Why did Jacob marry Leah?

Forced to serve Rachel's father, Laban, for seven years to win her, Jacob was tricked at the end of that time into marrying her sister, Leah. He was then allowed to marry Rachel as well, in return for seven more years of labour.

What does Leah symbolize in the Bible?

Leah is a biblical name of Hebrew origin that means delicate or weary.

What does the story of Leah teach us?

She learns to set aside her idols of marriage, children, and family, and set her sights on higher things than her circumstances. It's then that God demonstrates how He faithfully cherishes and He faithfully pursues. God doesn't consider beauty and loveliness when enlisting Kingdom workers.

Did Jacob love Rachel more than Leah?

Laban gave his servant girl Bilhah to his daughter Rachel as her maidservant. Jacob lay with Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than Leah. And he worked for Laban another seven years. When the LORD saw that Leah was not loved, he opened her womb, but Rachel was barren.

How long was Jacob married to Leah before he married Rachel?

Tricked by his father-in-law into marrying his true love's sister, Jacob waited 14 years before he could be with Rachel. When Jacob met Rachel he kissed her and “lifted up his voice, and wept” (Genesis 29:11).

Once Upon A Marriage - Jacob & Leah (& Rachel)

What happened to Jacob's first wife Leah?

Leah died some time before Jacob (according to Genesis 49:31). She is thought to be buried in the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron alongside Jacob. This cave also houses the graves of Abraham and Sarah, and Isaac and Rebekah.

Did Jacob work 7 years for Rachel?

Genesis 29:20-35 King James Version (KJV)

And Jacob served seven years for Rachel; and they seemed unto him but a few days, for the love he had to her. And Jacob said unto Laban, Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in unto her.

Why did Jacob not marry Rachel?

Summarize Genesis 30:3–21 by explaining that because Rachel could not have children, she gave Jacob her servant Bilhah to marry. Leah, afraid that she would no longer have children, likewise gave Jacob her servant Zilpah to marry.

Why wasn t Jacob buried with Rachel?

Jacob was intent on not burying Rachel at Hebron, as he wished to prevent himself feeling ashamed before his forefathers, lest it appear he still regarded both sisters as his wives – a biblically forbidden union.

Who tricked Jacob into marrying Leah?

Arriving at his uncle Laban's home in Haran, Jacob fell in love with his cousin Rachel. He worked for her father, Laban, for seven years to obtain Rachel's hand in marriage, but then Laban substituted his older daughter, Leah, for Rachel at the wedding ceremony.

Why didn t Jacob divorce Leah?

The Rabbis ascribe Jacob's antagonism to Leah to the stratagem by which she was married to him, an act that reminded him of his own act of deception [when he stole the birthright]. Jacob did not divorce her because she bore him children: six sons and a daughter.

How old was Leah when she married Jacob?

According to another tradition, Rachel and Leah were twins, and they were married to Jacob at the age of twenty-two ( "order." The regimen of rituals, songs and textual readings performed in a specific order on the first two nights (in Israel, on the first night) of Passover. Seder Olam Rabbah 2).

Why was Rachel and Leah so important in the Bible?

Leah is the sister of Rachel, and many of the stories about her center around her turbulent relationship with her sister, as they are both Jacob's wives. Jacob clearly prefers Rachel, and God compensates Leah by making her fertile while Rachel remains barren.

Who was Jacob's favorite wife?

Rachel (Hebrew: רָחֵל, romanized: Rāḥēl, lit. 'ewe') was a Biblical figure, the favorite of Jacob's two wives, and the mother of Joseph and Benjamin, two of the twelve progenitors of the tribes of Israel. Rachel's father was Laban. Her older sister was Leah, Jacob's first wife.

Why was Leah called Leah?

Leah is a feminine given name of Hebrew origin. Its meaning is often deciphered as "delicate" or "weary". The name can be traced back to the Biblical matriarch Leah, one of the two wives of Jacob.

Was Leah infertile in the Bible?

Leah gave birth to Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah, and then she experienced secondary infertility. It should be no surprise that she did the same thing as Rachel when she could no longer bear children.

What happened to Jacob after Rachel died?

Jacob buries her where she died, in her own tomb (Gen 35:20; 48:17) and not in the ancestral tomb at Machpelah.

How old was Jacob when he married Rachel?

Laban agreed to the arrangement. These seven years seemed to Jacob "but a few days, for the love he had for her." When they were complete and he was 84 years old he asked for his wife, but Laban deceived him by switching Rachel for her older sister, Leah, as the veiled bride.

Why was Jacob mad at Rachel?

Bible Gateway Genesis 30 :: NIV. When Rachel saw that she was not bearing Jacob any children, she became jealous of her sister. So she said to Jacob, "Give me children, or I'll die!" Jacob became angry with her and said, "Am I in the place of God, who has kept you from having children?"

What does the story of Jacob and Rachel teach us?

There are a few key lessons in this story. One, we can understand that—like Jacob—in spite of our sins and weaknesses, we can still be reconciled to God. Even though Jacob deceived his own family, he later embraced humility and was deceived himself.

What can we learn from the story of Leah and Rachel?

God saw the rejection that Leah faced, and knew what having sons would mean to her. He saw how she was not loved as she deserved to be and because of her age or lack of suitors she was married to a man that desired someone else… her own sister. Her security eventually turns from a human to her heavenly Father.

What caused Jacob to wrestle with God?

Despite sending gifts of appeasement, Jacob was afraid for his life and family. He prayed to God for help and sent his family and possessions on ahead of him to protect them. Left alone in his camp, God came and wrestled with Jacob until daybreak (Genesis 32:24-29).

How many wives did Jacob have?

The latter third of the book of Genesis relates the complex and vola- tile relationship of the patriarch Jacob, his four wives, and their thirteen children (twelve sons, one daughter).

How was it that Jacob became an unwilling polygamist?

How was it that Jacob became an unwilling polygamist? He was tricked by Laban into marrying the ugly sister. What does the name "Israel" mean, according to the angel?

How many years did Jacob spend?

Laban promised his younger daughter Rachel to Jacob in return for seven years' service, only to trick him into marrying his elder daughter Leah instead. Jacob then served another seven years in exchange for the right to marry his choice, Rachel, as well (Genesis 29).