Verse Lens · Concise explanation
Genesis 29:7 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 7. 7And he said, Lo, it is yet high day, neither is it time that the cattle should be gathered together: water ye the sheep, and go and feed them.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
Jacob observes that much daylight remains and urges the shepherds to water the flocks and return them to grazing. His proposal shows pastoral attention, but his complete motive is not stated.
Read It With
- Genesis 29:1–14
Read verses 7–10 together. Verse 7 supplies Jacob's proposal, verse 8 the local answer, and verses 9–10 the arrival and action that change the situation. Read alone, verse 7 can become an unfair judgment of workers whose access arrangement has not yet been explained.
Why This Verse Appears Here
Jacob challenges the timing and introduces the tension between his pastoral judgment and the local arrangement.
Read Genesis 29:4–8 together
Why these verses belong together: Jacob's questions identify Haran, Laban, Rachel, and the local reason the flocks are waiting.
Verse 4. 4 And Jacob said unto them, My brethren, whence be ye? And they said, Of Haran are we.
Verse 5. 5 And he said unto them, Know ye Laban the son of Nahor? And they said, We know him.
Verse 6. 6 And he said unto them, Is he well? And they said, He is well: and, behold, Rachel his daughter cometh with the sheep.
Verse 7. 7 And he said, Lo, it is yet high day, neither is it time that the cattle should be gathered together: water ye the sheep, and go and feed them.
Verse 8. 8 And they said, We cannot, until all the flocks be gathered together, and till they roll the stone from the well’s mouth; then we water the sheep.
What Remains True
Practical efficiency matters, but outsiders should learn the constraints of a shared system before condemning the people operating within it.
How It Can Shape Life
- When a process appears inefficient, ask what safety, access, labor, or fairness constraint you may not yet understand before issuing criticism.
Continue in Context
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
Read Genesis 29:1–14 — Jacob Meets Rachel and LabanSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? probable
Where care is needed
Efficiency, impatience, desire for privacy, and eagerness to meet Rachel are possible motives; the text does not identify one conclusively.
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Displayed wording, boundary, journey, well sequence, Rachel's work, greeting and emotion, kinship recognition, later Laban context, and canonical comparisons.
Exact location: Genesis 29:1–14 in the pinned eng-kjv2006 source; compared with Genesis 24; 28:10–22; 29:15–31:55; 33:4; 45:2, 14–15; Judges 9:2; 2 Samuel 5:1; and Exodus 2:15–22
Open source ↗hebrew text morphology and lemma data
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible — Genesis
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible Project
Open Scriptures, Version 2.2 released 2021; repository inspected 2026
Supports: Journey idiom, regional label, well and stone, brother and kinsman, Rachel's shepherding, welfare greeting, audible weeping, and kinship formula.
Exact location: Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible, wlc/Gen.xml, Genesis 29:1–14; wording and morphology for lifted his feet, bene-qedem, beer, gedolah, ach, roah, shalom, lifted his voice and wept, and bone and flesh
Open source ↗Translation and textual notes
NET Bible — Genesis with translators' notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, Digital edition accessed 2026
Supports: Translation alternatives, kinship clarity, literary repetition, emotion idiom, and comparison with other kinship formulas.
Exact location: NET Bible, Genesis 29:1–14 and translator notes, especially notes on Nahor's descendant, threefold maternal-kin repetition, loud weeping, brother as relative, all these things, and bone-and-flesh parallels
Open NET Genesis 29 ↗