Playing Second Fiddle is a Bummer!
Just ask Leah
The Bible teaches us to honor and put others first before ourselves, but playing second fiddle to others can be hurtful. It happens in any relationship. A parent may favor one child over another. A spouse may favor a possession or hobby over their partner. And we have all heard about teacher’s pets.
Leah, the weak-eyed sister of beautiful Rachel, had to play second fiddle. Both were married to Jacob, but Jacob only loved Rachel. In the book of Genesis, Rachel is described as “beautiful and well-favored” (Genesis 29:17). Leah is described as being “tender-eyed”. What exactly does this mean? Bible scholars have been puzzling over Leah’s eyes for centuries. If you ask me, because there is a “but” in the verse, it most likely means that Leah was nothing special to look at.
Leah must have hated playing second fiddle to her sister because they were married to Jacob. Still, God blessed her with children. Verse 30:1 tells us “Rachel envied her sister” because she didn’t have children. Now, the tables are turned. Rachel sends her handmaid Bilhah to have relations with Jacob so she can get pregnant and claim the child as her own.
Talk about a dysfunctional family.
Rachel does have children in the end. Joseph is her most famous son, and Benjamin comes along after him. Rachel dies as she gives birth to her second son. Joseph becomes the most favored of Jacob’s twelve sons, and the dysfunctional dynamic never leaves the family.
Favoritism and envy can destroy relationships. My grandparents favored me because I was the oldest grandchild. However, I was the least favored of my parents. Was I envious? I was when I was younger, but as I got older, I stopped caring. I knew I was the oddball in my family, and my parents never tried to understand me. I was always writing and reading, and spent a lot of time alone. My parents loved me in their way, but never tried to “get” me. All that is behind me now.
Many people I know have said that favoritism and envy destroyed relationships in their lives. Yes, we are to honor and put others first before ourselves, but we can’t pick favorites, and we can’t settle for second best either. Jesus died to give us a full, abundant life (John 10:10). That means living our best life for Him, and not playing second fiddle to anyone. Because, to Jesus, we are all number one!