how old was rachel when she married jacob

There is also an intermediate approach, which argues that Reuben should have received the birthright, but it was permanently taken from him because of his sin. An additional important trait of Rachels was the art of silence and the ability to keep secrets, a quality that she also passed on to her offspring, who were known for their taciturnity: Benjamin, Saul, andEsther. 60a), and who are often referred to in the liturgy, Rachel being mentioned before Leah. Due to Rachels good deeds or to Reubens sin, the initial order was restored. This midrash is connected to the fundamental Rabbinic disagreement as to whether the harbinger of the Redemption will be from the offspring of Rachel or from those of Leah. An opposing exegetical view, however, notes that when Jacob sent for his wives to come to the field(Gen. 31:5), theTorahstates: Jacob had Rachel and Leah called to the fieldhe called to Rachel first, and therefore she acted properly when she was the first to respond to him. Family relations of Rachel in the Bible. After the week had passed, Jacob prepared for his wedding night. When Laban overtook Jacob in the hill country of Gilead, he reproached him(Gen. 31:30): but why did you steal my idols?, to which Jacob replied (v. 32): But anyone with whom you find your gods shall not remain alive! Themidrashexplains that this statement by Jacob was as an error committed by a ruler [which is nevertheless implementedfollowingEccl. Jacob said to Joseph that he had buried Rachel near Ephrath, where Bethlehem now stands. Rabbah[ed. How old was Rachel when Jacob married her? 14-15), Rachel's feelings were wounded, and she replied bitterly: "Jacob is not thy husband; he is mine. Before her death, Rachel names the newborn. Rachel said: I should have been Jacobs bride before my sister. Her death occurred not far from Ephrath, and she was buried on the road leading thither, Jacob setting up a pillar on her grave to perpetuate her memory (xxxv. 21). 1; Tan., Wayee, 19; Gen. R. lxxi. that she was not buried in the cave of Machpelah by the side of her husband (Gen. R. lxxii. Rachel and Leah persuaded their husband to flee from Laban's house, and at the moment of Jacob's flight Rachel stole her father's teraphim. Leah agreed, and when Jacob returned from the field, Leah told him directly that she had "hired" him for the evening, at the price of a few mandrakes. Well, according to the math in the Bible, Jacob was 8. 21:1517prescribes that If a man has two wives, one loved and the other unloved, and both [] have borne him sons [] he may not treat as first-born the son of the loved one in disregard of the son of the unloved one who is older. l.c. But Rachel was not content with this. [6] (Genesis 31:19-20 ) Jones[7] records that the phrase "born to him in Padan-aram" that appears after the listing of Jacob's sons (Genesis 35:26 ) can also mean "engendered by him in Padan-aram." [2] Thus Leah would be the older sister only in the sense of having been born first. 14; Tan., Wayee, 13). 4; "Sefer ha-Yashar," section "Wayee," p. 47a). For instance. Vilna] petihtah 24). "Jacob and Rachel at the Well, by James Jacques Joseph Tissot, c. 1896-1902. She stole the household idols (teraphim) that belonged to Laban, in the belief that those idols would confer some protective power. [2] Jacob had traveled a great distance to find Laban. Buber],Vayeshev19). "Meet Rachel - Favored Wife of Jacob." Shalvi/Hyman Encyclopedia of Jewish Women. She told her father she was having her period, making her ceremonially unclean, so he did not search near her. God took pity on Leah and allowed her to bear children, while Rachel was barren. Rachel married Jacob after he was tricked into marrying her sister Leah. Jacob Proposes Marriage with Rachel to Laban, Antoine Trouvain, after Nicolas Poussin, 1666-1708. Gen 29:20 So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed only a few days to him because of the love he had for her. According to another tradition, the word naftali is to be derived fromninfei(bride). Thus she would be eighteen years of age when she married. Learn Religions, Dec. 6, 2022, learnreligions.com/rachel-favored-wife-of-jacob-701193. At such an age, a girl might be given adult responsibility in a family that did not (yet) have sons. 16), are explained by the Rabbis as referring to the divine gifts bestowed upon their descendants; for while royalty and the priesthood remained permanently with Leah's descendants, they were held only temporarily by Rachel'sroyalty with Joseph and Saul, and the priesthood with the tabernacle of Shiloh (Gen. R. lxx. Rachelis depicted in theTorah she-bi-khetav: Lit. The proverb teaches that we should not be surprised by this similarity, since Rachel was exceedingly beautiful, so was her son. cit.). So we would only be guessing if we came up with an age for Leah and Rachel. How old was Rachel when Jacob married her? - KnowledgeBurrow Thus Rachel knew that Jacob loved her more than he did Leah.