Taken from the HOLY BIBLE: NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION (C) 1978 by the New 
York Bible Society, used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers.

                                   LABAN

GEN 22:23  Bethuel became the father of Rebekah. Milcah bore these eight 
sons to Abraham's brother Nahor.

GEN 24:15  Before he had finished praying, Rebekah came out with her jar on 
her shoulder. She was the daughter of Bethuel son of Milcah, who was the 
wife of Abraham's brother Nahor.

GEN 24:29  Now Rebekah had a brother named Laban, and he hurried out to the 
man at the spring.

GEN 24:30  As soon as he had seen the nose ring, and the bracelets on his 
sister's arms, and had heard Rebekah tell what the man said to her, he went 
out to the man and found him standing by the camels near the spring.

GEN 24:31  "Come, you who are blessed by the LORD," he said. "Why are you 
standing out here? I have prepared the house and a place for the camels."

GEN 24:32  So the man went to the house, and the camels were unloaded. 
Straw and fodder were brought for the camels, and water for him and his men 
to wash their feet.

GEN 24:33  Then food was set before him, but he said, "I will not eat until 
I have told you what I have to say." "Then tell us," Laban said.

GEN 28:5  Then Isaac sent Jacob on his way, and he went to Paddan Aram, to 
Laban son of Bethuel the Aramean, the brother of Rebekah, who was the 
mother of Jacob and Esau.

GEN 29:12  He had told Rachel that he was a relative of her father and a 
son of Rebekah. So she ran and told her father.

GEN 29:13  As soon as Laban heard the news about Jacob, his sister's son, 
he hurried to meet him. He embraced him and kissed him and brought him to 
his home, and there Jacob told him all these things.

GEN 29:14  Then Laban said to him, "You are my own flesh and blood." After 
Jacob had stayed with him for a whole month,

GEN 29:15  Laban said to him, "Just because you are a relative of mine, 
should you work for me for nothing? Tell me what your wages should be."

GEN 29:16  Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the older was Leah, and 
the name of the younger was Rachel.

GEN 29:17  Leah had weak eyes, but Rachel was lovely in form, and 
beautiful.

GEN 29:18  Jacob was in love with Rachel and said, "I'll work for you seven 
years in return for your younger daughter Rachel."

GEN 29:19  Laban said, "It's better that I give her to you than to some 
other man. Stay here with me."

GEN 29:20  So Jacob served seven years to get Rachel, but they seemed like 
only a few days to him because of his love for her.

GEN 29:21  Then Jacob said to Laban, "Give me my wife. My time is 
completed, and I want to lie with her."

GEN 29:22  So Laban brought together all the people of the place and gave a 
feast.

GEN 29:23  But when evening came, he took his daughter Leah and gave her to 
Jacob, and Jacob lay with her.

GEN 29:24  And Laban gave his servant girl Zilpah to his daughter as her 
maidservant.

GEN 29:25  When morning came, there was Leah! So Jacob said to Laban, "What 
is this you have done to me? I served you for Rachel, didn't I? Why have 
you deceived me?"

GEN 29:26  Laban replied, "It is not our custom here to give the younger 
daughter in marriage before the older one.

GEN 29:27  Finish this daughter's bridal week; then we will give you the 
younger one also, in return for another seven years of work."

GEN 29:28  And Jacob did so. He finished the week with Leah, and then Laban 
gave him his daughter Rachel to be his wife.

GEN 29:29  Laban gave his servant girl Bilhah to his daughter Rachel as her 
maidservant.

GEN 29:30  Jacob lay with Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than Leah. 
And he worked for Laban another seven years.

GEN 30:27  But Laban said to him, "If I have found favor in your eyes, 
please stay. I have learned by divination that the LORD has blessed me 
because of you."

GEN 30:28  He added, "Name your wages, and I will pay them."

GEN 30:29  Jacob said to him, "You know how I have worked for you and how 
your livestock has fared under my care.

NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION (C) 1973, 1978, 1984 INTERNATIONAL BIBLE SOCIETY

GEN 30:30  The little you had before I came has increased greatly, and the 
LORD has blessed you wherever I have been. But now, when may I do something 
for my own household?"

GEN 30:31  "What shall I give you?" he asked. "Don't give me anything," 
Jacob replied. "But if you will do this one thing for me, I will go on 
tending your flocks and watching over them:

GEN 30:32  Let me go through all your flocks today and remove from them 
every speckled or spotted sheep, every dark-colored lamb and every spotted 
or speckled goat. They will be my wages.

