Genesis 29:20 - Printer Friendly

ESV: So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed to him but a few days because of the love he had for her.

NIV: So Jacob served seven years to get Rachel, but they seemed like only a few days to him because of his love for her.

NASB: So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed to him like only a few days because of his love for her.

CSB: So Jacob worked seven years for Rachel, and they seemed like only a few days to him because of his love for her.

NLT: So Jacob worked seven years to pay for Rachel. But his love for her was so strong that it seemed to him but a few days.

KJV: And Jacob served seven years for Rachel; and they seemed unto him but a few days, for the love he had to her.

NKJV: So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed only a few days to him because of the love he had for her.

This is among the most romantic verses in the Bible. Certainly, it's one of the most romantic in Genesis. Jacob was sent to this region to find a wife (Genesis 28:1–2), as well as to keep away from his vengeful twin brother (Genesis 27:41). He managed to locate his uncle, Laban, and fall in love with the younger of Laban's two daughters, Rachel (Genesis 29:16–17). After a month of work, Laban had asked what wages Jacob expected, and Jacob offered much more than he needed to in order to secure Rachel's hand in marriage. Laban, always looking for a bargain, quickly accepted Jacob's proposal: seven years of free labor!

Jacob doesn't seem to have regretted it for a moment. He was so crazy in love with Rachel that seven years seemed to him to be only a few days. The years flew by. Love can do that to a man. Those years would quickly slow down, however. Jacob's history is one of deception and fraud (Genesis 25:29–34; 27:33–36), and Laban is actually plotting a scheme using Jacob's great love for Rachel.

Genesis 29:1–30 describes Jacob's arrival at his uncle's household. Laban is happy to see his nephew, likely for the first time. Jacob falls in love with Laban's more attractive daughter, Rachel, and agrees to work for Laban seven years to marry her. On the wedding night, however, Laban treacherously switches Rachel for her older sister Leah. Jacob agrees to marry Rachel the next week, but now must work another seven years.

Jacob's journey from his home brings him to his uncle's household in Haran. He falls in love with Laban's younger daughter Rachel and agrees to work for Laban for seven years to marry her. When the time comes, Laban switches out Rachel for her older, less attractive sister Leah. Jacob is surprised to find he has consummated the marriage with the wrong sister. Manipulative Laban assures Jacob he can still marry Rachel the next week, as long as he will work another seven years. Jacob loves Rachel more than Leah, but with the Lord's help, unloved Leah bears Jacob his first four sons.

The previous chapter described Jacob fleeing from home to seek his uncle in Mesopotamia. This was both to escape the rage of his brother, Esau, and to look for a suitable wife. Now Jacob arrives and falls in love with his uncle's daughter Rachel. After working seven years to marry her, Jacob is tricked by his uncle into marrying the older daughter, Leah, instead. Laban allows Jacob to marry Rachel, as well, in exchange for another seven years' work. Though she is unloved by Jacob, the Lord notices Leah's heartbreak and allows her to bear four sons. In the next chapter, Rachel's jealousy sets off something of a birth war, as she and Leah compete to obtain children.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.

Accessed 4/30/2024 5:57:23 PM