Grace Journal 13.1 (Winter 1972) 3-12.
Copyright © 1972 by Grace Theological Seminary. Cited with permission.
THE CHRONOLOGY AND BIRTH OF
JACOB'S CHILDREN BY LEAH
AND HER HANDMAID
Charles L. Zimmerman
Pastor Evangelical Church
Archbold, Ohio
In Genesis 29:31-30:24 the birth of twelve of Jacob's children is
recorded. These children are the offspring of four different women,
Leah and Rachel, his wives, and Zilpah and Bilhah, their respective
handmaids.
It will be remembered that Jacob had bargained with Laban to
serve him seven years for his daughter Rachel. Upon being deceived
by Laban at the end of that seven years, Jacob was given Leah, the older
daughter of the family. Through further bargaining and mutual agree-
ment, for seven more years of service Jacob was given Rachel, the
woman he loved, one week later.
In Genesis 30:25, 26 it seems the last seven years of service had
been completed and the twelve children had been born. This fact will
be challenged by some of the suggested interpretations. Jacob then says
to Laban, his father-in-law, "Send me away, that I may go into my own
place and to my country. Give me my wives and my children for whom
I have served thee, and let me go: for thou knowest my service where-
with I have served thee.”
Now it is not difficult to understand how Jacob could have had
twelve children in seven years from four different women. No doubt
a number of the children could have been born contemporaneously. How-
ever, it is amazing to read that Leah gave birth to seven of the twelve
children which were born at that time. Of course, there is nothing
Charles L. Zimmerman holds the B. A. degree from Wheaton College, and
the B. D. and Th. M. degrees from Grace Theological Seminary. He is
presently pastor of the Evangelical Church of Archbold, Ohio.
3
4 GRACE JOURNAL
biologically impossible about having seven children in seven years, but
the real problem arises when we learn that during that seven year period,
"Leah saw that she left off bearing, so she took Zilpah her handmaid,
and gave her to Jacob to wife. And Zilpah, Leah's handmaid, bare Jacob
a son. And Leah said, 'Fortunate!' and she called his name Gad. And
Zilpah Leah's handmaid bear Jacob a second son. And Leah said, 'Happy
am I!' For the daughters will call me happy! and she called his name
Asher" (Gen. 30:9-13). How could Leah have borne seven children and
have had a barren period in which her handmaid bore two children, all
in seven years? Or did these events occupy some period other than
seven years?
It may be granted that this is not a problem of great theological
significance, but nevertheless it dare not be overlooked if the authority
and integrity of the Word of God is highly valued. In fact, whether
naturally or supernaturally, it must be answered if the inerrancy of the
Scripture is not to be sacrificed.
SUGGESTED INTERPRETATIONS
I. The births took place during two twenty year periods of ser-
vice that Jacob gave Laban.
The basis of this interpretation is found in Gen. 31:38, 41. In
these verses Jacob mentions twenty years of service to Laban two times.
This interpretation holds that the two sets of twenty years are different
periods and make a total of forty years in Laban's house. Each men-
tion of twenty years is introduced with the word zeh, which word, when
repeated, is used by way of distinction; as when we say, this or that;
the one or the other. The following passages are cited as confirming
this translation. "So that the one came not near the other" (Ex. 14:20).
"This hath more rest than the other" (Eccl. 6:5). The word zeh is
used twice at a greater distance, "one dieth . . . and another dieth"
(Job 21:23,25). Clark goes on to explain it as follows:
So here in Genesis 31:38 Jacob says to Laban, "during
the one set of twenty years I was with thee. . . ."
Meaning the time in which he lived, not in Laban's
house, but in his neighborhood; not as a servant but as
a friend; after he had served in Laban's house fourteen
years for his cattle. But then, as to the other twenty,
he tells Laban at verse 41, "during the other twenty
years for myself (own benefit) in thy house; I served
thee fourteen, and six years." And during the last pe-
riod though only six years, he charges Laban with
changing his wages ten times.1
THE CHRONOLOGY AND BIRTH OF JACOB'S CHILDREN 5
It should be observed that this interpretation is proposed, not
only to answer this problem, but also to solve many related problems
with the Biblical chronology of the period of the Bible patriarchs, Isaac
and Jacob. For instance, this longer period of time at Laban's house
gives relief to a very crowded chronology of events in the life of Jacob.
With this system of calculation Jacob would have left his home to find
his wife twenty years earlier, or at approximately fifty-seven years of
age. This age for Jacob to go looking for a wife harmonizes better with
the marriage age (40) of both Isaac and Esau than the traditional view
of seventy-seven.
