Gen 31 | ABEn | STEP | [ 3 heard 1 And 2 Jacob] the utterances of the sons of Laban, saying, Jacob has taken all the things of our father. And by the things of our father he has produced all this glory.

‏ Genesis 31

CHAPTER 31 Jacob's Flight from Laban

1 [³heard ¹And ²Jacob] the utterances of the sons of Laban, saying, Jacob has taken all the things of our father. And by the things of our father he has produced all this glory. 2 And Jacob saw the face of Laban; and behold, he was not for him as yesterday and the third day before. 3 [³said ¹And ²the lord] to Jacob, Return to the land of your father, and to your family! and I will be with you. 4 [³sending ¹And ²Jacob], called Leah and Rachel to the plain where [³were ¹the ²flocks]. 5 And he said to them, I see the face of your father, that it is not towards me as yesterday and the third day before. But the God of my father was with me. 6 [²also ³you yourselves ¹But] know that with all my strength I have served to your father. 7 But your father cheated me, and bartered my wage for the ten lambs. And [⁴did not ⁵give ⁶to him ¹the ²God ³of my father] the power to do evil against me. 8 If thus he should have said, The colored will be your wage, then [⁴would bear ¹all ²the ³flocks] colored. And if he should have said, The white will be your wage, then [⁴would bear ¹all ²the ³flocks] white. 9 And God removed all the herds of your father, and he gave them to me. 10 And it came to pass when [³were stimulated ¹the ²flocks], in the womb conceiving, that I saw [²with ³my eyes ¹them] in sleep. And behold, the he-goats and the rams ascended upon the flocks, and the she-goats white-mixed and colored and ashen speckled. 11 And [⁴said ⁵to me ¹the ²angel ³of God] during sleep, Jacob. And I said, What is it? 12 And he said, Look up with your eyes, and see the he-goats and the rams ascending upon the flocks, and the she-goats -- white-mixed and colored and ashen speckled! For I have seen as much as [³to you ¹Laban ²does]. 13 I am God, the one appearing to you in the place of God, of which you anointed to me there a monument, and vowed to me there a vow. Now then, rise up and go forth from out of this land! And go forth into the land of your birth! 14 And answering Rachel and Leah said to him, Is there not to us still a portion or inheritance in the house of our father? 15 Are we not [²as ³the ⁴aliens ¹considered] to him? For he has sold us, and by eating up a thing devoured our silver. 16 All the riches and the glory which [⁴removed ¹the ²God ³of our father] will be ours and our children's. Now then as much as [²has said to you ¹God], you do! 17 [³rising up ¹And ²Jacob], took his wives, and his children upon the camels. 18 And he took away all his possessions, and all his belongings, which he procured in Mesopotamia, and all his things to go forth to Isaac his father, in the land of Canaan. 19 And Laban set out to shear his flocks, [³stole ¹and ²Rachel] the idols of her father. 20 [³hid the fact from ¹And ²Jacob] Laban the Syrian, so as not to announce to him that he is running away. 21 And he ran away, himself and all of his. And he passed over the river, and he advanced unto the mountain of Gilead. 22 And it was announced to Laban the Syrian on the [²day ¹third] that Jacob ran away. 23 And taking all the ones of his brethren with himself, he pursued after him [³journey ²days ¹seven]. And he overtook him in the mountain of Gilead. 24 [³came ¹And ²God] to Laban the Syrian during sleep in the night, and he said to him, Guard! lest at any time you should speak [²against ³Jacob ¹evil].

