He never tired of his father’s stories. Neither did his sons or grandsons. These were not just children’s tales; the accounts were history—a priceless legacy of family. His father—the Hebrew—had become the governor of Egypt. He was second only to Pharaoh. But even more, he was the most loved man in the kingdom.

Using revelation, wisdom and planning, he saved the nation from starvation. After the devastating famine, Joseph instituted agrarian reforms that put great wealth into the hands of Pharaoh and the people (Genesis 47:20-26). Some in Egypt even revered him as a god.

He loved his father most because he was a skilled teacher. His instruction was always captivating, thrilling, motivating. He felt great comfort when his father’s dark eyes sparkled as he emphasized important historical details. There were many details. His father often said, “Now here is the lesson ….” There were many lessons. Ephraim brought his sons and grandsons to Joseph as often as he could (Genesis 50:23). There was a heritage they had to learn—a heritage they had to preserve. Ephraim worked hard to make sure that his family knew they were not Egyptian. They were not a part of that world.

Ephraim believed Joseph’s life was a bridge from the past to the future. The God of his fathers had given him special understanding. The governor could see far into the future and make it real. Joseph knew that Egypt was only a temporary step along the way. With intensity he reminded his brothers, nephews and sons often, “Jacob’s family would settle another land—a choice land.” Ephraim wanted his sons to know what God was doing now—what God was going to do. He knew that Joseph had a special connection to God and was beloved of God.

But now he was concerned. Although hard to admit, he sensed time was running out for his father. Joseph would soon be 110 years old. Ephraim, growing old himself, suspected great changes were most likely on the horizon. As they walked toward Joseph’s house in the city, Ephraim wondered if they had learned all they needed to in order to deal with that future.

Joseph received the company of men into his large sitting room with a big smile. Although more tired than usual, he would never stop a conference with his sons and grandsons. Their numbers had grown. Looking over the gathering he could see that the young men were strong and bright. Joseph looked into all of their eyes. He was overwhelmed. The promise was unfolding before him. Here were the founders of the new nation Israel. These boys were to grow into a multitude. The world did not see it yet. But he saw it!

His thoughts were suddenly interrupted. Machir, son of Manasseh, spoke up. Not wanting to forget, he said, “Tell us again, Grandfather; why did you come to Egypt?” Joseph’s white eyebrows rose as he thought. The memories all flooded back to him. All heard him sigh deeply. Joseph dismissed his Egyptian servants. Then with moist eyes and with quivering lips, Joseph spoke softly, “Well, Machir, a long time ago ….”

Born Into Strife

Joseph was born into a family of sons. In fact, he was the 11th son of his father, Jacob. Yet, he was the firstborn of his mother Rachel. Coming before him were his half-brothers Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Dan, Naphtali, Issachar, Zebulun, Gad and Asher. Joseph also had an older half-sister, Dinah. Benjamin, his only full brother, came after him. Jacob was already old—91 years—when Joseph came into the world.

What was Joseph’s family life like? Unfortunately, it was rife with sibling rivalry and family strife. What was the cause of the strife? There was an intense family struggle to win Jacob’s love. The son’s mothers began the contention. Their struggle was played out among the sons. It was this struggle that pushed Joseph into Egypt. How did it all begin?

The sad fact is Joseph’s family began in a whirlwind of controversy. Rebekah, Jacob’s mother, fearing for her son’s life after their joint deceit to steal the birthright blessings from Esau, devised another scheme to find protection for him since Esau planned to kill his brother as soon as their father, Isaac, died! Rebekah could not let such a tragedy happen.

Playing upon her husband’s concern that Jacob might marry a Canaanite wife, she encouraged Isaac to send her favorite son back to their homeland to marry. With Jacob safely out of the picture, Esau would have time to cool down. Isaac agreed to send Jacob away, not knowing the full reason for Rebekah’s concern (Genesis 27:30-46). Jacob’s life was successfully preserved.

Isaac commanded his son: “Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan. Arise, go to Padanaram, to the house of Bethuel thy mother’s father; and take thee a wife from thence of the daughters of Laban thy mother’s brother. And God Almighty bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a multitude of people; And give thee the blessing of Abraham, to thee, and to thy seed with thee; that thou mayest inherit the land wherein thou art a stranger, which God gave unto Abraham” (Genesis 28:1-4). Notice that Isaac sent Jacob away with all the blessings of Abraham. What took place here was significant.

This history is the record of the mustard-seed beginning of the nation. Jacob’s departure is the event that led to the birth of a multitude of people. Isaac reminded his son that his children would spread out and inherit the land promised to his grandfather. God confirmed this fact to Jacob as he traveled to his mother’s homeland. Study Genesis 28:10-22. God communicated His unfailing promises directly to Jacob through a fantastic dream. In the future, God would give his son Joseph special skill in understanding dreams.

