1Then Jacob continued his journey and arrived in the land of the eastern people.
2He looked and saw a well in the field, and three flocks of sheep lying beside it, because they watered the flocks from that well. A large stone covered the mouth of the well.
3All the flocks would gather there. Then they would roll the stone away from the well’s mouth, water the sheep, and put the stone back in its place on the well’s mouth.
4Jacob asked them, “My relatives, where are you from?” They replied, “We are from Haran.”
5He asked them, "Do you know Laban, Nahor's son?" They replied, "Yes, we know him."
6He then asked them, "Is he doing well?" They said, "He is. Look, his daughter Rachel is coming with the sheep."
7He said, "It's still the middle of the day; it's not time to gather the livestock yet. Water the sheep, then go and let them graze."
8They responded, "We can't do that until all the flocks are gathered and the stone is rolled away from the mouth of the well. Then we can water the sheep."
9While he was still talking with them, Rachel arrived with her father's sheep, because she was their shepherd.
10When Jacob saw Rachel, the daughter of Laban (his mother's brother), and Laban's sheep, Jacob went over, rolled the stone away from the well's mouth, and watered the flock of Laban, his mother's brother.
11Jacob kissed Rachel, and then he began to cry loudly.
12Jacob told Rachel that he was related to her father and that he was Rebekah's son. She then ran and told her father.
13When Laban heard the news about Jacob, his sister's son, he ran to meet Jacob, hugged and kissed him, and brought him to his house. Jacob told Laban everything that had happened.
14Laban said to him, "You are truly my own flesh and blood." Jacob stayed with him for a month.
15Laban said to Jacob, "Just because you are my relative, you shouldn't work for me for free. Tell me, what do you want your wages to be?"
16Laban had two daughters. The older daughter was named Leah, and the younger was named Rachel.
17Leah's eyes were weak, but Rachel was beautiful in both her appearance and her figure.
18Jacob loved Rachel. So he said, "I will work for you for seven years in exchange for your younger daughter Rachel."
19Laban said, "It's better that I give her to you than to another man. Stay here with me."
20Jacob worked for seven years for Rachel. Because of his love for her, those years seemed like just a few days.
21Then Jacob said to Laban, "Give me my wife, because my time is up, and I want to marry her."
22Laban gathered all the men of the place and prepared a feast.
23That evening, he took his daughter Leah and brought her to Jacob, and Jacob slept with her.
24Laban gave his servant Zilpah to his daughter Leah to be her maidservant.
25In the morning, he realized it was Leah. He said to Laban, "What have you done to me? Didn't I work for you for Rachel? Why have you tricked me?"
26Laban said, "It is not our custom here to give the younger daughter before the firstborn.
27Finish this week with Leah, and we will also give you Rachel for another seven years of work."
28Jacob agreed and finished the week with Leah. Then Laban gave him his daughter Rachel as his wife.
29Laban gave his servant Bilhah to his daughter Rachel to be her servant.
30Jacob also slept with Rachel, and he loved Rachel more than Leah. He worked for Laban for another seven years.
31Yahweh saw that Leah was unloved, so he allowed her to have children, but Rachel could not.
32Leah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Reuben, saying, "Because Yahweh saw my misery. Now my husband will love me."
33She became pregnant again and gave birth to a son. She said, "Because Yahweh heard that I was unloved, he has also given me this son." She named him Simeon.
34She conceived again and gave birth to a son. She said, "Now this time my husband will be attached to me, because I have given him three sons." So he was named Levi.
35She conceived again and gave birth to a son. She said, "This time I will praise Yahweh." So she named him Judah. After that, she stopped having children.