30
1 Now when Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister, and said to Jacob, “Give me children, or else I die!” 29:31 2 And Jacob’s anger was aroused against Rachel, and he said, “Am I in the place of God, who has withheld from you the fruit of your womb?” 3 So she said, “Here is my maid Bilhah; go into her, and she will bear a child on my knees, that I also may have children by her.” 29:29 4 Then she gave him Bilhah her maid as wife, and Jacob went in to her. 16:1-4
There is most definitely a bitter rivalry between the two sisters, just as in the case between Jacob and his own brother Esau. The rivalry here though is for the affection of their same husband Jacob. Rachel, the one whom Jacob loves deeply, feels that her sister Leah has stolen Jacob from her, all because of the birthright of the firstborn. This rivalry is compounded by the fact that Leah has bore Jacob four sons, while Rachel has not conceived even one, yet alone a son. Rachel feels that if she can not bear children she might as well be dead. Just as in the case of Abraham and Sarah, Rachel decides to let Jacob marry her handmaid Bilhah so the she can conceive a child (hopefully a son). As was the custom back then, just as it was with Sarah and Hagar: During the birth of the child the handmaid (In this case Bilhah) will deliver the child while sitting in between the legs of Rachel: as if it were Rachel who was birthing the child. Their is a parallel between Leah and Rachel, and Jacob and Esau. Jacob, in a sense did steal a blessing that was meant for Esau with the help, and on advisement of his mother, through deceit, and another time by taken advantage of Esau’s momentarily lack of judgment: Esau despised this birthright, and sold it to Jacob for a pot of stew. This time Jacob is the one who is deceived, and he is helpless to do anything about it. Laban, his mothers sister, tricks him into marrying Leah, all the while thinking he was marrying his true love Rachel. Jacob is beginning to reap what he has sown.
5 And Bilhah conceived and bore Jacob a son. 6 Then Rachel said, “God has judged my case; and He has also heard my voice and given me a son.” Therefore she called his name Dan.
(H1090) : בּלהה : bilhâh
BDB Definition:
Bilhah = “troubled”
(H7354) : רחל : râchêl
BDB Definition:
Rachel = “ewe”
1) daughter of Laban, wife of Jacob, and mother of Joseph and Benjamin
Part of Speech: noun proper feminine
A Related Word by BDB/Strong’s Number: the same as H7353: (H7353) : רָחֵל : râchêl : raw-khale’
From an unused root meaning to journey; a ewe (the females being the predominant element of a flock), (as a good traveller): – ewe, sheep.
Here is a prime example of what I have said in the past, in regards to the meanings of names in the scriptures: many of times, the names of people in the bible reflect their personality, or their significance in God’s master plan. As we have already seen in the last chapter; it was Rachel who Jacob loved dearly, making her the predominant Female in the house of Jacob, making her exalted above Leah, and his concubines. Rachel though was very troubled because she could not bear children for Jacob, so she turns to her handmaid, Bilhah, in her time of trouble to bear children for Her. As we see above Bilhah means trouble. I just found this fascinating when I saw the meanings of these names.
(H1835) : דּן : dân
BDB Definition:
Dan = “a judge”
1) the 5th son of Jacob, the 1st of Bilhah, Rachel’s handmaid (noun proper masculine)
2) the tribe descended from Dan, the son of Jacob (noun proper masculine)
7 And Rachel’s maid Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son. 8 Then Rachel said, “With great wrestling’s I have wrestled with my sister, and indeed I have prevailed. So she called his name Naphtali.
(H5321) : נפתּלי : naphtâlı̂y
BDB Definition:
Naphtali = “wrestling”
1) the 6th son of Jacob and the 2nd by Bilhah the handmaid of Rachel (noun proper masculine)
2) the tribe descended from Naphtali the son of Jacob (noun proper masculine)
3) the territory assigned to the tribe of Naphtali (noun proper locative)
Rachel feels vindicated by the Lord for the births of the two sons by Bilhah her handmaid. The meaning of names Rachel has given these two sons of Bilhah reflects Rachel’s feelings: She has wrestled with her sister for the affections of Jacob, and in her mind God has judged her, found her wanting, and answered her prayers. One must still think to themselves that Rachel probably does not feel complete because she has not borne any children of her own. The rituals of having her handmaid give birth to a child between the knees of Rachel, as if it were her that was birthing these two sons, can not satisfy the desire to have children of her own. It is in our nature, that God put into our hearts to have children: “Be fruitful and Multiply” So says the Lord. If we read just a little further in this chapter (Verse 30), where Rachel finally has a son of her own she says “God has taken away my reproach,” meaning Rachel felt shamed, disgraced, because she could not bear children on her own.