Also, if Jacob had no son till he was eighty-five, and he went to
Egypt at one hundred and thirty, with sixty-six persons, only forty-five
years are allowed for his family, whereas the larger sum of sixty-five
years seems necessary for the births of so many children and grand-
children. This view also has the advantage of assigning such ages to
Simeon, Levi, Dinah, Benjamin, Judah, Er, and Onan as harmonize with
the events described in chapters 34 and 35.
Then there is the problem of harmonizing the dates of the patri-
archs with the exodus. John Rea has dealt with this matter in his doc-
toral dissertation, "The Historical Setting of the Exodus and the Con-
quest." Calculating from external sources, it would seem that Jacob
was only a young man of about eighteen years of age when he left home.
Of course, that age does not tally with the Scriptural indication of his
age. The Bible tells us that when Jacob was presented in the court of
Pharaoh, "the days of the years of my sojournings are a hundred and
thirty years; few and evil have been the days of the years of my life,
and they have not attained to the days of the years of the life of my
father:s in the days of their sojournings" (Gen. 47:9, RSV). By making
calculations based on the life of Joseph we learn that there was an in-
terval of about thirty-three years between the time when Jacob returned
from Haran and when he went down to sojourn in Egypt. If Jacob was
one hundred and thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh, then he
must have been ninety-seven when he came back to Canaan. If Jacob
was with Laban only twenty years, then he was seventy-seven years old
when he left home. This is an extreme contradiction with the ancient
history calculation of eighteen years of age. This conflict can be re-
lieved a bit by making Jacob's stay with Laban forty years instead of
twenty. He would have gone from home at fifty-seven. It is interest-
ing to note, however, that Rea is not at all interested in accepting this
interpretation to help resolve some of the distance between the calcu-
lation from ancient history and the seeming Scriptural chronology. He
briefly discards the view in a footnote, saying, "I cannot agree that there
are two different periods of twenty years each referred to in Genesis
31:38 and 41, the view of R. Payne Smith. "2 What seems to be the
6 GRACE JOURNAL
reason for so little consideration of a view that seemingly aids in solving
a number of quite thorny problems?
The main refutation and weakness of this interpretation lies in the
grammar of the text. As has been noted, the proponents of this view
lay great emphasis upon the construction of the two clauses which men-
tion the twenty years of service. Each clause is introduced with the
word zeh. They proceed to claim that when zeh is repeated, it is used
by way of distinction; as when we say this or that; the one or the other;
and Scripture passages are cited to confirm this translation.
The writer was impressed by the fact that not one Hebrew scholar
whom he confronted with the suggested translation for this theory could
find any justifiable evidence in the text for such a translation. The whole
scheme breaks down when once it is observed that in each of the passages
used to confirm their point, when zeh is repeated, it is always connected
with the waw conjunctive. The waw conjunctive is the device used in the
language in such cases to convey the idea of distinction. Without the
waw conjunctive there is nothing to indicate this idea. In Genesis 31:38
and 41, where the two clauses mentioning the twenty years of service
are introduced by zeh, there is no waw conjunctive. Therefore, it may
be reasonably concluded that these two clauses are not arranged to imply
two different periods of twenty years but rather to emphasize the signi-
ficance of the one twenty year period in the mind of Laban. The follow-
ing is an arrangement of the chronology of Jacob's life according to this
view:
Year Event
0 Jacob and Esau born
40 Esau marries 2 Hittite wives
57 Jacob
goes to Haran
58 Esau marries Ishmael's daughter
63 Ishmael dies at 137 years. of age
64 Fourteen years Jacob marries Leah and Rachel
65 service for Reuben born
66 his wives Simeon born
67 Levi born
69 Dan born
71 Naphtali
born
72 Gad
born
74 Asher born
78 Twenty years Reuben, at 13, finds mandrakes
79 service as a Issachar born
81 friend Zebulun. (82, Dinah)
86 Judah marries Shuah at 18
87 Er born (88, Onan; 89, Shelah)
91 Joseph
born of Rachel
THE CHRONOLOGY AND BIRTH OF JACOB'S CHILDREN
Year Event
91-97 Six years of service for the cattle
97 Jacob comes from Haran to Succoth
(Dinah defiled)
98 Benjamin born, Rachel dies
105 Tamar married to Er (106 to
108 Joseph (17) sold into Egypt
109 Shelah at 20 not given to Tamar
110 Pharez and Zaran born of Tamar
120 Isaac dies (180)
121 Joseph (30) made governor of Egypt
123 Beriah, 20, marries
125 Heber (127, Malchiel) born to Beriah
128 Pharez at 18 marries
129 Hezron (130), Hamul) born to Pharez
130 Benjamin at 32 has 10 sons, and Jacob
goes to Egypt
147 Jacob dies3
II. Four of the births took place during the last seven year
period of service for Jacob’s wives and the remaining births occurred
during the six year period of service for Jacob’s flocks.
