jacob had there were his grandfather Abraham and his father Isaac.

[31:3]  ³⁰⁸ sn I will be with you. Though Laban was no longer “with him,” the Lord promised to be.

[31:4]  ³⁰⁹ 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.

[31:4]  ³¹⁰ 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.

[31:4]  ³¹¹ tn Heb “to his flock.”

[31:5]  ³¹² tn Heb “I see the face of your father, that he is not toward me as formerly.”

[31:6]  ³¹³ tn Heb “with all my strength.”

[31:7]  ³¹⁴ 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).

[31:8]  ³¹⁵ 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.

[31:8]  ³¹⁶ 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.

[31:10]  ³¹⁷ tn The sentence begins with the temporal indicator, “and it happened at the time of.”

[31:10]  ³¹⁸ tn Heb “in the time of the breeding of the flock I lifted up my eyes and I saw.”

[31:10]  ³¹⁹ tn Heb “going up on,” that is, mounting for intercourse.

[31:12]  ³²⁰ tn Heb “lift up (now) your eyes and see.”

[31:12]  ³²¹ tn Heb “going up on,” that is, mounting for intercourse.

[31:13]  ³²² map For location see Map4 G4; Map5 C1; Map6 E3; Map7 D1; Map8 G3.

[31:13]  ³²³ 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.

[31:13]  ³²⁴ 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.

[31:13]  ³²⁵ tn Heb “arise, leave!” The first imperative draws attention to the need for immediate action.

[31:14]  ³²⁶ tn The two nouns may form a hendiadys, meaning “a share in the inheritance” or “a portion to inherit.”

[31:15]  ³²⁷ tn Heb “and he devoured, even devouring.” The infinitive absolute (following the finite verb here) is used for emphasis.

[31:15]  ³²⁸ 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.

[31:17]  ³²⁹ tn Heb “and Jacob arose and he lifted up his sons and his wives on to the camels.”

[31:18]  ³³⁰ tn Heb “drove,” but this is subject to misunderstanding in contemporary English.

[31:18]  ³³¹ 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.”

[31:19]  ³³² 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.

[31:19]  ³³³ 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.

[31:20]  ³³⁴ 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.

[31:20]  ³³⁵ tn Heb “fleeing,” which reflects Jacob’s viewpoint.

[31:21]  ³³⁶ tn Heb “and he fled.”

[31:21]  ³³⁷ tn Heb “he arose and crossed.” The first verb emphasizes that he wasted no time in getting across.

[31:21]  ³³⁸ tn Heb “the river”; the referent (the Euphrates) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[31:21]  ³³⁹ tn Heb “he set his face.”

[31:22]  ³⁴⁰ tn Heb “and it was told to Laban on the third day that Jacob had fled.”

[31:23]  ³⁴¹ tn Heb “his brothers.”

[31:23]  ³⁴² tn Heb “him”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[31:23]  ³⁴³ tn Heb “and he pursued after him a journey of seven days.”

[31:23]  ³⁴⁴ tn Heb “drew close to.”

[31:24]  ³⁴⁵ tn Heb “said to him.”

[31:24]  ³⁴⁶ tn Heb “watch yourself,” which is a warning to be on guard against doing something that is inappropriate.

[31:24]  ³⁴⁷ 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.

[31:25]  ³⁴⁸ 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.

[31:26]  ³⁴⁹ tn Heb “and you have stolen my heart.” This expression apparently means “to deceive” (see v. 20).

[31:26]  ³⁵⁰ tn Heb “and you have led away my daughters like captives of a sword.”

[31:27]  ³⁵¹ 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.”

[31:27]  ³⁵² tn Heb “and steal me.”

[31:27]  ³⁵³ 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?”

[31:28]  ³⁵⁴ 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.

[31:29]  ³⁵⁵ tn Heb “there is to my hand.”

[31:29]  ³⁵⁶ tn Heb “watch yourself,” which is a warning to be on guard against doing something that is inappropriate.

