Through the Bible – Day 13

₁As Jacob was on his way back home, some of God's angels came and met him. ₂When Jacob saw them, he said, “This is God's camp.” So he named the place Mahanaim.

₃Jacob sent messengers on ahead to Esau, who lived in the land of Seir, also known as Edom. ₄Jacob told them to say to Esau, “Master, I am your servant! I have lived with Laban all this time, ₅and now I own cattle, donkeys, and sheep, as well as many slaves. Master, I am sending these messengers in the hope that you will be kind to me.”

₆When the messengers returned, they told Jacob, “We went to your brother Esau, and now he is heading this way with four hundred men.”

₇Jacob was so frightened that he divided his people, sheep, cattle, and camels into two groups. ₈He thought, “If Esau attacks one group, perhaps the other can escape.”

₉Then Jacob prayed:

₁₃After Jacob had spent the night there, he chose some animals as gifts for Esau: _14-15two hundred female goats and twenty males, two hundred female sheep and twenty males, thirty female camels with their young, forty cows and ten bulls, and twenty female donkeys and ten males.

₁₆Jacob put servants in charge of each herd and told them, “Go ahead of me and keep a space between each herd.” ₁₇Then he said to the servant in charge of the first herd, “When Esau meets you, he will ask whose servant you are. He will want to know where you are going and who owns those animals in front of you. ₁₈So tell him, ‘They belong to your servant Jacob, who is coming this way. He is sending them as a gift to his master Esau.’ ”

₁₉Jacob also told the men in charge of the second and third herds and those who followed to say the same thing when they met Esau. ₂₀And Jacob told them to be sure to say that he was just behind them. Jacob hoped the gifts would make Esau friendly, so Esau would be glad to see him when they met. ₂₁Jacob's men took the gifts on ahead of him, but he spent the night in camp.

_22-23Jacob got up in the middle of the night and took his wives, his eleven children, and everything he owned across to the other side of the River Jabbok for safety. ₂₄Afterwards, Jacob went back and spent the rest of the night alone.

A man came and fought with Jacob until just before daybreak. ₂₅When the man saw that he could not win, he struck Jacob on the hip and threw it out of joint. ₂₆They kept on wrestling until the man said, “Let go of me! It's almost daylight.”

“You can't go until you bless me,” Jacob replied.

₂₇Then the man asked, “What is your name?”

“Jacob,” he answered.

₂₈The man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob. You have wrestled with God and with men, and you have won. That's why your name will be Israel.”

₂₉Jacob said, “Now tell me your name.”

“Don't you know who I am?” he asked. And he blessed Jacob.

₃₀Jacob said, “I have seen God face to face, and I am still alive.” So he named the place Peniel. ₃₁The sun was coming up as Jacob was leaving Peniel. He was limping because he had been struck on the hip, ₃₂and the muscle on his hip joint had been injured. That's why even today the people of Israel don't eat the hip muscle of any animal.

₁Later that day Jacob met Esau coming with his four hundred men. So Jacob made his children walk with their mothers. ₂The two servant women, Zilpah and Bilhah, together with their children went first, followed by Leah and her children, then by Rachel and Joseph. ₃Jacob himself walked in front of them all, bowing to the ground seven times as he came near his brother.

₄But Esau ran towards Jacob and hugged and kissed him. Then the two brothers started crying.

₅When Esau noticed the women and children he asked, “Whose children are these?”

Jacob answered, “These are the ones the LORD has been kind enough to give to me, your servant.”

₆Then the two servant women and their children came and bowed down to Esau. ₇Next, Leah and her children came and bowed down; finally, Joseph and Rachel also came and bowed down.

₈Esau asked Jacob, “What did you mean by these herds I met along the road?”

“Master,” Jacob answered, “I sent them so that you would be friendly to me.”

₉“But, brother, I already have plenty,” Esau replied. “Keep them for yourself.”

₁₀“No!” Jacob said. “Please accept these gifts as a sign of your friendship for me. When you welcomed me and I saw your face, it was like seeing the face of God. ₁₁Please accept these gifts I brought to you. God has been good to me, and I have everything I need.” Jacob kept insisting until Esau accepted the gifts.

₁₂“Let's get ready to travel,” Esau said. “I'll go along with you.”

₁₃But Jacob answered, “Master, you know travelling is hard on children, and I have to look after the sheep and goats that are nursing their young. If my animals travel too much in one day, they will all die. ₁₄Why don't you go on ahead and let me travel along slowly with the children, the herds, and the flocks. We can meet again in the country of Edom.”

₁₅Esau replied, “Let me leave some of my men with you.”

