me for Rebekah, because she is fair to look upon.' 8And it came to pass, when he had been there a long time, that Abimelech king of the Philisft That is, Red.
tines looked out at a window, and saw, and, behold, Isaac was sport- ing with Rebekah Ms wife. 9And Abimelech called Isaac, and said: 'Behold, of a surety she is thy; wife; and how saidst-thou: She is my sister?' And Isaac said unto Mm: 'Because I said: Lest I die because of her.' 10And Abimelech said: ' What is tMs thou hast done unto us? one of the people might easily have lain with thy wife, and thou wouldest have brought guiltiness upon us.' llAnd Abimelech charged all the people, saying: 'He that toucheth tMs man or Ms wife shall surely be put to death.' ^And Isaac sowed in that land, and found in the same year a hundredfold; and the LORD blessed Mm. ^And the man waxed great, and grew more and more until he became very great. 14And he had possessions of flocks, and possessions of herds, and a great household; and the Philistines envied him. 15Now all the wells which his father's servants had digged in the days of Abraham Ms father, the PMlistines had stopped them, and filled them with earth. 16And Abimelech said unto Isaac: 'Go from us; for thou art much might- ier than we.' 17And Isaac departed thence, and encamped in the valley of Gerar, and dwelt there. 18And Isaac digged again the wells of water, which they had digged in the days of Abraham Ms father; for the PMlistines had stopped them after the death of Abraham; and he called their names after the names by wMch Ms father had called them. 19And Isaac's serv- ants digged in the valley, and found there a well of living water. 20And the herdmen of Gerar strove with Isaac's herdmen, saying: 'The water is ours.' And he called the name of the well bEsek; because they conb That is, Contention.
30 GENESIS tended with him. 2lAnd they another well, and they strove for that also. And he called the name of it aSitnah. ^And he removed from thence, and digged another well; and for that they strove not. And he called the name of it bRehoboth; and he said: 'For now the LORD hath made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.' ^And he went up from thence to Beer-sheba. MAnd the LORD appeared unto him the same night, and said: 'I am the God of Abraham thy father. Fear not, for I am with thee, and will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for. My servant Abraham's sake.' ^And he builded an altar there, and called upon the name of the LORD, and pitched his tent there; and there Isaac's servants digged a well. ^Then Abimelech went to him from Gerar, and Ahuzzath. his friend, and Phicol the captain of his host. 27And Isaac said unto them: 1 Wherefore are ye come unto me, see- ing ye hate me, and have sent me away from you?' 28And they said: 'We saw plainly that the LORD was with thee; and we said: Let there now be an oath betwixt us, even betwixt us and thee, and let us make a covenant with thee; 29that thou wilt do us no hurt, as we have not touched thee, and as we have done unto thee nothing but good, and have sent thee away in peace; thou art now the blessed of the LORD.' 30And he made them a feast, and they did eat and drink. 31And they rose up betimes in the morning, and swore one to another; and Isaac sent them away, and they departed from him in peace. 32And it came to pass the teame day, that Isaac's servants came, and told him concerning the well which they had digged, and said unto him: 'We have found water,' ^And he called it a That is, Enmity.
Shibah. Therefore the name of the city is Beer-sheba unto this day.
^And when Esau was forty years old, he took to wife Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite. 35And they were a bitterness of spirit unto Isaac and to Rebekah. 07 And it came to pass, that when ^ ' Isaac was old, and his eyes were dim, so that he could not see, he called Esau his elder son, and said unto him: 'My son'; and he said unto him: 'Here am I.' 2And he said: 'Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death. 3Now therefore take, I pray thee, thy weapons, thy quiver and thy bow, and go out to the field, and take me venison; *and make me savoury food, such as I love, and bring it to me, that I may eat; that my soul may bless thee before I die.' 5And Rebekah heard when Isaac spoke to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to hunt for venison, and to bring it. 6And Rebekah spoke unto Jacob her son, saying: 'Behold, I heard thy father speak unto Esau thy brother, saying: 7Bring me venison, and make me savoury food, that I may eat, and bless thee before the LORD before my death. 8Now therefore, my son, hearken to my voice accord- ing to that which I command thee. 9Go now to the flock, and fetch me from thence two good kids of the goats; and I will make them savoury food for thy father, such as he loveth; 10and thou shalt bring it to thy father, that he may eat, so that. he may bless thee before his death.' uAnd Jacob said to Rebekah his mother: 'Behold, Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man. ^My father peradventure will feel me, and I shall seem to him as a mocker; and I shall bring a curse fc That is, Room.
