Genesis 31:51

Old Testament Law (Torah) ASV (1901)

What does Genesis 31:51 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “And Laban said to Jacob, Behold this heap, and behold the pillar, which I have set betwixt me and thee.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

And Laban said to Jacob, Behold this heap, and behold the pillar, which I have set betwixt me and thee.
Genesis 31:51 — American Standard Version

Context — Genesis 31

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
51And Laban said to Jacob, Behold this heap, and behold the pillar, which I have set betwixt me and thee.

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“And Laban said to Jacob, etc.] Continued speaking to him, as follows: behold this heap, and behold [this] pillar which I have cast betwixt me and thee; the heap of stones seems to be gathered and laid together by the brethren, and the pillar to be erected by Jacob; and yet Laban says of them both, that he cast them, or erected them, they being done by his order, or with his consent, as well as Jacob’s; unless the pillar can be thought to design another beside that which Jacob set up, and was like that, a single stone at some little distance from the heap: but the Samaritan and Arabic versions read, “which thou hast seen or set”, etc. agreeably to (<013145>Genesis 31:45).”
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Sources and verification