«Leah’s eyes were delicate, but Rachel was beautiful of form and appearance» (Genesis 29:17).
Don’t you think this verse is cruel? Was it necessary to make it clear that Rachel was beautiful, and Leah was not? Even if we don’t like to admit it, God didn’t make all women equally beautiful. God does not distribute beauty, or intelligence, or musical talent, equally. I imagine Leah saying, «It’s not fair, Lord! Why didn’t you make me more beautiful?» However, as Heather Creekmore wrote, «God does not apologize for it, nor does He add an additional verse in the Bible about Leah’s great personality.»
The truth is that although we would like to be beautiful, God can fulfill His purpose in our lives regardless of our appearance. Leah spent most of her marriage competing with Rachel for Jacob’s love and attention. We can see this through the names she gave her children. Reuben means «the Lord has realized my suffering, and now my husband will love me.» Simeon means «the Lord heard that I was not loved and has given me another child.» Leah called her third child, Levi, thinking, «Certainly this time my husband will be fond of me, for I have given him three children» (see Genesis Finally, with the arrival of her fourth child, it seemed that something had changed in Leah’s heart. She realized that fulfilling God’s purpose for her life was more important than her appearance and less frustrating than trying to get a man’s attention. She called her fourth son, Judah, saying, «Now I will praise the Lord!» And it was precisely Judah who was part of the Messiah’s genealogy.
«Is it possible that some receive great physical beauty as part of God’s plan for their lives, and others don’t, and that doesn’t really matter?» asked Heather. «Perhaps God will not apologize to us for not making Leah as beautiful as Rachel, because it doesn’t really matter how she looked. He knows how He will use it to accomplish His purposes, and this, only this, will bring Him great satisfaction.» The witch in the fairy tale about Snow White couldn’t stand to have any woman more beautiful than she was. Her envy blinded her to the opportunities and talents she had, The story would have been different if she had accepted the fact that she didn’t need to be the most beautiful to fulfill her purpose.
Lord, help me accept the measure of beauty You have given me.
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Take From: Devotional Thoughts for Women 2022
«NO FEARS»
BY: VANEZA PISSUTO
Collaborators: Alexandra Pérez & Angelica Cuate.
