• Torah (T): Bereshiyt (Genesis) 29:1-35
• Prophets (P): Hosea 12:12-14
• Apostolic (A): Luke 12:22-34; 1 Timothy 6:6-10
• Additional (ADD): Jubilees 28:1-15

RELATED SCRIPTURES

• Numbers 30:1-2 (T)
• Genesis 31:13 (T)
• Genesis 35:6-7, 14-15 (T)
• Exodus 21:7-11 (T)
• Luke 12:22-34 (T)
• 1 Timothy 6:6-10 (T)
• Leviticus 27:30-33 (T)
• Numbers 18:24 (T)
• Deuteronomy 12:10-19 (T)
• Leviticus 18:18 (T)
• Colossians 3:18-19 (T)

RELATED ADDITIONAL REA.D.INGS

• Sirach 11:4; Sirach 29:21; Sirach 39:26 (T)
• Testament of Naphtali (4Q215) Fragment 1 (T)
• The Temple Scroll (11Q19) XXIX (T)
• Judith 8:25-27 (T)
• Genesis Apocryphon 1Q20 (1QapGen, 1Q20) Column 21 (T)
• Genesis 28:10 – 29:30 from the Jerusalem Targum aka Targum Pseudo-Jonathan (T)
• Antiquities of the Jews by Flavius Josephus, 1.19.1-7 (T)

Note: (T) means the verse relates to that week’s Torah portion. (P) means the verse relates to that week’s Prophets portion. (A) means the verse relates to that week’s Apostolic portion. (ADD) means the verse relates to that week’s Additional portion.

Torah Portion (T)

29:1 Then Jacob went on his journey, and came to the land of the sons of the east. 2 He looked, and saw a well in the field, and saw three flocks of sheep lying there by it. For out of that well they watered the flocks. The stone on the well's mouth was large. 3 There all the flocks were gathered. They rolled the stone from the well's mouth, and watered the sheep, and put the stone back on the well's mouth in its place. 4 Jacob said to them, “My relatives, where are you from?” They said, “We are from Haran.” 5 He said to them, “Do you know Laban, the grandson of Nahor?” They said, “We know him.” 6 He said to them, “Is it well with him?” They said, “It is well. See, Rachel, his daughter, is coming with the sheep.” 7 [Jacob]^(LXX) said, “Behold, it is still the middle of the day, not time to gather the livestock together. Water the sheep, and go and feed them.” 8 They said, “We can't, until all the flocks are gathered together, and they roll the stone from the well's mouth. Then we will water the sheep.” 9 While he was yet speaking with them, Rachel came with her father's sheep, for she kept them. 10 When Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban, his mother's brother, and the sheep of Laban, his mother's brother, Jacob went near, and rolled the stone from the well's mouth, and watered the flock of Laban his mother's brother. 11 Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice, and wept. 12 Jacob told Rachel that he was her father's relative, and that he was Rebekah's son. She ran and told her father. 13 When Laban heard the news of Jacob, his sister's son, he ran to meet Jacob, and embraced him, and kissed him, and brought him to his house. Jacob told Laban all these things. 14 Laban said to him, “Surely you are my bone and my flesh.” Jacob stayed with him for a new moon. 15 Laban said to Jacob, “Because you are my relative, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what will your wages be?” 16 Laban had two daughters. The name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. 17 Leah's eyes were tender, but Rachel was beautiful of form and beautiful [in appearance].^(LXX) 18 Jacob loved Rachel. He said, “I will serve you seven years for Rachel, your younger daughter.” 19 Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you, than that I should give her to another man. Stay with me.” 20 Jacob served seven years for Rachel. They seemed to him but a few days, for the love he had for her. 21 Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in to her.” 22 Laban gathered together all the men of the place, and made a feast. 23 In the evening, he took Leah his daughter, and brought her to Jacob. He went in to her. 24 Laban gave Zilpah his servant to his daughter Leah for a servant. 25 In the morning, behold, it was Leah! [Jacob]^(LXX) said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Didn't I serve with you for Rachel? Why then have you [mislead]^(LXX) me?” 26 Laban said, “It is not done so in our place, to give the younger before the firstborn. 27 Fulfill the week of this one, and [I]^(LXX) will give you the other also for the service which you will serve with me for seven more years.” 28 Jacob did so, and fulfilled her week. He gave him Rachel his daughter as wife. 29 Laban gave Bilhah, his servant, to his daughter Rachel to be her servant. 30 He went in also to Rachel, and he loved also Rachel more than Leah, and served with him seven more years. 31 YHWH saw Leah was hated and he opened her womb and Rachel was barren. 32 Leah conceived, and bore a son, and she named him Reuben. For she said, “Because [Elohim]^(LXX) has looked at my affliction [and given me a son].^(LXX) For now my husband will love me.” 33 She conceived again, and bore a son, and said, “Because [Elohim]^(LXX) has heard that I am hated, he has therefore given me this son also.” She named him Shimon. 34 She conceived again, and bore a son. She said, “Now this time my husband will be joined to me, because I have borne him three sons.” Therefore his name was called Levi. 35 She conceived again, and bore a son. She said, “This time I will praise [Elohim].”^(LXX) Therefore she named him Judah. Then she stopped bearing.

