Genesis 29:1-35

Jacob Arrives in Paddan Aram

1 Then Jacob continued on his journey and came to the land of the eastern peoples.
2 There he saw a well in the open country, with three flocks of sheep lying near it
because the flocks were watered from that well. The stone over the mouth of the well
was large.
3When all the flocks were gathered there, the shepherds would roll the stone away from
the wells mouth and water the sheep. Then they would return the stone to its place over
the mouth of the well.
4Jacob asked the shepherds, My brothers, where are you from? Were from Harran,
they replied.
5 He said to them, Do you know Laban, Nahors grandson? Yes, we know him, they
answered.
6Then Jacob asked them, Is he well? Yes, he is, they said, and here comes his
daughter Rachel with the sheep.
7 Look, he said, the sun is still high; it is not time for the flocks to be gathered. Water
the sheep and take them back to pasture.
8 We cant, they replied, until all the flocks are gathered and the stone has been
rolled away from the mouth of the well. Then we will water the sheep.
9While he was still talking with them, Rachel came with her fathers sheep, for she was
a shepherd.
10 When Jacob saw Rachel daughter of his uncle Laban, and Labans sheep, he went
over and rolled the stone away from the mouth of the well and watered his uncles
sheep.
11 Then Jacob kissed Rachel and began to weep aloud.
12 He had told Rachel that he was a relative of her father and a son of Rebekah. So
she ran and told her father.
13 As soon as Laban heard the news about Jacob, his sisters son, he hurried to meet
him. He embraced him and kissed him and brought him to his home, and there Jacob
told him all these things.

Jacob Marries Leah and Rachel

14 Then Laban said to him, You are my own flesh and blood. After Jacob had stayed
with him for a whole month,
15 Laban said to him, Just because you are a relative of mine, should you work for me
for nothing? Tell me what your wages should be.
16 Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the older was Leah, and the name of the
younger was Rachel.
17 Leah had weak eyes, but Rachel had a lovely figure and was beautiful.
18 Jacob was in love with Rachel and said, Ill work for you seven years in return for
your younger daughter Rachel.
19 Laban said, Its better that I give her to you than to some other man. Stay here with
me.
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.
21 Then Jacob said to Laban, Give me my wife. My time is completed, and I want to
make love to her.
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 brought her to Jacob, and
Jacob made love to her.
24 And Laban gave his servant Zilpah to his daughter as her attendant.
25 When morning came, there was Leah! So Jacob said to Laban, What is this you
have done to me? I served you for Rachel, didnt I? Why have you deceived me?

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26 Laban replied, It is not our custom here to give the younger daughter in marriage
before the older one.
27Finish this daughters bridal week; then we will give you the younger one also, in
return for another seven years of work.
28 And Jacob did so. He finished the week with Leah, and then Laban gave him his
daughter Rachel to be his wife.
29 Laban gave his servant Bilhah to his daughter Rachel as her attendant.
30 Jacob made love to Rachel also, and his love for Rachel was greater than his love
for Leah. And he worked for Laban another seven years.

Jacobs Children
31 When the LORD saw that Leah was not loved, he enabled her to conceive, but
Rachel remained childless.
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.

JACOB'S MARRIAGES AND CHILDREN

A. Jacob meets Rachel.

1. (Gen 29:1-3) Jacob comes to a covered well.

So Jacob went on his journey and came to the land of the people of the East. And he looked, and saw a
well in the field; and behold, there were three flocks of sheep lying by it; for out of that well they
watered the flocks. A large stone was on the well's mouth. Now all the flocks would be gathered there;
and they would roll the stone from the well's mouth, water the sheep, and put the stone back in its
place on the well's mouth.

a. And came to the land of the people of the East: Because the LORD blessed his trip, Jacob returns to
the land that his mother came from, being also the land of his grandfather Abraham.

2. (Gen 29:4-10) Jacob meets Rachel at the well.

