'''Bilhah''' was the handmaid of [[Laban]] and given to his daughter [[Rachel]] after Rachel became [[Jacob]]'s wife. ([[Genesis]] 29:29) When Rachel had trouble conceiving, she had Jacob sleep with Bilhah to have children through her, as was the custom in the ancient mideast at that time. Bilhah had two offspring through Jacob, [[Dan]] and [[Naphtali]] his fifth and sixth sons respectively. (Genesis 30:3 - 30:8)
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'''Bilhah''' ([[Hebrew]]: '''בִּלְהָה''', ''Bilhāh''; "faltering, bashful") was the handmaid of [[Laban]] and given to his daughter [[Rachel]] after Rachel became [[Jacob]]'s wife. ([[Genesis]] 29:29) When Rachel had trouble conceiving, she had Jacob sleep with Bilhah to have children through her, as was the custom in the ancient mideast at that time. Bilhah had two offspring through Jacob, [[Dan]] and [[Naphtali]] his fifth and sixth sons respectively. (Genesis 30:3 - 30:8)
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Genesis 30:6
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[[Reuben]] later had an illicit affair with [[Bilhah]], and that indiscretion cost Reuben his birthright.