The First Book of Moses: Genesis

⭑ Literal Standard Version :: World English Bible Catholic ⭑

- Chapter 31 -

And he hears the words of Laban’s sons, saying, “Jacob has taken all that our father has; indeed, from that which our father has, he has made all this glory”;

and Jacob sees the face of Laban, and behold, it is not with him as before.

And YHWH says to Jacob, “Return to the land of your fathers, and to your family, and I am with you.”

And Jacob sends and calls for Rachel and for Leah to the field to his flock;

and says to them, “I am beholding your father’s face—that it is not toward me as before, and the God of my father has been with me,

and you have known that with all my power I have served your father,

and your father has played on me, and has changed my hire ten times; and God has not permitted him to do evil with me.

If he says thus: The speckled are your hire, then all the flock bore speckled ones; and if he says thus: The striped are your hire, then all the flock bore striped;

and God takes away the substance of your father, and gives to me.

And it comes to pass at the time of the flock conceiving, that I lift up my eyes and see in a dream, and behold, the male goats, which are going up on the flock, [are] striped, speckled, and spotted;

and the Messenger of God says to me in the dream, Jacob, and I say, Here I [am].

And He says, Now lift up your eyes and see [that] all the male goats which are going up on the flock [are] striped, speckled, and spotted, for I have seen all that Laban is doing to you;

I [am] the God of Bethel where you have anointed a standing pillar, where you have vowed a vow to me; now, arise, go out from this land, and return to the land of your birth.”

And Rachel answers—Leah also—and says to him, “Have we yet a portion and inheritance in the house of our father?

Have we not been reckoned strangers to him? For he has sold us, and he also utterly consumes our money;

for all the wealth which God has taken away from our father, it [is] ours, and our children’s; and now, all that God has said to you—do.”

And Jacob rises, and lifts up his sons and his wives on the camels,

and leads all his livestock, and all his substance which he has acquired, the livestock of his getting, which he has acquired in Padan-Aram, to go to his father Isaac, to the land of Canaan.

And Laban has gone to shear his flock, and Rachel steals the teraphim which her father has;

and Jacob deceives the heart of Laban the Aramean, because he has not declared to him that he is fleeing;

and he flees, he and all that he has, and rises, and passes over the River, and sets his face [toward] the Mount of Gilead.

Laban Pursues Jacob

And it is told to Laban on the third day that Jacob has fled,

and he takes his brothers with him, and pursues after him a journey of seven days, and overtakes him in the Mount of Gilead.

And God comes to Laban the Aramean in a dream of the night and says to him, “Take heed to yourself lest you speak with Jacob from good to evil.”

And Laban overtakes Jacob; and Jacob has fixed his tent in the mountain; and Laban with his brothers have fixed [theirs] in the Mount of Gilead.

And Laban says to Jacob, “What have you done that you deceive my heart, and lead away my daughters as captives of the sword?

Why have you hidden yourself to flee, and deceive me, and have not declared to me, and I send you away with joy and with songs, with tambourine and with harp,

and have not permitted me to kiss my sons and my daughters? Now you have acted foolishly in doing [so];

my hand is to God to do evil with you, but the God of your father last night has spoken to me, saying, Take heed to yourself from speaking with Jacob from good to evil.

And now, you have certainly gone, because you have been very desirous for the house of your father; why have you stolen my gods?”

And Jacob answers and says to Laban, “Because I was afraid, for I said, Lest you violently take away your daughters from me;

with whomsoever you find your gods—he must not live; before our brothers discern for yourself what [is] with me, and take to yourself”: and Jacob has not known that Rachel has stolen them.

And Laban goes into the tent of Jacob, and into the tent of Leah, and into the tent of the two handmaidens, and has not found; and he goes out from the tent of Leah, and goes into the tent of Rachel.

And Rachel has taken the teraphim, and puts them in the furniture of the camel, and sits on them; and Laban feels all the tent, and has not found;

and she says to her father, “Let it not be displeasing in the eyes of my lord that I am not able to rise at your presence, for the way of women [is] on me”; and he searches, and has not found the teraphim.

And it is displeasing to Jacob, and he strives with Laban; and Jacob answers and says to Laban, “What [is] my transgression? What my sin, that you have burned after me?

