1 Kad Rāhēle redzēja, ka viņa nevar Jēkabam dzemdēt, Rāhēle apskauda savu māsu un teica Jēkabam: “Gādā man dēlus, un, ja ne, tad es miršu!” 2 Bet Jēkabs iesvilās dusmās pret Rāhēli un teica: “Vai es Dieva vietā, kas tavam klēpim liedzis augli?” 3 Un viņa teica: “Re, mana kalpone Bilha, ej pie viņas, lai viņa dzemdē man uz ceļgaliem, un man būs dēls, kaut caur viņu!” 4 Viņa deva tam savu kalponi Bilhu par sievu, un Jēkabs gāja pie tās. 5 Un Bilha kļuva grūta un dzemdēja Jēkabam dēlu. 6 Rāhēle teica: “Dievs mani gan ir notiesājis, bet ir arī mani sadzirdējis un devis man dēlu!” – tādēļ viņa to nosauca vārdā Dāns . 7 Un Bilha, Rāhēles kalpone, atkal kļuva grūta un dzemdēja Jēkabam otru dēlu. 8 Rāhēle teica: “Dieva cīkstiņu izcīkstēju un taču uzvarēju!” Un viņa to nosauca vārdā Naftālī . 9 Kad Lea redzēja, ka pati nedzemdēs, viņa ņēma savu kalponi Zilpu un deva to Jēkabam par sievu. 10 Un Leas kalpone Zilpa dzemdēja Jēkabam dēlu. 11 Lea teica: “Paveicās!” – un nosauca viņu vārdā Gāds . 12 Un Leas kalpone Zilpa dzemdēja Jēkabam otru dēlu. 13 Un Lea teica: “Mana laime, nu sievas teiks, ka es laimīga!” – un viņa nosauca viņu vārdā Ašērs . 14 Kādā kviešu pļaujas dienā Rūbens atrada laukā mīlas ābolus un atnesa tos savai mātei Leai. Un Rāhēle teica Leai: “Dod jel man kādu no tava dēla mīlas āboliem!” 15 Bet viņa tai teica: “Vai tev vēl maz, ka tu paņēmi manu vīru, ka tu vēl ņemsi mana dēla mīlas ābolus?” Un Rāhēle teica: “Lai tad viņš šonakt guļ ar tevi par tava dēla mīlas āboliem!” 16 Vakarā Jēkabs pārnāca no lauka, un Lea iznāca viņam pretī un teica: “Nāc pie manis, jo es tevi nolīgu par mana dēla mīlas āboliem!” Un tonakt viņš gulēja ar viņu. 17 Un Dievs uzklausīja Leu, un viņa kļuva grūta un dzemdēja Jēkabam piekto dēlu. 18 Un Lea teica: “Dievs deva man algu, jo es savam vīram devu savu kalponi!” Un viņa nosauca to vārdā Jisašhars . 19 Un Lea atkal kļuva grūta un dzemdēja Jēkabam sesto dēlu. 20 Un Lea teica: “Dievs man devis labu dāvanu – tagad mans vīrs godās mani, jo es viņam esmu dzemdējusi sešus dēlus!” Un viņa nosauca to vārdā Zebulūns . 21 Pēc tam viņa dzemdēja meitu un nosauca to vārdā Dīna. 22 Un Dievs atcerējās Rāhēli, un Dievs viņu uzklausīja un atvēra viņas klēpi. 23 Viņa kļuva grūta, dzemdēja dēlu un teica: “Dievs noņēmis manu apsmieklu!” 24 Un viņa nosauca to vārdā Jāzeps , sacīdama: “Lai Kungs pieliek man vēl vienu dēlu!”
Jēkabs vairo savu bagātību
25 Kad Rāhēle bija dzemdējusi Jāzepu, Jēkabs teica Lābanam: “Atlaid mani, un es došos uz savām vietām, uz savu zemi! 26 Dod manas sievas un manus bērnus, par kuriem es tev esmu kalpojis, un es iešu, jo tu zini, cik daudz es tev esmu kalpojis!” 27 Un Lābans viņam teica: “Esi taču man vēlīgs! Es esmu pareģojis, ka Kungs mani ir svētījis tevis dēļ!” 28 Un tas teica: “Nosauc man savu algu, un es tev to došu!” 29 Jēkabs tam teica: “Tu zini, cik es tev esmu kalpojis un kādi manā laikā ir tapuši tavi lopi! 30 Jo pirms manis tev bija maz, bet tagad tev ir jo daudz, un, kam vien es ķēros klāt, tur Kungs tevi svētīja! Un nu – pa kuru laiku lai es uzceļu savu namu?” 31 Bet tas teica: “Ko lai es tev dodu?” Jēkabs teica: “Nedod man neko, tikai izdari man šādu lietu – un es atkal ganīšu un sargāšu tavas avis: 32 šodien es iziešu cauri visiem taviem lopiem un nošķiršu no tiem visus lāsainos un plankumainos, ikvienu melno no jēriem un ikvienu plankumaino un lāsaino no kazām – tā būs mana alga. 33 Un mana taisnība taps redzama nākamajās dienās, kad tu nāksi manas algas dēļ, kas man no tevis pienākas, – ikviena kaza, kas nebūs lāsaina vai plankumaina, un ikviens jērs, kas nebūs melns, – tie būs zagti!” 34 Un Lābans teica: “Nu labi! Lai būtu, kā tu teici!” 35 Un todien viņš nošķīra strīpainos un plankumainos āžus un visas lāsainās un plankumainās kazas, visas, kurām bija kāds baltums, un visus melnos jērus un atdeva saviem dēliem. 36 Un starp sevi un Jēkabu viņš nolika trīs dienu gājumu, un Jēkabs ganīja pārējās Lābana avis.
