Genesis 31:48

Translations

Modern

Then Laban declared, “This mound is a witness between you and me this day.” Therefore the place was called Galeed.

Traditional

And Laban said, This heap is a witness between me and thee this day. Therefore was the name of it called Galeed;

Literal

And Laban said, “This is the heap—a witness between me and between you today.” Upon thus he called its name Galeed,

Latin

Dixitque Laban: Tumulus iste erit testis inter me et te hodie, et idcirco appellatum est nomen ejus Galaad, id est, Tumulus testis.

Original

Hebrew

English

Then Laban declared, “This mound is a witness between you and me this day.” Therefore the place was called Galeed.

Notes

Genesis 31:45–48

The stone and the pillar marked the border agreement between the two men. It was a witness for future generations. Each man named the monument witness in his own language. It became the lasting border between Israel and the kingdom of Aram (Syria), two nations often at war.

Genesis 29:1–31:55

These chapters describe how God fulfilled his promise by greatly blessing Jacob with a family and possessions. God also disciplined Jacob, leaving him to struggle with Laban for many years. Laban was Jacob’s match in deception, and thus a means of correction.
The story of Jacob and Laban is similar to Israel's later stay in Egypt. Jacob struggled while serving his uncle but finally emerged with a large family (the founders of the 12 tribes) and great wealth. In Egypt, the Israelites suffered under their oppressors, but they also flourished, becoming a great nation of 12 large tribes and escaping with great riches.

Theme notes and profiles

Arameans Jacob Symbolic Numbers

Related verses

Joshua 24:27
And Joshua said to all the people, “You see this stone. It will be a witness against us, for it has heard all the words the LORD has spoken to us, and it will be a witness against you if you ever deny your God.”
Deuteronomy 3:16
…and to the Reubenites and Gadites I gave the territory from Gilead to the Arnon Valley (the middle of the valley was the border) and up to the Jabbok River, the border of the Ammonites.
Deuteronomy 2:36
From Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Valley, along with the city in the valley, even as far as Gilead, not one city had walls too high for us. The LORD our God gave us all of them.
Genesis 31:23
So he took his relatives with him, pursued Jacob for seven days, and overtook him in the hill country of Gilead.
Joshua 13:8–9
The other half of Manasseh, along with the Reubenites and Gadites, had received the inheritance Moses had given them beyond the Jordan to the east, just as Moses the servant of the LORD had assigned to them:

People

Laban: Brother of Rebekah; father of Leah and Rachel

Places

Ramoth: City of refuge east of the Jordan

Glossary

Bible, Manuscripts and Text of the (New Testament) Ebla Tablets Galeed Genesis, Book of Laban (Person) Nathanael Patriarchs, Period of the

Topics

Contracts by Erecting a Heap of Stones Covenant: Jacob and Laban Covenants: Names Given to Places where Made Galeed: The Memorial of Jacob's and Laban's Covenant Jegar-Sahadutha: A Heap of Stones (A Cairn) on Mount Gilead Laban: Pursues Jacob, Overtakes Him at Mount Gilead, and Covenants with Him Stones: Memorial Pillars of

Genesis 31:48

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