Genesis 31:5

Summary

Jacob tells Rachel and Leah that he perceives (literally "sees") their father's face is no longer toward him as it used to be, but that the God of his own father has remained with him. The verse sets up a contrast between Laban's changed disposition and the constancy of Jacob's God.

Key words

• ro'eh ("seeing", H7200) — qal participle, masculine singular. A participle expresses an action in progress or a perceived state, giving the sense "I am observing/perceiving" rather than a single completed glance.
• penei ("face of", H6440) — masculine plural construct noun, linked to 'avikhen ("your father"). The construct chain "face of your father" is the direct object marked by 'et (H0853, untranslated).
• 'eineinnu ("there is not", H0369) — a construct-form negative existential noun with the pronominal suffix "him/it" attached, functioning here as "it/he is not." It negates the presence or quality of the "face" toward Jacob.
• kitmol shilshom ("as yesterday, three days ago", H8543 + H8032) — a fixed idiomatic pairing of two time-nouns meaning "as before, as in the past."
• 'Elohei ("God of", H0430) — masculine plural noun in construct form (plural form used for the divine name, singular referent), joined to 'avi ("my father", H0001) to form "the God of my father."

What the text says

The sentence opens with the narrative vav on yo'mer ("and he said", H0559), continuing the story sequence. Jacob's speech has two balanced clauses joined by ki (H3588A, "that/because") and by the concluding ve- (H9002, "and"). The first clause uses the participle ro'eh ("[am] seeing", H7200) with the independent pronoun 'anokhi ("I", H0595) placed after it — a common construction emphasizing the subject's ongoing perception. The object is 'et-penei 'avikhen ("the face of your father"), a construct chain where panim ("face") functions idiomatically to denote disposition or countenance, not merely the physical face.

The negation 'eineinnu 'elai ("it is not toward me", H0369 + H0413) states that this "face" — his disposition — is not directed toward Jacob as it was "as yesterday, three days ago" (kitmol shilshom), an idiom for "as before." The second clause reverses the polarity: 'Elohei 'avi ("the God of my father") hayah ("has been", H1961, qal perfect) 'immadi ("with me", H5978 + suffix). The perfect verb marks a completed, settled state contrasting with the participle's ongoing perception in the first clause — Laban's attitude is observed as changing, while God's presence is stated as an accomplished, continuing fact.

Differences between versions

The LXX renders panim ("face") literally as πρόσωπον, matching the Hebrew construct chain, and preserves the negation with οὐκ ἔστιν ("is not"). The Vulgate uses the subjunctive non sit ("might not be"), softening the Hebrew's direct negative existential 'eineinnu. Modern renderings (BSB, SBLIBRE) diverge further by interpreting "face" idiomatically as "attitude" or "countenance," making explicit an idiomatic sense the Hebrew and LXX leave implicit in the literal noun "face."