Jacob’s Children (Gen 29:31-30:24)

Daniel L. Arter

Genesis: The Book of Beginnings • Sermon • Submitted 3 months ago • Presented 3 months ago

Genesis 29:31–30:24

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INTRODUCTION

If you have your Bible, please open it to Genesis 29:31-30:24.

Last week we were introduced to Jacob’s two wives—Leah and Rachel. We watched as Jacob experienced some poetic justice as his father-in-law lied to him and tricked him. Throughout the text, we were reminded of God’s goodness and faithfulness toward His people.

This morning, we’re continuing to follow the life of Jacob—this time, we’re dealing with the births of his children and everything that happened surrounding the births of his children.

It is a longer passage, so let’s jump in.

Genesis 29:31–30:24 ESV

31 When the Lord saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb, but Rachel was barren. 32 And Leah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Reuben, for she said, “Because the Lord has looked upon my affliction; for now my husband will love me.” 33 She conceived again and bore a son, and said, “Because the Lord has heard that I am hated, he has given me this son also.” And she called his name Simeon. 34 Again she conceived and bore a son, and said, “Now this time my husband will be attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.” Therefore his name was called Levi. 35 And she conceived again and bore a son, and said, “This time I will praise the Lord.” Therefore she called his name Judah. Then she ceased bearing. 1 When Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, she envied her sister. She said to Jacob, “Give me children, or I shall die!” 2 Jacob’s anger was kindled against Rachel, and he said, “Am I in the place of God, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?” 3 Then she said, “Here is my servant Bilhah; go in to her, so that she may give birth on my behalf, that even I may have children through her.” 4 So she gave him her servant Bilhah as a wife, and Jacob went in to her. 5 And Bilhah conceived and bore Jacob a son. 6 Then Rachel said, “God has judged me, and has also heard my voice and given me a son.” Therefore she called his name Dan. 7 Rachel’s servant Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son. 8 Then Rachel said, “With mighty wrestlings I have wrestled with my sister and have prevailed.” So she called his name Naphtali. 9 When Leah saw that she had ceased bearing children, she took her servant Zilpah and gave her to Jacob as a wife. 10 Then Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a son. 11 And Leah said, “Good fortune has come!” so she called his name Gad. 12 Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a second son. 13 And Leah said, “Happy am I! For women have called me happy.” So she called his name Asher. 14 In the days of wheat harvest Reuben went and found mandrakes in the field and brought them to his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.” 15 But she said to her, “Is it a small matter that you have taken away my husband? Would you take away my son’s mandrakes also?” Rachel said, “Then he may lie with you tonight in exchange for your son’s mandrakes.” 16 When Jacob came from the field in the evening, Leah went out to meet him and said, “You must come in to me, for I have hired you with my son’s mandrakes.” So he lay with her that night. 17 And God listened to Leah, and she conceived and bore Jacob a fifth son. 18 Leah said, “God has given me my wages because I gave my servant to my husband.” So she called his name Issachar. 19 And Leah conceived again, and she bore Jacob a sixth son. 20 Then Leah said, “God has endowed me with a good endowment; now my husband will honor me, because I have borne him six sons.” So she called his name Zebulun. 21 Afterward she bore a daughter and called her name Dinah. 22 Then God remembered Rachel, and God listened to her and opened her womb. 23 She conceived and bore a son and said, “God has taken away my reproach.” 24 And she called his name Joseph, saying, “May the Lord add to me another son!”

As we study this passage, we’re going to break the text up into three parts: (1) Leah’s Children (29:31-35), (2) Bilhah, Zilpah, and Leah’s Children (30:1-21) and (3) Rachel’s Child (22-24). Each part deals with the births of all of Jacob’s children to not just Leah and Rachel, who are his wives, but also to Bilhah and Zilpah—their servants. As we work through the text, there are primarily two ideas that I want you to really see and grasp onto: (1) misplaced affections will cause you to do foolish things and (2) God is sovereign—even when it comes to conception.

