A Story Told Through Names

Introduction

Baby names can be an interesting topic of research. From the years 1880 - 1920, Mary and John would be the number 1 baby names. Robert would beat out John in 1921, only for John to regain the number 1 spot in 1922 where it would once again lose out to Robert in 1923. Mary, however, would remain the most popular name given to baby girls until 1947 where it would be topped by the name Linda, which would remain the top name for girls for a few more years.

In the 2000’s, there was a surge of names ending in the sound “ayden” and in common names with unique spellings, and this has been the bane of every substitute teacher’s existence since!

During the 2010’s, the popular thing to do was to name your child after characters in popular TV shows. Names like Elsa and Anna, surged, along with Arya and Luna, and Kylo. I even have a friend who named their kid Anakin.

And since the 2018’s, there has been a surge in vintage names like Henry, Olivia, Sophia, William, and Robert.

However, if we go further back in time, and depending on which culture, not even too far back in time, people named their children based primarily off the meaning of the name, not so much the sound of the name.

This is true in Bible cultures. Hebrew names were given to children intentionally, either as a blessing or as a description of the circumstances under which the child was born. Some names were prophetic in nature, others were derogatory.

Think of this. In 1 Chronicles there is a man named Jabez. The name Jabez means pain or sorrow. And you might think that maybe the mom didn’t realize the meaning of that name. Maybe she just thought it was cute or unique. But no, 1 Chronicles 4:9 says, “His mother called him Jabez, saying, Because I bare him with sorrow [pain].” Can you imagine! “What is your son’s name?” “I named him pain, because I was in labor with this guy for 17 hours. Do you see the size of that head?! Yeah, I am never letting him or myself forget how much pain I went through to bring him into this world.”

Of course there is also the prophet Hosea, whose wife cheated on him and God told him to name his kids names that meant, “Not my kid” and “not of my love.”

But many names were nice and were meant as blessings or meant to recall the blessing that the child was to the parents upon his or her birth. In the book of Daniel you find three young men named Hananiah (meaning God has shown favor), Mishael (meaning who is like unto God, or there is none like God), and Azariah (meaning God has helped).

Names like these provided a reminder of one’s identity - like these three young men who were constantly reminded by the meaning of their names that God was with them, He shows favor, and there is no one like Him. The Babylonians also accepted the concept that names tied people to a certain identity, so when these three young men were captured by the Babylonian Empire, they were given the new Chaldean names of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego which mean — royal, guest of a king, and servant of Nebo (one of the false Babylonian gods). This name change was an attempt to make them adopt a new, pagan identity and forget about their godly heritage.

A Story Told Through Names

So, names in the Bible are important things. And today we are going to see the story of one woman, and a big part of that story is told through the names that she gave her children.

In Genesis Chapter 29, we see that Jacob, who would later be named Israel, comes to a place outside of Haran where shepherds are gathered waiting to water their sheep. There he meets a young woman named Rachel. Rachel is the daughter of a man named Laban, and Jacob falls head over heels for Rachel. After meeting Laban, Laban invites Jacob to stay there with them.

Jacob stays a month, working for his uncle Laban, who was his mother’s brother. Genesis 29:14-20

Genesis 29:14–20 KJV 1900

14 And Laban said to him, Surely thou art my bone and my flesh. And he abode with him the space of a month. 15 And Laban said unto Jacob, Because thou art my brother, shouldest thou therefore serve me for nought? tell me, what shall thy wages be? 16 And Laban had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. 17 Leah was tender eyed; but Rachel was beautiful and well favoured. 18 And Jacob loved Rachel; and said, I will serve thee seven years for Rachel thy younger daughter. 19 And Laban said, It is better that I give her to thee, than that I should give her to another man: abide with me. 20 And Jacob served seven years for Rachel; and they seemed unto him but a few days, for the love he had to her.

The Love of Jacob’s Life

Laban asks Jacob what he wants for all the work that he's putting in around the house, and Jacob very frankly responds, "I want to marry Rachel." They make a deal. Laban says, work for me for seven years, and Jacob is all to eager to accept without reading the fine print.

At the end of seven years, Jacob tells Laban, "Hey Laban, it's been seven years now. Let me marry Rachel." But what Jacob failed to remember is that Laban never said, "Work for me seven years and I'll let you marry Rachel."

