| NET Bible | International Standard Version |
| 1Jacob heard that Laban's sons were complaining, "Jacob has taken everything that belonged to our father! He has gotten rich at our father's expense!" | 1Now Jacob used to listen while Laban's sons kept on complaining, "Jacob has taken over everything our father owns! He made himself wealthy from what belongs to our father!" |
| 2When Jacob saw the look on Laban's face, he could tell his attitude toward him had changed. | 2Jacob also noticed that the way Laban had been looking at him wasn't as nice as it had been just two days earlier. |
| 3The LORD said to Jacob, "Return to the land of your fathers and to your relatives. I will be with you." | 3Then the LORD ordered Jacob, "Go back to your father's territory and to your relatives. I'll be with you." |
| 4So Jacob sent a message for Rachel and Leah to come to the field where his flocks were. | 4Jacob sent for Rachel and Leah to come out to the field where his flock was |
| 5There he said to them, "I can tell that your father's attitude toward me has changed, but the God of my father has been with me. | 5and informed them, "I've noticed that the way your father has been looking at us hasn't been as nice as it was just two days ago. But my father's God has been with me. |
| 6You know that I've worked for your father as hard as I could, | 6You know I've been serving your father with all my heart. |
| 7but your father has humiliated me and changed my wages ten times. But God has not permitted him to do me any harm. | 7Even so, your father has cheated me. He broke our wage agreement ten times. However, God didn't allow him to harm me. |
| 8If he said, 'The speckled animals 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. | 8"When Laban said, 'The speckled ones will be your wages,' then all the flock gave birth to speckled ones. Then when he said, 'The streaked ones will be your wages,' all the flock gave birth to streaked offspring. |
| 9In this way God has snatched away your father's livestock and given them to me. | 9"So God has taken away your father's livestock and has given them to me. |
| 10"Once during breeding season I saw in a dream that the male goats mating with the flock were streaked, speckled, and spotted. | 10As it was, when it was time for the livestock to breed, I once looked up in a dream, and the male goats that were mating with the flock were producing streaked, speckled, and spotted offspring. |
| 11In the dream the angel of God said to me, 'Jacob!' 'Here I am!' I replied. | 11"Later, the angel of God spoke to me in a dream, 'Jacob.' "'Here I am,' I replied |
| 12Then he said, 'Observe that all the male goats mating with the flock are streaked, speckled, or spotted, for I have observed all that Laban has done to you. | 12"'Look around!' he said. 'Go ahead, look! All the male goats have been mating with the flock, producing offspring that are streaked, speckled, and spotted, because I've been watching everything that Laban has done to you. |
| 13I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed the sacred stone and made a vow to me. Now leave this land immediately and return to your native land.'" | 13I am the God of Bethel, the place where you consecrated that stone and made a vow to me. Now get up, leave this territory, and return to your native land.'" |
| 14Then Rachel and Leah replied to him, "Do we still have any portion or inheritance in our father's house? | 14Then Rachel and Leah asked him, "Do we have anything left of inheritance remaining in our father's house? |
| 15Hasn't he treated us like foreigners? He not only sold us, but completely wasted the money paid for us! | 15He's treating us like foreigners. He sold us and spent all of the money that rightfully belonged to us. |
| 16Surely 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." | 16Furthermore, all of the wealth that God has stripped away from our father belongs to us now and to our children. So do everything that God tells you to do." |
| 17So Jacob immediately put his children and his wives on the camels. | 17So Jacob got up, seated his children and wives on camels, |
| 18He took 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. | 18and drove all his livestock ahead of him, with everything that belonged to him, including the livestock that he had bought and accumulated in Paddan-aram, intending to deliver them to his father Isaac in the land of Canaan. |
| 19While Laban had gone to shear his sheep, Rachel stole the household idols that belonged to her father. | 19Meanwhile, Laban had been out shearing his sheep. While he was away, Rachel stole her father's personal idols. |
| 20Jacob also deceived Laban the Aramean by not telling him that he was leaving. | 20Moreover, Jacob had deceived Laban the Aramean, because he had never told him that he was intending to leave. |
| 21He left with all he owned. He quickly crossed the Euphrates River and headed for the hill country of Gilead. | 21Jacob fled, taking everything that he owned. He got up, crossed the river, and headed to the hill country of Gilead. |