Prayer for Illumination

Leah’s Children (29:31-35)

The text starts with God noticing something about Leah’s relationship with Jacob.

Remember who Leah is—Leah is the daughter of Laban. The previous text tells us that she’s the older of the two sisters and that her eyes were weak.

Remember that Jacob didn’t intend to marry Leah in the first place—he intended to marry Rachel, the younger sister, but Laban deceives Jacob and tricks him into marrying Leah first.

So, you can kind of see why there would already be some marital and interpersonal strife—the marriage wasn’t originally wanted, rather it was the result of trickery.

Jacob didn’t intend to marry Leah, thus, he didn’t always treat Leah well.

And God notices. God notices the fact that Leah isn’t treated as well as Rachel by Jacob. The Bible says that “When the Lord saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb, but Rachel was barren.”

You see already the ideas of God’s sovereignty and His omniscience coursing through this text.

He knows all things, thus, He knows that the relationship between Jacob and Leah is strained.

He’s in control of all thing, thus, He opens Leah’s womb and leaves Rachel barren.

You’ll also see a bit of God’s compassion here—He saw the situation, He empathized, He had compassion.

Now, I do want to point out that despite God’s compassion here—He isn’t condoning the multiple wives situation.

First, you have to realize that at this point in history—they haven’t received the Law of God, yet. They’ve never been told that it was wrong for them to have multiple wives simultaneously—and, it was common in their culture for this situation to occur.

Second, there are plenty of time throughout Scripture in which God doesn’t necessarily condemn something at that moment, but He also doesn’t condone it.

For instance, when Rahab lies to save the Jewish spies—we know that lying is a sin, thus, God doesn’t condone it, but at that very moment in the text, nothing is said.

Or, you could consider the issue of wrongful enslavement—often, the Bible doesn’t speak out about it in that moment, but it does condemn the wrongful practice in other places.

The issue is still an issue, but the Bible doesn’t always confront it at that moment and this is one of those moments.

Regardless, God emphasizes—He chooses to act in compassion towards Leah and to help fix some of the relational discord, He opens her womb.

Now, by opening her womb, we do get a slight impression as to why there could’ve been additional relational discord beyond the fact that Jacob didn’t intend to marry her in the first place.

In the Ancient Near Eastern culture having children was a major deal:

First, it was a continuation of the familial lineage.

Second, it was assumed that the more children that you had, the more blessed by God you were.

Third, it was assumed that if you didn’t have children, you were being punished for sin.

And fourth, most women in the Ancient Near Eastern culture tied their value and worth as a person to whether or not they could have children.

Thus, if God’s going to rectify the relationship between Jacob and Leah, one of the ways would be to allow her to have children, which brings up two other points:

As we work through the name of the children, you’ll recognize them as the names of the 12 tribes of Israel. That’s on purpose—because it’s through Jacob, who soon is renamed Israel that the nation of Israel is born.

You’ll also note the fact that it is God who chooses when each person has children and when they don’t in this scenario. This truth really opens up our eyes when it comes to God’s sovereignty—even when it comes to conception and childbirth, God is in control and part of our application is based on this truth.

God looks with compassion and empathy on Leah and Leah notices:

After the birth of her first born. v. 32, “Leah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Reuben.”

The name Reuben has a meaning—it means “See, a son” and she continues by stating, “Because the Lord has looked upon my affliction; for now my husband will love me.”

After conceiving again and having a second child, she names him Simeon, which sounds like the Hebrew word for heard, “because the Lord has heard that [she is] heated, he has given [her] this son also.”

After the second son, she conceived again and had a third son. She says, “‘Now this time my husband will be attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.’ Therefore his name was called Levi,” which sounds like the Hebrew word attached.

And then she conceives and has another son named Judah, which sounds like the Hebrew word praise, thus, she says, “This time I will praise the Lord.”

God is compassionate and shows empathy on Leah by allowing her to have four children with Jacob.