And Jacob said to them, "My brethren, where are you from?" And they said, "We are from Haran." Then
he said to them, "Do you know Laban the son of Nahor?" And they said, "We know him." So he said to
them, "Is he well?" And they said, "He is well. And look, his daughter Rachel is coming with the sheep."
Then he said, "Look, it is still high day; it is not time for the cattle to be gathered together. Water the
sheep, and go and feed them." But they said, "We cannot until all the flocks are gathered together, and
they have rolled the stone from the well's mouth; then we water the sheep." Now while he was still
speaking with them, Rachel came with her father's sheep, for she was a shepherdess. And it came to
pass, when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother's brother, and the sheep of Laban his
mother's brother, that Jacob went near and rolled the stone from the well's mouth, and watered the
flock of Laban his mother's brother.

a. My brethren, where are you from? In an age before clearly marked roads and signs, Jacob didn't
know where he was until he asked some of the locals, and he discovered he was at his destination.

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b. Water the sheep, and go and feed them: Jacob definitely seems like he is trying to get rid of the
shepherd boys, probably so he can be alone with Rachel.

c. Jacob went near and rolled the stone from the well's mouth: Jacob also knew he had come to marry
one of the daughters of Laban (Genesis 28:2), so he is more than willing to show kindness (and perhaps
his strength) to Laban's daughter Rachel.

3. (Gen 29:11-14) Rachel arranges for her father Laban to meet Jacob.

Then Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice and wept. And Jacob told Rachel that he was her
father's relative and that he was Rebekah's son. So she ran and told her father. Then it came to pass,
when Laban heard the report about Jacob his sister's son, that he ran to meet him, and embraced him
and kissed him, and brought him to his house. So he told Laban all these things. And Laban said to him,
"Surely you are my bone and my flesh." And he stayed with him for a month.

a. Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice and wept: Initially, Rachel must have been quite surprised
when a man she never saw appears before weeping and greeting her with a kiss. Yet she heard of her
relatives (Rebekah is her aunt) who lived in the Promised Land, and she understood Jacob is from this
family.

B. Laban's deal with Jacob.

1. (Gen 29:15-20) Jacob offers to work for seven years as a dowry to receive Rachel in marriage.

Then Laban said to Jacob, "Because you are my relative, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell
me, what should your wages be?" Now Laban had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah, and
the name of the younger was Rachel. Leah's eyes were delicate, but Rachel was beautiful of form and
appearance. Now Jacob loved Rachel; so he said, "I will serve you seven years for Rachel your younger
daughter." And Laban said, "It is better that I give her to you than that I should give her to another man.
Stay with me." So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed only a few days to him because
of the love he had for her.

a. What should your wages be: This might sound like a nice offer, but really Laban let Jacob know if he
wants to stay around, he must stay as a hired servant. Jacob was the son of a man of tremendous
wealth. Certainly he was not lazy, but he wasn't used to hard work. Servants did the hard work back
home. But now Jacob is the servant.

i. Jacob's reaction in this situation will reveal much of his character. This demonstrates the principle that
you never know what kind of servant you are until others treat you like a servant.

b. Now Jacob loved Rachel: Not only was Rachel beautiful of form and appearance, but she was also
the first friendly face Jacob met in the area. It is understandable why he had a "love at first sight"
attachment to Rachel.

i. There is dispute as to exactly what the phrase "Leah's eyes were delicate" means. Some think it means
her eyes were bad, and she couldn't see well. Others think it means her eyes were "dull," not beautiful
and full of life like her sister Rachel's eyes.

c. I will serve you seven years for Rachel your younger daughter:

The offer to work for seven years was essentially a dowry. Though Jacob came from a family with great
wealth, he left home penniless. Before he could take a woman in marriage he had to provide a dowry to
demonstrate he was fit to support a family and to compensate for the taking of the daughter.

i. Seven years was a very generous offer, far above a normal dowry. Jacob didn't want to risk a refusal.
When Laban saw how badly Jacob wanted Rachel, he knew he could take advantage of him.

d. They seemed only a few days to him because of the love he had for her: We notice the great love he
had for her. The seven years of labor without pay (except for room and board) seemed to pass as
quickly as a few days.

