Genesis 30

1 And Rachel, seeing herself without children, envied her sister, and said to her husband: Give me children, otherwise I shall die.

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 And Jacob being angry with her, answered: Am I as God, who hath deprived thee of the fruit of thy womb?

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

3 But she said: I have here my servant Bala: go in unto her, that she may bear upon my knees, and I may have children by her.

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 And she gave him Bala in marriage: who,

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

5 When her husband had gone in unto her, conceived and bore a son.

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

6 And Rachel said: The Lord hath judged for me, and hath heard my voice, giving me a son, and therefore she called his name Dan.

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

7 And again Bala conceived and bore another,

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

8 For whom Rachel said: God hath compared me with my sister, and I have prevailed: and she called him Nephtali.

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

9 Lia, perceiving that she had left off bearing, gave Zelpha her handmaid to her husband.

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 And when she had conceived and brought forth a son,

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

11 She said: Happily. And therefore called his name Gad.

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

12 Zelpha also bore another.

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

13 And Lia said: This is for my happiness: for women will call me blessed. Therefore she called him Aser.

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

14 And Ruben, going out in the time of the wheat harvest into the field, found mandrakes: which he brought to his mother Lia. And Rachel said: Give me part of thy son’s mandrakes.

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 thy son's mandrakes.

15 She answered: Dost thou think it a small matter, that thou hast taken my husband from me, unless thou take also my son’s mandrakes? Rachel said: He shall sleep with thee this night, for thy son’s mandrakes.

And Lea said, [Is it] not enough for thee that thou hast taken my husband, wilt thou also take my son's mandrakes? And Rachel said, Not so: let him lie with thee to-night for thy son's mandrakes.

16 And when Jacob returned at even from the field, Lia went out to meet him, and said: Thou shalt come in unto me, because I have hired thee for my son’s mandrakes. And he slept with her that night.

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

17 And God heard her prayers: and she conceived and bore the fifth son,

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

18 And said: God hath given me a reward, because I gave my handmaid to my husband. And she called his name Issachar.

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 And Lia conceived again, and bore the sixth son,

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

20 And said: God hath endowed me with a good dowry: this turn also my husband will be with me, because I have borne him six sons: and therefore she called his name Zabulon.

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 After whom she bore a daughter, named Dina.

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

22 The Lord also remembering Rachel, heard her, and opened her womb.

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

23 And she conceived, and bore a son, saying: God hath taken away my reproach.

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

24 And she called his name Joseph, saying: The Lord give me also another son.

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

25 And when Joseph was born, Jacob said to his father in law: Send me away that I may return into my country, and to my 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 Give me my wives, and my children, for whom I have served thee, that I may depart: thou knowest the service that I have rendered thee.

Restore my wives and my children, for whom I have served thee, that I may depart, for thou knowest the service wherewith I have served thee.

27 Laban said to him: Let me find favour in thy sight: I have learned by experience, that God hath blessed me for thy sake.

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

28 Appoint thy wages which I shall give thee.

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

29 But he answered: Thou knowest how I have served thee, and how great thy possession hath been in my hands.

And Jacob said, Thou knowest in what things I have served thee, and how many cattle of thine are with me.

30 Thou hadst but little before I came to thee, and now thou art become rich: and the Lord hath blessed thee at my coming. It is reasonable therefore that I should now provide also for my own house.

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

31 And Laban said: What shall I give thee? But he said: I require nothing: but if thou wilt do what I demand, I will feed, and keep thy sheep again.

And Laban said to him, What shall I give thee? and Jacob said to him, Thou shalt not give me anything; if thou wilt do this thing for me, I will again tend thy flocks and keep them.

32 Go round through all thy flocks, and separate all the sheep of divers colours, and speckled: and all that is brown and spotted, and of divers colours, as well among the sheep, as among the goats, shall be my wages.

Let all thy sheep pass by to-day, 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 And my justice shall answer for me tomorrow before thee when the time of the bargain shall come: and all that is not of divers colours, and spotted, and brown, as well among the sheep as among the goats, shall accuse me of theft.

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

34 And Laban said: I like well what thou demandest.

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

35 And he separated the same day the she goats, and the sheep, and the he goats, and the rams of divers colours, and spotted: and all the flock of one colour, that is, of white and black fleece, he delivered into the hands of his sons.

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 And he set the space of three days’ journey betwixt himself and his son in law, who fed the rest of his flock.

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 And Jacob took green rods of poplar, and of almond, and of plane trees, and pilled them in part: so when the bark was taken off, in the parts that were pilled, there appeared whiteness: but the parts that were whole remained green: and by this means the colour was divers.

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 And he put them in the troughs, where the water was poured out: that when the flocks should come to drink, they might have the rods before their eyes, and in the sight of them might conceive.

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

39 And it came to pass that in the very heat of coition, the sheep beheld the rods, and brought forth spotted, and of divers colours, and speckled.

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

40 And Jacob separated the flock, and put the rods in the troughs before the eyes of the rams: and all the white and the black were Laban’s: and the rest were Jacob’s, when the flocks were separated one from the other.

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 So when the ewes went first to ram, Jacob put the rods in the troughs of water before the eyes of the rams, and of the ewes, that they might conceive while they were looking upon them:

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 the latter coming was, and the last conceiving, he did not put them. And those that were lateward, became Laban’s: and they of the first time, Jacob’s.

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 And the man was enriched exceedingly, and he had many flocks, maid servants and men servants, camels and asses.

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