Prophets Portion (P)

12:12 Jacob fled into the country of Aram, and Israel served to get a wife, and for a wife he tended flocks and herds. 13 By a prophet, YHWH brought Israel up out of Egypt, and by a prophet he was preserved. 14 Ephraim has bitterly provoked anger. Therefore his blood will be left on him, and his Lord will repay his contempt.

Apostolic Portion (A)

Additional Portion (ADD)

Between 1947 and 1956 approximately 15 Jubilees scrolls were found in five caves at Qumran, all written in Hebrew. The large number of manuscripts (more than for any biblical books except for Psalms, Deuteronomy, Isaiah, Exodus, and Genesis, in descending order) indicates that Jubilees was widely used at Qumran. A comparison of the Qumran texts with the Ethiopic version, performed by James VanderKam, found that the Ethiopic was in most respects an accurate and literalistic translation. Scholars have dated Jubilees to have been written sometime around 160-150 B.C.

28:1. And he went on his journey, and came to the land of the east, to Laban, the brother of Rebecca, and he was with him, and served him for Rachel his daughter one week. 2. And in the first year of the third week [2122 A.M.] he said unto him: “Give me my wife, for whom I have served thee seven years;” and Laban said unto Jacob. “I will give thee thy wife.” 3. And Laban made a feast, and took Leah his elder daughter, and gave (her) to Jacob as a wife, and gave her Zilpah his handmaid for an handmaid; and Jacob did not know, for he thought that she was Rachel. 4. And he went in unto her, and behold, she was Leah; and Jacob was angry with Laban, and said unto him: “Why hast thou dealt thus with me? Did not I serve thee for Rachel and not for Leah? Why hast thou wronged me? Take thy daughter, and I will go; for thou hast done evil to me.” 5. For Jacob loved Rachel more than Leah; for Leah’s eyes were tender, but her form was very handsome; but Rachel had beautiful eyes and a beautiful and very handsome form. 6. And Laban said to Jacob: “It is not so done in our country, to give the younger before the elder.” And it is not right to do this; for thus it is ordained and written in the heavenly tables, that no one should give his younger daughter before the elder–but the elder one giveth first and after her the younger–and the man who doeth so, they set down guilt against him in the heavens, and none is righteous that doeth this thing, for this deed is evil before the Lord. 7. And command thou the sons of Israel that they do not this thing; let them neither take nor give the younger before they have given the elder, for it is very wicked. 8. And Laban said to Jacob: “Let the seven days of the feast of this one pass by, and I will give thee Rachel, that thou mayest serve me another seven years, that thou mayest pasture my sheep as thou didst in the former week.” 9. And on the day when the seven days of the feast of Leah had passed, Laban gave Rachel to Jacob, that he might serve him another seven years, and he gave to Rachel Bilhah, the sister of Zilpah as a handmaid. 10. And he served yet other seven years for Rachel, for Leah had been given to him for nothing. 11 And the Lord opened the womb of Leah, and she conceived and bare Jacob a son, and he called his name Reuben, on the fourteenth day of the ninth new moon, in the first year of the third week. [2122 A.M.] 12. But the womb of Rachel was closed, for the Lord saw that Leah was hated and Rachel loved. 13. And again Jacob went in unto Leah, and she conceived, and bare Jacob a second son, and he called his name Shimon, on the twenty-first of the tenth new moon, and in the third year of this week. [2124 A.M.] 14. And again Jacob went in unto Leah, and she conceived, and bare him a third son, and he called his name Levi, in the new moon of the first new moon in the sixth year of this week. [2127 A.M.] 15. And again Jacob went in unto her, and she conceived, and bare him a fourth son, and he called his name Judah, on the fifteenth of the third new moon, in the first year of the fourth week. [2129 A.M.]

