Zilpah, Leah's maidservant, bore Jacob two sons, Gad and Asher.
Zilpah was the maidservant of Leah, Jacob's first concubine. She played a significant role in the complex family dynamics of Jacob's household. When Leah realized that she had stopped bearing children, she gave Zilpah to Israel (or 'Jacob') as a concubine, following the custom of the time. Zilpah bore two sons, Gad and Asher, who were counted among the twelve tribes of Israel. The Bible records the births of Gad and Asher in Genesis 30, noting that Leah named them and claimed them as her own sons. Zilpah's sons are later mentioned in the lists of Jacob's descendants, highlighting their status as full members of the Israelite family. The story of Zilpah and her sons is part of the larger narrative of Jacob's family, which is marked by rivalry and conflict between his wives, Leah and Rachel. Despite her status as a maidservant, Zilpah's role in bearing two of Jacob's sons was significant in the growth and development of the Israelite nation.
Zilpah's sons: Gad and Asher
FamilyStated in the textLeah gave her servant Zilpah to Jacob; Zilpah bore Gad and Asher. Together with Bilhah's sons they make up the four "servant-wife" tribes among the twelve.
Where the text shows it: Gen 30:9-13 — Gad and Asher bornGen 35:26 — Sons of Zilpah listedGen 37:2 — Joseph is with the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah Sources: Gen 30:9-13 · Gen 35:26 · Gen 37:2
The twelve sons grouped by mother
FamilyStated in the textGenesis 35 groups the twelve sons by mother: six of Leah, two of Rachel, two of Bilhah, two of Zilpah. This grouping explains later tribal alliances, camp arrangements and the lines of favouritism in Genesis 37.
Sources: Gen 35:23-26 · Num 2:3-31
Easton (1897), Smith (1863), Hitchcock (1869), Hastings (1898) and Schaff are in the public domain. Parsed text: neuu-org/bible-dictionary-dataset (CC BY 4.0). Headwords and whitespace normalised for this site.
7 verses in 1 book · English text: BSB (change it from the menu at the top) · Strong’s H2153