| International Standard Version | NET Bible |
| 1Rachel noticed that she was not bearing children for Jacob, so because she envied her sister Leah, she told Jacob, "If you don't give me sons, I'm going to die!" | 1When Rachel saw that she could not give Jacob children, she became jealous of her sister. She said to Jacob, "Give me children or I'll die!" |
| 2That made Jacob angry with Rachel, so he asked her, "Can I take God's place, who has not allowed you to conceive?" | 2Jacob became furious with Rachel and exclaimed, "Am I in the place of God, who has kept you from having children?" |
| 3Rachel responded, "Here's my handmaid Bilhah. Go have sex with her. She can bear children on my knees so I can have children through her." | 3She replied, "Here is my servant Bilhah! Have sexual relations with her so that she can bear children for me and I can have a family through her." |
| 4So Rachel gave Jacob her woman servant Bilhah to be his wife, and Jacob had sex with her. | 4So Rachel gave him her servant Bilhah as a wife, and Jacob had marital relations with her. |
| 5Bilhah conceived and bore a son for Jacob. | 5Bilhah became pregnant and gave Jacob a son. |
| 6Then Rachel said, "God has vindicated me! He has heard my voice and has given me a son." Therefore, she named him Dan. | 6Then Rachel said, "God has vindicated me. He has responded to my prayer and given me a son." That is why she named him Dan. |
| 7Rachel's servant conceived again and bore a second son for Jacob, | 7Bilhah, Rachel's servant, became pregnant again and gave Jacob another son. |
| 8so Rachel said, "I've been through a mighty struggle with my sister and won." She named him Naphtali. | 8Then Rachel said, "I have fought a desperate struggle with my sister, but I have won." So she named him Naphtali. |
| 9When Leah saw that she had stopped bearing children, she took her woman servant Zilpah and gave her to Jacob as a wife. | 9When Leah saw that she had stopped having children, she gave her servant Zilpah to Jacob as a wife. |
| 10Leah's servant Zilpah bore a son to Jacob, | 10Soon Leah's servant Zilpah gave Jacob a son. |
| 11and Leah exclaimed, "How fortunate!" So she named him Gad. | 11Leah said, "How fortunate!" So she named him Gad. |
| 12Later, Leah's servant Zilpah bore a second son for Jacob. | 12Then Leah's servant Zilpah gave Jacob another son. |
| 13She said, "How happy I am, because women will call me happy!" So she named him Asher. | 13Leah said, "How happy I am, for women will call me happy!" So she named him Asher. |
| 14Some time later, during the wheat harvest season, Reuben went out and found some mandrakes in the field and brought them back for his mother Leah. Then Rachel told Leah, "Please give me your son's mandrakes." | 14At the time of the wheat harvest Reuben went out and found some mandrake plants in a field and brought them to his mother Leah. Rachel said to Leah, "Give me some of your son's mandrakes." |
| 15In response, Leah asked her, "Wasn't it enough that you've taken away my husband? Now you also want to take my son's mandrakes!" But Rachel replied, "Okay, let's let Jacob sleep with you tonight in exchange for your son's mandrakes." | 15But Leah replied, "Wasn't it enough that you've taken away my husband? Would you take away my son's mandrakes too?" "All right," Rachel said, "he may sleep with you tonight in exchange for your son's mandrakes." |
| 16When Jacob came in from the field that evening, Leah went to meet him and told him, "You're having sex with me tonight. I traded my son's mandrakes for you!" So he slept with her that night. | 16When Jacob came in from the fields that evening, Leah went out to meet him and said, "You must sleep with me because I have paid for your services with my son's mandrakes." So he had marital relations with her that night. |
| 17God heard what Leah had said, so she conceived and bore a fifth son for Jacob. | 17God paid attention to Leah; she became pregnant and gave Jacob a son for the fifth time. |
| 18Then Leah said, "God has paid me for giving my servant to my husband as his wife." So she named him Issachar. | 18Then Leah said, "God has granted me a reward because I gave my servant to my husband as a wife." So she named him Issachar. |
| 19Later, Leah conceived again and bore a sixth son for Jacob. | 19Leah became pregnant again and gave Jacob a son for the sixth time. |
| 20Then Leah said, "God has given me a good gift. This time my husband will exalt me, because I've borne him six sons." So she named him Zebulun. | 20Then Leah said, "God has given me a good gift. Now my husband will honor me because I have given him six sons." So she named him Zebulun. |
| 21After that, Leah conceived, bore a daughter, and named her Dinah. | 21After that she gave birth to a daughter and named her Dinah. |
| 22Then God remembered Rachel. He listened to her and opened her womb, | 22Then God took note of Rachel. He paid attention to her and enabled her to become pregnant. |
| 23so she conceived, bore a son, and remarked, "God has removed my shame." | 23She became pregnant and gave birth to a son. Then she said, "God has taken away my shame." |
| 24Because she had been asking, "May God give me another son," she named him Joseph. | 24She named him Joseph, saying, "May the LORD give me yet another son." |
| 25After Rachel had given birth to Joseph, Jacob told Laban, "Send me off so that I can go back to my place and country. | 25After Rachel had given birth to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, "Send me on my way so that I can go home to my own country. |
