Hands-On Bible Sampler - Flipbook - Page 65
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father Abraham, and God of my father, Isaac—
O Lord, you told me, ‘Return to your own land
and to your relatives.’ And you promised me, ‘I
will treat you kindly.’ 10I am not worthy of all the
unfailing love and faithfulness you have shown
to me, your servant. When I left home and
crossed the Jordan River, I owned nothing except a walking stick. Now my household fills two
large camps! 11O Lord, please rescue me from
the hand of my brother, Esau. I am afraid that he
is coming to attack me, along with my wives and
children. 12But you promised me, ‘I will surely
treat you kindly, and I will multiply your descendants until they become as numerous as the
sands along the seashore—too many to count.’”
13Jacob stayed where he was for the night.
Then he selected these gifts from his possessions to present to his brother, Esau: 14200 female goats, 20 male goats, 200 ewes, 20 rams,
1530 female camels with their young, 40 cows,
10 bulls, 20 female donkeys, and 10 male donkeys. 16He divided these animals into herds and
assigned each to different servants. Then he told
his servants, “Go ahead of me with the animals,
but keep some distance between the herds.”
17He gave these instructions to the men leading the first group: “When my brother, Esau,
meets you, he will ask, ‘Whose servants are you?
Where are you going? Who owns these animals?’
18You must reply, ‘They belong to your servant
Jacob, but they are a gift for his master Esau.
Look, he is coming right behind us.’”
19Jacob gave the same instructions to the second and third herdsmen and to all who followed
behind the herds: “You must say the same thing
to Esau when you meet him. 20And be sure to say,
‘Look, your servant Jacob is right behind us.’”
Jacob thought, “I will try to appease him by
sending gifts ahead of me. When I see him in
person, perhaps he will be friendly to me.” 21So
the gifts were sent on ahead, while Jacob himself
spent that night in the camp.
Jacob Wrestles with God
22During the night Jacob got up and took his two
wives, his two servant wives, and his eleven sons
and crossed the Jabbok River with them. 23After
taking them to the other side, he sent over all his
possessions.
24This left Jacob all alone in the camp, and a
man came and wrestled with him until the dawn
began to break. 25 When the man saw that he
would not win the match, he touched Jacob’s hip
and wrenched it out of its socket. 26Then the
man said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking!”
... Genesis 33
But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you
bless me.”
27 “What is your name?” the man asked.
He replied, “Jacob.”
28 “Your name will no longer be Jacob,” the
man told him. “From now on you will be called
Israel, because you have fought with God and
with men and have won.”
29 “Please tell me your name,” Jacob said.
“Why do you want to know my name?” the
man replied. Then he blessed Jacob there.
30Jacob named the place Peniel (which means
“face of God”), for he said, “I have seen God face
to face, yet my life has been spared.” 31 The sun
was rising as Jacob left Peniel, and he was limping because of the injury to his hip. 32 (Even today the people of Israel don’t eat the tendon
near the hip socket because of what happened
that night when the man strained the tendon of
Jacob’s hip.)
CHAPTER
33
Jacob and Esau Make Peace
Then Jacob looked up and saw Esau coming with
his 400 men. So he divided the children among
Leah, Rachel, and his two servant wives. 2He put
the servant wives and their children at the front,
Leah and her children next, and Rachel and Joseph last. 3 Then Jacob went on ahead. As he approached his brother, he bowed to the ground
seven times before him. 4Then Esau ran to meet
him and embraced him, threw his arms around
his neck, and kissed him. And they both wept.
5 Then Esau looked at the women and children
and asked, “Who are these people with you?”
“These are the children God has graciously
given to me, your servant,” Jacob replied. 6Then
the servant wives came forward with their children and bowed before him. 7Next came Leah
with her children, and they bowed before him.
Finally, Joseph and Rachel came forward and
bowed before him.
8 “And what were all the flocks and herds I met
as I came?” Esau asked.
Jacob replied, “They are a gift, my lord, to ensure your friendship.”
9 “My brother, I have plenty,” Esau answered.
“Keep what you have for yourself.”
10But Jacob insisted, “No, if I have found favor
with you, please accept this gift from me. And
what a relief to see your friendly smile. It is like
seeing the face of God! 11Please take this gift I
have brought you, for God has been very gracious
to me. I have more than enough.” And because
Jacob insisted, Esau finally accepted the gift.
