< Genesis 30 >

1 And Rachel sees that she has not borne to Jacob, and Rachel is envious of her sister, and says to Jacob, “Give me sons, and if there is none—I die.”
When Rachel [Ewe sheep] saw that she bore Jacob [Supplanter] no children, Rachel [Ewe sheep] envied her sister. She said to Jacob [Supplanter], “Give me children, or else I will die.”
2 And Jacob’s anger burns against Rachel, and he says, “Am I in stead of God who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?”
Jacob [Supplanter]’s anger burned against Rachel [Ewe sheep], and he said, “Am I in God’s place, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?”
3 And she says, “Behold, my handmaid Bilhah, go in to her, and she bears on my knees, and I am built up, even I, from her”;
She said, “Behold, my maid Bilhah [Bashful]. Go in to her, that she may bear on my knees, and I also may obtain children by her.”
4 and she gives Bilhah her maidservant to him for a wife, and Jacob goes in to her;
She gave him Bilhah [Bashful] her servant as wife, and Jacob [Supplanter] went in to her.
5 and Bilhah conceives, and bears a son to Jacob,
Bilhah [Bashful] conceived, and bore Jacob [Supplanter] a son.
6 and Rachel says, “God has decided for me, and has also listened to my voice, and gives a son to me”; therefore she has called his name Dan.
Rachel [Ewe sheep] said, “God has judged me, and has also sh'ma ·heard obeyed· my voice, and has given me a son.” Therefore called she his name Dan [He judged].
7 And Bilhah, Rachel’s maidservant, conceives again, and bears a second son to Jacob,
Bilhah [Bashful], Rachel [Ewe sheep]’s servant, conceived again, and bore Jacob [Supplanter] a second son.
8 and Rachel says, “With wrestlings of God I have wrestled with my sister, indeed, I have prevailed”; and she calls his name Napthali.
Rachel [Ewe sheep] said, “With mighty wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and have prevailed.” She named him Naphtali [My wrestling].
9 And Leah sees that she has ceased from bearing, and she takes Zilpah her maidservant, and gives her to Jacob for a wife;
When Leah [Weary] saw that she had finished bearing, she took Zilpah [Frailty], her servant, and gave her to Jacob [Supplanter] as a wife.
10 and Zilpah, Leah’s maidservant, bears a son to Jacob,
Zilpah [Frailty], Leah [Weary]’s servant, bore Jacob [Supplanter] a son.
11 and Leah says, “A troop is coming”; and she calls his name Gad.
Leah [Weary] said, “How fortunate!” She named him Gad [Good fortune].
12 And Zilpah, Leah’s maidservant, bears a second son to Jacob,
Zilpah [Frailty], Leah [Weary]’s servant, bore Jacob [Supplanter] a second son.
13 and Leah says, “Because of my happiness, for daughters have pronounced me blessed”; and she calls his name Asher.
Leah [Weary] said, “Happy am I, for the daughters will call me happy.” She named him Asher [Happy].
14 And Reuben goes in the days of wheat-harvest, and finds love-apples in the field, and brings them to his mother Leah, and Rachel says to Leah, “Please give to me of the love-apples of your son.”
Reuben [See, a son!] went in the days of wheat harvest, and found mandrakes in the field, and brought them to his mother, Leah [Weary]. Then Rachel [Ewe sheep] said to Leah [Weary], “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.”
15 And she says to her, “Is your taking my husband a little thing, that you have also taken the love-apples of my son?” And Rachel says, “He therefore lies with you tonight, for your son’s love-apples.”
She said to her, “Is it a small matter that you have taken away my husband? Would you take away my son’s mandrakes, also?” Rachel [Ewe sheep] said, “Therefore he will lie with you tonight for your son’s mandrakes.”
16 And Jacob comes in from the field at evening; and Leah goes to meet him and says, “You come in to me, for [in] hiring I have hired you with my son’s love-apples”; and he lies with her during that night.
Jacob [Supplanter] came from the field in the evening, and Leah [Weary] went out to meet him, and said, “You must come in to me; for I have surely hired you with my son’s mandrakes.” He lay with her that night.
17 And God listens to Leah, and she conceives, and bears a son to Jacob, a fifth,
God sh'ma ·heard obeyed· to Leah [Weary], and she conceived, and bore Jacob [Supplanter] a fifth son.
18 and Leah says, “God has given my hire, because I have given my maidservant to my husband”; and she calls his name Issachar.
Leah [Weary] said, “God has given me my hire, because I gave my servant to my husband.” She named him Issachar [Hire, Reward].
19 And Leah conceives again, and she bears a sixth son to Jacob,
Leah [Weary] conceived again, and bore a sixth son to Jacob [Supplanter].
20 and Leah says, “God has endowed me—a good dowry; this time my husband dwells with me, for I have borne six sons to him”; and she calls his name Zebulun;
Leah [Weary] said, “God has endowed me with a good dowry. Now my husband will live with me, because I have borne him six sons.” She named him Zebulun [Living together].
21 and afterward she has borne a daughter, and calls her name Dinah.
Afterwards, she bore a daughter, and named her Dinah.