9 When Leah saw that she had stopped bearing, she took Zilpah her maid and gave her to Jacob as wife. 10 And Leah’s maid Zilpah bore Jacob a son. 29:24 11 Then Leah said, “A troop comes!” So she called his name Gad. 12 And Zilpah Leah’s maid bare Jacob a second son.
13 And Leah said, Happy am I, for the daughters will call me blessed: and she called his name Asher.
(H3812) : לאה : lê’âh
BDB Definition:
Leah = “weary”
1) daughter of Laban, first wife of Jacob, and mother of Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, and Dinah
(H2153) : זלפּה : zilpâh
BDB Definition:
Zilpah = “a trickling”
1) the Syrian given by Laban to Leah as a handmaid, a concubine of Jacob, mother of Asher and Gad
(H1410) : גּד : gâd
BDB Definition:
Gad = “troop”
1) seventh son of Jacob by Zilpah, Leah’s handmaid, and full brother of Asher.
2) the tribe descended from Gad
(H836) : אשׁר :’âshêr
BDB Definition:
Asher = “happy”
1) son of Jacob and Zilpah
2) the tribe descended from Asher
Again we can find significance in the meaning of the names of Leah and Zilpah. her handmaid. Leah has been wearied ever since this marriage between her and Jacob, and Jacob and Rachel, always vying for the affection of her husband. Even though she has birthed four sons for Jacob, she is still not loved by him, and now that she has stopped birthing children, just as her name implies, she has grown weary for his affections. Out of desperation, Leah decides to give her handmaid Zilpah as a wife to Jacob so he can have more children, in the hopes that this will trickle, (As is the meaning of Zilpah’s name), down to finally winning over the affections of Jacob. Rachel names Zilpah’s first son Gad: meaning troop, (H1413) Rachel is gathering as many sons as possible to cut into the hold that Leah has over Jacob. Then when Zilpah has her second son we read that Rachel is happy (This again is the literal meaning of the name Asher) Am I over-reaching in my commentary to the meanings of Leah’s and Zilpah’s names? isn’t this what Leah is doing here also? I will leave it up to the reader to draw their own conclusions on these verses, and how the names of everyone involved reflect the story line here. One thing for sure though; we are seeing a nation being born little by little, step by step.
14 Now Reuben went in the days of wheat harvest and found mandrakes in the field, and brought them to his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.” Song. 7:13 15 But she said to her, “Is it a small matter that you have taken away my husband? Would you take away my son’s mandrakes also?” And Rachel said, “Therefore he will lie with you tonight for your son’s mandrakes.” 16 When Jacob came out of the field in the evening, Leah went out to meet him and said, “You must come into me, for I have surely hired you with my son’s mandrakes.” And he lay with her that night.
So this is what Jacob’s life has come to; A hired servant, a sex slave if you will. He was bargained and sold for some mandrakes so that he may lay with Leah that night. Make no mistake, when we are told that he had to lay with Leah, it wasn’t just to sleep in her bed that night; it was for the purpose of having intercourse with her, so that she may bare a child. This had to cut right to the heart of Jacobs, for it was the woman he loved dearly (Rachel), who sold him off for the mandrakes. What kind of love is that, that a wife would bargain their husband off, (no matter what the cost was), for sexual favors? That has to hurt, it is a wound that can never be healed. Yes God is humbling Jacob, and when God humbles us it hurts. One way or the other it hurts, either physically or mentally, but we must remember that when God humbles us it is out of love. we must also remember that God is also called “Father” to us, and as a Father sometimes He (just like our earthly fathers), has to give us what is called tough love (Some people need a little more of that tough love than others), because we are carnal in nature and we will resist to the core fabric of our being Rom 8:6-7), “To be spiritually minded is life and peace” This is what God, “The Father” wishes for all His children: to have life, and to have it more abundantly (John 10:10), God is a God of peace, who gives us peace always by all means (2 Th. 3:16). This is what God is doing with Jacob here. God has chosen Jacob for a special purpose, but Jacob needs to learn humility. It is no different than how God works through His church when He calls us. We must humble ourselves, and surrender our life to Him before we can begin the process of conversion (which only God can do):
Php 2:13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.
