Genesis 30
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1When Rachel saw that she was not bearing Jacob any children, she envied her sister. "Give me sons, or I will die!" she said to Jacob. 1When Rachel saw that she was not bearing Jacob any children, she became jealous of her sister. So she said to Jacob, "Give me children, or I'll die!"
2Jacob became angry with Rachel and said, "Am I in God's place, who has withheld children from you?" 2Jacob became angry with her and said, "Am I in the place of God, who has kept you from having children?"
3Then she said, "Here is my slave Bilhah. Go sleep with her, and she'll bear children for me so that through her I too can build a family."3Then she said, "Here is Bilhah, my servant. Sleep with her so that she can bear children for me and I too can build a family through her."
4So Rachel gave her slave Bilhah to Jacob as a wife, and he slept with her. 4So she gave him her servant Bilhah as a wife. Jacob slept with her,
5Bilhah conceived and bore Jacob a son. 5and she became pregnant and bore him a son.
6Rachel said, "God has vindicated me; yes, He has heard me and given me a son," and she named him Dan. 6Then Rachel said, "God has vindicated me; he has listened to my plea and given me a son." Because of this she named him Dan.
7Rachel's slave Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son. 7Rachel's servant Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son.
8Rachel said, "In my wrestlings with God, I have wrestled with my sister and won," and she named him Naphtali. 8Then Rachel said, "I have had a great struggle with my sister, and I have won." So she named him Naphtali.
9When Leah saw that she had stopped having children, she took her slave Zilpah and gave her to Jacob as a wife. 9When Leah saw that she had stopped having children, she took her servant Zilpah and gave her to Jacob as a wife.
10Leah's slave Zilpah bore Jacob a son. 10Leah's servant Zilpah bore Jacob a son.
11Then Leah said, "What good fortune!" and she named him Gad. 11Then Leah said, "What good fortune!" So she named him Gad.
12When Leah's slave Zilpah bore Jacob a second son, 12Leah's servant Zilpah bore Jacob a second son.
13Leah said, "I am happy that the women call me happy," so she named him Asher. 13Then Leah said, "How happy I am! The women will call me happy." So she named him Asher.
14Reuben went out during the wheat harvest and found some mandrakes in the field. When he brought them to his mother Leah, Rachel asked, "Please give me some of your son's mandrakes." 14During wheat harvest, Reuben went out into the fields and found some mandrake plants, which he brought to his mother Leah. Rachel said to Leah, "Please give me some of your son's mandrakes."
15But Leah replied to her, "Isn't it enough that you have taken my husband? Now you also want to take my son's mandrakes?"" Well," Rachel said, "you can sleep with him tonight in exchange for your son's mandrakes." 15But she said to her, "Wasn't it enough that you took away my husband? Will you take my son's mandrakes too?" "Very well," Rachel said, "he can sleep with you tonight in return for your son's mandrakes."
16When Jacob came in from the field that evening, Leah went out to meet him and said, "You must come with me, for I have hired you with my son's mandrakes." So Jacob slept with her that night. 16So when Jacob came in from the fields that evening, Leah went out to meet him. "You must sleep with me," she said. "I have hired you with my son's mandrakes." So he slept with her that night.
17God listened to Leah, and she conceived and bore Jacob a fifth son. 17God listened to Leah, and she became pregnant and bore Jacob a fifth son.
18Leah said, "God has rewarded me for giving my slave to my husband," and she named him Issachar. 18Then Leah said, "God has rewarded me for giving my servant to my husband." So she named him Issachar.
19Then Leah conceived again and bore Jacob a sixth son. "19Leah conceived again and bore Jacob a sixth son.
20God has given me a good gift," Leah said. "This time my husband will honor me because I have borne six sons for him," and she named him Zebulun.20Then Leah said, "God has presented me with a precious gift. This time my husband will treat me with honor, because I have borne him six sons." So she named him Zebulun.
21Later, Leah bore a daughter and named her Dinah. 21Some time later she gave birth to a daughter and named her Dinah.
22Then God remembered Rachel. He listened to her and opened her womb.22Then God remembered Rachel; he listened to her and enabled her to conceive.
23She conceived and bore a son, and said, "God has taken away my shame."23She became pregnant and gave birth to a son and said, "God has taken away my disgrace."
24She named him Joseph: "May the LORD add another son to me." 24She named him Joseph, and said, "May the LORD add to me another son."
