Jacob Marries Leah and Rachel
29:1 Then Jacob went on his journey and came to the land of the people of the east. 2 As he looked, he saw a well in the field, and behold, three flocks of sheep lying beside it, for out of that well the flocks were watered. The stone on the well’s mouth was large, 3 and when all the flocks were gathered there, the shepherds would roll the stone from the mouth of the well and water the sheep, and put the stone back in its place over the mouth of the well.
4 Jacob said to them, “My brothers, where do you come from?” They said, “We are from Haran.” 5 He said to them, “Do you know Laban the son of Nahor?” They said, “We know him.” 6 He said to them, “Is it well with him?” They said, “It is well; and see, Rachel his daughter is coming with the sheep!” 7 He said, “Behold, it is still high day; it is not time for the livestock to be gathered together. Water the sheep and go, pasture them.” 8 But they said, “We cannot until all the flocks are gathered together and the stone is rolled from the mouth of the well; then we water the sheep.”
9 While he was still speaking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherdess. 10 Now as soon as Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother, Jacob came near and rolled the stone from the well’s mouth and watered the flock of Laban his mother’s brother. 11 Then Jacob kissed Rachel and wept aloud. 12 And Jacob told Rachel that he was her father’s kinsman, and that he was Rebekah’s son, and she ran and told her father.
13 As soon as Laban heard the news about Jacob, his sister’s son, he ran to meet him and embraced him and kissed him and brought him to his house. Jacob told Laban all these things, 14 and Laban said to him, “Surely you are my bone and my flesh!” And he stayed with him a month.
15 Then Laban said to Jacob, “Because you are my kinsman, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what shall your wages be?” 16 Now Laban had two daughters. The name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. 17 Leah’s eyes were weak, but Rachel was beautiful in form and appearance. 18 Jacob loved Rachel. And he said, “I will serve you seven years for your younger daughter Rachel.” 19 Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you than that I should give her to any other man; stay with me.” 20 So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed to him but a few days because of the love he had for her.
21 Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife that I may go in to her, for my time is completed.” 22 So Laban gathered together all the people of the place and made a feast. 23 But in the evening he took his daughter Leah and brought her to Jacob, and he went in to her. 24 (Laban gave his female servant Zilpah to his daughter Leah to be her servant.) 25 And in the morning, behold, it was Leah! And Jacob said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Did I not serve with you for Rachel? Why then have you deceived me?” 26 Laban said, “It is not so done in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn. 27 Complete the week of this one, and we will give you the other also in return for serving me another seven years.” 28 Jacob did so, and completed her week. Then Laban gave him his daughter Rachel to be his wife. 29 (Laban gave his female servant Bilhah to his daughter Rachel to be her servant.) 30 So Jacob went in to Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than Leah, and served Laban for another seven years.
Jacob’s Children
31 When the Lord saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb, but Rachel was barren. 32 And Leah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Reuben, for she said, “Because the Lord has looked upon my affliction; for now my husband will love me.” 33 She conceived again and bore a son, and said, “Because the Lord has heard that I am hated, he has given me this son also.” And she called his name Simeon. 34 Again she conceived and bore a son, and said, “Now this time my husband will be attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.” Therefore his name was called Levi. 35 And she conceived again and bore a son, and said, “This time I will praise the Lord.” Therefore she called his name Judah. Then she ceased bearing. (ESV)
I think Jacob got pretty mad here. He had just worked for seven whole years! Seven whole years of hard farm work, and it was all so he could marry Rachel. But after that long seven years, Laban gives him Leah to marry. He had worked a long time so he could marry Rachel, but Laban had tricked him into marrying his oldest daughter. He did eventually marry Rachel though. Most of this story may not apply to us today, but we can still get one big thing out of it. Jacob may not have liked the way things turned out for him, but that doesn’t mean God forgot about him. It might look really bad at the time, but in reality it’s not so bad. God had a plan for Jacob, and that plan involved him getting tricked into marrying Leah. Things almost never end up the way we want, because the way we want is normally not the way God wants it to be. We may want our lives to go one way, but God might take us down another path. Even though it may seem unfair or cruel at the time, God has a plan for us that is for our own good. We have to realize this. God has a unique plan for us, and even if things don’t go the way we want it to, like what happend to Jacob here, we can remember that God has a plan for us.
