Genesis 30
1 When Rachel saw that she was not bearing any children for Jacob, she envied her sister. “Give me children, or I will die!” she said to Jacob.
And Rachel, seeing herself without children, envied her sister, and said to her husband: Give me children, otherwise I shall die.
2 Jacob became angry with Rachel and said, “Am I in the place of God, who has withheld children from you?”
And Jacob being angry with her, answered: Am I as God, who hath deprived thee of the fruit of thy womb?
3 Then she said, “Here is my maidservant Bilhah. Sleep with her, that she may bear children for me, so that through her I too can build a family.”
But she said: I have here my servant Bala: go in unto her, that she may bear upon my knees, and I may have children by her.
4 So Rachel gave Jacob her servant Bilhah as a wife, and he slept with her,
And she gave him Bala in marriage: who,
5 and Bilhah conceived and bore him a son.
When her husband had gone in unto her, conceived and bore a son.
6 Then Rachel said, “God has vindicated me; He has heard my plea and given me a son.” So she named him Dan.
And Rachel said: The Lord hath judged for me, and hath heard my voice, giving me a son, and therefore she called his name Dan.
7 And Rachel’s servant Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son.
And again Bala conceived and bore another,
8 Then Rachel said, “In my great struggles, I have wrestled with my sister and won.” So she named him Naphtali.
For whom Rachel said: God hath compared me with my sister, and I have prevailed: and she called him Nephtali.
9 When Leah saw that she had stopped having children, she gave her servant Zilpah to Jacob as a wife.
Lia, perceiving that she had left off bearing, gave Zelpha her handmaid to her husband.
10 And Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a son.
And when she had conceived and brought forth a son,
11 Then Leah said, “How fortunate!” So she named him Gad.
She said: Happily. And therefore called his name Gad.
12 When Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a second son,
Zelpha also bore another.
13 Leah said, “How happy I am! For the women call me happy.” So she named him Asher.
And Lia said: This is for my happiness: for women will call me blessed. Therefore she called him Aser.
14 Now during the wheat harvest, Reuben went out and found some mandrakes in the field. When he brought them to his mother, Rachel begged Leah, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.”
And Ruben, going out in the time of the wheat harvest into the field, found mandrakes: which he brought to his mother Lia. And Rachel said: Give me part of thy son’s mandrakes.
15 But Leah replied, “Is it not enough that you have taken away my husband? Now you want to take my son’s mandrakes as well?” “Very well,” said Rachel, “he may sleep with you tonight in exchange for your son’s mandrakes.”
She answered: Dost thou think it a small matter, that thou hast taken my husband from me, unless thou take also my son’s mandrakes? Rachel said: He shall sleep with thee this night, for thy son’s mandrakes.
16 When Jacob came in from the field that evening, Leah went out to meet him and said, “You must come with me, for I have hired you with my son’s mandrakes.” So he slept with her that night.
And when Jacob returned at even from the field, Lia went out to meet him, and said: Thou shalt come in unto me, because I have hired thee for my son’s mandrakes. And he slept with her that night.
17 And God listened to Leah, and she conceived and bore a fifth son to Jacob.
And God heard her prayers: and she conceived and bore the fifth son,
18 Then Leah said, “God has rewarded me for giving my maidservant to my husband.” So she named him Issachar.
And said: God hath given me a reward, because I gave my handmaid to my husband. And she called his name Issachar.
19 Again Leah conceived and bore a sixth son to Jacob.
And Lia conceived again, and bore the sixth son,
20 “God has given me a good gift,” she said. “This time my husband will honor me, because I have borne him six sons.” And she named him Zebulun.
And said: God hath endowed me with a good dowry: this turn also my husband will be with me, because I have borne him six sons: and therefore she called his name Zabulon.
21 After that, Leah gave birth to a daughter and named her Dinah.
After whom she bore a daughter, named Dina.
22 Then God remembered Rachel. He listened to her and opened her womb,
The Lord also remembering Rachel, heard her, and opened her womb.
23 and she conceived and gave birth to a son. “God has taken away my shame,” she said.
And she conceived, and bore a son, saying: God hath taken away my reproach.
24 She named him Joseph, and said, “May the LORD add to me another son.”
And she called his name Joseph, saying: The Lord give me also another son.
25 Now after Rachel had given birth to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Send me on my way so I can return to my homeland.
And when Joseph was born, Jacob said to his father in law: Send me away that I may return into my country, and to my land.
26 Give me my wives and children for whom I have served you, that I may go on my way. You know how hard I have worked for you.”
