God’s Word Translation
Genesis 31:3
3Then the Lord said to Jacob, “Go back to the land of your ancestors and to your relatives, and I will be with you.”
Genesis 31:3 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And the Lord said unto Jacob, Return unto the land of thy fathers, and to thy kindred; and I will be with thee.
- New International Version (NIV)Then the Lord said to Jacob, “Go back to the land of your fathers and to your relatives, and I will be with you.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)Then the Lord said to Jacob, "Return to the land of your fathers and to your kindred, and I will be with you."
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then the Lord said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your fathers and to your family, and I will be with you.”
Context of Genesis 31:3
1Jacob heard that Laban’s sons were saying, “Jacob has taken everything that belonged to our father and has gained all his wealth from him.” 2He also noticed that Laban did not appear as friendly to him as before. Then the Lord said to Jacob, “Go back to the land of your ancestors and to your relatives, and I will be with you.” 4So Jacob sent a message to Rachel and Leah to come out to the open country where his flocks were. 5He said to them, “I have seen that your father isn’t as friendly to me as he was before, but the God of my father has been with me.
Read all of Genesis 31Genesis 31:3 word by word
וַיֹּ֤אמֶר יְהוָה֙ אֶֽל־יַעֲקֹ֔ב שׁ֛וּב אֶל־אֶ֥רֶץ אֲבוֹתֶ֖יךָ וּלְמוֹלַדְתֶּ֑ךָ וְאֶֽהְיֶ֖ה עִמָּֽךְ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Genesis 31:3
- Genesis 28:15Remember, I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go. I will also bring you back to this land because I will not leave you until I do what I’ve promised you.”
- Genesis 32:9Then Jacob prayed, “God of my grandfather Abraham and God of my father Isaac! Lord, you said to me, ‘Go back to your land and to your relatives, and I will make you prosperous.’
- Genesis 35:1Then God said to Jacob, “Go to Bethel and live there. Make an altar there. I am the God who appeared to you when you were fleeing from your brother Esau.”
- Genesis 46:2God spoke to Israel in a vision that night and said, “Jacob, Jacob!” “Here I am,” he answered.
- Genesis 50:24At last Joseph said to his brothers, “I’m about to die. God will definitely take care of you and take you out of this land to the land he swore with an oath to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.”
- Psalms 46:1God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in times of trouble.
- Psalms 50:15Call on me in times of trouble. I will rescue you, and you will honor me.”
- Psalms 90:15Make us rejoice for as many days as you have made us suffer, for as many years as we have experienced evil.
- Genesis 31:13I am the God who appeared to you at Bethel, where you poured olive oil on a stone marker for a holy purpose and where you made a vow to me. Now leave this land, and go back to the land of your relatives.’ ”
- Genesis 13:15I will give all the land you see to you and to your descendants for an indefinite period of time.
- Genesis 26:3Live here in this land for a while, and I will be with you and bless you. I will give all these lands to you and your descendants. I will keep the oath that I swore to your father Abraham.
- Genesis 28:4May he give to you and your descendants the blessing of Abraham so that you may take possession of the land where you are now living, the land that God gave to Abraham.”
- Genesis 30:25After Rachel gave birth to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Let me go home to my own country.
- Genesis 21:22At that time Abimelech, accompanied by Phicol, the commander of his army, said to Abraham, “God is with you in everything you do.
- Genesis 26:24That night the Lord appeared to Isaac, and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham. Don’t be afraid, because I am with you. I will bless you and increase the number of your descendants for my servant Abraham’s sake.”
- Isaiah 41:10Don’t be afraid, because I am with you. Don’t be intimidated; I am your God. I will strengthen you. I will help you. I will support you with my victorious right hand.
Commentaries on Genesis 31:3
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3And the Lord said unto Jacob, Return - and I will be with thee - I will take the same care of thee in thy return, as I took of thee on thy way to this place. The Targum reads, My Word shall be for thy help, see Genesis 15:1. A promise of this kind was essentially necessary for the encouragement of Jacob, especially at this time; and no doubt it was a powerful means of support to him through the whole journey; and it was particularly so when he heard that…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-55Verses 1-55 - Jacob‘s Flight from Haran 19. תרפים terāpı̂ym Teraphim. This word occurs fifteen times in the Old Testament. It appears three times in this chapter, and nowhere else in the Pentateuch. It is always in the plural number. The root does not appear in Biblical Hebrew. It perhaps means “to live well,” intransitively (Gesenius, Roedig.), “to nourish,” transitively (Furst). The teraphim were symbols or representatives of the Deity, as Laban calls…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3the land of your fathers was Canaan, to which God had called Abraham (12:1–7; 17:8). Go back … I will be with you: See study notes on 26:2–5; 28:12–15. God protected Jacob (also called “Israel,” 32:28) as he led his family back to the land God promised them. Later, God brought Israel back to Canaan after many years of slavery in Egypt. This return had many similarities to this passage: God defeated foreign gods and beliefs. He used dreams for rescue and…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. the Lord said ... Return unto the land of thy fathers--Notwithstanding the ill usage he had received, Jacob might not have deemed himself at liberty to quit his present sphere, under the impulse of passionate fretfulness and discontent. Having been conducted to Haran by God (Ge 28:15) and having got a promise that the same heavenly Guardian would bring him again into the land of Canaan, he might have thought he ought not to leave it, without being…Read the comment
Topics related to Genesis 31:3
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Genesis 31
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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