< Genesis 30 >

1 And Rachel saw she had borne no children unto Jacob, so Rachel became envious of her sister, —and said unto Jacob, Come! give me children, or else, I die.
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."
2 Then kindled the anger of Jacob with Rachel, —and he said, Am I, in the place of God, who hath withheld from thee the fruit of the womb?
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?"
3 And she said, Lo! my handmaid, Bilhah. Go in unto her, —that she may bear upon my knees, so that, I also, may be builded up by her!
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."
4 And she gave him Bilhah her handmaid, to wife, —and Jacob went in unto her;
So she gave him Bilhah her servant as a wife, and Jacob slept with her.
5 and Bilhah conceived, and bare unto Jacob a son;
Bilhah conceived, and bore Jacob a son.
6 and Rachel said God hath vindicated me. Moreover also he hath hearkened unto my voice, and hath given me a son. For this cause, called she his name Dan.
Rachel said, "God has judged me, and has also heard my voice, and has given me a son." Therefore she called his name Dan.
7 And Bilhah, Rachel’s handmaid conceived again, and bare a second son to Jacob.
Bilhah, Rachel's handmaid, conceived again, and bore Jacob a second son.
8 Then said Rachel With wrestlings of God, have I wrestled with my sister Yea I have prevailed. So she called his name, Naphtali.
Rachel said, "I have wrestled mightily with my sister, and have prevailed." So she named him Naphtali.
9 Then saw Leah, that she had left off bearing, —so she took Zilpah, her handmaid, and gave her to Jacob to wife.
When Leah saw that she had stopped bearing, she took Zilpah, her servant, and gave her to Jacob as a wife.
10 And Zilpah, Leah’s handmaid, bare to Jacob a son:
Zilpah, Leah's handmaid, bore Jacob a son.
11 and Leah said, Victory hath come! So she called his name Gad.
Leah said, "How fortunate." So she named him Gad.
12 And Zilpah, Leah’s handmaid bare a second son to Jacob;
Zilpah, Leah's servant, bore Jacob a second son.
13 and Leah said, For my happiness, surely happy have daughters pronounced me. So she called his name, Asher.
Leah said, "Happy am I, for the daughters will call me happy." So she named him Asher.
14 Then went Reuben, in the days of the wheat harvest, and found mandrakes, in the field, and brought them in unto Leah his mother, and Rachel said unto Leah, Pray give me, some of the mandrakes of thy son
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."
15 And she said to her, Is it, a small thing, that thou hast taken away my husband? And wouldst thou take away, even the mandrakes of my son? Then said Rachel, Therefore, shall he lie with thee to-night, for the mandrakes of thy son.
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."
16 And Jacob came in from the field, in the evening, so Leah went out to meet him and said: Unto me, shalt thou come in, for I have hired, thee, even with the mandrakes of my son. And he lay with her that night,
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.
17 And God hearkened unto Leah, —and she conceived and bare to Jacob a fifth son.
God listened to Leah, and she conceived, and bore Jacob a fifth son.
18 Then said Leah. God hath given my hire, in that I gave my handmaid to my husband. So she called his name, Issachar.
Leah said, "God has given me my wages, because I gave my servant to my husband." So she named him Issachar.
19 And Leah conceived again and bare a sixth son to Jacob.
Leah conceived again, and bore a sixth son to Jacob.
20 Then said Leah, God hath dowered me even me with a hand-some dowry, Now! will my husband dwell with me, for I have borne him six sons. So she called his name, Zebulon.
Leah said, "God has given me with a good gift. Now my husband will live with me, because I have borne him six sons." So she named him Zebulun.
21 And afterwards she bare a daughter, —so she called her name, Dinah.
Afterwards, she bore a daughter, and named her Dinah.
22 Then God remembered Rachel, —and God hearkened unto her, and granted her to bear.
God remembered Rachel, and God listened to her, and made her fertile.
23 So she conceived and bare a son, —and said, God hath taken away my reproach;
She conceived, bore a son, and said, "God has taken away my shame."
24 So she called his name Joseph, saying, Yahweh is adding unto me another son.
So she named him Joseph, saying, "May God add another son to me."
25 And it came to pass, when Rachel had borne Joseph, that Jacob said unto Laban, Let me go that I may take my journey, unto my place, and to my land.
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.
26 Come, give me my wives and my children for whom I have served thee and let me take my journey, —for, thou, knowest my service wherewith I have served thee.
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."
27 And Laban said unto him, If, I pray thee, I have found favour in thine eyes, …I have divined that Yahweh hath blessed me for thy sake.
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."
28 And he said, —Come, fix thy wages for me, that I may give it!
He said, "Name your wages, and I will pay it."
29 And he said unto him, Thou, knowest how I have served thee, —and how thy cattle have fared, with me.
He said to him, "You know how I have served you, and how well your livestock have done with me.
30 For it was, little, that thou hadst—before I came and then it brake forth into multitude, and Yahweh blessed thee at my every step. Now, therefore, when am, I, also to do something for my own house?
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?"
31 And he said, What shall I give thee? And Jacob said: Thou shall give me, nothing at all, If thou wilt do for me this thing, I will return, I will shepherd thy flock I will keep it:
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.
32 Let me pass through all thy flock to-day, removing from thence every young one that is speckled and spotted and every young one that is dark-coloured among the young sheep, and spotted and speckled among the goats, and they shall be my wages.
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.
33 And my righteousness shall answer for me on a future day, when thou shall come in respecting my hire that is before thee, Every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats and dark-coloured among the young sheep, stolen, shall it be accounted, if found with me.
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."
34 Then said Laban, Lo! would it might be according to thy word!
Laban said, "Look, let it be as you have said."
35 So he removed, on that day, the he-goats that were striped and spotted and all the she-goats that were speckled and spotted, every one that had white in it, and every dark-coloured one among the young sheep, —and delivered them 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 put them in the care of his sons.
36 then put he a journey of three days between himself and Jacob, —but, Jacob himself, continued tending the flocks of Laban that were left.
He set three days' journey between himself and Jacob, and Jacob pastured the rest of Laban's flocks.
37 So then Jacob took him rods of young storax, and hazel and maple, —and peeled in them white stripes, laying bare the white which was on the rods.
Jacob took fresh branches from poplar, almond and plane trees and made white streaks by peeling them, exposing white stripes on the branches.
38 And he set the rods which he had peeled, in the channels in the troughs of water, —where the flocks came in to drink straight before the flocks, and the females of the flock used to be in heat when they came in to drink;
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,
39 and the males of the flock were in heat before the rods, —so the flocks brought forth ring-straked, speckled, and spotted.
the flocks bred in front of the branches, and the flocks brought bore streaked, speckled, and spotted.
40 The rams also, did Jacob separate, and then set the faces of the flocks towards the ring-straked and all the dark-coloured, among the flocks of Laban, —and he put his own droves by themselves, and put them not with the flocks of Laban.
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.
41 So it came to pass whensoever the stronger of the flocks were in heat, that Jacob set the rods before the eyes of the flocks in the channels, —that the females might be in heat among the rods;
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;
42 but, when the flocks were late in bearing, he did not set them, —and so the late-born were Laban’s, but the strong ones Jacob’s.
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.
43 Thus did the man break forth, exceedingly, —thus came he to have flocks in abundance, and maid-servants, and men-servants and camels and asses.
Thus the man became very rich, and had large flocks, female servants and male servants, and camels and donkeys.

< Genesis 30 >