Beginning

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.)

²⁵ Soothly when Joseph was born, Jacob said to his wife’s father, Deliver thou me, that I turn again to my country, and to my land. (And when Joseph was born, Jacob said to his wife’s father, Let me go, so that I can return to my country, and my land.)

²⁶ Give thou to me my wives, and my free children, for which I have served thee, that I go (Give thou to me my wives, and my children, for whom I have served thee, so that I can go); forsooth thou knowest the service by which I have served thee.

²⁷ Laban said to him, Find I grace in thy sight; I have learned by experience, that God hath blessed me for thee; (Laban said to him, Let me find grace before thee; I have learned by experience, that God hath blessed me for thy sake;)

²⁸ ordain thou the meed which I shall give to thee. (tell me the reward, or the payment, which I should give thee.)

²⁹ And Jacob answered, Thou knowest how I have served thee, and how great thy possession was in mine hands (and how great thy possession hath become in my hands);

³⁰ thou haddest little before that I came to thee, and now thou art made rich, and the Lord [hath] blessed thee at mine entering; therefore it is just that I purvey sometime also for mine house (and so it is only right that I provide something for my own household, or my own family).

³¹ And Laban said, What shall I give to thee? And Jacob said, I will nothing (I desire nothing), that is, of thy gift, but if thou doest that that I ask, again I shall feed and keep thy sheep.

³² Go about all thy flocks, and separate thou all diverse(ly)-coloured sheep, and of spotted fleeces, and whatever thing shall be of dun hue, and spotted, and diverse of colour, as well in sheep as in goats; that shall be my meed. (Go about all thy flocks, and separate out all the diversely-coloured sheep, and those with spotted fleeces, and whichever shall be dunned, or spotted, or diverse in colour, with the sheep as well as with the goats, and those shall be my reward.)

³³ And my rightfulness shall answer to me tomorrow, when the time of covenant shall come before thee; and all that be not diverse, and spotted, and dunned, as well in sheep as in goats, (that) be found at me thou shalt reprove me of theft. (And my righteousness shall answer for me later on, when the time of payment shall come before thee; and if any that be not diverse, or spotted, or dunned, with the sheep as well as with the goats, be found with me, then thou can rebuke me for theft.)

³⁴ And Laban said, I have (it) acceptable that that thou askest. (And Laban said, I find it acceptable what thou hast suggested.)

³⁵ And Laban separated in that day [the] goats, and sheep, goat bucks, and rams, diverse and spotted. Soothly he betook all the flock of one colour, that is, of white, and of black fleece, into the hand(s) of his sons; (And so Laban separated out that day the goats, and sheep, and goat bucks, and rams, that were diversely-coloured, or spotted. And all of the flock that had only one colour, that is, those of white, or of black fleece, he gave to his sons;)

³⁶ and he set the space of (the) way of three days betwixt his sons, and the husband of his daughters, that fed his other flocks.

³⁷ Therefore Jacob took green rods of poplars, and of almonds, and of planes, and in part he did away the rind(s) of them; and when the rinds were drawn away, either shaved, whiteness appeared in these that were made bare; soothly those that were whole dwelled green, and by this manner the colour was made diverse. (And so Jacob took some branches of green poplars, and of almonds, and of planes, and he partly did away their rinds; and where the rinds were drawn away, or shaved, whiteness appeared on the places that were made bare, but where the branches were not touched, they remained green; and so by this manner the colour was made diverse.)

³⁸ And Jacob put those rods in the troughs, where the water was poured out, that when the flocks should come to drink, (And Jacob put up those branches in the troughs, where the water was poured out, so that when the flocks would come to drink,)

³⁹ they should have the rods before their eyes, and they should conceive in [the] sight of the rods. And it was done that in that heat of riding, or engendering, the sheep should behold those rods, and that they should bring forth spotted beasts, and diverse, and besprinkled with diverse colour. (they would have the branches before their eyes, and they would conceive in front of the branches. And so it was done that in the heat of riding, or of begetting, the sheep saw those branches, and later they brought forth beasts that were spotted, and diverse, and besprinkled with diverse colour, like the branches were.)

