Meaning of the Name Rachel
Rachel is associated with the Hebrew word raḥel, commonly glossed 'ewe' or female sheep. That is the usual lexical explanation, though name etymologies should not be presented with absolute certainty.
Origin
The name Rachel is of Hebrew origin.
Who is Rachel in the Bible?
Rachel is Jacob's wife and the mother of Joseph and Benjamin. She is central to Genesis and later appears as an image of mourning in Jeremiah and Matthew.
The story of Rachel in the Bible
We first meet Rachel at a well near Harran: Jacob sees the young shepherdess, daughter of his uncle Laban, and loves her deeply. He works seven years to marry her, but on the wedding night Laban gives him the elder daughter Leah, so Jacob serves another seven years for Rachel. The narrative does not hide the pain of her long childlessness, woven into the tension between the sisters. At last God remembers her and opens her womb, and Joseph is born. As the family returns toward Canaan, Rachel dies giving birth to Benjamin on the road to Ephrath, that is, Bethlehem, and is buried there; Jacob sets a pillar over her grave. Centuries later the image of Rachel weeping for her children and refusing comfort becomes the voice of her people's grief, and Matthew's Gospel recalls that word when telling of the children killed around Bethlehem. Rachel remains Jacob's beloved wife, mother of Joseph and Benjamin, and a symbol of Israel's memory of motherhood and mourning.
Is Rachel mentioned in the Quran?
The name Rachel does not appear in the Quran, though the story of her son Joseph is well known in Islamic tradition. In the Bible, Rachel appears in Genesis as Jacob's beloved wife and the mother of Joseph and Benjamin.
Verses where Rachel appears
- Genesis 29:16 —
Laban had two daughters. The name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel.
- Genesis 30:22 —
God remembered Rachel, and God listened to her, and opened her womb.
- Matthew 2:18 —
“A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children; she wouldn’t be comforted, because they are no more.”