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  26Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come near now and kiss me, my son.”

  27And he came near and skissed him; and he smelled the smell of his clothing, and blessed him and said:

  “Surely, tthe smell of my son

  Is like the smell of a field

  Which the LORD has blessed.

  28Therefore may uGod give you

  Of vthe dew of heaven,

  Of wthe fatness of the earth,

  And xplenty of grain and wine.

  29yLet peoples serve you,

  And nations bow down to you.

  Be master over your brethren,

  And zlet your mother’s sons bow down to you.

  aCursed be everyone who curses you,

  And blessed be those who bless you!”

  Esau’s Lost Hope

  (Heb. 12:17)

  30Now it happened, as soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, and Jacob had scarcely gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunting.

  31He also had made 4savory food, and brought it to his father, and said to his father, “Let my father arise and beat of his son’s game, that your soul may bless me.”

  32And his father Isaac said to him, “Who are you?” So he said, “I am your son, your firstborn, Esau.”

  33Then Isaac trembled exceedingly, and said, “Who? Where is the one who hunted game and brought it to me? I ate all of it before you came, and I have blessed him—cand indeed he shall be blessed.”

  34When Esau heard the words of his father, dhe cried with an exceedingly great and bitter cry, and said to his father, “Bless me—me also, O my father!”

  35But he said, “Your brother came with deceit and has taken away your blessing.”

  36And Esau said, e“Is he not rightly named 5Jacob? For he has supplanted me these two times. He took away my birthright, and now look, he has taken away my blessing!” And he said, “Have you not reserved a blessing for me?”

  37Then Isaac answered and said to Esau, f“Indeed I have made him your master, and all his brethren I have given to him as servants; with ggrain and wine I have 6sustained him. What shall I do now for you, my son?”

  38And Esau said to his father, “Have you only one blessing, my father? Bless me—me also, O my father!” And Esau lifted up his voice hand wept.

  39Then Isaac his father answered and said to him:

  “Behold, iyour dwelling shall be of the 7fatness of the earth,

  And of the dew of heaven from above.

  40By your sword you shall live,

  And jyou shall serve your brother;

  And kit shall come to pass, when you become restless,

  That you shall break his yoke from your neck.”

  Jacob Escapes from Esau

  41So Esau lhated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father blessed him, and Esau said in his heart, m“The days of mourning for my father 8are at hand; nthen I will kill my brother Jacob.”

  42And the words of Esau her older son were told to Rebekah. So she sent and called Jacob her younger son, and said to him, “Surely your brother Esau ocomforts himself concerning you by intending to kill you.

  43“Now therefore, my son, obey my voice: arise, flee to my brother Laban pin Haran.

  44“And stay with him a qfew days, until your brother’s fury turns away,

  45“until your brother’s anger turns away from you, and he forgets what you have done to him; then I will send and bring you from there. Why should I be bereaved also of you both in one day?”

  46And Rebekah said to Isaac, r“I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth; sif Jacob takes a wife of the daughters of Heth, like these who are the daughters of the land, what good will my life be to me?”

  Genesis 28

  Jacob Sent to His Uncle Laban

  1Then Isaac called Jacob and ablessed him, and 1charged him, and said to him: b“You shall not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan.

  2c“Arise, go to dPadan Aram, to the house of eBethuel your mother’s father; and take yourself a wife from there of the daughters of fLaban your mother’s brother.

  3“May gGod Almighty bless you,

  And make you hfruitful and multiply you,

  That you may be an assembly of peoples;

  4And give you ithe blessing of Abraham,

  To you and your descendants with you,

  That you may inherit the land

  jIn2 which you are a stranger,

  Which God gave to Abraham.”

  5So Isaac sent Jacob away, and he went to Padan Aram, to Laban the son of Bethuel the Syrian, the brother of Rebekah, the mother of Jacob and Esau.

  Esau Marries Mahalath

  6Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him away to Padan Aram to take himself a wife from there, and that as he blessed him he gave him a charge, saying, “You shall not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan,”

  7and that Jacob had obeyed his father and his mother and had gone to Padan Aram.

  8Also Esau saw kthat the daughters of Canaan did not please his father Isaac.

  9So Esau went to Ishmael and ltook mMahalath the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham’s son, nthe sister of Nebajoth, to be his wife in addition to the wives he had.

  Jacob’s Vow at Bethel

  10Now Jacob owent out from Beersheba and went toward pHaran.

  11So he came to a certain place and stayed there all night, because the sun had set. And he took one of the stones of that place and put it at his head, and he lay down in that place to sleep.

  12Then he qdreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there rthe angels of God were ascending and descending on it.

  13sAnd behold, the LORD stood above it and said: t“I am the LORD God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; uthe land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants.

  14“Also your vdescendants shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread abroad wto the west and the east, to the north and the south; and in you and xin your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.