[31:29]  ³⁵⁷ 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.

[31:30]  ³⁵⁸ tn Heb “and now.” The words “I understand that” have been supplied in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.

[31:30]  ³⁵⁹ tn The infinitive absolute appears before the perfect verbal form to emphasize the certainty of the action.

[31:30]  ³⁶⁰ tn The infinitive absolute appears before the perfect verbal form to emphasize the degree of emotion involved.

[31:30]  ³⁶¹ 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.

[31:31]  ³⁶² 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.

[31:31]  ³⁶³ tn Heb “for I said.”

[31:31]  ³⁶⁴ tn Heb “lest you steal your daughters from with me.”

[31:32]  ³⁶⁵ tn Heb “With whomever you find your gods, he will not live.”

[31:32]  ³⁶⁶ tn Heb “brothers.”

[31:32]  ³⁶⁷ tn Heb “recognize for yourself what is with me and take for yourself.”

[31:32]  ³⁶⁸ 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.

[31:33]  ³⁶⁹ 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.

[31:33]  ³⁷⁰ tn Heb “and he went out from the tent of Leah and went into the tent of Rachel.”

[31:34]  ³⁷¹ 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.”

[31:34]  ³⁷² tn The disjunctive clause (introduced by a vav [ו] conjunction) provides another parenthetical statement necessary to the storyline.

[31:34]  ³⁷³ tn The word “them” has been supplied in the translation for clarification.

[31:35]  ³⁷⁴ tn Heb “she”; the referent (Rachel) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[31:35]  ³⁷⁵ 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.

[31:35]  ³⁷⁶ tn Heb “I am unable to rise.”

[31:35]  ³⁷⁷ tn Heb “the way of women is to me.” This idiom refers to a woman’s menstrual period.

[31:35]  ³⁷⁸ tn The word “thoroughly” is not in the Hebrew text, but is implied.

[31:36]  ³⁷⁹ tn Heb “it was hot to Jacob.” This idiom refers to anger.

[31:36]  ³⁸⁰ 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.

[31:36]  ³⁸¹ 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).

[31:37]  ³⁸² tn Heb “what did you find from all the goods of your house?”

[31:37]  ³⁸³ tn Heb “your relatives.” The word “relatives” has not been repeated in the translation here for stylistic reasons.

[31:37]  ³⁸⁴ tn Heb “that they may decide between us two.”

[31:39]  ³⁸⁵ tn The imperfect verbal form indicates that this was a customary or typical action.

[31:39]  ³⁸⁶ 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.

[31:40]  ³⁸⁷ tn Or “by drought.”

[31:40]  ³⁸⁸ 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.

[31:40]  ³⁸⁹ tn Heb “and my sleep fled from my eyes.”

[31:41]  ³⁹⁰ tn Heb “this to me.”

[31:41]  ³⁹¹ tn Heb “served you,” but in this accusatory context the meaning is more “worked like a slave.”

[31:42]  ³⁹² 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.

[31:42]  ³⁹³ tn Heb “My oppression and the work of my hands God saw.”

[31:43]  ³⁹⁴ tn Heb “answered and said.”

[31:43]  ³⁹⁵ tn Heb “daughters.”

[31:43]  ³⁹⁶ tn Heb “children.”

[31:43]  ³⁹⁷ tn Heb “but to my daughters what can I do to these today?”

[31:44]  ³⁹⁸ tn Heb “cut a covenant.”

[31:44]  ³⁹⁹ tn The verb הָיָה (hayah) followed by the preposition לְ (lÿ) means “become.”

[31:44]  ⁴⁰⁰ tn Heb “and it will become a witness between me and you.”

[31:46]  ⁴⁰¹ tn Heb “Jacob”; the proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[31:46]  ⁴⁰² sn The Hebrew word for “pile” is גַּל (gal), which sounds like the name “Galeed” (גַּלְעֵד, gal’ed). See v. 48.