Those who hold to this view suggest that if Jacob's first child was
born in the first year of his second period of service, and if the other
births followed in the order in which they are enumerated in chapter 30,
it is impossible that Leah could have borne her six sons and one daughter
and Rachel could have borne afterwards Joseph by the end of the period,
so that the new contract could be made at the beginning of the fifteenth
year. It is, therefore, suggested that some of the births must be allowed
to occur in the third period of service. It is felt that the "text has
nothing against this; for the expression, my service, i.e. (30:26) my
time of service, need not necessarily be restricted to the seven years
of 29:18 and 27. It is thus clear that this verse is not from the author
of 31:41."4
This view assumes too much. First, it assumes the impossibility
of the birth of twelve children in seven years. This conclusion is made
upon the felt demand that the births followed each other in the order enu-
merated. There is nothing in the text to forbid the possibility of con-
temporaneous births on more than one occasion. A more positive proof
of this possibility will appear later. Secondly, it assumes that the ex-
pression, "my service, " (30:26) need not be restricted to the seven year
periods, but may be as well projected to include the following six year
8 GRACE JOURNAL
period. But the text does not read this way. In 30:25 it is not until
Rachel has borne Joseph, that Jacob asks to be sent away. It is then
following this (30:27-30) that Laban bargains with Jacob to stay another
six years. Joseph had to be born before the six year period of Jacob's
service for Laban's cattle. Thirdly, it assumes that the author of 30:26
is not the author of 31:41. The critical evidence for this is not final
and is based upon a superficial reading of the text. This conclusion is
not valid and is dangerous for the verbal inspiration of the Scriptures.
The following is an arrangement of the chronology for the dates of the
births:
Wife or Handmaid
Year5 Name of Child of Jacob
1 Reuben Leah
2 Simeon Leah
3 Levi Leah
4 Dan Bilhah
4 Judah Leah
5 Naphtali Bilhah
6 Gad Zilpah
7 Asher Zilpah
8 Issachar Leah
9 Zebulun Leah
10 Dinah Leah
11 Joseph Rachel
III. The birth of the six sons of Leah took place during the last
seven year period of service for Jacob’s wives, and the birth of Dinah,
the daughter, was sometime after this period.
This view, it seems to the writer, is only held in order to re-
lieve the congested period of seven years in which it would seem that
Leah had seven children. The grammatical construction, however. would
not seem to prevent this conclusion. The proponents say, "with regard
to the birth of Dinah, the expression ‘afterward’ ('hr, 30:21) seems to
indicate that she was not born during Jacob's second seven years of ser-
vice, but during the remaining six years of his stay with Laban.”6
This problem with this view arises when we come to chapter 34.
Here we read that Jacob had left Padan-aram and was dwelling in peace
at Shechem. At this time Shechem, the Hivite, the son of the prince,
took Dinah with him and seduced her. This event had to take place at
least a year before Joseph was seventeen (37:2). If Dinah was born any
length of time after Joseph, say the second year of Jacob's, six year ser-
vice for Laban's cattle, this would make Dinah fourteen years old or
THE CHRONOLOGY AND BIRTH OF JACOB'S CHILDREN 9
even less when this experience with Shechem occurred. This would seem
quite unlikely biologically and would cause one to wonder why Jacob did
not keep a closer eye upon such a young girl. It is felt by the writer
that there was a wilful cooperation in this act of defilement. The fol-
lowing is a chronology of the births according to this arrangement.
Wife or Handmaid
Year7 Month Name of Child of Jacob
1 9 Reuben Leah
2 7 Simeon Leah
3 5 Levi Leah
3 8 Dan Bilhah
48 3 Judah Leah
4 7 Naphtali Bilhah
5 9 Gad Zilpah
6 10 Asher Zilpah
6 12 Issachar Leah
7 9 Zebulun Leah
7 11 Joseph Rachel
9 6 Dinah Leah
WRITER’S INTERPRETATION
The Interval of Time
The seven births took place within the second seven year period
that Jacob served Laban for his wives. The fallacy of accepting the
possibility of two twenty year periods of service for Laban was explained
under interpretation I. Under interpretation II, we showed the danger of
assuming too much. To say that some of the births took place during
the six year period of Jacob's service for cattle goes beyond what the
text says. A simple literal interpretation of the text would lead one to
conclude that the births all occurred during the second seven year period
of service.
