Written by Stefan Johnsson
The Word
16 Then they journeyed from Bethel. When they were still some distance from Ephrath, Rachel went into labor, and she had hard labor. 17 And when her labor was at its hardest, the midwife said to her, “Do not fear, for you have another son.” 18 And as her soul was departing (for she was dying), she called his name Ben-oni; but his father called him Benjamin. 19 So Rachel died, and she was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem), 20 and Jacob set up a pillar over her tomb. It is the pillar of Rachel’s tomb, which is there to this day. 21 Israel journeyed on and pitched his tent beyond the tower of Eder.
22 While Israel lived in that land, Reuben went and lay with Bilhah his father’s concubine. And Israel heard of it.
Now the sons of Jacob were twelve. 23 The sons of Leah: Reuben (Jacob’s firstborn), Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun. 24 The sons of Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin. 25 The sons of Bilhah, Rachel’s servant: Dan and Naphtali. 26 The sons of Zilpah, Leah’s servant: Gad and Asher. These were the sons of Jacob who were born to him in Paddan-aram.
27 And Jacob came to his father Isaac at Mamre, or Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had sojourned. 28 Now the days of Isaac were 180 years. 29 And Isaac breathed his last, and he died and was gathered to his people, old and full of days. And his sons Esau and Jacob buried him.
Genesis 35:16-29 (ESV)
You are not to have sex with your father’s wife; she is your father’s family.
Leviticus 18:8 (CSB)
3Reuben, you are my firstborn,
Genesis 49:3-4 (CSB)
my strength and the firstfruits of my virility,
excelling in prominence, excelling in power.
4 Turbulent as water, you will not excel,
because you got into your father’s bed
and you defiled it—he got into my bed.
20 Then Absalom said to Ahithophel, “Give me your advice. What should we do?”
21 Ahithophel replied to Absalom, “Sleep with your father’s concubines whom he left to take care of the palace. When all Israel hears that you have become repulsive to your father, everyone with you will be encouraged.” 22 So they pitched a tent for Absalom on the roof, and he slept with his father’s concubines in the sight of all Israel.
2 Samuel 16:20-22 (CSB)
Reflection
In between the stories of Rachel’s death at childbirth and Isaac passing away, we have two sentences of Reuben that are easily skipped over. At some point, we do not know why or exactly when after Rachel’s passing, Reuben decided it was time to take his father’s place as the leader of the tribe of Israel. Bilhah was Rachel’s mistress and the mother of Dan and Naphtali and he slept with her. Reuben is power hungry and wanted to show strength where he feels that his own father failed.
Leviticus 18:8 speaks against this act that Reuben did. He defiled his father’s bed by sleeping with Bilhah. The Bible is clear that by Reuben uncovering his father’s wife, it’s like uncovering Jacob himself. Marriage brings two people together and defiling one is like doing so to the other. It was an egregious act.
Yet, what does Jacob do after hearing of this? The same response he always had; he was unable to deal with conflict. He ran from Esau, he hid when his wives fought, he ran from Laban, he ran from the conflict that ensued after Dinah’s rape, and now he’s still running. He’s unable to confront his own son in this very detestable act.
Jacob retains power in the family, but we do not know how or what happened. Genesis 49 is the only clear reference to any negative outcome. As the firstborn, Reuben was passed over for the blessing which ultimately fell on Judah. Reuben’s defilement of Jacob’s marriage bed removed the promise that would have gone to him. His family line would be unable to excel.
In the same way, we see Absalom, the son of David, try to usurp his father. He did hold power for a very short time and when he did, he defiled his father’s marriage bed by sleeping with his father’s concubines. This was done to show ownership and power. All this was done because David didn’t hold Amnon accountable for raping his half-sister Tamar, Absalom’s sister.
It is clear that the failure to act and meet out justice has even worse consequences then doing what is right from the start.
Application
Jacob is one of the founding father’s of Israel and part of God’s covenant blessing for the nations. Not because of anything he did, but because of his ultimate faith that God will provide and fulfill His own promises. God is always faithful even though we are, at times, faithless.
Jesus is the fulfillment of both grace and truth. He stands for righteousness, justice, and mercy. The perfect balance of goodness. If we are to emulate Jesus, we should be able to both seek justice and also be full of grace. It is a hard balance to strike, but one we can do with the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
Prayer
Father in heaven, You are perfect in so many ways. You both hold us accountable for our sin and also provide us a way out through Jesus’ atoning sacrifice on the cross. Thank You for showing us the consequences of sin and how it affects our lives. Let me seek Your wisdom when dealing with sin, both in my life and that in others. I need Your Holy Spirit to guide me. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.
City Life Starter 
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