Related Scriptures

30:1 Moses spoke to the heads of the tribes of the sons of Israel, saying, “This is the thing which YHWH has commanded. 2 When a man vows a vow to YHWH, or swears an oath to bind his soul with a bond, he will not break his word. He will do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth. 3 “Also, when a woman vows a vow to YHWH and binds herself by a pledge, being in her father’s house, in her youth, 4 and her father hears her vow and her pledge with which she has bound her soul, and her father says nothing to her, then all her vows will stand, and every pledge with which she has bound her soul will stand. 5 But if her father forbids her in the day that he hears, none of her vows or of her pledges with which she has bound her soul, will stand. YHWH will forgive her, because her father has forbidden her. 6 “If she has a husband, while her vows are on her, or the rash utterance of her lips with which she has bound her soul, 7 and her husband hears it, and says nothing to her in the day that he hears it; then her vows will stand, and her pledges with which she has bound her soul will stand. 8 But if her husband forbids her in the day that he hears it, then he makes void her vow which is on her and the rash utterance of her lips, with which she has bound her soul. YHWH will forgive her. 9 “But the vow of a widow, or of her who is divorced, everything with which she has bound her soul will stand against her. 10 “If she vowed in her husband’s house or bound her soul by a bond with an oath, 11 and her husband heard it, and held his peace at her and didn’t disallow her, then all her vows will stand, and every pledge with which she bound her soul will stand. 12 But if her husband made them null and void in the day that he heard them, then whatever proceeded out of her lips concerning her vows, or concerning the bond of her soul, will not stand. Her husband has made them void. YHWH will forgive her. 13 Every vow, and every binding oath to afflict the soul, her husband may establish it, or her husband may make it void. 14 But if her husband says nothing to her from day to day, then he establishes all her vows or all her pledges which are on her. He has established them, because he said nothing to her in the day that he heard them. 15 But if he makes them null and void after he has heard them, then he will bear her iniquity.” 16 These are the statutes which YHWH commanded Moses, between a man and his wife, between a father and his daughter, being in her youth, in her father’s house.

31:13 I am the Elohim of Bethel, where you anointed a pillar, where you vowed a vow to me. Now arise, get out from this land, and return to the land of your birth.

35:6 So Jacob came to Luz (that is, Bethel), which is in the land of Canaan, he and all the people who were with him. 7 He built an altar there, and called the place El Beth El; because there Elohim was revealed to him, when he fled from the face of his brother…13 Elohim went up from him in the place where he spoke with him. 14 Jacob set up a pillar in the place where he spoke with him, a pillar of stone. He poured out a libation offering on it, and poured oil on it. 15 Jacob called the name of the place where Elohim spoke with him “Bethel”.

21:7 If a man sells his daughter to be a maid, she will not go out as the male servants do. 8 If she doesn’t please her master, who has married her to himself, then he will let her be redeemed. He will have no right to sell her to a foreign people, since he has dealt deceitfully with her. 9 If he marries her to his son, he will deal with her as a daughter. 10 If he takes another, he will not diminish her [remains], her clothing, and her habitation. 11 If he doesn’t do these three things for her, she may go free without paying any money.

Leviticus 27:30-33 (T)

27:30 All the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the trees, is YHWH’s. It is holy to YHWH. 31 If a man redeems anything of his tithe, he will add a fifth part to it. 32 All the tithe of the herds or the flocks, whatever passes under the rod, the tenth will be holy to YHWH. 33 He will not examine whether it is good or bad, neither will he exchange it. If he exchanges it at all, then both it and that for which it is exchanged will be holy. It will not be redeemed.

24 For the tithe of the sons of Israel, which they offer as a wave offering to YHWH, I have given to the Levites for an inheritance. Therefore I have said to them, ‘Among the sons of Israel they will have no inheritance.’

12:10 But when you go over the Jordan and dwell in the land which YHWH your Elohim causes you to inherit, and he gives you rest from all your enemies around you, so that you dwell in safety, 11 then it will happen that to the place which YHWH your Elohim will choose, to cause his name to dwell there, there you will bring all that I command you: your burnt offerings, your slaughters, your tithes, the wave offering of your hand, and all your choice vows which you vow to YHWH. 12 You will rejoice before YHWH your Elohim—you, and your sons, your daughters, your male servants, your maids, and the Levite who is within your gates, because he has no portion nor inheritance with you. 13 Be careful that you don’t offer your burnt offerings in every place that you see; 14 but in the place which YHWH chooses in one of your tribes, there you will offer your burnt offerings, and there you will do all that I command you. 15 Yet you may kill and eat meat within all your gates, after all the desire of your soul, according to YHWH your Elohim’s blessing which he has given you. The unclean and the clean may eat of it, as of the gazelle and the deer. 16 Only you will not eat the blood. You will pour it out on the land like water. 17 You may not eat within your gates the tithe of your grain, or of your new wine, or of your oil, or the firstborn of your herd or of your flock, nor any of your vows which you vow, nor your freewill offerings, nor the wave offering of your hand; 18 but you will eat them before YHWH your Elohim in the place which YHWH your Elohim will choose: you, your son, your daughter, your male servant, your maid, and the Levite who is within your gates. You will rejoice before YHWH your Elohim in all that you put your hand to. 19 Be careful that you don’t forsake the Levite as long as you live in your land.

