Leah

Leah (Hebrew: לֵאָה, Standard Leʼa Tiberian Lēʼāh ; Arabic: ليئة, Lay'a ; "Weary; tired") is the first wife of the Hebrew patriarch Jacob and mother of six of the Twelve Tribes of Israel, described in the Book of Genesis.

Biblical narrative

In the Biblical account, Jacob travels to the hometown of Laban—the brother of his mother Rebekah—to avoid being killed by his brother Esau, and also to find a wife. At a well used to water the local flocks, he encounters Laban's younger daughter Rachel tending her father's sheep, and decides to marry her. He proceeds to work seven years for Laban in order to marry Rachel, but on the wedding night. Of the seven years are over, a great feast is held.

In the morning, Leah

Laban, however, switches Rachel for Leah, and it is thus Leah who spends the wedding night with Jacob. The text does not explain how such a thing could transpire except to say, "in the morning, Leah!" Laban justifies himself on the grounds that it is uncustomary to give the younger daughter in marriage before the older one (Genesis 29:16-30). He offers to give Rachel to Jacob in marriage in return for another seven years of work. Jacob accepts, spending the week with Leah exclusively and that marrying Rachel as well.

In the early years of the sisters' marriage, it is obvious that Jacob loves Rachel more than Leah. However God sympathizers with Leah and gives her four sons in quick succession. These are Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah (Genesis 29:31-35). We get a glimpse into Leah's character by her responses—each of which is also a pun on the baby's name—to each of her biths:

• Reuben—"It is because the Lord has seen my misery. Surely my husband will love me now."

• Simeon—"Because the Lord heard that I am not loved, he gave me this one too."

• Levi—"Now at last my husband will become attached to me, because I have borne him three sons."

• Judah—"This time I will praise the Lord."

The text here tells us that at this time, Leah stops having children, although later we find out that the situation is only temporary.

Rachel, seeing that she is still unable to conceive, offers her handmaid Bilhah as a third wife to Jacob. She names and raises the two sons—Dan and Napthali that Bilhah bears. Leah responds by offering her handmaid Zilpah as a fourth wife to Jacob. She names and raises the two sons—Gad ("What good fortune!") and Asher ("How happy I am!") that Zilpah bears.

One day, Leah's firstborn, Reuben, returns from the field with mandrakes for his mother. Rachel, believing the roots will solve her fertility problem, asks for some of the roots. Leah responds angrily to her rival: "Wasn't it enough that you took away my husband? Will you take my son's mandrakes too?" (Gen 30:15) Rachel offers to trade her night with their husband in return for the mandrakes. Leah agrees, and that night she conceives Issachar ("God has rewarded me), and she gives birth to Zebulun. After this sixth son, the longsuffering Leah declares: "This time my husband will treat me with honor."

Finally, after six males, Leah finally gives birth to a daughter, Dinah.

After that, God remembers Rachel and gives her two sons, Joseph, saying "God has taken away my disgrace."

Leaving home

During all this time, about 14 years, Leah has still been living on her father's land. And when it came time for Jacob to leave, Laban insisted on still another seven years labor from him and has allegedly changed his wages 10 times. In the twenty-first year, God calls Jacob to return to Canaan. Meanwhile, during the last seven years, Jacob has cleverly built up his own flocks while Laban's have not done nearly so well. Jacob sends for Leah and Rachel and shares God's revelation with them:

I have seen all that Laban has been doing to you. I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a pillar and where you made a vow to me. Now leave this land at once and go back to your native land.' " (Gen. 31:12-13)

Jacob plans to depart immediately, knowing that Laban will accuse him of theft and breaking their agreement. Leah and Rachel reply:

Do we still have any share in the inheritance of our father's estate? Does he not regard us as foreigners? Not only has he sold us, but he has used up what was paid for us. Surely all the wealth that God took away from our father belongs to us and our children. So do whatever God has told you." (Gen 31:14-15)

The hills of Gilead, where Laban persued Leah and Jacob's family.

Leah quickly gathers her children and belongings and joins Jacob—togther with Joseph and the slaves—to leave for Canaan. The families apparently did not live in immediate proximity, for only after three days does Laban realize the large caravan—not to mention his daughters and grandchildren—have gone. He does not overtake the group until the have reached the hill country of Gilead, to the east of the Jordan River.