22 And God remembers Rachel, and God listens to her, and opens her womb,
God remembered Rachel [Ewe sheep], and God sh'ma ·heard obeyed· to her, and opened her womb.
23 and she conceives and bears a son, and says, “God has gathered up my reproach”;
She conceived, bore a son, and said, “God has taken away my reproach.”
24 and she calls his name Joseph, saying, “YHWH is adding to me another son.”
She named him Joseph [May he add], saying, “May Adonai add another son to me.”
25 And it comes to pass, when Rachel has borne Joseph, that Jacob says to Laban, “Send me away, and I go to my place, and to my land;
When Rachel [Ewe sheep] had borne Joseph [May he add], Jacob [Supplanter] said to Laban [White], “Send me away, that I may go to my own place, and to my country.
26 give up my wives and my children, for whom I have served you, and I go; for you have known my service which I have served you.”
Give me my wives and my children for whom I have served you, and let me go; for you know my service with which I have served you.”
27 And Laban says to him, “Now if I have found grace in your eyes—I have observed diligently that YHWH blesses me for your sake.”
Laban [White] said to him, “If now I have found chen ·grace· in your eyes, stay here, for I have divined that Adonai has blessed me for your sake.”
28 He also says, “Define your hire to me, and I give.”
He said, “Appoint me your wages, and I will give it.”
29 And he says to him, “You have known that which I have served you [in], and that which your substance was with me;
He said to him, “You know how I have served you, and how your livestock have fared with me.
30 for [it is] little which you have had at my appearance, and it breaks forth into a multitude, and YHWH blesses you at my coming; and now, when do I make, I also, for my own house?”
For it was little which you had before I came, and it has increased to a multitude. Adonai has blessed you wherever I turned. Now when will I provide for my own house also?”
31 And he says, “What do I give to you?” And Jacob says, “You do not give me anything; if you do this thing for me, I turn back; I have delight; I watch your flock;
He said, “What shall I give you?” Jacob [Supplanter] said, “You shall not give me anything. If you will do this thing for me, I will again feed your flock and keep it.
32 I pass through all your flock today to turn aside every speckled and spotted sheep from there, and every brown sheep among the lambs, and speckled and spotted among the goats—and it has been my hire;
I will pass through all your flock today, removing from there every speckled and spotted one, and every black one among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats. This will be my hire.
33 and my righteousness has answered for me in the day to come, when it comes in for my hire before your face—everyone which is not speckled and spotted among [my] goats, and brown among [my] lambs—it is stolen with me.”
So my righteousness will answer for me hereafter, when you come concerning my hire that is before you. Every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and black among the sheep, that might be with me, will be considered stolen.”
34 And Laban says, “Behold, O that it were according to your word”;
Laban [White] said, “Behold, let it be according to your word.”
35 and he turns aside during that day the striped and the spotted male goats, and all the speckled and the spotted female goats, everyone that [has] white in it, and every brown one among the lambs, and he gives into the hand of his sons,
That day, he removed the male goats that were streaked 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 and sets a journey of three days between himself and Jacob; and Jacob is feeding the rest of the flock of Laban.
He set three days’ journey between himself and Jacob [Supplanter], and Jacob [Supplanter] fed the rest of Laban [White]’s flocks.
37 And Jacob takes to himself a rod of fresh poplar and almond and plane-tree, and peels in them white peelings, making bare the white that [is] on the rods,
Jacob [Supplanter] took to himself rods of fresh poplar, almond, plane tree, peeled white streaks in them, and made the white appear which was in the rods.
38 and sets up the rods which he has peeled in the gutters in the watering troughs (where the flock comes to drink), in front of the flock, that they may conceive in their coming to drink;
He set the rods which he had peeled opposite the flocks in the gutters in the watering-troughs where the flocks came to drink. They conceived when they came to drink.
39 and the flocks conceive at the rods, and the flock bears striped, speckled, and spotted ones.
The flocks conceived before the rods, and the flocks produced streaked, speckled, and spotted.
40 And Jacob has parted the lambs, and he puts the face of the flock toward the striped, also all the brown in the flock of Laban, and he sets his own droves by themselves, and has not set them near Laban’s flock.
Jacob [Supplanter] separated the lambs, and set the faces of the flocks toward the streaked and all the black in the flock of Laban [White]: and he put his own droves apart, and didn’t put them into Laban [White]’s flock.
41 And it has come to pass, whenever the strong ones of the flock conceive, that Jacob sets the rods before the eyes of the flock in the gutters, to cause them to conceive by the rods,
Whenever the stronger of the flock conceived, Jacob [Supplanter] laid the rods in front of the eyes of the flock in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods;
42 and when the flock is feeble, he does not set [them]; and the feeble ones have been Laban’s, and the strong ones Jacob’s.
but when the flock were feeble, he didn’t put them in. So the more feeble were Laban [White]’s, and the stronger Jacob [Supplanter]’s.
43 And the man increases very exceedingly, and has many flocks, and maidservants, and menservants, and camels, and donkeys.
The man increased exceedingly, and had large flocks, female servants and male servants, and camels and donkeys.

< Genesis 30 >