Life Of IntegritySample

"Leah's Determination"

Leah was Jacob’s first wife - not the one he had chosen, but the one God chose for him. One week after they were married, Jacob also married her sister, Rachel, whom he loved.

When God saw that Leah was unloved, He blessed her with having children, through which she was continuously hoping to win Jacob’s love. When she had her first son, she named him Reuben, which means “behold, a son.” She said, “Now my husband will love me,” but that didn’t happen. She had a second son and named him Simeon, which means “hearing.” She said, “The Lord heard that I was hated and has given me this son.” Then she had a third son whom she called Levi, meaning “attached” because she thought that surely now her husband would love her. When the fourth son was born, she named him Judah, which means “praise.” She said, “Now I will praise the Lord.” It seems that at last, she realized that even though she was unloved by her husband, she was loved by the Lord.

Whether Leah’s belief in God was strong or not, God had a purpose for her life. She was surrounded by deceitful people, including her father, her husband, and her sister. Her life was not an easy one!

Leah could not know that she was a part of God’s plan to establish the nation of Israel. She became the mother of six sons and one daughter. Also, two sons became hers through her handmaiden Zilpah. Rachel, her sister, gave her handmaiden Bilhah to Jacob and bore two sons through her. Later, she also had two sons of her own, Joseph and Benjamin. Jacob’s twelve sons became the leaders of the twelve tribes of Israel. Each one had their place in Jewish history, but most important was Judah, because it was through the line of Leah’s son Judah that Jesus was born.

Leah was buried in the cave where Abraham, Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah were buried. When Jacob was dying, he asked his sons to bury him in the tomb where he had buried Leah.

The only place other than Genesis where Leah is mentioned is Ruth 4:11. When Boaz received permission from the elders to marry Ruth, they pronounced a blessing on him that God “would make the woman he married like Rachel and like Leah who built the house of Israel.”

Do you have times when you feel unloved or unneeded? Are you finding it hard to see God at work in your life? God has a plan for you.