“You don't have to do that,” Jacob answered. “I am happy, simply knowing that you are friendly to me.”

₁₆So Esau left for Edom. ₁₇But Jacob went to Succoth, where he built a house for himself and set up shelters for his animals. That's why the place is called Succoth.

₁₈After leaving northern Syria, Jacob arrived safely at Shechem in Canaan and set up camp outside the city. ₁₉The land where he camped was owned by the descendants of Hamor, the father of Shechem. So Jacob paid them one hundred pieces of silver for the property, ₂₀then he set up his tents and built an altar there to honour the God of Israel.

₁Dinah, the daughter of Jacob and Leah, went to visit some of the women who lived there. ₂She was seen by Hamor's son Shechem, the leader of the Hivites, and he grabbed her and raped her. ₃But Shechem was attracted to Dinah, so he told her how much he loved her. ₄He even asked his father to get her for his wife.

₅Meanwhile, Jacob heard what had happened. But his sons were out in the fields with the cattle, so he did not do anything at the time. ₆Hamor arrived at Jacob's home ₇just as Jacob's sons were coming in from work. When they learnt that their sister had been raped, they became furiously angry. Nothing is more disgraceful than rape, and it should not be tolerated in Israel.

₈Hamor said to Jacob and his sons:

₁₁Shechem added, “Do this favour for me, and I'll give whatever you want. ₁₂Ask anything, no matter how expensive. I'll do anything, just let me marry Dinah.”

₁₃Jacob's sons wanted to get even with Shechem and his father because of what had happened to their sister. ₁₄So they tricked them by saying:

₁₈Hamor and Shechem liked what was said. ₁₉Shechem was the most respected person in his family, and he was so in love with Dinah that he hurried off to get everything done. ₂₀The two men met with the other leaders of their city and told them:

₂₄Every grown man followed this advice and got circumcised.

₂₅Three days later the men who had been circumcised were still weak from pain. So Simeon and Levi, two of Dinah's brothers, attacked with their swords and killed every man in town, ₂₆including Hamor and Shechem. Then they took Dinah and left. ₂₇Jacob's other sons came and took everything they wanted. All this was done because of the horrible thing that had happened to their sister. ₂₈They took sheep, goats, donkeys, and everything else that was in the town or the fields. ₂₉After taking everything of value from the houses, they dragged away the wives and children of their victims.

₃₀Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, “Look what you've done! Now I'm in real trouble with the Canaanites and Perizzites who live around here. There aren't many of us, and if they attack, they'll kill everyone in my household.”

₃₁They answered, “Was it right to let our own sister be treated that way?”

₁₈While Jesus was still speaking, an official came and knelt in front of him. The man said, “My daughter has just died! Please come and place your hand on her. Then she will live again.”

₁₉Jesus and his disciples got up and went with the man.

₂₀A woman who had been bleeding for twelve years came up behind Jesus and barely touched his clothes. ₂₁She had said to herself, “If I can just touch his clothes, I will get well.”

₂₂Jesus turned. He saw the woman and said, “Don't worry! You are now well because of your faith.” At that moment she was healed.

₂₃When Jesus went into the home of the official and saw the musicians and the crowd of mourners, ₂₄he said, “Get out of here! The little girl isn't dead. She is just asleep.” Everyone started laughing at Jesus. ₂₅But after the crowd had been sent out of the house, Jesus went to the girl's bedside. He took her by the hand and helped her up.

₂₆News about this spread all over that part of the country.

₂₇As Jesus was walking along, two blind men began following him and shouting, “Son of David, have pity on us!”

₂₈After Jesus had gone indoors, the two blind men came up to him. He asked them, “Do you believe I can make you well?”

“Yes, Lord,” they answered.

₂₉Jesus touched their eyes and said, “Because of your faith, you will be healed.” ₃₀They were able to see, and Jesus strictly warned them not to tell anyone about him. ₃₁But they left and talked about him to everyone in that part of the country.

₃₂As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, some people brought to him a man who could not talk because a demon was in him. ₃₃After Jesus had forced the demon out, the man started talking. The crowds were so amazed that they began saying, “Nothing like this has ever happened in Israel!”

₃₄But the Pharisees said, “The leader of the demons gives him the power to force out demons.”

₃₅Jesus went to every town and village. He taught in their meeting places and preached the good news about God's kingdom. Jesus also healed every kind of disease and sickness. ₃₆When he saw the crowds, he felt sorry for them. They were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. ₃₇He said to his disciples, “A large crop is in the fields, but there are only a few workers. ₃₈Ask the Lord in charge of the harvest to send out workers to bring it in.”