Genesis 29:16
ESV
Now Laban had two daughters. The name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel.
NIV
Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel.
NASB
Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel.
CSB
Now Laban had two daughters: the older was named Leah, and the younger was named Rachel.
NLT
Now Laban had two daughters. The older daughter was named Leah, and the younger one was Rachel.
KJV
And Laban had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel.
NKJV
Now Laban had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel.
What does Genesis 29:16 mean?
After Jacob had lived with him for a month (Genesis 29:14), Laban approached Jacob to ask what wages his nephew would want to stay on with Laban and continue to work for him. Apparently, he was impressed with the work Jacob was doing or he just liked having him around.Before telling us Jacob's response, the story backs up to add some characters to the plot. Laban had two daughters. Leah is the older of the two. The text has already introduced Rachel, the younger sister and a shepherdess (Genesis 29:6–9). Since Isaac had sent Jacob to marry one of Laban's daughters (Genesis 28:1–2), Jacob must have been considering these two since arriving at Laban's household.
We're told very little about the women, other than a brief idea of their physical appearance. Unfortunately for Leah, she is not as attractive as her younger sister, nor will she be loved by Jacob (Genesis 29:17–18).
