Favor · the best way to learn the Bible
Genesis 30 Bible study: Sons, rivals and flocks
Rachel and Leah competed through their servants, their sayings and even a trade of mandrakes, and Jacob's family grew to eleven sons and a daughter. Rachel's son came when "God remembered Rachel", and she named him Joseph. Laban admitted the LORD had blessed him because of Jacob, and though Laban removed every speckled animal, Jacob's flocks grew; he later says God gave them to him.
Favor is a Bible study app that explains every chapter as you read: the words behind the words, what most readers miss, and how it all leads to Jesus.
First week free, then $10 a month per person
“God remembered Rachel, and God listened to her, and opened her womb.”
Try it · Did you catch it?
“Rachel traded for the mandrakes, but Leah had the next three children.”
Is that in Genesis 30, or not? Make your call.
What's really going on
"Give me children, or else I will die"
"Rachel envied her sister" and said to Jacob, "Give me children, or else I will die." He answers in anger, "Am I in God’s place, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?" (30:1-2). As Sarai once did with Hagar (16:2), Rachel gives Jacob her servant Bilhah so that "I also may obtain children by her" (30:3-4). Leah then gives him her servant Zilpah (30:9). Each birth gets a name and a saying: Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher (30:5-13).
Where it leads to Jesus
The twelve tribes
Genesis 30:24leads toMatthew 19:28
With Joseph (30:24), Jacob has eleven sons; Benjamin is born later (35:18), and then "the sons of Jacob were twelve" (35:22). Genesis calls them "the twelve tribes of Israel" (49:28). Jesus told those who had followed him that they "will sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel" (Matthew 19:28).
Honest questions
Questions people ask about Genesis 30
That was a taste
The rest of Genesis 30 is waiting in Favor
- The mandrakes
- God remembered Rachel
- The speckled and the spotted
- The tribes are being born
- Wages and reward
- 16 questions as you read
- 7 more Hebrew words
- A short check at the end
- Your notes, saved as you go
Favor reads the Bible in order, so you'll reach Genesis 30 with everything before it in view. First week free, then $10 a month per person.
The Hebrew word behind it
יוֹסֵףYosefsay yo-SEIF
Strong's derives the name from yasaf, "add" (H3254), and gives "let him add"; Brown-Driver-Briggs gives "he adds, increases". Rachel explains it: "May the LORD add another son to me" (30:24). Just before, she says, "God has taken away my reproach" (30:23), using a different verb, asaf. Her next son is Benjamin (35:18). Elizabeth says something similar when she conceives: the Lord has acted "to take away my reproach among men" (Luke 1:25).
For your group
Genesis 30 Bible study questions
- 1"Rachel envied her sister." What does envy do to the people in this chapter, and what does it do to us?
- 2Jacob asked, "Am I in God's place?" When have you expected someone to give you what only God can give?
- 3"God remembered Rachel." What does it mean to you that God remembers people who have waited a long time?
Leading a group? In Favor, everyone reads Genesis 30 during the week and answers these questions privately. Answers stay sealed until you meet, then appear together, and you can print the week's sheet.
Start a Bible studyThe best way to learn the Bible
Favor opens up every chapter as you read.
Favor is a Bible study app for your phone or computer. It takes you through the Bible one chapter at a time, a few minutes a day, and shows you what's really there: the words behind the words, the moments most people miss, and how the whole story fits together. For you. For everyone.
Every chapter explains itself
As you read, short notes open up what's really going on, the details most readers walk past, and the honest questions people ask.
The Hebrew and Greek behind it
Tap a highlighted word to see the original, how to say it, and what it means, checked against the original-language texts.
Every page leads to Jesus
Watch promises made in Genesis kept in Jesus. Each line lights up on your map as you read.
Better together
Read on your own, or start a Bible study with friends, family or your church. Answers stay sealed until you meet, then appear together.
- 1
Start your free week
Sign up in a minute with your email.
- 2
Read a few minutes a day
Each chapter opens itself up as you go. Tap what you're curious about.
- 3
Bring your people, if you like
Send one link. Everyone reads the same chapter, then meets to talk.
First week free, then $10 a month per person
Questions
What is Favor?
Favor is a Bible study app that explains every chapter as you read: the Hebrew and Greek behind the words, the details most readers miss, and how each part of the Bible leads to Jesus. Read on your own, or start a Bible study with friends, family or your church.
How much does it cost?
Your first week is free. After that it's $10 a month per person, the same for everyone, including groups and churches. There are no tiers and nothing extra to unlock.
Can I read Genesis 30 straight away?
Favor takes the Bible as one story, in order, so you'll reach Genesis 30 with everything that leads up to it in view. Start from Genesis, or meet Jesus first in the Gospels. You can read the text of any chapter in Favor's Look up whenever you like.
Do I need a group?
No. Many people read on their own. If you'd like to read with others, start a Bible study and share one link. Everyone's answers stay private until you meet.
I've never really read the Bible. Is this for me?
Yes. Favor starts where you are and explains as it goes. The questions along the way aren't marked right or wrong: you answer, then see what the text shows.
Which Bible does Favor use?
The World English Bible, a modern, readable translation in the public domain. God's name appears as "the LORD", as in most English Bibles.
Is Favor tied to a church?
No. Favor is non-denominational. Where Christians read a passage differently, it shows the main views side by side and doesn't pick one.
Start with Genesis 30
The best way to learn the Bible. For you. For everyone.
There's a seat for you at the table.
Start your free weekFirst week free, then $10 a month per person · Log in
Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Hebrew and Greek words are checked against the original-language texts and public-domain lexicons. What we believe · Favor home