Genesis 30:3 BSB — MannaFest

Genesis 30:3

Then she said, “Here is my maidservant Bilhah. Sleep with her, that she may bear children for me, so that through her I too can build a family.”

BSB

Parallel translations (2) ▾

ASV

And she said, Behold, my maid Bilhah, go in unto her; that she may bear upon my knees, and I also may obtain children by her.

KJV

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.

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Commentary

1 voice

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible (1832)

She shall bear upon my knees - The handmaid was the sole property of the mistress, as has already been remarked in the case of Hagar; and therefore not only all her labor, but even the children borne by her, were the property of the mistress. These female slaves, therefore, bore children vicariously for their mistresses; and this appears to be the import of the term, she shall bear upon my knees. That I may also have children by her - ואבנה ממנה veibbaneh mimmennah, and I shall be built up by her.

Voices on this verse

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Original language & word study

13 tagged words

Original	Transliteration	Meaning	Word study
וַתֹּ֕אמֶר	va.To.mer	and she said	H559 →
הִנֵּ֛ה	hi.Neh	here!	H2009 →
אֲמָתִ֥י	'a.ma.Ti	maidservant my	H519 →
בִלְהָ֖ה	vil.Hah	Bilhah	H1090 →
בֹּ֣א	bo'	go	H935 →
אֵלֶ֑יהָ	'e.Lei.ha	into her	H413 →
וְתֵלֵד֙	ve.te.Led	so she may bear children	H3205 →
עַל־	'al-	on	H5921 →
בִּרְכַּ֔י	bir.Kai	knees my	H1290 →
וְאִבָּנֶ֥ה	ve.'i.ba.Neh	so I may be built up	H1129 →
גַם־	gam-	also	H1571 →
אָנֹכִ֖י	'a.no.Khi	I	H595 →
מִמֶּֽנָּה׃	mi.Me.nah	from her	H4480 →

Rare words are the text's own signal of a deliberate thread: the fewer the occurrences, the more the places it appears belong together.

The walk

The walk8

Where the connections lead

Follow this verse’s cross-references two steps out. Each card is a verse this one points to, and beneath it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several different paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it. Every stop shows its own words, and every stop is a page.

Through
Ruth 4:11
“We are witnesses,” said the elders and all the people at the gate. “May the LORD make the woman entering your home like Rachel and Leah, who together built up the house of Israel.…
leads to
- Genesis 29:32
  And Leah conceived and gave birth to a son, and she named him Reuben, for she said, “The LORD has seen my affliction. Surely my husband will love me now.”
- Micah 5:2
  But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come forth for Me One to be ruler over Israel—One whose origins are of old, from the days…
- Matthew 2:6
  ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah, for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of My people…
- Psalms 127:3–5
  Children are indeed a heritage from the LORD, and the fruit of the womb is His reward.
- Proverbs 14:1
  Every wise woman builds her house, but a foolish one tears it down with her own hands.
Through
Genesis 50:23
He saw Ephraim’s sons to the third generation, and indeed the sons of Machir son of Manasseh were brought up on Joseph’s knees.
leads to
- Numbers 32:39
  The descendants of Machir son of Manasseh went to Gilead, captured it, and drove out the Amorites who were there.
- Job 42:16
  After this, Job lived 140 years and saw his children and their children to the fourth generation.
Through
Genesis 30:9
When Leah saw that she had stopped having children, she gave her servant Zilpah to Jacob as a wife.
leads to
- Genesis 30:4
  So Rachel gave Jacob her servant Bilhah as a wife, and he slept with her,

Featured studies on this passage

Walks through Genesis 30

Rachel and Leah: Genesis 29–35 · MannaFest

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Type-Scenes: the Stories Scripture Tells Twice

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About Genesis

The Creation of Light — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain

Genesis: the study guide →Read chapter 30 →The featured study →

Continue: Genesis 30 →

01Commentary

Voices on this verse

02Original language & word study

03The walk

Where the connections lead

04Related verses

05Featured studies on this passage

06About Genesis

Where the connections lead

Commentary

Original language & word study

The walk

Related verses

Featured studies on this passage

About Genesis