17 And God listened to Leah, and she conceived and bore Jacob a fifth son. 18 Leah said, “God has given me my wages, Because I have given my maid to my husband.” So she called his name Issachar.
(H3485) : ישּׂשׂכר : yiśśâśkâr
BDB Definition:
Issachar = “there is recompense”
1) the 9th son of Jacob and the 5th by Leah his first wife and the progenitor of a tribe by his name (noun proper masculine)
Earlier in verses nine thru eleven we read where Leah gave her handmaid Zilpah to Jacob as his wife so that she would birth children with Jacob, in the hope that Jacob would finally love her the way he loves Rachel, and maybe even more so because of all the children she has given him. Even though Zilpah did indeed birth two sons to Jacob, his love and affections stay the same between Leah , and Rachel. Now that Leah has conceived a son once more to Jacob, she feels that the Lord has rewarded her, for her sacrifice and suffering she has endured. So as we see above this is why she gave the name Issachar to her fifth son.
19 Then Leah conceived again and bore Jacob a sixth son. 20 And Leah said, “God has endowed me with a good endowment; now my husband will dwell with me, because I have borne him six sons.” So she called his name Zebulun.
(H2074) : זבוּלן / זבלוּן / זבוּלוּן : zebûlûn / zebûlûn
BDB Definition:
Zebulun = “exalted”
1) the 10th of the sons of Jacob, 6th and last of Leah; progenitor of Zebulun (noun proper masculine)
2) the tribe descended from Zebulun (noun proper masculine)
3) the land allocated to the tribe of Zebulun (noun proper locative)
This will be the final son that Leah will birth for Jacob. Leah now feels that after birthing six sons to Jacob through her own body, that Jacob will now put her above Rachel. As I have said in the past: when we look at the definition of the names in the bible we can see that they are given these names because of what the name means, or represents. In my opinion this does not slip past Leah’s mind. Like I showed earlier; Rachel means Ewe (which is the predominant female in a flock of sheep), and I commented that Rachel was exalted above Leah and his concubines by Jacob. Now Leah feels as if she is exalted above Rachel and Jacobs concubines, and she is now the predominant female in the house of Jacob because of this sixth son she bore for him. If you notice Leah’s remarks here, she states that Jacob will now dwell with her. This tells me, and proves to me, what I have been saying all along that Jacob has been dwelling with Rachel through all of this because she was and still is the predominant female in the house of Jacob. Even though Rachel sold him off like she did for some mandrakes, as much as that hurt, Jacob will love her more than Leah throughout Rachel’s life, and when she does finally give Jacob two sons we will see that Jacob loves them more than all the other sons he has (including his firstborn).
21 Afterwards she bore a daughter, and called her name Dinah. 34:1, 31
(H1783) : דּינה : dı̂ynâh
BDB Definition:
Dinah = “judgment”
1) daughter of Jacob by Leah, full sister of Simeon and Levi
We can’t help but notice the lack of fanfare by the birth of Dinah. we are giving no reason why Dinah was given this name, like we did with the birth of all the sons of Jacob (including those of his concubines). This is because there is more value placed on the sons than there are the daughters back in this time in history, and still is in some cultures (including the Israeli nation). I can only go to the commentaries to explain why the name Dinah was given. I only found one commentary that gives us a reason and this is found in Adam Clarke’s commentary:
And called her name Dinah – דינה dinah, judgment. As Rachel had called her son by Bilhah Dan, Gen 30:6, so Leah calls her daughter Dinah, God having judged and determined for her, as well as for her sister in the preceding instance.
