Genesis 31

1 But after that he heard the words of the sons of Laban, saying: Jacob hath taken away all that was our father’s, and being enriched by his substance is become great:

And Jacob heard the words of the sons of Laban, saying, Jacob has taken all that was our father's, and of our father's property has he gotten all this glory.

2 And perceiving also that Laban’s countenance was not towards him as yesterday and the other day,

And Jacob saw the countenance of Laban, and behold it was not towards him as before.

3 Especially the Lord saying to him: Return into the land of thy fathers, and to thy kindred, and I will be with thee.

And the Lord said to Jacob, Return to the land of your father, and to your family, and I will be with you.

4 He sent, and called Rachel and Lia into the field, where he fed the flocks,

And Jacob sent and called Lea and Rachel to the plain where the flocks were.

5 And said to them: I see your father’s countenance is not towards me as yesterday and the other day: but the God of my father hath been with me.

And he said to them, I see the face of your father, that it is not towards me as before, but the God of my father was with me.

6 And you know that I have served your father to the uttermost of my power.

And you too know that with all my might I have served your father.

7 Yea, your father also hath overreached me, and hath changed my wages ten times: and yet God hath not suffered him to hurt me.

But your father deceived me, and changed my wages for the ten lambs, yet God gave him not [power] to hurt me.

8 If at any time he said: The speckled shall be thy wages: all the sheep brought forth speckled: but when he said on the contrary: Thou shalt take all the white ones for thy wages: all the flocks brought forth white ones.

If he should say thus, The speckled shall be your reward, then all the cattle would bear speckled; and if he should say, The white shall be your reward, then would all the cattle bear white.

9 And God hath taken your father’s substance, and given it to me.

So God has taken away all the cattle of your father, and given them to me.

10 For after that time came of the ewes conceiving, I lifted up my eyes, and saw in my sleep that the males which leaped upon the females were of divers colours, and spotted, and speckled.

And it came to pass when the cattle conceived and were with young, that I saw with mine eyes in sleep, and behold the he-goats and the rams leaping on the sheep and the she-goats, speckled and variegated and spotted with ash-coloured spots.

11 And the angel of God said to me in my sleep: Jacob? And I answered: Here I am.

And the angel of God said to me in a dream, Jacob; and I said, What is it?

12 And he said: Lift up thy eyes, and see that all the males leaping upon the females, are of divers colours, spotted, and speckled. For I have seen all that Laban hath done to thee.

And he said, Look up with your eyes, and behold the he-goats and the rams leaping on the sheep and the she-goats, speckled and variegated and spotted with ash-coloured spots; for I have seen all things that Laban does to you.

13 I am the God of Bethel, where thou didst anoint the stone, and make a vow to me. Now therefore arise, and go out of this land, and return into thy native country.

I am God that appeared to you in the place of God where you anointed a pillar to me, and vowed to me there a vow; now then arise and depart out of this land, depart into the land of your nativity, and I will be with you.

14 And Rachel and Lia answered: Have we any thing left among the goods and inheritance of our father’s house?

And Rachel and Lea answered and said to him, Have we yet a part or inheritance in the house of our father?

15 Hath he not counted us as strangers and sold us, and eaten up the price of us?

Are we not considered strangers by him? for he has sold us, and quite devoured our money.

16 But God hath taken our father’s riches, and delivered them to us, and to our children: wherefore do all that God hath commanded thee.

All the wealth and the glory which God has taken from our father, it shall be our's and our children's; now then do whatever God has said to you.

17 Then Jacob rose up, and having set his children and wives upon camels, went his way.

And Jacob arose and took his wives and his children up on the camels;

18 And he took all his substance, and flocks, and whatsoever he had gotten in Mesopotamia, and went forward to Isaac his father to the land of Chanaan.

and he took away all his possessions and all his store, which he had gotten in Mesopotamia, and all that belonged to him, to depart to Isaac his father in the land of Chanaan.

19 At that time Laban was gone to shear his sheep, and Rachel stole away her father’s idols.

And Laban went to shear his sheep; and Rachel stole her father's images.

20 And Jacob would not confess to his father in law that he was flying away.

And Jacob hid [the matter from] Laban the Syrian, so as not to tell him that he ran away.