18:18 You will not take a woman in addition to her sister, to be a rival, to uncover her nakedness, while her sister is still alive.

3:18 Wives, be in subjection to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. 19 Husbands, love your wives, and don’t be bitter against them.

Additional Readings​

The Sirach or simply Sirach, and also known as the Book of Ecclesiasticus  (abbreviated Ecclus.) or Ben Sira, is a work of ethical teachings, from approximately 200 to 175 B.C., written by the Jewish scribe Ben Sira of Jerusalem, on the inspiration of his father Joshua son of Sirach, sometimes called Jesus son of Sirach or Yeshua ben Eliezer ben Sira.

Sirach 11:4 Don’t boast about the clothes you wear, and don’t exalt yourself in the day of honor; for the works of YHWH are wonderful, and his works are hidden among men.

Sirach 29:21 The chief thing for life is water, and bread, and a garment, and a house to cover shame.

Sirach 39:26 The chief of all things necessary for the life of man are water, and fire, and iron, and salt, and flour of wheat, and honey, and milk, the blood of the grape, and oil, and clothing.

… with the sisters(?) of (or: with Ahiyot,) the father of Bilhah, … Deborah, who suckled Reb[eccah] … And he went into captivity and Laban sent out and rescued him and gave him Hannah, one of [his] maidservants. [And she conceived and bore] a first [daughter], Zilphah, and gave her the name Zilphah after the name of the town whe[re] he was taken into captivity. She conceived and bore Bilhah, my mother, and Hannah called her name Bilhah, for when she was born, [she was in] a hurry to suck. And she said, ‘What? Is my daughter in a hurry?’ And she called her again Bilhah. vacat When my father Jacob came to Laban, fleeing from Esau, his brother, and after … the father of Bilhah my mother. And Laban led Hannah, the mother of my mother and her two daughters, [and he gave one to Lea]h and one to Rachel. And when it came to pass that Rachel did not bear sons, … [Jaco]b my father, and he gave him Bilhah my mother and she bore Dan [my] brother …

The Temple Scroll is the longest of the Dead Sea Scrolls. Among the discoveries at Qumran it is designated: 11QTemple Scroll. It describes a Jewish temple which was never built, along with extensive detailed regulations about slaughters and temple practices. There is no scholarly consensus regarding the date, origin, author or authors, or its relationship to the Qumran community.[4] Some scholars attribute the Temple Scroll to the isolated Qumran community, while others see no connection with the Qumran community; instead they see the work as a priestly (possible Zadokite) document that was hidden in a cave by Zealots during their flight from Jerusalem in 70 A.D. before the Roman destruction of the Temple.

XXIX [the rams, the lambs and the he-goat … On the fifth day … and the corresponding grain-offering] and drink-offer[ing] … in the house on which I [will cause] my name to rest … holocausts, [each on its] day according to the law of this statute, always from the sons of Israel in addition to their freewill-offerings in regard to all that they offer, their drink-offerings and all their gifts that they will bring to me in order to be acceptable. I will accept them and they will be my people and I will be for them for ever. I will dwell with them for ever and ever and will sanctify my [sa]nctuary by my glory. I will cause my glory to rest on it until the day of creation on which I will create my sanctuary, establishing it for myself for all time according to the covenant which I have made with Jacob in Bethel.

The Book of Judith is included in the Septuagint and believed to be written in the late second century or early first century B.C.

8:25 Besides all this let’s give thanks to the Lord our Elohim, who tries us, even as he did our fathers also. 26 Remember all the things which he did to Abraham, and all the things in which he tried Isaac, and all the things which happened to Jacob in Mesopotamia of Syria, when he kept the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother. 27 For he has not tried us in the fire, as he did them, to search out their hearts, neither has he taken vengeance on us; but the Lord scourges those who come near to him, to admonish them.”

