(ה) וַיִּסְע֥וּ בְנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל מֵרַעְמְסֵ֑ס וַֽיַּחֲנ֖וּ בְּסֻכֹּֽת...וַיִּסְע֖וּ מֵעֶצְי֣וֹן גָּ֑בֶר וַיַּחֲנ֥וּ בְמִדְבַּר־צִ֖ן הִ֥וא קָדֵֽשׁ׃ (לז) וַיִּסְע֖וּ מִקָּדֵ֑שׁ וַֽיַּחֲנוּ֙ בְּהֹ֣ר הָהָ֔ר בִּקְצֵ֖ה אֶ֥רֶץ אֱדֽוֹם׃
(5) The Israelites set out from Rameses and encamped at Succoth. (6) They set out from Succoth and encamped at Etham, which is on the edge of the wilderness. ...They set out from Ezion-geber and encamped in the wilderness of Zin, that is, Kadesh. (37) They set out from Kadesh and encamped at Mount Hor, on the edge of the land of Edom.....
(46) Thus, after you had remained at Kadesh all that long time, (1) we marched back into the wilderness by the way of the Sea of Reeds, as the LORD had spoken to me, and skirted the hill country of Seir a long time. (2) Then the LORD said to me: (3) You have been skirting this hill country long enough; now turn north. (4) And charge the people as follows: You will be passing through the territory of your kinsmen, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir....
(1) ותשבו בקדש ימים רבים SO YE ABODE IN KADESH MANY DAYS — viz., nineteen years, as it is said here כימים אשר ישבתם, ACCORDING TO THE DAYS THAT YE ABODE, i.e. abode at all the other stations. They (the total years) were thirtyeight years; nineteen of them they spent at Kadesh, and nineteen years they went moving about restlessly, and then they returned to Kadesh...
(12) And [Esau] said, “Let us start on our journey, and I will proceed at your pace.” (13) But he said to him, “My lord knows that the children are frail and that the flocks and herds, which are nursing, are a care to me; if they are driven hard a single day, all the flocks will die. (14) Let my lord go on ahead of his servant, while I travel slowly, at the pace of the cattle before me and at the pace of the children, until I come to my lord in Seir.” (15) Then Esau said, “Let me assign to you some of the men who are with me.” But he said, “Oh no, my lord is too kind to me!” (16) So Esau started back that day on his way to Seir. (17) But Jacob journeyed on to Succoth, and built a house for himself and made stalls for his cattle; that is why the place was called Succoth.
אָמַר רַבִּי אַבָּהוּ חָזַרְנוּ עַל כָּל הַמִּקְרָא וְלֹא מָצָאנוּ שֶׁהָלַךְ יַעֲקֹב אָבִינוּ אֵצֶל עֵשָׂו לְהַר שֵׂעִיר מִיָּמָיו, אֶפְשָׁר יַעֲקֹב אֲמִתִּי הָיָה וּמְרַמֶּה בוֹ, אֶלָּא אֵימָתַי הָיָה הוּא בָא אֶצְלוֹ, לֶעָתִיד לָבוֹא, הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב (עובדיה א, כא): וְעָלוּ מוֹשִׁיעִים בְּהַר צִיּוֹן לִשְׁפֹּט אֶת הַר עֵשָׂו.
Rabbi Abahu said, "We have examined every verse of the Torah, and have not found that Yaakov travels to Esau in the Seir region ever in his life...