Genesis 30
30
Battle of the Brides
1When Rachel saw that she could not give Jacob children, her jealousy toward her sister simmered. So, she said to Jacob, “Give me sons, or I’ll die!” # 30:1 Ironically, Rachel died while giving birth to her second son (see Gen. 35:16–19).
2Jacob became furious with Rachel and said, “Am I God? He’s the one keeping you from bearing children!” 3She replied, “Here’s my servant Bilhah. Sleep with her. She can be my surrogate; then I can have children through her # 30:3 Literally, “that she may bear upon my knees,” a Hebrew figurative expression that refers to the practice of obtaining children through the service of another woman and legally adopting the child as one’s own. See Gen. 50:23 and footnote; Job 3:12. and build a family.” # 30:3 Or “I will be built up through her.”
4So Rachel gave her servant Bilhah to Jacob as another wife, and Jacob slept with her. 5And Bilhah conceived and bore Jacob a son, 6and Rachel named him Dan, saying, “God has vindicated me. # 30:6 Or “judged me [decided in my favor].” The name Dan sounds like the Hebrew verb meaning “to judge.” The Hebrew contains a wordplay on his name—“God has vindicated [dananni] me.” He heard my voice and gave me a son.” 7Then her servant Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son. 8Rachel named him Naphtali, saying, “I have wrestled mightily # 30:8 The name Naphtali means “wrestle,” “contest,” “struggle,” or “fight.” The Hebrew reads “with wrestling of ’elohim,” posing an interpretive problem. There are three ways to understand this phrase: (1) Many scholars see ’elohim as a descriptive term of intensity meaning “great” or “might.” (2) Some interpret this statement as Rachel wrestling with God for his favor. (3) Some see it as describing a mysterious struggle or “fateful contest [of God]” or “playing a trick on her sister.” In any case, this was one troubled home. As Jacob had struggled with his older brother, Rachel now struggled with her older sister. with my sister, and I won!”
9Meanwhile, when Leah saw that she had ceased bearing children, she took her servant Zilpah and gave her to Jacob as another wife. 10-11Zilpah bore Jacob a son, and Leah named him Gad, saying, “What good fortune!” # 30:10–11 The name Gad means “good fortune” or “good luck has come.” 12Zilpah bore Jacob a second son, 13and Leah named him Asher, saying, “Oh happy day! # 30:13 The name Asher means “happy.” All the women will say, ‘She’s happy now!’ ”
14One day, during wheat harvest, Reuben found some mandrake plants # 30:14 Mandrakes, or “love apples,” had an erotic connotation and were considered in that culture to have aphrodisiac properties. Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love, beauty, and sex, was known as the “Lady of the Mandrake.” The Hebrew root for “mandrake” is similar to the word for “love.” in the field and brought them to his mother Leah. Rachel said to Leah, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.”
15Leah replied, “You already took away the affection of my husband, so now you’re going to take my son’s mandrakes, too?”
Rachel said, “All right then, I’ll let him sleep with you tonight in exchange for some of your son’s mandrakes.”
16That evening, when Jacob was coming home from the field, Leah went out to meet him and said, “You must sleep with me tonight, for I’ve paid for your services with my son’s mandrakes.” So Jacob slept with Leah that night. 17God listened compassionately to Leah’s cry, she became pregnant, and bore Jacob a fifth son, 18whom she named Issachar, saying, “God rewarded # 30:18 The name Issachar comes from the Hebrew word for “reward.” me for giving my maidservant to my husband.”
19Once again, Leah conceived and bore Jacob a sixth son, 20whom she named Zebulun, saying, “God has given me good gifts for my husband! Now he will accept # 30:20 The name Zebulun sounds like the Hebrew word for “honor,” “raise up,” or “accept.” me, for I’ve given him six sons.” 21Lastly, Leah gave birth to a daughter and named her Dinah. # 30:21 Dinah means “judgment” or “vindication.”
22God listened to Rachel’s heart-cry, and had compassion # 30:22 Or “God remembered.” on her, and made her fertile.
23-24She conceived, and bore a son, and named him Joseph, saying, “God has taken away my disgrace. May Yahweh add # 30:23–24 The name Joseph means “he adds [another].” to me another son.”
Jacob Makes a Deal with Laban
25After Rachel gave birth to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Release me to go back home to my homeland. 26You know how hard I’ve worked for you these many years to finish paying for my two wives. Give them to me along with my children, and I’ll be on my way.”
27Laban countered, “If you please, I have learned by divine inquiry # 30:27 Or “by divination [omens, astrology, fortune-tellers].” God forbid divination among his people (see Lev. 19:26; Deut. 18:10, 14.) that I have become prosperous because of you and the blessing of Yahweh that’s on your life. 28Just name your price, and I’ll give it to you.”
29Jacob replied, “You know how hard I’ve worked for you and how your livestock has increased under my care. 30The little you had before I came has multiplied greatly, for Yahweh has blessed you wonderfully because I am here. # 30:30 Literally, “according to my foot,” a figure of speech for “because I am here [working for you].” But now, I need to provide for my own family, too.”
