< Genesis 30 >

1 Forsothe Rachel seiy, that sche was vnfruytful, and hadde enuye to the sister, and seide to hir hosebonde, Yyue thou fre children to me, ellis Y schal die.
And when Rachel saw that she bare Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister; and she said unto Jacob, Give me children, or else I die.
2 To whom Jacob was wrooth, and answerde, Wher Y am for God, which haue priued thee fro the fruyt of thi wombe?
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?
3 And sche seide, Y haue `a seruauntesse Bala, entre thou to hir that she childe on my knees, and that Y haue sones of hir.
And she said, Behold, my maid Bilhah, go in unto her; that she may bear upon my knees, and I also may obtain children by her.
4 And sche yaf to hym Bala in to matrimony;
And she gave him Bilhah her handmaid to wife: and Jacob went in unto her.
5 and whanne the hosebonde hadde entrid to hir, sche conseyuede, and childide a sone.
And Bilhah conceived, and bare Jacob a son.
6 And Rachel seide, the Lord demede to me, and herde my preier, and yaf a sone to me; and therfor sche clepide his name Dan.
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.
7 And eft Bala conseyuede, and childide anothir sone,
And Bilhah Rachel’s handmaid conceived again, and bare Jacob a second son.
8 for whom Rachel seide, The Lord hath maad me lijk to my sistir, and Y wexide strong; and sche clepide hym Neptalym.
And Rachel said, With mighty wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and have prevailed: and she called his name Naphtali.
9 Lya feelide that sche ceesside to bere child, and sche yaf Selfa, hir handmayde, to the hosebonde.
When Leah saw that she had left off bearing, she took Zilpah her handmaid, and gave her to Jacob to wife.
10 And whanne Selfa aftir conseyuyng childide a sone, Lya seide, Blessidly;
And Zilpah Leah’s handmaid bare Jacob a son.
11 and therfor sche clepide his name Gad.
And Leah said, Fortunate! and she called his name Gad.
12 Also Selfa childide anothir sone,
And Zilpah Leah’s handmaid bare Jacob a second son.
13 and Lia seide, This is for my blis, for alle wymmen schulen seie me blessid; therfor sche clepide hym Aser.
And Leah said, Happy am I! for the daughters will call me happy: and she called his name Asher.
14 Forsothe Ruben yede out in to the feeld in the tyme of wheete heruest, and foond mandragis, whiche he brouyte to Lya, his modir. And Rachel seide, Yyue thou to me a part of the mandragis of thi sone.
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.
15 Lya answeride, Whether it semeth litil to thee, that thou hast rauyschid the hosebonde fro me, no but thou take also the mandragis of my sone? Rachel seide, The hosebonde sleepe with thee in this nyyt for the mandragis of thi sone.
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.
16 And whanne Jacob cam ayen fro the feeld at euentid, Lya yede out in to his comyng, and seide, Thou shalt entre to me, for Y haue hired thee with hire for the mandragis of my sone. He slepte with hir in that nyyt;
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.
17 and God herde hir preiers, and sche conseyuede, and childide the fyuethe sone;
And God hearkened unto Leah, and she conceived, and bare Jacob a fifth son.
18 and seide, God yaf meede to me, for Y yaf myn handmayde to myn hosebond; and sche clepide his name Isacar.
And Leah said, God hath given me my hire, because I gave my handmaid to my husband: and she called his name Issachar.
19 Eft Lia conseyuede, and childide the sixte sone,
And Leah conceived again, and bare a sixth son to Jacob.
20 and seide, The Lord hath maad me riche with a good dower, also in this tyme myn hosebonde schal be with me, for Y childide sixe sones to hym; and therfore sche clepide his name Sabulon.
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.
21 Aftir whom sche childide a douyter, Dyna bi name.
And afterwards she bare a daughter, and called her name Dinah.
22 Also the Lord hadde mynde on Rachel, and herde hir, and openyde hir wombe.
And God remembered Rachel, and God hearkened to her, and opened her womb.
23 And sche conseyuede, and childide a sone, and seide, God hath take a wey my schenschipe; and sche clepid his name Joseph,
And she conceived, and bare a son: and said, God hath taken away my reproach:
24 and seide, The Lord yyue to me another sone.
and she called his name Joseph, saying, Jehovah add to me another son.
25 Sotheli whanne Joseph was borun, Jacob seide to his wyues fadir, Delyuere thou me, that Y turne ayen in to my cuntrey and to my lond.
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.
26 Yyue thou to me my wyues and fre children for whiche Y seruede thee, that Y go; forsothe thou knowist the seruyce bi which Y seruede thee.
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.
