Jacob’s family fled from Laban

31 Someone told Jacob that Laban’s sons were complaining and saying, “Jacob has become very rich by taking everything [HYP] that belonged to our father.” 2 And Jacob noticed that Laban was not acting friendly toward him as he had done before. 3 Then Yahweh said to Jacob, “Go back to your country and your relatives, and I will help you there.”

4 So Jacob sent a message to Rachel and Leah, telling them to come out to the pastures where his flocks of sheep and goats were. 5 When they arrived, he said to them, “I see that your father does not act friendly toward me as he did previously. But God, whom my father worshiped, has helped me. 6 You two know that I have worked very hard for your father, 7 but many times [HYP] he has cheated me by decreasing my wages. But God has not allowed him to harm me. 8 When Laban said, ‘The speckled animals are the ones that I will give you to be your wages,’ then all the animals gave birth to young ones that were speckled. When he changed and said, ‘The ones that have black and white stripes on them will be your wages,’ then all the animals gave birth to young ones that were striped. 9 In that way, God has taken away the livestock that belonged to your father and has given them to me.

10 “One time, when the animals were mating, I had a dream. In my dream I looked up and was surprised to see that some of the male goats that were mating with the female goats had black and white stripes on them, some were speckled, and some were spotted. 11 An angel who was sent by God said to me in the dream, ‘Jacob!’ I replied, ‘I am here!’ 12 He said to me, ‘Look up and you will see that all the male goats that are mating have black and white stripes on them, or are speckled or spotted. This is happening because I have seen all that Laban has done to you. 13 I am God who appeared to you at Bethel, where you set up a stone to show that the place was holy, and you poured olive oil on the stone and made a solemn promise to me. So now leave this land immediately, and return to the land where you were born.’”

14 Rachel and Leah replied, “Our father will not give us anything more when he dies [RHQ]. 15 He treats us as though we were foreigners [RHQ]! Your working for him all these years was like a payment that you gave him as a price for us, but we will not inherit any of that money that he got as a price for us. He has spent it all! 16 Surely all of the wealth that God took away from our father belongs to us and to our children. So do whatever God has told you to do!”

17 Then Jacob put his children and his wives on camels. 18 He made all his livestock go ahead of him. Besides the livestock, he took along all the other things that he had acquired while living in Paddan-Aram. And they prepared to return to his father Isaac, in the Canaan region.

19 Before they left, while Laban was shearing his sheep, Rachel stole the small wooden idols that were in her father’s tent. 20 Furthermore, Jacob deceived Laban, who belonged to the Aram people-group, by not telling him that they were planning to leave. 21 So Jacob and his family fled with all their possessions, and they crossed the Euphrates River, and then started traveling south toward the hilly Gilead region.