Genesis Chapter 30:24-43

²⁵ And it came to pass, when Rachel had born Joseph, that Jacob said unto Laban, Send me away, that I may go unto mine own place, and to my country.

Jacob was ready to take his wives and kids and go to his own country instead of working for Laban.

²⁶ Give me my wives and my children, for whom I have served thee, and let me go: for thou knowest my service which I have done thee.

Jacob fulfilled his agreement to obtain his wives.

²⁷ And Laban said unto him, I pray thee, if I have found favour in thine eyes, tarry: for I have learned by experience that the Lord hath blessed me for thy sake.

Over the years that Jacob has been there working with Laban, Laban has benefitted from the blessings of God that are on Jacob. It must have been very obvious because Laban was very aware of the blessings he was getting as a result of Jacob.

²⁸ And he said, Appoint me thy wages, and I will give it.

Not wanting to lose Jacob and the blessing that God pour out on him , Laban was willing to pay Jacob whatever wage Jacob asked for.

²⁹ And he said unto him, Thou knowest how I have served thee, and how thy cattle was with me.

³⁰ For it was little which thou hadst before I came, and it is now increased unto a multitude; and the Lord hath blessed thee since my coming: and now when shall I provide for mine own house also?

From this, I gather that Laban was a small time cattle rancher until Jacob came along with his blessings and skills. The increase in his flock must have been profound, and it must have been very profitable for Laban.

³¹ And he said, What shall I give thee? And Jacob said, Thou shalt not give me any thing: if thou wilt do this thing for me, I will again feed and keep thy flock.

³² I will pass through all thy flock to day, removing from thence all the speckled and spotted cattle, and all the brown cattle among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats: and of such shall be my hire.

³³ So shall my righteousness answer for me in time to come, when it shall come for my hire before thy face: every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and brown among the sheep, that shall be counted stolen with me.

The animal’s fur won’t lie, the speckled, spotted and black animals are Jacobs, the flawless ones are Labans.

³⁴ And Laban said, Behold, I would it might be according to thy word.

Laban agreed.

³⁵ And he removed that day the he goats that were ringstraked and spotted, and all the she goats that were speckled and spotted, and every one that had some white in it, and all the brown among the sheep, and gave them into the hand of his sons.

Laban must have thought he was really getting a good deal…. all the flawed animals for Jacob with the blessings of God blessing the works of his hands to stay and continue working for him.

³⁶ And he set three days’ journey betwixt himself and Jacob: and Jacob fed the rest of Laban’s flocks.

³⁷ And Jacob took him rods of green poplar, and of the hazel and chesnut tree; and pilled white strakes in them, and made the white appear which was in the rods.

³⁸ And he set the rods which he had pilled before the flocks in the gutters in the watering troughs when the flocks came to drink, that they should conceive when they came to drink.

³⁹ And the flocks conceived before the rods, and brought forth cattle ringstraked, speckled, and spotted.

⁴⁰ And Jacob did separate the lambs, and set the faces of the flocks toward the ringstraked, and all the brown in the flock of Laban; and he put his own flocks by themselves, and put them not unto Laban’s cattle.

⁴¹ And it came to pass, whensoever the stronger cattle did conceive, that Jacob laid the rods before the eyes of the cattle in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods.

⁴² But when the cattle were feeble, he put them not in: so the feebler were Laban’s, and the stronger Jacob’s.

⁴³ And the man increased exceedingly, and had much cattle, and maidservants, and menservants, and camels, and asses.