⁴⁰ And Jacob separated the flock, and put the rods in the [water] troughs, before the eyes of the rams (And so Jacob separated out the flock, and put up the branches in the water troughs, before the eyes of the rams). Soothly all the white and [the] black were Laban’s; soothly all the others were Jacob’s; for the flocks were separated (out) betwixt themselves.

⁴¹ Therefore when the sheep were ridden in the first time, Jacob put the rods in the water troughs before the eyes of rams, and of ewe sheep, that they should conceive in the sight of the rods. (And so when the sheep were ridden by the stronger rams, Jacob put up the branches in the water troughs before the eyes of the rams, and the ewe sheep, so that they would conceive in front of the branches.)

⁴² Forsooth when the late mixing, or engendering, and the last conceivings were, Jacob put not (up) those rods; and those that were late engendered, were made Laban’s, and those that were of the first time engendered, were Jacob’s. (But when the weaker rams mated, Jacob did not put up the branches; and so the weaker offspring were made Laban’s, and the stronger ones were made Jacob’s.)

⁴³ And Jacob was made full rich, and had many flocks, handmaids, and menservants, camels, and asses. (And Jacob was made very rich, and had many flocks, and male and female slaves, and camels, and donkeys.)

31 After that, Jacob heard the words of the sons of Laban, that said, Jacob hath taken away all things that were our father’s, and of his chattel Jacob is made rich, and noble (and Jacob was made rich, and noble, out of our father’s possessions).

² Also Jacob perceived the face of Laban, that it was not against him as yesterday, and the third day ago, (And Jacob saw that Laban’s face was not favourable toward him, like it was yesterday, and the third day ago,)

³ mostly for the Lord (had) said to Jacob, Turn again into the land of thy fathers, and to thy generation (Return to the land of thy fathers, and to thy kindred), and I shall be with thee.

⁴ (And so) Jacob sent (for), and called Rachel and Leah (out) into the field, where he kept [the] flocks,

⁵ and he said to them, I see the face of your father, that it is not against me as yesterday, and the third day ago; but God of my father was with me. (and he said to them, I see that your father’s face is not favourable toward me, like it was yesterday, and the third day ago; but the God of my father is with me.)

⁶ And ye know that with all my strengths I have served your father;

⁷ but and your father hath deceived me, and changed my meed ten times; and nevertheless God suffered not him to harm me. (but your father hath deceived me, and changed my reward ten times; but God hath not allowed him to harm me.)

⁸ If he said any time (If any time he said), Diverse(ly)-coloured sheep shall be thy meed, all the sheep brought forth diverse(ly)-coloured lambs; forsooth when he said, on the contrary, Thou shalt take all the white for thy meed, all the flocks brought forth white beasts;

⁹ and God took away the substance of your father (and so God took away your father’s property), and gave it to me.

¹⁰ For after that the time of conceiving of sheep came, I raised [up] mine eyes, and saw in sleep males diverse, and spotty, and of diverse colours, going up on females. (For when the time of conceiving for the sheep came, I raised up my eyes, and saw in my sleep males diverse, and spotted, and of diverse colours, going up on the females.)

¹¹ And the angel of the Lord said to me in sleep, Jacob! and I answered, I am ready (I am here).

¹² Which said, Raise [up] thine eyes, and see all [the] males (that be) diverse, [and] besprinkled, and spotty (and spotted), going [up] on [the] females; for I have seen all things which Laban hath done to thee;

¹³ I am (the) God of Bethel, where thou anointedest a stone, and madest a vow to me. Now therefore rise thou (up), and go out of this land, and turn again into the land of thy birth (and return to the land of thy birth).

¹⁴ And Rachel and Leah answered, Whether we have anything residue, or left, in the chattels, and heritage of our father? (And Rachel and Leah asked, Is there anything left here for us, among our father’s possessions, yea of our inheritance?)

¹⁵ Whether he areckoned not, or held, us (as) aliens, and sold (us), and ate our price? (Did he not treat us like foreigners, or like strangers, and sell us, and then eat up all the money that was paid for us?)

¹⁶ But God took away the riches of our father, and gave those to us, and to our sons; wherefore do thou all things which God hath commanded to thee.

