Dave spoke this morning from Genesis 29 about the two wives of Jacob, Leah and Rachel. Jacob never intended to marry Leah (the older sister), but her father (Laban) connived to marry her to Jacob rather than Rachel. Jacob loved Rachel, who was beautiful and strong, but did not love Leah (who had weak eyes and was presumably not as beautiful). It’s easy to understand Jacob’s frustration at being manipulated in this way, but we can also imagine Leah’s hurt. She was fundamentally not respected by her father and was unloved by Jacob; she must have been envious of her younger sister. Yet despite this, God saw her pain and therefore granted her the ability to bear children (Reuben, Simeon, Levi and Judah) whilst Rachel was barren.
Leah, we see, eventually came to realise that she was loved by God, and it is significant that two of these sons became extremely significant in God’s plans (it was from Levi that the priesthood came and Jesus was from the line of Judah). Judah means ‘may God be praised’; by this time, she had perhaps come to understand that envy is not a profitable emotion. Rachel, who may be said to have had everything, ultimately had the love of her husband, but she did not have children; she may have known love and good looks but Leah had life and legacy.
Ultimately, the story of Leah and Rachel minds us of the futility of envy and jealousy and shows us that God does not love us because we are valuable. We are valuable because God loves us.