Look what happens. Genesis 29:21-26

Genesis 29:21–26 KJV 1900

21 And Jacob said unto Laban, Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in unto her. 22 And Laban gathered together all the men of the place, and made a feast. 23 And it came to pass in the evening, that he took Leah his daughter, and brought her to him; and he went in unto her. 24 And Laban gave unto his daughter Leah Zilpah his maid for an handmaid. 25 And it came to pass, that in the morning, behold, it was Leah: and he said to Laban, What is this thou hast done unto me? did not I serve with thee for Rachel? wherefore then hast thou beguiled me? 26 And Laban said, It must not be so done in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn.

Oops! Jacob, who had been a deceiver to his brother and father, just got a taste of his own medicine. The trickster got tricked. The deceiver got deceived.

Jacob didn't realize that he had been dealing with a master schemer. Laban had his eyes set on controlling Jacob's life, and he would remain in control of Jacob for 20 years. Jacob had been had, and now he awakens the day after his wedding realizing that under those wedding veils was not Rachel, but Leah.

So Jacob confronts Laban. Genesis 29:25-29

Genesis 29:25–29 KJV 1900

25 What is this thou hast done unto me? did not I serve with thee for Rachel? wherefore then hast thou beguiled me? 26 And Laban said, It must not be so done in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn. 27 Fulfil her week, and we will give thee this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years. 28 And Jacob did so, and fulfilled her week: and he gave him Rachel his daughter to wife also. 29 And Laban gave to Rachel his daughter Bilhah his handmaid to be her maid.

Leah’s Story

So Laban wrangles another 7 years of work out of Jacob so that he can finally be married to Rachel. This is a long lesson that Jacob is learning. Notice that the next seven years do not carry the description of having passed by quickly. Angered at being tricked and taken advantage of, I am sure those 7 years felt like the full 14 for Jacob. But finally, Jacob marries the woman he truly loves. And this is where we get into Leah’s story. A story of a woman who was never the pretty one, never the chosen one. She always played second fiddle to her younger sister. A woman who had to play a role in a deception in order to get married. For what? Just so her dad wouldn’t have to explain why the younger daughter got married before the oldest one.

Genesis 29:30–31 KJV 1900

30 And he went in also unto Rachel, and he loved also Rachel more than Leah, and served with him yet seven other years. 31 And when the Lord saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb: but Rachel was barren.

Favoritism. When he was growing up, Jacob had been a victim of a home split by favoritism, and here he is now, playing favorites. There is a lesson that Jacob needs to learn here as well, so God opens up Leah's womb but makes Rachel barren and unable to have children.

Can you imagine being Leah? How horrible that would have been. She is so happy when she is able to have children. She knows she's not the favorite, but now that she is bearing a son and Rachel cannot, maybe Jacob will start to love her a little more. The word hated there means treated as if she were an enemy. Imagine it — Jacob has worked for 7 years for Rachel. But He gets tricked into marrying Leah. He’s not happy with Laban, and he is not satisfied with Leah. Leah is in the way of Rachel. She is treated as an obstacle, an unpleasantness. She is obviously treated as less than by her husband, and even by her own sister.

But now! Now she has a boy, and look at what she names him. Genesis 29:32

Genesis 29:32 KJV 1900

32 And Leah conceived, and bare a son, and she called his name Reuben: for she said, Surely the Lord hath looked upon my affliction; now therefore my husband will love me.

Reuben: “Look at Me!”

She names her first son Reuben. Reuben means "look, a son." She has named him in reflection of her emotions.

She feels that God has seen her affliction and has blessed her with this son,

And it is a cry to Jacob, "Look at me! Will you love me now, Jacob? I have something that Rachel can't give you. Will you love me now?"

Not much seems to change in that regard, however, because when Leah is again blessed with another son, she names him Simeon. Genesis 29:33

Genesis 29:33 KJV 1900

33 And she conceived again, and bare a son; and said, Because the Lord hath heard that I was hated, he hath therefore given me this son also: and she called his name Simeon.

Simeon: “Listen to Me!”

She names this child, again, out of her heartfelt wishes and feelings. Simeon means "heard," as in "I have been heard." She states that God has heard her because of her affliction and has sent her a son.