The last thing I would like to point out here is the latter part in the BDB definition, where it list only Simeon and Levi, as Dinah being their full sister. Simeon and Levi are not the only sons of Jacob that she is a full sister to. There are also Reuben, Jacob’s firstborn, and Judah, and Issachar, and Zebulun. So I wondered why these brothers are not listed in the BDB definition? I find my answer in Genesis chapter thirty four. In this chapter We read where Dinah was defiled by Shechem, in the city of Shechem. Shechem is also the son of Hamor, an Hivite, and the city of Shechem lay in the land of Canaan. When Jacob and his sons learn of this they were very angry. However, as we read on we see where Jacob and his sons come to an agreement (Or can I say Judgement as in the meaning of Dinah’s name) that all the males in the city should be circumcised along with Shechem and Hamor, but the sons of Jacob were deceitful in this agreement. then in Gen 34:25 we read that it was Simeon and Levi who went out and killed all the males in the city (including Shechem and Hamor), while they were weak from being circumcised. This is the only plausible explanation I can give why only Simeon, and Levi are defined as Dinah being their full sister.
22 Then God remembered Rachel, and God listened to her and opened her womb. v. 1; 29:31; 1 Sam 1:19, 20 23 And she conceived and bore a son and said, “God has taken away my reproach.” Luke 1:25 24 So she called his name Joseph, and said, “The Lord shall add to me another son.” 35: 16-20
(H3130) : יסף : yôsêph BDB definition: Joseph = “Jehovah has added”
1. to add, increase, do again
a. (Qal) to add, increase, do again
b. (Niphal)
1. to join, join oneself to
2. to be joined, be added to
c. (Hiphil)
1. to cause to add, increase
2. to do more, do again
By giving her son the name of Joseph, she is in a sense prophesying that the Lord will add to her another son, which is what eventually happens with the birth of Benjamin, but at a much later time. Rachel also states that “God has taken away my reproach” this is what I was commenting on earlier in verse eight: that even though Bilhah, Rachel’s handmaid bore children with Jacob, she felt shameful, and disgraced because she could not birth children of her own for Jacob.
25 And it came to pass when Rachel had borne Joseph, that Jacob said to Laban, “Send me away, that I may go to my own place and my own country. 24: 54, 56
Jacob made an earlier agreement with Laban that he would serve him seven more years for Rachel (his true love). With this in mind it must stand to reason that either by Coincidence or the hand of God, that soon after Joseph’s birth these seven years had been completed.
26 “Give me my wives and my children for whom I have served you, and let me go; for you know my service which I have done for you.”
In a demanding way Jacob tells Laban to give him his wives and children. Jacob has served Laban for fourteen years (as agreed upon), basically so he could Marry Rachel (his one true love), He reminds Laban of this agreement, and that He has fulfilled his end of the bargain, now it is time for Laban to live up to his end.
27 And Laban said to him, “Please stay, if I have found favor in your eyes, for I have learned by experience that the Lord has blessed me for your sake.” 26:24; 39:3 28 Then he said, “Name me your wages and I will give it.
Laban knows that it is only because of Jacob being blessed by God that he has prospered so much in the past fourteen years, and he is not ready to let Jacob leave just yet. He knows though that he must give an incentive for Jacob to stay, so he offers to pay him if he would just stay longer. Laban has no more daughters to sell off, so he is willing to hear Jacob out. Being the deceiver that he is, he will try to manipulate the deal and take advantage of him anyway he can. As we will see in the next chapter this is exactly what Laban tries to do, only God won’t allow him to succeed this time.
29 So Jacob said to him, “You know how I have served you and how your livestock has been with me. 30 “For what you had before I came was little, and it has increased to a great amount; the Lord has blessed you since my coming. And now, when shall I also provide for my own house?”
