Genesis 30:10

ESV Then Leah 's servant Zilpah bore Jacob a son.
NIV Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a son.
NASB And Leah’s slave Zilpah bore Jacob a son.
CSB Leah’s slave Zilpah bore Jacob a son.
NLT Soon Zilpah presented him with a son.
KJV And Zilpah Leah's maid bare Jacob a son.
NKJV And Leah’s maid Zilpah bore Jacob a son.

What does Genesis 30:10 mean?

Leah was given Zilpah as a wedding present by her father (Genesis 29:24), on the night he treacherously snuck Leah into the marriage bed, rather than Jacob's intended bride, her younger sister Rachel (Genesis 29:21–26). Unsurprisingly, though Jacob was able to marry Rachel almost immediately afterwards, he has no meaningful love for Leah (Genesis 29:31). Despite that fact, Leah was able to bear sons for Jacob while Rachel remained barren. To resolve this, Rachel used the cultural approach to servants to have children "by proxy," using her servant Bilhah to birth two sons for Jacob (Genesis 30:1–8).

In the meantime, Leah has stopped bearing children, but she wants to continue to give sons to Jacob (Genesis 29:35). Apparently, Leah agrees with Rachel that this is a competition, and she intends to win. So Leah follows her sister's example, and gives Jacob her servant girl Zilpah as a wife, planning to claim any babies born to their union as her own. Zilpah eventually has had a son, Jacob's seventh boy, who will be named Gad, to reflect what Leah sees as good fortune.
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Context Summary
Genesis 30:1–24 describes the birth of eight more sons to Jacob, as well as one daughter. While Rachel remains barren, her servant woman bears to Jacob two sons. Then Leah's servant woman does so, as well. Next, Leah herself has three more children. Then, finally, God remembers Rachel. She gives birth to Joseph, giving him a name that is essentially a prayer for another son to follow. As the section ends, Jacob now has 11 sons, at least one daughter, and a plan to return home to his own people.
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Chapter Context
God alone gives children. He causes babies to be born. He even determines what color baby sheep and goats will be. Genesis 30 describes the urgent desire of Rachel and Leah to have sons for Jacob and how God hears and grants their prayers in His own time. In addition, God blesses Jacob's unusual breeding practices with Laban's flocks to finally allow Jacob to overcome his father-in-law's schemes to keep Jacob under his service.
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