Laban Quarrels with Jacob

25 And Laban overtook Jacob. And Jacob pitched his tent in the mountain. And Laban stationed his brethren in the mountain of Gilead. 26 [³said ¹And ²Laban] to Jacob, What did you do? Why did you secretly run away, and ransacked me, and took away my daughters as captives taken by sword? 27 For if you announced to me, I would have sent out even you with gladness, and with music, and tambourines, and harps. 28 And not am I worthy to kiss my children, and my daughters. Now then [²unwisely ¹you acted]. 29 And now [²is strong ¹my hand] to do evil against you. But the God of your father yesterday said to me, saying, Guard yourself! lest at any time you should speak [²against ³Jacob ¹evil]. 30 Now then, you go! For with desire you desired to go forth unto the house of your father; why did you steal my gods? 31 And answering Jacob said to Laban, For I said, Lest at any time you should remove your daughters from me, and all my things. 32 And Jacob said, By whomsoever you should find your gods, he shall not live before our brethren. Recognize what is from me of the things of yours, and take them! And he did not recognize among what was his -- not one thing. [³did not ⁴know ¹But ²Jacob] that Rachel his wife stole them. 33 And entering, Laban searched in the house of Leah, and he did not find. And he came forth from out of the house of Leah, and he searched the house of Jacob, and in the house of the two maidservants, and he did not find. And he entered also into the house of Rachel. 34 And Rachel took the idols, and put them in the packsaddles of the camel, and sat on them. 35 And she said to her father, Do not [²heavily ¹bear], O master, I shall not be able to rise up before you, for the custom of women is to me. [³searched ¹And ²Laban] in the entire house, and he did not find the idols. 36 [³was provoked to anger ¹And ²Jacob], and he quarreled with Laban. And responding Jacob said to Laban, What is my offence? and what is my sin, that you pursued after me? 37 and that you searched all the items of my house? What did you find from all the items of your house? Put here before your brethren and my brethren, and let them reprove between the two of us! 38 These twenty years I am with you; your flocks and your goats were not barren, and the rams of your flocks I did not eat. 39 That taken by wild beasts I have not brought to you. I paid for them by myself, even thefts by day, and thefts by night. 40 I was [⁴by day ¹burning with ²the ³sweltering heat], and with the icy coldness of the night. And [³departed ²sleep ¹my] from my eyes. 41 These twenty years I am in your residence. I served you fourteen years for [²two ³daughters ¹your], and six years among your sheep, and you cheated my wage by ten ewe-lambs. 42 Unless the God of my father Abraham, and the fear of Isaac was with me, now then would [²me empty ¹you have sent]. My humiliation and the toil of my hands God saw, and he reproved you yesterday. 43 And responding Laban said to Jacob, The daughters are my daughters, and the sons my sons, and the cattle my cattle; and all as much as you see is mine, and the property of my daughters. What shall I do with these women today or the children of them whom they bore?

Laban and Jacob Make a Covenant

44 Now then, come here, we should ordain a covenant, I and you, and it will be a testimony between me and you. 45 [³taking ¹And ²Jacob] a stone, established it as a monument; 46 [³said ¹And ²Jacob] to his brethren, Collect together stones! And they collected together stones. And they made a hill. And they ate there upon the hill. 47 And [²called ³it ¹Laban], Hill of the Witness, but Jacob called it, The Hill is Witness. 48 [³said ¹And ²Laban], this hill witnesses between me and you today. Because of this [⁵was called ¹the ²name ³of the ⁴place], Hill Witnesses. 49 And the vision, which he said, Let God look between me and you, is that we will leave the other from the other. 50 If you shall humble my daughters, if you should take wives over my daughters, you see no one [²with ³us ¹is] seeing -- God is witness between me and between you. 51 And Laban said to Jacob, Behold, this hill, and the monument which I stood between me and you; 52 [²witnesses ¹this hill], and the monument which I stood -- it witnesses. For if I pass over, I to you, neither shall you pass over to me beyond this hill and this monument, for evil. 53 The God of Abraham and the God of Nahor judges between us. 54 And Jacob swore by an oath according to the fear of his father Isaac. And he sacrificed a sacrifice in the mountain, and he called his brethren; and they ate and drank, and they went to sleep in the mountain. 55 [³rising up ¹And ²Laban] in the morning, kissed the sons and daughters of his, and he blessed them. And Laban turned and went forth to his place.