GENESIS upon me, and not a blessing.' 13And his mother said unto him: 'Upon me be thy curse, my son; only hearken to my voice, and go fetch me them.' 14And he went, and fetched, and brought them to his mother; and his mother made savoury food, such as his father loved. 15And Rebekah took the choicest garments of Esau her elder son, which were with her in the house, and put them upon Jacob her younger son. 16And she put the skins of the kids of the goats upon his hands, and upon the smooth of his neck. 17And she gave the savoury food and the bread, which she had pre- pared, into the hand of her son Jacob. 18And he came unto his father, and said: ' My father '; and he said: l Here am I; who art thou, my son?' 19And Jacob said unto his father: 'I am Esau thy first-born; I have done according as thou badest me. Arise, I pray thee, sit and eat of my venison, that thy soul may bless me.' 20And Isaac said unto Ms son: 'How is it that thou hast found it so quickly, my son?' And he said: 'Because the LORD thy God sent me good speed.' 21And Isaac said unto Jacob: 'Come near, I pray thee, that I may feel thee, my son, whether thou be my very son Esau or not.' ^And Jacob went near unto Isaac his father; and he felt him, and said: 'The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau.' ^And he discerned him not, because his hands were hairy, as his brother Esau's hands; so he blessed him, 24Andhesaid: 'Art thou my very son Esau?' And he said: 'I am.' 26And he said: 'Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son's venison, that my soul f may bless thee/ And he brought it near to him, and he did eat; and he brought him wine, and he drank. MAnd his father Isaac said unto him: 'Come near now, and kiss me, my son.' 27And he came near, and kissed him. And he smelled the smell of his raiment, and blessed him, and said: See, the smell of my son Is as the smell of a field which the LORD hath blessed. 28So God give thee of the dew of heaven, And of the fat places of the earth, And plenty of corn and wine. 29Let peoples serve thee, And nations bow down to thee.
Be lord over thy brethren, And let thyvmother's sons bow down to thee.
Cursed be every one that curseth thee, And blessed be every one that blesseth thee.
30And it came to pass, as soon as Isaac had made an end of blessing Jacob, and Jacob was yet scarce gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunting. 31And he also made savoury food, and brought it unto his father; and he said unto his father: 'Let my father arise, and eat of his son's venison, that thy soul may bless me.' 82And Isaac his father said unto him: 'Who art thou?' And he said: 'I am thy son, thy first-born, Esau.' 38 And Isaac trembled very exceedingly, and said: ^ 'Who then is he that hath taken venison, and brought it me, and I have eaten of all before thou earnest, and have blessed him? yea, and he shall be blessed.' 34When Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with an exceeding great and bitter cry, and said unto his father: 'Bless me, even me also, O my father/ 35And he said. 'Thy brother came with guile, and hath taken away thy blessing.' 36And he said: 'Is not he rightly named 32 GENESIS 32 GENESIS Jacob? for he hath supplanted me these two times: he took away my birthright; and, behold, now he hath taken away my blessing/ And he said: 'Hast thou not reserved a bless- ing for me?' 37And Isaac answered and said unto Esau: 'Behold, I have made him thy lord, and all his brethren have I given to him for servants; and with corn and wine have I sustained him; and what then shall I do for thee, my son?' 88And Esau said unto his father: 'Hast thou but one bless- ing, my' father? bless me, even me also, 0 my father/ And Esau lifted up his voice, and wept. 89And Isaac his father answered and said unto him: Behold, of the fat places of the earth shall be thy dwelling, And of the dew of heaven from above; ^And by thy sword shalt thou live, and thou shalt serve thy broth- er; And it shall come to pass when thou shalt break loose, That thou shalt shake his yoke from off thy neck.
^And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing wherewith his father blessed him. And Esau said in his heart: 'Let the days of mourning for my father be at hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob/ ^And the worots of Esau her elder son were told to Bebekah; and she sent and^ called Jacob her younger son, and said unto him: /Behold, thy brother Esau, as touching thee, doth comfort himself, purposing to kill thee. ^Now there- fore, my son, hearken to my voice; and arise, flee thou to Laban my brother to Haran; ^and tarry with him a few days, until thy brother's fury turn away; 45until thy brother's anger turn away from thee, and he forget that which thou hast done to him; then I will send, and fetch thee from thence; why should I be bereaved of you both in one day?'
