GE-31:1 And he heard the words of Laban's sons, saying, Jacob
hath taken away
all that [was] our father's; and of [that] which [was] our
father's hath he
gotten all this glory.
GE-31:2 And Jacob beheld the countenance of Laban, and, behold,
it [was] not
toward him as before.
GE-31:3 And the LORD said unto Jacob, Return unto the land of
thy fathers,
and to thy kindred; and I will be with thee.
GE-31:4 And Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah to the field
unto his
flock,
GE-31:5 And said unto them, I see your father's countenance,
that it [is] not
toward me as before; but the God of my father hath been with me.
GE-31:6 And ye know that with all my power I have served your
father.
GE-31:7 And your father hath deceived me, and changed my wages
ten times; but
God suffered him not to hurt me.
GE-31:8 If he said thus, The speckled shall be thy wages; then
all the cattle
bare speckled: and if he said thus, The ringstreaked shall be
thy hire; then
bare all the cattle ringstreaked.
GE-31:9 Thus God hath taken away the cattle of your father, and
given [them]
to me.
GE-31:10 And it came to pass at the time that the cattle
conceived, that I
lifted up mine eyes, and saw in a dream, and, behold, the rams
which leaped
upon the cattle [were] ringstreaked, speckled, and grisled.
GE-31:11 And the angel of God spake unto me in a dream,
[saying], Jacob: And
I said, Here [am] I.
GE-31:12 And he said, Lift up now thine eyes, and see, all the
rams which
leap upon the cattle [are] ringstreaked, speckled, and grisled:
for I have
seen all that Laban doeth unto thee.
GE-31:13 I [am] the God of Bethel, where thou anointedst the
pillar, [and]
where thou vowedst a vow unto me: now arise, get thee out from
this land, and
return unto the land of thy kindred.
GE-31:14 And Rachel and Leah answered and said unto him, [Is
there] yet any
portion or inheritance for us in our father's house?
GE-31:15 Are we not counted of him strangers? for he hath sold
us, and hath
quite devoured also our money.
GE-31:16 For all the riches which God hath taken from our
father, that [is]
ours, and our children's: now then, whatsoever God hath said
unto thee, do.
GE-31:17 Then Jacob rose up, and set his sons and his wives
upon camels;
GE-31:18 And he carried away all his cattle, and all his goods
which he had
gotten, the cattle of his getting, which he had gotten in
Padanaram, for to go
to Isaac his father in the land of Canaan.
GE-31:19 And Laban went to shear his sheep: and Rachel had
stolen the images
that [were] her father's.
GE-31:20 And Jacob stole away unawares to Laban the Syrian, in
that he told
him not that he fled.
GE-31:21 So he fled with all that he had; and he rose up, and
passed over the
river, and set his face [toward] the mount Gilead.
GE-31:22 And it was told Laban on the third day that Jacob was
fled.
GE-31:23 And he took his brethren with him, and pursued after
him seven days'
journey; and they overtook him in the mount Gilead.
GE-31:24 And God came to Laban the Syrian in a dream by night,
and said unto
him, Take heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad.
GE-31:25 Then Laban overtook Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched his
tent in the
mount: and Laban with his brethren pitched in the mount of
Gilead.
GE-31:26 And Laban said to Jacob, What hast thou done, that
thou hast stolen
away unawares to me, and carried away my daughters, as captives
[taken] with
the sword?
GE-31:27 Wherefore didst thou flee away secretly, and steal
away from me; and
didst not tell me, that I might have sent thee away with mirth,
and with
songs, with tabret, and with harp?
GE-31:28 And hast not suffered me to kiss my sons and my
daughters? thou hast
now done foolishly in [so] doing.
GE-31:29 It is in the power of my hand to do you hurt: but the
God of your
father spake unto me yesternight, saying, Take thou heed that
thou speak not
to Jacob either good or bad.
GE-31:30 And now, [though] thou wouldest needs be gone, because
thou sore
longedst after thy father's house, [yet] wherefore hast thou
stolen my gods?