¹⁷ Forsooth Jacob rose, and put his free children and wives on camels, and went forth; (So Jacob rose up, and put his children and his wives on camels, and went forth;)

¹⁸ and he took all his cattle, (and his) flocks, and whatever thing he had gotten in Mesopotamia (and whatever he had gotten in Paddan-aram), and went (back) to Isaac, his father, into the land of Canaan.

¹⁹ In that time Laban went to shear sheep, and Rachel stole the idols of her father. (Now at that time Laban went out to shear sheep, and while he was away, Rachel stole her father’s household idols.)

²⁰ And Jacob would not acknowledge to the father of his wives, that he would flee;

²¹ and when he had gone, as well he as all things that were of his right, and when he had passed [over] the water, and he went against the hill of Gilead, (and so when he had gone forth, he as well as all of the things that were rightfully his, and when he had crossed over the Euphrates River, and had gone toward the hill country of Gilead,)

²² it was told to Laban, in the third day, that Jacob fled. (Laban learned, on the third day, that Jacob had fled.)

²³ And Laban took his brethren [with him], and pursued him seven days, and [over]took him in the hill of Gilead. (And Laban took his kinsmen with him, and pursued Jacob for seven days, and finally overtook him in the hill country of Gilead.)

²⁴ And Laban saw in sleep the Lord saying to him, Beware that thou speak not anything sharply against Jacob.

²⁵ And then Jacob had stretched forth the tabernacle in the hill; and when Laban had followed Jacob with his brethren, Laban set a tent in the same hill of Gilead; (And Jacob had pitched his tent in the hill country of Gilead; and when Laban and his kinsmen caught up to him, Laban pitched his tent on the same hill;)

²⁶ and he said to Jacob, Why hast thou done so, that the while I knew not, thou wouldest drive away my daughters as captives, either (as those) taken prisoners, by sword? (and then he said to Jacob, Why hast thou done this, that while I knew not, thou hast driven away my daughters like captives, or like prisoners, taken with the sword?)

²⁷ Why wouldest thou flee the while I knew not, neither wouldest show (it) to me, that I should follow thee with joy, and songs, and tympans, and harps? (Why didest thou flee while I knew not, nor toldest me first, so that I could send thee on thy way with joy, and with songs, and tambourines, and harps?)

²⁸ Thou sufferedest not that I should kiss my sons and daughters; thou hast wrought follily. (Thou hast not allowed me to kiss good-bye my grandsons and my daughters; yea, thou hast done foolishly.)

²⁹ And now soothly mine hand may yield evil to thee (And now truly my hand should yield evil to thee), but the God of thy father said to me yesterday, Beware that thou speak not any hard thing with Jacob.

³⁰ Suppose, if thou covetedest to go to thy kinsmen, and the house of thy father was in desire to thee, why hast thou stolen my gods? (And even if thou covetedest to go to thy kinsmen, and thou desiredest to return to thy father’s house, why hast thou stolen my household gods?)

³¹ Jacob answered, That I went forth while thou knewest not, I dreaded lest thou wouldest take away thy daughters from me violently; (And Jacob answered, I went away while thou knewest not, for I feared that thou wouldest violently take away thy daughters from me;)

³² soothly that thou reprovest me of theft, at whomever thou findest thy gods, be he slain before our brethren; seek thou, (for) whatever thing of thine (that) thou findest at me, and take it away (but for thou hast accused me of theft, yea, with whomever thou findest thy gods, be he killed here before all our kinsmen; seek thou, and whatever thing of thine that thou findest with me, take it away). Jacob said these things, and knew not that Rachel had stolen the idols.

³³ And so Laban entered into the tabernacle(s) of Jacob, and of Leah, and of ever either menial, and he found not; and when Laban had entered into the tent of Rachel, (And so Laban entered into the tents of Jacob, and of Leah, and of both slave-girls, but he did not find the idols; but before Laban entered into Rachel’s tent,)

³⁴ she hasted, and hid the idols under the strewings of the camel, and she sat above. (she hastened, and hid the idols in the camel-bag, and then she sat upon them.)

³⁵ And she said to Laban, seeking (throughout) all the tent, and finding nothing, My lord, be (thou) not wroth that I may not rise (up) before thee, for it befelled now to me by the custom of women (for it hath befallen now to me by the custom of women); so the busyness of the seeker was scorned.

