John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 30:37
And Jacob took him rods of green poplar ,.... Of the white poplar tree, called green, not from the colour, but from the moisture, being such as were cut off of the tree: and of the hazel and chestnut tree ; the former some take to be the almond tree, as Saadiah Gaon, and others; and the latter to be the plantain or plane tree, so Ainsworth, and others: and pilled white strakes in them ; took off the bark of them in some places, and left it on in others, which made white strakes: ... read more
Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Genesis 30:37-43
Here is Jacob's honest policy to make his bargain more advantageous to himself than it was likely to be. If he had not taken some course to help himself, it would have been a bad bargain indeed, which he knew Laban would never consider, or rather would be well pleased to see him a loser by, so little did Laban consult any one's interest but his own. Now Jacob's contrivances were, 1. To set peeled sticks before the cattle where they were watered, that, looking much at those unusual... read more