But again, this is a call for Jacob: "Will you hear me? Will you listen to me? Will you love me now?"

She conceives again, Rachel still being barren, and Leah has another son and names him Levi. Look at what she has to say. Genesis 29:34

Genesis 29:34 KJV 1900

34 And she conceived again, and bare a son; and said, Now this time will my husband be joined unto me, because I have born him three sons: therefore was his name called Levi.

Levi: “Join Me!”

Levi means "join me." Can you hear the desperate call of Leah for Jacob? "Jacob, will you look at me? Will you hear me? Now will you join me?" Leah, who was always favored less than Rachel even before Jacob arrived on scene, is desperate for love from somebody. And she is looking to her husband for that love, and cannot find it.

Leah viewed her husband as the one that would be her prize, as the one that would fulfill her need for being needed. Her need for love. And the thing is, Jacob should have been trying to meet those needs. But he didn’t. He didn’t even give her a sideways glance, other than to make children.

Some of you may be able to relate to Leah's plight. She grew up in a home where Rachel was the favorite. She was the oldest, but always was second fiddle to her little sister who was more beautiful. I imagine that she dreamed of her prince charming coming to sweep her off her feet and maybe even take her away from the home in which she was so underappreciated. Someone who would love and cherish her and treat her right.

And in comes Jacob. But Jacob clearly loves Rachel, the younger daughter who had the outside chores. And even after shepherding sheep all day, Rachel was still easier on the eyes than Leah.

But now, Jacob has her. And maybe, even though her father has played a nasty trick on Jacob so that he can retain such a hard worker for another seven years, even so, maybe Jacob would fall in love with her. Maybe now she would finally experience a dedicated husband that would love and cherish her, but it didn't happen.

For seven more years she has to put up with a husband who loves someone else, but it turns out, Leah can have kids, and Rachel cannot. Maybe this will finally put her on a level playing field with her lifelong rival. Reuben is born, then Simeon, then Levi, and still she cannot attain the love that she has always wanted and indeed, needed.

But something happens after the birth of Levi. No, not between her and Jacob, but something definitely happens in Leah's heart. Because after Levi is born, she conceives again and look at her reaction this time. Genesis 29:35

Genesis 29:35 KJV 1900

35 And she conceived again, and bare a son: and she said, Now will I praise the Lord: therefore she called his name Judah; and left bearing.

Did anybody notice anything different with what she names the child and how she describes her situation? The she is no longer reacting out of pain and desperation. Her focus has shifted.

Judah: “I Praise God!”

Judah comes from the Hebrew word yada, and it means to praise. A few years ago during our Wednesday evening Bible studies, you may remember us learning about the different words that are translated "praise" in the Bible. Yada is one of them. It means to give praise and worship in thanksgiving with outstretched hands.

When this son is born, Leah says, "Now I will yada the Lord, and name my son Judah!" Before Judah came, she had Reuben and Simeon and Levi. And when she would call their names, it was a call to her husband as well, “Look at me! Hear me! Join me!”

But now, every time she calls Judah’s name, she’s reminded that she is thankful to the Lord.

Leah's tent was now filled with worship and praise in a little boy named Judah as he learned how to walk, and started messing with things. Even when she would reprimand him, the first thing out of her mouth was "Praise!" as she cried out "Judah, don't put you fingers in the outlet!"

See, Leah had learned sometime after the birth of Levi that Jacob would never be able to fulfill her desire to be loved. Even if Jacob turned and began to love her as much as he loved Rachel, she would not be satisfied. So she focused on the Lord. When Judah was born, she used his name as a statement.

Just like she had stated and repeated her desperation for a loving relationship with Jacob in the names of her first three children, Leah now makes her declaration of dependance on God alone for her fulfillment in the Lord as she exclaims "Yada! I will praise the Lord!"

Rachel’s Story

Unfortunately, Rachel, though loved the most, has not learned this lesson — the lesson to depend on the Lord for her happiness and fulfillment.

Genesis 30:1 KJV 1900

1 And when Rachel saw that she bare Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister; and said unto Jacob, Give me children, or else I die.