³⁶ And Jacob swelled, and said with strife, For what cause of me, and for what sin of me, hast thou come so fiercely after me, (And Jacob swelled with anger, and said, What have I done, and what have I sinned, that thou shouldest come after me so fiercely,)

³⁷ and hast sought (through) all the purtenance of mine house(hold)? What hast thou found of all the chattel of thine house(hold)? Put thou here before my brethren and thy brethren, and deem they betwixt me and thee (Put thou it here before my kinsmen and thy kinsmen, and let them judge between me and thee).

³⁸ Was I (not) with thee therefore twenty years? (Was I not with thee for twenty years?) Thy sheep and (thy) goats were not barren, I ate not the rams of thy flock,

³⁹ neither I showed to thee anything taken of a beast; I yielded all [the] harm; whatever thing perished by theft, thou askedest of me; (I never showed thee anything caught by a beast; I even yielded to thee for any harm that was done; yea, whatever thing perished by theft, thou askedest for it from me, and thou received it;)

⁴⁰ I was anguished in day and night with heat and frost, and sleep fled from mine eyes;

⁴¹ so I served thee by twenty years in thine house (but I served thee for twenty years in thy household), fourteen years for thy daughters, and six years for thy flocks; and thou changedest my meed ten times.

⁴² But if [the] God of my father Abraham, and the dread of Isaac had not helped me, peradventure now thou haddest left me naked; the Lord hath beheld my tormenting and the travail of mine hands, and reproved thee yesterday (and yesterday rebuked thee).

⁴³ Laban answered to Jacob, The daughters, and the sons, and the flocks, and all things which thou seest, be mine; what may I do to my sons, and to the sons of my sons? (but now, what can I do about my daughters, or the children to whom they have given birth?)

⁴⁴ Therefore come thou, and make we bond of peace, that it be a witnessing betwixt me and thee. (And so come thou, and let us make a covenant, and let it be a witness between me and thee.)

⁴⁵ And so Jacob took a stone, and raised it (up) into a title, either a sign, (And so Jacob took a stone, and set it up as a sacred pillar,)

⁴⁶ and said to his brethren, Bring ye stones; which gathered, and made an heap, and ate on it. (and said to his kinsmen, Bring ye some stones; and they gathered some, and made a heap, or a pile, out of them, and then they ate a meal beside it.)

⁴⁷ And Laban called it The heap of witness, and Jacob called it The heap of witnessing; ever either called it by the property of his (own) language. (And Laban called it Jegarsahadutha, and Jacob called it Galeed; each named it in his own language.)

⁴⁸ And Laban said, This heap shall be (a) witness betwixt me and thee today, and therefore the name thereof was called Galeed, that is, The heap of witness.

⁴⁹ And Laban added, The Lord behold, and deem betwixt us, when we shall go away from you;

⁵⁰ if thou shalt torment my daughters, and if thou shalt bring in other wives on them, none is witness of our word, except God, which is present, and beholdeth. (if thou shalt torment my daughters, or if thou shalt take other wives besides them, no one is a witness of our word, except God, who is present here, and beholdeth all of this.)

⁵¹ And again Laban said to Jacob, Lo! this heap, and the stone, (or the pillar,) which I have raised (up) betwixt me and thee,

⁵² shall be witness(es); soothly this heap, and the stone be into witnessing (this heap, and the stone, shall be witnesses for both of us), forsooth if I shall pass (over) it, and go to thee, either (if) thou shalt pass (over) it, and think (to do) evil to me.

⁵³ God of Abraham, and God of Nahor, [the] God of the father of them, deem betwixt us. Therefore Jacob swore by the dread of his father Isaac;

⁵⁴ and when slain sacrifices were offered (there) in the hill (country), Jacob called his brethren to eat bread (Jacob called his kinsmen to eat with him), and when they had eaten, they dwelled there (all night).

⁵⁵ Forsooth Laban rose by night, and kissed his sons, and daughters, and blessed them, and turned again into his place. (And the next day, Laban rose up early, and kissed his grandsons, and his daughters, and blessed them, and then returned to his home.)