Note how through the succession of children in vv. 31-35, she recognizes what all God has done for her.

She starts by talking about her affliction, about how she’s hated, and then she eventually transitions to “now my husband will be attached to me.” and “this time I will praise the Lord.”

She recognizes God’s sovereignty in her having children and she gives thanks—again, because she recognizes God’s sovereignty.

Bilhah, Zilpah, and Leah’s Children (30:1-21)

Genesis 30:1–21 ESV

1 When Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, she envied her sister. She said to Jacob, “Give me children, or I shall die!” 2 Jacob’s anger was kindled against Rachel, and he said, “Am I in the place of God, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?” 3 Then she said, “Here is my servant Bilhah; go in to her, so that she may give birth on my behalf, that even I may have children through her.” 4 So she gave him her servant Bilhah as a wife, and Jacob went in to her. 5 And Bilhah conceived and bore Jacob a son. 6 Then Rachel said, “God has judged me, and has also heard my voice and given me a son.” Therefore she called his name Dan. 7 Rachel’s servant Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son. 8 Then Rachel said, “With mighty wrestlings I have wrestled with my sister and have prevailed.” So she called his name Naphtali. 9 When Leah saw that she had ceased bearing children, she took her servant Zilpah and gave her to Jacob as a wife. 10 Then Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a son. 11 And Leah said, “Good fortune has come!” so she called his name Gad. 12 Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a second son. 13 And Leah said, “Happy am I! For women have called me happy.” So she called his name Asher. 14 In the days of wheat harvest Reuben went and found mandrakes in the field and brought them to his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.” 15 But she said to her, “Is it a small matter that you have taken away my husband? Would you take away my son’s mandrakes also?” Rachel said, “Then he may lie with you tonight in exchange for your son’s mandrakes.” 16 When Jacob came from the field in the evening, Leah went out to meet him and said, “You must come in to me, for I have hired you with my son’s mandrakes.” So he lay with her that night. 17 And God listened to Leah, and she conceived and bore Jacob a fifth son. 18 Leah said, “God has given me my wages because I gave my servant to my husband.” So she called his name Issachar. 19 And Leah conceived again, and she bore Jacob a sixth son. 20 Then Leah said, “God has endowed me with a good endowment; now my husband will honor me, because I have borne him six sons.” So she called his name Zebulun. 21 Afterward she bore a daughter and called her name Dinah.

As the text continues into ch. 30, vv. 1-21, we see things shift slightly. In jealousy, Rachel responds.

v. 1 of ch. 30 tells us that “when Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, she envied her sister. She said to Jacob, “Give me children, or I shall die!”

That might seem a bit melodramatic or overdramatic, but again, remember the context of the Ancient Near Eastern world—there’s a very real sense that if Rachel doesn’t have children, people would assume that she was sinning—that God was punishing her. And there’s a very real sense that she would be seen as someone who was worthless.

What we might see as melodrama, to them, makes sense.

Now, Jacob responds in anger with a rhetorical question that’s worth noting. In v. 2, “Am I in the place of God, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?”

Is it Jacob’s fault that Rachel hasn’t had children yet? Absolutely not. Jacob recognizes that he really has no control over when or even if Rachel conceives.

But in desperation, Rachel concocts a plan that isn’t right—she convinces Jacob to have a child with her servant Bilhah—and through Bilhah, Jacob has two children.

Now Rachel does recognize that she was in the wrong through this situation—she makes the statement right before naming her first son, “God has judged me, and has also heard my voice and given me a son.” That’s why the first son is named Dan—it sounds like the Hebrew word for judge.

And after the birth of the second son, she says, “with mighty wrestlings [with God] I have wrestled with my sister and have prevailed.” So she names that son Naphtali, which sounds like the Hebrew word for wrestling.

In desperation these things happen—and they’re not because God condoned them; however, you do see God, in His grace and mercy continue to work in and through their lives.

