Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran, his grandson, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, his son Abram’s wife; and they went out together from Ur of the Chaldeans in order to enter the land of Canaan; and they went as far as Haran, and settled there.

Before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, surrounded the house, both young and old, all the people from every quarter;

Then the two men said to Lot, “Whom else have you here? A son-in-law, and your sons, and your daughters, and whomever you have in the city, bring them out of the place;

Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were to marry his daughters, and said, “Up, get out of this place, for the Lord will destroy the city.” But he appeared to his sons-in-law to be jesting.

Come, let us make our father drink wine, and let us lie with him that we may preserve our family through our father.”

So they made their father drink wine that night, and the firstborn went in and lay with her father; and he did not know when she lay down or when she arose.

On the following day, the firstborn said to the younger, “Behold, I lay last night with my father; let us make him drink wine tonight also; then you go in and lie with him, that we may preserve our family through our father.”

So they made their father drink wine that night also, and the younger arose and lay with him; and he did not know when she lay down or when she arose.

Then the man bowed low and worshiped the Lord.

And I bowed low and worshiped the Lord, and blessed the Lord, the God of my master Abraham, who had guided me in the right way to take the daughter of my master’s kinsman for his son.

He came to a certain place and spent the night there, because the sun had set; and he took one of the stones of the place and put it under his head, and lay down in that place.

And behold, the Lord stood above it and said, “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie, I will give it to you and to your descendants.

Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel.

And Leah’s eyes were weak, but Rachel was beautiful of form and face.

Now in the evening he took his daughter Leah, and brought her to him; and Jacob went in to her.

Laban also gave his maid Zilpah to his daughter Leah as a maid.

So it came about in the morning that, behold, it was Leah! And he said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Was it not for Rachel that I served with you? Why then have you deceived me?”

So Jacob went in to Rachel also, and indeed he loved Rachel more than Leah, and he served with Laban for another seven years.

Now the Lord saw that Leah was unloved, and He opened her womb, but Rachel was barren.

Leah conceived and bore a son and named him Reuben, for she said, “Because the Lord has seen my affliction; surely now my husband will love me.”

When Leah saw that she had stopped bearing, she took her maid Zilpah and gave her to Jacob as a wife.

Leah’s maid Zilpah bore Jacob a son.

Then Leah said, “How fortunate!” So she named him Gad.

Leah’s maid Zilpah bore Jacob a second son.

Then Leah said, “Happy am I! For women will call me happy.” So she named him Asher.

Now in the days of wheat harvest Reuben went and found mandrakes in the field, and brought them to his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.”

But she said to her, “Is it a small matter for you to take my husband? And would you take my son’s mandrakes also?” So Rachel said, “Therefore he may lie with you tonight in return for your son’s mandrakes.”

When Jacob came in from the field in the evening, then Leah went out to meet him and said, “You must come in to me, for I have surely hired you with my son’s mandrakes.” So he lay with her that night.

God gave heed to Leah, and she conceived and bore Jacob a fifth son.

Then Leah said, “God has given me my wages because I gave my maid to my husband.” So she named him Issachar.

Leah conceived again and bore a sixth son to Jacob.

Then Leah said, “God has endowed me with a good gift; now my husband will dwell with me, because I have borne him six sons.” So she named him Zebulun.

So Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah to his flock in the field,

Rachel and Leah said to him, “Do we still have any portion or inheritance in our father’s house?

So Laban went into Jacob’s tent and into Leah’s tent and into the tent of the two maids, but he did not find them. Then he went out of Leah’s tent and entered Rachel’s tent.

Then Jacob lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, Esau was coming, and four hundred men with him. So he divided the children among Leah and Rachel and the two maids.

He put the maids and their children in front, and Leah and her children next, and Rachel and Joseph last.

Leah likewise came near with her children, and they bowed down; and afterward Joseph came near with Rachel, and they bowed down.

Now Dinah the daughter of Leah, whom she had borne to Jacob, went out to visit the daughters of the land.

When Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, the prince of the land, saw her, he took her and lay with her by force.

It came about while Israel was dwelling in that land, that Reuben went and lay with Bilhah his father’s concubine, and Israel heard of it.Now there were twelve sons of Jacob—

the sons of Leah: Reuben, Jacob’s firstborn, then Simeon and Levi and Judah and Issachar and Zebulun;

and the sons of Zilpah, Leah’s maid: Gad and Asher. These are the sons of Jacob who were born to him in Paddan-aram.

for behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and lo, my sheaf rose up and also stood erect; and behold, your sheaves gathered around and bowed down to my sheaf.”

Now he had still another dream, and related it to his brothers, and said, “Lo, I have had still another dream; and behold, the sun and the moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me.”

Reuben further said to them, “Shed no blood. Throw him into this pit that is in the wilderness, but do not lay hands on him”—that he might rescue him out of their hands, to restore him to his father.

Come and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him, for he is our brother, our own flesh.” And his brothers listened to him.

Then Judah said to Onan, “Go in to your brother’s wife, and perform your duty as a brother-in-law to her, and raise up offspring for your brother.”

Then Judah said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, “Remain a widow in your father’s house until my son Shelah grows up”; for he thought, “I am afraid that he too may die like his brothers.” So Tamar went and lived in her father’s house.

It was told to Tamar, “Behold, your father-in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his sheep.”

So he turned aside to her by the road, and said, “Here now, let me come in to you”; for he did not know that she was his daughter-in-law. And she said, “What will you give me, that you may come in to me?”