Although the scene is ripe for bloodshed, God speaks to Laban and warns him not to harm Jacob. A tense drama unfolds as Laban searches for his preciouis household images which Rachel has stolen from him, but this are not discovered. Finally, Laban offers a covenant of peace between him a Jacob, saying:

The women are my daughters, the children are my children, and the flocks are my flocks. All you see is mine. Yet what can I do today about these daughters of mine, or about the children they have borne? Come now, let's make a covenant, you and I, and let it serve as a witness between us. (Gen. 31:43-44)

Jacob agrees, indicating an ancient religious bond between him and Laban going back to the time of their grandfather Terah, saying: "May the God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us." Jacob set up a sacred pillar to commemorate the meeting and mark a boundary between his lands and Laban's. They share a sacrificial feast. Leah and her children, together with Rachel and Joseph, then kiss their father goodbye for the last time.

Leah is traditionally thought to be buried in the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron along with her husband, Jacob, Abraham and Sarah, and Isaac and Rebekah. In a moment of poetic detail, Leah is described as having "tender eyes" (Hebrew: ועיני לאה רכות) when she is first introduced (Gen. 29:16-17). Her sister, Rachel, meanwhile, is characterized as being "beautiful of form and beautiful of appearance." It is debated as to whether the adjective "tender" (רכות) should be taken to mean "delicate and soft" or "weak." According to Rashi, Leah was destined to marry Jacob's twin brother, Esau. The two brothers were polar opposites; Jacob being a God-fearing scholar and Esau being a hunter who also indulged in murder, idolatry and adultery. But people would say, "Laban has two daughters and his sister, Rebekah, has two sons. The older daughter (Leah) will marry the older son (Esau), and the younger daughter (Rachel) will marry the younger son (Jacob)." Hearing this, Leah spent most of her time weeping and praying to God to change her destined mate. Thus the Torah describes her eyes as "soft" from weeping. Hearkening to her tears and prayers, God allows her to marry Jacob even before Rachel does.

Rabinnical views

On a homiletical level, the classic Chassidic texts explain the sisters' rivalry as more than marital jealousy. Each woman desired to grow spiritually in her avodat Hashem (service of God), and therefore sought closeness to the tzadik (Jacob) who is God's personal emissary in this world. By marrying Jacob and bearing his sons, who would be raised in the tzadik's home and continue his mission into the next generation (indeed, all 12 sons became tzadikim in their own right and formed the foundation of the Nation of Israel), they would develop an even closer relationship to God. Therefore Leah and Rachel each wanted to have as many of those sons as possible, going so far as to offer their handmaids as wives to Jacob so they could have a share in the upbringing of their handmaids' sons, too. Each woman also continually questioned whether she was doing enough in her personal efforts toward increased spirituality, and would use the other's example to spur herself on. Rachel envied Leah's tearful prayers, by which she merited to marry the tzadik and bear six of his twelve sons. Leah envied Rachel's traits of humility and acquiescence, which were displayed when she saw Laban bringing Leah in marriage to Jacob instead of herself, yet remained silent. (The Talmud — Gemarah Megillah — says that Rachel even revealed to Leah the secret signs which she and Jacob had devised to identify the veiled bride, because they both suspected Laban would pull such a trick.) God fulfills His covenant to Abraham through Leah's descendants. Her son Judah becomes the effective leader among the sons of Jacob and the father of the pre-eminent tribe in the nation of Israel. All the kings of Israel (save for the Hasmonean dynasty) come from Judah, most notably King David. According to Jewish tradition, King David's future offspring will be the Messiah. Christians believe that this messianic descendant was already born in the person of Jesus. Rachel's son, Joseph, is destined to be the interim leader who bridges the gap between exile and nationhood. This is exemplified in the Biblical story of Joseph, who prepared the way in Egypt for his family's exile there, and in the future figure of Mashiach ben Yosef (Messiah, son of Joseph), who will fight the apocalyptic Wars of Gog and Magog, preparing the way for the kingship of Mashiach ben David (Messiah, son of David) and the messianic age.

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