Genesis 29:31-33

The Family of Jacob

29:31 When the Lord saw that Leah was unloved, ¹  he enabled her to become pregnant ²  while Rachel remained childless. 29:32 So Leah became pregnant ³  and gave birth to a son. She named him Reuben, ⁴  for she said, “The Lord has looked with pity on my oppressed condition. ⁵  Surely my husband will love me now.”

29:33 She became pregnant again and had another son. She said, “Because the Lord heard that I was unloved, ⁶  he gave me this one too.” So she named him Simeon. ⁷ 

[29:31]  ¹ tn Heb “hated.” The rhetorical device of overstatement is used (note v. 30, which says simply that Jacob loved Rachel more than he did Leah) to emphasize that Rachel, as Jacob’s true love and the primary object of his affections, had an advantage over Leah.

[29:31]  ² tn Heb “he opened up her womb.”

[29:32]  ³ tn Or “Leah conceived” (also in vv. 33, 34, 35).

[29:32]  ⁴ sn The name Reuben (רְאוּבֵן, rÿ’uven) means “look, a son.”

[29:32]  ⁵ tn Heb “looked on my affliction.”

[29:33]  ⁵ tn Heb “hated.” See the note on the word “unloved” in v. 31.

[29:33]  ⁶ sn The name Simeon (שִׁמְעוֹן, shim’on) is derived from the verbal root שָׁמַע (shama’) and means “hearing.” The name is appropriate since it is reminder that the Lord “heard” about Leah’s unloved condition and responded with pity.