Lesson_54_Issachar_Zebulun_Dinah

The sister-war takes a very strange turn in Genesis 30. Leah's young son, Reuben, finds mandrakes in the

wheat field. In the ancient world, mandrakes were considered 'magic' fertility roots. Rachel wants them so

badly that she makes a bizarre deal with Leah, trading a night with Jacob in exchange for the plants. The great

irony? Rachel, who ate the 'fertility plant,' remains barren for now, while Leah conceives again and gives birth

to Issachar, Zebulun, and Jacob's only recorded daughter, Dinah! Today, we will explore the science of

mandrakes, the economics of desperation, and the danger of defining our worth by what we produce.