[31:47]  ⁴⁰³ sn Jegar Sahadutha. Laban the Aramean gave the place an Aramaic name which means “witness pile” or “the pile is a witness.”

[31:47]  ⁴⁰⁴ 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.

[31:48]  ⁴⁰⁵ tn Heb “a witness between me and you.”

[31:49]  ⁴⁰⁶ tn Heb “and Mizpah.”

[31:49]  ⁴⁰⁷ 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 Lord to keep watch at the border. Jacob did not need this treaty, but Laban, perhaps because he had lost his household gods, felt he did.

[31:49]  ⁴⁰⁸ tn Heb “between me and you.”

[31:49]  ⁴⁰⁹ tn Heb “for we will be hidden, each man from his neighbor.”

[31:50]  ⁴¹⁰ tn Heb “see.”

[31:50]  ⁴¹¹ tn Heb “between me and you.”

[31:51]  ⁴¹² 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.

[31:52]  ⁴¹³ 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.”

[31:53]  ⁴¹⁴ 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.

[31:53]  ⁴¹⁵ tn Heb “by the fear of his father Isaac.” See the note on the word “fears” in v. 42.

[31:54]  ⁴¹⁶ tn The construction is a cognate accusative with the verb, expressing a specific sacrifice.

[31:54]  ⁴¹⁷ tn Heb “bread, food.” Presumably this was a type of peace offering, where the person bringing the offering ate the animal being sacrificed.

[31:55]  ⁴¹⁸ 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.

[31:55]  ⁴¹⁹ tn Heb “and Laban got up early in the morning and he kissed.”

[31:55]  ⁴²⁰ tn Heb “his sons.”

[31:55]  ⁴²¹ tn Heb “to his place.”

[32:1]  ⁴²² 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.

[32:2]  ⁴²³ tn Heb “and Jacob said when he saw them.”

[32:2]  ⁴²⁴ sn The name Mahanaim apparently means “two camps.” Perhaps the two camps were those of God and of Jacob.

[32:3]  ⁴²⁵ tn Heb “before him.”

[32:3]  ⁴²⁶ tn Heb “field.”

[32:4]  ⁴²⁷ 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.

[32:5]  ⁴²⁸ 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.

[32:5]  ⁴²⁹ tn The words “this message” are not in the Hebrew text, but have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[32:8]  ⁴³⁰ tn Heb “If Esau comes to one camp and attacks it.”

[32:8]  ⁴³¹ 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.

[32:8]  ⁴³² 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.

[32:9]  ⁴³³ tn Heb “said.”

[32:9]  ⁴³⁴ tn Heb “the one who said.”

[32:9]  ⁴³⁵ 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.

[32:10]  ⁴³⁶ tn Heb “the loving deeds and faithfulness” (see 24:27, 49).

[32:10]  ⁴³⁷ tn Heb “you have done with.”

[32:10]  ⁴³⁸ 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.

[32:10]  ⁴³⁹ tn Heb “this Jordan.”

[32:11]  ⁴⁴⁰ tn The imperative has the force of a prayer here, not a command.

[32:11]  ⁴⁴¹ tn The “hand” here is a metonymy for “power.”

[32:11]  ⁴⁴² tn Heb “from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau.”

[32:11]  ⁴⁴³ tn Heb “for I am afraid of him, lest he come.”

[32:11]  ⁴⁴⁴ sn Heb “me, [the] mother upon [the] sons.” The first person pronoun “me” probably means here “me and mine,” as the following clause suggests.

[32:12]  ⁴⁴⁵ tn Heb “But you, you said.” One of the occurrences of the pronoun “you” has been left untranslated for stylistic reasons.

[32:12]  ⁴⁴⁶ 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.

[32:12]  ⁴⁴⁷ tn The form is the perfect tense with a vav (ו) consecutive, carrying the nuance of the preceding verb forward.

[32:12]  ⁴⁴⁸ tn Heb “which cannot be counted because of abundance.” The imperfect verbal form indicates potential here.

