Read Genesis 29:15–35

Scripture is full of stories that don’t go the way we might expect. In fact, many “biblical marriages” look more like cautionary tales than ideal templates. The key to reading these stories rightly is knowing the difference between what’s prescriptive (what God intends for us to follow) and what’s merely descriptive (a brutally honest picture of broken people). The Bible doesn’t sanitize its characters. Instead, it shows God at work in the mess.

The story of Jacob, Leah, and Rachel is one of longing, deception, and misplaced love.

Jacob, the younger twin, grew up in the shadow of his brother Esau. Their father favored Esau, and Jacob’s early life was marked by manipulation and unmet desire. After stealing Esau’s blessing, Jacob fled his home and landed at the house of his uncle Laban. There he saw Rachel—and was immediately smitten.

Genesis 29:17 says, “Leah had weak eyes, but Rachel had a lovely figure and was beautiful.” There is no mention of their character or faith—just physical appearance. This surface-level attraction launched a 14-year saga. Jacob offered seven years of work for Rachel’s hand, but was deceived into marrying her older sister Leah instead. A week later, he married Rachel as well—committing to another seven years of labor. The man who had deceived others was now deceived himself.

Jacob thought romantic love would fix him. As Tim Keller writes in Counterfeit Gods:

“Jacob’s life was empty. He had never had his father’s love, had lost his beloved mother, and had no sense of God’s love. Then he beheld the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He must have said to himself, ‘If I had her, finally something would be right in my life.’”

Many of us have whispered the same: “If I just had ____ , then I’d be okay.” That’s idolatry; counterfeit gods like romantic love, achievement, success, or family. And like Jacob, our misplaced desires always cost us more than we expect.

But the most heartbreaking part of this story isn’t Jacob’s misplaced longing. It’s Leah.

Leah was unloved by her father, by her sister, and now by her husband. Desperate for affirmation, she bore Jacob son after son, hoping each one would finally earn his affection. “Surely my husband will love me now,” she says after Reuben. “Because the Lord heard I am not loved,” she sighs after Simeon. After Levi, she stops asking for love and merely hopes for attachment.

Then something shifts.

“She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, ‘This time I will praise the Lord.’ So she named him Judah.” (Gen. 29:35)

No longer is Leah grasping for Jacob’s affection. Her focus turns to the Lord. This time, her longing is met with praise. This time, she stops striving.

And it’s through Judah, the son of Leah’s surrender, that the Messiah will come.

The gospel truth is this: no spouse, child, success, or dream can fill the ache in your soul. Only the love of God can. Ernest Becker once wrote that modern people look to romantic love “to replace God” . But we were not made to be satisfied by anything or anyone other than God’s love for us.

“We love because he first loved us.” – 1 John 4:19
“See what great love the Father has lavished on us…” – 1 John 3:1

Let the lavish love of Jesus wash over you—not as a theory, but as a reality that meets you in your wounds and fills your empty cup.