Sister Matriarchs: Leah and Rachel

Our series on Biblical Matriarchs concludes with not one but two women, sisters Rachel and Leah, both of whom married Jacob. After deceiving Isaac into giving him Esau’s birthright blessing, Jacob travels to the homeland of his mother Rebekah, to escape his twin brother Esau’s justifiable rage, and also to find a suitable wife.

Jacob soon finds a well and the woman of his dreams, Rachel. It turns out that Rachel, the daughter of Jacob’s uncle, Laban, has an older sister named Leah, but Jacob has no interest in her. He agrees to work for Laban for seven years in exchange for marrying Rachel. Seven years later, Laban plans the wedding and brings his veiled daughter to Jacob as his bride. The book of Genesis says, “And it came to pass that in the morning, behold, it was Leah…” Laban has deceived Jacob into marrying his older daughter!

When confronted by Jacob, Laban explains that he is simply following custom, saying, "It must not be so done in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn." There is irony here that seems to escape Jacob. Remember that this is the man who, with his mother’s help, stole the birthright of his older brother, by concealing his true identity from his father.

The words of the Midrash, which is Jewish commentary, provide an explanation for why Leah went along with her father’s deception. Upon discovering that he has been tricked, Jacob says to Leah: "You are a deceiver and the daughter of a deceiver!" She retorts, "Did not your father call you Esau, and you answered him! So did you too call me and I answered you!" In other words, Leah responds that her actions were no different than Jacob's.

Laban proceeds to offer Rachel as a bride to Jacob – if Jacob agrees to another seven years of servitude. In his love for Rachel, Jacob agrees to this arrangement, and they are wed right away.

Later in Genesis, Jacob, who along with Abraham and Isaac is one of the patriarchs of the faith, is given the new name “Israel” after wrestling with an angel of God. The twelve sons Jacob fathers with Leah and Rachel and their handmaids become the Twelve Tribes of Israel. While Rachel may have been the love of Jacob’s life, Leah left as her own legacy half of the twelve tribes. This includes her sons Levi, father of the priesthood, and Judah, father of the monarchy. While Rachel is buried in a tomb en route to Bethlehem, where she died giving birth to Benjamin, Leah is buried with Jacob in the Tomb of the Patriarchs.