| 22Three days later Laban discovered Jacob had left. | 22Three days later, somebody reported to Laban that Jacob had left, |
| 23So he took his relatives with him and pursued Jacob for seven days. He caught up with him in the hill country of Gilead. | 23so he took his relatives with him and pursued Jacob. Laban was on the road for seven days when he finally caught up with Jacob in the hill country of Gilead. |
| 24But God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream at night and warned him, "Be careful that you neither bless nor curse Jacob." | 24That night, God appeared to Laban the Aramean in a dream and warned him, "Be careful what you say to Jacob, whether it's one word good or bad." |
| 25Laban overtook Jacob, and when Jacob pitched his tent in the hill country of Gilead, Laban and his relatives set up camp there too. | 25Meanwhile, Jacob had pitched his tent on the mountain, where Laban had caught up with him. Laban and his relatives encamped on that same mountain in the hill country of Gilead, too. |
| 26"What have you done?" Laban demanded of Jacob. "You've deceived me and carried away my daughters as if they were captives of war! | 26Then Laban asked Jacob, "What did you do? You deceived me, carried off my daughters like you would war captives, |
| 27Why did you run away secretly and deceive me? Why didn't you tell me so I could send you off with a celebration complete with singing, tambourines, and harps? | 27ran away from me secretly, and stole from me by not keeping me informed. Otherwise, I could have sent you off with a party and singing, accompanied by a band playing tambourines and harps. |
| 28You didn't even allow me to kiss my daughters and my grandchildren good-bye. You have acted foolishly! | 28As it is, you didn't even allow me to kiss my grandchildren and daughters goodbye! You've acted foolishly. |
| 29I have the power to do you harm, but the God of your father told me last night, 'Be careful that you neither bless nor curse Jacob.' | 29It's actually in my power to do some serious evil to you, but last night the God of your father told me, 'Be careful what you say to Jacob whether good or evil.' |
| 30Now I understand that you have gone away because you longed desperately for your father's house. Yet why did you steal my gods?" | 30Now, you can go if you must go, because you certainly are longing to go to your father's house. But why did you steal my gods?" |
| 31"I left secretly because I was afraid!" Jacob replied to Laban. "I thought you might take your daughters away from me by force. | 31"I was afraid," Jacob replied. "I thought you might take your daughters from me. |
| 32Whoever has taken your gods will be put to death! In the presence of our relatives identify whatever is yours and take it." (Now Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen them.) | 32Now as to your gods, if you find someone has them in their possession, he's a dead man. Take our relatives as witnesses, search through our belongings, and take whatever belongs to you that's in my possession." But Jacob didn't know that Rachel had stolen the idols. |
| 33So Laban entered Jacob's tent, and Leah's tent, and the tent of the two female servants, but he did not find the idols. Then he left Leah's tent and entered Rachel's. | 33So Laban entered Jacob's tent, Leah's tent, and the tents of the two maid servants, but he didn't find them. Then he left Leah's tent and entered Rachel's tent. |
| 34(Now Rachel had taken the idols and put them inside her camel's saddle and sat on them.) Laban searched the whole tent, but did not find them. | 34Meanwhile, Rachel had taken the idols, placed them inside the saddle of her camel, and sat on them. Laban searched through the whole tent, but found nothing. |
| 35Rachel said to her father, "Don't be angry, my lord. I cannot stand up in your presence because I am having my period." So he searched thoroughly, but did not find the idols. | 35Then Rachel told her father, "Sir, please don't be angry that I cannot stand up in your presence. It's that time of the month." So Laban searched for the idols, but never did find them. |
| 36Jacob became angry and argued with Laban. "What did I do wrong?" he demanded of Laban. "What sin of mine prompted you to chase after me in hot pursuit? | 36Then Jacob got angry and started an argument with Laban. "What have I done?" he demanded. "What's my crime that would cause you to come pursue me so violently? |
| 37When you searched through all my goods, did you find anything that belonged to you? Set it here before my relatives and yours, and let them settle the dispute between the two of us! | 37Now that you've searched all my belongings, what did you find that belongs to your house? Set it here in front of our relatives and we'll let them judge between us! |
