Bible Strands
Genesis 31:54
Then Jacob offered a sacrifice on the mountain and invited his relatives to eat a meal. And after they had eaten, they spent the night on the mountain.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Jacob acts on the mountain after swearing an oath with Laban, then invites his relatives to share a meal and spend the night there.
The words — וַ/יִּזְבַּ֨ח (va/i.yiz.Bach) translates literally as "and he sacrificed," while לֶ/אֱכָל\־ (le./'e.khol-) means "to eat."
The thread — This sequence of sacrifice and communal eating parallels the covenant meals in Exodus 18:12 and the feasts recorded in Genesis 21:8 and Genesis 26:30.
Why it lands — The text records a sacrifice followed by a shared meal and overnight stay, demanding that a reader note the practical steps taken to formalize a parting agreement.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Then Jacob offered sacrifice upon the mount, and called his brethren to eat bread: and they did eat bread, and tarried all night in the mount.
Cross-references
- Exodus 18:12 Then Moses’ father-in-law Jethro brought a burnt offering and sacrifices to God, and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat bread with Moses’ father-in-law in the presence of God.
- Genesis 21:8 So the child grew and was weaned, and Abraham held a great feast on the day Isaac was weaned.
- Genesis 26:30 So Isaac prepared a feast for them, and they ate and drank.
- Genesis 37:25 And as they sat down to eat a meal, they looked up and saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead. Their camels were carrying spices, balm, and myrrh on their way down to Egypt.
- 2 Samuel 3:20 When Abner and twenty of his men came to David at Hebron, David held a feast for them.