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i. In this ancient culture, Jacob was not allowed to spend as much time as he wanted with Rachel. There
were strict social guidelines keeping unmarried men and women apart from each other.

ii. This clearly demonstrates an important principle: true love waits. Jacob was willing to wait seven
years for Rachel.

iii. In 1990, it was reported that in response to the excesses of the sexual revolution, some 400
concerned single adults have joined the National Chastity Association. Member Elaine Marsh, a 35-year-
old legal secretary from Orange County, described her commitment to celibacy before her marriage: "It
comes from my religion, but it's more than that," she says. "I just feel it's such a precious part of
yourself, you don't give it to someone when you haven't made the commitment of marriage." Founder
Mary Meyer says the group isn't against sex: "I love hand-holding, I love kissing, I love caressing, I love
sex," she says. "But even more than I would love to experience these things right now, I want to be able
to have a relationship where I can experience them forever." This is the kind of wisdom and heart Jacob
had.

iv. In the 1990s there was a successful campaign among teens titled "True Love Waits." It persuaded
them to take the following pledge: "Believing that true love waits, I make a commitment to God, myself,
my family, those I date, my future mate and my future children to be sexually pure until the day I enter a
covenant marriage relationship." One 18-year-old named Rick said he used to be one of the guys who
would come into school on Monday morning and brag about his sexual exploits. His views changed
when he became a Christian two years ago, and now he is happy to take the pledge. "Sex is something
God made to say, 'I love you,'" he said. "If you have sex with everybody, you can't say I've saved this one
thing to say, 'I love you.' "

2. (Gen 29:21-25) Laban switches Leah for Rachel on the wedding night.

Then Jacob said to Laban, "Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in to her." And Laban
gathered together all the men of the place and made a feast. Now it came to pass in the evening, that he
took Leah his daughter and brought her to Jacob; and he went in to her. And Laban gave his maid Zilpah
to his daughter Leah as a maid. So it came to pass in the morning, that behold, it was Leah. And he said
to Laban, "What is this you have done to me? Was it not for Rachel that I served you? Why then have
you deceived me?"

a. Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in to her: These words are clear enough.
Even though Jacob waited and the time went quickly because of love, when the time was done he was
done waiting.

b. He took Leah his daughter and brought her to Jacob; and he went in to her: It was possible for Jacob
to be fooled because of the wedding customs of the day. According to those customs the wife was
veiled until she was finally alone with her husband in the "honeymoon suite." If it was dark by the time
Jacob and his new bride were alone together (something Laban would not have difficulty arranging), it
helps explain how Jacob was fooled.

c. He took Leah his daughter and brought her to Jacob: We assume that Leah was in agreement with
this. "She may have loved Jacob secretly. She may have considered this her one chance to get a
husband. She may have thought this an unsought, and therefore justifiable, opportunity to steal a march
on her sister." (Leupold) Yet even it she was not in agreement, she was under the absolute authority of
her father.

i. The absolute authority of the father in the home in that culture also explains why Rachel "agreed" to
this.

d. So it came to pass in the morning, that behold, it was Leah: We can Imagine how Jacob felt - and
how Leah felt, and of course how poor Rachel felt. All this was because of Laban's sin. Or, perhaps one
should say it was because of Jacob's sin - now the deceiver is deceived.

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e. Why then have you deceived me? Significantly, Laban's deception towards Jacob is similar to the
deception Jacob put upon his father Isaac and his brother Esau. This is an example of Jacob reaping what
he had sown. Jacob exchanged the younger for the older; Laban exchanged the older for the younger.

i. When Jacob deceived his father and cheated his brother, God did not change His plan to choose Jacob
to receive the birthright. Instead, God took Jacob to the school of hard knocks to discipline him. This
shows that our disobedience may not derail God's plan for our life, but it will greatly affect how we end
up experiencing it. You may spend 20 years working for someone like Laban while God teaches you a
few things.

ii. Though we can see this is God's correction upon Jacob, it in no way justifies Laban's deception. The
fact God does work all things together for good never excuses the evil acts God works for good.

