How Did Jacob’s Family and Possessions Increase in Genesis 30?

Jacob’s family and possessions increased as Leah and Rachel had children, and as Jacob separated the flock according to the wages he had agreed on with Laban. Genesis 30 records both the birth of children in a household marked by rivalry and conflict and the result of Jacob’s work as he built up his own household.

How did the rivalry over children begin?

Rachel saw that she was not bearing sons for Jacob and became jealous of Leah. When Rachel demanded children from Jacob, Jacob became angry and said that he could not take the place of God.

Rachel gave her maid Bilhah to Jacob. Bilhah bore Dan and Naphtali. Rachel said of Dan’s birth that God had heard her voice, and of Naphtali’s birth that she had wrestled mightily with her sister and won.

Leah also saw that she had stopped bearing children, so she gave her maid Zilpah to Jacob. Zilpah bore Gad and Asher. In this way, the rivalry between the two women led to each of their maids bearing children.

How did God hear Leah and Rachel?

When Reuben found mandrakes in the field and brought them to Leah, Rachel asked for them. The two women spoke back and forth about the mandrakes and about Jacob lying with Leah that night.

After that day, God heard Leah, and Leah bore Issachar. Leah later bore Zebulun, and after that she gave birth to her daughter Dinah. As she spoke of her children’s births, Leah expressed that God had paid her and given her a generous gift.

The passage then records that God remembered Rachel and listened to her. When God opened Rachel’s womb, Rachel bore Joseph. Rachel said that God had taken away her shame, and she named her son Joseph, hoping that the Lord would add another son to her.

Why did Jacob set his wages with Laban?

After Joseph was born, Jacob asked Laban to let him return to his homeland and native country. He wanted to go with the wives and children he had gained by working for Laban. Laban urged him to stay, saying that he had realized the Lord had blessed him because of Jacob.

Jacob said that Laban’s possessions had increased since he came. Then he asked when he would be able to build his own household. This question shows that Jacob was not merely tending Laban’s flock, but seeking to establish possessions for his own family.

Jacob proposed that the speckled, spotted, and black animals among the sheep, and the spotted or speckled animals among the goats, would be his wages. He said that later, when Laban inspected his wages, any animal that did not have the agreed characteristics would be counted as stolen from him. Laban agreed to this proposal.

How did Jacob’s possessions become many?

Laban separated the goats and sheep with the marked characteristics and gave them to his sons, and he kept a three-day journey’s distance from Jacob. Jacob continued caring for the remaining flock of Laban.

Jacob peeled bark from branches to make white streaks and set them in front of the flock at the watering places. He separated the lambs so that his flock would not mix with Laban’s flock. He also placed the branches before the strong animals when they were breeding, but not before the weak animals. As a result, the weak became Laban’s, and the strong became Jacob’s.

Genesis 30 ends by saying that Jacob became very prosperous. He had many flocks and servants, camels, and donkeys. Today, while reading all of Genesis 30, mark both the place where it says ‘God heard’ and the place where Jacob set his wages in order to build his own household.

Scripture basis

• Genesis 30:1-13
• Genesis 30:14-24
• Genesis 30:25-36
• Genesis 30:37-43