And he commanded the foremost, saying, When Esau my brother meeteth thee, and asketh thee, saying, Whose art thou? and whither goest thou? and whose are these before thee?

And he commanded the first, saying: If thou meet my brother Esau, and he ask thee: Whose art thou? or whither goest thou? or whose are these before thee?

And he commanded the foremost, saying, When Esau my brother meets thee, and asks thee, saying, Whose art thou, and where goest thou, and whose are these before thee?

And he commandeth the first, saying, 'When Esau my brother meeteth thee, and hath asked thee, saying, Whose art thou? and whither goest thou? and whose are these before thee?

And he gave orders to the first, saying, When my brother Esau comes to you and says, Whose servant are you, and where are you going, and whose are these herds?

And he instructed the first, saying: "If you happen to meet my brother Esau, and he questions you: "Whose are you?" or, "Where are you going?" or, "Whose are these which follow you?"

Et praecepit primo, dicendo, Si occurrerrit tibi Esau frater meus, et interrogaverit to, dicendo, Cujus es, et quo pergis, et cujus sunt ista ante to?

And he commanded the foremost,.... He that had the care of the first drove, which consisted of goats, male and female:
saying, when Esau my brother meeteth thee; as there was reason to believe he would, being on the road, and him first of all, being the foremost:
and asketh thee, saying, what art thou? that is, whose servant art thou? to whom dost thou belong?
and whither goest thou? what place art thou travelling to?
and whose are these before thee? whose are these goats? to whom do they belong thou art driving? for in driving and travelling on the road, sheep and goats went before those that had the care of them; whereas, in leading out to pastures, the shepherds went before, and the flocks followed, John 10:4.

he commanded the foremost--The messengers were strictly commanded to say the same words [Genesis 32:18, Genesis 32:20], that Esau might be more impressed and that the uniformity of the address might appear more clearly to have come from Jacob himself.

He sent him also a very humble message, which he ordered his servants to deliver in the best manner. They must call Esau their lord, and Jacob his servant: they must tell him the cattle they had was a small present which Jacob had sent him. They must especially take care to tell him that Jacob was coming after, that he might not suspect him fled. A friendly confidence in mens goodness may help to prevent the mischief designed us by their badness.