1. The old generations and the new generation of Israel
2. We are grateful for Leah
3. However, we are even more grateful for Rachel
4. Modern Israel
5. No more Weariness

The old generations and the new generation of Israel:

וְעֵינֵ֥י לֵאָ֖ה רַכּ֑וֹת וְרָחֵל֙ הָֽיְתָ֔ה יְפַת־תֹּ֖אַר וִיפַ֥ת מַרְאֶֽה׃

And Leah’s eyes were weak, but Rachel was beautiful of form and face.

The old generation of Israel was born out of the administration of the first marital covenant of Leah (לֵאָה), who was the first wife of Father Jacob. Leah had “weak eyes” (עֵינֵ֥י רַכּ֑וֹת). Literally she had tender, faint eyes. Leah did not see clearly. She was myopic in her vision. At the first Leah’s marital bond was based on the oppressive technicalities of the obligation of subservience and obedience to the law (duty). Leah’s marriage to Jacob was not grounded in the joyous freedom and happy excitement of real love. Her marriage was only based on obligation and duty; as her father Laban said, “we have a law,” the oldest daughter must be married first.  So at the first Leah did not experience in her marriage the depth, breadth, and unsurpassed heights of the love of God that He wants for all of His children; instead she was reduced to just being a legal means for her wicked father Laban to trick Jacob into working an additional seven years for him. Nevertheless, in spite of a difficult beginning to her marriage things did ultimately work out for Leah. For unlike her selfish uncaring earthly father, the heavenly Father granted to Leah His abundant favor and blessing; according to the immeasurable riches of His glory. Therefore, irregardless of how we begin this life we learn through the testimony of Leah’s life that with God’s help there is hope for all:

For this reason we bow our knees before the Face of the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name.

משום כך כורע אני על ברכי לפני האב אשר קרא שם לכל משפחה בשמים ובארץ; שיתן לכם כח, כפי עשר כבודו, להתחזק על-ידי רוחו באדם הפנימי שלכם, כדי שישכן המשיח בלבבכם על-ידי האמונה ותהיו משרשים ומיסדים באהבה; כך תוכלו להבין יחד עם כל הקדושים מה הרחב והארך והגבה והעמק, ולדעת את אהבת המשיח הנשגבה מדעת, למען תמלאו בכל מלוא האלהים.  פ

For this reason I bow my knees before the Face of the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name, that He would give you, according to the riches of His glory, strength, courage with power through His Spirit in the inner person, so that the Messiah may (permanently) dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you be rooted and grounded, be seated in love, so that you may understand with all the kedoshim, holy ones (הַקְּדוֹשִׁים), what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of the Messiah which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God (האלהים).

We are grateful for Leah:

We are grateful that the *names of Leah’s sons teach us that Messiah is our Shepherd-Warrior-King who brings to us cleansing of our sins and the new Unfailing Heart of the Humble Man. Nevertheless, Leah is not the favored wife of Jacob-Israel. Rachel is.

*For example:

Blessing #1:  [Firstborn of Leah] Reuben (רְאוּבֵן) – “Behold [My] Son.” From the imperative raah- רָאָה – to see, look at, inspect, perceive, consider, learn about him (the Messiah): and

Blessing #2:  [Second-born of Leah] Shim’on (שִׁמְעוֹן) – “Hear, understand, and obey [Listen to him].” From shama’- שָׁמַע – hearing with understanding and obedience.

However, we are even more grateful for Rachel (the Ewe Lamb):

The administration of the Second Marital Contract of Rachel is a different (and superior) marital contract than that of Leah. The second contract is born out of love and not just “we have a law” (duty and obligation).

Leah has weak eyes but Rachel is beautiful (perfect) of face and form.

The flawed legalism of the first covenant administered by Laban satrves no one. God our Father will not tolerate any defect of any kind in His relationship with His people. God wants more than a boring, tedious, unfulfilling marital relationship with His people. He wants more than a coercive covenant that is based only on duty and obligation. Unfortunately, God’s people presently are incapable of loving Him the way He loves us. We have weak eyes. So how does God get what He really wants and deserves? How do we His people transform from being a weary, weak eyed Leah into becoming His Rachel (Ewe Lamb), who is beautiful (perfect) of face and form?  

Answer:  The only remedy is for God to transform our old humanity (Leah) into a new perfect humanity (Rachel). How is this done? God does this through His Messiah. This new creative work of God first requires a redemptive sacrifice for sin; by one among us (a Jew) who is already perfect.

