Chapter 32: Chapter 32

Jacob also went on the journey he had begun:and the angels of God met him.2 And when he saw them, he said: These arethe camps of God, and he called the name ofthat place Mahanaim, that is, Camps.3 And he sent messengers before him to Esau,his brother, to the land of Seir, to the country ofEdom:4 And he commanded them, saying: Thusshall ye speak to my lord Esau: Thus saith thybrother Jacob: I have sojourned with Laban, andhave been with him until this day:5 I have oxen, and asses, and sheep, andmenservants, and womenservants: and now Isend a message to my lord, that I may find favourin thy sight.6 And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying: We came to Esau, thy brother, and beholdhe cometh with speed to meet thee with fourhundred men.42 Book of Genesis7 Then Jacob was greatly afraid; and in hisfear divided the people that was with him, andthe flocks, and the sheep, and the oxen, and thecamels, into two companies,8 Saying: If Esau come to one company, anddestroy it, the other company that is left, shallescape.9 And Jacob said: O God of my fahter Abraham, and God of my father Isaac: O Lord whosaidst to me, Return to thy land, and to the placeof thy birth, and I will do well for thee.10 I am not worthy of the least of all thy mercies, and of thy truth which thou hast fulfilledto thy servant. With my staff I passed over thisJordan; and now I return with two companies.11 Deliver me from the hand of my brotherEsau, for I am greatly afraid of him; lest perhapshe come, and kill the mother with the children.12 Thou didst say, that thou wouldst do wellby me, and multiply my seed like the sand of thesea, which connot be numbered for multitude.13 And when he had slept there that night, heset apart, of the things which he had, presentsfor his brother Esau,14 Two hundred she goats, twenty he goats,two hundred ewes, and twenty rams,15 Thirty milch camels with their colts, fortykine, and twenty bulls, twenty she asses, and tenof their foals.16 And he sent them by the hands of his servants, every drove by itself, and he said to hisservants: Go before me, and let there be a spacebetween drove and drove.17 And he commanded the first, saying: Ifthou meet my brother Esau, and he ask thee:Whose art thou? or whither goest thou? orwhose are these before thee?18 Thou shalt answer: Thy servant Jacob's:he hath sent them as a present to my lord Esau;and he cometh after us.19 In like manner he commanded the second,and the third, and all that followed the droves,saying: Speak ye the same words to Esau, whenye find him.20 And ye shall add: Thy servant Jacob himself also followeth after us; for he said: I willappease him with the presents that go before,and afterwards I will see him, perhaps he will begracious to me.21 So the presents went before him, but himself lodged that night in the camp.22 And rising early, he took his two wives andhis two handmaids, with his eleven sons, andpassed over the ford of Jaboc.23 And when all things were brought over thatbelonged to him,24 He remained alone; and behold, a manwrestled with him till morning.25 And when he saw that he could not overcome him, he touched the sinew of his thigh, andforthwith it shrank.26 And he said to him: Let me go, for it isbreak of day. He answered: I will not let theego, except thou bless me.27 And he said: What is thy name? He answered: Jacob.28 But he said: Thy name shall not be calledJacob, but Israel; for if thou hast been strongagainst God, how much more shalt thou prevailagainst men?29 Jacob asked him: Tell me by what nameart thou called? He answered: Why dost thouask my name? And he blessed him in the sameplace.30 And Jacob called the name of the placePhanuel, saying: I have seen God face to face,and my soul has been saved.31 And immediately the sun rose upon him,after he was past Phanuel; but he halted on hisfoot.Book of Genesis 4332 Therefore the children of Israel, unto thisday, eat not the sinew, that shrank in Jacob'sthigh: because he touched the sinew of his thighand it shrank.