Amazing how God turned Jacob’s deceit back around on him through his uncle Laban and the two women! But just as Ro 8:28 says God uses EVERYTHING, including the very sin He hates, for the good of those who love Him. From that terrible situation God brings about the fulfillment of His promise to Abraham and creates the 12 tribes He loves. Amazing omniscient and omnipotent God!
I thought it was interesting that Jacob chose to disobey his father’s command to not look for a woman from Laban’s family, but he did it anyway. He did not listen to Isaac, and there were consequences to his actions. He had to work seven years to marry the woman he loved, and then he does not even get to marry her first. Then Rachel could not have children. You can see how because Jacob did not put God first, his plans were not blessed. When we seek God first, He will make our paths straight. Otherwise it will probably be a pretty bumpy road. I hope I can remember this lesson.
18 Jacob was in love with Rachel and said, “I’ll work for you seven years in return for your younger daughter Rachel.”
Jacob had just been deceived by Laban and unknowingly married Leah instead of Rachel. I think it is important to note his response to this unfair situation. He did not give up and say, “Man, that was a tough seven years of work. I guess I will just settle for Leah as my wife.” No, not at all! He loved Rachel so much and marrying her was so important that he gave seven more years of his life just to be with her. This prompted me to think if I am that persistant in persevering for things in my life when I do not get the things I desire. (I am not talking about earthly things, but things of God.) It reminded me of Pastor Bobby’s sermon last weekend about prayer. Do I do what point #3 said and “expect that my father will answer?” Or do I give up quickly when God does not answer my prayers. I desire to exhibit hupomene in my life, the stick-to-it-of-ness that Christians need to persevere and wait on God’s perfect timing to answer their prayers.
18 Jacob was in love with Rachel and said, “I’ll work for you seven years in return for your younger daughter Rachel.”
Beth I too agree! PERSISTENT PRAYER is so important… coupled with hard work. We live in a culture that so often is “lazy” and expects to get things easy but God calls us to work hard and to be diligent and on top of that to depend on Him for the results!
31 When the LORD saw that Leah was not loved, he opened her womb, but Rachel was barren.
32 Leah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Reuben, for she said, “It is because the LORD has seen my misery. Surely my husband will love me now.”
33 She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “Because the LORD heard that I am not loved, he gave me this one too.” So she named him Simeon.
34 Again she conceived, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “Now at last my husband will become attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.” So he was named Levi.
35 She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “This time I will praise the LORD.” So she named him Judah. Then she stopped having children.
Leah still prayed to God that Jacob will love her, although Jacob still loved Rachel more even after Leah bore him 4 children. in return, God made it so that Jesus Christ became the descendant of Judah, Leah’s son.
Mrs Lauder and Vanessa, I agree also that persistent prayer is important; we souldnt quit just because God said no or to wait because of our prayer. like pastor Bobby said, its not like we pray for Godly things all the time. i went to both services last week, and Pastor Bobby asked if anyone in the room wanted God to change the world, or at least revive the schools of orange county, and everyone in the room raised their hands; Pastor Bobby asked if anyone was praying fot that to happen and like 2 people raised their hands.
I got Baptized last week and it was awsome! Glory to God in the Highest and peace on whom God’s favor rests..
Man what a bust for Jacob to have to work seven years for a wife that he didnt even want. Thats lameesauce
Something i found very interesting is that……..
32 Leah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Reuben, for she said, “It is because the LORD has seen my misery. Surely my husband will love me now.”
33 She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “Because the LORD heard that I am not loved, he gave me this one too.” So she named him Simeon.
34 Again she conceived, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “Now at last my husband will become attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.” So he was named Levi.
35 She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “This time I will praise the LORD.” So she named him Judah. Then she stopped having children.
Everytime Leah had a son she was excited for it to please her husband and to try and get attention from him and do what he wants, until the last time when she realized she should be praising God and not her husband. Finally when she did that, she stopped having children. I dont know if thats a Ka-wink-a-dink or what but i thought its pretty cool! (=
I am with Old man new heart on this one. Laban pulls a very fishy move on Jacob and switches out Leah for Rachel. Then he tacks on another 7 years to his obligation to get Rachel, making it a total of 14 years. Heck, most of TN is only a few years older than that! That is a long time! Yet God used this unjust situation to make Jacob have more children (12 in all). God can turn the bad things that happen to us for good. This makes me want to trust him more.