Rachel

The Bible’s account of Jacob’s arrival in Haran is truly romantic in its tone. Coming into the fields near Haran, Jacob met some people by a well. “And Jacob said unto them, My brethren, whence be ye? And they said, Of Haran are we. And he said unto them, Know ye Laban the son of Nahor? And they said, We know him. And he said unto them, Is he well? And they said, He is well: and, behold, Rachel his daughter cometh with the sheep” (Genesis 29:4-6). It is not by chance that the people Jacob met knew Laban. God was clearly guiding him; he ended up exactly where God had planned. And at the precise moment, Jacob met Rachel—the true love of his life. The scene was strikingly similar to others in the Bible. Several of Israel’s leaders met their future wives by a well.

Verse 7 is an interesting one. “And he said, Lo, it is yet high day, neither is it time that the cattle should be gathered together: water ye the sheep, and go and feed them.” Discovering that these were likely Laban’s flocks and knowing that Rachel, his daughter, was on her way, Jacob wanted to make a good impression and meet with her alone. The shepherds tending the flocks were lazily milling around. They were not working. In essence, Jacob ordered them to get to work!

The servants complained back to Jacob, “We cannot, until all the flocks be gathered together, and till they roll the stone from the well’s mouth; then we water the sheep” (verse 8). Since there was a large stone over the well, the servants explained, they had to wait for enough men to move the stone.

When Jacob saw Rachel, he was immediately smitten. She was stunningly beautiful. His breath was taken away at her sight. He singlehandedly moved the large stone from over the well so Rachel could water Laban’s sheep (verse 10). Jacob was so taken by Rachel that he could not contain himself: He kissed her and then wept (verse 11). This event revealed Jacob’s tender side. His emotions flooded to the surface because of both sorrow and joy—sorrowful because Jacob surely missed his mother and father, but happy because God led him to a wife. It is Rachel that God uses as a symbol for the mother of all Israel (Jeremiah 31:15).

Leah

Jacob loved Rachel so much that he actually became his uncle’s bondservant. Jacob promised, “I will serve thee seven years for Rachel thy younger daughter” (Genesis 29:18). This was an incredible demonstration of love. Jacob faithfully kept his promise. He labored honestly and brought Laban great profit.

Waiting for a wife for seven years would seem nearly impossible for young people today. Few will wait patiently on God. But for Jacob, seven years passed by quickly. Moses recorded, “And Jacob served seven years for Rachel; and they seemed unto him but a few days, for the love he had to her” (verse 20). What love! What commitment! He believed that Rachel was well worth working for. Jacob was soon to discover, however, that his uncle was even more deceitful than he or his mother.

The time came for Jacob and Rachel’s wedding. Laban, realizing Jacob’s extremely good profitability and not wanting to lose him, set a trap for Jacob. In honor of their marriage, Laban made a great feast. But on the wedding night he substituted Leah, his oldest daughter for Rachel. Jacob consummated the marriage (verse 23). But in the morning Jacob discovered he had taken Leah, not Rachel. Although the Bible does not say specifically how Jacob was deceived, he nonetheless was. We can only speculate on how this happened. There is one likely possibility. Marriage feasts in the Middle East can be long, drawn-out occasions. Wine generally flows freely. Jacob surely celebrated; he may have celebrated too much.

In the morning, Jacob demanded an explanation from his crafty uncle. He said, “What is this thou hast done unto me? did not I serve with thee for Rachel? wherefore then hast thou beguiled me?” (verse 25). He was crushed and incensed by his uncle’s actions. However, God let Jacob have a taste of his own medicine. I am sure he could better relate to Esau’s anger at him for stealing his birthright.

Laban gave a lame reply. He sheepishly said, “It must not be so done in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn. Fulfill her week, and we will give thee this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years” (verses 26-27). Of course, Jacob wanted to know why this custom of the oldest daughter wasn’t ever discussed before. But he agreed to Laban’s terms and, after another week, had two wives. However, he was forced to work for his uncle for another seven years.

God Supports Leah

In addition to the wives, Jacob became responsible for their two handmaids. As wedding gifts, Laban gave Zilpah to serve Leah and Bilhah to serve Rachel. Real trouble was about to begin.

