When Rachel saw that she bore Yaqub no children, Rachel envied her sister. She said to Yaqub, “Give me children, or else I will die.“
2Yaqub’s anger was kindled against Rachel, and he said, “Am I in God’s place, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?“
3She said, “Behold, my maid Bilhah. Go in to her, that she may bear on my knees, and I also may obtain children by her.“ 4She gave him Bilhah her maidservant as wife, and Yaqub went in to her. 5Bilhah conceived, and bore Yaqub a son. 6Rachel said, “God has judged me, and has also heard my voice, and has given me a son.“ Therefore called she his name Dan. 7Bilhah, Rachel’s maidservant, conceived again, and bore Yaqub a second son. 8Rachel said, “With mighty wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and have prevailed.“ She named him Naphtali.
9When Leah saw that she had finished bearing, she took Zilpah, her maidservant, and gave her to Yaqub as a wife. 10Zilpah, Leah’s maidservant, bore Yaqub a son. 11Leah said, “How fortunate!“ She named him Gad. 12Zilpah, Leah’s maidservant, bore Yaqub a second son. 13Leah said, “Happy am I, for the daughters will call me happy.“ She named him Asher.
14Reuben went in the days of wheat harvest, and found mandrakes in the field, and brought them to his mother, Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.“
15She said to her, “Is it a small matter that you have taken away my husband? Would you take away my son’s mandrakes, also?“
Rachel said, “Therefore he will lie with you tonight for your son’s mandrakes.“
16Yaqub came from the field in the evening, and Leah went out to meet him, and said, “You must come in to me; for I have surely hired you with my son’s mandrakes.“
He lay with her that night. 17God listened to Leah, and she conceived, and bore Yaqub a fifth son. 18Leah said, “God has given me my hire, because I gave my maidservant to my husband.“ She named him Issachar. 19Leah conceived again, and bore a sixth son to Yaqub. 20Leah said, “God has endowed me with a good dowry. Now my husband will live with me, because I have borne him six sons.“ She named him Zebulun. 21Afterwards, she bore a daughter, and named her Dinah.
22God remembered Rachel, and God listened to her, and opened her womb. 23She conceived, bore a son, and said, “God has taken away my reproach.“ 24She named him Yusuf,[1] saying, “May Allah add another son to me.“
25It happened, when Rachel had borne Yusuf, that Yaqub said to Laban, “Send me away, that I may go to my own place, and to my country. 26Give me my wives and my children for whom I have served you, and let me go: for you know my service with which I have served you.“
27Laban said to him, “If now I have found favour in your eyes, stay here, for I have divined that Allah has blessed me for your sake.“ 28He said, “Appoint me your wages, and I will give it.“
29He said to him, “You know how I have served you, and how your cattle have fared with me. 30For it was little which you had before I came, and it has increased to a multitude. Allah has blessed you wherever I turned. Now when will I provide for my own house also?“
31He said, “What shall I give you?“
Yaqub said, “You shall not give me anything. If you will do this thing for me, I will again feed your flock and keep it. 32I will pass through all your flock today, removing from there every speckled and spotted one, and every black one among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats. This will be my hire. 33So my righteousness will answer for me hereafter, when you come concerning my hire that is before you. Everyone that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and black among the sheep, that might be with me, will be counted stolen.“
34Laban said, “Behold, I desire it to be according to your word.“
35That day, he removed the male goats that were streaked and spotted, and all the female goats that were speckled and spotted, every one that had white in it, and all the black ones among the sheep, and gave them into the hand of his sons. 36He set three days’ journey between himself and Yaqub, and Yaqub fed the rest of Laban’s flocks.
37Yaqub took to himself rods of fresh poplar, almond, plane tree, peeled white streaks in them, and made the white appear which was in the rods. 38He set the rods which he had peeled opposite the flocks in the gutters in the watering-troughs where the flocks came to drink. They conceived when they came to drink. 39The flocks conceived before the rods, and the flocks brought forth streaked, speckled, and spotted. 40Yaqub separated the lambs, and set the faces of the flocks toward the streaked and all the black in the flock of Laban: and he put his own droves apart, and did not put them into Laban’s flock. 41It happened, whenever the stronger of the flock conceived, that Yaqub laid the rods before the eyes of the flock in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods; 42but when the flock were feeble, he did not put them in. So the feebler were Laban’s, and the stronger Yaqub’s. 43The man prospered greatly, and had large flocks, maid-servants and men-servants, and camels and donkeys.
[1] 30:24 Yusuf means “may he add.“