20 So Jacob served seven years to get Rachel, but they seemed like only a few days to him because of his love for her. 28 And Jacob did so. He finished the week with Leah, and then Laban gave him his daughter Rachel to be his wife.
This is such a commitment, being a servant for fourteen years to get his wife(as later verses proclaim), I wouldn’t do that probably to get myself a wife like that back then.
23 But when evening came, he took his daughter Leah and gave her to Jacob, and Jacob lay with her.
What a bust!!! Are you kidding me??? Jacob got punked!!! This is very sad, working seven whole years to get your wife and then when you are just about to get her, her dad tricks you and says that it is not the custom, work seven more years and you’ll get her…
wow! Jacob had to work 14 Years to get the wife he truly wanted.
23 But when evening came, he took his daughter Leah and gave her to Jacob, and Jacob lay with her.
This is just another example of how humans are sinful. Even though Laban promised Rachel, he went back on his word and gave Leah. That would be kinda awkward for Jacob…But because he loved Rachel so much, he worked for another 7 years to get her too. But this means that he had two wives. This is a sin right? Or was he ok doing this because he didnt mean to marry Leah? Can anyone help me out…
Jacob really wanted to be Rachels husband, and he put it in the 7 hard years of work to that. When he got let down and was givin Leah, he once again put 7 more years of work in the Rachel. This shows that he was a hard worker and fought hard for what he wanted. As to we as christains fight hard for our God and it may take alot out of us and be difficult at times but we know that in the end we will have earned Gods love and enter into his kingdom.
20 So Jacob served seven years to get Rachel, but they seemed like only a few days to him because of his love for her.
wooooooow what a love Jacob had for Rachel! He served for 14 YEARS so he can get her!!! That’s intense! I thought about this and then I thought, “Do I have a love for God like that?” In our daily lives, can we look back and say “My actions always glorified God and served Him”? We need to always be praying that our focus is on Him, that in everything we do we glorify Him, and that we have servants hearts. That’s something i picked up from this. :D
Happy Birthday Sarah Antoun!!! :D
35 She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “This time I will praise the LORD.” So she named him Judah. Then she stopped having children.
I really loved Leah’s response in this verse! After having her fourth child, she stopped having children, and she seemed satisfied with what God had blessed her with. This verse reminded me to be singing more songs of thanksgiving! Let us praise God together for the blessings he has lovingly given us! :D
Jacob shows so much love for Rachel in this chapter. He worked a total of 14 years for Rachel to be his wife! That is a very long time just to get married to someone you love. I don’t know a lot of people that would still do that today. But if you compare Jacob’s love for Rachel to God’s love for us, God would win by a landslide. Even bigger. Haha. God’s love for us is unconditional and amazing. He loved us so much that he sent his son to go die on the cross just for us. People still need to understand that if you do not love God, then you cannot love anyone else because God is love. You can’t love anyone else without God.
Jenae, that’s cool I didn’t notice that.
This chapter is cool because it shows how God provided a wife for Jacob. Jacob didn’t disobey his parents or date a bunch of differnet girls. He simply did what God told Him to do (Gen. 2:24) and left his father and mother to find a wife. He obeyed his mother and father by running away (Gen. 27:43) and marying a daughter of Laban (Gen. 28:2). He also married a woman of the same faith and was not unequally yoked (2Cor. 6:14). All of this pleased God and He blessed Jacob with a beautiful wife (v.17) and fulfilled His covenant with Abraham through him. Even though this is really hard and we may think we know better than our parents we still must obey them and God will bless us too.
^^ jenae yeahh i see that
too good eye8)
like finally she wanted to live for God.
30…And he worked for Laban another seven years.
I agree with what Beth said about this. jacob is a great example of someone who persevered year after year to get what he wanted. And even when he was deceived, he did not give up but kept on persevering and working for Laban. Our prayer lives need to reflect this as well! if we really pray expecting God to answer us, then our prayers will be filled with determination and pleading with God while trusting Him to answer us. And God will never deceive us, but He may not answer our prayers the way we expected. But that should not stop us from earnestly praying and persevering in our requests to God, we just need to be praying that He will answer them according to His will even if its not necessarily the way we want.
