1. Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him.
2. When Jacob saw them, he said, “This is God’s camp.” So he called the name of that place Mahanaim.
3. Jacob sent messengers before him to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the country of Edom.
4. He commanded them, saying, “This is what you must say to my lord Esau: This is what your servant Jacob says, ‘I have sojourned with Laban and stayed there until now.
5. I have oxen and donkeys, flocks, and male servants and female servants, and I am sending this message to tell my lord, so that I may find favor in your sight.’ ”
6. The messengers returned to Jacob, saying, “We went to your brother Esau. He is coming to meet you, and what is more, four hundred men are with him.”
7. Then Jacob was very afraid and distressed, and he divided the people that were with him, along with the flocks and herds and the camels, into two groups.
8. He said, “If Esau comes to the one camp and attacks it, then the other camp which is left may escape.”