37 Jēkabs ņēma baltapses, mandeļu un platānas zarus un nomizoja tiem mizas, atplēsdams līdz baltumam. 38 Zarus, kurus bija nomizojis, viņš lika priekšā avīm kublos un ūdens silēs, kurp avis nāca dzert, un tās pārojās tur, kur nāca dzert. 39 Un avis pārojās pie zariem, un avīm dzima strīpaini, lāsaini un plankumaini jēri. 40 Jērus Jēkabs nošķīra un avju purnus grieza pret strīpainajiem un pret melnajiem Lābana ganāmpulkā, – tā viņš uztaisīja ganāmpulku sev pašam un nošķīra to no Lābana avīm. 41 Un ik reizi, kad pārojās brangākās avis, Jēkabs lika kublos zarus avju priekšā, lai tās pārotos pie zariem, 42 bet, kad vājākās avis, tad nelika neko, un Lābanam palika vājākās, bet Jēkabam brangākās. 43 Un tam vīram viss ienācās brangi, un viņam bija daudz avju un kalpoņu, un kalpu, un kamieļu, un ēzeļu!
1 But Rachel had not borne Jacob any children, and so she became jealous of her sister and said to Jacob, “Give me children, or I will die.”
2 Jacob became angry with Rachel and said, “I can't take the place of God. He is the one who keeps you from having children.”
3 She said, “Here is my slave Bilhah; sleep with her, so that she can have a child for me. In this way I can become a mother through her.” 4 So she gave Bilhah to her husband, and he had intercourse with her. 5 Bilhah became pregnant and bore Jacob a son. 6 Rachel said, “God has judged in my favor. He has heard my prayer and has given me a son”; so she named him Dan. 7 Bilhah became pregnant again and bore Jacob a second son. 8 Rachel said, “I have fought a hard fight with my sister, but I have won”; so she named him Naphtali.
9 When Leah realized that she had stopped having children, she gave her slave Zilpah to Jacob as his wife. 10 Then Zilpah bore Jacob a son. 11 Leah said, “I have been lucky”; so she named him Gad. 12 Zilpah bore Jacob another son, 13 and Leah said, “How happy I am! Now women will call me happy”; so she named him Asher.
14 During the wheat harvest Reuben went into the fields and found mandrakes, which he brought to his mother Leah. Rachel said to Leah, “Please give me some of your son's mandrakes.”
15 Leah answered, “Isn't it enough that you have taken away my husband? Now you are even trying to take away my son's mandrakes.”
Rachel said, “If you will give me your son's mandrakes, you can sleep with Jacob tonight.”
16 When Jacob came in from the fields in the evening, Leah went out to meet him and said, “You are going to sleep with me tonight, because I have paid for you with my son's mandrakes.” So he had intercourse with her that night.
17 God answered Leah's prayer, and she became pregnant and bore Jacob a fifth son. 18 Leah said, “God has given me my reward, because I gave my slave to my husband”; so she named her son Issachar. 19 Leah became pregnant again and bore Jacob a sixth son. 20 She said, “God has given me a fine gift. Now my husband will accept me, because I have borne him six sons”; so she named him Zebulun. 21 Later she bore a daughter, whom she named Dinah.
22 Then God remembered Rachel; he answered her prayer and made it possible for her to have children. 23 She became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She said, “God has taken away my disgrace by giving me a son. 24 May the Lord give me another son”; so she named him Joseph.
Jacob's Bargain with Laban
25 After the birth of Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Let me go, so that I can return home. 26 Give me my wives and children that I have earned by working for you, and I will leave. You know how well I have served you.”
27 Laban said to him, “Let me say this: I have learned by divination that the Lord has blessed me because of you. 28 Name your wages, and I will pay them.”
29 Jacob answered, “You know how I have worked for you and how your flocks have prospered under my care. 30 The little you had before I came has grown enormously, and the Lord has blessed you wherever I went. Now it is time for me to look out for my own interests.”
31 “What shall I pay you?” Laban asked.
Jacob answered, “I don't want any wages. I will continue to take care of your flocks if you agree to this suggestion: 32 Let me go through all your flocks today and take every black lamb and every spotted or speckled young goat. That is all the wages I want. 33 In the future you can easily find out if I have been honest. When you come to check up on my wages, if I have any goat that isn't speckled or spotted or any sheep that isn't black, you will know that it has been stolen.”
34 Laban answered, “Agreed. We will do as you suggest.” 35 But that day Laban removed the male goats that had stripes or spots and all the females that were speckled and spotted or which had white on them; he also removed all the black sheep. He put his sons in charge of them, 36 and then went away from Jacob with this flock as far as he could travel in three days. Jacob took care of the rest of Laban's flocks.
37 Jacob got green branches of poplar, almond, and plane trees and stripped off some of the bark so that the branches had white stripes on them. 38 He placed these branches in front of the flocks at their drinking troughs. He put them there, because the animals mated when they came to drink. 39 So when the goats bred in front of the branches, they produced young that were streaked, speckled, and spotted.
40 Jacob kept the sheep separate from the goats and made them face in the direction of the streaked and black animals of Laban's flock. In this way he built up his own flock and kept it apart from Laban's.
41 When the healthy animals were mating, Jacob put the branches in front of them at the drinking troughs, so that they would breed among the branches. 42 But he did not put the branches in front of the weak animals. Soon Laban had all the weak animals, and Jacob all the healthy ones. 43 In this way Jacob became very wealthy. He had many flocks, slaves, camels, and donkeys.
