¶ And when Rachel¹ saw that she bare Jacob no children, Rachel envied² her sister; and said unto Jacob, Give me children, or else I die³.

And Jacob's anger⁴ was kindled against Rachel: and he said, Am I⁵ in God's stead, who hath withheld⁶ from thee the fruit of the womb?

And she said, Behold⁷ my maid Bilhah, go in unto her; and she shall⁸ bear upon my knees, that I may also have children by her⁹.

And she gave him Bilhah her handmaid to wife¹⁰: and Jacob went in unto her.

And Bilhah conceived, and bare Jacob a son.

And Rachel said, God¹¹ hath judged me, and hath also heard my voice, and hath given me a son: therefore called she his name Dan¹².

And Bilhah Rachel's maid conceived again,¹³ and bare Jacob a second son.

And Rachel said, With great wrestlings¹⁴ have I wrestled with my sister, and I have prevailed: and she¹⁵ called his name Naphtali¹⁶.

When Leah saw that she had left¹⁷ bearing, she took Zilpah her maid, and gave her¹⁸ Jacob to wife.

¶ And Zilpah Leah's maid bare Jacob a son.

And Leah said, A troop cometh: and she¹⁹ called his name Gad²⁰.

And Zilpah Leah's maid bare Jacob a second son.

And Leah said, Happy am I²¹, for the daughters will call me blessed: and she²² called his name Asher²³.

¶ And Reuben went in the days of wheat harvest, and found mandrakes²⁴ in the field, and brought them unto his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, Give me²⁵, I pray thee, of thy son's mandrakes.

And she said unto her, Is it a small matter²⁶ that thou hast taken my husband? and wouldest thou take away my son's mandrakes also? And Rachel said, Therefore he shall lie with thee to night for thy son's mandrakes.

And Jacob came out of the field in the evening, and Leah went out to meet him, and said, Thou must come in unto me; for surely I have hired thee with my son's mandrakes. And he lay with her that night.

And God hearkened unto Leah, and she conceived²⁷, and bare Jacob the fifth son.

And Leah said, God hath given me my hire, because I have given my maiden to my husband: and she²⁸ called his name Issachar²⁹.

And Leah conceived again, and bare Jacob the sixth son.

¶ And Leah said, God hath endued me with a good dowry; now will³⁰ my husband dwell with me, because I have born him six sons: and she³¹ called his name Zebulun³².

And afterwards she bare a daughter, and called³³ her name Dinah³⁴.

And God remembered³⁵ Rachel, and God hearkened to her, and opened³⁶ her womb.

And she³⁷ conceived, and bare a son; and said, God hath taken away my reproach:

And she³⁸ called his name Joseph³⁹; and said, The LORD shall add to me another son.

¶ And it came to pass, when Rachel had born Joseph, that Jacob said unto Laban, Send me away⁴⁰, that I may go unto mine⁴¹ own place, and to⁴² my country.

Give me my wives⁴³ and my children, for whom I have served thee, and let me go: for thou⁴⁴ knowest my service which I have done thee.

And Laban said unto him, I pray thee, if I have found favour⁴⁵ in thine eyes, tarry: for I have learned by experience that the LORD⁴⁶ hath blessed me for thy sake.

⁴⁷And he said, Appoint me thy wages, and I will give it.

And he said unto him, Thou knowest how I have served thee,⁴⁸ and how thy cattle was with me.

¶ For it was little which thou hadst before I came, and it is now increased⁴⁹ unto a multitude; and the⁵⁰ LORD hath blessed thee since my coming⁵¹: and now when⁵² shall I provide for mine own house also?

⁵³And he said, What shall I give thee? And Jacob said, Thou shalt not give me any thing: if thou wilt do this thing for me, I will again feed and keep thy flock:

I will pass through all thy flock to day, removing from thence all the speckled and spotted cattle, and all the brown cattle among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats: and of such⁵⁴ shall be my hire.

So shall my righteousness⁵⁵ answer⁵⁶ for me in time to come⁵⁷, when it shall come for my hire before thy face: every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and brown among the sheep, that shall be⁵⁸ counted stolen with me.

⁵⁹And Laban said, Behold, I would it might be according to thy word.

And he removed⁶⁰ that day the he goats that were ringstraked and spotted, and all the she goats that were speckled and spotted, and every one that had some white in it, and all the brown among the sheep, and gave them into the hand⁶¹ of his sons.

And he set three days' journey betwixt himself and Jacob: and Jacob fed the rest of Laban's flocks.

¶ And Jacob⁶² took him rods of green poplar⁶³, and of the hazel⁶⁴ and chesnut tree⁶⁵; and pilled white strakes in them, and made the white appear which was in the rods.

And he set the rods which he had pilled before the flocks in the gutters in the watering troughs when the flocks came to drink, that they should conceive when they came to drink.

And the flocks conceived before the rods, and brought forth⁶⁶ cattle ringstraked, speckled, and spotted.

¶ And Jacob did separate the lambs, and set the faces of the flocks toward the ringstraked, and all the brown in the flock of Laban; and he put his own flocks by themselves, and put them not unto Laban's cattle.

And it came to pass, whensoever the stronger cattle did conceive⁶⁷, that Jacob laid the rods before the eyes of the cattle in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods.

But when the cattle were feeble, he put them not in: so the feebler were Laban's, and the stronger Jacob's.

And the man increased exceedingly⁶⁸, and had much cattle, and maidservants, and menservants, and camels, and asses.