For you have felt all my vessels: what have you found of all the vessels of your house? Set here before my brothers, and your brothers, and they decide between us both.

These twenty years I [am] with you: your ewes and your female goats have not miscarried, and the rams of your flock I have not eaten;

the torn I have not brought to you—I repay it—from my hand you seek it; I have been deceived by day, and I have been deceived by night;

I have been [thus]: drought has consumed me in the day, and frost by night, and my sleep wanders from my eyes.

This [is] to me twenty years in your house: I have served you fourteen years for your two daughters, and six years for your flock; and you change my hire ten times;

unless the God of my father, the God of Abraham, and the Fear of Isaac, had been for me, surely now you had sent me away empty; God has seen my affliction and the labor of my hands, and reproves last night.”

Jacob’s Covenant with Laban

And Laban answers and says to Jacob, “The daughters [are] my daughters, and the sons my sons, and the flock my flock, and all that you are seeing [is] mine; and to my daughters—what do I to these today, or to their sons whom they have born?

And now, come, let us make a covenant, I and you, and it has been for a witness between me and you.”

And Jacob takes a stone, and lifts it up [for] a standing pillar;

and Jacob says to his brothers, “Gather stones,” and they take stones, and make a heap; and they eat there on the heap;

and Laban calls it Jegar-Sahadutha; and Jacob has called it Galeed.

And Laban says, “This heap [is] witness between me and you today”; therefore has he called its name Galeed;

Mizpah also, for he said, “YHWH watches between me and you, for we are hidden from one another;

if you afflict my daughters, or take wives beside my daughters—there is no man with us—see, God [is] witness between me and you.”

And Laban says to Jacob, “Behold, this heap, and behold, the standing pillar which I have cast between me and you;

this heap [is] witness, and the standing pillar [is] witness, that I do not pass over this heap to you, and that you do not pass over this heap and this standing pillar to me—for evil;

the God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, judges between us—the God of their father,” and Jacob swears by the Fear of his father Isaac.

And Jacob sacrifices a sacrifice on the mountain, and calls to his brothers to eat bread, and they eat bread, and lodge on the mountain;

and Laban rises early in the morning, and kisses his sons and his daughters, and blesses them; and Laban goes on, and turns back to his place.

Jacob heard Laban’s sons’ words, saying, “Jacob has taken away all that was our father’s. He has obtained all this wealth from that which was our father’s.”

Jacob saw the expression on Laban’s face, and, behold, it was not toward him as before.

The LORD said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your fathers, and to your relatives, and I will be with you.”

Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah to the field to his flock,

and said to them, “I see the expression on your father’s face, that it is not toward me as before; but the God of my father has been with me.

You know that I have served your father with all of my strength.

Your father has deceived me, and changed my wages ten times, but God didn’t allow him to hurt me.

If he said, ‘The speckled will be your wages,’ then all the flock bore speckled. If he said, ‘The streaked will be your wages,’ then all the flock bore streaked.

Thus God has taken away your father’s livestock, and given them to me.

During mating season, I lifted up my eyes, and saw in a dream, and behold, the male goats which leaped on the flock were streaked, speckled, and grizzled.

The angel of God said to me in the dream, ‘Jacob,’ and I said, ‘Here I am.’

He said, ‘Now lift up your eyes, and behold, all the male goats which leap on the flock are streaked, speckled, and grizzled, for I have seen all that Laban does to you.

I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a pillar, where you vowed a vow to me. Now arise, get out from this land, and return to the land of your birth.’”

Rachel and Leah answered him, “Is there yet any portion or inheritance for us in our father’s house?

Aren’t we considered as foreigners by him? For he has sold us, and has also used up our money.

For all the riches which God has taken away from our father are ours and our children’s. Now then, whatever God has said to you, do.”

Then Jacob rose up, and set his sons and his wives on the camels,

and he took away all his livestock, and all his possessions which he had gathered, including the livestock which he had gained in Paddan Aram, to go to Isaac his father, to the land of Canaan.

Now Laban had gone to shear his sheep; and Rachel stole the teraphim

(a)

that were her father’s.

Jacob deceived Laban the Syrian, in that he didn’t tell him that he was running away.

