The Woman With Weak Eyes Series

A lady was walking down the street on her way to work & saw a parrot in a pet store. She went in to admire the bird, and suddenly the parrot spoke to her, “Hey lady. You’re ugly.” Well, the woman was deeply offended, and she stormed out of the store. But on her way home, she thought she’d been a bit rash, and so she stopped into the store again. But the same parrot saw her and said, “Hey lady, you are REALLY ugly.” She could hardly speak and rushed out of the store to go home. But the next day she stormed back into the store and the parrot once again said, “Hey lady, you are SO ugly.” She was so furious that she went to the owner and threatened to sue the store. The owner was apologetic… and he promised the bird wouldn’t say it again. A week later she went to the store again and the parrot spoke again: “Hey, lady!” She paused and glared at the bird: “Yes?” And the bird said… “You know.”

We’ve all heard the saying – “Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.” AND IT IS! Different cultures have different ways of seeing beauty.

For example: In many western cultures (like the U.S.) TANNED SKIN is seen as a sign of great beauty. To achieve this… women and men will use tanning beds, tanning enhancers, fake tans, and bronzers. But, in many Asian countries - LIGHTER SKIN is more desirable. Pale skin is seen as a sign of beauty, youth and wealth. To achieve this, many women will apply sunscreen religiously, use skin lightening creams, and wear large sun hats, or special visors https://www.skinstation.co.uk/post/perceptions-of-beauty-in-different-cultures#:~:text=Beauty%20is%20something%20that%20is,the%20eye%20of%20the%20beholder.

THEN THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO TAKE BEAUTY ONE STEP FURTHER.

In Japan, women will go to orthodontists to have extensive work done on their teeth to make their teeth look more crooked and uneven. This is considered attractive… because it is supposed to make the women appear more approachable.

In South Korea, the current rage is to undergo plastic surgery to make one’s face appear more heart shaped. The procedure involves breaking the jaw bone into 3 parts, removing the middle part, and fusing the other two together to create a pointed chin.

Beauty is literally in the EYE of the beholder. But in the days of Jacob and Rachel and Leah, beauty was quite literally… in the eyes. We’re told that “Leah’s EYES were weak, but Rachel was beautiful in form and appearance.” Genesis 29:17

None of the commentaries I read could explain what it meant that Leah’s eyes were “weak” but most agreed it WASN’T considered a trait of beauty by the people of that day. As one person noted, her eyes made Leah unnoticed, unwanted & unloved… and unmarried.

You see, Jacob didn’t want to marry Leah… and apparently no one else did either. One person said that - Leah was one of Laban’s big problems. If she didn’t get married HE would have take care of her forever, and he didn’t want to do that. (https://bible.org/seriespage/2-leah-woman-no-man-loved-every-woman-envied-gen-2915-35)

It would cost him to keep her… and she was NOT an asset. She remained unwanted and unmarried by everyone. But then Jacob showed up and Laban decided to kill 2 birds with one stone – He could get richer (because of Jacob’s free labor) and, (if he worked it right) he could get rid of Leah in the bargain.

It wasn’t right or fair to Jacob… and it was not right or fair to Leah.

Imagine being unwanted and unloved. Even your father thinks you are a burden. And now Leah’s competing for the love of her husband… with her sister, and she’s NEVER going to win that competition. IT’S JUST NOT RIGHT!

But then… then… God steps in. Genesis 29:31 tells us “When the LORD saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb…” and she had four sons. REUBEN was her 1st: Reuben means “behold, a son”. And she thinks “Surely my husband will love me now” (Genesis 29:32) But he doesn’t!

Soon after, she has a 2nd son – SIMEON meaning “One who hears” thinking “Because the Lord heard that I was not loved he gave me this one too.” (Genesis 29:33)

As if two sons were not enough, she has 3rd boy–LEVI which means “attached.” And she thinks now at least “my husband will become attached to me, because I have born him three sons.” (Genesis 29:34)

And then she has her 4th son – JUDAH – which means “Praise”… and she simply says “I will praise the Lord.” (Genesis 39:35)

What I find interesting about these 4 boys… is that they represent the conflict inside of Leah. The 1st & 3rd sons (Reuben and Levi) reflected her burning desire for her husband, but the 2nd the 4th sons (Simeon and Judah) she doesn’t mention her husband. These boy’s names talk about her faith in God.