I was just reading everyone’s because I am bored…but yeah Jenae good point and recognition! Good comments everyone else too!
22 So Laban brought together all the people of the place and gave a feast.
23 But when evening came, he took his daughter Leah and gave her to Jacob, and Jacob lay with her.
28 And Jacob did so. He finished the week with Leah, and then Laban gave him his daughter Rachel to be his wife.
That Laban is a one trickster. Makes Jacob work and work and work and gives him Leah, whom Jacob does not love. Then finally, in verse 28, he finished the work with Leah and so Laban gave Rachel to Jacob. 14 years of work!!!, just for Rachel!!! Pretty amazing and shocking stuff!
23 But when evening came, he took his daughter Leah and gave her to Jacob, and Jacob lay with her.
God’s ways are not our ways but kind of funny that the deceiver was deceived.
31 When the LORD saw that Leah was not loved, he opened her womb, but Rachel was barren.
How sad that she felt so unloved yet the God of the universe loved her so much
20So Jacob served seven years to get Rachel, but they seemed like only a few days because of his love for her.
We should be feeling the same for God, serving and living for Him because we love Him. we can’t find anything we do for Christ a burden, like reading our Bibles, taking the time to really look at the verses, posting on scripture of the day and reading other comments to learn from other people, also taking the time out to pray. God has given us everything, we can atleast give a little back.
23 But when evening came, he took his daughter Leah and gave her to Jacob, and Jacob lay with her.
it must have been upsetting for Jacob to work that long very hard and to get ripped off. he later would get Rachel, and through both of them and through their maidservants Jacob would have the twelve tribes of Israel.
30 Jacob lay with Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than Leah. And he worked for Laban another seven years.
Pastor Mike in one of his ask Pastor Mike videos talked about polygamy and how just because the Bible mentions something, doesnt mean it is good. the Bible nowhere says that bigamy is okay, and just because the Bible says something happened doesnt mean that it is okay. we need to let Scripture judge us and we need to interpret Scripture how God wants us to understand it, never the other way around
31 When the LORD saw that Leah was not loved, he opened her womb, but Rachel was barren.
the Lord has mercy and shows His love for Leah, and gives her children who would later grow up and be one of the twelve tribes of Israel. though we may not be loved on the earth, we will always have our Lord who will always love us, despite that He knows the depths of our hearts.
Jacob the deceiver got a taste of his own medicine when Laban gave him Leah instead of Rachel. But Jacob really did love Rachel and was willing to work another 7 years for her. How many of us are willing to work that hard for someone. What about God are you willing to work hard for the person who give you the very breath you need to live? Are u willing to work not just 7 years but the rest of your life for God’s glory?
When the LORD saw that Leah was not loved, he opened her womb, but Rachel was barren.
This is interesting, so God helped Leah by allowing for Jacob to have a reason to love her by giving her a son with Jacob. I thought God was against polygamy though…
31 When the LORD saw that Leah was not loved, he opened her womb, but Rachel was barren.
The effects of sin can really be devastating. Even though he was tricked, Jacob still married two women, which is contrary to what God commands. And then he showed favoritism, which led to Leah feeling unloved and Rachel being barren. Even if things don’t go our way, we still need to trust God and not resort to sin, becuase He will take care of us. And what’s also amazing is that even when we do sin, God uses that for good as well. But in the end, sin always has consequences, so we should seek God first and not resort to any other methods to please ourselves because He will take care of us.
35 She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “This time I will praise the LORD.” So she named him Judah. Then she stopped having children.
Judah a long ancestor of Jesus. God said that he would bless Abraham’s offspring and then Isaac was blessed then Jacob then Judah and then David and eventually Jesus. God fulfilled his promise through His son Jesus Christ, the savior of the world. Through him we are able to be rescued from the coming wrath of God. Awesome!
Wow that must have been really hard for Jacob! Its pretty amazing that he stayed and worked fourteen years for Laban to honestly earn the right to marry Rachel. He must have really loved her.
When the LORD saw that Leah was not loved, he opened her womb, but Rachel was barren.
Rejection is something many of us will face in the course of our lifetimes. Although it can be both difficult and painful we can be confident that God is aware of our situation. We serve a God who is sensitive to our needs; He showed compassion for Leah by blessing her with a son. Leah might not have had significance in the eyes of Jacob but she was relevant in the eyes of God.
