New English Translation
Genesis 31:40
40I was consumed by scorching heat during the day and by piercing cold at night, and I went without sleep.
Genesis 31:40 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Thus I was; in the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night; and my sleep departed from mine eyes.
- New International Version (NIV)This was my situation: The heat consumed me in the daytime and the cold at night, and sleep fled from my eyes.
- English Standard Version (ESV)There I was: by day the heat consumed me, and the cold by night, and my sleep fled from my eyes.
- New King James Version (NKJV)There I was! In the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night, and my sleep departed from my eyes.
Context of Genesis 31:40
38“I have been with you for the past twenty years. Your ewes and female goats have not miscarried, nor have I eaten rams from your flocks. 39Animals torn by wild beasts I never brought to you; I always absorbed the loss myself. You always made me pay for every missing animal, whether it was taken by day or at night. I was consumed by scorching heat during the day and by piercing cold at night, and I went without sleep. 41This was my lot for twenty years in your house: I worked like a slave for you – fourteen years for your two daughters and six years for your flocks, but you changed my wages ten times! 42If the God of my father – the God of Abraham, the one whom Isaac fears – had not been with me, you would certainly have sent me away empty-handed! But God saw how I was oppressed and how hard I worked, and he rebuked you last night.”
Read all of Genesis 31Genesis 31:40 word by word
הָיִ֧יתִי בַיּ֛וֹם אֲכָלַ֥נִי חֹ֖רֶב וְקֶ֣רַח בַּלָּ֑יְלָה וַתִּדַּ֥ד שְׁנָתִ֖י מֵֽעֵינָֽי׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- I was; in the dayיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
- the droughtחֹ֫רֶבchôreb · droughtH2721
- consumedאָכַל'âkal · to eatH398
- me, and the frostקֶ֫רַחqerach qôrach · iceH7140
- by nightלַ֫יְלָהlayil lêyl layelâh · nightH3915
- and my sleepשֵׁנָהshênâh shênâ' · sleepH8142
- departedנָדַדnâdad · to wanderH5074
- from mine eyesעַ֫יִן‛ayin · eyeH5869
Cross-references for Genesis 31:40
- Exodus 2:19They said, “An Egyptian man rescued us from the shepherds, and he actually drew water for us and watered the flock!”
- Exodus 3:1Now Moses was shepherding the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the desert and came to the mountain of God, to Horeb.
- Psalms 78:70He chose David, his servant, and took him from the sheepfolds.
- Hosea 12:12Jacob fled to the country of Aram, then Israel worked to acquire a wife; he tended sheep to pay for her.
- Luke 2:8Now there were shepherds nearby living out in the field, keeping guard over their flock at night.
- John 21:15Then when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these do?” He replied, “Yes, Lord, you know I love you.” Jesus told him, “Feed my lambs.”
- Hebrews 13:7Remember your leaders, who spoke God’s message to you; reflect on the outcome of their lives and imitate their faith.
- 1 Peter 5:2Give a shepherd’s care to God’s flock among you, exercising oversight not merely as a duty but willingly under God’s direction, not for shameful profit but eagerly.
Commentaries on Genesis 31:40
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 40In the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night - The being exposed to the heat by day, and frost by night, is made part of the heaviest punishment of Promethus by Aeschylus. ' ̔ ͅ , · ͅ <-144 ̔ · ' ̔ͅ ̔ ͅ . Aeschyl. Prom. Vinc., v. 22. Opposed to the sun's most fervid beam, The hue of beauty changed; till parch'd by heat The night with spangled stole shall hide its light From thee rejoicing, but again the sun Chases the hoar frost from thy…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
- 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. 40Jacob, who preferred life at home (25:27), had spent 20 years enduring the hardships of outdoor life, which Esau had loved.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 4040. in the day the drought ... and the frost by night--The temperature changes often in twenty-four hours from the greatest extremes of heat and cold, most trying to the shepherd who has to keep watch by his flocks. Much allowance must be made for Jacob. Great and long-continued provocations ruffle the mildest and most disciplined tempers. It is difficult to "be angry and sin not" [Ep 4:26]. But these two relatives, after having given utterance to their…Read the comment
Topics related to Genesis 31:40
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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