Column 21…in which I had formerly camped until I came to Bethel, the place where I had built an altar. And I built a second altar and laid on it a slaughter, and an offering to the Most High Elohim. And there I called on the name of the Lord of worlds and praised the Name of Elohim and blessed Elohim, and I gave thanks before Elohim for all the riches and favours which He had bestowed on me. For He had dealt kindly towards me and had led me back in peace into this land. After that day, Lot departed from me on account of the deeds of our shepherds. He went away and settled in the valley of the Jordan, together with all his flocks; and I myself added more to them. He kept his sheep and journeyed as far as Sodom, and he bought a house for himself in Sodom and dwelt in it. But I dwelt on the mountain of Bethel and it grieved me that my nephew Lot had departed from me. And Elohim appeared to me in a vision at night and said to me, ‘Go to Ramath Hazor which is north of Bethel, the place where you dwell, and lift up your eyes and look to the east and to the west and to the south and to the north; and behold all this land which I give to you and your seed for ever.’

Genesis 28:10 – 29:30 from the Jerusalem Targum aka Targum Pseudo-Jonathan (T)

Composed in Talmudic Israel (c.150 – c.250 AD). Targum Pseudo-Jonathan is a western targum (translation) of the Torah (Pentateuch) from the land of Israel (as opposed to the eastern Babylonian Targum Onkelos). Its correct title was originally Targum Yerushalmi (Jerusalem Targum), which is how it was known in medieval times. But because of a printer’s mistake it was later labeled Targum Jonathan, in reference to Jonathan ben Uzziel. Some editions of the Pentateuch continue to call it Targum Jonathan to this day. Most scholars refer to the text as Targum Pseudo-Jonathan. This targum is more than a mere translation. It includes much Aggadic material collected from various sources as late as the Midrash Rabbah as well as earlier material from the Talmud. It is effectively a combination of a commentary and a translation. In the portions where it is pure translation, it often agrees with the Targum Onkelos. The date of its composition is disputed. It cannot have been completed before the Arabic conquest as it refers to Mohammad’s wife Fatimah, but might have been initially composed in the 4th Century AD. However, some scholars date it in the 14th Century.

Chapter 28 …Five miracles were wrought for our father Jakob at the time that he went forth from Beersheba. The first sign: the hours of the day were shortened, and the sun went down before his time, forasmuch as the Word had desired to speak with him. The second sign: the four stones which Jakob had set for his pillow he found in the morning, had become one stone. Sign the third: the Stone which, when all the flocks were assembled, they rolled from the mouth of the well, he rolled away with one of his arms. The fourth sign: the well overflowed, and the water rose to the edge of it, and continued to overflow all the days that he was in Haran. The fifth sign: the country was shortened before him, so that in one day he went forth and came to Haran.

And he prayed in the place of the house of the sanctuary, and lodged there, because the sun had gone down. And he took four stones of the holy place, and set his pillow, and slept in that place. And he dreamed, and, behold, a ladder was fixed in the ground, and the top of it reached to the height of heaven. And, behold, the two angels who went unto Sedom, and who had been expelled from the midst of them, because they had revealed the secrets of the Lord of the world; and being cast forth they had walked till the time that Jakob went out from the house of his father, and had accompanied him with kindliness unto Bethel, in that day had ascended to the high heavens, and said, Come, see Jakob the pious, whose likeness is inlaid in the throne of glory, and whom you have so greatly desired to behold. Then the rest of the angels of the holy Lord descended to look upon him.

[JERUSALEM. Five signs were wrought for our father Jakob at the time he went forth from Beersheba to go unto Haran. The first sign: the hours of the day were shortened for him, and the sun was hidden from him before its time, because His Word had desired to speak with him. The second sign: after our father Jakob had lifted up his feet from Beersheba, the country was shortened before him, and be found himself sitting in Haran. The third sign: the stones which Jakob our father had taken in the evening, and set as the resting-place of his head, when he had risen in the morning be found had all become one stone; and that is the stone which he set up in the first covenant, pouring oil upon the top of it. The fourth sign : when all the shepherds had gathered together at the stone to roll it from the mouth of the well, and could not, then came our father Jakob and lifted it with one hand, and watered the flock, of Laban his mother’s brother. The fifth sign: after our father Jakob had lifted the stone from the mouth of the well, the well overflowed, and was overflowing twenty years; all the days that our father Jakob dwelt in Haran. These five signs were wrought for our father Jakob in the time when he departed from Beersheba to go to Charan.