31So Laban asked, “What should I give you?”
“Nothing,” Jacob replied, “You don’t need to give me a thing. If you will do but one thing for me, I will continue to care for your flocks: 32Just let me pass through all your flocks today and take out every speckled and spotted sheep or goat, and every black lamb. That’s all the payment I ask. 33And in the future, when you review my wages, the integrity of my dealings with you will be obvious. If you find any animal among mine that is not speckled, spotted, or black, then you will know that I stole it.”
34“Agreed!” Laban said. “We’ll do what you’ve suggested.” 35But that same day, Laban secretly removed all the male and female goats that were speckled or spotted (all that had white on them) and all the black lambs and left them under the care of his sons. 36He set a distance of a three-day journey between himself and Jacob, while Jacob continued to tend the rest of Laban’s flocks.
37Jacob, however, cut green branches of poplar, almond, and plane trees and peeled back part of their bark, to expose the white inner wood of the branches. 38Then he set the partially peeled branches inside the water troughs where the goats would see them when they came to drink. 39For they mated when they came to the water troughs, and as they lowered their heads to drink, they saw the stripped branches in front of their eyes. Miraculously # 30:39 These were not simply principles of animal husbandry, but a divine miracle revealed to Jacob through a dream (see Gen. 31:10–13). God always uses unique and puzzling methods to perform a miracle. He may require bathing seven times in the Jordan River (see 2 Kings 5:10), parting the Red Sea (see Ex. 14), or having the sun stand still (see Josh. 10:13–14). God displayed his creative power through the birth of these multicolored young goats. Perhaps the miracle teaches us that what we see or gaze upon can impregnate us with the object of our vision, for you can determine what you conceive by what you behold. What you set your gaze upon is what you will give birth to. they gave birth to streaked, speckled, and spotted young. 40But with the mating ewes, on the other hand, he made them face the streaked or completely black animals in Laban’s flock. By doing this, he produced his own special flocks, which he didn’t allow to mingle with Laban’s. 41Moreover, every time the stronger females were in heat, Jacob laid the partially peeled branches in the water troughs in front of the flock, so that they would mate among the branches. 42But he didn’t place the branches in front of the scrawny goats when they mated, leaving the feeble animals for Laban and the stronger for himself. 43In this way, Jacob quickly grew very wealthy and owned large flocks, a great number of camels and donkeys, and many male and female servants.
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Genesis 30: TPT
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Learn More About The Passion TranslationGenesis 30
30
1When Rachel saw that she had not borne children to Jacob, she became envious of her sister. She said to Jacob, “Give me children or I shall die!”#Prv 30:16. 2Jacob became angry with Rachel and said, “Can I take the place of God, who has denied you the fruit of the womb?”#2 Kgs 5:7. 3She replied, “Here is my maidservant Bilhah. Have intercourse with her, and let her give birth on my knees,#On my knees: in the ancient Near East, a father would take a newborn child in his lap to signify that he acknowledged it as his own; Rachel uses the ceremony in order to adopt the child and establish her legal rights to it. so that I too may have children through her.”#Gn 16:2–4. 4So she gave him her maidservant Bilhah as wife,#As wife: in 35:22 Bilhah is called a “concubine” (Heb. pilegesh). In v. 9, Zilpah is called “wife,” and in 37:2 both women are called wives. The basic difference between a wife and a concubine was that no bride price was paid for the latter. The interchange of terminology shows that there was some blurring in social status between the wife and the concubine. and Jacob had intercourse with her. 5When Bilhah conceived and bore a son for Jacob, 6Rachel said, “God has vindicated me; indeed he has heeded my plea and given me a son.” Therefore she named him Dan.#Dan: explained by the term dannanni, “he has vindicated me.” 7Rachel’s maidservant Bilhah conceived again and bore a second son for Jacob, 8and Rachel said, “I have wrestled strenuously with my sister, and I have prevailed.” So she named him Naphtali.#Naphtali: explained by the Hebrew term naftulim, lit., “contest” or “struggle.”
9When Leah saw that she had ceased to bear children, she took her maidservant Zilpah and gave her to Jacob as wife. 10So Leah’s maidservant Zilpah bore a son for Jacob. 11Leah then said, “What good luck!” So she named him Gad.#Gad: explained by the Hebrew term begad, lit., “in luck,” i.e., “what good luck!” 12Then Leah’s maidservant Zilpah bore a second son to Jacob; 13and Leah said, “What good fortune, because women will call me fortunate!” So she named him Asher.#Asher: explained by the term be’oshri, lit., “in my good fortune,” i.e., “what good fortune,” and by the term ye’ashsheruni, “they call me fortunate.”
