Jacob Was A Family Man – And How!

October 1989
Musings 1990
Jacob Was A Family Man – And How!
[Genesis, Chapter 29 and ff.]

Jacob, the son of Isaac, [and the] grandson of Abraham, is the legendary founder of the twelve tribes Israel.

He was a swindler, too. With the help of Rebekah, his mother, Jacob deprived his older brother, Esau, of Isaac’s blessing and inheritance. Jacob, in turn, was taken in by his father-in-law, Laban, who substituted plain Leah for beautiful Rachel in the marriage bed. In order to marry Rachel, Jacob had to work for Laban an additional seven years.

Then the old story becomes gamey indeed. Beautiful Rachel is barren; plain Leah is fertile. She gives birth to six sons, Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issacher, Zebulun and a daughter, Dinah. Rachel is troubled and angry because she has not conceived. So, she sends her handmaid, Bilhah, to Jacob’s bed more than once. Bilhah gives birth to sons, Dan and Naphtali. Not to be outdone in this battle of conceptions, Leah sends her handmaid, Zilpah, to Jacob’s bed and sons Gad and Asher were produced.

To put it rudely, both Leah and Rachel were pimping. But then, an ancient tribal culture prevailed; mores and morals were not what we would applaud today. Today, politicians get in big trouble for just one illicit sexual adventure (when they are found out). Jacob, seemingly, had no objection [to, nor] received any public criticism for, being served by four women (and I don't mean just meals).

Rachel eventually becomes fertile and gives birth to Joseph and Benjamin. Twelve sons, one daughter, four mothers, one sire!! The twelve sons, according to “scripture”, founded the twelve tribes of Israel. God renamed Jacob, “Israel”, and gave him the lands in such awful dispute today.

The story would make a great movie, except it would have to be X-rated. It was a soap opera in the twistings of the plot, but would not be acceptable on afternoon TV.

I’m puzzled how those who believe in the inerrancy of the Bible explain the morality of this sexual circus. The Bible ..., according to fundamentalists, is the “word of God,” the absolute guide to faith and morals. Would it be O.K., therefore, to adopt the life-style of Jacob, Leah, Rachel and the concubines?

There is fascination in this because Jacob encounters the Divine in the stories of Jacob’s Ladder and wrestling with the Angel. But never is Jacob reproved for his plurality of sexual partners, or, for that matter, condemned for his dishonest dealings with Esau and Laban.

One could rationalize and say that God waited until Moses to pronounce “thou shalt not steal” and “thou shalt not commit adultery.” But why did God wait so long, when he had an obvious case such as Jacob’s to issue such commandments?

There is comfort, frequently, as well as an occasional chuckle being agnostic and holding a literary and cultural view of the scriptures.