1 Mose 29
1 Da machte sich Jakob auf den Weg und wanderte ins Land der Söhne des Ostens.
Jacob continued on the road [MTY], and he arrived at the land that was east of Canaan.
2 Er schaute aus; da war im Feld ein Brunnen, und drei Schafherden lagerten daran; denn aus diesem Brunnen pflegte man die Herden zu tränken. Der Stein aber über dem Brunnenloch war groß.
There he [was surprised to] see a well in a field, and three flocks of sheep were lying near the well. It was the well from which shepherds habitually got water for their sheep. There was a large stone covering the top of the well.
3 Waren nun alle Herden dort beisammen, dann wälzte man den Stein vom Brunnenloch und tränkte die Schafe. Dann brachte man den Stein für das Brunnenloch wieder an seine Stelle.
When all the flocks were gathered there, the shepherds would work together to roll the stone away from the top of the well and get water for the sheep. When they finished doing that, they would put the stone back in its place over the top of the well.
4 Da sprach Jakob zu ihnen: "Brüder! Wo seid ihr her?" Sie sagten: "Aus Charan."
[On that day], Jacob asked the shepherds who were sitting there, “Where are you from?” They replied, “We are from Haran.”
5 Er sprach zu ihnen: "Kennt ihr Laban, Nachors Sohn?" Sie sprachen: "Jawohl!"
He asked them, “Do you know Laban, the grandson of Nahor?” They replied, “Yes, we know him.”
6 Er sprach zu ihnen: "Geht's ihm auch gut?" Sie sprachen: "Ja! Und da kommt gerade seine Tochter Rachel mit den Schafen."
Jacob asked them, “Is Laban well?” They replied, “Yes, he is well. Look! Here comes his daughter Rachel with the sheep!”
7 Er sprach: "Noch ist's hoch am Tag und noch zu früh, das Vieh einzutreiben. Tränket die Schafe und weidet weiter!"
Jacob said, “Hey! The sun is still high in the sky. It is not time for the flocks to be gathered for nighttime. Give the sheep some water and then take them back to (graze/eat grass) in the pastures!”
8 Sie sprachen: "Wir können es nicht, bis alle Herden beisammen sind; dann wälzt man den Stein vom Brunnenloch, und wir tränken die Schafe."
They replied, “No, we cannot do that until all the flocks are gathered here and the stone is removed from the top of the well. After that, we will give water to the sheep.”
9 Noch redete er mit ihnen, da kam Rachel mit den Schafen ihres Vaters; denn sie war Hirtin.
While he was still talking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep. She was the one who took care of her father’s sheep.
10 Wie nun Jakob Rachel, die Tochter seines Mutterbruders Laban, erblickt hatte und die Schafe seines Mutterbruders Laban, da trat Jakob herzu und wälzte den Stein vom Brunnenloch und tränkte seines Mutterbruders Laban Schafe.
When Jacob saw Rachel, the daughter of Laban, who was his mother’s brother, [Jacob was so excited that] he went over and [by himself] rolled away the stone that covered the top of the well, and he got water for his uncle’s sheep.
11 Dann küßte Jakob die Rachel und hob laut zu weinen an.
Then Jacob kissed Rachel [on the cheek], and he cried loudly [because he was so happy].
12 Und Jakob erzählte der Rachel, er sei ein Bruder ihres Vaters und zwar ein Sohn Rebekkas. Da lief sie und erzählte es ihrem Vater.
Jacob told Rachel that he was one of her father’s relatives, the son of her aunt Rebekah. So she ran and told that to her father.
13 Wie Laban solche Kunde von seinem Schwestersohne Jakob vernahm, lief er ihm entgegen, umarmte und küßte ihn und führte ihn in sein Haus; jener aber erzählte Laban die ganze Geschichte.
As soon as Laban heard that Jacob, his sister’s son, was there, he ran to meet him. He embraced him and kissed him [on the cheek]. Then he brought him to his home, and Jacob told him all that had happened to him.
14 Und Laban sprach zu ihm: "So bist du also von meinem Bein und Fleisch." Als er einen Monat lang bei ihm war.
Then Laban said to him, “Truly, you are part of my family!” After Jacob had stayed there and worked for Laban for a month,
15 sprach Laban zu Jakob: "Wolltest du, weil du mein Bruder bist, mir umsonst dienen? Sag mir: Was soll dein Lohn sein?"
Laban said to him “(You should not work for me for nothing just because you are a relative of mine!/Why should you work for me for nothing just because you are a relative of mine?) [RHQ] Tell me how much you want me to pay you.”
16 Nun hatte Laban zwei Töchter; die ältere hieß Lea, die jüngere Rachel.
Well, Laban had two daughters. The older one was named Leah, and the younger one was named Rachel.
17 Lea hatte glanzlose Augen, Rachel aber war schön von Gestalt und Antlitz.
Leah had pretty eyes, but Rachel had a very attractive figure and was beautiful.
18 Und Jakob gewann Rachel lieb. Er sprach: "Ich diene dir sieben Jahre um Rachel, deine jüngere Tochter."
Jacob (was in love with/wanted very much to be married to) Rachel, and he said, “I will work for you for seven years. That will be my payment for your letting me marry your younger daughter, Rachel.”
