Genesis 30:37 - Jacob took to himself rods of fresh poplar, almond, plane tree, peeled white streaks in them, and made the white appear which was in the rods.
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What does "Genesis 30:37" mean?
This verse from Genesis 30:37 is part of the story of Jacob's clever, and somewhat ethically questionable, attempt to increase his flocks while working for his father-in-law Laban. Here's a breakdown of the meaning and possible interpretations:
Context: Jacob made a deal with Laban that he would keep all the speckled and spotted sheep and goats in Laban's flock, while Laban would keep the solid-colored ones. Jacob felt that this was an unfair deal.
"Jacob took to himself rods of fresh poplar, almond, plane tree..." Jacob selected specific types of tree branches. The Bible specifies these trees had particular characteristics.
"...peeled white streaks in them, and made the white appear which was in the rods." Jacob stripped away the bark of the branches in such a way as to create alternating stripes of dark (the remaining bark) and light (the exposed wood).
What he did: Jacob peeled stripes into the bark of certain rods. The effect created was a series of stripes that would be visually distinctive.
The intended outcome: Jacob placed these striped rods in the watering troughs where the flocks came to drink. He believed this would somehow influence the offspring of the animals that mated near these rods.
Explanation:
The verse does not explicitly say why Jacob did this. The assumption is that it was a folk belief, or superstition of that time. Jacob thought that the visual impression of the stripes somehow would influence the coloring or markings of the unborn lambs.
In short, Jacob used a visual trick based on a folk belief to try and manipulate the breeding of the flocks, hoping it would increase the number of speckled and spotted animals that would become his.
Genesis 30:37 - Jacob took to himself rods of fresh poplar, almond, plane tree, peeled white streaks in them, and made the white appear which was in the rods.
What does "Genesis 30:37" mean?
This verse from Genesis 30:37 is part of the story of Jacob's clever, and somewhat ethically questionable, attempt to increase his flocks while working for his father-in-law Laban. Here's a breakdown of the meaning and possible interpretations:
Context: Jacob made a deal with Laban that he would keep all the speckled and spotted sheep and goats in Laban's flock, while Laban would keep the solid-colored ones. Jacob felt that this was an unfair deal.
"Jacob took to himself rods of fresh poplar, almond, plane tree..." Jacob selected specific types of tree branches. The Bible specifies these trees had particular characteristics.
"...peeled white streaks in them, and made the white appear which was in the rods." Jacob stripped away the bark of the branches in such a way as to create alternating stripes of dark (the remaining bark) and light (the exposed wood).
What he did: Jacob peeled stripes into the bark of certain rods. The effect created was a series of stripes that would be visually distinctive.
The intended outcome: Jacob placed these striped rods in the watering troughs where the flocks came to drink. He believed this would somehow influence the offspring of the animals that mated near these rods.
Explanation:
The verse does not explicitly say why Jacob did this. The assumption is that it was a folk belief, or superstition of that time. Jacob thought that the visual impression of the stripes somehow would influence the coloring or markings of the unborn lambs.
In short, Jacob used a visual trick based on a folk belief to try and manipulate the breeding of the flocks, hoping it would increase the number of speckled and spotted animals that would become his.