Jacob left no doubt as to which wife he loved the most. The Bible states, “And he went in also unto Rachel, and he loved also Rachel more than Leah, and served with him yet seven other years” (Genesis 29:30). Jacob loved Rachel more. The real truth is, he hated Leah. “And when the Lord saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb: but Rachel was barren” (verse 31). The Hebrew word for hate here is sane. It means to hate personally. It can also mean enemy, foe or odious. It is a strong word and reveals much about Jacob’s lack of character in the way he treated his only legal wife. Leah was greatly tormented by her situation. She was treated like an enemy. Jacob’s wrong actions then prompted God to bring Leah into His favor. In actual fact, the Scriptures reveal that of the three, Leah may have been the closest to God.

To punish Jacob, God closed Rachel’s womb and opened Leah’s. Leah became pregnant and gave birth to Reuben, whose name means, “see ye a son.” With the birth of Reuben, Leah believed Jacob would change his attitude toward her. She said, “Surely the Lord hath looked upon my affliction; now therefore my husband will love me” (verse 32). It is obvious that Leah desperately hungered for the love of her husband. She thought giving birth to a son could win his affection, but she was wrong. She was still hated. But Leah remained faithful to God.

So God allowed Leah to conceive again. She gave birth to Simeon, whose name meant “hearing.” Leah gave Simeon his name as an honor to God. She told those close to her, “Because the Lord hath heard that I was hated, he hath therefore given me this son also” (verse 33). But Jacob’s attitude did not change. She conceived again and gave birth to Levi. Levi means, “joined.” Leah explained, “Now this time will my husband be joined unto me, because I have born him three sons” (verse 34). Unfortunately, her situation remained the same. But God blessed her again. She gave birth to Judah, whose name means, “praise.” By giving birth to Judah, Leah praised God. And God returned great favor to Leah. Judah would have one of the most significant roles in Israel’s history. Through him the Messiah would be born!

Rachel Envies Leah

As God blessed Leah, Rachel grew more jealous. She made everyone’s life miserable—Jacob’s most of all. There was great tension in Jacob’s young and growing household; arguments were frequent. “And when Rachel saw that she bare Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister; and said unto Jacob, Give me children, or else I die” (Genesis 30:1). Rachel was emotionally on the edge. Even her physical health was threatened. The desperate sister even blamed Jacob for her lack of children. Rachel stirred up her husband’s anger. With a raised voice he said, “Am I in God’s stead, who hath withheld from thee the fruit of the womb?” (verse 2). Jacob was not God; he could not open her womb.

But Rachel persisted. She took matters into her own hands. She laid out her scheme: “Behold my maid Bilhah, go in unto her; and she shall bear upon my knees, that I may also have children by her” (verse 3). Rachel fully believed that if Bilhah could have children for her it would make her happy. Unfortunately neither of them learned the bitter lesson of their Great Aunt Sarah and her handmaid, Hagar. Giving her handmaid to her husband as a concubine would only make her problems worse. Life would soon become more complicated for Rachel and Jacob.

Jacob weakened to Rachel’s demand. He took Bilhah and she conceived and gave birth to Dan. Dan means “judged.” Rachel explained her son’s name this way. “God hath judged me, and hath also heard my voice, and hath given me a son” (verse 6). Rachel believed Dan’s birth to be a positive judgment from God. But true happiness does not come from a vicarious childbirth. Jacob took Bilhah again. She gave birth to Naphtali, which means “my wrestlings.” Rachel explained, “With great wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and I have prevailed” (verse 8). Rachel was in a full-blown wrestling match with her sister. We can only imagine the impact on the family. Certainly there was very little peace.

Please study this entire chapter. The battle raged on. Leah temporarily could not bear children, so she gave Jacob her handmaid, Zilpah (verse 9). The handmaid gave Jacob two sons, Gad and Asher.

Then Leah even resorted to bargaining with Rachel for her husband’s affections. Her son Reuben found in the field mandrakes (or herbs) that aided conception (verse 15). Rachel wanted those herbs. Leah played upon Rachel’s desperation and exchanged the herbs for a night with Jacob. Meeting Jacob that night, she demanded of him, “Thou must come in unto me; for surely I have hired thee with my son’s mandrakes” (verse 16). Jacob complied with Leah’s demand.

Restored to some semblance of a relationship, Leah conceived three more times and gave birth to Issachar, Zebulun and Dinah. And finally, God blessed Rachel in Jacob’s old age. She did give birth to Joseph and Benjamin. She died, however, giving birth to Benjamin (Genesis 35:17-19). Be sure to study the names of all the children. They reveal the deep-seated contest between the two sisters. What a sad tragedy. The sisters’ strife gave birth to some very ugly fruit.

The Favorite Son

He loved these moments. They were precious. Joseph could tell that he held Machir’s undivided attention. All the others were captivated as well. He smiled and continued, “My father was already an old man when I was born. I had 10 brothers and one sister. But, as it turns out, I was my father’s favorite. One day, when I was 17 ….”