As if to disprove the saying, “You can’t trick a trickster,” Jacob is finally on the receiving end of deception and reversal. Smitten with his cousin Rachel at first sight, he freely promises seven years’ service to his uncle for her hand in marriage, only to discover the “morning after” that he’s married the older, and more entitled, sister Leah instead.
The twists and turns in this story can be dizzying at times, and trying to follow the blossoming family tree becomes a bewildering project. But rather than memorizing Jacob’s wives and offspring, I’d invite you to grab hold of the thread of God’s part in this oh-so-human story. As we’ve already seen in Genesis, here we find a deft combination of God’s reticence—letting the people make their choices—and God’s active involvement in complex human relationships.
In this chapter, the Lord takes the side of the unloved wife Leah, fostering her fertility in ways that would garner favor in a society that valued women mostly for their child-bearing capacity. In other words, God takes steps to secure for Leah the kind of affection that Rachel has already won.
There’s an important theological claim embedded in this story of God’s taking sides—a claim that we’ve already encountered throughout our Genesis stories: God loves especially those who are unloved or unlovable. And reading this story makes me wonder, how might I show God’s love to someone in my life who’s unloved or unlovable? How might I open myself to God’s love, especially when I feel unloved or unlovable? I wonder, is there room for this God in my story, in my family, in my workplace, in my world?
- When have you felt unloved or unlovable? Has God’s life-giving power ever entered your life to “take sides” on your behalf?
- Notice today someone who’s unloved or unlovable in your life. How might God be “taking sides” on that person’s behalf? How might you participate in God’s blessing?
- What other details did you notice in today’s reading?
Prayer: Oh Lord who loves the unloved, show me just one “Leah” today. Make me a vessel of your life-giving presence in her life. Amen.
Breath Prayer: This time // I will praise.
