Genesis 30

1 And when Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister; and she said unto Jacob: 'Give me children, or else I die.'

When Rachel realized she was unable to give Jacob any children she was jealous of her sister. She complained to Jacob, “I'll die if you don't give me children!”

2 And Jacob's anger was kindled against Rachel; and he said: 'Am I in God's stead, who hath withheld from thee the fruit of the womb?'

Jacob became angry with Rachel and told her, “Am I God? Do you think I'm the one stopping you having children?”

3 And she said: 'Behold my maid Bilhah, go in unto her; that she may bear upon my knees, and I also may be builded up through her.'

“Here's my personal maid Bilhah,” Rachel replied. “Sleep with her and she can have children for me so I'll have a family too.”

4 And she gave him Bilhah her handmaid to wife; and Jacob went in unto her.

She gave her personal maid Bilhah to him as a wife and Jacob slept with her.

5 And Bilhah conceived, and bore Jacob a son.

Bilhah became pregnant and had a son for Jacob.

6 And Rachel said: 'God hath judged me, and hath also heard my voice, and hath given me a son.' Therefore called she his name Dan.

Rachel said, “God has judged in my favor! He listened to me and gave me a son.” So she named him Dan.

7 And Bilhah Rachel's handmaid conceived again, and bore Jacob a second son.

Rachel's personal maid Bilhah became pregnant again and had second son for Jacob.

8 And Rachel said: 'With mighty wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and have prevailed.' And she called his name Naphtali.

Rachel said, “I've had a hard struggle with my sister, but I've won.” So she named him Naphtali.

9 When Leah saw that she had left off bearing, she took Zilpah her handmaid, and gave her to Jacob to wife.

Leah realized she wasn't having any more children, so she gave her personal maid Zilpah to Jacob as a wife.

10 And Zilpah Leah's handmaid bore Jacob a son.

Zilpah had a son for Jacob.

11 And Leah said: 'Fortune is come!' And she called his name Gad.

Leah said, “I'm really fortunate!” So she named him Gad.

12 And Zilpah Leah's handmaid bore Jacob a second son.

Leah's personal maid Zilpah became pregnant again and had a second son for Jacob.

13 And Leah said: 'Happy am I! for the daughters will call me happy.' And she called his name Asher.

Leah said, “I'm so happy, and the other women will say I'm happy too!” So she named him Asher.

14 And Reuben went in the days of wheat harvest, and found mandrakes in the field, and brought them unto his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah: 'Give me, I pray thee, of thy son's mandrakes.'

At the time of the wheat harvest Reuben found some mandrake plants when he was out in the fields. He took them back to his mother Leah. Rachel asked Leah, “Please give me some of the mandrakes your son found.”

15 And she said unto her: 'Is it a small matter that thou hast taken away my husband? and wouldest thou take away my son's mandrakes also?' And Rachel said: 'Therefore he shall lie with thee to-night for thy son's mandrakes.'

“Aren't you satisfied with stealing my husband?” Leah replied. “Are you going to take my son's mandrakes too?” “Fine, he can sleep with you tonight if you give me some mandrakes in return,” Rachel responded.

16 And Jacob came from the field in the evening, and Leah went out to meet him, and said: 'Thou must come in unto me; for I have surely hired thee with my son's mandrakes.' And he lay with her that night.

When Jacob came in from the fields that evening, Leah went out to meet him. “You have to sleep with me because I've paid for you with my son's mandrakes,” she told him. So he slept with her that night.

17 And God hearkened unto Leah, and she conceived, and bore Jacob a fifth son.

God heard Leah's request, and she became pregnant and had a fifth son for Jacob.

18 And Leah said: 'God hath given me my hire, because I gave my handmaid to my husband. And she called his name Issachar.

Leah said, “The Lord has rewarded me for giving my personal maid to my husband.” So she named him Issachar.

19 And Leah conceived again, and bore a sixth son to Jacob.

Then Leah became pregnant again and had a sixth son for Jacob.

20 And Leah said: 'God hath endowed me with a good dowry; now will my husband dwell with me, because I have borne him six sons.' And she called his name Zebulun.

Leah said, “God has given me a good gift. Now my husband will honor me because I've given him six sons.” So she named him Zebulun.

21 And afterwards she bore a daughter, and called her name Dinah.

Later she had a daughter she named Dinah.

22 And God remembered Rachel, and God hearkened to her, and opened her womb.

Then God paid attention to Rachel and listened to her appeals, and helped her to have children.

23 And she conceived, and bore a son, and said: 'God hath taken away my reproach.'

She became pregnant and had a son. “God has removed my disgrace,” she said.

