Genesis 33
33
1And Jacob lifteth up his eyes, and looketh, and lo, Esau is coming, and with him four hundred men; and he divideth the children unto Leah, and unto Rachel, and unto the two maidservants;
2and he setteth the maid-servants and their children first, and Leah and her children behind, and Rachel and Joseph last.
3And he himself passed over before them, and boweth himself to the earth seven times, until his drawing nigh unto his brother,
4and Esau runneth to meet him, and embraceth him, and falleth on his neck, and kisseth him, and they weep;
5and he lifteth up his eyes, and seeth the women and the children, and saith, ‘What [are] these to thee?’ And he saith, ‘The children with whom God hath favoured thy servant.’
6And the maid-servants draw nigh, they and their children, and bow themselves;
7and Leah also draweth nigh, and her children, and they bow themselves; and afterwards Joseph hath drawn nigh with Rachel, and they bow themselves.
8And he saith, ‘What to thee [is] all this camp which I have met?’ and he saith, ‘To find grace in the eyes of my lord.’
9And Esau saith, ‘I have abundance, my brother, let it be to thyself that which thou hast.’
10And Jacob saith, ‘Nay, I pray thee, if, I pray thee, I have found grace in thine eyes, then thou hast received my present from my hand, because that I have seen thy face, as the seeing of the face of God, and thou art pleased with me;
11receive, I pray thee, my blessing, which is brought to thee, because God hath favoured me, and because I have all [things];’ and he presseth on him, and he receiveth,
12and saith, ‘Let us journey and go on, and I go on before thee.’
13And he saith unto him, ‘My lord knoweth that the children [are] tender, and the suckling flock and the herd [are] with me; when they have beaten them one day, then hath all the flock died.
14Let my lord, I pray thee, pass over before his servant, and I — I lead on gently, according to the foot of the work which [is] before me, and to the foot of the children, until that I come unto my lord, to Seir.’
15And Esau saith, ‘Let me, I pray thee, place with thee some of the people who [are] with me;’ and he said, ‘Why [is] this? I find grace in the eyes of my lord.’
16And turn back on that day doth Esau on his way to Seir;
17and Jacob hath journeyed to Succoth, and buildeth to himself a house, and for his cattle hath made booths, therefore hath he called the name of the place Succoth.
18And Jacob cometh in to Shalem, a city of Shechem, which [is] in the land of Canaan, in his coming from Padan-Aram, and encampeth before the city,
19and he buyeth the portion of the field where he hath stretched out his tent, from the hand of the sons of Hamor, father of Shechem, for a hundred kesitah;
20and he setteth up there an altar, and proclaimeth at it God — the God of Israel.
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Genesis 33
33
Jacob Meets Esau
1Later that day Jacob met Esau coming with his 400 men. So Jacob told his children to walk with their mothers. 2The two servant women, Zilpah and Bilhah, together with their children went first, followed by Leah and her children, then by Rachel and Joseph. 3Jacob himself walked in front of them all, bowing to the ground seven times as he came near his brother.
4But Esau ran toward Jacob and hugged and kissed him. Then the two brothers started crying.
5When Esau noticed the women and children he asked, “Whose children are these?”
Jacob answered, “These are the children the Lord has been kind enough to give to me, your servant.”
6Then the two servant women and their children came and bowed down to Esau. 7Next, Leah and her children came and bowed down; finally, Joseph and Rachel also came and bowed down.
8Esau asked Jacob, “Why did you send those herds I met along the road?”
“Master,” Jacob answered, “I sent them so you would be friendly to me.”
9“But, brother, I already have plenty,” Esau replied. “Keep them for yourself.”
10“No!” Jacob said. “Please accept them as a sign of your friendship for me. When you welcomed me and I saw your face, it was like seeing the face of God. 11Please accept these as gifts I brought to you. God has been good to me, and I have everything I need.” Jacob kept insisting until Esau agreed.
12“Let's get ready to travel,” Esau said. “I'll go along with you.”
13But Jacob answered, “Master, you know traveling is hard on children, and I have to look after the sheep and goats that are nursing their young. If my animals travel too much in one day, they will all die. 14Why don't you go on ahead and let me travel along slowly with the children, the herds, and the flocks. We can meet again in the country of Edom.”
15Esau replied, “Let me leave some of my men with you.”
“You don't have to do that,” Jacob answered. “I am happy, simply knowing that you are friendly to me.”
16So Esau left for Edom. 17But Jacob went to Succoth,#33.17 Succoth: In Hebrew “Succoth” means “shelters.” where he built a house for himself and set up shelters for his animals. That's why the place is called Succoth.
Jacob Arrives at Shechem
18After leaving northern Syria,#33.18 northern Syria: See the note at 24.10. Jacob arrived safely at Shechem in Canaan and set up camp outside the city. 19#Js 24.32; Jn 4.5. The land where he camped was owned by the descendants of Hamor, the father of Shechem. So Jacob paid them 100 pieces of silver#33.19 pieces of silver: Or “lambs” or “cattle.” for the property, 20then he set up his tents and built an altar there to honor the God of Israel.
Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
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