Genesis 30:23-33

23 And she conceived, and bore a son; and said, God hath taken away my reproach:

24 And she called his name Joseph; and said, The LORD will add to me another son.

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 to my country.

26 Give [me] my wives and my children, for whom I have served thee, and let me go: for thou knowest my service which I have done thee.

27 And Laban said to him, I pray thee, if I have found favor in thine eyes, [tarry: for] I have learned by experience, that the LORD hath blessed me for thy sake.

28 And he said, Appoint me thy wages, and I will give [it].

29 And he said to him, Thou knowest how I have served thee, and how thy cattle were with me.

30 For [it was] little which thou hadst before I [came], and it is [now] increased to a multitude; and the LORD hath blessed thee since my coming: and now when shall I provide for my own house also?

31 And he said, What shall I give thee? And Jacob said, Thou shalt not give me any thing; if thou wilt do this thing for me, I will again feed [and] keep thy flock:

32 I will pass through all thy flock to-day, removing from thence all the speckled and spotted cattle, and all the brown cattle among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats: and [of such] shall be my hire.

33 So shall my righteousness answer for me in time to come, when it shall come for my hire before thy face: every one that [is] not speckled and spotted among the goats, and brown among the sheep, that shall be accounted stolen with me.

Genesis 30:23-33 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO GENESIS 30

This chapter gives an account of Rachel's envy of her sister for her fruitfulness, and of her earnest desire of having children, which she expressed to Jacob in an unbecoming manner, for which he reproved her, Ge 30:1,2, of her giving her maid Bilhah to Jacob, by whom he had two sons, Dan and Naphtali, Ge 30:3-8; and of Leah's giving her maid Zilpah to him, by whom he had two other sons, Gad and Asher, Ge 30:9-13; and of Reuben's mandrakes he found in the field, and the agreement made between Rachel and Leah about them, Ge 30:14-16; and of Leah's bearing Jacob two more sons and one daughter, Ge 30:17-21, and of Rachel's also bearing him a son, whose name was Joseph, Ge 30:22-24; upon which he desires leave of Laban to depart into his own country, his time of servitude being up, Ge 30:25,26; which brought on a new agreement between him and Laban, that for the future he should have all the speckled, spotted, and brown cattle for his service, Ge 30:27-36; and the chapter is concluded with an account of a cunning scheme of Jacob's to increase that sort of cattle, which succeeded, and by which he became rich, Ge 30:37-43.