e-Ministries   
   by Jon Justvig   
   August 10, 2014   
          
   Issue #: 35   
      
   Let us open our Bible to Genesis chapter 30 starting in verse 1.   
      
   Gen 30:1  And when Rachel saw that she bare Jacob no children, Rachel envied   
   her sister; and said unto Jacob, Give me children, or else I die.    
      
   Here we see Rachel wanting and desiring the want to have a child with Jacob.    
   She feels down that her sister Leah had a child and she didn't.  We know that   
   Rachel was hated, yet blessed.   
   ,   
   Gen 30:2  And Jacob's anger was kindled against Rachel: and he said, Am I in   
   God's stead, who hath withheld from thee the fruit of the womb?  Gen 30:3  And   
   she said, Behold my maid Bilhah, go in unto her; and she shall bear upon my   
   knees, that I may also have children by her.  Gen 30:4  And she gave him   
   Bilhah her handmaid to wife: and Jacob went in unto her.    
   Gen 30:5  And Bilhah conceived, and bare Jacob a son.   
      
   Since Rachel could not bare children at this point, she had used her handmaid   
   to bare children for her.  Her handmaid, Bilhah was able to bare children and   
   she bore Jacob a son.   
       
   Gen 30:6  And Rachel said, God hath judged me, and hath also heard my voice,   
   and hath given me a son: therefore called she his name Dan.  Gen 30:7  And   
   Bilhah Rachel's maid conceived again, and bare Jacob a second son.    
      
   Her handmaid bore a son and his name was Dan.  They obviously wanted another   
   child after the first and Rachel's maid gave birth top another son.   
      
   Gen 30:8  And Rachel said, With great wrestlings have I wrestled with my   
   sister, and I have prevailed: and she called his name Naphtali.    
      
   And, her second son's name was Naphtali.   
      
   Gen 30:9  When Leah saw that she had left bearing, she took Zilpah her maid,   
   and gave her Jacob to wife.    
   Gen 30:10  And Zilpah Leah's maid bare Jacob a son.  Gen 30:11  And Leah said,   
   A troop cometh: and she called his name Gad.  Gen 30:12  And Zilpah Leah's   
   maid bare Jacob a second son.  Gen 30:13  And Leah said, Happy am I, for the   
   daughters will call me blessed: and she called his name Asher.    
      
   Leah wanted Jacob to have more children, so like Rachel, her handmaid   
   conceived two more children for Jacob, Gad and Asher.   
      
   Gen 30:14  And Reuben went in the days of wheat harvest, and found mandrakes   
   in the field, and brought them unto his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah,   
   Give me, I pray thee, of thy son's mandrakes.  Gen 30:15  And she said unto   
   her, Is it a small matter that thou hast taken my husband? and wouldest thou   
   take away my son's mandrakes also? And Rachel said, Therefore he shall lie   
   with thee to night for thy son's mandrakes.  Gen 30:16  And Jacob came out of   
   the field in the evening, and Leah went out to meet him, and said, Thou must   
   come in unto me; for surely hired thee with my son's mandrakes. And he lay   
   with her that night.  Gen 30:17  And God hearkened unto Leah, and she   
   conceived, and bare Jacob the fifth son.    
      
   After all of this, Leah had listened to God and Jacob had yet another son and   
   named him Issachar.   
      
   Gen 30:18  And Leah said, God hath given me my hire, because I have given my   
   maiden to my husband: and she called his name Issachar.  Gen 30:19  And Leah   
   conceived again, and bare Jacob the sixth son.    
      
   Quite a family Jacob has got now, with no doubt?  Leah bore another child and   
   that makes six sons for Jacob.   
      
   Gen 30:20  And Leah said, God hath endued me with a good dowry; now will my   
   husband dwell with me, because I have born him six sons: and she called his   
   name Zebulun.    
      
   After this time, she named her six son, Zebulun.   
      
   Gen 30:21  And afterwards she bare a daughter, and called her name Dinah.    
      
   This time, not a son, but yet a daughter, Leah conceived a baby girl named   
   Dinah.   
      
   Gen 30:22  And God remembered Rachel, and God hearkened to her, and opened her   
   womb.    
   Gen 30:23  And she conceived, and bare a son; and said, God hath taken away my   
   reproach:    
   Gen 30:24  And she called his name Joseph; and said, The LORD shall add to me   
   another son.    
      
   What a blessing for Rachel!  She is now able to conceive and have children of   
   her own, blessed by God.  She had a child and named him Jospeh.  Eight   
   children?  Can you imagine?   
      
      
   Gen 30:25  And it came to pass, when Rachel had born Joseph, that Jacob said   
   unto Laban, Send me away, that I may go unto mine own place, and to my country.   
      
   Gen 30:26  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.  Gen 30:27  And   
   Laban said unto him, I pray thee, if I have found favour in thine eyes, tarry:   
   for I have learned by experience that the LORD hath blessed me for thy sake.    
   Gen 30:28  And he said, Appoint me thy wages, and I will give it.  Gen 30:29    
   And he said unto him, Thou knowest how I have served thee, and how thy cattle   
   was with me.    
   Gen 30:30  For it was little which thou hadst before I came, and it is now   
   increased unto a multitude; and the LORD hath blessed thee since my coming:   
   and now when shall I provide for mine own house also?  Gen 30:31  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:    
   Gen 30:32  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.  Gen   
   30:33  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 counted stolen with   
   me.    
   Gen 30:34  And Laban said, Behold, I would it might be according to thy word.    
   Gen 30:35  And he removed that day the he goats that were ringstraked and   
   spotted, and all the she goats that were speckled and spotted, and every one   
   that had some white in it, and all the brown among the sheep, and gave them   
   into the hand of his sons.    
   Gen 30:36  And he set three days' journey betwixt himself and Jacob: and Jacob   
   fed the rest of Laban's flocks.    
   Gen 30:37  And Jacob took him rods of green poplar, and of the hazel and   
   chesnut tree; and pilled white strakes in them, and made the white appear   
   which was in the rods.    
   Gen 30:38  And he set the rods which he had pilled before the flocks in the   
   gutters in the watering troughs when the flocks came to drink, that they   
   should conceive when they came to drink.    
   Gen 30:39  And the flocks conceived before the rods, and brought forth cattle   
   ringstraked, speckled, and spotted.  Gen 30:40  And Jacob did separate the   
   lambs, and set the faces of the flocks toward the ringstraked, and all the   
   brown in the flock of Laban; and he put his own flocks by themselves, and put   
   them not unto Laban's cattle.  Gen 30:41  And it came to pass, whensoever the   
   stronger cattle did conceive, that Jacob laid the rods before the eyes of the   
   cattle in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods.  Gen 30:42    
   But when the cattle were feeble, he put them not in: so the feebler were   
   Laban's, and the stronger Jacob's.  Gen 30:43  And the man increased   
   exceedingly, and had much cattle, and maidservants, and menservants, and   
   camels, and asses.   
      
   ***   
      
   If you've enjoyed our meeting, remember to ask your SysOp to carry MINISTER,   
   an echo with FidoNet if he/she doesn't already.  Remember   
   also to keep your head up high.  May God bless you and keep you!   
          
   *** This conclude this issue of e-Ministries provided by Jon Justvig.   
      
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