Self-interpreting Bible

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Genesis 30

1Rachel in grief for her barrenness giveth her maid Bilhah unto Jacob. 5Bilhah beareth Dan and Naphtali. 9Leah giveth Zilpah her maid, who beareth Gad and Asher. 14Reuben findeth mandrakes, for which Rachel yieldeth her husband to Leah. 17Leah beareth Issachar, Zebulun, and Dinah. 22Rachel beareth Joseph. 25Jacob desireth to depart, but is retained by Laban on a new agreement. 37Jacob's policy, whereby he becometh rich.


1 AND when Rachel saw that ashe bare Jacob no children, Rachel benvied her sister; and said unto Jacob, Give me children, cor else I die.

2 And Jacob's danger was kindled against Rachel: and he said, eAm I in God's *stead, who hath withheld from thee the ffruit of the womb?

3 And she said, Behold my maid gBilhah, hgo in unto her; and she shall bear iupon my knees, that I may also 1have children by her.

4 And she gave him Bilhah her handmaid jto wife: and Jacob went in unto her.

5 And Bilhah conceived, and bare Jacob a son.

    6 And Rachel said, God hath judged me, and hath also heard my voice, and hath given me a son: therefore called she his name 2Dan.

    7 And Bilhah Rachel's maid conceived again, and bare Jacob a second son.

      8 And Rachel said, With 3great wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and I have prevailed: and she called his name 4Naphtali.

      9 When Leah saw that she had kleft bearing, she took Zilpah her maid, and lgave her Jacob to wife.

      10 And Zilpah Leah's maid bare Jacob a son.

        11 And Leah said, A troop cometh: and she called his name 5Gad.

        12 And Zilpah Leah's maid bare Jacob a second son.

          13 And Leah said, 6Happy am I, for the daughters will mcall me blessed: and she called his name 7Asher.

          14 ¶And Reuben went in the days of wheat harvest, and found n*mandrakes in the field, and brought them unto his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, Give me, I pray thee, of thy son's mandrakes.

          • n: Ca. 7:13
          • *: mandrakes-plants with narcotic roots.

          15 And she said unto her, Is it a small matter that thou hast taken my husband? and wouldest thou take away my son's *mandrakes also? And Rachel said, Therefore he shall lie with thee to night for thy son's mandrakes.

          • *: mandrakes-plants with narcotic roots.

          16 And Jacob came out of the field in the evening, and Leah went out to meet him, and said, Thou must come in unto me; for surely I have hired thee with my son's *mandrakes. And he lay with her that night.

          • *: mandrakes-plants with narcotic roots.

          17 And God hearkened unto Leah, and she conceived, and bare Jacob the fifth son.

            18 And Leah said, God hath given me my hire, because I have given my maiden to my husband: and she called his name 8Issachar.

            19 And Leah conceived again, and bare Jacob the sixth son.

              20 And Leah said, God hath *endued me with a good dowry; now will my husband dwell with me, because I have born him six sons: and she called his name 9Zebulun.

              21 And afterwards she bare a daughter, and called her name 10Dinah.

              22 ¶And God oremembered Rachel, and God hearkened to her, and opened her womb.

              23 And she conceived, and bare a son; and said, God hath taken away my preproach:

              24 And she called his name 11Joseph; and said, The LORD shall qadd to me another son.

              25 ¶And it came to pass, when Rachel had born Joseph, that Jacob said unto Laban, Send me away, that I may go unto mine own place, and to rmy country.

              26 Give me my wives and my children, sfor whom I have served thee, and let me go: for thou knowest my service which I have done thee.

              27 And Laban said unto him, I pray thee, if I have tfound favour in thine eyes, tarry: for I have learned by experience that uthe LORD hath blessed me for thy sake.

              28 And he said, vAppoint me thy wages, and I will give it.

              29 And he said unto him, Thou knowest whow I have served thee, and how thy cattle was with me.

              30 For it was little which thou hadst before I came, and it is now 12increased unto a multitude; and the LORD hath blessed thee 13since my coming: and now when shall I xprovide for mine own house also?

              31 And he said, What shall I give thee? And Jacob said, Thou shalt not give me yany thing: if thou wilt do this thing for me, I will again feed and keep thy flock:

              32 I will pass through all thy flock to day, removing from thence all the speckled and spotted cattle, and all the brown cattle among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats: and of zsuch shall be my hire.

              33 So shall my arighteousness answer for me 14in time to come, when it shall come for my hire before thy face: every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and brown among the sheep, that shall be counted stolen with me.

              34 And Laban said, Behold, I would it might be according to thy word.

                35 And he removed that day the he goats that were *ringstraked and spotted, and all the she goats that were speckled and spotted, and every one that had some white in it, and all the brown among the sheep, and gave them into the hand of his sons.

                • *: ringstraked-streaked, striped.

                36 And he set three days' journey betwixt himself and Jacob: and Jacob fed the rest of Laban's bflocks.

                37 ¶And Jacob took him crods of green poplar, and of the 15hazel dand *chesnut tree; and *pilled white *strakes in them, and made the white appear which was in the rods.

                • c: Ge. 31:8 - 12
                • 15: Heb. luz, ch. 28.10. , Ge. 28:10
                • d: Eze. 31:8
                • *: chesnut-chestnut, or plane tree. , pilled-peeled, stripped off bark. , strakes-streaks.

                38 And he set the rods which he had *pilled before the flocks in the gutters in the watering troughs when the flocks came to drink, that they should 16conceive when they came to drink.

                • *: pilled-peeled, stripped off bark.
                • 16: Heb. be in heat.

                39 And the flocks econceived before the rods, and brought forth cattle f*ringstraked, speckled, and spotted.

                40 And Jacob did separate the lambs, and set the faces of the flocks toward the *ringstraked, and all the brown in the flock of Laban; and he put his own flocks by themselves, and put them not unto Laban's cattle.

                • *: ringstraked-streaked, striped.

                41 And it came to pass, whensoever the stronger cattle did conceive, that Jacob laid the rods before the eyes of the cattle in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods.

                  42 But when the cattle were feeble, he put them not in: so the feebler were Laban's, and the stronger Jacob's.

                    43 And the man gincreased exceedingly, and had much cattle, and maidservants, and menservants, and hcamels, and asses.