“And when Rachel saw that she bare Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister; and said unto Jacob, Give me children, or else I die.”
When Rachel saw that she was not bearing Jacob any children, she became jealous of her sister. So she said to Jacob: give me children, or I'll die! The barrenness that characterizes the covenant wives through the patriarchal narratives appears now in Rachel's life. Her demand — give me children — is the demand directed at the wrong person: Jacob is not God. 1 Samuel 1:5-6 records Hannah's similar distress. The application: the demand for life-giving directed at another person cannot be satisfied by that person. Only the God who opens and closes the womb can give what Rachel demands.
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