Bible Strands
Genesis 30:20
“God has given me a good gift,” she said. “This time my husband will honor me, because I have borne him six sons.” And she named him Zebulun.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Leah speaks after bearing Jacob his sixth son, marking the end of her current childbirth cycle. She makes the declaration as she assigns the name Zebulun to the newborn.
The words — The phrase זְבָדַ֨/נִי (ze.va.Da./ni) literally means "he has endowed me," rooted in the noun זֵ֣בֶד (Ze.ved), "an endowment." The expression הַ/פַּ֙עַם֙ (ha./Pa.'am), "this time," signals a shift from her previous naming statements.
The thread — This event establishes Zebulun as one of Leah’s sons, later enumerated in Genesis 35:23. The tribe’s territorial destiny is outlined in Genesis 49:13 and geographically realized in Matthew 4:13.
Why it lands — The text records Leah’s attribution of her sixth son to divine provision and her stated expectation of spousal honor, requiring the reader to follow how a maternal naming declaration becomes a fixed element of tribal lineage and prophetic geography.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And Leah said, God hath endued me with a good dowry; now will my husband dwell with me, because I have born him six sons: and she called his name Zebulun.
Cross-references
- Genesis 35:23 The sons of Leah were Reuben the firstborn of Jacob, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun.
- Genesis 49:13 Zebulun shall dwell by the seashore and become a harbor for ships; his border shall extend to Sidon.
- Matthew 4:13 Leaving Nazareth, He went and lived in Capernaum, which is by the sea in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali,
- Genesis 46:14 The sons of Zebulun: Sered, Elon, and Jahleel.
- Judges 4:10 where he summoned Zebulun and Naphtali. Ten thousand men followed him, and Deborah also went with him.
- Judges 5:14 Some came from Ephraim, with their roots in Amalek; Benjamin came with your people after you. The commanders came down from Machir, the bearers of the marshal’s staff from Zebulun.
- Psalms 68:27 There is Benjamin, the youngest, ruling them, the princes of Judah in their company, the princes of Zebulun and of Naphtali.
- Genesis 29:34 Once again Leah conceived and gave birth to a son, and she said, “Now at last my husband will become attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.” So he was named Levi.
- Genesis 30:15 But Leah replied, “Is it not enough that you have taken away my husband? Now you want to take my son’s mandrakes as well?” “Very well,” said Rachel, “he may sleep with you tonight in exchange for your son’s mandrakes.”