Genesis 30:8 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Then Rachel said, "With mighty wrestlings I have wrestled with my sister and have prevailed." So she called his name Naphtali.

NIV: Then Rachel said, "I have had a great struggle with my sister, and I have won." So she named him Naphtali.

NASB: So Rachel said, 'With mighty wrestling I have wrestled with my sister, and I have indeed prevailed.' And she named him Naphtali.

CSB: Rachel said, "In my wrestlings with God, I have wrestled with my sister and won," and she named him Naphtali.

NLT: Rachel named him Naphtali, for she said, 'I have struggled hard with my sister, and I’m winning!'

KJV: And Rachel said, With great wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and I have prevailed: and she called his name Naphtali.

NKJV: Then Rachel said, “With great wrestlings I have wrestled with my sister, and indeed I have prevailed.” So she called his name Naphtali.

Most translations quote Rachel as saying she has used "mighty wrestlings," with her sister and has prevailed or overcome her. The original language suggests that Rachel views bearing children and keeping Jacob's favor as a competition with Leah. In her eyes, she is now "winning" this contest, with the addition of this second child by her servant Bilhah (Genesis 30:1–7).

It's not clear in what sense the addition of a second child would mean that Rachel was overcoming Leah and her four sons with Jacob. Perhaps some specific event had occurred that made it clear Jacob still preferred Rachel over Leah. Or, that since she has now successfully produced two children, while Leah seems to have stopped bearing (Genesis 29:35), she is gaining an advantage.

A few scholars suggest that the language should be read to hear Rachel saying she has been in a "divine" struggle with God, perhaps through prayer for sons. This is not the common view, however, and so most interpretations focus on Rachel's sense of rivalry with Leah.

In either case, the second of son of Rachel through her servant Bilhah is named Naphtali. The Hebrew name Naphtaliy is very similar to the word for "wrestling, struggling, or fighting," which is nip'tal'ti, used earlier in this verse to express exactly that idea.

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.

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.

In the previous chapter, Laban tricked Jacob both into marrying Leah along with Rachel and into working for him as a servant for a total of fourteen years. God blessed unloved Leah by allowing her to bear four sons to Jacob. As this chapter opens, Rachel remains barren while Leah and both of their servant women continue to bear sons. Finally God answers Rachel's prayer, allowing her to bear Joseph. His contract completed, Jacob demands Laban send him away to his own people. Laban refuses, asking Jacob to set new terms for his service. Jacob's deal, along with the Lord's blessing and his unusual breeding practices with the flocks, results in Jacob becoming a wealthy man in his own right. This wealth and power will enable him to finally break free and return home.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.