And he dreamed, and, behold, a ladder was fixed in the earth, and the summit of it reached to the height of heaven. And, behold, the angels who had accompanied him from the house of his father, ascended to make known to the angels on high, saying, Come, see Jakob the pious, whose likeness is in the throne of glory, and whom you have been desirous to see! And, behold, the holy angels from before the Lord ascended and descended, and looked upon him.]

And, behold, the Glory of the Lord stood above him, and He said to him, I am the Lord the Elohim of Abraham thy father, and the Elohim of Izhak, The land on which thou art lying I will give to thee and to thy sons. And thy sons will be many as the dust of the earth, and will become strong on the west and on the east, on the north and on the south: and all the kindreds of the earth will through thy righteousness and the righteousness of thy sons be blessed. And, behold, My Word is for thy help, and will guard thee in every place where thou shalt go, and will bring thee (again) to this land; for I will not leave thee until the time when I have performed all that I have told thee.

And Jakob awoke from his sleep, and said, Verily the Glory of the Lord’s Shekinah dwelleth in this place, and I knew it not. And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful and glorious is this place! This place is not common, but the sanctuary of the Name of the Lord, the proper spot for prayer, set forth before the gate of heaven and founded beneath the throne of glory.

And Jakob arose in the morning, and took the stone which he had placed for his pillow, and set it standing, and poured oil on the top of it. And he called the name of that place Beth El; but Luz was the name of the city at the first. And Jakob vowed a vow, saying, If the Word of the Lord will be my Helper, and will keep me from shedding innocent blood, and from strange worship, and from impure converse, in this way that I am going; and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to wear, and will bring me back in peace to my father’s house; the Lord will be my God: ‘and this stone which I have set (for) a pillar will be ordained for the house of the sanctuary of the Lord, and upon it will generations worship the Name of the Lord; and of all that Thou mayest give me, the tenth will I separate before Thee.

Chapter 29 And Jakob lifted up his feet lightly to proceed, and he came to the land of the children of the cast. And he looked and saw, and behold (there was) a well in a field, and behold there three flocks of sheep lying near it; because from that well they watered the flocks; and a great stone was laid upon the mouth of the well. And they gathered the flocks there, and rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the sheep, and set the stone on the mouth of the well in its place.

And Jakob said to them, My brethren, whence are you ? And they said, From Haran are we. And he said to them, Know you Laban bar Nachor? And they said, We know. And he said, Hath he peace? And they said, Peace; and, behold, Rahel his daughter cometh with the sheep. And he said, Behold, the time of the day is great; it is not time to gather home the cattle; water the sheep, and let them go (again) to pasture. [JERUSALEM It is not time to gather.] And they said, We cannot until all the flocks are gathered together, and we roll the stone from the mouth of the well and water the sheep.

While they were speaking with him, Rahel came with her father’s sheep; for she was a shepherdess at that time, because there had been a plague from the Lord among the sheep of Laban, and but few of them were left, and he had dismissed his shepherds, and had put the remaining (flock) before Rahel his daughter. And it was when Jakob saw Rahel the daughter of Laban his mother’s brother that Jakob went nigh, and rolled the stone with one of his arms from the mouth of the Well; and the well uprose, and the waters ascended to the top of it; and he watered the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother; and it uprose for twenty years.

And Jakob kissed Rahel, and lifted up his voice and wept. And Jakob told unto Rahel, that he was come to be with her father to take one of his daughters. And Rahel answered him Thou canst not dwell with him, for he is a man of cunning. And Jakob said to her, I am more cunning and wiser than he; nor can he do me evil, because the Word of the Lord is my Helper. And when she knew that he was the son of Rivekah, she ran and made it known to her father. And it was when Laban heard the account of the strength and piety of Jakob the son of his sister; how he had taken the birthright and the order of blessing from the hand of his brother, and how the Lord had revealed Himself to him at Bethel; how the stone had been removed, and how the well had upflowed and risen to the brink; he ran to meet him and embrace him, and kissed him and led him into his house; and he related to Laban all these things. And Laban said to him, Truly thou art my near one and my blood; and he dwelt with him a new moon of days.

And Laban said to Jakob, Though thou art reputed my brother, shouldst thou serve me for nothing? Tell me, what will be thy wages? And Laban had two daughters, the name of the elder Leah, and the name of the younger Rahel. And the eyes of Leah were moist, (or dropping, running) from weeping and praying before the Lord that he would not destine her for Esau the wicked; and Rahel was beautiful in appearance, and of a fair countenance. [JERUSALEM. And the eyes of Leah were tender, for she had wept and prayed that she might not be brought up in the lot of Esau; and Rahel was beautiful in appearance, and of fair countenance.] And Jakob loved Rahel; and he said, I will serve thee seven years for Rahel thy Younger daughter. And Laban said with deceit, It is better that I give her to thee, than to another man abide with me. And Jakob served for Rahel seven years; and they seemed in his eyes as a few days, because he loved her.

