We noted the association drawn by Chazal between two tension-ridden conversations recorded in Sefer Bereishit.  In Parashat Vayetze (30:2), Yaakov responds angrily to Rachel’s demand, “Give me children,” and he retorts, “Am I in the place of God, who has denied you fruit in the womb?”  As the Midrash (Bereishit Rabba 71) notes, this response is reminiscent of Yosef’s comments to his brothers when they beg him to forgive their crimes against him: “Am I in God’s

   The Torah in Parashat Vayetze records the brief, tension-ridden exchange between Yaakov and Rachel in the wake of Rachel’s inability to conceive.  Rachel, who remained childless while her sister, Leah, bore several children in immediate succession to one another, confronts Yaakov and demands, “Give me children, for if not, [it is as though] I am dead!” (30:1).  Yaakov angrily retorts, “Am I in the place of God, who has denied you fruit in the womb?”

      We read in Parashat Vayetze of the birth of twelve of Yaakov’s thirteen children – eleven sons, and one daughter.  The birth of Dina, Yaakov’s daughter, is mentioned as the last of Leah’s births.  After telling of the birth of Zevulun, Leah’s sixth son, the Torah writes, “Afterward she [Leah] gave birth to a daughter, and she named her Dina” (30:21).

     The Torah in Parashat Vayetze tells the famous story of Yaakov’s marriage to Leah.  Yaakov and his uncle, Lavan, had arranged that Yaakov would work for him for seven years and then marry his younger daughter, Rachel.  At the time of the wedding, however, Lavan brought Leah, instead of Rachel. The next day, in response to Yaakov’s protest, Lavan agreed to allow Yaakov to marry Rachel, as well, the following week, in exchange for yet another seven years of service.

Lavan assumed – wrongly – that Yaakov would be gratified to hear the oracle’s proclamation that he possesses some magical power that brought blessing to Lavan’s flocks.  Yaakov had a healthy enough self-esteem to be able to disregard Lavan’s shallow compliment.  

Two unconventional explanations of the relationship between Rachel and Leah are presented - one about the tone of the story of the Dudaim, and the other about the circumstances of Yaakov's marriage.

    The Torah in Parashat Vayetze tells of Yaakov’s arrival in Charan, where he would spend the next twenty years with his uncle and father-in-law, Lavan.  Yaakov first arrived at the well outside the city, and soon thereafter, he saw Rachel, his cousin who shepherded her father’s sheep, bringing the flock to the well.  The Torah relates, “When Yaakov saw Rachel, the daughter of Lavan, his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Lavan, his mother’s brother, Yaakov went ahead and rolled the stone off the mouth of the well and watered the sheep of Lavan, his mother’s brother” (29:10).

    The Torah in Parashat Vayetze tells of Yaakov’s arrival in Charan, where he would spend the next twenty years with his uncle and father-in-law, Lavan.  Yaakov first arrived at the well outside the city, and soon thereafter, he saw Rachel, his cousin who shepherded her father’s sheep, bringing the flock to the well.  The Torah relates, “When Yaakov saw Rachel, the daughter of Lavan, his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Lavan, his mother’s brother, Yaakov went ahead and rolled the stone off the mouth of the well and watered the sheep of Lavan, his mother’s brother” (29:10).

            Toward the end of Parashat Vayetze, we read of the formal pact made by Yaakov and Lavan in Gilead.  Yaakov and his family left Lavan’s home without informing him, and Lavan pursued and ultimately caught up to Yaakov’s family at Gilead.  The two decided to make a formal treaty and pledged never to harm one another.  Afterward, the Torah relates, “Lavan returned to his place.  And Yaakov went along his way, and angels of God met him” (32:1-2).

"וַיִּתְפַּלֵּל אֶל ה' וַיֹּאמַר אָנָּה ה' הֲלוֹא זֶה דְבָרִי עַד הֱיוֹתִי עַל אַדְמָתִי עַל כֵּן קִדַּמְתִּי לִבְרֹחַ תַּרְשִׁישָׁה כִּי יָדַעְתִּי כִּי אַתָּה אֵל חַנּוּן וְרַחוּם אֶרֶךְ אַפַּיִם וְרַב חֶסֶד וְנִחָם עַל הָרָעָה" (יונה ד', ב)

פרקי דרבי אליעזר (היגר) - "חורב" פרק ט