So, what if Jacob had gotten what he had wanted when he first laid eyes on his beautiful cousin Rachel? What if his uncle Laban had played it straight with him? Rachel was unable to bear children for a long time, and died in childbirth with her second son. Simply, put, we would speak of the two tribes of Israel, not the twelve.

More seriously, it was Leah who was the mother of Judah, who was the ancestor of David, who was the ancestor of Jesus. In short, God’s plan to send His Son into the world, and thus to fulfill all the promises He made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, included Jacob’s marriage to Leah, an unfair, unjust marriage accomplished by trickery.

We simply cannot escape the amazing truth that God can bring the greatest good out of the most difficult, even the most unfair circumstances. We can’t deny that God’s plans are thus much greater than our own, based on much more comprehensive knowledge not only of how our own lives will eventually work out, but on the mastery of the whole of human history. What we think is the greatest disaster, the product of the greatest unfairness, God can use as an integral part of His plans for us.

But there’s one more thing Leah had in common with David and with Jesus, and perhaps with us too – they all knew unrequited love. Leah’s husband preferred another, and yet she kept giving him children, kept longing for his love. David’s son Absalom wanted to kill him and take his throne, and yet David loved Absalom so much that he wished he had been the one to die in the war of Absalom’s rebellion. And Jesus laid down His life for His bride, the Church, that despised and rejected Him. Like Leah, Jesus’ love was unconditional.

So, if you feel unloved today, you are in good company. But remember – God gave Jesus to die for ungrateful sinners to prove His everlasting love for us. And those things you might consider to be unfair or unjust? God is weaving all those things into the great tapestry of your life, working all these things together to reveal His suffering Son in all those who trust in Him.

Genesis 29:31-35 (ESV)

31 When the LORD saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb, but Rachel was barren.
32 And Leah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Reuben, for she said, “Because the LORD has looked upon my affliction; for now my husband will love me.”
33 She conceived again and bore a son, and said, “Because the LORD has heard that I am hated, he has given me this son also.” And she called his name Simeon.
34 Again she conceived and bore a son, and said, “Now this time my husband will be attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.” Therefore his name was called Levi.
35 And she conceived again and bore a son, and said, “This time I will praise the LORD.” Therefore she called his name Judah. Then she ceased bearing.