And Jakob said to Laban, Give me my wife: for the days of my service are completed, and I will go in with her. And Laban gathered all the men of the place, and made them a feast. Answering he said to them, Behold, seven years since Jakob came to us the wells have not failed and the watered places are multiplied: and now come, let us counsel against him cunning counsel, that he may remain with us. And they gave him cunning counsel that he should take Leah to him instead of Rahel.

[JERUSALEM. And Laban gathered all the people of the place, and made a feast. And Laban answered and said to them, Behold seven years are from the coming of this just man to us; our waterings have not failed, and our springs are many: and now come, give me counsel how we may settle (or subject) him among us yet seven years. And they gave him cunning counsel to take Leah to him instead of Rahel.]

And it was in the evening that he brought Leah his daughter, and introduced her to him, and he went in with her. And Laban gave to him Zilpha his daughter, whom his concubine had borne to him, and he delivered her to Leah his daughter to be her handmaid. And it

was the time of the morning and he saw her, and behold, she was Leah, whom all the night he had thought to be Rahel; because Rahel had delivered to her all the things with which Jakob had presented her. But when he saw this, he said to Laban, what is this that thou hast done to me? Was it not for Rahel that I served with thee? Why hast thou deceived me?

And Laban said, It is not so done in our place, to give the younger before the elder. Fulfil now the seven days of the feast of this, and I will give thee also that for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years. [JERUSALEM. Fulfil the seven days of this feast of Leah, and I will give.] And Jakob did so, and fulfilled the seven days of the feast of Leah, and he gave him Rahel his daughter Bilhah, whom his concubine bare him, and he delivered her unto her to be her handmaid. And he went in also unto Rahel; and he loved Rahel also more than Leah. And he served with him for her yet seven other years.

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1.19.1. Now Jacob was sent by his mother to Mesopotamia, in order to marry Laban her brother’s daughter [which marriage was permitted by Isaac, on account of his obsequiousness to the desires of his wife]; and he accordingly journeyed through the land of Canaan; and because he hated the people of that country, he would not lodge with any of them, but took up his lodging in the open air, and laid his head on a heap of stones that he had gathered together. At which time he saw in his sleep such a vision standing by him:—he seemed to see a ladder that reached from the land unto the heavens, and persons descending upon the ladder that seemed more excellent than human; and at last Elohim himself stood above it, and was plainly visible to him, who, calling him by his name, spake to him in these words:—

1.19.2. “O Jacob, it is not fit for thee, who art the son of a good father, and grandson of one who had obtained a great reputation for his eminent virtue, to be dejected at thy present circumstances, but to hope for better times, for thou shalt have great abundance of all good things, by my assistance: for I brought Abraham hither, out of Mesopotamia, when he was driven away by his kinsmen, and I made thy father a happy man, nor will I bestow a lesser degree of happiness on thyself: be of good courage, therefore, and under my conduct proceed on this thy journey, for the marriage thou goest so zealously about will be consummated. And thou shalt have children of good characters, but their multitude will be innumerable; and they will leave what they have to a still more numerous posterity, to whom, and to whose posterity, I give the dominion of all the land, and their posterity will fill the entire land and sea, so far as the sun beholds them: but do not thou fear any danger, nor be afraid of the many labors thou must undergo, for by my providence I will direct thee what thou art to do in the time present, and still much more in the time to come.”

1.19.3. Such were the predictions which Elohim made to Jacob; whereupon he became very joyful at what he had seen and heard; and he poured oil on the stones, because on them the prediction of such great benefits was made. He also vowed a vow, that he would offer slaughters upon them, if he lived and returned safe; and if he came again in such a condition, he would give the tithe of what he had gotten to Elohim. He also judged the place to be honorable and gave it the name of Bethel, which, in the Greek, is interpreted, The House of Elohim.

1.19.4. So he proceeded on his journey to Mesopotamia, and at length came to Haran; and meeting with shepherds in the suburbs, with boys grown up, and maidens sitting about a certain well, he staid with them, as wanting water to drink; and beginning to discourse with them, he asked them whether they knew such a one as Laban, and whether he was still alive. Now they all said they knew him, for he was not so inconsiderable a person as to be unknown to any of them; and that his daughter fed her father’s flock together with them; and that indeed they wondered that she was not yet come, for by her means thou mightest learn more exactly whatever thou desirest to know about that family. While they were saying this the damsel came, and the other shepherds that came down along with her. Then they showed her Jacob, and told her that he was a stranger, who came to inquire about her father’s affairs. But she, as pleased, after the custom of children, with Jacob’s coming, asked him who he was, and whence he came to them, and what it was he lacked that he came thither. She also wished it might be in their power to supply the wants he came about.