3. (Gen 29:26-30) Laban agrees to give Rachel to Jacob in return for another seven years worth of work.

And Laban said, "It must not be done so in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn. Fulfill
her week, and we will give you this one also for the service which you will serve with me still another
seven years." Then Jacob did so and fulfilled her week. So he gave him his daughter Rachel as wife also.
And Laban gave his maid Bilhah to his daughter Rachel as a maid. Then Jacob also went in to Rachel, and
he also loved Rachel more than Leah. And he served with Laban still another seven years.

a. It must not be done so in our country: This excuse by Laban basically says, "Well, didn't we tell you?
We don't do it this way around here. Thought you knew." The only reason Jacob submits to this clever
trick of Laban's is because he had no other option. But Laban's "reason" was really nothing more than an
excuse.

b. Serve with me still another seven years: The second seven years made up Jacob's post-graduate
work in the school of hard knocks. Jacob's "major" in the school of hard knocks was "You Reap What You
Sow."

c. And he served with Laban still another seven years: Laban is a perfect picture of a deceptive
manipulator. He ends up getting exactly what he wanted (both his daughters married). Yet, this will turn
out badly for both himself and his daughters. Oftentimes, God judges manipulators by giving them what
they in their sinful desires and methods want and allowing it to be loss for them.

i. The problems in this family can be seen immediately. Not only has Jacob married two sisters, but he
also lets everyone know one is favored and loved more than the other. Ultimately, all these problems
stem from Laban's manipulative deception, and the prior sin of Jacob that brought it upon himself.

ii. Well, then, what should Jacob have done? Some say Jacob should have gone to Laban and told him to
correct the whole mess, and simply be married to Rachel and let Leah be Laban's problem. Others
believe that according to the standards of the culture, he could not have put Leah aside, because she
was unable to marry another after having been given to Jacob. Perhaps, he should have done the best
he could in the situation, which would have been to love his two wives equally. What a mess!

d. He gave him his daughter Rachel as wife also: We don't practice polygamy, but we do practice "serial
marriage." We can think of polygamy as "mass marriage" in the sense we speak about "mass murder":
someone who marries more than one at the same time. But there is also "serial murder": where a
murderer kills many, but one at a time. In our modern culture we multiply wives to ourselves; we just do
it one at a time.

i. We can't do anything about our marriages that have broken up in the past, but we can do all we can
before God to make sure that from now on, it is one partner for all time.

C. Jacob's first four sons born through Leah.

1. (Gen 29:31) God's gracious love for Leah.

When the LORD saw that Leah was unloved, He opened her womb; but Rachel was barren.

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a. When the LORD saw that Leah was unloved: God's compassion on Leah is touching. She is truly the
innocent party in all of this mess. God can minister to a wife and meet her needs even when the
husband acts in an ungodly manner.

i. "Wretched Leah sits sadly in her tent with her maid and spends her time spinning and weeping. For
the rest of the household, and especially Rachel, despises her because she has been scorned by her
husband, who prefers Rachel and is desperately in love with Rachel alone. She is not beautiful, not
pleasing. No, she is odious and hated. . . . There the poor girl sits; no one pays any attention to her.
Rachel gives herself airs before; she does not deign to look at her. 'I am the lady of the house,' she
thinks, 'Leah is a slave.' These are truly carnal things in the saintly fathers and mothers, like the things
that usually happen in our houses." (Luther, cited in Boice)

b. When the LORD saw that Leah was unloved, He opened her womb: Isaiah 54:5 says, For your Maker
is your husband, the LORD of hosts is His name. God can meet the needs a hurting wife has, needs that
are neglected by the husband.

2. (Gen 29:32) The birth of Reuben.