Jacob reminds Laban that it wasn’t until he came along that God has started blessing him. Before Jacob arrived in Padan Aram Laban had very little in livestock, and Jacob has increased all the he had when he started serving Laban. But Jacob has nothing to show for all his hard work. He has no livestock of his own. Laban has been the one who has provided for the house of Jacob all these years, Jacob owns nothing, he has no possessions of his own. Jacob was deceived into marrying Leah, whom Jacob had no desire for. and therefore was manipulated by Laban so that he could marry Rachel (His one true love). in those days, the wives, concubines and the sons of the servant are considered to belong to the master of the house, in this case that is Laban. during the days of colonialism in America there were people who were called indentured servants. these people were under contract to work for another person for a definite period of time, usually without pay but in exchange for free passage to a new country. This is basically what Jacob has been for the past fourteen years.
31 So he said, “What shall I give you?” And Jacob said, “You shall not give me anything. If you will do this thing for me, I will again feed and keep your flocks: 32 “Let me pass through all your flock today, removing from there all the speckled and spotted sheep, and all the brown ones among the lambs, and the spotted and the speckled among the goats; and these shall be my wages. 31:8 33 “So my righteousness will answer for me in time to come, when the subject of my wages comes before you: every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and brown among the lambs, will be considered stolen, if it is with me.” 34 And Laban said, “Oh, that it were according to your word!” 35 So he removed that day the male goats that were speckled and spotted, all the female goats that were speckled and spotted, every one that had some white in it, and all the brown ones among the lambs, and gave them into the hand of his sons. 36 Then he put three days journey between himself and Jacob, and Jacob fed the rest of Laban’s flocks
Laban ask Jacob what he can give him so that he will stay longer with him. Jacob in turns tells him: “You shall not give me anything” verse thirty three: “My righteousness (My truthfulness), will answer me in time to come, when the subject of my wages comes before you.” What Jacob says in verse thirty three is very telling into the person he has become since first arriving in Padan Aram fourteen years earlier. Jacob’s name means deceiver (supplanter). No longer the deceiver he once was, Jacob will deal with Laban in a just and righteous way, which is an attribute of God, and he will be vindicated by what I would like to describe as his Godly character that has been developed in him, that only by God working in him, thru him, and with him, that he has developed into this newness of life and spirit. Just as we (The church), who are spiritual Israel, that has the faith of Abraham, having been grafted in, being baptized, are now partakers of the promised seed, in which all nations are blessed, in which God now works in us, as he has been doing with Jacob the whole time he has been in Padan Aram. The agreement Jacob and Laban make is this: Jacob will go thru all of Laban’s flock, and separate all speckled, spotted, and brown among the goats and lambs (the males and Females), Jacob will take care of only the unblemished (pure white), of all Laban’s flock, both male and female, and if any of the flock that Jacob takes care of are born blemished then these will be his wages. Laban immediately agrees to this because how can all white goats and lambs breed any blemished offspring? Laban gives all the blemished goats, and lambs to his son’s, and moves them three days away from the unblemished flock Jacob will take care to avoid any chance of the blemished livestock breeding with the unblemished.
37 Now Jacob took for himself rods of green poplar and of the almond and chestnut trees, peeled white stripes in them, and exposed the white which was in the rods. 38 And the rods which had peeled, he set before the flocks in the gutters, in the watering troughs where the flocks came to drink, so that they should conceive when they came to drink. 39 So the flocks conceived before the rods, and the flocks brought forth streaked, speckled, and spotted. 40 Then Jacob separated the lambs, and made the flocks face towards the streaked and all the brown in the flock of Laban; but he put his own flocks by themselves and did not put them with Laban’s flocks. 41 And it came to pass, whenever the stronger livestock conceived, that Jacob placed the rods before the eyes of the livestock in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods. 42 But when the flocks were feeble, he did not put them in; so the feebler were Laban’s and the stronger Jacob’s. 43 Thus the man became exceedingly prosperous, and had large flocks, female and males servants, and camels and donkeys. 12:16; 26:12-14
