Genesis 32

Genesis · Chapter 32

Genesis 32:11

1And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him.2And when Jacob saw them, he said, This is God’s host: and he called the name of that place Mahanaim.3And Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother unto the land of Seir, the country of Edom.4And he commanded them, saying, Thus shall ye speak unto my lord Esau; Thy servant Jacob saith thus, I have sojourned with Laban, and stayed there until now:5And I have oxen, and asses, flocks, and menservants, and womenservants: and I have sent to tell my lord, that I may find grace in thy sight.6And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, We came to thy brother Esau, and also he cometh to meet thee, and four hundred men with him.7Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed: and he divided the people that was with him, and the flocks, and herds, and the camels, into two bands;8And said, If Esau come to the one company, and smite it, then the other company which is left shall escape.9And Jacob said, O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, the LORD which saidst unto me, Return unto thy country, and to thy kindred, and I will deal well with thee:10I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which thou hast shewed unto thy servant; for with my staff I passed over this Jordan; and now I am become two bands.11Deliver me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau: for I fear him, lest he will come and smite me, and the mother with the children.12And thou saidst, I will surely do thee good, and make thy seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.13And he lodged there that same night; and took of that which came to his hand a present for Esau his brother;14Two hundred she goats, and twenty he goats, two hundred ewes, and twenty rams,15Thirty milch camels with their colts, forty kine, and ten bulls, twenty she asses, and ten foals.16And he delivered them into the hand of his servants, every drove by themselves; and said unto his servants, Pass over before me, and put a space betwixt drove and drove.17And he commanded the foremost, saying, When Esau my brother meeteth thee, and asketh thee, saying, Whose art thou? and whither goest thou? and whose are these before thee?18Then thou shalt say, They be thy servant Jacob’s; it is a present sent unto my lord Esau: and, behold, also he is behind us.19And so commanded he the second, and the third, and all that followed the droves, saying, On this manner shall ye speak unto Esau, when ye find him.20And say ye moreover, Behold, thy servant Jacob is behind us. For he said, I will appease him with the present that goeth before me, and afterward I will see his face; peradventure he will accept of me.21So went the present over before him: and himself lodged that night in the company.22And he rose up that night, and took his two wives, and his two womenservants, and his eleven sons, and passed over the ford Jabbok.23And he took them, and sent them over the brook, and sent over that he had.24And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.25And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him.26And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me.27And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob.28And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.29And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there.30And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.31And as he passed over Penuel the sun rose upon him, and he halted upon his thigh.32Therefore the children of Israel eat not of the sinew which shrank, which is upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day: because he touched the hollow of Jacob’s thigh in the sinew that shrank.

King James Version (1769)

Other translations

VerseKJVBSBASV
11Deliver me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau: for I fear him, lest he will come and smite me, and the mother with the children.Please deliver me from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid that he may come and attack me and the mothers and children with me.Deliver me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau: for I fear him, lest he come and smite me, the mother with the children.

In context

Who is speaking and to whom, what is happening, when and where, and why it matters, each with its sources. Coming with the context cards.

Original Hebrew words

EnglishHebrewSay itStrong'sMeaning
deliver meהַצִּילֵ֥נִיha-tzi-LE-niH5337
to rescue

נָצַל (na.tsal) 1) to snatch away, deliver, rescue, save, strip, plunder 1a)(Niphal) 1a1) to tear oneself away, deliver oneself 1a2) to be torn out or away, be delivered 1b) (Piel) 1b1) to strip off, spoil 1b2) to deliver 1c) (Hiphil) 1c1) to take away, snatch away 1c2) to rescue, recover 1c3) to deliver (from enemies or troubles or death) 1c4) to deliver from sin and guilt 1d) (Hophal) to be plucked out 1e) (Hithpael) to strip oneself Aramaic equivalent: ne.tsal (נְצַל "to rescue" H5338)

pleaseנָ֛אna'H4994
please

נָא (na) 1) I (we) pray, now, please 1a) used in entreaty or exhortation

from [the] hand ofמִיַּ֥דmi-YADH3027H
hand

יָד (yad) : hand/arm[anatomy] 1) hand 1a) hand (of man) 1b) strength, power (fig.) 1c) side (of land), part, portion (metaph.) (fig.) 1d) (various special, technical senses) 1d1) sign, monument 1d2) part, fractional part, share 1d3) time, repetition 1d4) axle-trees, axle 1d5) stays, support (for laver) 1d6) tenons (in tabernacle) 1d7) a phallus, a hand (meaning unsure) 1d8) wrists

brother myאָחִ֖י'a-CHIH0251G
brother: male-sibling

אָח (ach) : male-sibling 1) brother 1a) brother of same parents 1b) half-brother (same father) 1c) relative, kinship, same tribe 1d) each to the other (reciprocal relationship) 1e) (fig.) of resemblance

from [the] hand ofמִיַּ֣דmi-YADH3027H
hand

יָד (yad) : hand/arm[anatomy] 1) hand 1a) hand (of man) 1b) strength, power (fig.) 1c) side (of land), part, portion (metaph.) (fig.) 1d) (various special, technical senses) 1d1) sign, monument 1d2) part, fractional part, share 1d3) time, repetition 1d4) axle-trees, axle 1d5) stays, support (for laver) 1d6) tenons (in tabernacle) 1d7) a phallus, a hand (meaning unsure) 1d8) wrists

