Genesis 30:14

30:14 At the time ¹  of the wheat harvest Reuben went out and found some mandrake plants ²  in a field and brought them to his mother Leah. Rachel said to Leah, “Give me some of your son’s mandrakes.”

Genesis 30:16

30:16 When Jacob came in from the fields that evening, Leah went out to meet him and said, “You must sleep ³  with me because I have paid for your services ⁴  with my son’s mandrakes.” So he had marital relations ⁵  with her that night.

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¹ tn Heb “during the days.”

² sn Mandrake plants were popularly believed to be an aphrodisiac in the culture of the time.

³ tn Heb “must come in to me.” The imperfect verbal form has an obligatory nuance here. She has acquired him for the night and feels he is obligated to have sexual relations with her.

⁴ tn Heb “I have surely hired.” The infinitive absolute precedes the finite verbal form for emphasis. The name Issachar (see v. 18) seems to be related to this expression.

⁵ tn This is the same Hebrew verb (שָׁכַב, shakhav) translated “sleep with” in v. 15. In direct discourse the more euphemistic “sleep with” was used, but here in the narrative “marital relations” reflects more clearly the emphasis on sexual intercourse.