I had contemplated these verses for a long time trying understand what Jacob is doing with Laban’s flocks, and the use of trees in the watering trough’s and how this could produce a flock of goats and lambs to be blemished. I have found nothing in my research that explains this process, neither by scientific explanation, nor by any commentaries of old like JFB, Adam Clarke, Mathew Henry, etc. etc. There is only one Commentary that I have found that gives an explanation that is logical and explains what is going on that makes sense to me, and that is from my own churches commentary on the matter. Now whoever reads this may ask, “Since it is my own church why did I have to go to other resources in my quest for the truth?’ Don’t I trust in my own church?” I would answer that question in this way. One thing I like about my church goes back to it’s leader who founded the church, (Herbert W. Armstrong), He had a saying that he would say over and over when given sermons or in his magazine: The Plain Truth, he would always say to his listeners, and I am paraphrasing: “don’t believe me, pick up your own bible, prove it to yourselves” and this has been passed down thru the church since then. We are inspired by our leaders in the church to pick up our own bible, do our own studies and prove to ourselves what is truth and what isn’t. so with this teaching, I apply this to my own studies feverishly. The thing of it is, I usually find that I am in agreement with my churches conclusions more often than naught. This is one case where I find that the United Church of God gives the only logical conclusion. so with this in mind I will copy and paste their commentary on verse’s thirty seven thru forty three:
http://bible.ucg.org/bible-commentary/Genesis/Jacob’s-deal-with-Laban-concerning-the-flocks/
Verse 37 begins the equally odd business of the poplar, almond and chestnut branches. Many commentators suggest some kind of magic practice, or that the peeled rods were intended to cause the sheep to imitate the partly colored rods by bringing forth partly colored sheep. Yet this is certainly not what Jacob was engaged in here. Notice verse 38: “And the rods which he had peeled, he set before the flocks in the gutters, in the watering troughs where the flocks came to drink, so that they should conceive when they came to drink.” The word “conceive” is translated from the Hebrew yacham, literally meaning “to be hot,” and which, when speaking of animals, can mean “to be in heat.” By peeling the fresh cut rods (verse 37), Jacob caused the sap-filled meat of the rods to be exposed, thus possibly allowing the sap of the rods to mingle with the water in the watering troughs. Perhaps he believed this additive in the water would help to bring the animals to heat. It has also been suggested that the peeled rods were used as a sort of corralling fence, set up when the flocks came to drink to keep them together longer for mating. Verses 41-42 also inform us that Jacob practiced selective breeding, ensuring that the best of the flock would be subject to his treatment of the water.
But all this did not produce the spotted and colored sheep. These actions only aided Jacob in selecting which sheep would breed at what time. God caused the unusual coloration of the sheep. As Jacob said: “My righteousness will answer for me.” The production of colored sheep was God’s response to Jacob’s righteousness. Indeed, we later find out that Laban, seeing the results, kept changing the deal about which sheep Jacob would get—and, in every case, God followed suit with the coloration of sheep produced. Jacob explained to his wives: “God did not allow [Laban] to hurt me. If he said thus: ‘The speckled shall be your wages,’ then all the flocks bore speckled. And if he said thus: ‘The streaked shall be your wages,’ then all the flocks bore streaked. So God has taken away the livestock of your father and given them to me” (31:7-9).
Jacob had matured tremendously while in service to Laban. He had moved away from his grasping, manipulative ways and had come to the point where he understood that prosperity and protection are dependent on righteous conduct before God. And for that, God rewarded and prospered him. Jacob’s character, however, was to be further developed.
this chapter ends telling us that Jacob became exceedingly prosperous, not just with the flocks of goats and lambs, but also with Female and males servants, camels and donkey’s. like his fathers before him, God has been with Jacob thru it all. the bible doesn’t explain how Jacob attained all this prosperity, but if you go back and read at referenced verses (Compare Gen 12:16, 26:12-14), from verse forty three in this chapter you will see that they refer to Abraham, and Isaac when then became prosperous as well. in these referenced chapters we read that it is the Lord God Almighty, who blessed these men and made them prosperous. The Lord has surely been with Jacob the whole time he has dwelt in Padan Aram and has blessed him tremendously. While Jacob was on his way to Padan Aram the Lord appeared to Jacob and told him the He would be with him wherever he would go (Just as He promised Abraham and Isaac). Even Laban himself acknowledges this truth. Abraham, Issac, and Jacob has learned to trust in the Lord. wherever He tells them to go they go, whatever He tells them to do, they do (John 12:26)