Esauעֵשָׂ֑ו'e-SAVH6215G
Edom

אֱדוֹם (e.dom) A man living at the time of the Patriarchs, first mentioned at Gen.25.25; son of: Isaac (H3327) and Rebekah (H7259); brother of: Israel (H3478); married to Oholibamah (H0173), Judith (H3067), Adah (H5711H) and Mahalath (H4258); father of: Eliphaz (H0464), Reuel (H7467), Jeush (H3266), Jalam (H3281) and Korah (H7141); also called Edom at Gen.25.30; 36.1,8,19,21; 1x,54; Another name of e.sav (עֵשָׂו "Esau" H6215G) § Edom = "red" 1) Edom 2) Edomite, Idumean-descendants of Esau 3) land of Edom, Idumea-land south and south east of Palestine

forכִּֽי־ki-H3588A
for

כִּי (ki) 1) that, for, because, when, as though, as, because that, but, then, certainly, except, surely, since 1a) that 1a1) yea, indeed 1b) when (of time) 1b1) when, if, though (with a concessive force) 1c) because, since (causal connection) 1d) but (after negative) 1e) that if, for if, indeed if, for though, but if 1f) but rather, but 1g) except that 1h) only, nevertheless 1i) surely 1j) that is 1k) but if 1l) for though 1m) forasmuch as, for therefore

[am] fearingיָרֵ֤אya-RE'H3373
afraid

יָרֵא (ya.re) fearing, reverent, afraid

Iאָנֹכִי֙'a-no-KHIH0595
I

אָֽנֹכִ֫י (a.no.khi) I (first pers. sing.) Another spelling of a.ni (אֲנִי, אָֽנֹכִ֫י "I" H0589)

lestפֶּן־pen-H6435
lest

פֶּן־ (pen) conj 1) lest, not, beware lest adv 2) lest

he should comeיָב֣וֹאya-VO'H0935G
to come (in): come

בּוֹא (bo) : come/go_in 1) to go in, enter, come, go, come in 1a) (Qal) 1a1) to enter, come in 1a2) to come 1a2a) to come with 1a2b) to come upon, fall or light upon, attack (enemy) 1a2c) to come to pass 1a3) to attain to 1a4) to be enumerated 1a5) to go 1b) (Hiphil) 1b1) to lead in 1b2) to carry in 1b3) to bring in, cause to come in, gather, cause to come, bring near, bring against, bring upon 1b4) to bring to pass 1c) (Hophal) 1c1) to be brought, brought in 1c2) to be introduced, be put

and he will attack meוְהִכַּ֔נִיve-hi-KA-niH5221
to smite

נָכָה (na.khah) 1) to strike, smite, hit, beat, slay, kill 1a)(Niphal) to be stricken or smitten 1b) (Pual) to be stricken or smitten 1c) (Hiphil) 1c1) to smite, strike, beat, scourge, clap, applaud, give a thrust 1c2) to smite, kill, slay (man or beast) 1c3) to smite, attack, attack and destroy, conquer, subjugate, ravage 1c4) to smite, chastise, send judgment upon, punish, destroy 1d) (Hophal) to be smitten 1d1) to receive a blow 1d2) to be wounded 1d3) to be beaten 1d4) to be (fatally) smitten, be killed, be slain 1d5) to be attacked and captured 1d6) to be smitten (with disease) …

motherאֵ֖ם'emH0517
mother

אֵם (em) 1) mother 1a) of humans 1b) of Deborah's relationship to the people (fig.) 1c) of animals 2) point of departure or division

withעַל־'al-H5921A
upon

עַל (al) prep 1) upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against 1a) upon, on the ground of, on the basis of, on account of, because of, therefore, on behalf of, for the sake of, for, with, in spite of, notwithstanding, concerning, in the matter of, as regards 1b) above, beyond, over (of excess) 1c) above, over (of elevation or pre-eminence) 1d) upon, to, over to, unto, in addition to, together with, with (of addition) 1e) over (of suspension or extension) …

childrenבָּנִֽים׃ba-NIMH1121A
son: child

בֵּן (ben) : child/son

Words and meanings from STEPBible data (Tyndale House, Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). The capitalized syllable is the stressed one.