Genesis 30
30When Rachel saw that she wasn't having any children for Jacob, she became jealous of her sister. She pleaded with Jacob, "Give me children, or I'll die!"H7354H7200H3205H3290H7354H7065H269H559H3290H3051H1121H369H41912Then Jacob became furious with Rachel. "Am I God?" he asked. "He's the one who has kept you from having children!"H3290H639H2734H7354H559H430H4513H6529H9903Then Rachel told him, "Take my maid, Bilhah, and sleep with her. She will bear children for me, and through her I can have a family, too."H559H519H1090H935H3205H1290H11294So Rachel gave her servant, Bilhah, to Jacob as a wife, and he slept with her.H5414H1090H8198H802H3290H9355Bilhah became pregnant and presented him with a son.H1090H2029H3205H3290H11216Rachel named him Dan, for she said, "God has vindicated me! He has heard my request and given me a son."H7354H559H430H1777H8085H6963H5414H1121H7121H8034H18357Then Bilhah became pregnant again and gave Jacob a second son.H1090H7354H8198H2029H3205H3290H8145H11218Rachel named him Naphtali, for she said, "I have struggled hard with my sister, and I'm winning!"H7354H559H430H5319H6617H269H3201H7121H8034H53219Meanwhile, Leah realized that she wasn't getting pregnant anymore, so she took her servant, Zilpah, and gave her to Jacob as a wife.H3812H7200H5975H3205H3947H2153H8198H5414H3290H80210Soon Zilpah presented him with a son.H2153H3812H8198H3205H3290H112111Leah named him Gad, for she said, "How fortunate I am!"H3812H559H1409H935H7121H8034H141012Then Zilpah gave Jacob a second son.H2153H3812H8198H3205H3290H8145H112113And Leah named him Asher, for she said, "What joy is mine! Now the other women will celebrate with me."H3812H559H837H1323H833H7121H8034H83614One day during the wheat harvest, Reuben found some mandrakes growing in a field and brought them to his mother, Leah. Rachel begged Leah, "Please give me some of your son's mandrakes."H7205H3212H3117H2406H7105H4672H1736H7704H935H517H3812H7354H559H3812H5414H1121H173615But Leah angrily replied, "Wasn't it enough that you stole my husband? Now will you steal my son's mandrakes, too?" Rachel answered, "I will let Jacob sleep with you tonight if you give me some of the mandrakes."H559H4592H3947H376H3947H1121H1736H7354H559H7901H3915H8478H1121H173616So that evening, as Jacob was coming home from the fields, Leah went out to meet him. "You must come and sleep with me tonight!" she said. "I have paid for you with some mandrakes that my son found." So that night he slept with Leah.H3290H935H7704H6153H3812H3318H7125H559H935H7936H7936H1121H1736H7901H391517And God answered Leah's prayers. She became pregnant again and gave birth to a fifth son for Jacob.H430H8085H3812H2029H3205H3290H2549H112118She named him Issachar, for she said, "God has rewarded me for giving my servant to my husband as a wife."H3812H559H430H5414H7939H834H5414H8198H376H7121H8034H348519Then Leah became pregnant again and gave birth to a sixth son for Jacob.H3812H2029H3205H3290H8345H112120She named him Zebulun, for she said, "God has given me a good reward. Now my husband will treat me with respect, for I have given him six sons."H3812H559H430H2064H2896H2065H6471H376H2082H3205H8337H1121H7121H8034H207421Later she gave birth to a daughter and named her Dinah.H310H3205H1323H7121H8034H178322Then God remembered Rachel's plight and answered her prayers by enabling her to have children.H430H2142H7354H430H8085H6605H735823She became pregnant and gave birth to a son. "God has removed my disgrace," she said.H2029H3205H1121H559H430H622H278124And she named him Joseph, for she said, "May the LORD add yet another son to my family."H7121H8034H3130H559H3068H3254H312H112125Soon after Rachel had given birth to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, "Please release me so I can go home to my own country.H7354H3205H3130H3290H559H3837H7971H3212H4725H77626Let me take my wives and children, for I have earned them by serving you, and let me be on my way. You certainly know how hard I have worked for you."H5414H802H3206H2004H5647H3212H3045H5656H564727"Please listen to me," Laban replied. "I have become wealthy, for the LORD has blessed me because of you.H3837H559H4672H2580H5869H5172H3068H1288H155828Tell me how much I owe you. Whatever it is, I'll pay it."H559H5344H7939H541429Jacob replied, "You know how hard I've worked for you, and how your flocks and herds have grown under my care.H559H3045H834H5647H834H473530You had little indeed before I came, but your wealth has increased enormously. The LORD has blessed you through everything I've done. But now, what about me? When can I start providing for my own family?"H4592H6440H6555H7230H3068H1288H7272H4970H6213H100431"What wages do you want?" Laban asked again. Jacob replied, "Don't give me anything. Just do this one thing, and I'll continue to tend and watch over your flocks.H559H5414H3290H559H5414H3972H6213H1697H7725H7462H8104H662932Let me inspect your flocks today and remove all the sheep and goats that are speckled or spotted, along with all the black sheep. Give these to me as my wages.H5674H6629H3117H5493H5348H2921H7716H2345H7716H3775H2921H5348H5795H793933In the future, when you check on the animals you have given me as my wages, you'll see that I have been honest. If you find in my flock any goats without speckles or spots, or any sheep that are not black, you will know that I have stolen them from you."H6666H6030H3117H4279H935H7939H6440H3605H5348H2921H5795H2345H3775H158934"All right," Laban replied. "It will be as you say."H3837H559H3863H169735But that very day Laban went out and removed the male goats that were streaked and spotted, all the female goats that were speckled and spotted or had white patches, and all the black sheep. He placed them in the care of his own sons,H5493H3117H8495H6124H2921H5795H5348H2921H3836H2345H3775H5414H3027H112136who took them a three-days' journey from where Jacob was. Meanwhile, Jacob stayed and cared for the rest of Laban's flock.H7760H7969H3117H1870H3290H3290H7462H3498H3837H662937Then Jacob took some fresh branches from poplar, almond, and plane trees and peeled off strips of bark, making white streaks on them.H3290H3947H4731H3892H3839H3869H6196H6478H3836H6479H3836H4286H473138Then he placed these peeled branches in the watering troughs where the flocks came to drink, for that was where they mated.H3322H4731H6478H5227H6629H7298H4325H8268H6629H935H8354H3179H935H835439And when they mated in front of the white-streaked branches, they gave birth to young that were streaked, speckled, and spotted.H6629H3179H4731H3205H6629H6124H5348H292140Jacob separated those lambs from Laban's flock. And at mating time he turned the flock to face Laban's animals that were streaked or black. This is how he built his own flock instead of increasing Laban's.H3290H6504H3775H5414H6440H6629H413H6124H2345H6629H3837H7896H5739H7896H3837H662941Whenever the stronger females were ready to mate, Jacob would place the peeled branches in the watering troughs in front of them. Then they would mate in front of the branches.H7194H6629H3179H3290H7760H4731H5869H6629H7298H3179H473142But he didn't do this with the weaker ones, so the weaker lambs belonged to Laban, and the stronger ones were Jacob's.H6629H5848H7760H5848H3837H7194H329043As a result, Jacob became very wealthy, with large flocks of sheep and goats, female and male servants, and many camels and donkeys.H376H6555H3966H3966H7227H6629H8198H5650H1581H2543
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, and through her I can have a family, too."H559