1.19.5. But Jacob was quite overcome, not so much by their kindred, nor by that affection which might arise thence, as by his love to the damsel, and his surprise at her beauty, which was so flourishing, as few of the women of that age could vie with. He said then, “There is a relation between thee and me, elder than either thy or my birth, if thou be the daughter of Laban; for Abraham was the son of Terah, as well as Haran and Nahor. Of the last of whom [Nahor] Bethuel thy grandfather was the son. Isaac my father was the son of Abraham and of Sarah, who was the daughter of Haran. But there is a nearer and later cement of mutual kindred which we bear to one another, for my mother Rebeka was sister to Laban thy father, both by the same father and mother; I therefore and thou are cousin-germans. And I am now come to salute you, and to renew that affinity which is proper between us.” Upon this the damsel, at the mention of Rebeka, as usually happens to young persons, wept, and that out of the kindness she had for her father, and embraced Jacob, she having learned an account of Rebeka from her father, and knew that her parents loved to hear her named; and when she had saluted him, she said that “he brought the most desirable and greatest pleasures to her father, with all their family, who was always mentioning his mother, and always thinking of her, and her alone; and that this will make thee equal in his eyes to any advantageous circumstances whatsoever.” Then she bid him go to her father, and follow her while she conducted him to him; and not to deprive him of such a pleasure, by staying any longer away from him.

1.19.6. When she had said thus, she brought him to Laban; and being owned by his uncle, he was secure himself, as being among his friends; and he brought a great deal of pleasure to them by his unexpected coning. But a little while afterward, Laban told him that he could not express in words the joy he had at his coming; but still he inquired of him the occasion of his coming, and why he left his aged mother and father, when they wanted to be taken care of by him; and that he would afford him all the assistance he wanted. Then Jacob gave him an account of the whole occasion of his journey, and told him, “that Isaac had two sons that were twins, himself and Esau; who, because he failed of his father’s prayers, which by his mother’s wisdom were put up for him, sought to kill him, as deprived of the reign which was to be given him of Elohim, and of the blessings for which their father prayed; and that this was the occasion of his coming hither, as his mother had commanded him to do: for we are all [says he] brethren one to another; but our mother esteems an alliance with your family more than she does one with the families of the country; so I look upon yourself and Elohim to be the supporters of my travels, and think myself safe in my present circumstances.”

1.19.7. Now Laban promised to treat him with great humanity, both on account of his ancestors, and particularly for the sake of his mother, towards whom, he said, he would show his kindness, even though she were absent, by taking care of him; for he assured him he would make him the head shepherd of his flock, and give him authority sufficient for that purpose; and when he should have a mind to return to his parents, he would send him back with presents, and this in as honorable a manner as the nearness of their relation should require. This Jacob heard gladly; and said he would willingly, and with pleasure, undergo any sort of pains while he tarried with him, but desired Rachel to wife, as the reward of those pains, who was not only on other accounts esteemed by him, but also because she was the means of his coming to him; for he said he was forced by the love of the damsel to make this proposal. Laban was well pleased with this agreement, and consented to give the damsel to him, as not desirous to meet with any better son-in-law; and said he would do this, if he would stay with him some time, for he was not willing to send his daughter to be among the Canaanites, for he repented of the alliance he had made already by marrying his sister there. And when Jacob had given his consent to this, he agreed to stay seven years; for so many years he had resolved to serve his father-in-law, that, having given a specimen of his virtue, it might be better known what sort of a man he was. And Jacob, accepting of his terms, after the time was over, he made the wedding-feast; and when it was night, without Jacob’s perceiving it, he put his other daughter into bed to him, who was both elder than Rachel, and of no comely countenance: Jacob lay with her that night, as being both in drink and in the dark. However, when it was day, he knew what had been done to him; and he reproached Laban for his unfair proceeding with him; who asked pardon for that necessity which forced him to do what he did; for he did not give him Lea out of any ill design, but as overcome by another greater necessity: that, notwithstanding this, nothing should hinder him from marrying Rachel; but that when he had served another seven years, he would give him her whom he loved. Jacob submitted to this condition, for his love to the damsel did not permit him to do otherwise; and when another seven years were gone, he took Rachel to wife.