Genesis 30

1 Rachel realized that she was not becoming pregnant and giving birth to any children for Jacob. So she became jealous of her older sister, Leah, because Leah had given birth to four sons. She said to Jacob, “Enable me to become pregnant and give birth to children. If you do not do that, I [think I will]!”

And Rachel having perceived that she bore Jacob no children, was jealous of her sister; and said to Jacob, Give me children; and if not, I shall die.

2 Jacob became angry with Rachel and said, “(I am not God!/Am I God?) [RHQ] He is the one who has prevented you from becoming pregnant!”

And Jacob was angry with Rachel, and said to her, Am I in the place of God, who has deprived you of the fruit of the womb?

3 Then she said, “Look, here is my female slave, Bilhah. (Sleep with/Have sex with) [EUP] her, so that she may become pregnant and give birth to children for me. In that way it will be as though (I have children/her children are mine).”

And Rachel said to Jacob, Behold my handmaid Balla, go in to her, and she shall bear upon my knees, and I also shall have children by her.

4 So she gave him her slave, Bilhah, to be another wife for him, and Jacob had sex [EUP] with her.

And she gave him Balla her maid, for a wife to him; and Jacob went in to her.

5 She became pregnant and bore Jacob a son.

And Balla, Rachel's maid, conceived, and bore Jacob a son.

6 Rachel said, “God has (vindicated me/judged my case and has decided that what I have done is right). He has also heard my requests and has given me a son.” So she named him Dan, [which sounds like the Hebrew word that means ‘he judged’].

And Rachel said, God has given judgment for me, and listened to my voice, and has given me a son; therefore she called his name, Dan.

7 Later, Rachel’s slave Bilhah became pregnant again and gave birth to another son for Jacob.

And Balla, Rachel's maid, conceived yet again, and bore a second son to Jacob.

8 Then Rachel said, “I have had a great struggle to have children like my older sister, but truly I have a son.” So she named him Naphtali, [which sounds like the Hebrew word that means ‘struggle’].

And Rachel said, God has helped me, and I contended with my sister and prevailed; and she called his name, Nephthalim.

9 When Leah realized that she was not becoming pregnant and giving birth to any more children, she took her female slave, Zilpah, and gave her to Jacob to be another wife for him.

And Lea saw that she ceased from bearing, and she took Zelpha her maid, and gave her to Jacob for a wife; and he went in to her.

10 Zilpah soon became pregnant and gave birth to a son for Jacob.

And Zelpha the maid of Lea conceived, and bore Jacob a son.

11 Leah said, “I am truly fortunate!” So she named him Gad, [which means ‘fortunate’].

And Lea said, [It is] happily: and she called his name, Gad.

12 Later Leah’s slave, Zilpah, gave birth to another son for Jacob.

And Zelpha the maid of Lea conceived yet again, and bore Jacob a second son.

13 Leah said, “Now I am very happy, and people will call me happy.” So she named him Asher, [which means ‘happy].’

And Lea said, I am blessed, for the women will pronounce me blessed; and she called his name, Aser.

14 When it was time to harvest wheat, Reuben went out into the fields and saw some (mandrakes/plants that women eat to help them to become pregnant). He brought some of them to his mother Leah. But Rachel saw them and said to Leah, “Please give me some of those plants that your son brought to you!”

And Ruben went in the day of barley harvest, and found apples of mandrakes in the field, and brought them to his mother Lea; and Rachel said to Lea her sister, Give me of your son's mandrakes.

15 But Leah said to her, “No! (It was bad that you stole my husband!/Is it not bad enough that you stole my husband?) [RHQ] Now (are you going to take my son’s mandrake plants?/You want to take my son’s mandrake plants also, [so that you can become pregnant]!)” [RHQ] So Rachel said, “All right, Jacob can sleep with you tonight, if you give me some of your son’s mandrake plants.” [So Leah (agreed/gave her some)].

And Lea said, [Is it] not enough for you that you have taken my husband, will you also take my son's mandrakes? And Rachel said, Not so: let him lie with you tonight for your son's mandrakes.

16 When Jacob returned from the wheat fields that evening, Leah went out to meet him. She said, “You must sleep with me tonight, because I gave Rachel some of my son’s mandrakes [that enable women to become pregnant], to pay her for allowing us to do that.” So Jacob slept with her that night.

And Jacob came in out of the field at even; and Lea went forth to meet him, and said, You shall come in to me this day, for I have hired you for my son's mandrakes; and he lay with her that night.

17 God answered Leah’s prayers, and she became pregnant and bore a fifth son to Jacob.

And God listened to Lea, and she conceived, and bore Jacob a fifth son.

18 Leah said, “God has rewarded me for giving my slave to my husband to be another wife for him.” So she named him Issachar, [which sounds like the Hebrew word that means ‘reward’].

And Lea said, God has given me my reward, because I gave my maid to my husband; and she called his name Issachar, which is, Reward.

19 Leah became pregnant again and bore a sixth son for Jacob.

And Lea conceived again, and bore Jacob a sixth son.

20 Leah said, “God has given me a precious gift. (This time/Now) my husband will honor/respect me, because I have given birth to six sons for him.” So she named him Zebulon, [which sounds like the Hebrew word that means ‘accepted gift’].

And Lea said, God has given me a good gift in this time; my husband will choose me, for I have born him six sons: and she called his name, Zabulon.

21 Later she gave birth to a daughter, and named her Dinah.

And after this she bore a daughter; and she called her name, Dina.

22 Then God thought about what Rachel wanted. He heard her prayers and enabled her to become pregnant.

And God remembered Rachel, and God listened to her, and he opened her womb.

23 She became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She said, “God has caused that no longer will I be ashamed [for not having children].”

