The First Book of Moses: Genesis

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- Kapitel 30 -

Then Rachel, discerning that she was infertile, envied her sister, and so she said to her husband, “Give me children, otherwise I will die.”

Jacob, being angry, responded to her, “Am I in the place of God, who has deprived you of the fruit of your womb?”

But she said: “I have a handmaid Bilhah. Go in to her, so that she may give birth upon my knees, and I may have sons by her.”

And she gave him Bilhah in marriage.

And when her husband had gone in to her, she conceived and bore a son.

And Rachel said, “The Lord has judged for me, and he has heeded my voice, giving me a son.” And because of this, she called his name Dan.

And conceiving again, Bilhah bore another,

about whom Rachel said, “God has compared me with my sister, and I have prevailed.” And she called him Naphtali.

Gad and Asher

Leah, perceiving that she had desisted from child-bearing, delivered Zilpah, her handmaid, to her husband.

And she, after having borne a son(a) with difficulty,(b)

said: “Happiness!” And for this reason, she called his name Gad.

Likewise, Zilpah bore another.

And Leah said, “This one is for my happiness. Indeed, women will call me blessed.” Because of this, she called him Asher.

Then Reuben, going out into the field at the time of the wheat harvest, found mandrakes. These he brought to his mother Leah. And Rachel said, “Give me a portion of your son’s mandrakes.”

She responded, “Does it seem like such a small matter to you, that you have usurped from me my husband, unless you will also take my son’s mandrakes?” Rachel said, “He will sleep with you this night because of your son’s mandrakes.”(c)

And when Jacob returned from the field in the evening, Leah went out to meet him, and she said, “You will enter to me, because I have hired you for the reward of my son’s mandrakes.” And he slept with her that night.

Issachar, Zebulun, and Dinah

And God heard her prayers. And she conceived and bore a fifth son.

And she said, “God has given a reward to me, because I gave my handmaid to my husband.” And she called his name Issachar.

Conceiving again, Leah bore a sixth son.

And she said: “God has endowed me with a good dowry. And now, at this turn, my husband will be with me, because I have conceived six sons for him.” And therefore she called his name Zebulun.

After him, she bore a daughter, named Dinah.

Joseph

The Lord, likewise remembering Rachel, heeded her and opened her womb.

And she conceived and bore a son, saying, “God has taken away my reproach.”

And she called his name Joseph, saying, “The Lord has added to me another son.”

Jacob Prospers

But when Joseph was born, Jacob said to his father-in-law: “Release me, so that I may return to my native country and to my land.(d)

Give me my wives, and my children, for whom I have served you, so that I may depart. You know the servitude with which I have served you.”

Laban said to him: “May I find grace in your sight. I have learned by experience that God has blessed me because of you.

Choose your wages, which I will give you.”

But he responded: “You know how I have served you, and how great your possession became in my hands.

You had little before I came to you, and now you have achieved riches. And the Lord has blessed you since my arrival. It is just, therefore, that at some time I also should provide for my own house.”

And Laban said, “What shall I give to you?” But he said, “I want nothing. But if you will do what I ask, I will feed and guard your sheep again.

Go around through all your flocks and separate all the sheep of variegated or spotted fleece; and whatever will be darkened or blemished or variegated, as much among the sheep as among the goats, will be my wages.

And my justice will answer on my behalf tomorrow, when the time of settlement arrives before you. And all that is not variegated or blemished or darkened, as much among the sheep as among the goats, these will prove me to be a thief.”

And Laban said, “I hold favor for this request.”

And on that day he separated the she-goats, and the sheep, and the he-goats, and the rams with variegations or with blemishes. But every one of the flock which was of one color, that is, of white or of black fleece, he delivered into the hands of his sons.

And he established a distance of three days journey between himself and his son-in-law, who pastured the remainder of his flock.

Then Jacob, taking green branches of poplar, and almond, and sycamore trees, debarked them in part. And when the bark was pulled off, in the parts that were stripped, there appeared whiteness, yet the parts that were left whole, remained green. And so, in this way the color was made variegated.

And he placed them in the troughs, where the water was poured out, so that when the flocks had arrived to drink, they would have the branches before their eyes, and in their sight they might conceive.

And it happened that, in the very heat of joining together, the sheep looked upon the branches, and they bore the blemished and the variegated, those speckled with diverse color.

And Jacob divided the flock, and he set the branches in the troughs before the eyes of the rams. Now whatever was white or black belonged to Laban, but, in truth, the others belonged to Jacob, for the flocks were dispersed among one another.

Therefore, when the first to arrive were climbing on the ewes, Jacob placed the branches in the troughs of water before the eyes of the rams and the sheep, so that they might conceive while they were gazing upon them.

