Genesis 32:13-34:31

Contemporary English Version

¹³ After Jacob had spent the night there, he chose some animals as gifts for Esau: ^14-15 200 female goats and 20 males, 200 female sheep and 20 males, 30 female camels with their young, 40 cows and 10 bulls, and 20 female donkeys and 10 males.

¹⁶ Jacob put servants in charge of each herd and told them, “Go ahead of me and keep a space between each herd.” ¹⁷ Then he said to the servant in charge of the first herd, “When Esau meets you, he will ask whose servant you are. He will want to know where you are going and who owns those animals in front of you. ¹⁸ So tell him, ‘They belong to your servant Jacob, who is coming this way. He is sending them as a gift to his master Esau.’ ”

¹⁹ Jacob also told the men in charge of the second and third herds and those who followed to say the same thing when they met Esau. ²⁰ And Jacob told them to be sure to say that he was right behind them. Jacob hoped the gifts would make Esau friendly, so Esau would be glad to see him when they met. ²¹ Jacob's men took the gifts on ahead of him, but he spent the night in camp.

Jacob's Name Is Changed to Israel

^22-23 (A) Jacob got up in the middle of the night and took his wives, his eleven children, and everything he owned across to the other side of the Jabbok River for safety. ^24 (B) Afterwards, Jacob went back and spent the rest of the night alone.

A man came and fought with Jacob until just before daybreak. ²⁵ When the man saw that he could not win, he struck Jacob on the hip and threw it out of joint. ²⁶ They kept on wrestling until the man said, “Let go of me! It's almost daylight.”

“You can't go until you bless me,” Jacob replied.

²⁷ Then the man asked, “What is your name?”

“Jacob,” he answered.

^28 (C) The man said, “From now on, your name will no longer be Jacob. You will be called Israel,^[a] because you have wrestled with God and with men, and you have won.”

^29 (D) Jacob said, “Now tell me your name.”

“Don't you know who I am?” he asked. And he blessed Jacob.

³⁰ Jacob said, “I have seen God face to face, and I am still alive.” So he named the place Peniel.^{[b] 31} The sun was coming up as Jacob was leaving Peniel. He was limping because he had been struck on the hip, ³² and the muscle on his hip joint had been injured. That's why even today the people of Israel don't eat the hip muscle of any animal.

Jacob Meets Esau

33 Later that day Jacob met Esau coming with his 400 men. So Jacob told his children to walk with their mothers. ² The two servant women, Zilpah and Bilhah, together with their children went first, followed by Leah and her children, then by Rachel and Joseph. ³ Jacob himself walked in front of them all, bowing to the ground seven times as he came near his brother.

⁴ But Esau ran toward Jacob and hugged and kissed him. Then the two brothers started crying.

⁵ When 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.”

⁶ Then the two servant women and their children came and bowed down to Esau. ⁷ Next, Leah and her children came and bowed down; finally, Joseph and Rachel also came and bowed down.

⁸ Esau 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. ¹¹ Please 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.”

¹³ But 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. ¹⁴ Why 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.”

¹⁵ Esau 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.”

¹⁶ So Esau left for Edom. ¹⁷ But Jacob went to Succoth,^[c] 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

¹⁸ After leaving northern Syria,^[d] Jacob arrived safely at Shechem in Canaan and set up camp outside the city. ^19 (E) The land where he camped was owned by the descendants of Hamor, the father of Shechem. So Jacob paid them 100 pieces of silver^[e] for the property, ²⁰ then he set up his tents and built an altar there to honor the God of Israel.

Dinah Is Raped

34 Dinah, the daughter of Jacob and Leah, went to visit some of the women who lived nearby. ² She was seen by Hamor's son Shechem, the leader of the Hivites, and he grabbed her and raped her. ³ But Shechem was attracted to Dinah, so he told her how much he loved her. ⁴ Shechem even asked his father to arrange for him to marry her.

⁵ Meanwhile, Jacob heard what had happened. But his sons were out in the fields with the cattle, so he did not do anything at the time. ⁶ Hamor arrived at Jacob's home ⁷ just as Jacob's sons were coming in from work. When they learned that their sister had been raped, they became furiously angry, because nothing is more disgraceful than rape, and it must not be tolerated.

⁸ Hamor said to Jacob and his sons:

My son Shechem really loves Dinah. Please let him marry her. ⁹ Why don't you start letting your families marry into our families and ours marry into yours? ¹⁰ You can share this land with us. Move freely about until you find the property you want; then buy it and settle down here.

¹¹ Shechem added, “Do this favor for me, and I'll give whatever you want. ¹² Ask anything, no matter how expensive. I'll do anything, just let me marry Dinah.”

¹³ Jacob's sons wanted to get even with Shechem and his father because of what had happened to their sister. ¹⁴ So they tricked them by saying:

You're not circumcised!^[f] It would be a disgrace for us to let you marry Dinah now. ¹⁵ But we will let you marry her, if you and the other men in your tribe agree to be circumcised. ¹⁶ Then your families can marry into ours, and ours can marry into yours, and we can live together like one nation. ¹⁷ But if you don't agree to be circumcised, we'll take Dinah and leave this place.

¹⁸ Hamor and Shechem liked what was said. ¹⁹ Shechem was the most respected person in his family, and he was so in love with Dinah that he hurried off to get everything done. ²⁰ The two men met with the other leaders of their city and told them:

²¹ These people really are friendly. Why not let them move freely about until they find the property they want? There's enough land here for them and for us. Then our families can marry into theirs, and theirs can marry into ours.

²² We have to do only one thing before they will agree to stay here and become one nation with us. Our men will have to be circumcised just like theirs. ²³ Just think! We'll get their property, as well as their flocks and herds. All we have to do is to agree, and they will live here with us.

²⁴ Every grown man followed this advice and got circumcised.

Dinah's Brothers Take Revenge

²⁵ Three days later the men who had been circumcised were still weak from pain. So Simeon and Levi,^[g] two of Dinah's brothers, attacked with their swords and killed every man in the town, ²⁶ including Hamor and Shechem. Then they took Dinah and left. ²⁷ Jacob's other sons came and took everything they wanted. All this was done because of the horrible thing that had happened to their sister. ²⁸ They took sheep, goats, donkeys, and everything else that was in the town or the countryside. ²⁹ After taking everything of value from the houses, they dragged away the wives and children of their victims.

³⁰ Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, “Look what you've done! Now I'm in real trouble with the Canaanites and Perizzites who live around here. There aren't many of us, and if they attack, they'll kill everyone in my household.”

³¹ They answered, “Was it right to let our own sister be treated that way?”