Jacob and Esau met peacefully

1Then Jacob joined the rest of his family. Later that day Jacob looked up and saw Esau coming, and there were 400 men with him. Jacob was worried because of that, so he separated the children. He put Leah’s children with Leah, Rachel’s children with Rachel, and the two female slaves’ children with their mothers.

2He put the two female slaves and their children in front. He put Leah and her children next. He put Rachel and Joseph at the rear.

3He himself went ahead of them all, and as he continued to approach his older brother, he prostrated himself with his face on the ground seven times.

4But Esau ran to Jacob. He hugged him, put his arms around his neck, and kissed him on the cheek. And they both cried.

5Then Esau looked up and saw the women and the children. He asked, “Who are these people who are with you?” Jacob replied, “These are the wives and children that God has graciously/kindly given to me.”

6Then the female slaves and their children came near and bowed in front of Esau.

7Then Leah and her children came and bowed down. Finally Joseph and Rachel came near and bowed down.

8Esau asked, “What is the meaning of all the animals that I saw?” Jacob replied, “I am giving them to you, sir, so that you will feel good toward me.”

9But Esau replied, “My younger brother, I have enough animals! Keep for yourself the animals that you have!”

10But Jacob said, “No, please, if you feel good toward me, accept these gifts from me. You have greeted me very kindly. Seeing your smiling face assures me that you have forgiven me. It is like seeing the face of God!

11Please accept these gifts that I have brought to you, because God has acted kindly toward me, and I still have plenty of animals!” Jacob kept on urging him to accept the animals, and finally he accepted them.

12Then Esau said, “Let’s continue traveling together, and I will show the road to you.”

13Jacob had no intention to go with Esau, but he said, “You know, sir, that the children are weak, and that I must take care of the female sheep and cows that are ◄sucking their mother’s milk/nursing their young►. If I force them to walk fast for a long distance in just one day, the animals will all die.

14You go ahead of me. I will lead the animals slowly, but I will walk as fast as the children and animals can walk. I will catch up with you in Seir, in the land where the descendants of Edom live.”

15Esau said, “Then allow me to leave with you some of the men who came with me, to protect you.” But Jacob replied, “◄Why do that?/There is no need to do that!► [RHQ] The only thing that I want is for you to act friendly toward me.”

16So on that day Esau left to return to Seir.

17But instead of going to Seir, Jacob and his family went to a place called Succoth. There he built a house for himself and his family, and built shelters for his livestock. That is the reason they named the place Succoth, which means ‘shelters’.

18Some time later, Jacob and his family left Paddan-Aram in Mesopotamia, and they traveled safely to the Canaan region. There they set up their tents in a field near Shechem city.

19One of the leaders of the people in that area was named Hamor. Hamor had several sons. Jacob paid the sons of Hamor 100 pieces of silver for the piece of ground on which they set up their tents.

20He built a stone altar there, and named it El-Elohe Israel, which means ‘God, the God of Israel.’