Rachel, though loved the most, is beat out by her sister in the child bearing department and can't stand it. Jacob's love is not enough for her, and in envy exclaims to Jacob, "Give me kids, or I will die." Jacob replies that he cannot do anything to make her un-barren.

In Rachel's desperation, she tells Jacob, “Take my servant, Bilhah. Have kids with her. When it's time to have her child, she'll sit on my lap, and it will be just like it is mine.”

Rachel is nuts, y'all! She's driven to this, not out of love for her husband, but out of envious competition with her sister.

Dan: “I Am Vindicated.”

So Bilhah gets pregnant and has a child, and Rachel names him Dan. She says, "God has judged and given me what I rightfully deserve, a son." And the name Dan means judge. She has now been vindicated. She now has a son, and is truly, in her mind, the best wife again.

Bilhah conceives another child and when he is born, Rachel names him Nephtali. Genesis 30:8

Genesis 30:8 KJV 1900

8 And Rachel said, With great wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and I have prevailed: and she called his name Naphtali.

Naphtali: “I Am a Fighter.”

Naphtali means wrestling.

Rachel sees herself as in a competition, but not just a competition, a fight! She sees herself as the winner too! She finally has two kids that she has adopted as her own and feels as if she is back in first place with Jacob (though he always loved her more).

Focus Lost

In this, Leah focus gets sucked into this competition. She can't have children anymore, so pulls a move out of Rachel’s playbook and gives her servant, Zilpah, to Jacob. Jacob has 2 kids with her, Gad (meaning troop or good fortune), and Asher (meaning happy). We know that her focus was not on the Lord anymore because when Asher is born, she says this.

Genesis 30:12–13 KJV 1900

12 And Zilpah Leah’s maid bare Jacob a second son. 13 And Leah said, Happy am I, for the daughters will call me blessed: and she called his name Asher.

What had she based her fulfillment on now? It wasn't on God anymore; it wasn't even on Jacob. No, her focus was that other women would look at her and call her blessed, more blessed than Rachel. That is what made her happy.

After a while, God allows Leah to bare two more children. Leah is still off focus though as she names her children Issachar which means reward, and Zebulun which means exalted or honored. When Zebulun is born, she says in verse 20, Genesis 30:20

Genesis 30:20 KJV 1900

20 And Leah said, God hath endued me with a good dowry; now will my husband dwell with me, because I have born him six sons: and she called his name Zebulun.

"I will be honored by Jacob now, because I gave him six sons." Her focus is off God and back on Jacob.

God then hears Rachel's plight and allows her to bare a son herself, which she names Joseph. Joseph means "the Lord has added" and she does this in the hopes that she will have another son, which she does later down the road.

We end this story of this horrible family dynamic, not on a high note, but on a low one. This is a house divided.

We saw the rule of selfishness in the actions of Laban, we saw the consequences of Jacob's favoritism in the envy that takes root in Leah and Rachel. This envy will be something that will be devastating to the family later on. It is not something that gets resolved. Years later, Rachel would have another son that she names Benoni. Benoni's name is changed to Benjamin by Jacob, but Benoni means "son of my struggle." What struggle? Her struggle with Leah. Rachel would die in childbirth, shortly after naming her second son. The envy and jealousy alive until her last breath.

Folks, what will it take for us to realize that selfishness in our families is deadly, and is deadly for generations?

When will we realize that in our selfishness, God is calling to us. When God gave Leah and Rachel and their servants these children, He was not trying to promote the rivalry; He was calling to them, much in the way that Leah called unto Jacob. And with every blessing that God gave them, He was calling to them, trying to get their focus off of Jacob, off of each other. And ironically, the same what that Leah was calling after Jacob with the names of her first three sons, God was calling after her — “Look at me. Hear me. Join me. Focus on me, and on me alone.”

Mothers here and listening right now, I do not know what drove you to be a mother. For some, it was a surprise, for others it was planned, and for even others, the attempts were numerous.

But whatever it was that brought you to motherhood, I want to point out something. God is calling to you. If your joy is dependent on your husband, on your children, or on anything else besides God, this morning God is saying, "When will you finally look at me? When will you listen to me? When will you join me? Stop struggling. Stop fighting. When will you stop seeking honor for yourself? When will you love me more than anything else, and let me be the one that fulfills you?"

Invitation