Genesis 31:28-30

Amplified Bible

²⁸And why did you not allow me to kiss my ^[a]grandchildren and my daughters [goodbye]? Now you have done a foolish thing [in behaving like this]. ²⁹It is in my power to harm you, but the God of your father spoke to me last night, saying, ‘Be careful not to speak to Jacob, either good or bad.’ ³⁰Now [I suppose] you felt you must go because you ^[b]were homesick for your father’s house and family; but why did you steal my [household] ^[c]gods?”

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Footnotes

Genesis 31:28 Lit sons.
Genesis 31:30 Lit longed greatly.
Genesis 31:30 Laban was upset because possession of the father’s household gods played an important role in inheritance. In the region where Laban lived, a son-in-law who possessed the family gods could appear before a judge and make a claim to the estate of his father-in-law. Since Jacob’s possession of the household gods implied the right to inherit Laban’s wealth, one can understand why he followed Jacob to recover the idols.