Genesis 30

NEW JERUSALEM	NEW AMERICAN BIBLE
1 Rachel, seeing that she herself gave Jacob no children, became jealous of her sister. And she said toJacob, 'Give me children, or I shal die!'	1 When Rachel saw that she failed to bear children to Jacob, she became envious of her sister. She said to Jacob, "Give me children or I shall die!"
2 This made Jacob angry with Rachel, and he retorted, 'Am I in the position of God, who has denied youmotherhood?'	2 In anger Jacob retorted, "Can I take the place of God, who has denied you the fruit of the womb?"
3 So she said, 'Here is my slave-girl, Bilhah. Sleep with her and let her give birth on my knees; throughher, then, I too shal have children!'	3 She replied, "Here is my maidservant Bilhah. Have intercourse with her, and let her give birth on my knees, so that I too may have offspring, at least through her."
4 So she gave him her slave-girl Bilhah as concubine. Jacob slept with her,	4 So she gave him her maidservant Bilhah as a consort, and Jacob had intercourse with her.
5 and Bilhah conceived and gave birth to a son by Jacob.	5 When Bilhah conceived and bore a son,
6 Then Rachel said, 'God has done me justice; yes, he has heard my prayer and given me a son.'Accordingly she named him Dan.	6 Rachel said, "God has vindicated me; indeed he has heeded my plea and given me a son." Therefore she named him Dan.
7 Again Rachel's slave-girl Bilhah conceived and gave birth to a second son by Jacob.	7 Rachel's maidservant Bilhah conceived again and bore a second son,
8 Then Rachel said, 'I have fought a fateful battle with my sister, and I have won!' So she named himNaphtali.	8 and Rachel said, "I engaged in a fateful struggle with my sister, and I prevailed." So she named him Naphtali.
9 Now Leah, seeing that she had ceased to bear children, took her slave-girl Zilpah and gave her toJacob as concubine.	9 When Leah saw that she had ceased to bear children, she gave her maidservant Zilpah to Jacob as a consort.
10 So Leah's slave-girl Zilpah gave birth to a son by Jacob.	10 So Jacob had intercourse with Zilpah, and she conceived and bore a son.
11 Then Leah exclaimed, 'What good fortune!' So she named him Gad.	11 Leah then said, "What good luck!" So she named him Gad.
12 Leah's slave-girl Zilpah gave birth to a second son by Jacob.	12 Then Leah's maidservant Zilpah bore a second son to Jacob;
13 Then Leah said, 'What blessedness! Women will cal me blessed!' So she named him Asher.	13 and Leah said, "What good fortune!"--meaning, "Women call me fortunate." So she named him Asher.
14 One day, at the time of the wheat harvest, Reuben found some mandrakes in the field and broughtthem to his mother Leah. Rachel said to Leah, 'Please give me some of your son's mandrakes.'	14 One day, during the wheat harvest, when Reuben was out in the field, he came upon some mandrakes which he brought home to his mother Leah. Rachel asked Leah, "Please let me have some of your son's mandrakes."
15 Leah replied, 'Is it not enough to have taken my husband, without your taking my son's mandrakesas well?' So Rachel said, 'Very wel , he can sleep with you tonight in return for your son's mandrakes.'	15 Leah replied, "Was it not enough for you to take away my husband, that you must now take my son's mandrakes too?" "Very well, then!" Rachel answered. "In exchange for your son's mandrakes, Jacob may lie with you tonight."
16 When Jacob came back from the fields that night, Leah went out to meet him and said, 'You mustcome to me, for I have hired you at the price of my son's mandrakes.' So he slept with her that night.	16 That evening, when Jacob came home from the fields, Leah went out to meet him. "You are now to come in with me," she told him, "because I have paid for you with my son's mandrakes." So that night he slept with her,
17 God heard Leah, and she conceived and gave birth to a fifth son by Jacob.	17 and God heard her prayer; she conceived and bore a fifth son to Jacob.
18 Then Leah said, 'God has given me my reward for giving my slave-girl to my husband.' So shenamed him Issachar.	18 Leah then said, "God has given me my reward for having let my husband have my maidservant"; so she named him Issachar.
19 Again Leah conceived and gave birth to a sixth son by Jacob,	19 Leah conceived again and bore a sixth son to Jacob;
20 and said, 'God has given me a fine gift; now my husband wil bring me presents, for I have borne himsix sons.' So she named him Zebulun.	20 and she said, "God has brought me a precious gift. This time my husband will offer me presents, now that I have borne him six sons"; so she named him Zebulun.
21 Later she gave birth to a daughter and named her Dinah.	21 Finally, she gave birth to a daughter, and she named her Dinah.
22 Then God remembered Rachel; he heard her and opened her womb.	22 Then God remembered Rachel; he heard her prayer and made her fruitful.