19 Laban sprach: "Besser, ich gebe sie dir als einem fremden Mann. Bleib bei mir!"
Laban replied, “It is better for me to let you marry her than for her to marry some other man!”
20 So diente Jakob um Rachel sieben Jahre, und sie dünkten ihm wie wenige Tage, weil er sie liebte.
So Jacob worked for Laban for seven years to get Rachel, but to him it seemed like it was only a few days, because he loved her so much.
21 Dann sprach Jakob zu Laban: "Gib mir mein Weib! Denn meine Zeit ist um, daß ich sie heirate."
After the seven years were ended, Jacob said to Laban, “Let me marry Rachel now, because the time we agreed upon for me to work for you is ended, and I want to marry her. [EUP]”
22 Da lud Laban alle Männer des Ortes ein und bereitete ein Gastmahl.
So Laban gathered together all the people who lived in that area and made a feast.
23 Als es Abend ward, nahm er seine Tochter Lea und führte sie ihm zu, und er wohnte ihr bei.
But that evening, instead of taking Rachel to Jacob, Laban took his older daughter, Leah, to him. But because it was already dark, he could not see that it was Leah and not Rachel, and he had sex [EUP] with her.
24 Und Laban gab seine Magd Zilpa seiner Tochter Lea zur Magd.
(Laban had already given his slave girl Zilpah to his daughter Leah to be her maid/servant.)
25 Am Morgen aber war es die Lea. Da sprach er zu Laban: "Was hast du mir da getan? Habe ich nicht um Rachel bei dir gedient? Warum hast du mich betrogen?"
The next morning, Jacob was shocked to see that it was Leah who was with him! So he went to Laban [and told him] very angrily, “(What you have done to me is disgusting!/What is this that you have done to me?) [RHQ] I worked for you to get Rachel, did I not? So why did you deceive me?”
26 Laban sprach:"An unserem Ort ist's nicht der Brauch, die jüngere vor der Älteren wegzugehen.
Laban replied, “In this land, it is not our custom to give a younger daughter to be married before we let someone marry our firstborn daughter.
27 Führe mit der einen die Woche zu Ende, dann werden wir dir auch die andere geben um den Dienst von weiteren sieben Jahren bei mir."
After we finish this week of celebration, we will let you marry the younger one also. But in return, you must pay for Rachel by working for me for another seven years.”
28 Und Jakob tat so und führte mit der einen die Woche zu Ende. Dann gab Laban ihm seine Tochter Rachel zum Weib.
So that is what Jacob did. After the week of celebration was ended, Laban gave him his daughter, Rachel, to be his wife.
29 Und Laban gab seiner Tochter seine Magd Bilha zur Magd.
Laban gave his slave girl, Bilhah, to Rachel to be her maid/servant.
30 So wohnte er auch Rachel bei. Er liebte aber Rachel mehr als Lea, und so diente er bei ihm andere sieben Jahre.
Jacob had sex [EUP] with Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than he loved Leah. And Jacob worked for Laban for another seven years.
31 Wie nun der Herr sah, daß Lea nicht geliebt wurde, öffnete er ihren Mutterschoß; Rachel aber blieb unfruchtbar.
When Yahweh saw that Jacob did not love Leah [very much], he enabled her to become pregnant. But Rachel was not able to become pregnant.
32 So empfing Lea, gebar einen Sohn und nannte ihn Ruben; denn sie sprach: "Gesehen hat ja der Herr mein Elend. Nun wird mein Mann mich liebgewinnen.
Leah gave birth to a son, whom she named Reuben, [which sounds like the Hebrew words that mean ‘Look, a son]!’ She said, “Yahweh has seen that I was miserable, and because of that he has given me a son. Now, surely my husband will love me for giving birth to a son for him.”
33 Wieder ward sie guter Hoffnung und gebar einen Sohn. Da sprach sie: "Gehört hat ja der Herr, daß ich ungeliebt bin. Darum gab er mir auch diesen." Und sie nannte ihn Simeon.
Later she became pregnant again and gave birth to another son. She said, “Because Yahweh has heard that my husband doesn’t love me, he has given me this son, too.” So she named him Simeon, [which means ‘someone who hears’].
34 Wieder ward sie guter Hoffnung und gebar einen Sohn. Da sprach sie: "Nun endlich wird sich mein Mann mit mir verbinden; drei Söhne habe ich ihm geboren." Darum nannte man ihn Levi.
Later she became pregnant again, and gave birth to another son. She said, “Now, finally, my husband will hold me close to him.” So she named him Levi, [which means ‘hold close’].
35 Wieder ward sie guter Hoffnung und gebar einen Sohn. Da sprach sie: "Endlich kann ich den Herrn lobpreisen." Darum nannte sie ihn Juda. Danach hörte sie mit Gebären auf.
Later she became pregnant again and gave birth to another son. She said, “(This time/Now) I will praise Yahweh.” So she called his name Judah, [which sounds like the Hebrew word that means ‘praise’]. After that, she did not give birth to any more children [for several years].