[32:13]  ⁴⁴⁹ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[32:13]  ⁴⁵⁰ tn Heb “and he took from that which was going into his hand,” meaning that he took some of what belonged to him.

[32:13]  ⁴⁵¹ 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).

[32:16]  ⁴⁵² tn Heb “and he put them in the hand of.”

[32:16]  ⁴⁵³ tn Heb “a herd, a herd, by itself,” or “each herd by itself.” The distributive sense is expressed by repetition.

[32:17]  ⁴⁵⁴ tn Heb “the first”; this has been specified as “the servant leading the first herd” in the translation for clarity.

[32:17]  ⁴⁵⁵ tn Heb “to whom are you?”

[32:17]  ⁴⁵⁶ tn Heb “and to whom are these before you?”

[32:18]  ⁴⁵⁷ tn The form is the perfect tense with the vav (ו) consecutive; it has the nuance of an imperfect of instruction.

[32:18]  ⁴⁵⁸ tn The words “they belong” have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[32:18]  ⁴⁵⁹ tn Heb “to your servant, to Jacob.”

[32:18]  ⁴⁶⁰ tn Heb “to my lord, to Esau.”

[32:18]  ⁴⁶¹ tn Heb “and look, also he [is] behind us.” The referent of the pronoun “he” (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[32:19]  ⁴⁶² 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.’”

[32:20]  ⁴⁶³ tn Heb “and look, your servant Jacob [is] behind us.”

[32:20]  ⁴⁶⁴ 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.”

[32:20]  ⁴⁶⁵ 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.

[32:20]  ⁴⁶⁶ tn Heb “with a gift going before me.”

[32:20]  ⁴⁶⁷ tn Heb “I will see his face.”

[32:20]  ⁴⁶⁸ tn Heb “Perhaps he will lift up my face.” In this context the idiom refers to acceptance.

[32:21]  ⁴⁶⁹ tn Heb “and the gift passed over upon his face.”

[32:21]  ⁴⁷⁰ tn The disjunctive clause is circumstantial/temporal.

[32:22]  ⁴⁷¹ 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.

[32:22]  ⁴⁷² 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).

[32:22]  ⁴⁷³ 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.

[32:23]  ⁴⁷⁴ tn Heb “and he sent across what he had.”

[32:24]  ⁴⁷⁵ 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.

[32:24]  ⁴⁷⁶ 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.

[32:24]  ⁴⁷⁷ tn Heb “until the rising of the dawn.”

[32:25]  ⁴⁷⁸ tn Heb “he”; the referent (the man) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[32:25]  ⁴⁷⁹ tn Heb “him”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[32:25]  ⁴⁸⁰ 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.

[32:26]  ⁴⁸¹ tn Heb “he”; the referent (the man) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[32:26]  ⁴⁸² tn Heb “dawn has arisen.”

[32:26]  ⁴⁸³ 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.

[32:26]  ⁴⁸⁴ 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.

[32:27]  ⁴⁸⁵ 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.

[32:27]  ⁴⁸⁶ sn What is your name? The question is rhetorical, since the Lord obviously knew Jacob’s identity. But since the Lord is going to change Jacob’s name, this question is designed to bring focus Jacob’s attention on all that his name had come to signify.

[32:28]  ⁴⁸⁷ 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.

[32:28]  ⁴⁸⁸ 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 Lord was saying that Jacob would have victory and receive the promises because God would fight for him.

[32:28]  ⁴⁸⁹ 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).

[32:29]  ⁴⁹⁰ 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.

[32:29]  ⁴⁹¹ tn The question uses the enclitic pronoun “this” to emphasize the import of the question.

[32:29]  ⁴⁹² 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.

[32:29]  ⁴⁹³ tn The verb here means that the Lord endowed Jacob with success; he would be successful in everything he did, including meeting Esau.

[32:29]  ⁴⁹⁴ tn Heb “him”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[32:30]  ⁴⁹⁵ sn The name Peniel means “face of God.” Since Jacob saw God face to face here, the name is appropriate.

