Rachel was barren.
Genesis 29:31
When she saw she wasn’t having kids, she panicked.
When she saw Leah was, she envied.
And then she exploded at Jacob:
“Give me children, or I’ll die!”
Genesis 30:1
Jacob shot back:
“Am I in the place of God, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?”
Genesis 30:2
In other words:
This isn’t my call, Rachel. Don’t put me in God’s seat.
But like Sarah before her, Rachel had a brainstorm.
A clever plan. A workaround. A shortcut.
“Here’s my servant Bilhah. Sleep with her. She’ll bear a child for me.”
Genesis 30:3
And the story spirals.
One compromise leads to another.
One scheme triggers a rivalry.
And things go from bad to worse,
as they tend to do
when we think we have a better idea
than trusting what God has said.
“I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac… I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go… I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
Genesis 28:13, 15
God had already promised Jacob the blessing.
Already promised offspring.
Already promised His presence.
But we get impatient.
And we start thinking we know better.