1 When Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister. She said to Jacob, "Give me children, or else I will die." 2 Jacob's anger was kindled against Rachel, and he said, "Am I in God's place, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?" 3 She said, "Behold, my maid Bilhah. Go in to her, that she may bear on my knees, and I also may obtain children by her." 4 She gave him Bilhah her handmaid as wife, and Jacob went in to her. 5 Bilhah conceived, and bore Jacob a son. 6 Rachel said, "God has judged me, and has also heard my voice, and has given me a son." Therefore called she his name Dan. 7 Bilhah, Rachel's handmaid, conceived again, and bore Jacob a second son. 8 Rachel said, "With mighty wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and have prevailed." She named him Naphtali. 9 When Leah saw that she had finished bearing, she took Zilpah, her handmaid, and gave her to Jacob as a wife. 10 Zilpah, Leah's handmaid, bore Jacob a son. 11 Leah said, "How fortunate!" She named him Gad. 12 Zilpah, Leah's handmaid, bore Jacob a second son. 13 Leah said, "Happy am I, for the daughters will call me happy." She named him Asher. 14 Reuben went in the days of 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 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 will lie with you tonight for your son's mandrakes." 16 Jacob came from the field in the evening, and Leah went out to meet him, and said, "You must come in to me; for I have surely hired you with my son's mandrakes." He lay with her that night. 17 God listened to Leah, and she conceived, and bore Jacob a fifth son. 18 Leah said, "God has given me my hire, because I gave my handmaid to my husband." She named him Issachar. 19 Leah conceived again, and bore a sixth son to Jacob. 20 Leah said, "God has endowed me with a good dowry. Now my husband will live with me, because I have borne him six sons." She named him Zebulun. 21 Afterwards, she bore a daughter, and named her Dinah. 22 God remembered Rachel, and God listened to her, and opened her womb. 23 She conceived, bore a son, and said, "God has taken away my reproach." 24 She named him Joseph, saying, "May Yahweh add another son to me." 25 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 Give me my wives and my children for whom I have served you, and let me go; for you know my service with which I have served you." 27 Laban said to him, "If now I have found favor in your eyes, stay here, for I have divined that Yahweh has blessed me for your sake." 28 He said, "Appoint me your wages, and I will give it." 29 He said to him, "You know how I have served you, and how your livestock have fared with me. 30 For it was little which you had before I came, and it has increased to a multitude. Yahweh has blessed you wherever I turned. Now when will I provide for my own house also?" 31 He said, "What shall I give you?" Jacob said, "You shall not give me anything. If you will do this thing for me, I will again feed your flock and keep it. 32 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 hire. 33 So my righteousness will answer for me hereafter, when you come concerning my hire that is before you. Every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and black among the sheep, that might be with me, will be counted stolen." 34 Laban said, "Behold, let it be according to your word." 35 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 gave them into the hand of his sons. 36 He set three days' journey between himself and Jacob, and Jacob fed the rest of Laban's flocks. 37 Jacob took to himself rods of fresh poplar, almond, plane tree, peeled white streaks in them, and made the white appear which was in the rods. 38 He set the rods which he had peeled opposite the flocks in the gutters in the watering-troughs where the flocks came to drink. They conceived when they came to drink. 39 The flocks conceived before the rods, and the flocks brought forth streaked, speckled, and spotted. 40 Jacob separated the lambs, and set the faces of the flocks toward the streaked and all the black in the flock of Laban: and he put his own droves apart, and didn't put them into Laban's flock. 41 It happened, whenever the stronger of the flock conceived, that Jacob laid the rods before the eyes of the flock in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods; 42 but when the flock were feeble, he didn't put them in. So the feebler were Laban's, and the stronger Jacob's. 43 The man increased exceedingly, and had large flocks, female servants and male servants, and camels and donkeys.
Rachel envies her sister, and chides Jacob, Genesis 30:1. He reproves her and vindicates himself, Genesis 30:2. She gives him her maid Bilhah, Genesis 30:3, Genesis 30:4. She conceives, and bears Daniel. vv.5, 6; and afterwards Naphtali, Genesis 30:7, Genesis 30:8. Leah gives Zilpah her maid to Jacob, Genesis 30:9. She conceives and bears Gad, Genesis 30:10, Genesis 30:11, and also Asher, Genesis 30:12, Genesis 30:13. Reuben finds mandrakes, of which Rachel requests a part, Genesis 30:14. The bargain made between her and Leah, Genesis 30:15. Jacob in consequence lodges with Leah instead of Rachel, Genesis 30:16. She conceives, and bears Issachar, Genesis 30:17, Genesis 30:18, and Zebulun, Genesis 30:19, Genesis 30:20, and Dinah, Genesis 30:21. Rachel conceives, and bears Joseph, Genesis 30:22-24. Jacob requests permission from Laban to go to his own country, Genesis 30:25, Genesis 30:26. Laban entreats him to tarry, and offers to give him what wages he shall choose to name, Genesis 30:27, Genesis 30:28. Jacob details the importance of his services to Laban, Genesis 30:29, Genesis 30:30, and offers to continue those services for the speckled and spotted among the goats, and the brown among the sheep, Genesis 30:31-33. Laban consents, Genesis 30:34, and divides all the ring-streaked and spotted among the he-goats, the speckled and spotted among the she-goats, and the brown among the sheep, and puts them under the care of his sons, and sets three days' journey between himself and Jacob, Genesis 30:35, Genesis 30:36. Jacob's stratagem of the pilled rods, to cause the cattle to bring forth the ring-streaked, speckled, and spotted, Genesis 30:37-39. In consequence of which he increased his flock greatly, getting all that was strong and healthy in the flock of Laban, Genesis 30:40-43.
INTRODUCTION TO GENESIS 30
This chapter gives an account of Rachel's envy of her sister for her fruitfulness, and of her earnest desire of having children, which she expressed to Jacob in an unbecoming manner, for which he reproved her, Genesis 30:1, of her giving her maid Bilhah to Jacob, by whom he had two sons, Daniel and Naphtali, Genesis 30:3; and of Leah's giving her maid Zilpah to him, by whom he had two other sons, Gad and Asher, Genesis 30:9; and of Reuben's mandrakes he found in the field, and the agreement made between Rachel and Leah about them, Genesis 30:14; and of Leah's bearing Jacob two more sons and one daughter, Genesis 30:17, and of Rachel's also bearing him a son, whose name was Joseph, Genesis 30:22; upon which he desires leave of Laban to depart into his own country, his time of servitude being up, Genesis 30:25; which brought on a new agreement between him and Laban, that for the future he should have all the speckled, spotted, and brown cattle for his service, Genesis 30:27; and the chapter is concluded with an account of a cunning scheme of Jacob's to increase that sort of cattle, which succeeded, and by which he became rich, Genesis 30:37.
(Genesis 30:1-13) A further account of Jacob's family.
(Genesis 30:14-24) Rachel beareth Joseph.
(v. 25-43) Jacob's new agreement with Laban to serve him for cattle.
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