^And Rebekah said to Isaac: fl am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth. If Jacob take a wife of the daughters of Heth, such as these, of the daughters of the land, what good shall my life do me?; OQ And Isaac called Jacob, aiid blessed him, and charged him, and said unto him: "Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Ca- naan. 2Arise, go to Paddan-aram, to the house of Bethuel thy mother's father; and take thee a wife from thence of the daughters of Laban thy mother's brother. 3And God Almighty bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thoia. mayest be a congregation of peoples; 4and give thee the blessing of Abraham, to thee, and to thy seed with thee; that thou mayest inherit the land of thy sojournings, which God gave unto Abraham/ &And Isaac sent away Jacob; and he went to Paddan-aram unto Laban, son of Bethuel the Ara- mean, the brother of Rebekah, Ja- cob's and Esau's mother. 6Now Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him away to Paddan-aram, to take him a wife from thence; and that as he blessed him he gave him a charge, saying: 'Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Ca- naan'; 7and that Jacob hearkened to his father and his mother, and was gone to Paddan-aram; 8and Esau saw that the daughters of Canaan pleased not Isaac his father; 9so Esaij went unto Ishmael, and took unto the wives that he had Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael Abraham's son, the sister of Nebaioth, to be his wife.
33 GENESIS 10And Jacob went out from Beer- sheba, and went toward Haran. uAnd he lighted upon the place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took one of the stones of the place, and put it under his head, and lay down in that place to sleep. 12And he dreamed, and be- hold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven; and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it. 13And, behold, the LORD stood beside him, and said: 'I am the LORD, the God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac. The land whereon thou best', to thee will I give it, and to thy seed. 14And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south. And thee and in thy families of the in seed shall all the earth be blessed. J*M.J behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee whithersoever thou goest, and will bring thee back into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.' 16And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said: 'Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew^it not.' 17And he was afraid, and said: 'How full of awe is this place! this is none other than the house of God. and this is the gate of heaven.' 18And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put under his head, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it. 19And he called the name of that place *Beth-el, but the name of the city was Luz at the first. 20And Jacob vowed a vow, saying: 'If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, that I come back to my father's house in peace, then shall the LORD be my God, ^and this ^stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God's house; and of all that Thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto Thee.'
OQ Then Jacob went on his jour- 4 ney, and came to the land of the children of the east. *Aud he looked, and behold a well in the field, and lo three flocks of sheep lying there by it — For out of that well they watered the flocks. And the stone upon the well's mouth was great. 3 And thither were all the flocks gath- ered; and they rolled the stone from the well's mouth, and watered the sheep, and put the stone back upon the well's mouth in its place. — 4And Jacob said unto them: 'My brethren, whence areye?' And they said: 'Of Haran are we.' 5And he said unto them: 'Know ye Laban the son of Nahor?' And they said: 'We know him.' 6And he said unto them: 'Is it well with him?' And they said: 'It is well; and, be- hold, Rachel his daughter cometh with the sheep.' 7Andhesaid: 'Lo, it is yet high day, neither is it time that the cattle should be gathered together; water ye the sheep, and go and feed them.' 8And they said: 'We cannot, until all the flocks be gathered to- gether, and they roll the stone from the well's mouth; then we water the sheep.' 9While he was yet speaking with them, Rachel came with her father's sheep; for she tended them. 10And it came to pass, when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother's brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother's brother, that Jacob went near, and rolled the stone from the well's mouth, and watered the flock of Laban his mother's brother. uAnd Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted 1 That is, The house of God.
34 GENESIS lip his voice, and wept. ^And Jacob told Rachel that he was her father's brother, and that he was Rebekah's son; and she ran and told her father. 13 And it came to pass, when Laban heard the tidings of Jacob his sister's son, that he ran to meet him, and em- braced him, and kissed him, and brought him to his house. And he told Laban all these things. 14And Laban said to him: 'Surely thou art my bone and my flesh.' And he abode with him the space of a month. 15And Laban said unto Jacob: * Be- cause thou art my brother, shouldest thou therefore serve me for nought? tell me, what shall thy wages be?' 16Now Laban had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. 17 And Leah's eyes were weak; but Rachel was of beautiful form and fair to look upon. 18And Jacob loved Rachel; and he said: 'I will serve thee seven years for Rachel thy younger daughter.' 19And Laban said: 'It is better that I give her to thee, than that I should give her to another man; abide with me.' 20And Jacob served seven years for Rachel; and they seemed unto him but a few days, for the love he had to her. ^And Jacob said unto Laban: 'Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in unto her.' ^And Laban gathered together all the men of the place, and made a feast. ^And it came to pass in the evening, that he took Leah his daughter, and brought her to him; and he went in unto her. ^And Laban gave Zilpah his hand- maid unto his daughter Leah for a, handmaid. 25And it came to pass in the morning that, behold, it was Leah; and he said to Laban: 'What is this thou hast done unto me? did not I serve with thee for Rachel?
wherefore then hast thou beguiled me?' ^And Laban said: 'It is not so done in our place, to give the younger before the first-born. 27Fulfil the week of this one, and we will give thee the other also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years.' 28And Jacob did so, and ful- filled her week; and he gave him Rachel his daughter to wife. 29And Laban gave to Rachel his daughter Bilhah his handmaid to be her hand- maid. 30And he went in also unto Rachel, and he loved Rachel more than Leah, and served with him yet seven other years.
