HELEN SANDERS
12-4-2025
LEAH PART 1

As we study the scriptures we learn about the genealogy of Abraham. He had lived in Ur of the Chaldees which is present-day Iraq. He left there with his wife Sarah and his nephew Lot. God brought them to the promised land of Canaan.

After many years God gave Abraham and Sarah the son of promise, Isaac. Abraham did not want Isaac to marry any of the pagan women in Canaan, so he sends a servant back to the land of his birth, and there the servant found Rebekah, who had a brother named Laban.

The servant brings Rebekah back to Canaan and she marries Isaac. Time goes by and Rebekah has twin boys, Jacob and Esau. While she was pregnant the LORD spoke to her and said in Genesis 25:23, “…Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger.”

She gave birth to Esau and Jacob. Esau was a very hairy man and became a cunning hunter; a man of the field, while Jacob was a plain smooth skinned man that grew vegetables and lived in the tents. Isaac favored Esau and Rebekah favored Jacob.

It was time for the blessing to be passed down to Isaac’s son, and he planned to give it to Esau. By this time of life Isaac was nearly blind. Sarah overheard his plan and devised her own plan. She put animal skins on Jacob to fool Isaac into giving the blessing to Jacob instead of Esau.

Perhaps she felt that since the Lord had told her the older brother would serve the younger brother that it would be okay to “help God” out. Anyway, her plan worked and Isaac gave the blessing to Jacob, thinking it was Esau.

Esau had been hunting and was so hungry when he got back and smelled food that Isaac had prepared. He was willing to give up his birthright for one bowl of red pottage [beans].

When Esau found out that Jacob had fooled his father and received the blessing, he hated Jacob and plotted to kill him. Rebekah told Jacob to flee to her brother Laban’s to protect him, and that is the beginning of the story of Leah.

In spite of all the deception, God was going to use it for his glory. Tomorrow we will learn more about Leah and more trickery.