Genesis 32

Modern

Literal

Jacob Prepares to Meet Esau

¹Jacob also went on his way, and the angels of God met him.

¹And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him.

²When Jacob saw them, he said, “This is the camp of God.” So he named that place Mahanaim.^a

²And Jacob said when he saw them, “This is the camp of God.” And he called the name of that place Mahanaim.

³Jacob sent messengers ahead of him to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the country of Edom.

³And Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother, to the land of Seir, the field of Edom.

⁴He instructed them, “You are to say to my master Esau, ‘Your servant Jacob says: I have been staying with Laban and have remained there until now.

⁴And he commanded them, saying, “Thus you shall say to my lord, to Esau, thus says your servant Jacob: ‘With Laban I have sojourned and I have delayed until now.

⁵I have oxen, donkeys, flocks, menservants, and maidservants. I have sent this message to inform my master, so that I may find favor in your sight.’”

⁵And I have oxen and donkeys, flock, and menservants and maidservants. And I have sent to declare to my lord, to find favor in your eyes.’”

⁶When the messengers returned to Jacob, they said, “We went to your brother Esau, and now he is coming to meet you—he and four hundred men with him.”

⁶And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, “We came to your brother, to Esau, and he is also coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.”

⁷In great fear and distress, Jacob divided his people into two camps, as well as the flocks and herds and camels.

⁷And Jacob was greatly afraid and was distressed. And he divided the people who were with him, and the flock and the cattle and the camels, into two camps,

⁸He thought, “If Esau comes and attacks one camp, then the other camp can escape.”

⁸and he said, “If Esau comes to the one camp and strikes it, then the remaining camp shall be for an escape.”

⁹Then Jacob declared, “O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, the LORD who told me, ‘Go back to your country and to your kindred, and I will make you prosper,’

⁹And Jacob said, “O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, YHWH, the One saying to me, ‘Return to your land and to your kindred, and I will do good with you,’

¹⁰I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness You have shown Your servant. Indeed, with only my staff I came across the Jordan, but now I have become two camps.

¹⁰I am not worthy of all the kindnesses and of all the faithfulness that You have done for Your servant. For with my staff I passed over this Jordan, and now I have become two camps.

¹¹Please deliver me from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid that he may come and attack me and the mothers and children with me.

¹¹Deliver me, please, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau; for I fear him, lest he come and strike me—mother with sons.

¹²But You have said, ‘I will surely make you prosper, and I will make your offspring like the sand of the sea, too numerous to count.’”

¹²And You said, ‘I will surely do good with you and I will make your seed as the sand of the sea, which shall not be counted for multitude.’”

¹³Jacob spent the night there, and from what he had brought with him, he selected a gift for his brother Esau:

¹³And he lodged there that night, and he took from what is coming into his hand as a gift for Esau his brother:

¹⁴200 female goats, 20 male goats, 200 ewes, 20 rams,

¹⁴Two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams.

¹⁵30 milk camels with their young, 40 cows, 10 bulls, 20 female donkeys, and 10 male donkeys.

¹⁵And thirty nursing camels and their young, forty cows and ten bulls, twenty female donkeys, and ten male donkeys.

¹⁶He entrusted them to his servants in separate herds and told them, “Go on ahead of me, and keep some distance between the herds.”

¹⁶And he gave them into the hand of his servants, every herd by itself, and he said to his servants, “Pass over before me and put some distance between herd and between herd.”

¹⁷He instructed the one in the lead, “When my brother Esau meets you and asks, ‘To whom do you belong, where are you going, and whose animals are these before you?’

¹⁷And he commanded the first one, saying, “When Esau my brother meets you and asks you, saying, ‘To whom are you? And where are you going? And to whom are these before you?’

¹⁸then you are to say, ‘They belong to your servant Jacob. They are a gift, sent to my lord Esau. And behold, Jacob is behind us.’”

¹⁸Then you shall say, ‘To your servant Jacob; it is a gift, sent to my lord, to Esau. And behold, he is also behind us.’”

¹⁹He also instructed the second, the third, and all those following behind the herds: “When you meet Esau, you are to say the same thing to him.

¹⁹And he commanded also the second one, also the third one, also all those going after the herds, saying, “In this manner you shall speak to Esau when you find him.

²⁰You are also to say, ‘Look, your servant Jacob is right behind us.’” For he thought, “I will appease Esau^a with the gift that is going before me. After that I can face him, and perhaps he will accept me.”^b

²⁰And you shall say also, ‘Behold, your servant Jacob is behind us.’” For he said, “I will cover his face with the gift that goes before my face, and after that I will see his face; perhaps he will lift up my face.”

²¹So Jacob’s gifts went on before him, while he spent the night in the camp.

²¹And the gift passed over before his face, and he lodged that night in the camp.

Jacob Wrestles with God

²²During the night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two maidservants, and his eleven sons, and crossed the ford of the Jabbok.

²²And he rose that night and he took his two wives and his two maidservants and his one and ten sons, and he passed over the ford of Jabbok.

²³He took them and sent them across the stream, along with all his possessions.

²³And he took them and caused them to pass over the stream, and he caused to pass over what belonged to him.

²⁴So Jacob was left all alone, and there a man^a wrestled with him until daybreak.

²⁴And Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until the breaking of the dawn.

²⁵When the man saw that he could not overpower Jacob, he struck the socket of Jacob’s hip and dislocated it as they wrestled.

²⁵And he saw that he did not prevail against him, and he touched the socket of his hip, and the socket of the hip of Jacob was out of joint as he wrestled with him.

²⁶Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.”

But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”

²⁶And he said, “Send me away, for the dawn has broken.” And he said, “I will not send you away, unless you bless me.”

²⁷“What is your name?” the man asked.

“Jacob,” he replied.

²⁷And he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.”

²⁸Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob,^a but Israel,^b because you have struggled with God and with men, and you have prevailed.”

²⁸And he said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have striven with God and with men, and you have prevailed.”

²⁹And Jacob requested, “Please tell me your name.”

But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed Jacob there.

²⁹And Jacob asked and said, “Tell me, please, Your name.” And he said, “Why do you ask this about My name?” And he blessed him there.

³⁰So Jacob named the place Peniel,^a saying, “Indeed, I have seen God face to face, and yet my life was spared.”

³⁰And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: “For I have seen God face to face, and my soul has been delivered.”

³¹The sun rose above him as he passed by Penuel,^a and he was limping because of his hip.

³¹And the sun rose on him as he passed over Penuel, and he was limping on his hip.

³²Therefore to this day the Israelites do not eat the tendon attached to the socket of the hip, because the socket of Jacob’s hip was struck near that tendon.

³²Upon thus the sons of Israel do not eat the sinew tendon which is on the socket of the hip to this day, because he touched the socket of Jacob's hip in the sinew tendon.