GEN 30:33  And my honesty will testify for me in the future, whenever you 
check on the wages you have paid me. Any goat in my possession that is not 
speckled or spotted, or any lamb that is not dark-colored, will be 
considered stolen."

GEN 30:34  "Agreed," said Laban. "Let it be as you have said."

GEN 30:35  That same day he removed all the male goats that were streaked 
or spotted, and all the speckled or spotted female goats (all that had 
white on them) and all the dark-colored lambs, and he placed them in the 
care of his sons.

GEN 30:36  Then he put a three-day journey between himself and Jacob, while 
Jacob continued to tend the rest of Laban's flocks.

GEN 30:37  Jacob, however, took fresh-cut branches from poplar, almond and 
plane trees and made white stripes on them by peeling the bark and exposing 
the white inner wood of the branches.

GEN 30:38  Then he placed the peeled branches in all the watering troughs, 
so that they would be directly in front of the flocks when they came to 
drink. When the flocks were in heat and came to drink,

GEN 30:39  they mated in front of the branches. And they bore young that 
were streaked or speckled or spotted.

GEN 30:40  Jacob set apart the young of the flock by themselves, but made 
the rest face the streaked and dark-colored animals that belonged to Laban. 
Thus he made separate flocks for himself and did not put them with Laban's 
animals.

GEN 30:41  Whenever the stronger females were in heat, Jacob would place 
the branches in the troughs in front of the animals so they would mate near 
the branches,

GEN 30:42  but if the animals were weak, he would not place them there. So 
the weak animals went to Laban and the strong ones to Jacob.

GEN 30:43  In this way the man grew exceedingly prosperous and came to own 
large flocks, and maidservants and menservants, and camels and donkeys.

GEN 31:1  Jacob heard that Laban's sons were saying, "Jacob has taken 
everything our father owned and has gained all this wealth from what 
belonged to our father."

GEN 31:2  And Jacob noticed that Laban's attitude toward him was not what 
it had been.

GEN 31:3  Then the LORD said to Jacob, "Go back to the land of your fathers 
and to your relatives, and I will be with you."

GEN 31:4  So Jacob sent word to Rachel and Leah to come out to the fields 
where his flocks were.

GEN 31:5  He said to them, "I see that your father's attitude toward me is 
not what it was before, but the God of my father has been with me.

GEN 31:6  You know that I've worked for your father with all my strength,

GEN 31:7  yet your father has cheated me by changing my wages ten times. 
However, God has not allowed him to harm me.

GEN 31:8  If he said, 'The speckled ones will be your wages,' then all the 
flocks gave birth to speckled young; and if he said, 'The streaked ones 
will be your wages,' then all the flocks bore streaked young.

GEN 31:9  So God has taken away your father's livestock and has given them 
to me.

GEN 31:10  "In breeding season I once had a dream in which I looked up and 
saw that the male goats mating with the flock were streaked, speckled or 
spotted.

GEN 31:11  The angel of God said to me in the dream, 'Jacob.' I answered, 
'Here I am.'

GEN 31:12  And he said, 'Look up and see that all the male goats mating 
with the flock are streaked, speckled or spotted, for I have seen all that 
Laban has been doing to you.

GEN 31:13  I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a pillar and where 
you made a vow to me. Now leave this land at once and go back to your 
native land.'"

GEN 31:14  Then Rachel and Leah replied, "Do we still have any share in the 
inheritance of our father's estate?

GEN 31:15  Does he not regard us as foreigners? Not only has he sold us, 
but he has used up what was paid for us.

GEN 31:16  Surely all the wealth that God took away from our father belongs 
to us and our children. So do whatever God has told you."

NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION (C) 1973, 1978, 1984 INTERNATIONAL BIBLE SOCIETY

GEN 31:17  Then Jacob put his children and his wives on camels,

GEN 31:18  and he drove all his livestock ahead of him, along with all the 
goods he had accumulated in Paddan Aram, to go to his father Isaac in the 
land of Canaan.

GEN 31:19  When Laban had gone to shear his sheep, Rachel stole her 
father's household gods.

GEN 31:20  Moreover, Jacob deceived Laban the Aramean by not telling him he 
was running away.

GEN 31:21  So he fled with all he had, and crossing the River, he headed 
for the hill country of Gilead.

GEN 31:22  On the third day Laban was told that Jacob had fled.

GEN 31:23  Taking his relatives with him, he pursued Jacob for seven days 
and caught up with him in the hill country of Gilead.

