RACHEL AND LEAH – Part 2
Learn: I Peter 3:12
For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.
Read: Genesis 30:1-24
1.We remember from Genesis 29:31-35, that Leah had born Jacob 4 sons. What 3 things does verse 1 tell us concerning Rachel?
2. When Rachel confronted Jacob with her childless situation, who did Jacob say was responsible, rather than himself, for Rachel’s lack of children? v 2
3. Was Jacob correct in saying that God had withheld Rachel from bearing children? Use the following verses to justify your answer. Psalm 127:3; Genesis 20:17, 18
4. In our day, if a woman cannot bear a child, the doctors will do tests to determine the cause for her bareness. Does the fact that doctors can give a scientific reason for a woman’s inability to have a child, indicate that it is not God who blesses a woman with children or withholds a woman from having children? Explain your conclusion, using Scripture.
5. Rather than seeking the LORD’S help, what did Rachel decide to do in order to be able to have a child? v 3
6. Even though using a surrogate mother was common practice in those days, what was the approach that a godly woman should have taken in such a situation? Find Scripture to answer the question.
7. What were the first and second results of Rachel’s plan to gain children? vv 4-7
8. How many children did Rachel gain that she claimed as her own by her handmaid Bilhah? vv 5, 7
9. Give the names and the meanings of the names for each of the 2 sons that Rachel claimed. vv 6, 8
10. What do the names that Rachel gave these 2 boys indicate about her relationship with her sister Leah? vv 6, 8
11. Rachel named and claimed Bilhah’s sons as her own, and Bilhah had no say in the matter, but according to Genesis 37:2, were Dan and Naphtali really regarded as Rachel’s children?
12. There was a battle in the family between Rachel and Leah for dominance in the heart of Jacob. What did Leah do when she seemed to have quit bearing children? v 9
13. How many children did Leah claim to have gained in this way? vv 10, 12
14. Give the names and the meaning of the names for each of the 2 sons that Leah claimed. vv 11, 13
15. Reuben was the eldest son of Jacob. At least seven years of age by this time, Reuben was able to go by himself into the field. What did Reuben find and bring home, because he knew that it would please his mother? v 14a
NOTE: The mandrake is a small orange-colored berrylike fruit, much esteemed in ancient times as aphrodisiac and inducer of fertility. It has been called the “love-apple” and in Western countries, the “May-apple.” Its large roots have also been used, as a narcotic or an emetic (something that induces vomiting). The idea of mandrakes being an aphrodisiac is probably the reason that both sisters wanted them. THE GENESIS RECORD DR. Henry Morris p 468
16. What did Rachel ask when she saw the mandrakes that Reuben had brought to his mother? v 14b
17. We see in this desire for the mandrakes, superstition. What is the error in turning to such thinking when we find ourselves in a difficult situation? Proverbs 3:5, 6
18. What was Leah’s accusation when Rachel asked for the mandrakes? v 15a
19. What was Rachel willing to give to Leah in order to gain the mandrakes? v 15b
20. How did Leah greet her husband Jacob when he came home from work that night? v 16
21. We can see from these interchanges between the sisters, and the lengths to which each would go to try and gain more children than the other sister, that the home of Jacob was not always pleasant. Studying Jacob’s actions and responses as his wives tried to gain his favor, what can you learn of his character? Genesis 29:25- 28; 30-35; 30:1-5 30:16
22. From verses 17, 18, 20a, what do we learn about Leah’s relationship with the LORD?
23. From verse 20b, what do we see is the great desire of Leah?
24. The cult of Mormonism has taught that polygamy is a good thing. And there have been shows glorifying polygamy as being wonderful and giving forth the idea that the wives find such a situation to be wonderful. But what is the truth of the matter as we learn from the family of Jacob?
25. Though many have lived in this manner through the years (even some who are followers of the True God), why can a polygamous family relationship never be what is best? Find Scripture to justify your reason.
26. Sometimes we pray and pray for a particular thing, but the Lord does not seem to answer. What can we learn about our prayers and our God’s interest in those prayers?
Genesis 30:17
Revelation 5:8; Acts 10:4
I Peter 3:12
James 5:16
27. Verse 22 says that God remembered Rachel. Does God forget about his children at times? Or what does the phrase “God remembered” mean? What is the general principle concerning these questions to be learned from the following verses? Isaiah 49:14-16 and Genesis 18:14
28. What did the LORD do for Rachel, when it was the appropriate time? vv23-24
29. What did God’s timing in the birth of Joseph guarantee concerning which son would be the heir of the promise ( though Rachel was Jacob’s favorite and first choice of wife)?