GE-31:31 And Jacob answered and said to Laban, Because I was
afraid: for I
said, Peradventure thou wouldest take by force thy daughters
from me.
GE-31:32 With whomsoever thou findest thy gods, let him not
live: before our
brethren discern thou what [is] thine with me, and take [it] to
thee. For
Jacob knew not that Rachel had stolen them.
GE-31:33 And Laban went into Jacob's tent, and into Leah's tent,
and into the
two maidservants' tents; but he found [them] not. Then went he
out of Leah's
tent, and entered into Rachel's tent.
GE-31:34 Now Rachel had taken the images, and put them in the
camel's
furniture, and sat upon them. And Laban searched all the tent,
but found
[them] not.
GE-31:35 And she said to her father, Let it not displease my
lord that I
cannot rise up before thee; for the custom of women [is] upon me.
And he
searched, but found not the images.
GE-31:36 And Jacob was wroth, and chided with Laban: and Jacob
answered and
said to Laban, What [is] my trespass? what [is] my sin, that
thou hast so
hotly pursued after me?
GE-31:37 Whereas thou hast searched all my stuff, what hast
thou found of all
thy household stuff? set [it] here before my brethren and thy
brethren, that
they may judge betwixt us both.
GE-31:38 This twenty years [have] I [been] with thee; thy ewes
and thy she
goats have not cast their young, and the rams of thy flock have
I not eaten.
GE-31:39 That which was torn [of beasts] I brought not unto
thee; I bare the
loss of it; of my hand didst thou require it, [whether] stolen
by day, or
stolen by night.
GE-31:40 [Thus] I was; in the day the drought consumed me, and
the frost by
night; and my sleep departed from mine eyes.
GE-31:41 Thus have I been twenty years in thy house; I served
thee fourteen
years for thy two daughters, and six years for thy cattle: and
thou hast
changed my wages ten times.
GE-31:42 Except the God of my father, the God of Abraham, and
the fear of
Isaac, had been with me, surely thou hadst sent me away now
empty. God hath
seen mine affliction and the labour of my hands, and rebuked
[thee]
yesternight.
GE-31:43 And Laban answered and said unto Jacob, [These]
daughters [are] my
daughters, and [these] children [are] my children, and [these]
cattle [are] my
cattle, and all that thou seest [is] mine: and what can I do
this day unto
these my daughters, or unto their children which they have born?
GE-31:44 Now therefore come thou, let us make a covenant, I and
thou; and let
it be for a witness between me and thee.
GE-31:45 And Jacob took a stone, and set it up [for] a pillar.
GE-31:46 And Jacob said unto his brethren, Gather stones; and
they took
stones, and made an heap: and they did eat there upon the heap.
GE-31:47 And Laban called it Jegarsahadutha: but Jacob called
it Galeed.
GE-31:48 And Laban said, This heap [is] a witness between me
and thee this
day. Therefore was the name of it called Galeed;
GE-31:49 And Mizpah; for he said, The LORD watch between me and
thee, when we
are absent one from another.
GE-31:50 If thou shalt afflict my daughters, or if thou shalt
take [other]
wives beside my daughters, no man [is] with us; see, God [is]
witness betwixt
me and thee.
GE-31:51 And Laban said to Jacob, Behold this heap, and behold
[this] pillar,
which I have cast betwixt me and thee;
GE-31:52 This heap [be] witness, and [this] pillar [be] witness,
that I will
not pass over this heap to thee, and that thou shalt not pass
over this heap
and this pillar unto me, for harm.
GE-31:53 The God of Abraham, and the God of Nahor, the God of
their father,
judge betwixt us. And Jacob sware by the fear of his father
Isaac.
GE-31:54 Then Jacob offered sacrifice upon the mount, and
called his brethren
to eat bread: and they did eat bread, and tarried all night in
the mount.
GE-31:55 And early in the morning Laban rose up, and kissed his
sons and his
daughters, and blessed them: and Laban departed, and returned
unto his place.
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