These were the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to Leah his daughter; and these she bore to Jacob: sixteen persons.
Parallel translations
- WEB These are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to Leah, his daughter, and these she bore to Jacob, even sixteen souls.
- KJV These are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to Leah his daughter, and these she bare unto Jacob, even sixteen souls.
- BSB These are the sons of Jacob born to Zilpah—whom Laban gave to his daughter Leah—sixteen in all.
- NASB These are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to his daughter Leah; and she bore to Jacob these sixteen persons.
- NLT These were the sons of Zilpah, the servant given to Leah by her father, Laban. The number of Jacob’s descendants through Zilpah was sixteen.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Zilpah's descendants number sixteen souls. This summarizes the branch of Jacob's family through Leah's handmaid.
Overview
Zilpah had been given by Laban to his daughter Leah, and through her Jacob fathered Gad and Asher and their lines. The total of sixteen contributes to the larger count of seventy. Scripture's inclusion of these less prominent branches testifies that God's saving purposes reached the whole family, prefiguring the gospel's reach to all kinds of people.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 4
- Gen 29:24Laban gave Zilpah his servant to his daughter Leah for a servant.
- Gen 30:9–13When Leah saw that she had finished bearing, she took Zilpah, her servant, and gave her to Jacob as a wife.
- Exod 1:4Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher.
- Gen 35:26The sons of Zilpah (Leah’s servant): Gad and Asher. These are the sons of Jacob, who were born to him in Paddan Aram.
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Christ at the center
From the first promise that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent (3:15), through Abraham's blessing to all nations and Judah's coming ruler, Genesis sows every seed that flowers in Christ — the true offspring, the better Adam, the ram caught for Isaac.
How Genesis 46:18 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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