[1][2][3][4]. Isaac married Rabecah and they had two sons - Esau and Jacob.. 2 There he saw a well in the open country, with three flocks of sheep lying near it because the flocks were watered from that well. 113:9states: He sets the childless woman among her household as a happy mother of children (Pesikta de-Rav Kahana[ed. RACHEL - JewishEncyclopedia.com God remembered Rachel on Rosh ha-Shanah (Ber. Jacob replied that he was her father's equal in trickery; and he agreed with Rachel upon certain signs which would enable him to recognize her. He therefore went before her, stood up to his full height and hid her from Esau. Friedmann (Ish-Shalom)], chap. By ancient custom, Bilhah's children would be credited to Rachel. Rachel said: Naftalihe is mynofet[honeycomb].Nofetare the words ofTorah, that are called(Ps. How old was Jacob when he married Rachel? - Answers This midrash awards the birthright to Joseph, since his two sons became tribes and he therefore received twice as much as any of his brothers. "Staging Rachel: Rabbinic Midrash, Theatrical Mime, and Christian Martyrdom in Late Antiquity." The S Club 7 singer was engaged to former Holby . The Rabbis understand the wording(Gen. 29:31): but Rachel was barren [akarah] as teaching of Rachels merit: despite her not having children, she nonetheless was the chief person [ikar] of the household. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. The marriage of Rachel in the Bible was one of the most captivating episodes recorded in the book of Genesis, a story of love triumphing over lies. This well had a heavy stone to cap it by night, and Rachel was accustomed to waiting for someone to roll the stone away when all the flocks were gathered. Vilna] petihtah 24). Kadari, Tamar. Rachel and Joseph were most beloved by Jacob, and therefore they stood last. Yet a third tradition explains that Rachel merited pregnancy because she brought her rival wife [Bilhah] into her house. Altogether, the four women bore 12 sons and one daughter, Dinah. These two exegetical positions derive the word akarah from ikar. The first view maintains that even though Leah had children, Rachel continued to be the beloved and preferred wife, which was expressed in the running of the household. Of the two women that Jacob married, Rachel was loved, and Leah unloved. (NIV). So did your mother shame our father when she stole the household idols from Laban! By merit of the blows that he received on his shoulders, theShekhinah(Divine Presence) would rest between Benjamins shoulders, as it is said in the blessing by Moses(Deut. The first was his anguish at his poverty. Jacob replied that he was her father's equal in trickery; and he agreed with Rachel upon certain signs which would enable him to recognize her. Features thousands of biographic and thematic essays on Jewish women around the world. Laban would take these gifts and give them to Leah, and Rachel would remain silent (Tanhuma[ed. Rachel's father Laban was the brother of Rebekah, Jacob mother. Since she suffered many years of barrenness, she was rewarded by the Israelites being called by her name, or by the name of her descendants. Jacob then married Rachel and worked for Laban another seven years for her. In an additional commentary, another son referred to the apportioning ofThe Land of IsraelErez Israel, since Benjamin did not have a portion with Joseph, but with the tribe of Judah(Gen. Rabbah73:56). Thismidrashattributes a dual meaning to Gods statement: for there is a reward for your labor. Rachel acted in an extraordinary manner when she helped her sister to be married to Jacob and also when she prayed for her children. The account of Jacob and Rachel is presented to the reader as a love story, and quite a romantic one at that. The Bible; the Pentateuch; Tanakh (the Pentateuch, Prophets and Hagiographia)Torah as Jacobs beautiful and beloved wife. Rachel is mentioned twice in the Old Testament beyond her story in Genesis. B. According to one opinion, her death was a punishment for Jacob, for having made a vow and then not honoring it. But the Bible makes no specific statement to this effect. While Rachel was barren for the first fourteen years of her marriage, she is still described as Jacob's preferred wife and a powerful woman. Some rabbinical writings suggest that Rachel and Leah were twins, and were fourteen years old at the time of Jacob's first meeting with Rachel. 