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Outline:

Let me take a minute to recap where we are in our story: Jacob tricked his father Isaac into giving him the birthright over his brother Esau. As a result Jacob is forced to flee his home on account old Hairy now wants to kill him. Isaac and Rebekah decide it’s best to send Jacob to Haran to stay with his Uncle Laban - at least until Esau calms down.

What was to be a temporary stay ends up becoming a permanent layover - which doesn’t exactly bother Jacob as he immediately starts crushing on his hot cousin Rachel. Because Jacob obviously needs a place to stay and ultimately wants to marry Rachel, he and Laban reach an agreement where he’ll work seven years for her hand.

On the wedding night Laban then tricks Jacob into marrying Rachel’s ugly, older sister Leah. Tragically, instead of trusting God with his circumstances and learning to love Leah, Jacob impulsively agrees to retroactively work another seven years so he can also marry Rachel.

As a result of having sister-wives Jacob’s home is filled with dysfunction. Though he loves Rachel, we’re told she’s unable to have children. In contrast, deeply desiring loving affection from the husband tricked into marrying her we read that the Lord compassionately opens Leah’s womb and she bears Jacob four sons: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah.

Note: As wedding gifts Laban gave Rachel a handmaiden named Bilhah, and to Leah he gives Zilpah. I mention this because these two women will also contribute to the dysfunction.

From a macro-perspective what makes the last few verses of Genesis 29 and chapter 30 significant is that it documents the birth of Jacob’s twelve sons. This is noteworthy because, by the time Moses complies the Genesis record, the families of these sons will have grown to be twelve unique tribes. Later on in our travels we will see God change Jacob’s name to Israel which is why we have the twelve tribes of Israel or literally the twelve sons of Jacob.

Genesis 30:1-2, “Now when Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister, and said to Jacob, ‘Give me children, or else I die!’ And Jacob’s anger was aroused against Rachel, and he said, ‘Am I in the place of God, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?’”

I tell you this Jacob is quite a guy! He marries two sisters (Rachel who’s a babe and Leah who’s isn’t). Then to compound his problems Jacob makes no bones about how deeply he loves Rachel with the Scriptures affirming that poor Leah was unloved.

And yet, by the time Leah finally provides Jacob his fourth son, Rachel begins to see the tide turning. We’re told, for probably the first time in her life, “Rachel envied her sister” Leah.

There is no doubt Rachel was still Jacob’s arm-candy - she was clearly the trophy-wife; that said, upon seeing the joy Jacob was having with Leah and their boys, her motherly instincts take over. In what we can assume to be a private moment between them, Rachel’s raw emotions over her barrenness come flooding out to Jacob… “Give me children, or else I die!” Rachel is distraught. She’s overcome. More than anything else she wants to have children.

Sadly, instead of listening to the genuine cries of his wife, calming her angst, reassuring his love and commitment… Instead of bearing Rachel’s burdens, reminding her that it wasn’t her fault, exhorting her to place her faith in the loving God - how does Jacob respond?

First, the text tells us Jacob gets angry. For years Rachel was the chill sister wife… She was no drama… Fun to be around. I imagine the nights he spent with her were a huge relief - a vacation of sorts when you consider he was always dealing with needy Leah. Now that things seem to have settled down with Leah to Jacob’s surprise Rachel starts nagging!

Look again at what Jacob says to her in his anger… He says, “Am I in the place of God, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?” In a sense Jacob lashes out at Rachel by saying, “Why are you getting onto me? What can I do about it? I don’t know if you’ve noticed but I don’t seem to be having any problems procreating! The problem isn’t with me - It’s you!”

Genesis 30:3-6, “So Rachel said, ‘Here is my maid Bilhah; go in to her, and she will bear a child on my knees, that I also may have children by her.’ Then she gave him Bilhah her maid as wife, and Jacob went in to her. And Bilhah conceived and bore Jacob a son. Then Rachel said, ‘God has judged my case; and He has also heard my voice and given me a son.’ Therefore she called his name Dan.”

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