GEN 31:24  Then God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream at night and said 
to him, "Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad."

GEN 31:25  Jacob had pitched his tent in the hill country of Gilead when 
Laban overtook him, and Laban and his relatives camped there too.

GEN 31:26  Then Laban said to Jacob, "What have you done? You've deceived 
me, and you've carried off my daughters like captives in war.

GEN 31:27  Why did you run off secretly and deceive me? Why didn't you tell 
me, so I could send you away with joy and singing to the music of 
tambourines and harps?

GEN 31:28  You didn't even let me kiss my grandchildren and my daughters 
good-by. You have done a foolish thing.

GEN 31:29  I have the power to harm you; but last night the God of your 
father said to me, 'Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or 
bad.'

GEN 31:30  Now you have gone off because you longed to return to your 
father's house. But why did you steal my gods?"

GEN 31:31  Jacob answered Laban, "I was afraid, because I thought you would 
take your daughters away from me by force.

GEN 31:32  But if you find anyone who has your gods, he shall not live. In 
the presence of our relatives, see for yourself whether there is anything 
of yours here with me; and if so, take it." Now Jacob did not know that 
Rachel had stolen the gods.

GEN 31:33  So Laban went into Jacob's tent and into Leah's tent and into 
the tent of the two maidservants, but he found nothing. After he came out 
of Leah's tent, he entered Rachel's tent.

GEN 31:34  Now Rachel had taken the household gods and put them inside her 
camel's saddle and was sitting on them. Laban searched through everything 
in the tent but found nothing.

GEN 31:35  Rachel said to her father, "Don't be angry, my lord, that I 
cannot stand up in your presence; I'm having my period." So he searched but 
could not find the household gods.

GEN 31:36  Jacob was angry and took Laban to task. "What is my crime?" he 
asked Laban. "What sin have I committed that you hunt me down?

GEN 31:37  Now that you have searched through all my goods, what have you 
found that belongs to your household? Put it here in front of your 
relatives and mine, and let them judge between the two of us.

GEN 31:38  "I have been with you for twenty years now. Your sheep and goats 
have not miscarried, nor have I eaten rams from your flocks.

GEN 31:39  I did not bring you animals torn by wild beasts; I bore the loss 
myself. And you demanded payment from me for whatever was stolen by day or 
night.

GEN 31:40  This was my situation: The heat consumed me in the daytime and 
the cold at night, and sleep fled from my eyes.

GEN 31:41  It was like this for the twenty years I was in your household. I 
worked for you fourteen years for your two daughters and six years for your 
flocks, and you changed my wages ten times.

GEN 31:42  If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of 
Isaac, had not been with me, you would surely have sent me away empty-
handed. But God has seen my hardship and the toil of my hands, and last 
night he rebuked you."

GEN 31:43  Laban answered Jacob, "The women are my daughters, the children 
are my children, and the flocks are my flocks. All you see is mine. Yet 
what can I do today about these daughters of mine, or about the children 
they have borne?

GEN 31:44  Come now, let's make a covenant, you and I, and let it serve as 
a witness between us."

GEN 31:45  So Jacob took a stone and set it up as a pillar.

NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION (C) 1973, 1978, 1984 INTERNATIONAL BIBLE SOCIETY

GEN 31:46  He said to his relatives, "Gather some stones." So they took 
stones and piled them in a heap, and they ate there by the heap.

GEN 31:47  Laban called it Jegar Sahadutha, and Jacob called it Galeed.

GEN 31:48  Laban said, "This heap is a witness between you and me today." 
That is why it was called Galeed.

GEN 31:49  It was also called Mizpah, because he said, "May the LORD keep 
watch between you and me when we are away from each other.

GEN 31:50  If you mistreat my daughters or if you take any wives besides my 
daughters, even though no one is with us, remember that God is a witness 
between you and me."

GEN 31:51  Laban also said to Jacob, "Here is this heap, and here is this 
pillar I have set up between you and me.

GEN 31:52  This heap is a witness, and this pillar is a witness, that I 
will not go past this heap to your side to harm you and that you will not 
go past this heap and pillar to my side to harm me.

GEN 31:53  May the God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, the God of their 
father, judge between us." So Jacob took an oath in the name of the Fear of 
his father Isaac.

GEN 31:54  He offered a sacrifice there in the hill country and invited his 
relatives to a meal. After they had eaten, they spent the night there.

GEN 31:55  Early the next morning Laban kissed his grandchildren and his 
daughters and blessed them. Then he left and returned home.

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