What does Genesis 29:33 mean?
Leah is unloved by her husband, Jacob (Genesis 29:21–28). This is unsurprising, since Jacob never intended to marry her in the first place. It was only by an act of trickery that Jacob woke up the morning after his wedding to find Leah, instead of her younger sister, Rachel, in his bed. God saw Leah's pain at being an unwanted, unloved wife, and has blessed her with a son; the favored Rachel, meanwhile is childless (Genesis 29:31).After giving birth to Jacob's firstborn son Reuben, Leah expressed her faith that God had seen her pain. She also believed that bearing Jacob a son would cause him to love her (Genesis 29:32).
Here we find that even at the birth of their second son that Jacob continued to "hate" Leah, especially in comparison to Rachel. In giving this second boy the name Simeon, Leah again shows her faith that God did this for her in response to her pain. Shim'own more or less literally means "heard." This time, though, the name also reflects the fact that she is hated. She seems to have given up hope, for the moment, that the birth of sons will turn Jacob's heart to her. God has seen (Reuben) and heard (Simeon) her pain, but Jacob does not love her.