Give me my wives, and my children, for whom I have served thee, that I may depart: thou knowest the service that I have rendered thee.
27 But Laban replied, “If I have found favor in your eyes, please stay. I have learned by divination that the LORD has blessed me because of you.”
Laban said to him: Let me find favour in thy sight: I have learned by experience, that God hath blessed me for thy sake.
28 And he added, “Name your wages, and I will pay them.”
Appoint thy wages which I shall give thee.
29 Then Jacob answered, “You know how I have served you and how your livestock have thrived under my care.
But he answered: Thou knowest how I have served thee, and how great thy possession hath been in my hands.
30 Indeed, you had very little before my arrival, but now your wealth has increased many times over. The LORD has blessed you wherever I set foot. But now, when may I also provide for my own household?”
Thou hadst but little before I came to thee, and now thou art become rich: and the Lord hath blessed thee at my coming. It is reasonable therefore that I should now provide also for my own house.
31 “What can I give you?” Laban asked. “You do not need to give me anything,” Jacob replied. “If you do this one thing for me, I will keep on shepherding and keeping your flocks.
And Laban said: What shall I give thee? But he said: I require nothing: but if thou wilt do what I demand, I will feed, and keep thy sheep again.
32 Let me go through all your flocks today and remove from them every speckled or spotted sheep, every dark-colored lamb, and every spotted or speckled goat. These will be my wages.
Go round through all thy flocks, and separate all the sheep of divers colours, and speckled: and all that is brown and spotted, and of divers colours, as well among the sheep, as among the goats, shall be my wages.
33 So my honesty will testify for me when you come to check on my wages in the future. If I have any goats that are not speckled or spotted, or any lambs that are not dark-colored, they will be considered stolen.”
And my justice shall answer for me tomorrow before thee when the time of the bargain shall come: and all that is not of divers colours, and spotted, and brown, as well among the sheep as among the goats, shall accuse me of theft.
34 “Agreed,” said Laban. “Let it be as you have said.”
And Laban said: I like well what thou demandest.
35 That very day Laban removed all the streaked or spotted male goats and every speckled or spotted female goat—every one that had any white on it—and every dark-colored lamb, and he placed them under the care of his sons.
And he separated the same day the she goats, and the sheep, and the he goats, and the rams of divers colours, and spotted: and all the flock of one colour, that is, of white and black fleece, he delivered into the hands of his sons.
36 Then he put a three-day journey between himself and Jacob, while Jacob was shepherding the rest of Laban’s flocks.
And he set the space of three days’ journey betwixt himself and his son in law, who fed the rest of his flock.
37 Jacob, however, took fresh branches of poplar, almond, and plane trees, and peeled the bark, exposing the white inner wood of the branches.
And Jacob took green rods of poplar, and of almond, and of plane trees, and pilled them in part: so when the bark was taken off, in the parts that were pilled, there appeared whiteness: but the parts that were whole remained green: and by this means the colour was divers.
38 Then he set the peeled branches in the watering troughs in front of the flocks coming in to drink. So when the flocks were in heat and came to drink,
And he put them in the troughs, where the water was poured out: that when the flocks should come to drink, they might have the rods before their eyes, and in the sight of them might conceive.
39 they mated in front of the branches. And they bore young that were streaked or speckled or spotted.
And it came to pass that in the very heat of coition, the sheep beheld the rods, and brought forth spotted, and of divers colours, and speckled.
40 Jacob set apart the young, but made the rest face the streaked dark-colored sheep in Laban’s flocks. Then he set his own stock apart and did not put them with Laban’s animals.
And Jacob separated the flock, and put the rods in the troughs before the eyes of the rams: and all the white and the black were Laban’s: and the rest were Jacob’s, when the flocks were separated one from the other.
41 Whenever the stronger females of the flock were in heat, Jacob would place the branches in the troughs, in full view of the animals, so that they would breed in front of the branches.
So when the ewes went first to ram, Jacob put the rods in the troughs of water before the eyes of the rams, and of the ewes, that they might conceive while they were looking upon them:
42 But if the animals were weak, he did not set out the branches. So the weaker animals went to Laban and the stronger ones to Jacob.
But when the latter coming was, and the last conceiving, he did not put them. And those that were lateward, became Laban’s: and they of the first time, Jacob’s.
43 Thus Jacob became exceedingly prosperous. He owned large flocks, maidservants and menservants, and camels and donkeys.
And the man was enriched exceedingly, and he had many flocks, maid servants and men servants, camels and asses.