15). In 1860, Sir Moses Montefiore enlarged this structure. The birthright should have come forth from Rachel, but Leah preceded her in [receiving divine] mercy; because of the formers modesty, God restored the birthright to Rachel(BTBava Batra123a). According to one, Reuben, Leahs son and the firstborn of Jacob, does receive the birthright. Gen. 30:22reveals: Now God remembered Rachel; God heeded her and opened her womb. In the midrashic expansion, Rachel was remembered (i.e., became pregnant) on The Jewish New Year, held on the first and second days of the Hebrew month of Tishrei. After Rachels death, Bilhah took her place. Benjamin was born on the road to Bethlehem, and therefore Rachel must have conceived him in Padan-aram, though she bore him in Canaan. Rachel had been given Bilhah as a handmaiden by her father Laban upon her marriage to Jacob. Now the birthright has returned to its owner(Gen. Rabbah98:4, [ed. The midrash relates that three keys remain with God and were not entrusted to an agent [=angel]: the key of rain, the key of the woman giving birth and the key of the resurrection of the dead. What age Rachel when she married Jacob Bible? - Answers How old was Rebekah when she married Isaac in the Bible? At first childless, Rachel eventually gave birth to Joseph and died giving birth to Benjamin. TheTorahrelates that it was Joseph who ordered that the goblet be hidden in Benjamins sack. When Jacob left the land of Canaan, he had vowed that he would return to Bethel and sacrifice to the Lord(Gen. 28:2022). Zilpah, Leah's maid, gives birth to Gad and Asher. Later, when Leah was given in marriage instead of Rachel, the latter revealed the signs to her sister in order to spare her from being disgraced by Jacob. Gen. 30:14relates that Reuben found mandrakes, which are prophylactic, in the field, and brought them to his mother Leah. At Naphtalis birth, Rachel said(Gen. 30:8): A contest of God, a fateful contest I waged [naftuleiniftalti] with my sister; yes, and I have prevailed. Themidrashgives four different interpretations of this name. Genesis chapters 29-30 and 35 detail the births of Jacob's many children. The regimen of rituals, songs and textual readings performed in a specific order on the first two nights (in Israel, on the first night) of Passover. xxiii. Though she and Jacob were deeply in love, she did not conceive for many years. Omissions? Those sons became the founders of the 12 tribes of Israel. Besides, Rachel was afraid that her father, seeing that she had no children by Jacob, might marry her to Esau (Midr. According to the "Sefer ha-Yashar" (section "Wayee," p. 46a, Leghorn, 1870), Rachel herself prayed God to give her children, and God finally answered her prayer. Overall, the midrash portrays Rachel as incredibly generous and compassionate, and her goodness is seen in her descendants. 2:20): But Esther still did not reveal her kindred or her people and did not mention her Jewish origins in the palace of Ahasuerus(Gen. Rabbah71:5;Tanhuma,Vayeze6). But as she approached, a stranger (Jacob) rolled the stone away for her and watered the sheep. R., Petita, 25). She raised Joseph and Benjamin as if she were their mother(Gen. Rabbah84:11). Bilhah bore Jacob two sons, Dan and Naphtali, the first by her own merit, and the second by the merit of Rachel (Gen. Rabbati,Vayeze, p. 121). The midrash relates that Rachel was twenty-two years old when she was married to Jacob (Seder Olam Rabbah 2), and her barrenness lasted for fourteen years (Seder Eliyahu Rabbah 18, p. 99). The restrictions on her date of birth are: She married Jacob (2245 AM) when she was old enough to carry an adult responsibility, because Jacob met her when she was leading a flock of sheep to water. According to Gen. R. (lxxii. 11). (Genesis 29:10, NLT). By your life, your sons will stand before her son, and he will tell them(Gen. 50:19) Am I a substitute for God?(Gen. Rabbah71:7). TheTorahstates that Rachel named Bilhahs sons. Gen. xxx. Buber],Vayeze6). Corrections? This filled Rachel with envy, and, having expressed her feelings to Jacob, she bade him take her handmaid Bilhah to wife in order that she might obtain a family through her (xxix. 28:20) his tribe received the jasper [yashfe, with the meaning ofyesh pehthere is a mouth] stone in the High Priests breastpiece. According to another tradition, all three mothers (Leah, Bilhah, and Zilpah) gathered and said: We have enough males; let her [Rachel] be remembered(Gen. Rabbah72:6). In thismidrash, Rachel has the insight that the birth of children is a reward from God. Gen. xxv. Laban's younger daughter, who became one of Jacob's wives (Gen. xxix.

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