Genesis 30
1 Cernens autem Rachel quod infecunda esset, invidit sorori suae, et ait marito suo: Da mihi liberos, alioquin moriar.
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]!”
2 Cui iratus respondit Iacob: Num pro Deo ego sum, qui privavit te fructu ventris tui?
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!”
3 At illa: Habeo, inquit, famulam Balam: ingredere ad illam, ut pariat super genua mea, et habeam ex illa filios.
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).”
4 Deditque illi Balam in coniugium: quae,
So she gave him her slave, Bilhah, to be another wife for him, and Jacob had sex [EUP] with her.
5 ingresso ad se viro, concepit, et peperit filium.
She became pregnant and bore Jacob a son.
6 Dixitque Rachel: Iudicavit mihi Dominus, et exaudivit vocem meam, dans mihi filium. et idcirco appellavit nomen eius, Dan.
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’].
7 Rursumque Bala concipiens, peperit alterum,
Later, Rachel’s slave Bilhah became pregnant again and gave birth to another son for Jacob.
8 pro quo ait Rachel: Comparavit me Dominus cum sorore mea, et invalui: vocavitque eum, Nephthali.
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’].
9 Sentiens Lia quod parere desiisset, Zelpham ancillam suam marito tradidit.
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.
10 Qua post conceptum edente filium,
Zilpah soon became pregnant and gave birth to a son for Jacob.
11 dixit: Feliciter. et idcirco vocavit nomen eius, Gad.
Leah said, “I am truly fortunate!” So she named him Gad, [which means ‘fortunate’].
12 Peperit quoque Zelpha alterum.
Later Leah’s slave, Zilpah, gave birth to another son for Jacob.
13 Dixitque Lia: Hoc pro beatitudine mea: Beatam quippe me dicent mulieres. propterea appellavit eum, Aser.
Leah said, “Now I am very happy, and people will call me happy.” So she named him Asher, [which means ‘happy].’
14 Egressus autem Ruben tempore messis triticeae in agrum, reperit mandragoras: quas matri Liae detulit. Dixitque Rachel: Da mihi partem de mandragoris filii tui.
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!”
15 Illa respondit: Parumne tibi videtur quod praeripueris maritum mihi, nisi etiam mandragoras filii mei tuleris? Ait Rachel: Dormiat tecum hac nocte pro mandragoris filii tui.
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)].
16 Redeuntique ad vesperam Iacob de agro, egressa est in occursum eius Lia, et ait: Ad me, inquit, intrabis: quia mercede conduxi te pro mandragoris filii mei. Dormivitque cum ea nocte illa.
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.
17 Et exaudivit Deus preces eius: concepitque et peperit filium quintum,
God answered Leah’s prayers, and she became pregnant and bore a fifth son to Jacob.
18 et ait: Dedit Deus mercedem mihi, quia dedi ancillam meam viro meo. appellavitque nomen eius, Issachar.
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’].
19 Rursum Lia concipiens, peperit sextum filium,
Leah became pregnant again and bore a sixth son for Jacob.
20 et ait: Dotavit me Deus dote bona: etiam hac vice mecum erit maritus meus, eo quod genuerim ei sex filios: et idcirco appellavit nomen eius, Zabulon.
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’].
21 Post quem peperit filiam, nomine Dinam.
Later she gave birth to a daughter, and named her Dinah.
22 Recordatus quoque Dominus Rachelis, exaudivit eam, et aperuit vulvam eius.
Then God thought about what Rachel wanted. He heard her prayers and enabled her to become pregnant.
23 Quae concepit, et peperit filium, dicens: Abstulit Deus opprobrium meum.
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].”
24 Et vocavit nomen eius, Ioseph, dicens: Addat mihi Dominus filium alterum.
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.’
25 Nato autem Ioseph, dixit Iacob socero suo: Dimitte me ut revertar in patriam meam, et ad terram meam.
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.
26 Da mihi uxores, et liberos meos, pro quibus servivi tibi, ut abeam: tu vero nosti servitutem qua servivi tibi.
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.”
27 Ait illi Laban: Inveniam gratiam in conspectu tuo: experimento didici, quia benedixerit mihi Deus propter te:
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.
28 constitue mercedem tuam quam dem tibi.
Tell me what you want me to pay you for continuing to work for me, and that is what I will pay you.”
29 At ille respondit: Tu nosti quo modo servierim tibi, et quanta in manibus meis fuerit possessio tua.
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.
30 Modicum habuisti antequam venirem ad te, et nunc dives effectus es: benedixitque tibi Deus ad introitum meum. iustum est igitur ut aliquando provideam etiam domui meae.
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.”
31 Dixitque Laban: Quid tibi dabo? At ille ait: Nihil volo: sed si feceris quod postulo, iterum pascam, et custodiam pecora tua.
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.
32 Gyra omnes greges tuos, et separa cunctas oves varias, et sparso vellere; quodcumque furvum, et maculosum, variumque fuerit, tam in ovibus quam in capris, erit merces mea.
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.
33 Respondebitque mihi cras iustitia mea, quando placiti tempus advenerit coram te: et omnia quae non fuerint varia, et maculosa, et furva, tam in ovibus quam in capris, furti me argues.
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.”
34 Dixitque Laban: Gratum habeo quod petis.
Laban agreed and said, “Okay, we will do as you have said.”
35 Et separavit in die illa capras, et oves, et hircos, et arietes varios, atque maculosos: cunctum autem gregem unicolorem, id est albi, et nigri velleris, tradidit in manu filiorum suorum.
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.
36 Et posuit spatium itineris trium dierum inter se et generum, qui pascebat reliquos greges eius.
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.
37 Tollens ergo Iacob virgas populeas virides, et amygdalinas, et ex platanis, ex parte decorticavit eas: detractisque corticibus, in his, quae spoliata fuerant, candor apparuit: illa vero quae integra fuerant, viridia permanserunt: atque in hunc modum color effectus est varius.
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.
38 Posuitque eas in canalibus, ubi effundebatur aqua: ut cum venissent greges ad bibendum, ante oculos haberent virgas, et in aspectu earum conciperent.
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.
39 Factumque est ut in ipso calore coitus, oves intuerentur virgas, et parerent maculosa, et varia, et diverso colore respersa.
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.
40 Divisitque gregem Iacob, et posuit virgas in canalibus ante oculos arietum: erant autem alba et nigra quaeque, Laban: cetera vero, Iacob, separatis inter se gregibus.
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.
41 Igitur quando primo tempore ascendebantur oves, ponebat Iacob virgas in canalibus aquarum ante oculos arietum et ovium, ut in earum contemplatione conciperent:
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.
42 quando vero serotina admissura erat, et conceptus extremus, non ponebat eas. Factaque sunt ea quae erant serotina, Laban: et quae primi temporis, Iacob.
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.
43 Ditatusque est homo ultra modum, et habuit greges multos, ancillas et servos, camelos et asinos.
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.