[32:30]  ⁴⁹⁶ tn The word “explaining” is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[32:30]  ⁴⁹⁷ tn Or “because.”

[32:30]  ⁴⁹⁸ sn I have seen God face to face. See the note on the name “Peniel” earlier in the verse.

[32:30]  ⁴⁹⁹ tn Heb “and my soul [= life] has been preserved.”

[32:31]  ⁵⁰⁰ tn Heb “shone.”

[32:31]  ⁵⁰¹ sn The name is spelled Penuel here, apparently a variant spelling of Peniel (see v. 30).

[32:31]  ⁵⁰² tn The disjunctive clause draws attention to an important fact: He may have crossed the stream, but he was limping.

[32:32]  ⁵⁰³ 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.

[32:32]  ⁵⁰⁴ 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.

[33:1]  ⁵⁰⁵ tn Heb “and Jacob lifted up his eyes.”

[33:1]  ⁵⁰⁶ 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.

[33:2]  ⁵⁰⁷ 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.

[33:3]  ⁵⁰⁸ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[33:3]  ⁵⁰⁹ tn Heb “until his drawing near unto his brother.” The construction uses the preposition with the infinitive construct to express a temporal clause.

[33:5]  ⁵¹⁰ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Esau) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[33:5]  ⁵¹¹ tn Heb “lifted up his eyes.”

[33:5]  ⁵¹² tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[33:5]  ⁵¹³ tn The Hebrew verb means “to be gracious; to show favor”; here it carries the nuance “to give graciously.”

[33:6]  ⁵¹⁴ tn Heb “and the female servants drew near, they and their children and they bowed down.”

[33:8]  ⁵¹⁵ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Esau) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[33:8]  ⁵¹⁶ tn Heb “Who to you?”

[33:8]  ⁵¹⁷ tn Heb “all this camp which I met.”

[33:8]  ⁵¹⁸ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[33:10]  ⁵¹⁹ 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.

[33:10]  ⁵²⁰ 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.

[33:10]  ⁵²¹ tn The verbal form is the preterite with a vav (ו) consecutive, indicating result here.

[33:10]  ⁵²² tn Heb “for therefore I have seen your face like seeing the face of God and you have accepted me.”

[33:11]  ⁵²³ tn Heb “blessing.” It is as if Jacob is trying to repay what he stole from his brother twenty years earlier.

[33:11]  ⁵²⁴ tn Or “gracious,” but in the specific sense of prosperity.

[33:11]  ⁵²⁵ tn Heb “all.”

[33:11]  ⁵²⁶ 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.

[33:12]  ⁵²⁷ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Esau) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[33:12]  ⁵²⁸ 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.”

[33:13]  ⁵²⁹ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[33:13]  ⁵³⁰ tn Heb “weak.”

[33:13]  ⁵³¹ tn Heb “and the sheep and the cattle nursing [are] upon me.”

[33:14]  ⁵³² 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.”

[33:15]  ⁵³³ tn The cohortative verbal form here indicates a polite offer of help.

[33:15]  ⁵³⁴ 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.

[33:15]  ⁵³⁵ tn Heb “I am finding favor in the eyes of my lord.”

[33:16]  ⁵³⁶ tn Heb “returned on his way.”

[33:17]  ⁵³⁷ tn The disjunctive clause contrasts Jacob’s action with Esau’s.

[33:17]  ⁵³⁸ 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.

[33:17]  ⁵³⁹ 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.

[33:17]  ⁵⁴⁰ sn The name Succoth means “shelters,” an appropriate name in light of the shelters Jacob built there for his livestock.

[33:18]  ⁵⁴¹ tn Heb “in front of.”

[33:19]  ⁵⁴² tn The words “he bought it” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. In the Hebrew text v. 19 is one long sentence.

[33:19]  ⁵⁴³ 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”).

[33:20]  ⁵⁴⁴ 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.