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RighteousOld Testament

Righteous Foremother Leah

Old Testament era; second millennium BC by traditional reckoning.

Also known as Leah wife of Jacob

The elder daughter of Laban and first wife of Jacob, mother of Judah and ancestress of Christ.

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Commemorated as

The Righteous Foremother Leah

Life

The Righteous Foremother Leah was the elder daughter of Laban and the first wife of the Patriarch Jacob. Through her son Judah she stands in the genealogy of Christ, and the Orthodox Church numbers her among the Holy Forefathers and Foremothers commemorated on the Sunday before the Nativity.

Her life is recorded in the Book of Genesis. A woman of Mesopotamia, she was given in marriage to Jacob through her father's deception, bore him six sons and a daughter, and became the matriarch of both the priestly tribe of Levi and the royal tribe of Judah.

In her own wordsReadHide
Now will I praise the LORD.
Genesis, 29:35 · King James Version (PD)
Timeline4 momentsReadHide
  1. In MesopotamiaDaughter of LabanLeah is born to Laban in Paddan Aram, the elder sister of Rachel and niece of Rebecca.
  2. MarriageGiven to JacobThrough Laban's substitution on the wedding night, Leah becomes Jacob's first wife, before he marries Rachel after a further seven years' labor.
  3. MotherhoodMother of six sons and a daughterLeah bears Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, and Dinah, and raises Gad and Asher born to her maidservant Zilpah.
  4. DeathBuried at MachpelahLeah dies before Jacob and is held by tradition to be buried in the Cave of the Patriarchs at Hebron.

Contributions & Legacy

3 contributionsReadHide

Family and Marriage

Leah was the daughter of Laban and the older sister of Rachel. Her father dwelt in Paddan Aram, in the region near Harran in Upper Mesopotamia. Through Laban she was the niece of Rebecca and the granddaughter of Bethuel.

When Jacob came to Haran seeking a wife, he agreed to labor seven years for Rachel. On the wedding night, however, Laban substituted Leah for Rachel, so that Jacob married the elder daughter first. Jacob then married Rachel after a further seven years of labor, making Leah his first wife and Rachel his second and favored wife. The Torah describes Leah as having 'tender eyes,' a phrase variously understood as delicate, weary, or weak.

Children and Descendants

Leah bore Jacob six sons and one daughter. Her sons were Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah, followed by Issachar and Zebulun; her daughter was Dinah, Jacob's only daughter. She also raised Gad and Asher, the two sons born to her maidservant Zilpah.

Through her sons Levi and Judah, Leah became the matriarch of both the priestly tribe of Levi and the royal tribe of Judah in Israel. It is through Judah that her line leads to King David and, in Christian tradition, to Christ.

Death and Veneration

Leah died some time before Jacob and is held by tradition to be buried in the Cave of the Patriarchs (the Cave of Machpelah) in Hebron, alongside Jacob.

In the Orthodox Church, Leah is commemorated among the Holy Forefathers on the Sunday before the Nativity of Christ. This commemoration honors the ancestors of Christ from the Old Testament, the great patriarchs and matriarchs, naming among the foremothers Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel, and Leah.

Member ofReadHide
Synaxis of the Holy Forefathers and Foremothers
Synaxis
Family3 relativesShowHide
Family

Leah, elder daughter of Laban, was the first wife of the Patriarch Jacob and a mother of the sons from whom the tribes of Israel descended.

Her husband, whom she married through Laban's substitution before he wed her younger sister Rachel.
Righteous Patriarch Jacob
Her younger sister and Jacob's other wife, mother of Joseph and Benjamin.
Righteous Foremother Rachel
Her son, ancestor of the royal line of David and of Christ according to the flesh.
Righteous Patriarch Judah
Sources: OCA Synaxarion (oca.org), Lives of the Saints