Genesis 31:29 - Printer Friendly

ESV: It is in my power to do you harm. But the God of your father spoke to me last night, saying, ‘Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.’

NIV: I have the power to harm you; but last night the God of your father said to me, ‘Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.’

NASB: It is in my power to do you harm, but the God of your father spoke to me last night, saying, ‘ Be careful not to speak either good or bad to Jacob.’

CSB: I could do you great harm, but last night the God of your father said to me: ‘Watch yourself! Don’t say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.’

NLT: I could destroy you, but the God of your father appeared to me last night and warned me, ‘Leave Jacob alone!’

KJV: It is in the power of my hand to do you hurt: but the God of your father spake unto me yesternight, saying, Take thou heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad.

NKJV: It is in my power to do you harm, but the God of your father spoke to me last night, saying, ‘Be careful that you speak to Jacob neither good nor bad.’

Laban is confronting Jacob about secretly running away. Jacob has fled with his wives and children and all of his possessions without saying a word to his father-in-law and employer, Laban. Laban concludes here by saying that it is in his power to do Jacob harm. Perhaps he means that he has the capability to physically harm Jacob and/or take by force from Jacob what Laban does not wish to release. Or Laban could mean that it would be within his legal rights to restrain Jacob or his wives, children, or belongings as escaped property that rightly belongs to him.

Whatever he might mean, he tells Jacob he won't do it. Why? The God of Jacob's father warned him not to say anything good or bad to Jacob (Genesis 31:24). The point of that expression is that God does not want Laban to contradict Jacob. By this statement, from Laban, Jacob receives more evidence that God is with him, protecting him, even from his own father-in-law.

It's interesting that Laban recognizes the Lord as the God of Jacob's father, Isaac. Laban would well remember when Abraham's servant came to his household many years earlier to find a wife for Isaac. The servant had proclaimed repeatedly that his master's God was providing for his master. Laban continued to believe that the God of Abraham, Isaac, and now Jacob was a powerful God who provided for their best interests.

Genesis 31:22–42 recounts Laban's pursuit of Jacob and his large company, after learning his son-in-law has left for Canaan without telling him. It takes a week, but Laban catches up. Warned by God in a dream not to say anything to Jacob ''either good or bad,'' Laban instead expresses his hurt to Jacob and accuses him of stealing Laban's house idols. When a search for the idols—cleverly hidden by Rachel without Jacob's knowledge—turns up nothing, Jacob finally expresses all of his complaints about Laban's unfair treatment of him in spite of twenty years of faithful service.

Genesis 31 describes Jacob's difficult separation from Laban, his father-in-law, as well as his boss for twenty years. During that time, Jacob was routinely mistreated and cheated by his master. Commanded by God to return to the land of Canaan, Jacob packs up his wives, children, and all of his possessions and leaves without telling Laban. Laban soon catches up with the large company. Laban and Jacob confront each other bitterly. Eventually, though, they make a covenant of separation and peace.

Genesis 30 described the dramatic expansion of Jacob's family and property. Now, after twenty years of working for Laban, the time comes for Jacob to return to his own people. He attempts to sneak away without telling Laban, but Laban soon catches up with him. After bitter confrontations, father and son-in-law make a covenant of separation and peace. Jacob is finally free to begin the next chapter of his life in the Promised Land. First, though, he will need to deal with his brother Esau, whose rage was the main reason Jacob fled in the first place. That encounter is described over the following two chapters.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.