Verse Lens · Expanded explanation
Genesis 31:29 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 29. 29It is in the power of my hand to do you hurt: but the God of your father spake unto me yesternight, saying, Take thou heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
Laban openly says he has the power to hurt Jacob but that the God of Jacob's father warned him the previous night. His own words confirm the danger and the effect of divine restraint.
Read It With
- Genesis 31:22–42
Read verses 23–31. The armed or organized pursuit shows capacity, the dream supplies the limit, Laban's statement admits both, and Jacob's fear of forced separation follows. The verse should not be reduced to a generic slogan about power.
Why This Verse Appears Here
Laban's admission of harmful power confirms the danger while acknowledging the divine limit placed on him.
Read Genesis 31:26–30 together
Why these verses belong together: Laban's family accusation, claimed farewell, admitted power, reported warning, and teraphim charge form his opening case.
Verse 26. 26 And Laban said to Jacob, What hast thou done, that thou hast stolen away unawares to me, and carried away my daughters, as captives taken with the sword?
Verse 27. 27 Wherefore didst thou flee away secretly, and steal away from me; and didst not tell me, that I might have sent thee away with mirth, and with songs, with tabret, and with harp?
Verse 28. 28 And hast not suffered me to kiss my sons and my daughters? thou hast now done foolishly in so doing.
Verse 29. 29 It is in the power of my hand to do you hurt: but the God of your father spake unto me yesternight, saying, Take thou heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad.
Verse 30. 30 And now, though thou wouldest needs be gone, because thou sore longedst after thy father’s house, yet wherefore hast thou stolen my gods?
Follow the Context
- Laban learns of the flight, gathers his kinsmen, pursues for seven days, and overtakes Jacob in Gilead, but God warns him in a night dream not to threaten Jacob (31:22–25).
- Laban accuses Jacob of secretly carrying away his daughters, denies him a ceremonial farewell, admits having power to harm, reports God's warning, and demands his stolen gods (31:26–30).
- Jacob explains that he feared Laban would take the women by force and, unaware of Rachel's act, invites a public search and declares that the thief should die (31:31–32).
- Laban searches the household tents without success because Rachel has placed the teraphim in the camel equipment, sits on them, and appeals to the way of women as her reason not to rise (31:33–35).
- Believing the search has vindicated him, Jacob angrily demands evidence and asks the assembled kin to judge between them (31:36–37).
- Jacob describes twenty years of flock care in which he protected reproduction, did not consume Laban's rams, absorbed animal losses, and endured heat, cold, and sleeplessness (31:38–40).
- Jacob sums up fourteen years for the daughters and six for the flocks, repeats the wage-change accusation, and says that the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac saw his affliction and labor and rebuked Laban (31:41–42).
Phrase-by-Phrase Explanation
“power of my hand”
In plain language: It is within my capacity to do harm.
Laban acknowledges the unequal power behind the pursuit.
Why it matters: Jacob's later fear is not mere speculation detached from danger.
How certain? very strong“God of your father”
In plain language: Laban identifies the warning God through Jacob's family relationship.
The pursuer recognizes an authority beyond his own household gods.
Why it matters: Divine protection crosses the family boundary and limits Laban.
How certain? very strongWhat This Verse Is Not Saying
Laban's restraint does not prove that he lacked harmful intent or that Jacob's fear was irrational.
The phrase does not teach that power makes threatened harm morally legitimate.
God's warning does not authorize Laban to control Jacob through nonviolent manipulation.
The verse does not promise every abusive person will receive a restraining dream.
What Remains True
Human power is real but not ultimate, and admitting capacity to harm can validate rather than dismiss another person's fear.
How It Can Shape Life
- Treat statements of harmful power as serious evidence in safety planning, even when the speaker also says they have chosen not to use it.
Teach It Back
Explain Genesis 31:29's contribution to Genesis 31:22–42. Include why the nearby verses are required, what the verse clearly says, and one conclusion it does not justify.
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Continue in Context
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
Read Genesis 31:22–42 — Laban Pursues and Searches Jacob's CampSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? very strong
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, unit boundary, pursuit, warning, accusations, search, labor defense, later narrative, shepherd-liability, and menstrual-purity comparisons.
Exact location: Genesis 31:22–42 in the pinned eng-kjv2006 source; compared with Genesis 28:10–22; 29:15–30; 30:25–43; 31:1–21, 43–55; 35:1–20; Exodus 22:10–13; and Leviticus 15:19–23
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: Hebrew idioms, knowledge states, search language, physical labor terms, divine title, and final divine-action wording.
Exact location: Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible, wlc/Gen.xml, Genesis 31:22–42; morphology and wording for pursued, good or bad, power of my hand, longed, take by force, let him not live, camel equipment, way of women, chode, judge, torn, heat, cold, Fear of Isaac, affliction, labor, and rebuked
Open source ↗Translation and textual notes
NET Bible — Genesis with translators' notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, Digital edition accessed 2026
Supports: Pursuit chronology, Gilead, good-to-bad idiom, family and farewell rhetoric, longing, force, death oath, tent order, camel saddle, menstruation, labor conditions, Fear of Isaac, and rebuke translation details.
Exact location: NET Bible, Genesis 31:22–42 and translator notes, especially notes on 31:23–35 and 31:38–42
Open NET Genesis 31 ↗