HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 398
G EN ES IS 3 0
kissed Rachel, and he wept aloud. 12 He explained to Rachel that he was her cousin on her
father’s side—the son of her aunt Rebekah. So
Rachel quickly ran and told her father, Laban.
13 As soon as Laban heard that his nephew
Jacob had arrived, he ran out to meet him. He
embraced and kissed him and brought him
home. When Jacob had told him his story, 14 Laban exclaimed, “You really are my own flesh
and blood!”
Jacob Marries Leah and Rachel
After Jacob had stayed with Laban for about a
month, 15 Laban said to him, “You shouldn’t work
for me without pay just because we are relatives.
Tell me how much your wages should be.”
16 Now Laban had two daughters. The older
daughter was named Leah, and the younger
one was Rachel. 17 There was no sparkle in
Leah’s eyes,* but Rachel had a beautiful figure
and a lovely face. 18 Since Jacob was in love with
Rachel, he told her father, “I’ll work for you
for seven years if you’ll give me Rachel, your
younger daughter, as my wife.”
19 “Agreed!” Laban replied. “I’d rather give
her to you than to anyone else. Stay and work
with me.” 20 So Jacob worked seven years to pay
for Rachel. But his love for her was so strong
that it seemed to him but a few days.
21 Finally, the time came for him to marry her.
“I have fulfilled my agreement,” Jacob said to
• Pain
G E NE S IS 3 0 :1 -2
Why does God permit his loved ones
to suffer pain, such as the pain of being
unable to have children? Why can’t he
just give a child to parents who want
one so badly? The real answer is that
we don’t know. What we do know is
that we live in a fallen world where life
doesn’t always go the way we had
hoped. We also know that God’s love
for us is greater than anything we could
ever imagine. But, for reasons we do
not fully understand, he does not always
allow us to have what we desire. Maybe
it’s because he has a different plan for
us. For now we must trust that God is
sovereign and that the pain and injustices
of this world will be completely healed
and redeemed in heaven for those who
have received Jesus Christ as Savior and
Lord. Until then, we cannot stop trusting
that the God of that heaven is also the
same God who knows our hurts and
provides comfort here on earth.
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Laban. “Now give me my wife so I can sleep
with her.”
22 So Laban invited everyone in the neighborhood and prepared a wedding feast. 23 But that
night, when it was dark, Laban took Leah to
Jacob, and he slept with her. 24 (Laban had given
Leah a servant, Zilpah, to be her maid.)
25 But when Jacob woke up in the morning—it
was Leah! “What have you done to me?” Jacob
raged at Laban. “I worked seven years for Rachel! Why have you tricked me?”
26 “It’s not our custom here to marry off a
younger daughter ahead of the firstborn,” Laban
replied. 27 “But wait until the bridal week is over;
then we’ll give you Rachel, too—provided you
promise to work another seven years for me.”
28 So Jacob agreed to work seven more years.
A week after Jacob had married Leah, Laban
gave him Rachel, too. 29 (Laban gave Rachel
a servant, Bilhah, to be her maid.) 30 So Jacob
slept with Rachel, too, and he loved her much
more than Leah. He then stayed and worked for
Laban the additional seven years.
Jacob’s Many Children
31 When the Lord saw that Leah was unloved, he
enabled her to have children, but Rachel could
not conceive. 32 So Leah became pregnant and
gave birth to a son. She named him Reuben,*
for she said, “The Lord has noticed my misery,
and now my husband will love me.”
33 She soon became pregnant again and gave
birth to another son. She named him Simeon,*
for she said, “The Lord heard that I was unloved
and has given me another son.”
34 Then she became pregnant a third time and
gave birth to another son. He was named Levi,*
for she said, “Surely this time my husband will
feel affection for me, since I have given him
three sons!”
35 Once again Leah became pregnant and
gave birth to another son. She named him Judah,* for she said, “Now I will praise the Lord!”
And then she stopped having children.
30
When Rachel saw that she wasn’t having any children for Jacob, she became
jealous of her sister. She pleaded with Jacob,
“Give me children, or I’ll die!”
2 Then Jacob became furious with Rachel.
“Am I God?” he asked. “He’s the one who has
kept you from having children!”
3 Then Rachel told him, “Take my maid, Bilhah, and sleep with her. She will bear children
for me,* and through her I can have a family,
29:17 Or Leah had dull eyes, or Leah had soft eyes. The
meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain. 29:32 Reuben means
“Look, a son!” It also sounds like the Hebrew for “He has seen
my misery.” 29:33 Simeon probably means “one who hears.”
29:34 Levi sounds like a Hebrew term that means “being
attached” or “feeling affection for.” 29:35 Judah is related
to the Hebrew term for “praise.” 30:3 Hebrew bear children
on my knees.