Rachel: A Caring Woman

Rachel is a very important woman in the Book of Genesis. She is the favorite wife of
Jacob, and the birth mother of Benjamin and Joseph, who helped father the Twelve Tribes of
Israel. Rachel is the daughter of Laban and the younger sister of Leah, Jacob's first wife. She is
Jacob's first cousin and the niece of Rebekah. Her name means "ewe," and refers to her being a
good traveler in her journey. She was born in Paddan Aram, an early Aramean kingdom in
Mesopotamia, passed away in Canaan, an early Aramean kingdom in Mesopotamia. Her date of
birth is 1740 BC. An interesting fact about her is that she is honored in Islam, but only referred
to. She is never mentioned by name. In the commentary,
by E.A. Speiser, she is described as "shapely and beautiful" and it is said that "Jacob truly loves
her."
There were two main struggles that Rachel had to face. The first being that she was not
allowed to marry Jacob for seven years. Jacob and Rachel wanted to get married, however
Rachel's father ordered that he must work for seven years to obtain permission to marry her.
After Jacob worked for the required amount of time, his father tricked him into marrying
Rachels older sister, Leah, and explained that Jacob had to work for seven more years to be able
to pay to marry the woman that he truly loved, Rachel. When they finally got married, Rachel
was very old and unable to conceive. This was her second hardship: the incapability to have kids.
Rachel wanted kids more than anything, and her sister Leah had many kids. Finally, Rachel was
blessed by God with two sons, Joseph and Benjamin. Rachel died giving birth to her second son,
Benjamin.
The authors of Genesis remember Rachel as a lovely woman, who was the reason the

blessed Joseph was born. She is remembered for being patient and waiting to have kids. In the
commentary, The Jerome Biblical Commentary, Rachel is referred to as a good person in the
Bible. In the Bible, her feelings are not really expressed entirely. The Bible is accurate at
describing her story and hardships.
God and Rachel had a very strong relationship. He knows how patient she is, and he
blessed her with two sons when she was unable to conceive. Rachel was grateful for that. Before
she had children, Rachel worshiped God, however her relationship with him progressed as he
gave her children. Rachel realized that God really does look in the better interest of people.

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Works Cited

Brown, Raymond, Fitzmyer, Joseph, and Murphy, Roland. The Jerome Biblical Commentary.
Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall Inc, 1968. Print.

Speiser, E.A. Genesis: Introduction, Translation, and Notes. New York, New York: Doubleday,
1964.

Print.

New Revised Standard Version Bible. New York: American Bible Society, 1989. Print.