Genesis 31:8

8 If he said thus, The speckled shall be thy wages; then all the cattle bore speckled: and if he said thus, The ring-streaked shall be thy hire; then all the cattle bore ring-streaked.

Genesis 31:8 Meaning and Commentary

Genesis 31:8

If he said thus, the speckled shall be thy wages
Sometimes Laban would say to Jacob, only the speckled lambs which the ewes shall bring forth shall be thine hire, and not the spotted; or the ringstraked, or the brown, which according to the bargain should have been his, the one and the other: then all the cattle bare speckled;
that season, God ordering it so in his providence, that Laban might be disappointed, and Jacob might have his full hire; that is, the greatest part of the cattle bore such, as Ben Melech observes: and if he said thus, the ringstraked shall be thine hire;
observing the cattle to bring forth only speckled, or the greatest part such, then he changed his hire, and would have it be not the speckled, nor the brown, only the ringstraked, there being none or few of that colour the last yeaning time: then bare all the cattle ringstraked;
or the greatest part of them were such; so that let Laban fix on what colour he would as Jacob's wages, there were sure to be the greatest part of that colour; which shows the hand of God in it, as is next observed by Jacob.

Genesis 31:8 In-Context

6 And ye know that with all my power I have served your father.

7 And your father hath deceived me, and changed my wages ten times: but God suffered him not to hurt me.

8 If he said thus, The speckled shall be thy wages; then all the cattle bore speckled: and if he said thus, The ring-streaked shall be thy hire; then all the cattle bore ring-streaked.

9 Thus God hath taken away the cattle of your father, and given [them] to me.

10 And it came to pass at the time that the cattle conceived, that I lifted up my eyes, and saw in a dream, and behold, the rams which leaped upon the cattle [were] ring-streaked, speckled, and grizzled.