21 And when he was gone, together with all that belonged to him, and having passed the river, was going on towards mount Galaad,

And he departed himself and all that belonged to him, and passed over the river, and went into the mountain Galaad.

22 It was told Laban on the third day that Jacob fled.

But it was told Laban the Syrian on the third day, that Jacob was fled.

23 And he took his brethren with him, and pursued after him seven days; and overtook him in the mount of Galaad.

And having taken his brethren with him, he pursued after him seven days' journey, and overtook him on Mount Galaad.

24 And he saw in a dream God saying to him: Take heed thou speak not any thing harshly against Jacob.

And God came to Laban the Syrian in sleep by night, and said to him, Take heed to yourself that you speak not at any time to Jacob evil things.

25 Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the mountain: and when he with his brethren had overtaken him, he pitched his tent in the same mount of Galaad.

And Laban overtook Jacob; and Jacob pitched his tent in the mountain; and Laban stationed his brothers in the mount Galaad.

26 And he said to Jacob: Why hast thou done thus, to carry away, without my knowledge, my daughters, as captives taken with the sword.

And Laban said to Jacob, What have you done? therefore did you run away secretly, and pillage me, and lead away my daughters as captives taken with the sword?

27 Why wouldst thou run away privately and not acquaint me, that I might have brought thee on the way with joy, and with songs, and with timbrels, and with harps?

Whereas if you had told me, I would have sent you away with mirth, and with songs, and timbrels, and harp.

28 Thou hast not suffered me to kiss my sons and daughters: thou hast done foolishly: and now, indeed,

And I was not counted worthy to embrace my children and my daughters; now then you have wrought foolishly.

29 It is in my power to return thee evil: but the God of your father said to me yesterday: Take heed thou speak not any thing harshly against Jacob.

And now my hand has power to hurt you; but the God of your father spoke to me yesterday, saying, Take heed to yourself that you speak not evil words to Jacob.

30 Suppose thou didst desire to go to thy friends, and hadst a longing after thy father’s house: why hast thou stolen away my gods?

Now then go on your way, for you have earnestly desired to depart to the house of your father; therefore have you stolen my gods?

31 Jacob answered: That I departed unknown to thee, it was for fear lest thou wouldst take away thy daughters by force.

And Jacob answered and said to Laban, Because I was afraid; for I said, Lest at any time you should take away your daughters from me, and all my possessions.

32 But whereas thou chargest me with theft: with whomsoever thou shalt find thy gods, let him be slain before our brethren. Search, and if thou find any of thy things with me, take them away. Now when he said this, he knew not that Rachel had stolen the idols.

And Jacob said, With whoever you shall find your gods, he shall not live in the presence of our brethren; take notice of what I have of your property, and take it; and he observed nothing with him, but Jacob knew not that his wife Rachel had stolen them.

33 So Laban went into the tent of Jacob, and of Lia, and of both the handmaids, and found them not. And when he was entered into Rachel’s tent,

And Laban went in and searched in the house of Lea, and found [them] not; and he went out of the house of Lea, and searched in the house of Jacob, and in the house of the two maidservants, and found them not; and he went also into the house of Rachel.

34 She in haste hid the idols under the camel’s furniture, and sat upon them: and when he had searched all the tent, and found nothing,

And Rachel took the idols, and cast them amongst the camel's packs, and sat upon them.

35 She said: Let not my lord be angry that I cannot rise up before thee, because it has now happened to me, according to the custom of women, So his careful search was in vain.

And she said to her father, Be not indignant, Sir; I can’t rise up before you, for it is with me according to the manner of women. Laban searched in all the house, and found not the images.

36 And Jacob being angry, said in a chiding manner: For what fault of mine, and for what offence on my part hast thou so hotly pursued me,

And Jacob was angry, and strove with Laban; and Jacob answered and said to Laban, What is my injustice, and what my sin, that you have pursued after me,

37 And searched all my household stuff? What hast thou found of all the substance of thy house? lay it here before my brethren, and thy brethren, and let them judge between me and thee.

and that you have searched all the furniture of my house? what have you found of all the furniture of your house? set it here between your relations and my relations, and let them decide between us two.