  15“Behold, yI am with you and will zkeep3 you wherever you go, and will abring you back to this land; for bI will not leave you cuntil I have done what I have spoken to you.”

  16Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the LORD is in dthis place, and I did not know it.”

  17And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!”

  18Then Jacob rose early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put at his head, eset it up as a pillar, fand poured oil on top of it.

  19And he called the name of gthat place 4Bethel; but the name of that city had been Luz previously.

  20hThen Jacob made a vow, saying, “If iGod will be with me, and keep me in this way that I am going, and give me jbread to eat and clothing to put on,

  21“so that kI come back to my father’s house in peace, lthen the LORD shall be my God.

  22“And this stone which I have set as a pillar mshall be God’s house, nand of all that You give me I will surely give a 5tenth to You.”

  Genesis 29

  Jacob Meets Rachel

  1So Jacob went on his journey aand came to the land of the people of the East.

  2And he looked, and saw a bwell in the field; and behold, there were three flocks of sheep lying by it; for out of that well they watered the flocks. A large stone was on the well’s mouth.

  3Now all the flocks would be gathered there; and they would roll the stone from the well’s mouth, water the sheep, and put the stone back in its place on the well’s mouth.

  4And Jacob said to them, “My brethren, where are you from?” And they said, “We are from cHaran.”

  5Then he said to them, “Do you know dLaban the son of Nahor?” And they said, “We know him.”

  6So he said to them, e“Is he well?” And they said, “He is well. And look, his daug
hter Rachel fis coming with the sheep.”

  7Then he said, “Look, it is still 1high day; it is not time for the cattle to be gathered together. Water the sheep, and go and feed them.”

  8But they said, “We cannot until all the flocks are gathered together, and they have rolled the stone from the well’s mouth; then we water the sheep.”

  9Now while he was still speaking with them, gRachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherdess.

  10And it came to pass, when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother, that Jacob went near and hrolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the flock of Laban his mother’s brother.

  11Then Jacob ikissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice and wept.

  12And Jacob told Rachel that he was jher father’s relative and that he was Rebekah’s son. kSo she ran and told her father.

  13Then it came to pass, when Laban heard the report about Jacob his sister’s son, that lhe ran to meet him, and embraced him and kissed him, and brought him to his house. So he told Laban all these things.

  14And Laban said to him, m“Surely you are my bone and my flesh.” And he stayed with him for a month.

  Jacob Marries Leah and Rachel

  15Then Laban said to Jacob, “Because you are my relative, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, nwhat should your wages be?”

  16Now Laban had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel.

  17Leah’s eyes were 2delicate, but Rachel was obeautiful of form and appearance.

  18Now Jacob loved Rachel; so he said, p“I will serve you seven years for Rachel your younger daughter.”

  19And Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you than that I should give her to another man. Stay with me.”

  20So Jacob qserved seven years for Rachel, and they seemed only a few days to him because of the love he had for her.

  21Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may rgo in to her.”

  22And Laban gathered together all the men of the place and smade a feast.

  23Now it came to pass in the evening, that he took Leah his daughter and brought her to Jacob; and he went in to her.

  24And Laban gave his maid tZilpah to his daughter Leah as a maid.

  25So it came to pass in the morning, that behold, it was Leah. And he said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Was it not for Rachel that I served you? Why then have you udeceived me?”

  26And Laban said, “It must not be done so in our 3country, to give the younger before the firstborn.

  27v“Fulfill her week, and we will give you this one also for the service which you will serve with me still another seven years.”

  28Then Jacob did so and fulfilled her week. So he gave him his daughter Rachel as wife also.

  29And Laban gave his maid wBilhah to his daughter Rachel as a maid.

  30Then Jacob also went in to Rachel, and he also xloved Rachel more than Leah. And he served with Laban ystill another seven years.

  The Children of Jacob

  31When the LORD zsaw that Leah was 4unloved, He aopened her womb; but Rachel was barren.

  32So Leah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name 5Reuben; for she said, “The LORD has surely blooked on my affliction. Now therefore, my husband will love me.”

  33Then she conceived again and bore a son, and said, “Because the LORD has heard that I am 6unloved, He has therefore given me this son also.” And she called his name 7Simeon.

  34She conceived again and bore a son, and said, “Now this time my husband will become attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.” Therefore his name was called 8Levi.

  35And she conceived again and bore a son, and said, “Now I will praise the LORD.” Therefore she called his name cJudah.9 Then she stopped bearing.

  Genesis 30

  Jacob’s Children

  1Now when Rachel saw that ashe bore Jacob no children, Rachel benvied her sister, and said to Jacob, “Give me children, cor else I die!”

  2And Jacob’s anger was aroused against Rachel, and he said, d“Am I in the place of God, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?”

  3So she said, “Here is emy maid Bilhah; go in to her, fand she will bear a child on my knees, gthat I also may 1have children by her.”

  4Then she gave him Bilhah her maid has wife, and Jacob went in to her.