32 Leah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Reuben, for she said, “It is because the LORD has seen my misery. Surely my husband will love me now.”
33 She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “Because the LORD heard that I am not loved, he gave me this one too.” So she named him Simeon.
This is so sad! It’s so encouraging to me, though, that God watched out for Leah and answered her persistant prayer!
Some legit comments! I loved both Beth’s and Janae’s observations. One thing that stands out to me in this chapter is the continuing theme of God’s faithfulness in spite of sin and its conseqences. We see here the very real and very harmful consequences of Jacob and Laban’s sins of deceit.
Yes, God will always remain faithful to his promises, but yes, sin has real consequences, which should be an important thing for us all to remember.
23 But when evening came, he took his daughter Leah and gave her to Jacob, and Jacob lay with her.
Not only was Jacob deceived, he was punished. Jacob’s actions only came back to hurt him!
This is an interesting chapter. Jacob really proved his love for Rebecca by working for a whole 7 years! It’s a good example of commitment.
Deciet. Something God clearly states he hates. infact DESPISES! What nerve that guy must have had to do such a thing. wow. I probably would have freaked out. YIKES! haha
31 When the LORD saw that Leah was not loved, he opened her womb, but Rachel was barren.
I remember the first time I read this story and I’m still confused on the same thing. I guess it may be a little personal, but honestly, why would Jacob keep sleeping with Leah if he loved Rachel more. I mean he proves his love to her by working for her for 14 years, and the bridal week isn’t completely his fault. But even after that he kept on sleeping with Leah! That’s sorta gross. This whole story is a little twisted. They can’t get a divorce since that would bring dishonor to just about everyone, plus no one would even consider marrying Leah after that because already she wasn’t one of the best looking women out there and now she had been married and if Jacob divorced her, she’d be single for the rest of her life. To avoid this conflict, Jacob should have just asked for Rachel specifically instead of using the terms “my wife”. And Laban shouldn’t have tricked him in the first place. What kind of family is he to trick him? Who cares what the customs are? The only customs that matter are God’s customs. Man, this story is messed up =( And that is one long post. haha sorry!
Jacob’s perserverance in this chapter is great. After 7 years of his life and recieving the wrong wife he was willing to work another 7 years to get the wife that he wanted. This is a great example of how we should be perserverent in praying for things like Beth said.
Some of you asked about the polygamy of two wives in this chapter. As Pastor Mike says, “Vote no on polygamy!” God does not like it and we will see the consequences of this in the chapters to come. Jacob will end up having twelve different children by four women who view it more as a competition than anything. Not good.
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(v27) Finish this daughter’s bridal week; then we will give you the younger one also, in return for another seven years of work.”
Jacob worked for 14 years to get what he wanted, he was very passionate to have Rachel as a wife. Obviously customs and traditions were different in Jacob’s time because he had two wifes, but he was zealous to get Rachel as a bride.
We need to have this kind of zeal when asking God for things. We need to have the patience of Jacob and be willing to wait years before our requests are put into action. God always answers prayers, but His will, determines what the answers will be.
There are soooo many things about this chapter that we find weird…working for seven years to get a wife and then another 7 for another….having two wives.
I was just hit by such a different culture that Jacob lived in.
6 Then Jacob asked them, “Is he well?” “Yes, he is,” they said, “and here comes his daughter Rachel with the sheep.”
This verse reminded me to trust God and that he will make the right things happen acording to his will. Both Jacob and his father have been shown wives at wells…it it prety cool!
Great observation Jenae! Leah had the first children hoping to find favor with her husband. She finally realizes that she should be looking to praise the Lord rather than finding her husbands favor. Just like our focus should be on praising our Father rather than pleasing men.
Dude! I have to admit that workin for 7 years for your wife is some SERIOUS commitment. And on top of that, Jacob was decieved and has to work for another 7 years!
This chapter has always been a difficult one for me. I really never understood why people back then would either have many wives and/or concubines. God is against poligamy; yet some of the most righteous people did this.
Greattt comment Jenaee i second that:D
Leah was always sad trying to please her husband…then she finally realized that she should be trying to please God and give him the glory…good choiceee
i agree with Luke he was so committed to Rebekah with 7 years of working for her WOW