Now it was about three months later that Judah was informed, “Your daughter-in-law Tamar has played the harlot, and behold, she is also with child by harlotry.” Then Judah said, “Bring her out and let her be burned!”

It was while she was being brought out that she sent to her father-in-law, saying, “I am with child by the man to whom these things belong.” And she said, “Please examine and see, whose signet ring and cords and staff are these?”

It came about after these events that his master’s wife looked with desire at Joseph, and she said, “Lie with me.”

As she spoke to Joseph day after day, he did not listen to her to lie beside her or be with her.

She caught him by his garment, saying, “Lie with me!” And he left his garment in her hand and fled, and went outside.

she called to the men of her household and said to them, “See, he has brought in a Hebrew to us to make sport of us; he came in to me to lie with me, and I screamed.

And lo, from the Nile there came up seven cows, sleek and fat; and they grazed in the marsh grass.

Lo, seven other cows came up after them, poor and very ugly and gaunt, such as I had never seen for ugliness in all the land of Egypt;

and lo, seven ears, withered, thin, and scorched by the east wind, sprouted up after them;

These are the sons of Leah, whom she bore to Jacob in Paddan-aram, with his daughter Dinah; all his sons and his daughters numbered thirty-three.

These are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to his daughter Leah; and she bore to Jacob these sixteen persons.

but when I lie down with my fathers, you shall carry me out of Egypt and bury me in their burial place.” And he said, “I will do as you have said.”

There they buried Abraham and his wife Sarah, there they buried Isaac and his wife Rebekah, and there I buried Leah—

Now Moses was pasturing the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian; and he led the flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.

Then Moses departed and returned to Jethro his father-in-law and said to him, “Please, let me go, that I may return to my brethren who are in Egypt, and see if they are still alive.” And Jethro said to Moses, “Go in peace.”

So the people believed; and when they heard that the Lord was concerned about the sons of Israel and that He had seen their affliction, then they bowed low and worshiped.

When Pharaoh does not listen to you, then I will lay My hand on Egypt and bring out My hosts, My people the sons of Israel, from the land of Egypt by great judgments.

you shall say, ‘It is a Passover sacrifice to the Lord who passed over the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt when He smote the Egyptians, but spared our homes.’” And the people bowed low and worshiped.

The same law shall apply to the native as to the stranger who sojourns among you.”

And it shall serve as a sign to you on your hand, and as a reminder on your forehead, that the law of the Lord may be in your mouth; for with a powerful hand the Lord brought you out of Egypt.

Now Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses and for Israel His people, how the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt.

Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, took Moses’ wife Zipporah, after he had sent her away,

Then Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, came with his sons and his wife to Moses in the wilderness where he was camped, at the mount of God.

He sent word to Moses, “I, your father-in-law Jethro, am coming to you with your wife and her two sons with her.”

Then Moses went out to meet his father-in-law, and he bowed down and kissed him; and they asked each other of their welfare and went into the tent.

Moses told his father-in-law all that the Lord had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel’s sake, all the hardship that had befallen them on the journey, and how the Lord had delivered them.

Then Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, took a burnt offering and sacrifices for God, and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat a meal with Moses’ father-in-law before God.

Now when Moses’ father-in-law saw all that he was doing for the people, he said, “What is this thing that you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit as judge and all the people stand about you from morning until evening?”

Moses said to his father-in-law, “Because the people come to me to inquire of God.

Moses’ father-in-law said to him, “The thing that you are doing is not good.

So Moses listened to his father-in-law and did all that he had said.

Then Moses bade his father-in-law farewell, and he went his way into his own land.

But if he did not lie in wait for him, but God let him fall into his hand, then I will appoint you a place to which he may flee.

but on the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, so that the needy of your people may eat; and whatever they leave the beast of the field may eat. You are to do the same with your vineyard and your olive grove.

Now the Lord said to Moses, “Come up to Me on the mountain and remain there, and I will give you the stone tablets with the law and the commandment which I have written for their instruction.”

“Then you shall bring the bull before the tent of meeting, and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head of the bull.

“You shall also take the one ram, and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head of the ram;

“Then you shall take the other ram, and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head of the ram.

Moses made haste to bow low toward the earth and worship.

He shall lay his hand on the head of the burnt offering, that it may be accepted for him to make atonement on his behalf.

You shall then put oil on it and lay incense on it; it is a grain offering.

He shall lay his hand on the head of his offering and slay it at the doorway of the tent of meeting, and Aaron’s sons the priests shall sprinkle the blood around on the altar.

and he shall lay his hand on the head of his offering and slay it before the tent of meeting, and Aaron’s sons shall sprinkle its blood around on the altar.

and he shall lay his hand on its head and slay it before the tent of meeting, and the sons of Aaron shall sprinkle its blood around on the altar.

He shall bring the bull to the doorway of the tent of meeting before the Lord, and he shall lay his hand on the head of the bull and slay the bull before the Lord.

Then the elders of the congregation shall lay their hands on the head of the bull before the Lord, and the bull shall be slain before the Lord.

He shall lay his hand on the head of the male goat and slay it in the place where they slay the burnt offering before the Lord; it is a sin offering.

He shall lay his hand on the head of the sin offering and slay the sin offering at the place of the burnt offering.

He shall lay his hand on the head of the sin offering and slay it for a sin offering in the place where they slay the burnt offering.