Genesis 30

1 When Rachel saw that she was not bearing Jacob any children, Rachel envied her sister. She said to Jacob, "Give me children, or else I will 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 Then Jacob became very angry with Rachel, and he said, "Am I in God's place, who has withheld from you 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 She said, "Look, my servant Bilhah. Sleep with her, so that she will bear children for me, that I too may have children 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 So she gave him Bilhah her servant as a wife, and Jacob slept with her.

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

5 Bilhah conceived, and bore Jacob a son.

Bilhah became pregnant and had a son for Jacob.

6 Rachel said, "God has judged me, and has also heard my voice, and has given me a son." Therefore she called 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 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 Rachel said, "I have wrestled mightily with my sister, and have prevailed." So she named him 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 stopped bearing, she took Zilpah, her servant, and gave her to Jacob as a wife.

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

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

Zilpah had a son for Jacob.

11 Leah said, "How fortunate." So she named him Gad.

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

12 Zilpah, Leah's servant, bore Jacob a second son.

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

13 Leah said, "Happy am I, for the women will call me happy." So she named him Asher.

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

14 Reuben went out during the wheat harvest and found mandrakes in the field, and brought them to his mother, Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, "Please give me some of your 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 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 said, "Therefore he may sleep with you tonight for your 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 Jacob came from the field in the evening, and Leah went out to meet him, and said, "You must sleep with me; for I have surely hired you with my son's mandrakes." So he slept 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 God listened to 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 Leah said, "God has given me my wages, because I gave my servant to my husband." So she named him Issachar.

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

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

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

20 Leah said, "God has given me a good gift. Now my husband will live with me, because I have borne him six sons." So she named him 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 Afterwards, she bore a daughter, and named her Dinah.

Later she had a daughter she named Dinah.

22 God remembered Rachel, and God listened to her, and made her fertile.

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

23 She conceived, bore a son, and said, "God has taken away my shame."

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

24 So she named him Joseph, saying, "May God add another son to me."

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

25 It happened, when Rachel had borne Joseph, that Jacob said to Laban, "Send me away, that I may go to my 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 you, and let me go; for you know the service I have given you."

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 Laban said to him, "If now I have found favor in your eyes, stay here, for I have learned by divination that God has blessed me for your sake."

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

28 He said, "Name your wages, and I will pay it."

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

29 He said to him, "You know how I have served you, and how well your livestock have done 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 you had little before I came, and it has increased abundantly. And God has blessed you wherever I worked. Now when will I also provide for my own household?"

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 He said, "What should I give you?" Jacob said, "You do not need to give me anything. If you will do this one thing for me, I will again pasture your flock and take care of 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 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 wages.

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 my honesty will testify for me later on, when the subject of my wages comes before you. Every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and black among the sheep that I have in my possession, will be counted as 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 Laban said, "Look, let it be as you have said."

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

35 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 put them in the care 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 He set three days' journey between himself and Jacob, and Jacob pastured 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 Jacob took fresh branches from poplar, almond and plane trees and made white streaks by peeling them, exposing white stripes on the branches.

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 He set up the peeled branches which he had peeled opposite the flocks in the troughs, that is, the watering places where the flocks came to drink. And since they bred 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 the flocks bred in front of the branches, and the flocks brought bore streaked, speckled, and spotted.

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

40 Jacob separated the lambs, and made the flocks face toward the streaked and all the black in the flock of Laban. So he kept his own flocks separate, and did not put them into 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 It happened, whenever the stronger of the flock were breeding, that Jacob would set up the branches in front of the flock in the troughs, so that they would breed near the branches;

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 for the weaker of the flock, he did not put them there. So the weaker would be 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 Thus the man became very rich, and had large flocks, female servants and male servants, and camels and donkeys.

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