Though Rachel was the beloved, it was Leah—the one with “weak eyes,” the one overlooked—who became the mother of Judah, the ancestor of Christ. From the very beginning, the story of Jacob, Leah, and Rachel is tangled with human schemes. Jacob tricked his brother Esau. Laban tricked Jacob into marrying Leah. Rachel, in her envy, gave her maidservant to Jacob to bear children. Leah, desperate for love, did the same. This family saga is woven with manipulation, jealousy, favoritism, and deep wounds. Yet, somehow, out of this brokenness, God brings forth redemption.

Leah longed to be chosen by Jacob, but she was chosen by God. In a culture that prized beauty, Rachel had the favor, but it was Leah whose womb was opened, whose heart was softened, and whose praise birthed a son named Judah—whose name means “praise.” And from Judah came David, and from David, Jesus—the Lion of the tribe of Judah.

God didn’t wait for the family to get their lives together before working out His plan. He moved right through the chaos. Humans schemed, compared, and controlled—but God wove redemption into the very heart of it. It’s a reminder that God’s purposes are not derailed by human mess. He doesn’t abandon us when we fall short or make mistakes. He moves through our weakness and still brings beauty from ashes.

The story of Leah shows us that even when we are unloved by people, unseen by the world, or caught in someone else’s scheme, we are never forgotten by God. He chooses the overlooked. He redeems the flawed. He brings Christ—not from the perfect plan—but from the painful one. From Leah, not Rachel. And in doing so, He reminds us that grace is never earned. It’s given.