Genesis 31:24

Genesis 31:24 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And God came to Laban the Syrian in a dream by night, and said unto him, Take heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad.
• New International Version (NIV)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.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)But God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream by night and said to him, "Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad."
• New King James Version (NKJV)But God had come to Laban the Syrian in a dream by night, and said to him, “Be careful that you speak to Jacob neither good nor bad.”

Context of Genesis 31:24

22Three days later, Laban was told that Jacob had fled. 23So he gathered a group of his relatives and set out in hot pursuit. He caught up with Jacob seven days later in the hill country of Gilead. But the previous night God had appeared to Laban the Aramean in a dream and told him, “I’m warning you—leave Jacob alone!” 25Laban caught up with Jacob as he was camped in the hill country of Gilead, and he set up his camp not far from Jacob’s. 26“What do you mean by deceiving me like this?” Laban demanded. “How dare you drag my daughters away like prisoners of war?

Genesis 31:24 word by word

וַיָּבֹ֧א אֱלֹהִ֛ים אֶל־לָבָ֥ן הָאֲרַמִּ֖י בַּחֲלֹ֣ם הַלָּ֑יְלָה וַיֹּ֣אמֶר ל֗וֹ הִשָּׁ֧מֶר לְךָ֛ פֶּן־תְּדַבֵּ֥ר עִֽם־יַעֲקֹ֖ב מִטּ֥וֹב עַד־רָֽע׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• cameבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
• to Labanלָבָןlâbân · LabanH3837
• the Syrianאֲרַמִּי'ărammîy · ArameanH761
• in a dreamחֲלוֹםchălôm chălôm · dreamH2472
• by nightלַ֫יְלָהlayil lêyl layelâh · nightH3915
• and saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• unto him, Take heedשָׁמַרshâmar · to keep: carefulH8104
• that thou speakדָבַרdâbar · to speak: speakH1696
• not toעִם‛im · withH5973
• Jacobיַעֲקֹבya‛ăqôb · JacobH3290
• either goodטוֹבţôb · pleasantH2896
• orעַד‛ad · tillH5704
• badרַעra‛ râ‛âh · bad: harmfulH7451

Cross-references for Genesis 31:24

• Genesis 28:5So Isaac sent Jacob away, and he went to Paddan-aram to stay with his uncle Laban, his mother’s brother, the son of Bethuel the Aramean.
• Deuteronomy 26:5“You must then say in the presence of the Lord your God, ‘My ancestor Jacob was a wandering Aramean who went to live as a foreigner in Egypt. His family arrived few in number, but in Egypt they became a large and mighty nation.
• Hosea 12:12Jacob fled to the land of Aram, and there he earned a wife by tending sheep.
• Genesis 31:10“One time during the mating season, I had a dream and saw that the male goats mating with the females were streaked, speckled, and spotted.
• Genesis 20:3But that night God came to Abimelech in a dream and told him, “You are a dead man, for that woman you have taken is already married!”
• Genesis 40:5While they were in prison, Pharaoh’s cup-bearer and baker each had a dream one night, and each dream had its own meaning.
• Genesis 41:1Two full years later, Pharaoh dreamed that he was standing on the bank of the Nile River.
• Numbers 12:6And the Lord said to them, “Now listen to what I say: “If there were prophets among you, I, the Lord, would reveal myself in visions. I would speak to them in dreams.
• Numbers 22:20That night God came to Balaam and told him, “Since these men have come for you, get up and go with them. But do only what I tell you to do.”
• 1 Kings 3:5That night the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream, and God said, “What do you want? Ask, and I will give it to you!”
• Job 33:15He speaks in dreams, in visions of the night, when deep sleep falls on people as they lie in their beds.
• Matthew 1:20As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit.
• Matthew 2:12When it was time to leave, they returned to their own country by another route, for God had warned them in a dream not to return to Herod.
• Matthew 27:19Just then, as Pilate was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent him this message: “Leave that innocent man alone. I suffered through a terrible nightmare about him last night.”
• Genesis 31:42In fact, if the God of my father had not been on my side—the God of Abraham and the fearsome God of Isaac—you would have sent me away empty-handed. But God has seen your abuse and my hard work. That is why he appeared to you last night and rebuked you!”
• Genesis 24:50Then Laban and Bethuel replied, “The Lord has obviously brought you here, so there is nothing we can say.

Commentaries on Genesis 31:24

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 24And God came to Laban - God's caution to Laban was of high importance to Jacob - Take heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad; or rather, as is the literal meaning of the Hebrew, רע עד מטוב mittob ad ra, from good to evil; for had he neither spoken good nor evil to Jacob, they could have had no intercourse at all. The original is, therefore, peculiarly appropriate; for when people meet, the language at first is the language of friendship; the…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. 22-35Verses 22-35 God can put a bridle in the mouth of wicked men, to restrain their malice, though he do not change their hearts. Though they have no love to God's people, they will pretend to it, and try to make a merit of necessity. Foolish Laban! to call those things his gods which could be stolen! Enemies may steal our goods, but not our God. Here Laban lays to Jacob's charge things that he knew not. Those who commit their cause to God, are not forbidden…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 24Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad: God told Laban not to try to bring justice himself. When we try to enact our own sense of good and evil apart from God’s command, we always do evil (see study note on 2:9).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 22-5522-24. it was told Laban on the third day--No sooner did the news reach Laban than he set out in pursuit, and he being not encumbered, advanced rapidly; whereas Jacob, with a young family and numerous flocks, had to march slowly, so that he overtook the fugitives after seven days' journey as they lay encamped on the brow of mount Gilead, an extensive range of hills forming the eastern boundary of Canaan. Being accompanied by a number of his people, he…Read the comment

Topics related to Genesis 31:24

• Dream
• Gilead
• Laban

In the dictionaries

• God
• Jacob
• Laban
• Jacob, Israel
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Agate
• Aram
• Carry
• Discern
• Fear

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