But Rachel was pregnant with another son, and as they journeyed south from Bethel and were a short distance from Bethlehem, Rachel went into labor. It seems as though this romance was off to a blazing start. Perhaps you can research and find todays values for a worker. Just as Jacob had struggled with God, so too would the nation of Israel wrestle for centuries with its obedience to the Lord. The annual wage for a shepherd in the Bronze Age was about 10 shekels; hence, seven years of labor was a stiff demand. All rights reserved, history of the Bible and the search for sacred texts, Who's Who in the Bible: Unforgettable People and Timeless Stories from Genesis to Revelation, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Are these the stolen gods/idols of Laban in Genesis 35:2? 30 For it was little indeed you had before I came, Big-hearted Laban offered to give Rachel to Jacob as well if he would work for seven more years. The answer may be simply that the seven years totaled up to a reasonable value of Jacob's labor which he was willing to "pay" eventually for Rachel and ultimately for Leah. We thought we knew turtles. Copyright 2019 by Zondervan. He had nothing to offer Laban for his daughter, so his labor was promised in lieu of a dowry. He had just worked 7 years for Rachel, who he loved so much and then he wakes up to realize that he married Leah instead! Learn more about Stack Overflow the company, and our products. scholars like william skinner and adam clarke have proposed 40 years for this span of time instead of 20. and Biblical Chronogical studies has provided evidence from Esau's chronology. He loves us so much He gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16). But it only seemed like a few days, he loved her so much. After discovering that he had been tricked, Jacob married Rachel also and then worked out another seven-year contract for this marriage. Jacob suffered to win Rachel.