Even the children of Jacob through Bilhah end up part of the covenant—meaning, you’ll recognize that their names are names of the tribes of Israel.

Despite the misplaced affections of mankind, God is still gracious to them, which honestly, ought to give us a lot of hope because our affections are often misplaced.

Note that this issue of misplaced affections continues in vv. 9-13 as well—with Leah noticing that she had ceased bearing children.

Leah makes notice of her inability to conceive and because she’s trying to win the affection of her husband, she determines to have more children by means of her servant Zilpah.

Zilpah has two sons, one named Gad and the other named Asher and her response is very similar to Rachel’s,

After Gad’s birth, she says, “Good fortune has come!” His name sounds like the Hebrew word for good fortune. And after Asher is born, she says, “Happy am I! For women have called me happy—his name sounds like the Hebrew word for happy.

Wedged in between this scenario and the final few verses is this unusual situation in which Rachel and Leah have an altercation of sorts concerning mandrakes.

Mandrakes are a type of plant—it’s part of the nightshade, potato, and tomato families, but that’s really not the point here. The point is really this continued misplaced affection between the two women.

Leah utilizes her son’s mandrakes as a means to an end—Leah hires Jacob’s time in bed.

And the result is three additional children—Issachar, whose name sounds like wages or hired, Zebulun, whose name sounds like honor and Dinah.

And again, through this situation, Leah remembers the truth that God is sovereign even over childbirth. She makes a few statements:

The first is this: “God has given me my wages because I have gave my servant to my husband.” — let me point out that the idea that God has given her her wages because she gave Jacob her servant is faulty logic. It’s very similar to how Job’s friends assumed that he must’ve sinned and that’s why he was going through all those hardships.

It’s a logical fallacy, but it is how she thinks in this moment.

The second is this: “God has endowed me with a good endowment; now my husband will honor me, because I have born him six sons.”

Note again, that she recognizes God’s sovereignty over her childbearing—God’s in control.

The last three verses then conclude the text by telling us about the last child to be born at this time—Jacob’s final son is born in Genesis 35, but until then, we see the birth of Joseph.

Rachel’s Child (22-24)

Genesis 30:22–24 ESV

22 Then God remembered Rachel, and God listened to her and opened her womb. 23 She conceived and bore a son and said, “God has taken away my reproach.” 24 And she called his name Joseph, saying, “May the Lord add to me another son!”

This is, technically Rachel’s first child. And in this, you still see that misplaced affection. “She conceived and bore a son and said, “God has taken away my reproach.”

She still thinks in light of the Ancient Near Eastern culture—she was previously reproached because she didn’t have children.

Now that she has a child, that reproach has been taken away.

You’ll also notice that she does consider the sons born through her servant Bilhah as her own, but technically, this is the first child born naturally of Rachel.

Joseph’s name means “may He add.”

And, of course, that’s where you see Rachel make that last statement, “May the Lord add to me another son!”

Now, as a side-note, I do want to make one comment before moving into application and it deals with the idea of God being sovereign even in childbirth.

We live in a society that has mistaken who has authority over conception—we assume that since we have the technology to encourage, to hinder, to end conception and childbirth, that we have the ethical right to make those decisions.

But the Bible is abundantly clear that it is God who has authority over conception—to encourage, to hinder, and yes, even to end conception and childbirth.

He has that right because He is our creator and He has all authority, all power, and all ability to do whatever He wants.

He is sovereign over conception and childbirth, not us.

With that said, while there may be an ethical way to deal with issues like IVF, abortion is a separate matter.

At the moment of conception, God knits us in our mother’s womb (see Psalm 139).

For us, as man to seek to terminate life is murder itself—and we should see it like that.

Of course, we still ought to be loving and gracious to those who as a mother have sought abortions, but we cannot negate the fact that abortion is sinful because it takes a life.

We ought to be kind and gracious while still speaking truth.

