32 Early in the morning, Laban kissed his sons and daughters and bade them good-by; then Laban left on his journey homeward. 2Jacob went on his way, and angels of God encountered him. 3When he saw them, Jacob said, “This is God’s camp.” So he named that place Maha- naim.a
4Jacob sent messengers ahead to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the country of Edom, 5and instructed them as follows, b-“Thus shall you say, ‘To my lord Esau, thus says your servant Jacob:-b I stayed with Laban and remained until now; 6I have acquired cattle, asses, sheep, and male and female slaves; and I send this message to my lord in the hope of gaining your favor.’ ” 7The messengers returned to Jacob, saying, “We came to your brother Esau; he himself is coming to meet you, and there are four hundred men with him.” 8Jacob was greatly frightened; in his anxiety, he divided the people with him, and the flocks and herds and camels, into two camps, 9thinking, “If Esau comes to the one camp and attacks it, the other camp may yet escape.”
10Then Jacob said, “O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, O LORD, who said to me, ‘Return to your native land and I will deal bountifully with you’! 11I am unworthy of all the kindness that You have so steadfastly shown Your servant: with my staff alone I crossed this Jordan, and now I have become two camps. 12Deliver me, I pray, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau; else, I fear, he may come and strike me down, mothers and children alike. 13Yet You have said, ‘I will deal bountifully with you and make your offspring as the sands of the sea, which are too numerous to count.’ ”
14After spending the night there, he selected from what was at hand these presents for his brother Esau: 15200 she-goats and 20 he-goats; 200 ewes and 20 rams; 1630 milch camels with their colts; 40 cows and 10 bulls; 20 she-asses and 10 he-asses. 17These he put in the charge of his servants, drove by drove, and he told his servants, “Go on ahead, and keep a distance between droves.” 18He instructed the one in front as follows, “When my brother Esau meets you and asks you, ‘Whose man are you? Where are you going? And whose [animals] are these ahead of you?’ 19you shall answer, ‘Your servant Jacob’s; they are a gift sent to my lord Esau; and [Jacob] himself is right behind us.’ ” 20He gave similar instructions to the second one, and the third, and all the others who followed the droves, namely, “Thus and so shall you say to Esau when you reach him.
21And you shall add, ‘And your servant Jacob himself is right behind us.’ ” For he reasoned, “If I propitiate him with presents in advance, and then face him, perhaps he will show me favor.” 22And so the gift went on ahead, while he remained in camp that night.
23That same night he arose, and taking his two wives, his two maid- servants, and his eleven children, he crossed the ford of the Jabbok. 24After taking them across the stream, he sent across all his possessions. 25Jacob was left alone. And a man wrestled with him until the break of dawn. 26When he saw that he had not prevailed against him, he wrenched Jacob’s hip at its socket, so that the socket of his hip was strained as he wrestled with him. 27Then he said, “Let me go, for dawn is breaking.” But he answered, “I will not let you go, unless you bless me.” 28Said the other, “What is your name?” He replied, “Jacob.”
29Said he, “Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel, for you have strivenc with d-beings divine and human,-d and have prevailed.” 30Jacob asked, “Pray tell me your name.” But he said, “You must not ask my name!” And he took leave of him there. 31So Jacob named the place Peniel,e meaning, “I have seen a divine being face to face, yet my life has been preserved.” 32The sun rose upon him as he passed Penuel, limping on his hip. 33That is why the children of Israel to this day do not eat the thigh muscle that is on the socket of the hip, since Jacob’s hip socket was wrenched at the thigh muscle.
33 Looking up, Jacob saw Esau coming, accompanied by four hundred men. He divided the children among Leah, Rachel, and the two maids, 2putting the maids and their children first, Leah and her children next, and Rachel and Joseph last. 3He himself went on ahead and bowed low to the ground seven times until he was near his brother. 4Esau ran to greet him. He embraced him and, falling on his neck, he kissed him; and they wept. 5Looking about, he saw the women and the children. “Who,” he asked, “are these with you?” He answered, “The children with whom God has favored your servant.” 6Then the maids, with their children, came forward and bowed low; 7next Leah, with her children, came forward and bowed low; and last, Joseph and Rachel came forward and bowed low; 8And he asked, “What do you mean by all this company which I have met?” He answered, “To gain my lord’s favor.” 9Esau said, “I have enough, my brother; let what you have remain yours.” 10But Jacob said, “No, I pray you; if you would do me this favor, accept from me this gift; for to see your face is like seeing the face of God, and you have received me favorably. 11Please accept my present which has been brought to you, for God has favored me and I have plenty.” And when he urged him, he accepted.
12And [Esau] said, “Let us start on our journey, and I will proceed at your pace.” 13But he said to him, “My lord knows that the children are frail and that the flocks and herds, which are nursing, are a care to me; if they are driven hard a single day, all the flocks will die. 14Let my lord go on ahead of his servant, while I travel slowly, at the pace of the cattle before me and at the pace of the children, until I come to my lord in Seir.”
15Then Esau said, “Let me assign to you some of the men who are with me.” But he said, “Oh no, my lord is too kind to me!” 16So Esau started back that day on his way to Seir. 17But Jacob journeyed on to Succoth, and built a house for himself and made stalls for his cattle; that is why the place was called Succoth.a
18Jacob arrived safe in the city of Shechem which is in the land of Canaan—having come thus from Paddan-aram—and he encamped before the city. 19The parcel of land where he pitched his tent he purchased from the children of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for a hundred kesitahs.b 20He set up an altar there, and called it El-elohe-yisrael.c
34 Now Dinah, the daughter whom Leah had borne to Jacob, went out to visit the daughters of the land. 2Shechem son of Hamor the Hivite, chief of the country, saw her, and took her and lay with her by force. 3Being strongly drawn to Dinah daughter of Jacob, and in love with the maiden, he spoke to the maiden tenderly. 4So Shechem said to his father Hamor, “Get me this girl as a wife.”
5Jacob heard that he had defiled his daughter Dinah; but since his sons were in the field with his cattle, Jacob kept silent until they came home. 6Then Shechem’s father Hamor came out to Jacob to speak to him. 7Meanwhile Jacob’s sons, having heard the news, came in from the field. The men were distressed and very angry, because he had committed an outrage in Israel by lying with Jacob’s daughter—a thing not to be done.
8And Hamor spoke with them, saying, “My son Shechem longs for your daughter. Please give her to him in marriage. 9Intermarry with us: give your daughters to us, and take our daughters for yourselves: 10You will dwell among us, and the land will be open before you; settle, move about, and acquire holdings in it.” 11Then Shechem said to her father and brothers, “Do me this favor, and I will pay whatever you tell me. 12Ask of me a bride-price ever so high, as well as gifts, and I will pay what you tell me; only give me the maiden for a wife.”
13Jacob’s sons answered Shechem and his father Hamor—speaking with guile because he had defiled their sister Dinah—14and said to them, “We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to a man who is uncircumcised, for that is a disgrace among us. 15Only on this condition will we agree with you; that you will become like us in that every male among you is circumcised. 16Then we will give our daughters to you and take your daughters to ourselves; and we will dwell among you and become as one kindred. 17But if you will not listen to us and become circumcised, we will take our daughter and go.”
18Their words pleased Hamor and Hamor’s son Shechem. 19And the youth lost no time in doing the thing, for he wanted Jacob’s daughter. Now he was the most respected in his father’s house. 20So Hamor and his son Shechem went to the a-public place-a