27 Laban seide to hym, Fynde Y grace in thi siyt, Y haue lerned bi experience that God blesside me for thee;
And Laban said unto him, If now I have found favor in thine eyes, [tarry]: [for] I have divined that Jehovah hath blessed me for thy sake.
28 ordeyne thou the meede which Y schal yyue to thee.
And he said, Appoint me thy wages, and I will give it.
29 And he answeride, Thou woost hou Y seruede thee, and hou greet thi possessioun was in myn hondis;
And he said unto him, Thou knowest how I have served thee, and how thy cattle have fared with me.
30 thou haddist litil bifore that Y cam to thee, and now thou art maad riche, and the Lord blesside thee at myn entryng; therfor it is iust that Y purueye sum tyme also to myn hows.
For it was little which thou hadst before I came, and it hath increased unto a multitude; and Jehovah hath blessed thee whithersoever I turned: and now when shall I provide for mine own house also?
31 And Laban seide, What schal Y yyue to thee? And Jacob seide, Y wole no thing but if thou doist that that Y axe, eft Y schal fede and kepe thi scheep.
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.
32 Cumpasse thou alle thi flockis, and departe thou alle diuerse scheep and of spottid flees, and what euer thing schal be dun, and spottid, and dyuerse, as wel in scheep as in geet, it schal be my mede.
I will pass through all thy flock to-day, removing from thence every speckled and spotted one, and every black one among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats: and [of such] shall be my hire.
33 And my riytfulnesse schal answere to me to morewe, whanne the tyme of couenaunt schal come bifor thee; and alle that ben not dyuerse and spottid and dunne, as well in sheep as in geet, schulen repreue me of thefte.
So shall my righteousness answer for me hereafter, when thou shalt come concerning my hire that is before thee: every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and black among the sheep, that, [if found] with me, shall be counted stolen.
34 And Laban seide, Y haue acceptable that that thou axist.
And Laban said, Behold, I would it might be according to thy word.
35 And he departide in that dai the geet, and scheep, geet buckis, and rammes, dyuerse and spottid. Sothely he bitook al the flok of o coloure, that is, of white and of blak flees in the hond of hise sones;
And he removed that day the he-goats that were ringstreaked and spotted, and all the she-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 he settide the space of weie of thre daies bitwixe hise sones and the hosebonde of hise douytris, that fedde othere flockis` of hym.
and he set three days’ journey betwixt himself and Jacob: and Jacob fed the rest of Laban’s flocks.
37 Therfor Jacob took greene yerdis of popeleris, and of almoundis, and of planes, and in parti dide awei the rynde of tho, and whanne the ryndis weren `drawun a wei, whitnesse apperide in these that weren maad bare; sothely tho that weren hoole dwelliden grene, and bi this maner the coloure was maad dyuerse.
And Jacob took him rods of fresh poplar, and of the almond and of the plane-tree; and peeled white streaks in them, and made the white appear which was in the rods.
38 And Jacob puttide tho yerdis in the trowis, where the watir was held out, that whanne the flockis schulden come to drynke, thei schulden haue the yerdis bifor the iyen, and schulden conseyue in the siyt of the yerdis.
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.
39 And it was doon that in thilke heete of riding the sheep schulde biholde the yerdis, and that thei schulden brynge forth spotti beestis, and dyuerse, and bispreynt with dyuerse colour.
And the flocks conceived before the rods, and the flocks brought forth ringstreaked, speckled, and spotted.
40 And Jacob departide the floc, and puttide the yerdis in the trowis bifor the iyen of the rammys. Sotheli alle the white and blake weren Labans; sotheli the othere weren Jacobis; for the flockis weren departid bytwixe hem silf.
And Jacob separated the lambs, and set the faces of the flocks toward the ringstreaked and all the black in the flock of Laban: and he put his own droves apart, and put them not unto Laban’s flock.
41 Therfor whanne the scheep weren ridun in the firste tyme, Jacob puttide the yerdis in the `trouyis of watir bifor the iyen of rammys and of scheep, that thei schulden conseyue in the siyt of tho yerdis.
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;
42 Forsothe whanne the late medlyng and the laste conseyuyng weren, Jacob puttide not tho yerdis; and tho that weren late, weren maad Labans, and tho that weren of the firste tyme weren Jacobis.
but when the flock were feeble, he put them not in: so the feebler were Laban’s, and the stronger Jacob’s.
43 And he was maad ful riche, and hadde many flockis, handmaydis, and seruauntis, camels, and assis.
And the man increased exceedingly, and had large flocks, and maid-servants and men-servants, and camels and asses.

< Genesis 30 >