Genesis 33

New American Standard Bible

Jacob Meets Esau

33 Then Jacob raised his eyes and looked, and behold, ^(A)Esau was coming, and four hundred men with him. So he divided the children ^[a]among Leah and Rachel, and the two slave women. ² He put the slave women and their children ^[b]in front, and Leah and her children ^[c]next, and Rachel and Joseph ^[d]last. ³ But he himself passed on ahead of them and ^(B)bowed down to the ground seven times, until he came near to his brother.

⁴ Then Esau ran to meet him and embraced him, and ^(C)fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept. ⁵ He raised his eyes and saw the women and the children, and said, “^[e]Who are these with you?” So he said, “^(D)The children whom God has graciously given your servant.” ⁶ Then the slave women came forward ^[f]with their children, and they bowed down. ⁷ And Leah likewise came forward with her children, and they bowed down; and afterward Joseph came forward with Rachel, and they bowed down. ⁸ And he said, “What do you mean by ^(E)all this company which I have met?” And he said, “^(F)To find favor in the sight of my lord.” ⁹ But Esau said, “^(G)I have plenty, my brother; let what you have be your own.” ¹⁰ Jacob said, “No, please, if now I have found favor in your sight, then accept my gift from my hand, ^[g]for I see your face as one sees the face of God, and you have received me favorably. ¹¹ Please accept my ^[h](H)gift which has been brought to you, ^(I)because God has dealt graciously with me and because I have ^[i]plenty.” So he urged him, and he accepted it.

¹² Then ^[j]Esau said, “Let’s journey on and go, and I will go ahead of you.” ¹³ But he said to him, “My lord knows that the children are frail and that the flocks and herds that are nursing are ^[k]a matter of concern to me. And if they are driven hard just one day, all the flocks will die. ¹⁴ Please let my lord pass on ahead of his servant, and I will proceed at my leisure, at the pace of the cattle that are ahead of me and at the pace of the children, until I come to my lord at ^(J)Seir.”

¹⁵ Then Esau said, “Please let me leave with you some of the people who are with me.” But he said, “^[l]What need is there? ^(K)Let me find favor in the sight of my lord.” ¹⁶ So Esau returned that day on his way to Seir. ¹⁷ But Jacob journeyed to ^[m](L)Succoth, and built for himself a house and made booths for his livestock; therefore the place is named Succoth.

Jacob Settles in Shechem

¹⁸ Now Jacob came safely to the city of ^(M)Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan, when he came from ^(N)Paddan-aram, and camped before the city. ^19 (O)He bought the plot of land where he had pitched his tent from the hand of the sons of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for a hundred ^[n]pieces of money. ²⁰ Then he erected there an altar and called it ^[o]El-Elohe-Israel.