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- Leah Is One of the Four Matriarchs. Along with Sarah (wife of Abraham), Rebecca (wife of Isaac), and Rachel (her sister and fellow wife of Jacob), Leah is one of the four mothers of the Jewish people.1.
- She Was the Elder Daughter of Laban. We are first introduced to Leah (and her younger sister Rachel) when Jacob comes to Haran in search of a bride. In the words of Scripture: “Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel.”
- Her Mother Was Adina. Scripture does not tell us the name of Laban’s wife, the mother of Rachel and Leah, but tradition tells us that her name was Adina, which can be translated as “refined.”
- She Had “Soft Eyes” The verse tells us that “Leah's eyes were soft, but Rachel had beautiful features and a beautiful complexion.” 5 What was going on with Leah’s eyes?
She has three more sons, namely Simeon, Levi and Judah, but does not bear another son until Rachel offers her a night with Jacob in exchange for some mandrake root (דודאים, dûdâ'îm). Leah gives birth to two more sons after this, Issachar and Zebulun, and to Jacob's only daughter, Dinah.
God blesses Leah with children; she has six sons and one daughter, and two of her sons become ancestors of two of the twelve tribes. She may not have been Jacob’s preferred bride, but she is interpreted as extremely selfless and generous.
Nahor and Milcah had eight children of whom one was Bethuel . Bethuel, in turn, had two children who are named in the Bible: Rebekah and Laban . Rebekah married Isaac and bore Jacob. Laban begat two daughters, Leah and Rachel. Therefore, Leah and Jacob were first cousins.
- She Was the Daughter of Jacob and Leah. Scripture tells us that Jacob’s four wives bore 12 sons. After we read of the birth of 10 sons (six of whom were born to Leah),1 we are told, “And afterward, [Leah] bore a daughter, and she named her Dinah.”
- Her Mother Prayed for a Girl. Unlike her brothers, Dinah’s name comes with no explanation in Scripture as to why it was given. Dinah means “judgment,” and the Sages explain that Leah chose it because she had passed judgment on herself.
- Jacob Protected Her from Esau. Dinah was born when the family lived in Padan Aram, near her grandfather, Laban. As Jacob moved them back toward the Holy Land—his birthplace—they encountered her rogue uncle, Esau.
- She Was Raped and Abducted. After the family settled near the city of Shechem, the local prince, whose name was also Shechem, saw her, desired her, raped her, and took her to his home.
When God "saw that Leah was unloved, he opened her womb" (Genesis 29:31), [4] and she gave birth to four sons. Rachel, like Sarah and Rebekah, remained unable to conceive.
After giving birth to six boys, when Leah again conceived, knowing that Jacob was destined to have 12 sons, she prayed for a girl so Rachel would have at least 2 sons. God changed the male fetus to a female and gave Rachel Joseph as a reward for Leah's goodness.
