Genesis 31:38

Genesis 31:38 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)This twenty years have I been with thee; thy ewes and thy she goats have not cast their young, and the rams of thy flock have I not eaten.
• New International Version (NIV)“I have been with you for twenty years now. Your sheep and goats have not miscarried, nor have I eaten rams from your flocks.
• English Standard Version (ESV)These twenty years I have been with you. Your ewes and your female goats have not miscarried, and I have not eaten the rams of your flocks.
• New King James Version (NKJV)These twenty years I have been with you; your ewes and your female goats have not miscarried their young, and I have not eaten the rams of your flock.

Context of Genesis 31:38

36Then Jacob became angry and confronted Laban. “What is my crime?” Jacob demanded of Laban. “What is my offense that you have come chasing after me? 37Now that you’ve rummaged through all my things, did you find anything from your house? Put it here in front of all our relatives. Let them decide which one of us is right. “I’ve been with you for 20 years. Your sheep and goats never miscarried, and I never ate any rams from your flocks. 39I never brought you any of the flock that was killed by wild animals. I paid for the loss myself. That’s what you demanded of me when any of the flock was stolen during the day or at night. 40The scorching heat during the day and the cold at night wore me down, and I lost a lot of sleep.

Genesis 31:38 word by word

זֶה֩ עֶשְׂרִ֨ים שָׁנָ֤ה אָנֹכִי֙ עִמָּ֔ךְ רְחֵלֶ֥יךָ וְעִזֶּ֖יךָ לֹ֣א שִׁכֵּ֑לוּ וְאֵילֵ֥י צֹאנְךָ֖ לֹ֥א אָכָֽלְתִּי׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• This twentyעֶשְׂרִים‛eώrîym · twentyH6242
• yearsשָׁנָהshâneh shânâh · yearH8141
• with thee; thy ewesרָחֵלrâchêl · eweH7353
• and thy she goatsעֵז‛êz · goatH5795
• have not cast their youngשָׁכֹלshâkôl · be bereavedH7921
• and the ramsאַ֫יִל'ayil · ramH352
• of thy flockצֹאןtsô'n tse'ôn · flockH6629
• have I not eatenאָכַל'âkal · to eatH398

Cross-references for Genesis 31:38

• Genesis 31:41I’ve been with your household 20 years now. I worked for you 14 years for your two daughters and 6 years for your flocks, and you changed my wages 10 times.
• Genesis 30:27Laban replied, “Listen to me. I’ve learned from the signs I’ve seen that the Lord has blessed me because of you.”
• Exodus 23:26No woman in your land will miscarry or be unable to have children. I will let you live a normal life span.
• Deuteronomy 28:4You will be blessed. You will have children. Your land will have crops. Your animals will have offspring. Your cattle will have calves, and your flocks will have lambs and kids.
• Ezekiel 34:2“Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Prophesy to these shepherds. Tell them, ‘This is what the Almighty Lord says: How horrible it will be for the shepherds of Israel who have been taking care of only themselves. Shouldn’t shepherds take care of the sheep?

Commentaries on Genesis 31:38

• 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
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 36-42Verses 36-42 If Jacob were willingly consumed with heat in the day, and frost by night, to become the son-in-law of Laban, what should we refuse to endure, to become the sons of God? Jacob speaks of God as the God of his father; he thought himself unworthy to be regarded, but was beloved for his father's sake. He calls him the God of Abraham, and the fear of Isaac; for Abraham was dead, and gone to that world where perfect love casts out fear; but Isaac…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 36-42Jacob answered by accusing Laban of making false charges and humiliating him. Now Laban was the one who had to answer, because his charges were insulting and seemed to have no basis.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 3838. The rams of thy flock have I not eaten--Eastern people seldom kill the females for food except they are barren.Read the comment

Topics related to Genesis 31:38

• Chiding
• Dishonesty
• Laban
• Shepherd
• Teraphim

In the dictionaries

• Agate
• Carry
• Discern
• Fear
• Gather
• Goat
• Inheritance
• Jacob
• Leah
• Mount

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