Genesis 29:32-33

29:32 So Leah became pregnant ¹  and gave birth to a son. She named him Reuben, ²  for she said, “The Lord has looked with pity on my oppressed condition. ³  Surely my husband will love me now.”

29:33 She became pregnant again and had another son. She said, “Because the Lord heard that I was unloved, ⁴  he gave me this one too.” So she named him Simeon. ⁵ 

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¹ tn Or “Leah conceived” (also in vv. 33, 34, 35).

² sn The name Reuben (רְאוּבֵן, rÿ’uven) means “look, a son.”

³ tn Heb “looked on my affliction.”

sn Leah’s explanation of the name Reuben reflects a popular etymology, not an exact one. The name means literally “look, a son.” Playing on the Hebrew verb “look,” she observes that the Lord has “looked” with pity on her oppressed condition. See further S. R. Driver, Genesis, 273.

⁴ tn Heb “hated.” See the note on the word “unloved” in v. 31.

⁵ sn The name Simeon (שִׁמְעוֹן, shim’on) is derived from the verbal root שָׁמַע (shama’) and means “hearing.” The name is appropriate since it is reminder that the Lord “heard” about Leah’s unloved condition and responded with pity.