Genesis 29:31-30:24

Wycliffe Bible

³¹ Forsooth the Lord saw that Jacob despised Leah, that is, (that he) loved her less than Rachel, and (so) he opened Leah’s womb, while her sister dwelled barren.

³² And Leah childed a son conceived (And Leah conceived, and bare a son), and she called his name Reuben, and said, The Lord hath seen my meekness; now mine husband shall love me.

³³ And again she conceived, and childed a son, and said, For the Lord saw that I was despised, he gave also this son to me (he also gave me this son); and she called his name Simeon.

³⁴ And she conceived the third time, and childed another son, and she said also (and then she said), Now mine husband shall be coupled to me, for I have childed three sons to him; and therefore she called his name Levi.

³⁵ The fourth time she conceived, and childed a son, and said, Now I shall acknowledge to the Lord; and therefore she called his name Judah; and ceased to child. (And the fourth time she conceived, and bare a son, she said, Now I shall praise the Lord; and so she called his name Judah; and ceased to bear any more children.)

30 Forsooth Rachel saw, that she was unfruitful, and she had envy to her sister, and said to her husband, Give thou free children to me, (or) else I shall die. (And Rachel saw, that she was unfruitful, and she envied her sister, and said to her husband, Give thou some children to me, or else I shall die.)

² To whom Jacob was wroth, and answered, Whether I am for God, which have deprived thee from the fruit of thy womb? (To whom Jacob was angry, and answered, Can I take the place of God, who hath deprived thee of the fruit of thy womb?)

³ And she said, I have an handmaid Bilhah; enter thou [in] to her that she child on my knees, and that I have sons of her. (And she said, I have a slave-girl Bilhah; sleep thou with her, so that she can bear some children, and lay them on my knees, and so I shall have sons by her.)

⁴ And she gave to him Bilhah into matrimony; and when her husband had entered [in] to her,

⁵ she conceived, and childed a son.

⁶ And Rachel said, The Lord hath deemed to me (The Lord hath judged me), and hath heard my prayer, and gave a son to me; and therefore she called his name Dan.

⁷ And again Bilhah conceived, and childed another son,

⁸ for whom Rachel said, The Lord hath made me like my sister, and I [have] waxed strong; and she called him Naphtali.

⁹ (Then) Leah feeled that she ceased to bear child, and she gave Zilpah, her handmaid (her slave-girl), to her husband.

¹⁰ And when Zilpah, after conceiving, childed a son,

¹¹ Leah said, Blessedly (I am most fortunate); and therefore she called his name Gad.

¹² Also Zilpah childed another son,

¹³ and Leah said, This is for my bless(ing), for all women shall say me blessed (for all women shall say that I am blessed); therefore she called him Asher.

¹⁴ Forsooth Reuben went out into the field in the time of wheat harvest, and found (some) mandrakes, which he brought to Leah, his mother. And Rachel said, Give thou to me a part of the mandrakes of thy son.

¹⁵ Leah answered, Whether it seemeth little to thee, that thou hast ravished my husband from me, no but thou take also the mandrakes of my son? (but now thou wouldest also take away my son’s mandrakes?) (And) Rachel said, The husband sleep with thee in this night, (in exchange) for the mandrakes of thy son.

¹⁶ And when Jacob came again from the field at the eventide, Leah went out into his meeting, and said, Thou shalt enter [in] to me, for I have hired thee with hire for the mandrakes of my son. He slept with her in that night; (And so when Jacob came in from the field that evening, Leah went out to meet him, and said, Tonight thou shalt sleep with me, for I have hired thee with some of my son’s mandrakes. And so he slept with her that night;)

¹⁷ and God heard her prayers, and she conceived, and childed the fifth son;

¹⁸ and said, God hath given meed to me, for I gave mine handmaid to mine husband; and she called his name Issachar. (and she said, God hath rewarded me, for I gave my slave-girl to my husband; and so she named him Issachar.)

¹⁹ (And) Again Leah conceived, and childed the sixth son,

²⁰ and said, The Lord hath made me rich with a good dower; also in this time mine husband shall be with me, for I have engendered six sons to him; and therefore she called his name Zebulun. (and she said, The Lord hath made me rich with a good dowry; and now my husband shall be glad to be with me, for I have borne him six sons; and so she named him Zebulun.)

²¹ After whom she childed a daughter, Dinah by name.

²² Also the Lord had mind on Rachel, and he heard her, and opened her womb. (And the Lord remembered Rachel, and he heard her prayers and pleadings, and opened her womb.)

²³ And she conceived, and childed a son, and said, God hath (now) taken away my shame;

²⁴ and she called his name Joseph, and said, The Lord give to me another son. (and she said, May the Lord give me another son/The Lord hath given me another son, and she named him Joseph.)