Messiah is the only human who is without sin, who is beautiful of face and form, who is accepted as a righteous one by God. The moral beauty of the Messiah is seen in his willingness to act as our redeemer.  We are thereby made blameless by his atoning sacrifice:

The perfect man has died in our place that the Decree of Life, the Grace of God, might become the new marital contract.

The Israel of the past (Leah) failed to understand the far-sighted vision of the supremacy of God’s salvation by Grace (Rachel), which is a superior system over the old system of salvation by the Law. The Law at the first taught us *only that we are sinners in need of a Savior.

*This is true because we have all sinned and come short of the glory of God; only the Messiah has perfectly obeyed Him.

Now that the Deliverer promised by Moses has come the law has fulfilled its purpose.

For nearly two millennia now the Father of the Messiah Yeshua has held out His Hand to Israel to receive His salvation that comes by grace (chesed, chen, chanan). The permanent answer to human sin is the cleansing sacrifice of God’s Messiah. The answer to our lack of righteousness among the people of Israel and all humankind is God’s endowment to us of His gift of the indwelling presence of His Spirit of Grace (chesed, chen, chanan) and Truth (emet) that guarantees us eternal life.

Modern Israel:

It is the irreversible destiny of modern Israel to be re-born (Leah to Rachel) under the blessing of the administration of the Second Marital Covenant. The fact is that at present the first covenant is already obsolete and “passing away.” It is time Leah’s (Weary) marital week should come to a swift end.

It is time for Rachel’s marital week to begin!

The weak-eyed sister’s marriage that chronologically was administered first was established under the coercion of the law that was used by Jacob’s shrewd uncle Laban to force his nephew to work for him as a his indentured servant for an additional seven years. Therefore it is a fact that the first covenant of the law (Leah, Weary) brought much weariness to Jacob; and truth be told to God—the Bridegroom of Israel (cf. Genesis 29:21-30):

וַיֹּאמֶר יַעֲקֹב אֶל־לָבָן הָבָה אֶת־אִשְׁתִּי כִּי מָלְאוּ יָמָי וְאָבֹואָה אֵלֶֽיהָ׃ וַיֶּאֱסֹף לָבָן אֶת־כָּל־אַנְשֵׁי הַמָּקֹום וַיַּעַשׂ מִשְׁתֶּֽה׃ וַיְהִי בָעֶרֶב וַיִּקַּח אֶת־לֵאָה בִתֹּו וַיָּבֵא אֹתָהּ אֵלָיו וַיָּבֹא אֵלֶֽיהָ׃ וַיִּתֵּן לָבָן לָהּ אֶת־זִלְפָּה שִׁפְחָתֹו לְלֵאָה בִתֹּו שִׁפְחָֽה׃ וַיְהִי בַבֹּקֶר וְהִנֵּה־הִוא לֵאָה וַיֹּאמֶר אֶל־לָבָן מַה־זֹּאת עָשִׂיתָ לִּי הֲלֹא בְרָחֵל עָבַדְתִּי עִמָּךְ וְלָמָּה רִמִּיתָֽנִי׃ וַיֹּאמֶר לָבָן לֹא־יֵעָשֶׂה כֵן בִּמְקֹומֵנוּ לָתֵת הַצְּעִירָה לִפְנֵי הַבְּכִירָֽה׃ מַלֵּא שְׁבֻעַ זֹאת וְנִתְּנָה לְךָ גַּם־אֶת־זֹאת בַּעֲבֹדָה אֲשֶׁר תַּעֲבֹד עִמָּדִי עֹוד שֶֽׁבַע־שָׁנִים אֲחֵרֹֽות׃ וַיַּעַשׂ יַעֲקֹב כֵּן וַיְמַלֵּא שְׁבֻעַ זֹאת וַיִּתֶּן־לֹו אֶת־רָחֵל בִּתֹּו לֹו לְאִשָּֽׁה׃ וַיִּתֵּן לָבָן לְרָחֵל בִּתֹּו אֶת־בִּלְהָה שִׁפְחָתֹו לָהּ לְשִׁפְחָֽה׃ וַיָּבֹא גַּם אֶל־רָחֵל וַיֶּאֱהַב גַּֽם־אֶת־רָחֵל מִלֵּאָה וַיַּעֲבֹד עִמֹּו עֹוד שֶֽׁבַע־שָׁנִים אֲחֵרֹֽות׃

Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife (Rachel), for my time is completed, that I may go in to her.” Laban gathered all the men of the place and made a feast. Now in the evening he took his daughter Leah, and brought her to him; and Jacob went in to her. Laban also gave his maid Zilpah to his daughter Leah as a maid. So it came about in the morning that, behold, it was Leah! And he said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Was it not for Rachel that I served with you? Why then have you deceived me?” But Laban said, “It is not the practice in our place, it must be done this way, therefore, ‘we have a law.’ Complete the week of this one, and we will give you the other also for the service (‘avodah-עֲבֹדָה) which you shall serve (‘avad-עָבַד) with me for another seven years…”

In spite of the legal deceit of Laban, Jacob out of love for Rachel indentured himself to his uncle Laban seven additional years. So he accepted Leah (under the law) that he might thereafter marry his true love Rachel. So after completing his marital obligations to Leah for one week Laban gave Jacob his daughter Rachel as his (second) wife. Laban also gave his maid Bilhah to his daughter Rachel as her maid. So Jacob went in to Rachel also, and indeed he loved Rachel more than Leah, and “he served with Laban for another seven years.”

What does this prophetic text have to say about modern Israel?

Modern Israel is destined to become the preferred Israel, the Israel of Rachel, the Israel of the administration of the Second Marital Contract. Modern Israel is the Israel that God wanted all along. This is the Israel that first met God at the ‘well.’

Israel met God at the place where His life dwells.

Israel (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob) met God at the place where His life dwells; where the depths of His being dwells. Our fathers of Israel met God at His well. We too must meet El Shaddai with an open heart at His well; at the place where we can draw from His Spirit His springs of Living Water. When this happens then it will be a true saying of all Israel:

God’s life has become our life!

The people of modern Israel therefore must one day soon become the offspring of a better marriage contract and relationship to God than has existed previously under the coercive threat of the Law (the weariness of Jacob).

The people of Israel must now become the promised offspring of the administration of the Second Marriage Contract; that before the foundation of the earth was born out of God’s love, grace and compassion; and confirmed through His Messiah’s redemptive ministry almost two thousand years ago.

On Shavuot under the Second Covenant of God’s Grace (chesed, chen) the gift of the Father has already been given to His children of Israel (cf. the Messiah in Shavuot).

However, through the evil one’s shrewdness and trickery our Jewish religious establishment has successfully persuaded most of our people to delay their acceptance of God’s His Second Marital Covenant and His gift of the indwelling Presence of His Holy Spirit. Therefore, it is the time for modern Israel to cease being ‘weariness’ to the Bridegroom of Israel and so it is written:

!שֶׁלֹּא תִּהְיֶה עוֹד שָׁהוּת

No more delay!

And again it is written,

פְּנוּ אֵלַי כָּל־הָעֲמֵלִים וְהַטְּעוּנִים וַאֲנִי אָנִיחַ לָכֶם׃ קַבְּלוּ עֲלֵיכֶם אֶת־עֻלִי וְלִמְדוּ מִמֶּנִּי כִּי־עָנָו וּשְׁפַל רוּחַ אָנֹכִי וּמִצְאוּ מַרְגּוֹעַ לְנַפְשֹׁתֵיכֶם׃ כִּי עֻלִּי נָעִים וְקַל מַשָּׂאִי׃

“Turn to me, all who labor to exhaustion and are burdened with a heavy load and I will cause you to rest. Accept upon yourself my yoke and learn from me, for I am humble and lowly in spirit, and you will find a resting place for your souls. For My yoke is pleasant and my burden is light.”

No more Weariness:

Old Israel (Leah) has lived in trouble and in sorrow all these long, weary years only because we have yet to nationally exercise faith in the favored Second Covenant of the Second Marriage. Now modern Israel (Rachel) must begin to live “by faith” in God’s covenant of grace:

For without faith in the Second Covenant of Rachel none of us will ever please God.

Unlike the earlier contract of the Law, the latter marriage contract of Rachel will never bring weariness to God. The grace, chesed, chen of God will only bring great joy to Him and to us. The generation of Israel that is most beloved of God is modern Israel. Today’s Israel and its future international commonwealth are destined one day (we pray soon) to live forever under the blessed covering of God’s immeasurable love.

Messiah in Purim Chapter 22 >>