74 | Genesis 31:51
51 La ban also said to Ja cob , “ Here is this heap , and here is this pil lar a I have set up between you and me . 52 This heap is a wit ness , and this pil lar is a wit ness , b that I will not go past this heap to your side to harm you and that you will not go past this heap and pil lar to my side to harm me . c 53 May the God of Abra ham d and the God of Na hor , the God of their father , judge between us .” e
So Ja cob took an oath f in the name of the Fear of his fa ther Isaac . g 54 He of fered a sac rifice there in the hill coun try and in vited his rel a tives to a meal . Af ter they had eaten , they spent the night there .
55 Early the next morn ing La ban kissed his grand chil dren and his daugh ters h and blessed them . Then he left and re turned home . a i
Jacob Prepares to Meet Esau
32 b Ja cob also went on his way , and the an gels of God j met him . 2 When Ja cob saw them ,
he said , “ This is the camp of God !” k So he named that place Ma ha naim . c l
3 Ja cob sent mes sen gers ahead of him to his brother Esau m in the land of Seir , the country of Edom . n 4 He in structed them : “ This is what you are to say to my lord Esau : ‘ Your ser vant Ja cob says , I have been stay ing with La ban and have re mained there till now . 5 I have cat tle and don keys , sheep and goats , male and fe male ser vants . o Now I am send ing this mes sage to my lord , that I may find fa vor in your eyes . p ’ ”
6 When the mes sen gers re turned to Ja cob , they said , “ We went to your brother Esau , and now he is com ing to meet you , and four hun dred men are with him .” q
7 In great fear r and dis tress Ja cob di vided the peo ple who were with him into two groups , d and the flocks and herds and cam els as well . 8 He thought , “ If Esau comes and attacks one group , e the group e that is left may es cape .”
9 Then Ja cob prayed , “ O God of my fa ther Abra ham , God of my fa ther Isaac , s Lord , you who said to me , ‘ Go back to your coun try and your rel a tives , and I will make you pros per ,’ t 10 I am un wor thy of all the kind ness and faith ful ness u you have shown your ser vant . I had only my staff when I crossed this Jor dan , but now I have be come two camps . 11 Save me , I pray , from the hand of my brother Esau , for I am afraid he will come and at tack me , v and also the moth ers with their chil dren . w 12 But you have said , ‘ I will surely make you pros per and will make your de scen dants like the sand x of the sea , which can not be counted . y ’ ”
13 He spent the night there , and from what he had with him he se lected a gift z for his brother Esau : 14 two hun dred fe male goats and twenty male goats , two hun dred ewes and twenty rams , 15 thirty fe male cam els with their young , forty cows and ten bulls , and twenty fe male don keys and ten male don keys . 16 He put them in the care of his ser vants , each herd by it self , and said to his ser vants , “ Go ahead of me , and keep some space be tween the herds .”
17 He in structed the one in the lead : “ When my brother Esau meets you and asks , ‘ Who do you be long to , and where are you go ing , and who owns all these an i mals in front of you ?’
a 55 In Hebrew texts this verse ( 31:55 ) is numbered 32:1 . b In Hebrew texts 32:1-32 is numbered 32:2-33 . c 2 Mahanaim means two camps . d 7 Or camps e 8 Or camp
31:51 a Ge 28:18
31:52 b Ge 21:30 c ver 7 ; Ge 26:29
31:53 d Ge 28:13 e Ge 16:5 f Ge 21:23 , 27
g ver 42
31:55 h ver 28 i Ge 18:33 ; 30:25
32:1 j Ge 16:11 ; 2Ki 6:16-17 ; Ps 34:7 ; 91:11 ; Heb 1:14
32:2 k Ge 28:17 l 2Sa 2:8 , 29
32:3 m Ge 27:41-42 n Ge 25:30 ; 36:8 , 9
32:5 o Ge 12:16 ; 30:43 p Ge 33:8 , 10 , 15
32:6 q Ge 33:1 32:7 r ver 11
32:9 s Ge 28:13 ; 31:42 t Ge 31:13
32:10 u Ge 24:27
32:11 v Ps 59:2 w Ge 27:41
32:12 x Ge 22:17 y Ge 28:13-15 ;
Hos 1:10 ; Ro 9:27
32:13 z Ge 43:11 , 15 , 25 , 26 ; Pr 18:16
32:1 – 21 Jacob Prepares to Meet Esau . Twenty years have passed since Jacob fled from Esau . Having made peace with Laban , he now prays that God will enable him to be reconciled with his estranged brother . 32:1 – 2 Jacob is reassured of God ’ s presence when the angels of God meet him and he sees the camp of God . This encounter recalls his earlier dream at Bethel , when he also saw “ the angels of God ” ( 28:12 ), an expression the OT uses nowhere else . Whereas Bethel , which means the “ house of God ,” suggests a static residence for God , God ’ s “ camp ” implies something mobile . God accompanies Jacob as he travels to Canaan . 32:2 Mahanaim . Means “ two camps ” ( see NIV text note ). Jacob probably alludes to the presence of God ’ s camp alongside his own . Possibly the image of two camps inspires Jacob to divide his own camp into two sections prior to meeting Esau ( vv . 7 – 10 ). 32:3 messengers . Having witnessed God ’ s angels , Jacob sends messengers to Esau . The two events are connected by a wordplay involving the Hebrew noun malʾākîm , which denotes both angels and messengers : God sends angels from his camp to meet Jacob , and Jacob sends messengers from his camp to meet Esau . Seir . This name resembles the Hebrew word for “ hairy ,” which describes Esau in 25:25 . Esau apparently settled in this region . the country of Edom . This expression not only recalls how Esau was known as Edom ( 25:30 ) but also echoes 25:27 : Esau was “ a man of the open country .” The Hebrew term translated “ open country ” in 25:27 is rendered “ country ” here . Seir and Esau were well matched . Designating Edom as Esau suggests that Jacob is free to take possession of the land of Canaan . 32:4 my lord . . . Your servant . Jacob ’ s message to Esau expresses considerable humility . His language contrasts sharply with God ’ s prediction that the older would serve the younger ( 25:23 ) and with Isaac ’ s blessing , which speaks of Jacob being lord over his brothers ( 27:29 ). Having alienated himself from Esau , Jacob is keen to regain his brother ’ s favor ( 33:8 ). 32:6 four hundred men . Jacob becomes exceptionally fearful when he hears that Esau is coming to meet him with a large number of men . With a force of 318 men , Abraham defeated the combined forces of four kings ( 14:14 – 16 ). 32:7 Jacob responds by dividing his camp into “ two groups .” His action recalls his earlier vision of God ’ s camp ( see v . 2 and note ), but it implies that he has forgotten God ’ s protective presence with him . 32:9 God of my father Abraham , God of my father Isaac , Lord . Jacob invokes God in prayer using three designations . The first two underline the importance of the family line , for both Abraham and Isaac have known God in a special way . “ Lord ” translates God ’ s personal name ( see 2:4 and note ), which Jacob uses here for the first time . 32:10 kindness and faithfulness . By associating these characteristics with the Lord , Jacob ’ s prayer anticipates how God himself declares his nature in Exod 34:6 ( see note there ). 32:13 – 21 To placate his brother , Jacob generously sends herds of animals to Esau as a gift . To afford such a gift , Jacob must have become exceptionally wealthy during his stay in Paddan Aram .