ssau and Jacob. She favored her righteous son Jacob and helped guide him in outmaneuvering his brother Essau to receive the special blessing. Here Rebecca is shown as a woman who will intervene in order to help the righteous to succeed. Rachel, beloved wife of Isaac, is seen as a "symbol of the distressed Jewish nation" (Ghatan 4). Anguished that the innocent Jewish children will die at the hands of their enemies, Rachel pleads with God to have mercy upon these innocents. The children are saved by being driven out of Israel into exile and Rebecca is recalled by grateful Jews as self-sacrificing and concerned about others (Ghaten 4). When her own father attempted to trick her future husband Jacob into marrying her older sister, Rachel shares the secret password with her sibling rather than having her publicly shamed. Here loyalty and fidelity are drawn as character traits nearly synonomous with the virtuous Jewish woman.
Sarach, daughter of Asher, is also shown to be wise and considerate. When Jacob's sons return after searching for their lost
...