Leah and Rachel are described as different in appearance. Earlier, the text had contrasted Jacob and Esau also on the basis of their respective occupations (25:27, where yoshev ohalim seems to mean “raising livestock”; compare 4:20).
The Torah; A Woman’s Commentary on Genesis 29:17
It is fascinating that the Genesis narrative of “two brothers and two sisters” tells us so much about… us.
While I don’t think *everyone* is inherently sexist and view the value of women in terms of appearance and men in terms of occupation, perhaps as a society, we do.
Prior to the fall, value isn’t assigned to occupation and beauty. There was one job for humanity, and all of creation was good. It was all beautiful.
In Genesis 6, the “sons of God saw that the daughters of man were Tov,” and we get a glimpse of the powerful being drawn to women and seizing them for themselves. This is echoed in Genesis 12, and even louder in Esther.
Somehow, a woman gets defined by her appearance. This appears to be a result of the fall.
But a man’s “value” is also be seen a result of the fall. The cursed ground becomes unfruitful, and the work is in vain. Yet we labor and labor, looking for worth.
My Jewish friends have a saying: “Torah is not our book about God. It is God’s book about us.”
In it, we should see ourselves. What happens when we value beauty over character? Or equate work with worth? When we take advantage of weakness? The text shows us. We must learn.