| 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. | 38Meanwhile, these past 20 years that I've been with you, your sheep and goats never had miscarriages, I never once ate any of the rams from your flock, |
| 39Animals torn by wild beasts I never brought to you; I always absorbed the loss myself. You always made me pay for every missing animal, whether it was taken by day or at night. | 39and whatever was torn by beasts, I never bothered to bring to you. Instead, I bore the losses myself. Even so, you demanded that I provide restitution for anything that was stolen, whether during the day or the night. |
| 40I was consumed by scorching heat during the day and by piercing cold at night, and I went without sleep. | 40As it was, I was attacked by drought during the day and by cold at night. I never got any decent rest. |
| 41This was my lot for twenty years in your house: I worked like a slave for you--fourteen years for your two daughters and six years for your flocks, but you changed my wages ten times! | 41I've lived in your house these 20 years—serving fourteen years for your two daughters and another six years for your flocks. During all that time you changed my wages ten times. |
| 42If the God of my father--the God of Abraham, the one whom Isaac fears--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, and he rebuked you last night." | 42If the God of my father—the God of Abraham, the God whom Isaac feared—had not been with me, you would have sent me away empty handed. But God saw my misery and how hard I've worked with my own hands—and he rebuked you last night." |
| 43Laban replied to Jacob, "These women are my daughters, these children are my grandchildren, and these flocks are my flocks. All that you see belongs to me. But how can I harm these daughters of mine today or the children to whom they have given birth? | 43But Laban answered Jacob, "These women are my daughters. These children are my children. The flocks are mine. In fact, everything that you see belongs to me. But what would I do today to my daughters and the children they have borne? |
| 44So now, come, let's make a formal agreement, you and I, and it will be proof that we have made peace." | 44Come, let's make a covenant just between you and me. And let it serve as a witness between you and me." |
| 45So Jacob took a stone and set it up as a memorial pillar. | 45So Jacob took a stone and raised it as a pillar. |
| 46Then he said to his relatives, "Gather stones." So they brought stones and put them in a pile. They ate there by the pile of stones. | 46Then Jacob told his relatives, "Go gather some stones." So they picked up stones and stacked them one on top of the other. Then they had a meal together there by the stack of stones. |
| 47Laban called it Jegar Sahadutha, but Jacob called it Galeed. | 47Laban named the place Jegar-sahadutha, but Jacob named it Galeed. |
| 48Laban said, "This pile of stones is a witness of our agreement today." That is why it was called Galeed. | 48Then Laban said, "This stack will serve as a witness between you and me today." That's how the place came to be named Galeed. |
| 49It was also called Mizpah because he said, "May the LORD watch between us when we are out of sight of one another. | 49It was also called Mizpah, because Laban said, "May the LORD watch between you and me, when we are estranged from each other. |
| 50If you mistreat my daughters or if you take wives besides my daughters, although no one else is with us, realize that God is witness to your actions." | 50If you mistreat my daughters or if you take other wives besides them, though no one is watching us, keep in mind that God stands as a witness between you and me." |
| 51"Here is this pile of stones and this pillar I have set up between me and you," Laban said to Jacob. | 51"Look!" Laban added, "Here is the stack of stones and here is the pillar that I've set up between you and me. |
| 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. | 52This stack is a witness, and so is this pillar, reminding me not to cross beyond this stack of stones, and reminding you not to pass by this stack in my direction, intending to cause harm. |
| 53May the God of Abraham and the god of Nahor, the gods of their father, judge between us." Jacob took an oath by the God whom his father Isaac feared. | 53May Abraham's God and Nahor's god judge between us." So Jacob made an oath by his father's Fear, |
| 54Then Jacob offered a sacrifice on the mountain and invited his relatives to eat the meal. They ate the meal and spent the night on the mountain. | 54offered sacrifices there on the mountain, and called on his relatives to eat some food. So they ate the food and spent the night on the mountain. |
| 55Early in the morning Laban kissed his grandchildren and his daughters goodbye and blessed them. Then Laban left and returned home. | 55 Early the next morning, Laban woke up, kissed his grandchildren and daughters, blessed them, and then left for home. |
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