Genesis 32:1-12 ▼

1 And Jacob hath gone on his way, and messengers of God come upon him;

2 and Jacob saith, when he hath seen them, 'This is the camp of God;' and he calleth the name of that place 'Two Camps.'

3 And Jacob sendeth messengers before him unto Esau his brother, towards the land of Seir, the field of Edom,

4 and commandeth them, saying, 'Thus do ye say to my lord, to Esau: Thus said thy servant Jacob, With Laban I have sojourned, and I tarry until now;

5 and I have ox, and ass, flock, and man-servant, and maid-servant, and I send to declare to my lord, to find grace in his eyes.'

6 And the messengers turn back unto Jacob, saying, 'We came in unto thy brother, unto Esau, and he also is coming to meet thee, and four hundred men with him;'

7 and Jacob feareth exceedingly, and is distressed, and he divideth the people who are with him, and the flock, and the herd, and the camels, into two camps,

8 and saith, 'If Esau come in unto the one camp, and have smitten it -- then the camp which is left hath been for an escape.'

9 And Jacob saith, 'God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, Jehovah who saith unto me, Turn back to thy land, and to thy kindred, and I do good with thee:

10 I have been unworthy of all the kind acts, and of all the truth which Thou hast done with thy servant -- for, with my staff I passed over this Jordan, and now I have become two camps.

11 'Deliver me, I pray Thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau: for I am fearing him, less he come and have smitten me -- mother beside sons;

12 and Thou -- Thou hast said, I certainly do good with thee, and have set thy seed as the sand of the sea, which is not numbered because of the multitude.'