23 She conceived and gave birth to a son, and said, 'God has taken away my disgrace!'	23 She conceived and bore a son, and she said, "God has removed my disgrace."
24 She named him Joseph, saying, 'May Yahweh add another son for me!'	24 So she named him Joseph, meaning, "May the LORD add another son to this one for me!"
25 When Rachel had given birth to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, 'Release me and let me go home tomy own country.	25 After Rachel gave birth to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban: "Give me leave to go to my homeland.
26 Give me my wives for whom I have worked for you, and my children, and let me go. You are welaware how long I have worked for you.'	26 Let me have my wives, for whom I served you, and my children, too, that I may depart. You know very well the service that I have rendered you."
27 Laban replied, 'If I have done what pleases you . . . I have learnt by divination that Yahweh hasblessed me because of you.	27 Laban answered him: "If you will please. . . . "I have learned through divination that it is because of you that God has blessed me.
28 So name your wages,' he added, 'and I wil pay.'	28 So," he continued, "state what wages you want from me, and I will pay them."
29 He replied, 'You know how hard I have worked for you, and how your stock has fared in my charge.	29 Jacob replied: "You know what work I did for you and how well your livestock fared under my care;
30 The little you had before I came has increased enormously, and Yahweh has blessed you wherever Ihave been. When am I to provide for my own household too?'	30 the little you had before I came has grown into very much, since the LORD'S blessings came upon you in my company. Therefore I should now do something for my own household as well."
31 Laban said, 'How much am I to pay you?' Jacob replied, 'You need not pay me anything. I shallchange my mind and go on tending your flock, if you do this one thing for me.	31 "What should I pay you?" Laban asked. Jacob answered: "You do not have to pay me anything outright. I will again pasture and tend your flock, if you do this one thing for me:
32 'Go through your entire flock today and remove every black animal among the sheep, and everyspeckled or spotted one among the goats. These wil be my wages,	32 go through your whole flock today and remove from it every dark animal among the sheep and every spotted or speckled one among the goats. Only such animals shall be my wages.
33 and my uprightness wil answer for me later: when you come to check my wages, every goat I havethat is not speckled or spotted, and every sheep that is not black will count as stolen by me.'	33 In the future, whenever you check on these wages of mine, let my honesty testify against me: any animal in my possession that is not a speckled or spotted goat, or a dark sheep, got there by theft!"
34 Laban replied, 'Good, just as you say.'	34 "Very well," agreed Laban. "Let it be as you say."
35 That same day he removed the striped and speckled he-goats and all the spotted and speckled she-goats, every one that had white on it, and al the black sheep, and entrusted these to his sons.	35 That same day Laban removed the streaked and spotted he-goats and all the speckled and spotted she-goats, all those with some white on them, as well as the fully dark-colored sheep; these he left. . . in charge of his sons.
36 Then he put a three days' journey between himself and Jacob, while Jacob grazed the rest ofLaban's flock.	36 Then he put a three days' journey between himself and Jacob, while Jacob continued to pasture the rest of Laban's flock.
37 Jacob then got fresh shoots from poplar, almond and plane trees, and peeled them in white strips,laying bare the white part of the shoots.	37 Jacob, however, got some fresh shoots of poplar, almond and plane trees, and he made white stripes in them by peeling off the bark down to the white core of the shoots.
38 He set up the shoots he had peeled in front of the animals, in the troughs, in the water-holes wherethe animals came to drink. Since they mated when they came to drink,	38 The rods that he had thus peeled he then set upright in the watering troughs, so that they would be in front of the animals that drank from the troughs. When the animals were in heat as they came to drink,
39 the goats thus mated in front of the shoots and so the goats produced striped, spotted and speckledyoung.	39 the goats mated by the rods, and so they brought forth streaked, speckled and spotted kids.
40 The ewes, on the other hand, Jacob kept apart and made these face whatever was striped or blackin Laban's flock. Thus he built up droves of his own which he did not put with Laban's flocks.	40 The sheep, on the other hand, Jacob kept apart, and he set these animals to face the streaked or fully dark-colored animals of Laban. Thus he produced special flocks of his own, which he did not put with Laban's flock.
41 Furthermore, whenever the sturdier animals were mating, Jacob put the shoots where the animalscould see them, in the troughs, so that they would mate in front of the shoots.	41 Moreover, whenever the hardier animals were in heat, Jacob would set the rods in the troughs in full view of these animals, so that they mated by the rods;
42 But when the animals were feeble, he did not put them there; so Laban got the feeble, and Jacob thesturdy.	42 but with the weaker animals he would not put the rods there. So the feeble animals would go to Laban, but the sturdy ones to Jacob.
43 Thus the man grew extremely rich, and came to own large flocks, men and women slaves, camelsand donkeys.	43 Thus the man grew increasingly prosperous, and he came to own not only large flocks but also male and female servants and camels and asses.