And she conceived, and bore Jacob a son; and Rachel said, God has taken away my reproach.

24 She named him Joseph, [which sounds like the Hebrew words that mean ‘may he give another’] and she said, ‘want Yahweh to give me another son.’

And she called his name Joseph, saying, Let God add to me another son.

25 After Rachel had given birth to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Now allow me to quit working for you and let me return to my own land.

And it came to pass when Rachel had born Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, Send me away, that I may go to my place and to my land.

26 You know the work that I have done for you [for a long time to get my wives]. So let me take my wives and my children, and leave.”

Restore my wives and my children, for whom I have served you, that I may depart, for you know the service wherewith I have served you.

27 But Laban said to him, “If you are pleased with me, stay here, because I have found out by performing a magic ritual that Yahweh has blessed me because of what you have done for me.

And Laban said to him, If I have found grace in your sight, I would augur [well], for the Lord has blessed me at your coming in.

28 Tell me what you want me to pay you for continuing to work for me, and that is what I will pay you.”

Appoint me your wages, and I will give [them].

29 Jacob replied, “You know how I have worked for you, and you know that your livestock have increased greatly as I have taken care of them.

And Jacob said, You know in what things I have served you, and how many cattle of your are with me.

30 You had only a few animals before I came here. But now you have very many, and Yahweh has caused them to increase greatly in number wherever I have taken them. But now I need to start taking care of the needs of my own family.”

For it was little you had before my time, and it is increased to a multitude, and the Lord God has blessed you since my coming; now then, when shall I set up also my own house?

31 Laban replied, “What do you want me to give you?” Jacob replied, “I do not want you to pay me anything. But if you will do this one thing for me, I will continue to take care of your flocks and protect them.

And Laban said to him, What shall I give you? and Jacob said to him, You shall not give me anything; if you will do this thing for me, I will again tend your flocks and keep them.

32 Allow me to go and look at all of your flocks today and remove from them all the speckled sheep, all the spotted sheep, and every dark-colored lamb, all the goats that are speckled, and all the goats that are spotted, [and keep them for myself]. They will be my wages.

Let all your sheep pass by today, and separate thence every grey sheep among the rams, and every one that is speckled and spotted among the goats—[this] shall be my reward.

33 In that way, in the future, you will be able to know whether I have been honest regarding what you have paid me. If any of my goats are neither speckled or spotted, or if any of my lambs are not dark-colored, you will know that I have stolen them from you.”

And my righteousness shall answer for me on the morrow, for it is my reward before you: whatever shall not be spotted and speckled among the goats, and grey among the rams, shall be stolen with me.

34 Laban agreed and said, “Okay, we will do as you have said.”

And Laban said to him, Let it be according to your word.

35 But that same day Laban removed all the male goats that had black and white stripes on them or were spotted, and all the female goats that were speckled or spotted, all the goats that were partly white, and all the dark-colored lambs. He separated them and told his sons to take care of them.

And he separated in that day the spotted and speckled he-goats, and all the spotted and speckled she-goats, and all that was grey among the rams, and every one that was white among them, and he gave them into the hand of his sons.

36 Then he took these flocks and walked a distance of three days, in order that he could be that far from Jacob. Jacob continued to take care of the rest of Laban’s flocks.

And he set a distance of a three days' journey between them and Jacob. And Jacob tended the cattle of Laban that were left behind.

37 Then Jacob cut some branches of (poplar, almond, and plane trees/three kinds of trees that had white wood). He peeled strips of bark from the branches, so that where the bark had been peeled off, the branches were light in color.

And Jacob took to himself green rods of storax tree and walnut and plane tree; and Jacob peeled in them white stripes; and as he drew off the green, the white stripe which he had made appeared alternate on the rods.

38 Then he placed the peeled branches in the troughs where they put the water for the animals to drink, so that the branches would be in front of the flocks when they came to drink.

And he laid the rods which he had peeled, in the hollows of the watering-troughs, that whenever the cattle should come to drink, as they should have come to drink before the rods, the cattle might conceive at the rods.

39 The animals also mated in front of the branches, and eventually they gave birth to animals that were speckled, or to animals that were spotted, or to animals that had black and white stripes on them.

So the cattle conceived at the rods, and the cattle brought forth [young] speckled, and streaked and spotted with ash-colored [spots].

40 Furthermore, Jacob separated the female sheep in his flock from the other sheep and goats in Laban’s flock. And when his female sheep mated, he made them look toward the animals that belonged to Laban that had black and white stripes on them, and the dark-colored animals. He did that so that the female sheep would give birth to animals that were striped or dark-colored. By doing that, he made bigger flocks for himself, and he kept them separate from Laban’s flocks.

And Jacob separated the lambs, and set before the sheep a speckled ram, and every variegated one among the lambs, and he separated flocks for himself alone, and did not mingle them with the sheep of Laban.

41 In addition, whenever the stronger female sheep were ready to mate, Jacob put some of those peeled branches in the troughs in front of them, so that they would mate in front of the branches.

And it came to pass in the time wherein the cattle became pregnant, conceiving in the belly, Jacob put the rods before the cattle in the troughs, that they might conceive by the rods.

42 But when weak animals were ready to mate, he did not put the branches in their troughs. So the weak ones became part of Laban’s flock, and the strong ones became part of Jacob’s flock.

But he did not put them in [indiscriminately] whenever the cattle happened to bring forth, but the unmarked ones were Laban's, and the marked ones were Jacob's.

43 As a result, Jacob became very rich. He owned many large flocks of sheep and goats, and many male and female slaves, and many camels and donkeys.

And the man became very rich, and he had many cattle, and oxen, and servants, and maidservants, and camels, and asses.