  5And Bilhah conceived and bore Jacob a son.

  6Then Rachel said, “God has ijudged my case; and He has also heard my voice and given me a son.” Therefore she called his name 2Dan.

  7And Rachel’s maid Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son.

  8Then Rachel said, “With 3great wrestlings I have wrestled with my sister, and indeed I have prevailed.” So she called his name 4Naphtali.

  9When Leah saw that she had stopped bearing, she took Zilpah her maid and jgave her to Jacob as wife.

  10And Leah’s maid Zilpah bore Jacob a son.

  11Then Leah said, 5“A troop comes!” So she called his name 6Gad.

  12And Leah’s maid Zilpah bore Jacob a second son.

  13Then Leah said, “I am happy, for the daughters kwill call me blessed.” So she called his name 7Asher.

  14Now Reuben went in the days of wheat harvest and found mandrakes in the field, and brought them to his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, l“Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.”

  15But she said to her, m“Is it a small matter that you have taken away my husband? Would you take away my son’s mandrakes also?” And Rachel said, “Therefore he will lie with you tonight for your son’s mandrakes.”

  16When Jacob came out of the field in the evening, Leah went out to meet him and said, “You must come in to me, for I have surely hired you with my son’s mandrakes.” And he lay with her that night.

  17And God listened to Leah, and she conceived and bore Jacob a fifth son.

  18Leah said, “God has given me my wages, because I have given my maid to my husband.” So she called his name 8Issachar.

  19Then Leah conceived again and bore Jacob a sixth son.

  20And Leah said, “God has endowed me with a good endowment; now my husband will dwell with me, because I have borne him six sons.” So she called his name 9Zebulun.

  21Afterward she bore a ndaughter, and called her name 10Dinah.

  22Then God oremembered Rachel, and God listened to her and popened her womb.

  23And she conceived and bore a son, and said, “God has taken away qmy reproach.”

  24So she called his name 11Joseph, and said, r“The LORD shall add to me another son.”

  Jacob’s Agreement with Laban

  25And it came to pass, when Rachel had borne Joseph, that Jacob said to Laban, s“Send me away, that I may go to tmy own place and to my country.

  26“Give me my wives and my children ufor whom I have served you, and let me go; for you know my service which I have done for you.”

  27And Laban said to him, “Please stay, if I have found favor in your eyes, for vI have learned by experience that the LORD has blessed me for your sake.”

  28Then he said, w“Name me your wages, and I will give it.”

  29So Jacob said to him, x“You know how I have served you and how your livestock has been with me.

  30“For what you had before I came was little, and it has increased to a great amount; the LORD has blessed you 12since my coming. And now, when shall I also yprovide for my own house?”

  31So he said, “What shall I give you?” And Jacob said, “You shall not give me anything. If you will do this thing for me, I will again feed and keep your flocks:

  32“Let me pass through all your flock today, removing from there all the speckled and spotted sheep, and all the brown ones among the lambs, and the spotted and speckled among the goats; and zthese shall be my wages.

  33“So my arighteousness will answer for me i
n time to come, when the subject of my wages comes before you: every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and brown among the lambs, will be considered stolen, if it is with me.”

  34And Laban said, “Oh, that it were according to your word!”

  35So he removed that day the male goats that were bspeckled and spotted, all the female goats that were speckled and spotted, every one that had some white in it, and all the brown ones among the lambs, and gave them into the hand of his sons.

  36Then he put three days’ journey between himself and Jacob, and Jacob fed the rest of Laban’s flocks.

  37Now cJacob took for himself rods of green poplar and of the almond and chestnut trees, peeled white strips in them, and exposed the white which was in the rods.

  38And the rods which he had peeled, he set before the flocks in the gutters, in the watering troughs where the flocks came to drink, so that they should conceive when they came to drink.

  39So the flocks conceived before the rods, and the flocks brought forth streaked, speckled, and spotted.

  40Then Jacob separated the lambs, and made the flocks face toward the streaked and all the brown in the flock of Laban; but he put his own flocks by themselves and did not put them with Laban’s flock.

  41And it came to pass, whenever the stronger livestock conceived, that Jacob placed the rods before the eyes of the livestock in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods.

  42But when the flocks were feeble, he did not put them in; so the feebler were Laban’s and the stronger Jacob’s.

  43Thus the man dbecame exceedingly prosperous, and ehad large flocks, female and male servants, and camels and donkeys.

  Genesis 31

  Jacob Flees from Laban

  1Now Jacob heard the words of Laban’s sons, saying, “Jacob has taken away all that was our father’s, and from what was our father’s he has acquired all this awealth.”

  2And Jacob saw the bcountenance of Laban, and indeed it was not cfavorable toward him as before.

  3Then the LORD said to Jacob, d“Return to the land of your fathers and to your family, and I will ebe with you.”

  4So Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah to the field, to his flock,