Parshas Vayeitzei: The Hishtadlus of Emunah
Parshas Vayeitzei: The Hishtadlu s of Emunah The Torah (30:9) relates that after Leah had her first four children, it became clear to her that she would not immediately have any more children and therefore offered Zilpah, her maidservant, as a wife to Yaakov. This was just after Rachel, in desperation to have children herself, offered her maidservant, Bilhah, to Yaakov to be “built up” through her (30:3) as Sarah had done with Avraham. It is quite understandable why Rachel gave Bilhah to Yaakov. In fact, it was not even her Plan A. She started by demanding Yaakov daven for her to have children as Yitzchok had done for Rivkah. Yaakov responded that he could not daven for an open miracle (as Rachel was physically unable to have children) and that his situation was different from Yitzchok’s because Yaakov already had four children, whereas Yitzchak was davening before he had any children. Rachel then argued that Avraham davened for Sarah even though he already had Yishmael. Yaako