So he fled with all that he had. He rose up, passed over the River, and set his face toward the mountain of Gilead.

Laban Pursues Jacob

Laban was told on the third day that Jacob had fled.

He took his relatives with him, and pursued him seven days’ journey. He overtook him in the mountain of Gilead.

God came to Laban the Syrian in a dream of the night, and said to him, “Be careful that you don’t speak to Jacob either good or bad.”

Laban caught up with Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the mountain, and Laban with his relatives encamped in the mountain of Gilead.

Laban said to Jacob, “What have you done, that you have deceived me, and carried away my daughters like captives of the sword?

Why did you flee secretly, and deceive me, and didn’t tell me, that I might have sent you away with mirth and with songs, with tambourine and with harp;

and didn’t allow me to kiss my sons and my daughters? Now have you done foolishly.

It is in the power of my hand to hurt you, but the God of your father spoke to me last night, saying, ‘Be careful that you don’t speak to Jacob either good or bad.’

Now, you want to be gone, because you greatly longed for your father’s house, but why have you stolen my gods?”

Jacob answered Laban, “Because I was afraid, for I said, ‘Lest you should take your daughters from me by force.’

Anyone you find your gods with shall not live. Before our relatives, discern what is yours with me, and take it.” For Jacob didn’t know that Rachel had stolen them.

Laban went into Jacob’s tent, into Leah’s tent, and into the tent of the two female servants; but he didn’t find them. He went out of Leah’s tent, and entered into Rachel’s tent.

Now Rachel had taken the teraphim, put them in the camel’s saddle, and sat on them. Laban felt around all the tent, but didn’t find them.

She said to her father, “Don’t let my lord be angry that I can’t rise up before you; for I’m having my period.” He searched, but didn’t find the teraphim.

Jacob was angry, and argued with Laban. Jacob answered Laban, “What is my trespass? What is my sin, that you have hotly pursued me?

Now that you have felt around in all my stuff, what have you found of all your household stuff? Set it here before my relatives and your relatives, that they may judge between us two.

“These twenty years I have been with you. Your ewes and your female goats have not cast their young, and I haven’t eaten the rams of your flocks.

That which was torn of animals, I didn’t bring to you. I bore its loss. Of my hand you required it, whether stolen by day or stolen by night.

This was my situation: in the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night; and my sleep fled from my eyes.

These twenty years I have been in your house. I served you fourteen years for your two daughters, and six years for your flock, and you have changed my wages ten times.

Unless the God of my father, the God of Abraham, and the fear of Isaac, had been with me, surely now you would have sent me away empty. God has seen my affliction and the labor of my hands, and rebuked you last night.”

Jacob’s Covenant with Laban

Laban answered Jacob, “The daughters are my daughters, the children are my children, the flocks are my flocks, and all that you see is mine! What can I do today to these my daughters, or to their children whom they have borne?

Now come, let’s make a covenant, you and I. Let it be for a witness between me and you.”

Jacob took a stone, and set it up for a pillar.

Jacob said to his relatives, “Gather stones.” They took stones, and made a heap. They ate there by the heap.

Laban called it Jegar Sahadutha,(b) but Jacob called it Galeed.(c)

Laban said, “This heap is witness between me and you today.” Therefore it was named Galeed

and Mizpah, for he said, “The LORD watch between me and you, when we are absent one from another.

If you afflict my daughters, or if you take wives in addition to my daughters, no man is with us; behold, God is witness between me and you.”

Laban said to Jacob, “See this heap, and see the pillar, which I have set between me and you.

May this heap be a witness, and the pillar be a witness, that I will not pass over this heap to you, and that you will not pass over this heap and this pillar to me, for harm.

The God of Abraham, and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us.” Then Jacob swore by the fear of his father, Isaac.

Jacob offered a sacrifice in the mountain, and called his relatives to eat bread. They ate bread, and stayed all night in the mountain.

Early in the morning, Laban rose up, and kissed his sons and his daughters, and blessed them. Laban departed and returned to his place.

Footnotes

(a)31:19 teraphim were household idols that may have been associated with inheritance rights to the household property.

(b)31:47 “Jegar Sahadutha” means “Witness Heap” in Aramaic.