The Arrangement of the Period
Since we have determined the period to be confined to the seven
years, the arrangement of the births in the seven years must be dealt
with. Now if all the children, whose births are given in 29:32-30:24,
had been born one after another during the period mentioned, not only
would Leah have had seven children in seven years, but there would have
been a considerable interval also, during which Rachel's maid and her
10 GRACE JOURNAL
own maid gave birth to children. This, of course, would have been im-
possible and the text does not really demand it.
When we bear in mind that the imperfect tense with the waw con-
secutive expresses not only the order of time, but also the order of
thought as well it becomes apparent that in the history of the births,
the intention to arrange them according to the mothers prevails over
the chronological order. Therefore, it by no means follows that because
the passage, "when Rachel saw that she bare Jacob no children" (30:1)
occurs after Leah is said to have had four sons, that it was not until
after the birth of Leah's fourth child that Rachel becomes aware of her
barrenness.
There is nothing on the part of grammar to prevent the arrange-
ment of events in this way. Leah's first four births follow as rapidly
as possible one after the other. In the meantime, not necessarily after
the birth of Leah's fourth child, Rachel, having discovered her own
barrenness, had given her maid to Jacob; so that possibly both Dan and
Naphtali were born before Judah. The rapidity and regularity with which
Leah had borne her first four sons, would make her notice all the more
quickly the cessation that took place (30:9). Jealousy of Rachel, as well
as the success of the means which she had adopted, would impel her to
attempt in the same method to increase the number of her children.
Moreover, Leah herself may have conceived again before the birth of her
handmaid's second son and may have given birth to her last two sons and
her daughter, Dinah, in the fifth, sixth, and seventh years of their mar-
riage. Contemporaneously with the birth of Dinah, or immediately after-
wards, Rachel may have given birth to Joseph. The following is a chron-
ology of Jacob's life according to this view and a chart indicating the ar-
rangement of the births of the twelve children in seven years.
Chronology of Jacob's Life
Year Event
0 Jacob and Esau born
40 Esau marries 2 Hittite wives
63 Ishmael dies, age 137
77 Jacob goes to Haran
84 Jacob marries Leah and
84 Reuben born
85 Simeon born
86 Levi born
86 Dan born
87 Judah born
87 Naphtali born
THE CHRONOLOGY AND BIRTH OF JACOB'S CHILDREN 11
Year Event
88 Gad born
89 Asher born
89 Issachar born
90 Zebulun born
90 Dinah born
90 Joseph born
97 Jacob returns to Haran
98 Jacob dwells at Succoth
99 Jacob comes to Shechem and continues 8 yrs.
101 Judah marries Shuah's daughter
102 Er born (103, Onan; 104, Shelah)
106 Shechemites destroyed by Levi and Simeon
107 Benjamin. born, Rachel dies
108 Joseph sold at 17
111 Tamar married to Er
114 Tamar's incest
115 Pharez and Zaran born to Judah
120 Isaac dies at 180
121 Joseph made governor in Egypt
130 Jacob goes to Egypt
147 Jacob dies
Arrangement of Births
Wife or Handmaid
Year9 Month Name of Child of Jacob
1 9 Reuben Leah
2 7 Simeon Leah
3 5 Levi Leah
3 6 Dan Bilhah
410 3 Judah Leah
4 5 Naphtali Bilhah
5 3 Gad Zilpah
6 1 Asher Zilpah
6 3 Issachar Leah
7 1 Zebulun Leah
7 11 Dinah Leah
7 12 Joseph Rachel
12 GRACE JOURNAL
DOCUMENTATION
1. Adam Clarke, Clarke’s Commentary (New York:
1850) Vol. I, p. 210.
2. John Rea, "The Historical Setting of the Exodus and the Conquest,"
Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Grace Theological Seminary,
Winona Lake, Indiana, 1956, p. 82.
3. Adam Clarke, Clarke’s Commentary (New York: Lane and Scott.
1850) Vol. I, p. 211.
4. A. Dillmann, Genesis (Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1897). p. 245.
5. Calculation begins from the first year of Jacob's marriage to Leah.
6. C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, Commentary on the Pentateuch
(Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1885). p. 311.
7. Calculation begins from the first year of Jacob's marriage to Leah.
8. Leah's barren period is from 4-5 to 4-12.
9. Calculation begins from the first year of Jacob's marriage to Leah.
10. Leah's barren period is from 4-3 to 5-7.
This material is cited with gracious permission from:
Grace Theological Seminary
200 Seminary Dr.
Winona Lake, IN 46590
www.grace.edu
Please report any errors to Ted Hildebrandt at: thildebrandt@gordon.edu