Jacob Fears Esau

1 Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him. 2 And when Jacob saw them he said, “This is God’s ^tcamp!” So he called the name of that place ^uMahanaim.¹

3 And Jacob sent² messengers before him to Esau his brother in the land of ^vSeir, the country of Edom, 4 instructing them, “Thus you shall say to my lord Esau: Thus says your servant Jacob, ‘I have sojourned with Laban and stayed until now. 5 I have oxen, donkeys, flocks, male servants, and female servants. I have sent to tell my lord, in order that ^wI may find favor in your sight.’”

6 And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, “We came to your brother Esau, and ^xhe is coming to meet you, and there are four hundred men with him.” 7 Then Jacob was ^ygreatly afraid and distressed. He divided the people who were with him, and the flocks and herds and camels, into two camps, 8 thinking, “If Esau comes to the one camp and attacks it, then the camp that is left will escape.”

9 And Jacob said, ^z“O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, O Lord who ^asaid to me, ‘Return to your country and to your kindred, that I may do you good,’ 10 ^bI am not worthy of the least of all the deeds of steadfast love and all the faithfulness that you have shown to your servant, for with only my staff I crossed this Jordan, and now I have become two camps. 11 Please deliver me from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau, for ^cI fear him, that he may come and attack me, the mothers with the children. 12 But ^dyou said, ‘I will surely do you good, and make your offspring as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.’”

13 So he stayed there that night, and from what he had with him he took ^ea present for his brother Esau, 14 two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams, 15 thirty milking camels and their calves, forty cows and ten bulls, twenty female donkeys and ten male donkeys. 16 These he handed over to his servants, every drove by itself, and said to his servants, “Pass on ahead of me and put a space between drove and drove.” 17 He instructed the first, “When Esau my brother meets you and asks you, ‘To whom do you belong? Where are you going? And whose are these ahead of you?’ 18 then you shall say, ‘They belong to your servant Jacob. They are a present sent to my lord Esau. And moreover, he is behind us.’” 19 He likewise instructed the second and the third and all who followed the droves, “You shall say the same thing to Esau when you find him, 20 and you shall say, ‘Moreover, your servant Jacob is behind us.’” For he thought, “I may appease him³ with the present that goes ahead of me, and afterward I shall see his face. Perhaps he will accept me.”⁴ 21 So the present passed on ahead of him, and he himself stayed that night in the camp.

Jacob Wrestles with God

22 The same night he arose and took his two wives, his two female servants, and his eleven children,⁵ and crossed the ford of the ^fJabbok.

Jacob Meets Esau

1 And Jacob lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, ^oEsau was coming, and four hundred men with him. So he divided the children among Leah and Rachel and the two female servants. 2 And he put the servants with their children in front, then Leah with her children, and Rachel and Joseph last of all. 3 He himself went on before them, ^pbowing himself to the ground seven times, until he came near to his brother.

4 ^qBut Esau ran to meet him and embraced him ^rand fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept. 5 And when Esau lifted up his eyes and saw the women and children, he said, “Who are these with you?” Jacob said, ^s“The children whom God has graciously given your servant.” 6 Then the servants drew near, they and their children, and bowed down. 7 Leah likewise and her children drew near and bowed down. And last Joseph and Rachel drew near, and they bowed down. 8 Esau said, “What do you mean by ^tall this company¹ that I met?” Jacob answered, ^u“To find favor in the sight of my lord.” 9 But Esau said, “I have enough, my brother; keep what you have for yourself.” 10 Jacob said, “No, please, if I have found favor in your sight, then accept my present from my hand. ^vFor I have seen your face, which is like seeing the face of God, and you have accepted me. 11 Please accept my ^wblessing that is brought to you, because God has dealt graciously with me, and because I have enough.” Thus he ^xurged him, and he took it.