Jacob Shows His Bravery

33 Jacob ·looked up [^Lraised his eyes] and saw Esau coming, and with him were four hundred men. So Jacob divided his children among Leah, Rachel, and the two slave girls. ² Jacob put the slave girls with their children first, then Leah and her children behind them, and Rachel and Joseph last [^Cleast favorite to most favorite]. ³ Jacob himself ·went out [passed] in front of them and bowed down flat on the ground seven times ·as he was walking toward [or until he came near] his brother.

⁴ But Esau ran to meet Jacob and ·put his arms around [hugged] him and ·hugged him [^Lfell on his neck]. Then Esau kissed him, and they both cried. ⁵ When ·Esau looked up [^Lhe raised his eyes] and saw the women and children, he asked, “Who are these people with you?”

Jacob answered, “These are the children God has graciously given me, your servant.”

⁶ Then the two slave girls and their children came up to Esau and bowed down flat on the earth before him. ⁷ Leah and her children also came up to Esau and also bowed down flat on the earth. Last of all, Joseph and Rachel came up to Esau, and they, too, bowed down flat before him.

⁸ Esau said, “·I saw many herds as I was coming here. Why did you bring them [^LWhat is all this camp that I encountered]?”

Jacob answered, “They were to ·please you, my master [^Lfind grace/favor in the eyes of my master/lord].”

⁹ But Esau said, “I already have enough, my brother. Keep what you have.”

¹⁰ Jacob said, “No! Please! If I have ·pleased you [^Lfound grace/favor in your eyes], then ·accept the gift I give you [^Ltake my gift/tribute from my hand]. ·I am very happy to see your face again. It [^LSeeing your face] is like seeing the face of God, because you have accepted me. ¹¹ So I beg you to accept the ·gift [present; ^Lblessing] I give you. God has been very ·good [gracious; favorable] to me, and I have ·more than [all that] I need.” And because ·Jacob begged [he urged him], Esau ·accepted [took] the gift.

¹² Then Esau said, “Let us be going. I will travel with you.”

¹³ But Jacob said to him, “My ·master [^Llord], you know that the children are ·weak [soft; frail]. And I must be careful with my flocks ·and their young ones [^Land herds that are nursing]. If I ·force them to go too far [push them too fast] in one day, ·all the animals [the entire flock] will die. ¹⁴ So, my ·master [lord], you ·go [pass] on ahead of me, your servant. I will follow you slowly and let the animals and the children set the speed at which we travel. I will meet you, my ·master [lord], in ·Edom [^LSeir; 14:6].”

¹⁵ So Esau said, “Then let me leave some of my people with you.”

“No, thank you,” said Jacob. “·I only want to please you, my master [^LWhy should I find such grace/favor in the eyes of my master/lord?].” ¹⁶ So that day Esau started back to ·Edom [^LSeir; 14:6]. ¹⁷ But Jacob went to Succoth, where he built a house for himself and ·shelters [booths] for his animals. That is why the place was named Succoth [^Csounds like “shelter” in Hebrew].

¹⁸ Jacob left ·northwestern Mesopotamia [^LPaddan-aram] and arrived safely at the city of Shechem [12:6] in the land of Canaan. There he camped ·east of [^Lbefore] the city. ¹⁹ He bought a ·part [parcel; portion] of the field where he had camped from the sons of Hamor father of Shechem for one hundred ·pieces of silver [^Lqesitah; ^Can uncertain monetary unit; Josh. 24:32; John 4:5, 6, 12; Acts 7:16]. ²⁰ He ·built [erected] an altar there and named it ·after God, the God of Israel [^LEl-Elohe-Israel].