What does Genesis 32:19 mean?
Esau and 400 men are on their way to Jacob, who has strategically separated into two camps (Genesis 32:6–8). After fervent prayer (Genesis 32:9–12), Jacob is sending out a large gift of five herds of animals to present to Esau before he arrives. He clearly hopes to quell Esau's anger over their difficult split, some twenty years prior (Genesis 27:30–35; 27:41–45).Jacob assumes that Esau's men will ask the servants what they're doing. In the previous verse, he told the servant who will be driving the first herd how to answer: These animals belong to "your servant Jacob." He is giving them to "my lord Esau" as a gift. He is coming behind us.
Now he says to those driving the second, third, fourth, and fifth herds to say the same thing. Jacob pictures each herd reaching Esau, one after the other, with the same message. Jacob clearly hopes to impress and overwhelm Esau with his generosity and make it increasingly difficult for Esau to want to kill him.