16 Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the older
was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel.
17 Leah had weak eyes, but Rachel had a lovely figure
and was beautiful.
18 Jacob was in love with Rachel and said, "I'll work for
you seven years in return for your younger daughter
Rachel."
19 Laban said, "It's better that I give her to you
than to some other man. Stay here with me."
20 So Jacob served seven years to get Rachel, but they
seemed like only a few days to him because of his
love for her.
21 Then Jacob said to Laban, "Give me my wife. My
time is completed, and I want to make love to her."
22 So Laban brought together all the people of the place
and gave a feast.
23 But when evening came, he took his daughter Leah
and brought her to Jacob, and Jacob made love to
her.
24 And Laban gave his servant Zilpah to his daughter as
her attendant.
25 When morning came, there was Leah! So Jacob said
to Laban, "What is this you have done to me? I served you for Rachel, didn't I? Why have you
deceived me?"
26 Laban replied, "It is not our custom here to give the
younger daughter in marriage before the older one.
27 Finish this daughter's bridal week; then we will give
you the younger one also, in return for another seven
years of work."
28 And Jacob did so. He finished the week with Leah,
and then Laban gave him his daughter Rachel to be
his wife.
29 Laban gave his servant Bilhah to his daughter Rachel
as her attendant.
30 Jacob made love to Rachel also, and his love for
Rachel was greater than his love for Leah. And he
worked for Laban another seven years. 31 When the LORD saw that Leah was not loved, he
enabled her to conceive, but Rachel remained
childless.
32 Leah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She
named him Reuben, for she said, "It is because the
LORD has seen my misery. Surely my husband will
love me now."
33 She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a
son she said, "Because the LORD heard that I am
not loved, he gave me this one too." So she named
him Simeon.
34 Again she conceived, and when she gave birth to a
son she said, "Now at last my husband will become
attached to me, because I have borne him three
sons." So he was named Levi.
35 She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a
son she said, "This time I will praise the LORD." So
she named him Judah. Then she stopped having
children.
1 When 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!"
2 Jacob became angry with her and said, "Am I in the
place of God, who has kept you from having
children?"
3 Then 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."
4 So she gave him her servant Bilhah as a wife. Jacob
slept with her,
5 and she became pregnant and bore him a son.
6 Then Rachel said, "God has vindicated me; he has
listened to my plea and given me a son." Because of
this she named him Dan.
7 Rachel's servant Bilhah conceived again and
8 Then Rachel said, "I have had a great struggle with
my sister, and I have won." So she named him
Naphtali.
9 When Leah saw that she had stopped having children,
she took her servant Zilpah and gave her to Jacob
as a wife.
10 Leah's servant Zilpah bore Jacob a son.
11 Then Leah said, "What good fortune!" So she named
him Gad.
12 Leah's servant Zilpah bore Jacob a second son.
13 Then Leah said, "How happy I am! The women will call
me happy." So she named him Asher.
14 During 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."
15 But 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."
16 So 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.
17 God listened to Leah, and she became pregnant and
bore Jacob a fifth son.
18 Then Leah said, "God has rewarded me for giving my
servant to my husband." So she named him
Issachar.
19 Leah conceived again and bore Jacob a sixth son.
20 Then 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.
21 Some time later she gave birth to a daughter and
named her Dinah.
22 Then God remembered Rachel; he listened to her and
enabled her to conceive.
23 She became pregnant and gave birth to a son and
said, "God has taken away my disgrace."
24 She named him Joseph, and said, "May the LORD add
to me another son."
Genesis 29:16-35
Jacob's Children
Genesis 30:1-24
bore Jacob a second son.
