Genesis 28:10–29:30
10 Then Jacob departed from aBeersheba and went toward bHaran.
11 He 1came to 2a acertain place and spent the night there, because the sun had set; and he took one of the stones of the place and put it 3under his head, and lay down in that place.
12 aHe had a dream, and behold, a ladder was set on the earth with its top reaching to heaven; and behold, bthe angels of God were ascending and descending on it.
13 And behold, athe Lord stood 1above it and said, “I am the Lord, bthe God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie, I will give it cto you and to dyour 2descendants.
14 “Your 1descendants will also be like athe dust of the earth, and you will 2spread out bto the west and to the east and to the north and to the south; and cin you and in your 1descendants shall all the families of the earth be blessed.
15 “Behold, aI am with you and bwill keep you wherever you go, and cwill bring you back to this land; for dI will not leave you until I have done what I have 1promised you.”
16 Then Jacob aawoke from his sleep and said, “bSurely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.”
17 He was afraid and said, “aHow awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.”
18 So Jacob rose early in the morning, and took athe stone that he had put 1under his head and set it up as a pillar and poured oil on its top.
19 He called the name of that place 1aBethel; however, 2previously the name of the city had been bLuz.
20 Then Jacob amade a vow, saying, “bIf God will be with me and will keep me on this journey that I 1take, and will give me 2cfood to eat and garments to wear,
21 and aI return to my father’s house in 1safety, bthen the Lord will be my God.
22 “This stone, which I have set up as a pillar, awill be God’s house, and bof all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to You.”
1 Then Jacob 1went on his journey, and came to the land of athe sons of the east.
2 He looked, and 1saw aa well in the field, and behold, three flocks of sheep were lying there beside it, for from that well they watered the flocks. Now the stone on the mouth of the well was large.
3 When all the flocks were gathered there, they would then roll the stone from the mouth of the well and water the sheep, and put the stone back in its place on the mouth of the well.
4 Jacob said to them, “My brothers, where are you from?” And they said, “We are from aHaran.”
5 He said to them, “Do you know Laban the ason of Nahor?” And they said, “We know him.”
6 And 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.”
7 He said, “Behold, it is still high day; it is not time for the livestock to be gathered. Water the sheep, and go, pasture them.”
8 But they said, “We cannot, until all the flocks are gathered, and they roll the stone from the mouth of the well; then we water the sheep.”
9 While he was still speaking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherdess.
10 When Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother, Jacob went up and rolled the stone from the mouth of the well and watered the flock of Laban his mother’s brother.
11 Then Jacob akissed Rachel, and lifted his voice and wept.
12 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.
13 So when aLaban heard the news of Jacob his sister’s son, he ran to meet him, and bembraced him and kissed him and brought him to his house. Then he related to Laban all these things.
14 Laban said to him, “Surely you are amy bone and my flesh.” And he stayed with him a month.
15 Then Laban said to Jacob, “Because you are my 1relative, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what shall ayour wages be?”
16 Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel.
17 And Leah’s eyes were weak, but Rachel was abeautiful of form and 1face.
18 Now Jacob aloved Rachel, so he said, “bI will serve you seven years for your younger daughter Rachel.”
19 Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you than to give her to another man; stay with me.”
20 So Jacob served seven years for Rachel and they seemed to him but a few days abecause of his love for her.
21 Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife, for my 1time is completed, that I may ago in to her.”
22 Laban gathered all the men of the place and made a feast.
23 Now in the evening he took his daughter Leah, and brought her to him; and Jacob went in to her.
24 Laban also gave his maid Zilpah to his daughter Leah as a maid.
25 So it came about in the morning that, behold, it was Leah! And he said to Laban, “aWhat is this you have done to me? Was it not for Rachel that I served with you? Why then have you bdeceived me?”
26 But Laban said, “It is not 1the practice in our place to 2marry off the younger before the firstborn.
27 “Complete the week of this one, and we will give you the other also for the service which ayou shall serve with me for another seven years.”
28 Jacob did so and completed her week, and he gave him his daughter Rachel as his wife.
29 Laban also gave his maid Bilhah to his daughter Rachel as her maid.
30 So Jacob went in to Rachel also, and indeed ahe loved Rachel more than Leah, and he served with 1Laban for banother seven years.