Genesis 31

1 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”;

Now Jacob heard that Laban’s sons were saying, “Jacob has taken away all that belonged to our father and built all this wealth at our father’s expense.”

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

And Jacob saw from the countenance of Laban that his attitude toward him had changed.

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

Then the LORD said to Jacob, “Go back to the land of your fathers and to your kindred, and I will be with you.”

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

So Jacob sent word and called Rachel and Leah to the field where his flocks were,

5 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 he told them, “I can see from your father’s countenance that his attitude toward me has changed; but the God of my father has been with me.

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

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

7 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.

And although he has cheated me and changed my wages ten times, God has not allowed him to harm me.

8 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;

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

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

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

10 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;

When the flocks were breeding, I saw in a dream that the streaked, spotted, and speckled males were mating with the females.

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

In that dream the angel of God said to me, ‘Jacob!’ And I replied, ‘Here I am.’

12 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;

‘Look up,’ he said, ‘and see that all the males that are mating with the flock are streaked, spotted, or speckled; for I have seen all that Laban has done to you.

13 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.”

I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed the pillar and made a solemn vow to Me. Now get up and leave this land at once, and return to your native land.’”

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

And Rachel and Leah replied, “Do we have any portion or inheritance left in our father’s house?

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

Are we not regarded by him as outsiders? Not only has he sold us, but he has certainly squandered what was paid for us.

16 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.”

Surely all the wealth that God has taken away from our father belongs to us and to our children. So do whatever God has told you.”

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

Then Jacob got up and put his children and his wives on camels,

18 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 he drove all his livestock before him, along with all the possessions he had acquired in Paddan-aram, to go to his father Isaac in the land in Canaan.

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

Now while Laban was out shearing his sheep, Rachel stole her father’s household idols.

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

Moreover, Jacob deceived Laban the Aramean by not telling him that he was running away.

21 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.

So he fled with all his possessions, crossed the Euphrates, and headed for the hill country of Gilead.

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

On the third day Laban was informed that Jacob had fled.

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

So he took his relatives with him, pursued Jacob for seven days, and overtook him in the hill country of Gilead.

24 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.”

But that night God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream and warned him, “Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.”

25 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.

Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the hill country of Gilead when Laban overtook him, and Laban and his relatives camped there as well.

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

Then Laban said to Jacob, “What have you done? You have deceived me and carried off my daughters like captives of war!

27 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,

Why did you run away secretly and deceive me, without even telling me? I would have sent you away with joy and singing, with tambourines and harps.

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

But you did not even let me kiss my grandchildren and my daughters goodbye. Now you have done a foolish thing.

29 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.

I have power to do you great harm, but last night the God of your father said to me, ‘Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.’

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

Now you have gone off because you long for your father’s house. But why have you stolen my gods?”

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

“I was afraid,” Jacob answered, “for I thought you would take your daughters from me by force.

32 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.

If you find your gods with anyone here, he shall not live! In the presence of our relatives, see for yourself if anything is yours, and take it back.” For Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen the idols.

33 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.

So Laban went into Jacob’s tent, then Leah’s tent, and then the tents of the two maidservants, but he found nothing. Then he left Leah’s tent and entered Rachel’s tent.

34 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;

Now Rachel had taken Laban’s household idols, put them in the saddlebag of her camel, and was sitting on them. And Laban searched everything in the tent but found nothing.

35 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.

Rachel said to her father, “Sir, do not be angry that I cannot stand up before you; for I am having my period.” So Laban searched, but could not find the household idols.

36 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?

Then Jacob became incensed and challenged Laban. “What is my crime?” he said. “For what sin of mine have you so hotly pursued me?

37 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.

You have searched all my goods! Have you found anything that belongs to you? Put it here before my brothers and yours, that they may judge between the two of us.

38 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;

I have been with you for twenty years now. Your sheep and goats have not miscarried, nor have I eaten the rams of your flock.

39 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 did not bring you anything torn by wild beasts; I bore the loss myself. And you demanded payment from me for what was stolen by day or night.

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

As it was, the heat consumed me by day and the frost by night, and sleep fled from my eyes.

41 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;

Thus for twenty years I have served in your household—fourteen years for your two daughters and six years for your flocks—and you have changed my wages ten times!

42 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.”

If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had not been with me, surely by now you would have sent me away empty-handed. But God has seen my affliction and the toil of my hands, and last night He rendered judgment.”

43 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?

But Laban answered Jacob, “These daughters are my daughters, these sons are my sons, and these flocks are my flocks! Everything you see is mine! Yet what can I do today about these daughters of mine or the children they have borne?

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

Come now, let us make a covenant, you and I, and let it serve as a witness between you and me.”

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

So Jacob picked out a stone and set it up as a pillar,

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

and he said to his relatives, “Gather some stones.” So they took stones and made a mound, and there by the mound they ate.

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

Laban called it Jegar-sahadutha, and Jacob called it Galeed.

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

Then Laban declared, “This mound is a witness between you and me this day.” Therefore the place was called Galeed.

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

It was also called Mizpah, because Laban said, “May the LORD keep watch between you and me when we are absent from each other.

50 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.”

If you mistreat my daughters or take other wives, although no one is with us, remember that God is a witness between you and me.”

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

Laban also said to Jacob, “Here is the mound, and here is the pillar I have set up between you and me.

52 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;

This mound is a witness, and this pillar is a witness, that I will not go past this mound to harm you, and you will not go past this mound and pillar to harm me.

53 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.

May the God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us.” So Jacob swore by the Fear of his father Isaac.

54 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;

Then Jacob offered a sacrifice on the mountain and invited his relatives to eat a meal. And after they had eaten, they spent the night on the mountain.

55 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.

Early the next morning, Laban got up and kissed his grandchildren and daughters and blessed them. Then he left to return home.