| 26Give me my wives and children for whom I've served you. Then I'll leave, since you're aware of my service to you." | 26Let me take my wives and my children whom I have acquired by working for you. Then I'll depart, because you know how hard I've worked for you." |
| 27Then Laban responded, "If I've found favor in your sight, please stay with me, because I've learned through divination that the LORD has blessed me because of you. | 27But Laban said to him, "If I have found favor in your sight, please stay here, for I have learned by divination that the LORD has blessed me on account of you." |
| 28Name your wage, and I'll give it to you." | 28He added, "Just name your wages--I'll pay whatever you want." |
| 29But Jacob replied to Laban, "You know how I've served you and how your cattle thrived under my care. | 29"You know how I have worked for you," Jacob replied, "and how well your livestock have fared under my care. |
| 30What you had previously was only a few head, but the herd has now multiplied, because the LORD has blessed you through my efforts. But now, when am I going to be able to provide for my own household?" | 30Indeed, you had little before I arrived, but now your possessions have increased many times over. The LORD has blessed you wherever I worked. But now, how long must it be before I do something for my own family too?" |
| 31"What do I have to give you?" Laban asked. Jacob responded, "You don't have to give me anything. Just do this for me: Let me tend your flock again and watch over it. | 31So Laban asked, "What should I give you?" "You don't need to give me a thing," Jacob replied, "but if you agree to this one condition, I will continue to care for your flocks and protect them: |
| 32Let me walk among your flocks today and remove every speckled or spotted sheep, along with every black lamb, and let me do the same with the speckled and spotted goats. These will be my wages. | 32Let me walk among all your flocks today and remove from them every speckled or spotted sheep, every dark-colored lamb, and the spotted or speckled goats. These animals will be my wages. |
| 33In the future, you'll be able to verify my honesty because, when you come to check what I've earned, if you find a goat that's not speckled or spotted or a sheep that's not black, then it will have been stolen by me." | 33My integrity will testify for me later on. When you come to verify that I've taken only the wages we agreed on, if I have in my possession any goat that is not speckled or spotted or any sheep that is not dark-colored, it will be considered stolen." |
| 34"Okay," Laban replied. "We'll do it the way you've asked." | 34"Agreed!" said Laban, "It will be as you say." |
| 35That very day, Laban removed the male goats that were striped or spotted, all the female goats that were speckled or spotted—that is, every one that had white on them—and all the black lambs and placed them into the care of his sons. | 35So that day Laban removed the male goats that were streaked or spotted, all the female goats that were speckled or spotted (all that had any white on them), and all the dark-colored lambs, and put them in the care of his sons. |
| 36He sent them as far away from Jacob as a three days' journey could take them. Meanwhile, Jacob kept tending the rest of Laban's flock. | 36Then he separated them from Jacob by a three-day journey, while Jacob was taking care of the rest of Laban's flocks. |
| 37Jacob took branches from white poplar trees, freshly cut almond trees, and some other trees, stripped off their bark to make white streaks, and uncovered the white part inside the branches. | 37But Jacob took fresh-cut branches from poplar, almond, and plane trees. He made white streaks by peeling them, making the white inner wood in the branches visible. |
| 38Then he placed the branches that he had stripped bare in all the watering troughs where the flocks came to drink. He placed the branches in front of the flock, and they went into heat as they came to drink. | 38Then he set up the peeled branches in all the watering troughs where the flocks came to drink. He set up the branches in front of the flocks when they were in heat and came to drink. |
| 39When the flocks mated in front of the branches, they would bear offspring that were striped, speckled, or spotted. | 39When the sheep mated in front of the branches, they gave birth to young that were streaked or speckled or spotted. |
| 40Jacob kept the lambs separate, facing the striped and entirely black ones that belonged to Laban's flock. He set his own herd by itself and would not let them be with Laban's flock. | 40Jacob removed these lambs, but he made the rest of the flock face the streaked and completely dark-colored animals in Laban's flock. So he made separate flocks for himself and did not mix them with Laban's flocks. |
| 41Whenever the more vigorous of the flock came into heat, Jacob would place the branches in the troughs in front of the flock to make them mate by the branches. | 41When the stronger females were in heat, Jacob would set up the branches in the troughs in front of the flock, so they would mate near the branches. |
| 42But he didn't put the branches in front of any of the feeble members of the flock. As a result, the feeble ones belonged to Laban, but the stronger ones belonged to Jacob. | 42But if the animals were weaker, he did not set the branches there. So the weaker animals ended up belonging to Laban and the stronger animals to Jacob. |
| 43Therefore the man Jacob prospered so much that he had large flocks, female and male servants, as well as camels and donkeys. | 43In this way Jacob became extremely prosperous. He owned large flocks, male and female servants, camels, and donkeys. |
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