24 And she called his name Joseph, saying: 'The LORD add to me another son.'

She named him Joseph, saying, “May the Lord give me an additional son.”

25 And it came to pass, when Rachel had borne Joseph, that Jacob said unto Laban: 'Send me away, that I may go unto mine own place, and to my country.

Once Rachel had given birth to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Let me leave so I can return to my home and my own country.

26 Give me my wives and my children for whom I have served thee, and let me go; for thou knowest my service wherewith I have served thee.'

Give me my wives and children because I worked for you to have them. Let me go now because you know very well how much work I've done for you.”

27 And Laban said unto him: 'If now I have found favour in thine eyes — I have observed the signs, and the LORD hath blessed me for thy sake.'

“Please be so kind as to stay,” Laban replied, “because I have discovered that the Lord has blessed me because of you.”

28 And he said: 'Appoint me thy wages, and I will give it.'

Then Laban continued, “Tell me how much to pay you and I'll give it to you.”

29 And he said unto him: 'Thou knowest how I have served thee, and how thy cattle have fared with me.

“You certainly know how much work I've done for you, and how well your flocks have done under my care.

30 For it was little which thou hadst before I came, and it hath increased abundantly; and the LORD hath blessed thee whithersoever I turned. And now when shall I provide for mine own house also?'

You hardly had anything before I arrived, but now you have so much! The Lord has blessed you through what I've done. When am I going to be able to provide for my own family?”

31 And he said: 'What shall I give thee?' And Jacob said: 'Thou shalt not give me aught; if thou wilt do this thing for me, I will again feed thy flock and keep it.

“Well, what do you propose I give you?” Laban asked again. “You don't have to give me anything,” Jacob replied. “If you want to do something for me, then how about this: I'll go on looking after your flocks, making sure they're fed.

32 I will pass through all thy flock to-day, removing from thence every speckled and spotted one, and every dark one among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats; and of such shall be my hire.

Let me go through your flocks today and take all the sheep that are speckled or spotted, and all the dark ones, as well as all the speckled and spotted goats. They'll be my wages.

33 So shall my righteousness witness against me hereafter, when thou shalt come to look over my hire that is before thee: every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and dark among the sheep, that if found with me shall be counted stolen.'

In the future you'll be able to prove that I've been honest. When you check my flock, any goats that don't have speckles or spots, or any sheep that aren't dark will be considered stolen from you.”

34 And Laban said: 'Behold, would it might be according to thy word.'

“Very good,” Laban agreed. “We'll do as you say.”

35 And he removed that day the he-goats that were streaked and spotted, and all the she-goats that were speckled and spotted, every one that had white in it, and all the dark ones among the sheep, and gave them into the hand of his sons.

However, the same day Laban went and removed all the striped and spotted male goats, all the speckled and spotted female goats, and all the dark sheep. He had his sons look after them and sent them away—

36 And he set three days' journey betwixt himself and Jacob. And Jacob fed the rest of Laban's flocks.

a three day journey between them and Jacob, while Jacob was looking after the rest of Laban's flocks.

37 And Jacob took him rods of fresh poplar, and of the almond and of the plane-tree; and peeled white streaks in them, making the white appear which was in the rods.

Then Jacob cut some sticks from poplar, almond, and plane trees that had white wood under the bark. He peeled off some of the bark, making the sticks look streaked with white.

38 And he set the rods which he had peeled over against the flocks in the gutters in the watering-troughs where the flocks came to drink; and they conceived when they came to drink.

He put the sticks he'd peeled in the water troughs where the flocks came to drink because that's where they mated.

39 And the flocks conceived at the sight of the rods, and the flocks brought forth streaked, speckled, and spotted.

The flocks mated in front of the sticks and gave birth to young that were streaked, speckled, and spotted.

40 And Jacob separated the lambs — he also set the faces of the flocks toward the streaked and all the dark in the flock of Laban — and put his own droves apart, and put them not unto Laban's flock.

Jacob separated all these ones out. Then he made his flock face towards those in Laban's flock that were streaked and dark. This is the way he kept his flocks apart from Laban's flock.

41 And it came to pass, whensoever the stronger of the flock did conceive, that Jacob laid the rods before the eyes of the flock in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods;

When the strong females were ready to breed, Jacob put the sticks in the troughs where the flocks could see them when they mated.

42 but when the flock were feeble, he put them not in; so the feebler were Laban's, and the stronger Jacob's.

He didn't do this for the weaker females. The weaker ones went to Laban, and the strong ones went to Jacob.

43 And the man increased exceedingly, and had large flocks, and maid-servants and men-servants, and camels and asses.

In this way Jacob became an extremely rich man with large flocks, and many male and female slaves, camels, and donkeys.