“When Rachel saw that she had borne Jacob no children, she became envious of her sister, and Rachel said to Jacob, “Give me children, or I shall die.”
Genesis 30:1
Sibling rivalry seems to have existed literally from the beginning of history, starting with Cain and Abel. From the start, Leah and Rachel were rivals, and their father, Laban, didn’t help. Although Jacob thought he was getting his beloved Rachel for a bride, he woke up after his wedding night to find that Laban had substituted her older sister, Leah. And when Jacob objected, Laban said, “It is not the practice in our place to marry off the younger before the older,” so Jacob had to serve Laban another seven years before he finally got the wife he wanted.
Even if Rachel and Leah had loved each other enough to make up for these difficulties, God or fate seems to have been trying to pit one against the other. Although she can’t make Jacob love her, Leah keeps having sons, while Rachel is barren. And when Rachel does complain, Jacob berates her, saying, “Can I take the place of God, who has denied you the fruit of the womb?”
As far as I can see, neither sister is the winner in this sibling rivalry. Much though he loves her, Jacob isn’t much help to Rachel. After all, Leah didn’t conceive six sons without having some contact with Jacob. True, at one point, she had to buy intimacy with Jacob by selling her son’s mandrake roots to her sister — an interesting story, but one we won’t explore at this time.
Both Leah and Rachel are tragic heroines. Any woman who has endured childbirth knows that it’s no fun. While the result is well worth the pain, it is still a tribute to Leah that she was willing to endure it six times in her effort to win Jacob’s affections. (Actually, Leah went through childbirth seven times, but the seventh child was a mere girl, Dinah, so she doesn’t count as far as the Bible is concerned.) And Rachel tried so hard to give her beloved husband children that she ended up paying with her life.
Certainly, Jacob is not the hero in this part of the story: he sleeps with anyone who happens to be around – Leah, Rachel, and their two maids –Bilhah and Zilpah – for a grand total of twelve sons. God promised his grandfather, Abraham, that his descendants would be more numerous than the sands on the seashore, and God apparently has decided that this prophecy will take place through Jacob, who doesn’t object.
For years, we Reform Jews prayed only to the “God of our Fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.” Recently, however, we have added, “and our Mothers, Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah.” Considering the fact that Leah never got the love she so desperately craved and Rachel died giving her loving husband sons, I can only say, “It’s about time!”
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Commentary on Parashat Vayeitzei
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By Bettijane Eisenpreis
“When Rachel saw that she had borne Jacob no children, she became envious of her sister, and Rachel said to Jacob, “Give me children, or I shall die.”
Genesis 30:1
Sibling rivalry seems to have existed literally from the beginning of history, starting with Cain and Abel. From the start, Leah and Rachel were rivals, and their father, Laban, didn’t help. Although Jacob thought he was getting his beloved Rachel for a bride, he woke up after his wedding night to find that Laban had substituted her older sister, Leah. And when Jacob objected, Laban said, “It is not the practice in our place to marry off the younger before the older,” so Jacob had to serve Laban another seven years before he finally got the wife he wanted.
Even if Rachel and Leah had loved each other enough to make up for these difficulties, God or fate seems to have been trying to pit one against the other. Although she can’t make Jacob love her, Leah keeps having sons, while Rachel is barren. And when Rachel does complain, Jacob berates her, saying, “Can I take the place of God, who has denied you the fruit of the womb?”
As far as I can see, neither sister is the winner in this sibling rivalry. Much though he loves her, Jacob isn’t much help to Rachel. After all, Leah didn’t conceive six sons without having some contact with Jacob. True, at one point, she had to buy intimacy with Jacob by selling her son’s mandrake roots to her sister — an interesting story, but one we won’t explore at this time.
Both Leah and Rachel are tragic heroines. Any woman who has endured childbirth knows that it’s no fun. While the result is well worth the pain, it is still a tribute to Leah that she was willing to endure it six times in her effort to win Jacob’s affections. (Actually, Leah went through childbirth seven times, but the seventh child was a mere girl, Dinah, so she doesn’t count as far as the Bible is concerned.) And Rachel tried so hard to give her beloved husband children that she ended up paying with her life.
Certainly, Jacob is not the hero in this part of the story: he sleeps with anyone who happens to be around – Leah, Rachel, and their two maids –Bilhah and Zilpah – for a grand total of twelve sons. God promised his grandfather, Abraham, that his descendants would be more numerous than the sands on the seashore, and God apparently has decided that this prophecy will take place through Jacob, who doesn’t object.
For years, we Reform Jews prayed only to the “God of our Fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.” Recently, however, we have added, “and our Mothers, Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah.” Considering the fact that Leah never got the love she so desperately craved and Rachel died giving her loving husband sons, I can only say, “It’s about time!”
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