14One day, during the wheat harvest, Reuben went out and came upon some mandrakes#Mandrakes: an herb whose root was thought to promote conception. The Hebrew word for mandrakes, duda’im, has erotic connotations, since it sounds like the words daddayim (“breasts”) and dodim (“sexual pleasure”). in the field which he brought home to his mother Leah. Rachel said to Leah, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.” 15Leah replied, “Was it not enough for you to take away my husband, that you must now take my son’s mandrakes too?” Rachel answered, “In that case Jacob may lie with you tonight in exchange for your son’s mandrakes.” 16That evening, when Jacob came in from the field, Leah went out to meet him. She said, “You must have intercourse with me, because I have hired you with my son’s mandrakes.” So that night he lay with her, 17and God listened to Leah; she conceived and bore a fifth son to Jacob. 18Leah then said, “God has given me my wages for giving my maidservant to my husband”; so she named him Issachar.#Issachar: explained by the terms, sekari, “my reward,” and in v. 16, sakor sekartika, “I have hired you.” 19Leah conceived again and bore a sixth son to Jacob; 20and Leah said, “God has brought me a precious gift. This time my husband will honor me, because I have borne him six sons”; so she named him Zebulun.#Zebulun: explained by the terms, zebadani…zebed tob, “he has brought me a precious gift,” and yizbeleni, “he will honor me.” 21Afterwards she gave birth to a daughter, and she named her Dinah.
22Then God remembered Rachel. God listened to her and made her fruitful. 23She conceived and bore a son, and she said, “God has removed my disgrace.”#Lk 1:25. 24She named him Joseph,#Joseph: explained by the words yosep, “may he add,” and in v. 23, ’asap, “he has removed.” saying, “May the Lord add another son for me!”
Jacob Outwits Laban.#Jacob’s deception of Laban. Jacob has been living in Laban’s household as an indentured worker paying off the bride price. Having paid off all his obligations, he wants to settle his accounts with Laban. His many children attest to the fulfillment of the Lord’s promise of numerous progeny; the birth of Joseph to his beloved Rachel signals the fulfillment in a special way. To enter into the Lord’s second promise, the land, he must now return to Canaan. 25After Rachel gave birth to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban: “Allow me to go to my own region and land. 26Give me my wives and my children for whom I served you and let me go, for you know the service that I rendered you.” 27Laban answered him: “If you will please! I have learned through divination that the Lord has blessed me because of you.” 28He continued, “State the wages I owe you, and I will pay them.” 29Jacob replied: “You know what work I did for you and how well your livestock fared under my care; 30the little you had before I came has grown into an abundance, since the Lord has blessed you in my company. Now, when can I do something for my own household as well?” 31Laban asked, “What should I give you?” Jacob answered: “You do not have to give me anything. If you do this thing for me, I will again pasture and tend your sheep. 32Let me go through your whole flock today and remove from it every dark animal among the lambs and every spotted or speckled one among the goats.#Dark…lambs…spotted or speckled…goats: in the Near East the normal color of sheep is light gray, whereas that of goats is dark brown or black. A minority of sheep in that part of the world have dark patches, and a minority of goats, white markings. Laban is quick to agree to the offer, for Jacob would have received only a few animals. But Jacob gets the better of him, using two different means: (1) he separates out the weaker animals and then provides visual impressions to the stronger animals at mating time (a folkloric belief); (2) in 31:8–12, he transmits the preferred characteristics through controlled propagation. It should be noted that Jacob has been told what to do in a dream (31:10) and that God is behind the increase in his flocks. These will be my wages. 33In the future, whenever you check on my wages, my honesty will testify for me: any animal that is not speckled or spotted among the goats, or dark among the lambs, got into my possession by theft!” 34Laban said, “Very well. Let it be as you say.”
35That 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 every dark lamb, and he put them in the care of his sons.#By giving the abnormally colored animals to his sons, Laban not only deprived Jacob of his first small wages, but he also schemed to prevent the future breeding of such animals in the flock entrusted to Jacob. 36Then he put a three days’ journey between himself and Jacob, while Jacob was pasturing the rest of Laban’s flock.
37Jacob, however, got some fresh shoots of poplar, almond and plane#Plane: also called the Oriental Plane, a deciduous tree found in riverine forests and marshes. trees, and he peeled white stripes in them by laying bare the white core of the shoots. 38The shoots that he had peeled he then set upright in the watering troughs where the animals came to drink, so that they would be in front of them. When the animals were in heat as they came to drink, 39the goats mated by the shoots, and so they gave birth to streaked, speckled and spotted young. 40The sheep, on the other hand, Jacob kept apart, and he made these animals face the streaked or completely dark animals of Laban. Thus he produced flocks of his own, which he did not put with Laban’s flock. 41Whenever the hardier animals were in heat, Jacob would set the shoots in the troughs in full view of these animals, so that they mated by the shoots; 42but with the weaker animals he would not put the shoots there. So the feeble animals would go to Laban, but the hardy ones to Jacob. 43So the man grew exceedingly prosperous, and he owned large flocks, male and female servants, camels, and donkeys.
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