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.
When Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister. She said to Jacob, “Give me children, or I will die.”
2 Jacob became angry with Rachel and said, “Am I in the place of God, who has withheld children from you?”
Jacob's anger burned against Rachel. He said, “Am I in the place of God, who has kept you from having children?”
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.”
She said, “See, there is my servant Bilhah. Sleep with her, so she might give birth to children on my knees, and I will have children by her.”
4 So Rachel gave Jacob her servant Bilhah as a wife, and he slept with her,
So she gave him her servant Bilhah as a wife, and Jacob slept with her.
5 and Bilhah conceived and bore him a son.
Bilhah conceived and bore Jacob 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.
Then Rachel said, “God has vindicated me, and he has heard my voice and given me a son.” For this reason she called his name Dan.
7 And Rachel’s servant Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son.
Bilhah, Rachel's servant, conceived again and bore Jacob a second son.
8 Then Rachel said, “In my great struggles, I have wrestled with my sister and won.” So she named him Naphtali.
Rachel said, “With mighty wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister and have prevailed.” She called his name Naphtali.
9 When Leah saw that she had stopped having children, she gave her servant Zilpah to Jacob as a wife.
When Leah saw that she had stopped having children, she took Zilpah, her servant, and gave her to Jacob as a wife.
10 And Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a son.
Zilpah, Leah's servant, bore Jacob a son.
11 Then Leah said, “How fortunate!” So she named him Gad.
Leah said, “This is fortunate!” so she called his name Gad.
12 When Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a second son,
Then Zilpah, Leah's servant, bore Jacob a second son.
13 Leah said, “How happy I am! For the women call me happy.” So she named him Asher.
Leah said, “I am happy! For the daughters will call me happy.” So she called his name Asher.
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.”
Reuben went in the days of wheat harvest and found mandrakes in the field. He brought them to his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, “Give me some of your 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.”
Leah said to her, “Is it a small matter to you, that you have taken away my husband? Do you now want to take away my son's mandrakes, too?” Rachel said, “Then he will sleep with you tonight, in exchange for your 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.
Jacob came from the field in the evening. Leah went out to meet him and said, “You must sleep with me tonight, for I have hired you with my son's mandrakes.” So Jacob slept with Leah that night.
17 And God listened to Leah, and she conceived and bore a fifth son to Jacob.
God listened to Leah, and she conceived and bore Jacob a fifth son.
18 Then Leah said, “God has rewarded me for giving my maidservant to my husband.” So she named him Issachar.
Leah said, “God has given me my wages, because I gave my servant woman to my husband.” She called his name Issachar.
19 Again Leah conceived and bore a sixth son to Jacob.
Leah conceived again and bore a sixth son to Jacob.
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.
Leah said, “God has given me a good gift. Now my husband will honor me, because I have borne him six sons.” She called his name Zebulun.
21 After that, Leah gave birth to a daughter and named her Dinah.
Afterwards she bore a daughter and called her name Dinah.
22 Then God remembered Rachel. He listened to her and opened her womb,
God called Rachel to mind and listened to her. He caused her to become pregnant.
23 and she conceived and gave birth to a son. “God has taken away my shame,” she said.
She conceived and bore a son. She said, “God has taken away my shame.”
24 She named him Joseph, and said, “May the LORD add to me another son.”
She called his name Joseph, saying, “Yahweh has added to me 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.
After Rachel had borne Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Send me away, so that I may go to my own home and to my country.
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 you, and let me go, for you know the service I have given you.”
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, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, wait, because I have learned by using divination that Yahweh has blessed me for your sake.”
28 And he added, “Name your wages, and I will pay them.”
Then he said, “Name your wages, and I will pay them.”
29 Then Jacob answered, “You know how I have served you and how your livestock have thrived under my care.
Jacob said to him, “You know how I have served you, and how your livestock have fared with me.
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?”
For you had little before I came, and it has increased abundantly. Yahweh has blessed you wherever I worked. Now when will I provide for my own household also?”
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.
So Laban said, “What will I pay you?” Jacob said, “You will not give me anything. If you will do this thing for me, I will again feed your flock and keep it.
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.
Let me walk through all your flock today, removing from it every speckled and spotted sheep, and every black one among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats. These will 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.”
My integrity will testify for me later on, when you come to check on my wages. Every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and black among the sheep, if any are found with me, will be considered to be stolen.”
34 “Agreed,” said Laban. “Let it be as you have said.”
Laban said, “Agreed. Let it be according to your word.”
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.
That day Laban removed the male goats that were striped and spotted, and all the female goats that were speckled and spotted, every one that had white in it, and all the black ones among the sheep, and gave them into the hand 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.
Laban also put three days' journey between himself and Jacob. So Jacob kept tending the rest of Laban's flocks.
37 Jacob, however, took fresh branches of poplar, almond, and plane trees, and peeled the bark, exposing the white inner wood of the branches.
Jacob took fresh cut branches of fresh poplar, and of the almond and of the plane tree, and peeled white streaks in them, and made the white inner wood appear that was in the sticks.
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,
Then he set the sticks that he had peeled in front of the flocks, in front of the watering troughs where they came to drink. They conceived when they came to drink.
39 they mated in front of the branches. And they bore young that were streaked or speckled or spotted.
The flocks bred in front of the sticks; and the flocks produced striped, speckled, and spotted young.
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.
Jacob separated out these lambs, but made the rest of them face toward the striped animals and all the black sheep in the flock of Laban. Then he separated out his flocks for himself alone and did not put them together with Laban's flocks.
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.
Whenever the stronger sheep in the flock were breeding, then Jacob would lay the sticks in the watering troughs before the eyes of the flock, so that they might conceive among the sticks.
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 feebler animals in the flock came, he did not put the sticks in front of them. So the feebler animals were Laban's, and the stronger were Jacob's.
43 Thus Jacob became exceedingly prosperous. He owned large flocks, maidservants and menservants, and camels and donkeys.
The man became very prosperous. He had large flocks, female servants and male servants, and camels and donkeys.