38 Have I therefore been with thee twenty years? thy ewes and goats were not barren, the rams of thy flocks I did not eat:

These twenty years have I been with you; your sheep, and your she-goats have not failed in bearing; I devoured not the rams of your cattle.

39 Neither did I show thee that which the beast had torn, I made good all the damage: whatsoever was lost by theft, thou didst exact it of me:

That which was taken of beasts I brought not to you; I made good of myself the thefts of the day, and the thefts of the night.

40 Day and night was I parched with heat, and with frost, and sleep departed from my eyes.

I was parched with heat by day, and [chilled] with frost by night, and my sleep departed from my eyes.

41 And in this manner have I served thee in thy house twenty years, fourteen for thy daughters, and six for thy flocks: thou hast changed also my wages ten times.

These twenty years have I been in your house; I served you fourteen years for your two daughters, and six years amongst your sheep, and you did falsely rate my wages for ten lambs.

42 Unless the God of my father Abraham, and the fear of Isaac had stood by me, peradventure now thou hadst sent me away naked: God beheld my affliction and the labour of my hands, and rebuked thee yesterday.

Unless I had the God of my father Abraam, and the fear of Isaac, now you would have sent me away empty; God saw my humiliation, and the labour of my hands, and rebuked you yesterday.

43 Laban answered him: The daughters are mine and the children, and thy flocks, and all things that thou seest are mine: what can I do to my children, and grandchildren?

And Laban answered and said to Jacob, The daughters are my daughters, and the sons my sons, and the cattle are my cattle, and all things which you see are mine, and [the property] of my daughters; what shall I do to them today, or their children which they bore?

44 Come therefore, let us enter into a league: that it may be for a testimony between me and thee.

Now then come, let me make a covenant, both I and you, and it shall be for a witness between me and you; and he said to him, Behold, there is no one with us; behold, God is witness between me and you.

45 And Jacob took a stone, and set it up for a title:

And Jacob having taken a stone, set it up for a pillar.

46 And he said to his brethren: Bring hither stones. And they gathering stones together, made a heap, and they ate upon it.

And Jacob said to his brethren, Gather stones; and they gathered stones and made a heap, and ate there upon the heap; and Laban said to him, This heap witnesses between me and you today.

47 And Laban called it The witness heap: and Jacob, The hillock of testimony: each of them according to the propriety of his language.

And Laban called it, the Heap of Testimony; and Jacob called it, the Witness Heap.

48 And Laban said: This heap shall be a witness between me and thee this day, and therefore the name thereof was called Galaad, that is, The witness heap.

And Laban said to Jacob, Behold this heap, and the pillar, which I have set between me and you; this heap witnesses, and this pillar witnesses; therefore its name was called, the Heap witnesses.

49 The Lord behold and judge between us when we shall be gone one from the other.

And the vision of which he said—Let God look to it between me and you, because we are about to depart from each other, —

50 If thou afflict my daughters, and if thou bring in other wives over them: none is witness of our speech but God, who is present and beholdeth.

If you shall humble my daughters, if you should take wives in addition to my daughters, see, there is no one with us looking on. God [is] witness between me and you.

51 And he said again to Jacob: Behold, this heap, and the stone which I have set up between me and thee,

And Laban said to Jacob, Behold, this heap, and this pillar are a witness.

52 Shall be a witness: this heap, I say, and the stone, be they for a testimony, if either I shall pass beyond it going towards thee, or thou shalt pass beyond it, thinking harm to me.

For if I should not cross over to you, neither should you cross over to me, for mischief beyond this heap and this pillar.

53 The God of Abraham, and the God of Nachor, the God of their father, judge between us. And Jacob swore by the fear of his father Isaac.

The God of Abraam and the God of Nachor judge between us; and Jacob swore by the Fear of his father Isaac.

54 And after he had offered sacrifices in the mountain, he called his brethren to eat bread. And when they had eaten, they lodged there:

And he offered a sacrifice in the mountain, and called his brethren, and they ate and drank, and slept in the mountain.

55 But Laban arose in the night, and kissed his sons, and daughters, and blessed them: and returned to his place.

And Laban rose up in the morning, and kissed his sons and his daughters, and blessed them; and Laban having turned back, departed to his place.