Yet when the late arrivals and the last to conceive were let in, he did not place these. And so those that arrived late became Laban’s, and those that arrived first became Jacob’s.

And the man was enriched beyond limit, and he had many flocks, women servants and men servants, camels and donkeys.

Fußnoten

(a)30:10 borne a sonThe term ‘conceptum’ refers to the entire process of conception, pregnancy, and birthing.(Conte)

(b)30:10 with difficultyThe word ‘edente’ is a concatenation of two words ‘e’ meaning ‘out of’ or ‘on account of,’ and ‘dente’ referring to teeth. The word ‘dente’ is also used figuratively to refer to something that causes one to grit one’s teeth, such as a difficult circumstance. In this case, in the context of pregnancy and child-bearing, the term ‘edente’ means that the pregnancy and birth of this child was difficult.(Conte)

(c)30:15 The word ‘praeripueris’ in this context refers to Rachel usurping Leah’s place as wife, for Leah was his first wife, but Rachel was first in his heart. The mandrake is a plant with a narcotic and soporific effect.(Conte)

(d)30:25 The word ‘patriam’ might also be translated as ‘fatherland.’(Conte)

When Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister. She said to Jacob, “Give me children, or else I will die.”

Jacob’s anger burned against Rachel, and he said, “Am I in God’s place, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?”

She said, “Behold, my maid Bilhah. Go in to her, that she may bear on my knees, and I also may obtain children by her.”

She gave him Bilhah her servant as wife, and Jacob went in to her.

Bilhah conceived, and bore Jacob a son.

Rachel said, “God has judged me, and has also heard my voice, and has given me a son.” Therefore she called his name Dan.

Bilhah, Rachel’s servant, conceived again, and bore Jacob a second son.

Rachel said, “I have wrestled with my sister with mighty wrestlings, and have prevailed.” She named him Naphtali.

Gad and Asher

When Leah saw that she had finished bearing, she took Zilpah, her servant, and gave her to Jacob as a wife.

Zilpah, Leah’s servant, bore Jacob a son.

Leah said, “How fortunate!” She named him Gad.

Zilpah, Leah’s servant, bore Jacob a second son.

Leah said, “Happy am I, for the daughters will call me happy.” She named him Asher.

Reuben 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.”

Leah 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.”

Jacob 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.

Issachar, Zebulun, and Dinah

God listened to Leah, and she conceived, and bore Jacob a fifth son.

Leah said, “God has given me my hire, because I gave my servant to my husband.” She named him Issachar.

Leah conceived again, and bore a sixth son to Jacob.

Leah 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.

Afterwards, she bore a daughter, and named her Dinah.

Joseph

God remembered Rachel, and God listened to her, and opened her womb.

She conceived, bore a son, and said, “God has taken away my reproach.”

She named him Joseph,(a) saying, “May the LORD add another son to me.”

Jacob Prospers

When Rachel had borne Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Send me away, that I may go to my own place, and to my country.

Give 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.”

Laban said to him, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, stay here, for I have divined that the LORD has blessed me for your sake.”

He said, “Appoint me your wages, and I will give it.”

Jacob said to him, “You know how I have served you, and how your livestock have fared with me.

For it was little which you had before I came, and it has increased to a multitude. The LORD has blessed you wherever I turned. Now when will I provide for my own house also?”

Laban said, “What shall I give you?” Jacob said, “You shall not give me anything. If you will do this thing for me, I will again feed your flock and keep it.

I 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.

So my righteousness will answer for me hereafter, when you come concerning my hire that is before you. Every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and black among the sheep, that might be with me, will be considered stolen.”

Laban said, “Behold, let it be according to your word.”

That 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.

He set three days’ journey between himself and Jacob, and Jacob fed the rest of Laban’s flocks.

Jacob took to himself rods of fresh poplar, almond, and plane tree, peeled white streaks in them, and made the white appear which was in the rods.

He set the rods which he had peeled opposite the flocks in the watering troughs where the flocks came to drink. They conceived when they came to drink.

The flocks conceived before the rods, and the flocks produced streaked, speckled, and spotted.

Jacob separated the lambs, and set the faces of the flocks toward the streaked and all the black in Laban’s flock. He put his own droves apart, and didn’t put them into Laban’s flock.

Whenever the stronger of the flock conceived, Jacob laid the rods in front of the eyes of the flock in the watering troughs, that they might conceive among the rods;

but when the flock were feeble, he didn’t put them in. So the feebler were Laban’s, and the stronger Jacob’s.

The man increased exceedingly, and had large flocks, female servants and male servants, and camels and donkeys.

Fußnoten

(a)30:24 Joseph means “may he add”.