Deliver me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau: for I fear him, lest he will come and smite me, and the mother with the children.
Read it in contextJacob Prepares to Meet Esau
Start reading at Genesis 32:1 (Genesis 32:1 to Genesis 32:21).
An editorial reading unit, not a claim that the surrounding context stops here. Book background below applies to the shared passage; individual verses may need more specific explanation.
This opening unit introduces the chapter’s movement. Family rivalry, journeys, marriages, and reconciliation develop the promised line while also recording the related family of Esau.
32:1And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him.
32:2And when Jacob saw them, he said, This is God's host: and he called the name of that place Mahanaim.
32:3And Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother unto the land of Seir, the country of Edom.
32:4And he commanded them, saying, Thus shall ye speak unto my lord Esau; Thy servant Jacob saith thus, I have sojourned with Laban, and stayed there until now:
32:5And I have oxen, and asses, flocks, and menservants, and womenservants: and I have sent to tell my lord, that I may find grace in thy sight.
32:6And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, We came to thy brother Esau, and also he cometh to meet thee, and four hundred men with him.
32:7Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed: and he divided the people that was with him, and the flocks, and herds, and the camels, into two bands;
32:8And said, If Esau come to the one company, and smite it, then the other company which is left shall escape.
32:9And Jacob said, O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, the LORD which saidst unto me, Return unto thy country, and to thy kindred, and I will deal well with thee:
32:10I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which thou hast shewed unto thy servant; for with my staff I passed over this Jordan; and now I am become two bands.
32:11Deliver me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau: for I fear him, lest he will come and smite me, and the mother with the children.
32:12And thou saidst, I will surely do thee good, and make thy seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.
32:13And he lodged there that same night; and took of that which came to his hand a present for Esau his brother;
32:14Two hundred she goats, and twenty he goats, two hundred ewes, and twenty rams,
32:15Thirty milch camels with their colts, forty kine, and ten bulls, twenty she asses, and ten foals.
32:16And he delivered them into the hand of his servants, every drove by themselves; and said unto his servants, Pass over before me, and put a space betwixt drove and drove.
32:17And he commanded the foremost, saying, When Esau my brother meeteth thee, and asketh thee, saying, Whose art thou? and whither goest thou? and whose are these before thee?
32:18Then thou shalt say, They be thy servant Jacob's; it is a present sent unto my lord Esau: and, behold, also he is behind us.
32:19And so commanded he the second, and the third, and all that followed the droves, saying, On this manner shall ye speak unto Esau, when ye find him.
32:20And say ye moreover, Behold, thy servant Jacob is behind us. For he said, I will appease him with the present that goeth before me, and afterward I will see his face; peradventure he will accept of me.
32:21So went the present over before him: and himself lodged that night in the company.
Study content, not yet reviewed.
Who
Who wrote the book? Moses is the traditional Jewish and Christian author of Genesis as part of the Pentateuch. Genesis itself does not explicitly identify its writer. Biblical references: John 5:46; Mark 12:26. Historical source: Babylonian Talmud, Bava Batra 14b–15a (record of Jewish attribution, not contemporary proof). traditionally held
Who was present or being addressed in this passage? In the surrounding chapter context (Genesis 32:1–33:20): Jacob prepares to meet Esau, prays, and wrestles during the night; he then meets Esau with their accompanying households and men. stated in the text
Who was the book written to? Israel, the covenant people descended from Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, were the first community for whom this account of their origins was preserved. An exact first circulation date or named recipient is not established. Biblical references: Genesis 12:1; Genesis 17:7; Genesis 35:10. book background
What
What is the topic of this reading unit? Jacob Prepares to Meet Esau. Read Genesis 32:1 through Genesis 32:21 as a connected unit. interpretation
How does it contribute to the book? This opening unit introduces the chapter’s movement. Family rivalry, journeys, marriages, and reconciliation develop the promised line while also recording the related family of Esau. interpretation
When
When are the events or message set? The narrative moves from creation through the generations of the patriarchs to Joseph's death. Those stages are narrated; a modern calendar for them requires additional chronological assumptions. book background
Where
What is the book’s geographic setting? The narrative ranges from the world of the opening chapters through Mesopotamia and Canaan to Egypt. The selected passage's own place names determine its local setting. book background
Where does the context start?
This passage sits in Jacob Prepares to Meet Esau (Genesis 32:1 to Genesis 32:21).
Start reading at Genesis 32:1. An editorial reading unit, not a claim that the surrounding context stops here. Book background below applies to the shared passage; individual verses may need more specific explanation.
How
How does this book connect with Jesus Christ? The later New Testament traces Jesus' genealogy through Abraham and connects the promise to Abraham with Christ. This is a canonical connection; it does not make every person or object in Genesis an explicit prediction of Jesus. See Matthew 1:1, Galatians 3:16. interpretation
How should this book guide our response? Read God's promises with their named recipients and the actions of those recipients. The family narratives encourage trust and obedience while also exposing deception and wrongdoing; narrative description alone does not authorize imitation. interpretation
Cited: Genesis 32:1, Genesis 32:21, Matthew 1:1, Galatians 3:16
Who wrote it, and how we know
Moses (traditional)From early tradition
What Scripture saysThe book does not name its author. Elsewhere Scripture attributes the Law to Moses, and Jesus calls it the book of Moses. Exodus 17:14Joshua 8:31Mark 12:26John 5:46
Early traditionJewish tradition (Talmud, Baba Bathra 14b) and the early church assign the first five books to Moses.
What is debatedSome scholars propose several later sources behind the Pentateuch. A few notes appear to be written after Moses, such as the list of kings in Genesis 36:31.
Cross references from CrossReferences-org (CC BY 4.0).
Macro-Structure
See how this passage fits the chapter and the book.
Macro-Structure of Genesis 32
Prefilled outline, not yet reviewed.
Genesis introduces creation, the nations, and the ancestral family of Israel. It does not name a recipient or give a composition date. Read the promises to named people in their narrated settings before applying them to later readers. Local headings and stanza divisions are editorial reading aids adapted from public-domain BSB headings; verse boundaries and Scripture links use the KJV. Connections describe the surrounding book movement.
Connection to the wholeThis opening unit introduces the chapter’s movement. Family rivalry, journeys, marriages, and reconciliation develop the promised line while also recording the related family of Esau.
Connection to the wholeThis unit closes the chapter’s selected reading divisions. Family rivalry, journeys, marriages, and reconciliation develop the promised line while also recording the related family of Esau.
interpretation
Suggested literary divisions. Headings summarize the passage; they are not part of the biblical text.
Macro-Structure of Genesis
Prefilled outline, not yet reviewed.
Genesis introduces creation, the nations, and the ancestral family of Israel. It does not name a recipient or give a composition date. Read the promises to named people in their narrated settings before applying them to later readers.
Connection to the wholeThe opening establishes God as Creator, describes human rebellion and its consequences, and traces the nations before narrowing the account to Abram's family.
Connection to the wholeThe narrative concentrates on God's promises to Abraham, the birth of Isaac, and the continuation of the family through whom the earlier promise is carried forward.
Connection to the wholeFamily rivalry, journeys, marriages, and reconciliation develop the promised line while also recording the related family of Esau.
Connection to the wholeJoseph's experiences lead to the preservation of Jacob's family in Egypt. The book closes with confidence about a future return, preparing the setting of Exodus.
interpretation
Suggested literary divisions. Headings summarize the passage; they are not part of the biblical text.