20
So Jacobוַ יַעֲקֹבservedיַּעֲבֹדsevenשֶׁבַעyearsשָׁנִיםfor Rachel,בְּרָחֵלand they wereוַיִּהְיוּin his eyesבְעֵינָיוlike a fewכְּ אֲחָדִיםdaysיָמִיםbecause of his loveבְּאַהֲבָתוֹfor her.אֹתָהּ
Genesis 29:20
Study it in the app“So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they were in his eyes like a few days because of his love for her.”
Seven years of work seem like a few days to Jacob, for love of RachelDating and Marriage
With the Hebrew beneath
Genesis 29:20, word by word
- So Jacobיַעֲקֹבyaakov
Jacob
Jacob, the younger son of Isaac and Rebekah, twin brother of Esau and father of the twelve tribes. In Hebrew "Yaakov" sounds like "heel" and "supplant" (Genesis 25:26; 27:36). God later gave him the name Israel; the name also stands for his descendants, the people of Israel.
Where else “yaakov” appears- servedיַּעֲבֹדyaavod
serve
To serve a person.
Where else “yaavod” appears- sevenשֶׁבַעsheva
seven
Seven, the number of fullness; also "seven times".
Where else “sheva” appears- yearsשָׁנִיםshanim
year
Each full turn of the seasons, by which time is counted.
Where else “shanim” appears- for Rachelרָחֵלrachel
Rachel
Rachel, younger daughter of Laban, Jacob's beloved wife; mother of Joseph and Benjamin. Her name means "ewe".
Where else “rachel” appears- and they wereיִּהְיוּyihyu
be
To be: "I will be their Elohim".
Where else “yihyu” appears- in his eyesעֵינָיenay
sight
"In the eyes of" someone: in their view.
Where else “enay” appears- like a fewאֲחָדִיםachadim
a certain
Used as "a" or "some", to introduce someone.
Where else “achadim” appears- daysיָמִיםyamim
time
Literally "the days": a period, an age, or the span of someone's life.
Where else “yamim” appears- because of his loveאַהֲבָתahavat
love
To care for someone from the heart and seek their good.
Where else “ahavat” appears
The context
19Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you than that I give her to another man; stay with me.”
20 · This verse (above)
21Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, so that I may go in to her.”
To study Genesis 29 in a group
1. What it says
What happened when Jacob’s seven years of service were over, and what did he say to Laban (vv. 20-28)?
2. What it means
What irony is there in Jacob, who deceived his father, now being deceived by Laban (v. 25)?
3. How I live it
How can you stay honest with others even when the opposite would suit you better?