And Jacob took him rods of green poplar, and of the hazel and chestnut tree; and pilled white strakes in them, and made the white appear which was in the rods.
Jacob took fresh branches from poplar, hazel, and chestnut trees. He peeled strips of bark off them, creating white streaks where he removed the bark and exposed the white wood underneath.
Jacob is preparing striped branches as part of his plan to influence which animals he would receive as payment from his father-in-law Laban.
📚 Historical Context
This occurs during Jacob's time working for his uncle Laban in Mesopotamia, after he had married Leah and Rachel. Jacob was tending Laban's flocks as payment for his wives, and they had agreed that Jacob could keep the speckled and spotted animals as his wages. Jacob believed that showing the animals these striped branches while they mated would influence their offspring to be born with markings.
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