“…Now will I praise…”—-Gen.29:35

“And she conceived again, and bare a son: and she said, ‘Now will I praise the LORD:’ therefore she called his name Judah; and left bearing.”—- We need to place this in context to understand. Leah was the wife of Jacob whose name would be changed to Israel for he would be the father of the twelve tribes. Jacob had been deceived by his father-in-law, and tricked into marrying the “ugly” sister Leah before he could marry the one he loved and betrothed to, Rachel. — God saw that Jacob was showing love to Rachel and not Leah. When God saw this He opened the womb of Leah, and He closed the womb of Rachel (temporarily). So, yeah, add that to the list of things God can do. She has three boys, one right after another, and each name had significant meaning. All dealt with her pain of feeling unloved by her husband. In her heart she thought the ability to bare children would draw Jacob to love her, as Rebekah continued to be shut out. —- In the end, she realized that it was God who loved her, as she had the fourth son and named him “praise” (Judah). We can look for the love and praise of men, but God is the source of love. Look to Him first, He is always the right place to find love.— Footnote: of the eventual twelve sons that Jacob’s wives would have, Leah only had four, but two were the most prominent (Levi and Judah). The Messiah came from the lineage of the ugly sister. —- God knows your heart. Take your gripes to Him today.