So Leah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Reuben; for she said, "The LORD has surely
looked on my affliction. Now therefore, my husband will love me."

a. She called his name Rueben: The first child born to Jacob, through Leah, is named Reuben by Leah,
meaning "behold, a son." This is her statement to Jacob and all others that the LORD had looked upon
my affliction.

i. Reuben is the firstborn son of Jacob; he is the logical one to inherit the promise God had made to
Abraham and passed on to Isaac and then to Jacob.

b. Now therefore, my husband will love me: Jacob, even though he did not love Leah, still would have
sex with her. Unfortunately, men are much more able to detach sex from love than women are. Worse
yet, Leah was painfully aware of the fact Jacob did not love her, even though he was obviously having
sex with her.

3. (Gen 29:33) The birth of Simeon.

Then she conceived again and bore a son, and said, "Because the LORD has heard that I am unloved, He
has therefore given me this son also." And she called his name Simeon.

a. She called his name Simeon: The second child born to Jacob, through Leah again, is named by
Leah Simeon, meaning "hearing." Leah hopes all will notice the LORD has heard her.

b. Because the LORD has heard that I am unloved: Apparently, the birth of Reuben did not turn the
heart of Jacob towards Leah. She is still aware he does not love her, though he is still having sex with
her.

i. Of course, Jacob and Leah were married, so there was nothing sinful in sexual relationship. But this
plainly shows that Jacob, like most any man in the flesh, was able and willing to have sex with someone
he did not love.

ii. Women should never think a man loves them just because they have sex. A 1993 Los Angeles Times
article interviewed young men to find out their views on sex. One man named Christian (17 years old)
explained how things work between men and women: "We're just not sentimental. That's why we're
men . We like girls, we don't love them You see a girl and you just think, yeah, she's really pretty and
the first thing that comes to mind is you want to have sex." He then explained how he seduced a girl:
"You start kissing her and hugging her and little by little you start touching her." After sex, he explained
many boys dump the girls. "Girls get mad, but they don't take it hard. They get over it."

iii. This is the kind of man a woman might have sex with in the misguided effort to keep him as her
boyfriend, because he has deceived her into thinking he loves her. How dangerous can this be? Consider
the words of a woman who caught AIDS from a Ventura man who knew he was infected but never told

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her: "All I wanted is someone to love me, and now I'm going to die for that. I don't think I should have to
die for that."

iv. A 1995 survey asked the following question: "Have you ever had sex with a woman you have actively
disliked?" 58% of men answered "yes."

4. (Gen 29:34) The birth of Levi.

She conceived again and bore a son, and said, "Now this time my husband will become attached to me,
because I have borne him three sons." Therefore his name was called Levi.

a. Therefore his name was called Levi: The third child born to Jacob, again through Leah, is named Levi,
meaning "attachment." Leah still lives in the hope her husband Jacob will love her and become attached
to her through the birth of these sons.

b. Now this time my husband will become attached to me: The pain in the heart of Leah is as evident as
the hardness of Jacob's heart, and as evident as his fleshly attitude towards his wife Leah.

5. (Gen 29:35) The birth of Judah.

And she conceived again and bore a son, and said, "Now I will praise the LORD." Therefore she called his
name Judah. Then she stopped bearing.

a. She called his name Judah: The fourth son born to Jacob, again through Leah, is
named Judah meaning, "praise." Apparently, Leah has stopped naming her children to reflect the pain
and longing in her heart. Now she focuses on God and can praise Him.

b. Now I will praise the LORD: To some extent, and for some period of time, Leah has allowed the LORD
to meet her need, and she can now praise God! Leah knew the LORD better, driven to Him by the
neglect of her husband.

i. Leah, though she was neglected by Jacob and despised by Rachel, had a great purpose in God's plan.
The two greatest tribes came from Leah, not Rachel: Levi (the priestly tribe) and Judah (the royal tribe).
And most importantly, the Messiah came from Leah, the uglier sister, who was neglected and despised,
but learned to look to the LORD and praise Him.

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