Dan is Jacob’s fifth son. His mother is Bilhah, Rachel’s servant, who serves as a surrogate mother for her mistress. When Dan is born, it’s not Jacob who names him, or even Bilhah. Rachel gives the boy his name. She says he’s proof that God has vindicated her barren condition, having heard her prayers and […]
Levi is the third son of Jacob and Leah. Scripture shares only one story about Levi, an account of something he and his brother Simeon do. Their younger sister Dinah is raped by Shechem, who then wants to marry her. When Jacob hears of this, he does nothing, for his sons are out in the […]
Simeon is the second oldest son of Jacob and Leah. The Bible shares two stories about Simeon. The first concerns him and his brother Levi, which we’ll cover in the next chapter. The other story relates to his brother Joseph and occurs about two decades after Joseph’s brothers sell him as a slave. Through multiple […]
Reuben is the oldest son of Jacob and Leah. We learn more about him through three stories from his life. Each one could stem from the fact that he is the eldest brother. First, in an account that reveals his negative side, Reuben sleeps with his father’s concubine Bilhah. His actions are even more distasteful—as […]
As we covered in the previous chapter, Bilhah and Zilpah are wedding gifts to Laban’s daughters Rachel and Leah. When childless Rachel, frustrated over Leah’s fruitfulness, gives her servant Bilhah to Jacob to produce children, Leah responds by doing the same thing, offering her servant, Zilpah, to sleep with Jacob. Just like Bilhah, Zilpah gets […]
Bilhah and Zilpah aren’t familiar names in the Bible, yet their contribution to the nation of Israel is significant. When Laban’s two daughters marry Jacob, their father gives them each a wedding gift: a servant. To his daughter Leah, he gives his servant Zilpah, while to his daughter Rachel, he gives Bilhah. These two servants […]
When Rebekah sends Jacob away, she promises to send for him when his brother’s anger subsides and it’s safe for him to return. She never does. Jacob leaves with his parents’ blessing and their instruction to marry one of Laban’s daughters. As we learned in the chapter about Laban, Jacob does just that, times two. […]
After Rebekah learns of Esau’s intent to kill Jacob—her favorite of the twins—she tells him to flee to his uncle Laban—her brother—to wait there until Esau’s anger subsides. Telling Isaac she doesn’t want Jacob to marry a local girl, she gets her husband to agree to send Jacob away, thereby distancing him from Esau and […]
Esau is the oldest of Isaac and Rebekah’s twins. His father loves him, while his mother loves his younger brother, Jacob. Esau, also called Edom, will later become the father of a people called the Edomites. The Bible records two key stories about Esau, neither of which works out well for him. Esau grows up […]
Isaac is a child of older parents—much older. His mother, Sarah, is ninety when Isaac is born. And her husband Abraham is one hundred. At this advanced age, it seems impossible to have a child, yet through God all things are possible. From a human standpoint, we call Isaac’s arrival a miracle—a miracle conception and […]