Genesis 29:1–12

Jacob’s Love for Rachel

¹Then Jacob ¹took up his journey and came to the land of ^athe sons of the east.

²And he looked, and behold, ^aa well in the field, and behold, three flocks of sheep were lying there beside it, for from that well they gave water to the flocks to drink. Now the stone on the mouth of the well was large.

³And all the flocks would be gathered there, and they would roll the stone from the mouth of the well and give water to the sheep to drink and return the stone back to its place on the mouth of the well.

⁴And Jacob said to them, “My brothers, where are you from?” And they said, “We are from ^aHaran.”

⁵Then he said to them, “Do you know Laban the ^ason of Nahor?” And they said, “We know him.”

⁶And he said to them, “Is it well with him?” And they said, “It is well, and here is ^aRachel his daughter coming with the sheep.”

⁷And he said, “Behold, it is still high day; it is not time for the livestock to be gathered. Give water to the sheep to drink, and go, pasture them.”

⁸But they said, “We cannot, until all the flocks are gathered, and they roll the stone from the mouth of the well; then we give water to the sheep to drink.”

⁹While he was still speaking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherdess.

¹⁰Now it happened, when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother’s brother and the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother, Jacob came near and rolled the stone from the mouth of the well and gave water to the flock of Laban his mother’s brother to drink.

¹¹Then Jacob ^akissed Rachel and lifted his voice and wept.

¹²And Jacob told Rachel that he was a ^1arelative of her father and that he was Rebekah’s son, and ^bshe ran and told her father.