25After Rachel gave birth to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, "Send me on my way so that I can return to my homeland. 25After Rachel gave birth to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, "Send me on my way so I can go back to my own homeland.
26Give me my wives and my children that I have worked for, and let me go. You know how hard I have worked for you." 26Give me my wives and children, for whom I have served you, and I will be on my way. You know how much work I've done for you."
27But Laban said to him, "If I have found favor in your sight, stay. I have learned by divination that the LORD has blessed me because of you." 27But Laban said to him, "If I have found favor in your eyes, please stay. I have learned by divination that the LORD has blessed me because of you."
28Then Laban said, "Name your wages, and I will pay them." 28He added, "Name your wages, and I will pay them."
29So Jacob said to him, "You know what I have done for you and your herds.29Jacob said to him, "You know how I have worked for you and how your livestock has fared under my care.
30For you had very little before I came, but now your wealth has increased. The LORD has blessed you because of me. And now, when will I also do something for my own family?" 30The little you had before I came has increased greatly, and the LORD has blessed you wherever I have been. But now, when may I do something for my own household?"
31Laban asked, "What should I give you?" And Jacob said, "You don't need to give me anything. If you do this one thing for me, I will continue to shepherd and keep your flock. 31"What shall I give you?" he asked. "Don't give me anything," Jacob replied. "But if you will do this one thing for me, I will go on tending your flocks and watching over them:
32Let me go through all your sheep today and remove every sheep that is speckled or spotted, every dark-colored sheep among the lambs, and the spotted and speckled among the female goats. Such will be my wages. 32Let me go through all your flocks today and remove from them every speckled or spotted sheep, every dark-colored lamb and every spotted or speckled goat. They will be my wages.
33In the future when you come to check on my wages, my honesty will testify for me. If I have any female goats that are not speckled or spotted, or any lambs that are not black, they will be considered stolen."" 33And my honesty will testify for me in the future, whenever you check on the wages you have paid me. Any goat in my possession that is not speckled or spotted, or any lamb that is not dark-colored, will be considered stolen."
34Good," said Laban. "Let it be as you have said." 34"Agreed," said Laban. "Let it be as you have said."
35That day Laban removed the streaked and spotted male goats and all the speckled and spotted female goats--every one that had any white on it--and every dark-colored one among the lambs, and he placed his sons in charge of them.35That same day he removed all the male goats that were streaked or spotted, and all the speckled or spotted female goats (all that had white on them) and all the dark-colored lambs, and he placed them in the care of his sons.
36He put a three-day journey between himself and Jacob. Jacob, meanwhile, was shepherding the rest of Laban's flock. 36Then he put a three-day journey between himself and Jacob, while Jacob continued to tend the rest of Laban's flocks.
37Jacob then took branches of fresh poplar, almond, and plane wood, and peeled the bark, exposing white stripes on the branches. 37Jacob, however, took fresh-cut branches from poplar, almond and plane trees and made white stripes on them by peeling the bark and exposing the white inner wood of the branches.
38He set the peeled branches in the troughs in front of the sheep--in the water channels where the sheep came to drink. And the sheep bred when they came to drink. 38Then he placed the peeled branches in all the watering troughs, so that they would be directly in front of the flocks when they came to drink. When the flocks were in heat and came to drink,
39The flocks bred in front of the branches and bore streaked, speckled, and spotted young.39they mated in front of the branches. And they bore young that were streaked or speckled or spotted.
40Jacob separated the lambs and made the flocks face the streaked and the completely dark sheep in Laban's flocks. Then he set his own stock apart and didn't put them with Laban's sheep. 40Jacob set apart the young of the flock by themselves, but made the rest face the streaked and dark-colored animals that belonged to Laban. Thus he made separate flocks for himself and did not put them with Laban's animals.
41Whenever the stronger of the flock were breeding, Jacob placed the branches in the troughs, in full view of the flocks, and they would breed in front of the branches. 41Whenever the stronger females were in heat, Jacob would place the branches in the troughs in front of the animals so they would mate near the branches,
42As for the weaklings of the flocks, he did not put out the branches. So it turned out that the weak sheep belonged to Laban and the stronger ones to Jacob. 42but if the animals were weak, he would not place them there. So the weak animals went to Laban and the strong ones to Jacob.
43And the man became very rich. He had many flocks, male and female slaves, and camels and donkeys. 43In this way the man grew exceedingly prosperous and came to own large flocks, and female and male servants, and camels and donkeys.
Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission.New International Version (NIV)

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Genesis 29
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