31And the LORD saw that Leah was hated, and he opened her womb; but Rachel was barren. ^And Leah con- ceived, and bore a son, and she called his name Reuben; for she said: 'Be- cause the LORD ahath looked upon my affliction; for now my husband w^It love me.' ^And she conceived again, and bore a son; and said: 'Because the LORD bhath heard that I am hated, He hath therefore given me this son also.' And she called his name cSimeon. MAnd she conceived again, and bore a son; and said: 'Now this time will my husband be djoined unto me, because I have borne him three sons.' Therefore was his name called Levi. ^And she conceived again, and bore a son; and she said: 'This time will I epraise the LORD.' Therefore she called his name f Judah; and she left off bearing.
And when Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children.
30 Rachel envied her sister; and she said unto Jacob: 'Give me children, or else I die.' 2Aad Jacob's anger was kindled against Rachel; and he said: 'Am I in God's stead, who hath with- held from thee the fruit of the womb?' 3And she said: 'Behold my maid * Heb. roah beonp. * Heb. shama. ° Heb. Shimeon. d From the Heb. root lavah. • From the Heb. hodah. ' Heb. Jehvdah.
35 GENESIS Bilhah, go in unto her; that she may l8And Leah said: 'God hath given me bear upon my knees, and I also may my ehire, because I gave my handbe builded up through her.' 4And she maid to my husband.' And she called gave him Bilhah her handmaid to his name Issachar. "And Leah conwife; and Jacob went hi unto her.
ceived again, and bore a sixth son to 5And Bilhah conceived, and bore Jacob. ^And Leah said: 'God hath Jacob a son. 6And Rachel said: 'God endowed me with a good dowry; now hath ajudged me, and hath also will my husband fdwell with me, beheard my voice, and hath given me a cause I have borne him six sons.'
son.' Therefore called she his name And she called his name Zebulun.
Dan. 7And Bilhah Rachel's handmaid 21And afterwards she bore a daughter, conceived again, and bore Jacob a and called her name Dinah. ^And second son. 8And Rachel said: ' With God remembered Rachel, and God mighty wrestlings have I bwrestled hearkened to her, and opened her with my sister, and have prevailed.'
womb. ^And she conceived, and And she called his name Naphtali.
bore a son, and said. 'God *hath 9When Leah saw that she had left taken away my reproach.' MAnd she off bearing, she took Zilpah her handcalled his name Joseph, saying: 'The maid, and gave her to Jacob to wife.
LORD hadd to me another son.'
10And Zilpah Leah's handmaid bore MAnd it came to pass, when Rachel Jacob a son. "And Leah said: 'Forhad borne Joseph, that Jacob said tune is come!' And she called his unto Laban: 'Send me away, that I may go unto mine own place, and to handmaid bore Jacob a second son.
my country. 26Give me my wives and wAnd Leah said: 'Happy am I! for my children for whom I have served the 'daughters will call me happy ' thee, and let me go; for thou knowest And she called his name dAsher.
my service wherewith I have served 14And Reuben went in the days of thee.' 27And Laban said unto him: wheat harvest, and found man- 'If now I have found favour in thine drakes in the field, and brought them eyes — I have observed the signs, and unto his mother Leah. Then Rachel the LOED hath blessed me for thy sake.
said to Leah: 'Give me, I pray thee, of thy son's mandrakes.' 16And she ^And he said: ' Appoint me thy wages, and I will give it.' 29And he said unto said unto her: 'Is it a small matter him: 'Thou knowest how I have that thou hast taken away my husserved thee, and how thy cattle have band? and wouldest thou take away fared with me. 30For it was little my son's mandrakes also?' And Rawhich thou hadst before I came, and chel said: 'Therefore he shall lie with it hath increased abundantly; and thee to-night for thy son's mandrakes.'
the LOBD hath blessed thee whither- 16And Jacob came from the field in soever I turned. And now when the evening, and Leah went out to shall I provide for mine own house meet him, and said: 'Thou must also?' 31And he said: 'What shall come in unto me; for I have surely I give thee?' And Jacob said: 'Thou