Now, in the last few minutes, I want us to take a look at how we can apply this passage, we’re going to start with the idea of God’s sovereignty—even when it comes to conception and we’re going to end by dealing with misplaced affections.

Application

Let’s start with the fact that God is sovereign—even when it comes to conception.

There are two clear ideas that are evident in this text concerning God’s sovereignty—first, God is absolutely sovereign through this whole situation; second, the people knew that God was absolutely sovereign through the whole situation.

As Christians, we often say that we believe that God is sovereign over all things, but then we don’t always act like we believe that God is sovereign.

One of the key ways that we can tell is that every single time something seemingly major happens politically—Christians are often the first to panic about it.

It’s as if the moment that the news comes on—we forget that God is in control. We forget that the heart of the king is in the hands of the Lord and He turns it whichever way He pleases.

And every time we lose sight of how sovereign is, we then muster up our own ability to try and make it work on our own.

We see that in both Rachel and Leah’s response to infertility—they utilize their servants to have children rather than just relying on God.

The reality is that God is absolutely sovereign—in control of every situation, that’s part of what makes Him God.

Even when things seem out of our control—they aren’t out of His.

Unfortunately, like us, Leah and Rachel recognized that God was sovereign, and yet, they still chose to try and make things work through their own ability—or rather, the ability of their servants.

And we can look at their actions and think that they were absurdly foolish and yet, many of us do the same things in different areas of our lives.

We might not do something like this in terms of conception, but we’ll do other things that are similar. For instance:

Trying to take care of our families might lead us to consider doing sinful things in order to do so. If we’re struggling financially, we might consider theft as a means to care for our families instead of simply trusting God.

If we think our children are struggling with learning, we might be tempted to not trust God’s sovereignty and cheat on their behalf.

In a more abstract way of thinking—we show that we don’t believe in God’s sovereignty every time we don’t trust Him.

When we don’t trust God, we don’t act like He’s in control.

When we don’t act like He’s in control, we tend to make foolish decision.

If you believe that God is completely sovereign over all things—then start living like He’s sovereign over all things.

Trust Him to be in control even when life seems out of control.

Stop trying to wrestle that control out of His hands—spoiler, you can’t.

And give thanks every time you recognize His sovereignty and His providence—because if you are His, He truly has your best interest at heart.

Let’s deal with the second issue in Genesis 29-30. Misplaced affections will cause you to do foolish and sometimes sinful things.

One of the biggest driving forces in this text is the desire for Leah and Rachel to have children. Their hearts were so focused on having children to the extent that they were willing to allow their husband to try and have children through their servants.

Anytime our hearts are placed on something other than God, we’ll find ourselves making foolish decisions.

We see those foolish decisions with Leah and Rachel. And if you’re honest, you’re already thinking of the times when you’ve allowed your heart’s affections to cause you to make foolish decisions.

For instance, people will compromise on biblical truth in order to be liked by their neighbors or their children.

Or, people will make foolish purchases that they can’t afford like fancy cars or homes because their desire is to be seen as successful or wealthy.

Or, they’ll reject good things in favor of eliminating interpersonal conflict.

I could keep going, but I think you already know of elements in your life where you have done things like this.

Our affections, what we desire—what we choose to focus on—influences every aspect of our life.

And when our primary affection isn’t God Himself, we always fall into sin. Consider Romans 1:24–25 “24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25 because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.” (ESV)

If our primary focus isn’t God—we will always worship the creation rather than the Creator.

And we will make foolish decisions just like Leah and Rachel.

With that said, it’s time to consider your heart.

What takes precedence in your heart?

Is Jesus preeminent? Is He your focus?

Or is something or someone else preeminent? Is something or someone else your focus?

Is Jesus your primary affection?

Or does someone else or something else take primary affection in your life?

My exhortation for you is to seriously consider your heart

And if you find yourself with greater affection for anyone or anything than you have for Jesus.

Now is the time to repent—now is the time to refocus your heart. Now is the time to grow in your affection for Jesus.

Pastoral Prayer

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