Genesis 31:13 - Printer Friendly

ESV: I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a pillar and made a vow to me. Now arise, go out from this land and return to the land of your kindred.’”

NIV: I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a pillar and where you made a vow to me. Now leave this land at once and go back to your native land.''

NASB: I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a memorial stone, where you made a vow to Me; now arise, leave this land, and return to the land of your birth.’?'

CSB: I am the God of Bethel, where you poured oil on the stone marker and made a solemn vow to me. Get up, leave this land, and return to your native land.' "

NLT: I am the God who appeared to you at Bethel, the place where you anointed the pillar of stone and made your vow to me. Now get ready and leave this country and return to the land of your birth.’'

KJV: I am the God of Bethel, where thou anointedst the pillar, and where thou vowedst a vow unto me: now arise, get thee out from this land, and return unto the land of thy kindred.

NKJV: I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed the pillar and where you made a vow to Me. Now arise, get out of this land, and return to the land of your family.’ ”

Here, Jacob concludes the case he is making to his wives. He has saved the revelation that God has commanded him to return to the land of Canaan. He began by demonstrating how Laban and their brothers had stopped viewing him with favor. Then Jacob explained how Laban had cheated him repeatedly and how God had protected him and made him wealthy. In simple terms, God told Jacob he'd repay him for the years he'd been cheated by Laban, by supernaturally influencing the breeding of the animals.

Jacob finishes by telling Leah and Rachel that God spoke to Him, reminding Jacob of the sacred vow he had made at Bethel before meeting his Uncle Laban and his daughters. At Bethel, the Lord had appeared to Jacob in a dream and made great promises to him. Jacob had worshiped the Lord and built a pillar to Him.

Now that same God, that good and faithful God, was commanding Jacob to return to the land of his people.

The setup to this statement tells us a lot about Jacob's sense of concern. He would have been wondering: how would Rachel and Leah respond to this revelation? Would they support Jacob and agree to go with him? Would these two sisters, struggling with a bitter rivalry (Genesis 30:8), have the same response?

Genesis 31:1–21 describes the events that propel Jacob to sneak away from Laban and head toward his homeland of Canaan. First, he learns that Laban and his sons are dangerously unhappy with him for taking so many of Laban's profits. Then God commands Jacob to go, promising to be with him. After securing the support of his wives, Jacob packs up his large family and property and sneaks away toward Gilead and then home.

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.