Psalm 45, verses 6 and 7 of which are applied to Christ Jesus by the apostle Paul (Heb. 1:8, 9), contains the statement: “In place of your forefathers there will come to be your sons, whom you will appoint as princes in all the earth.” (Ps. 45:16) Of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, men in Christ’s ancestral line of descent, it is written: “In faith all these died, although they did not get the fulfillment of the promises, but they saw them afar off and welcomed them.” (Heb. 11:8-10, 13) Since the rule of Christ involves an “administration . . . to gather all things together again . . . the things in the heavens and the things on the earth” (Eph. 1:10), this allows for his having, not only subordinate kings and priests in heaven (Rev. 20:6), but also ‘princely’ representatives on earth carrying out the king’s directions. (Compare Hebrews 2:5, 8.) Isaiah 32:1, 2 is clearly part of a Messianic prophecy and describes the benefits rendered by such “princes” under the Kingdom rule.—See CHIEFTAIN; RULER.

LEAH

(Leʹah) [perhaps, weary, or, wild cow].

The older daughter of Laban, the grandnephew of Abraham. Leah was Jacob’s cousin, Laban being the brother of Rebekah, Jacob’s mother. (Gen. 22:20-23; 24:24, 29; 29:16) Leah was not as beautiful as her younger sister Rachel, it especially being noted that her eyes lacked luster, or were dull or weak. (Gen. 29:17) In the case of Oriental women, bright or lustrous eyes especially are considered to be an evidence of beauty.—Compare Song of Solomon 1:15; 4:9; 7:4.

Leah became Jacob’s first wife because Laban deceived Jacob when at night he gave her to Jacob as a wife instead of Rachel, whom Jacob loved. Jacob protested his being tricked, but Laban argued that it was not the custom of the place to give the younger daughter in marriage before the firstborn. (Gen. 29:18-26) Leah likely was veiled, in keeping with the ancient Oriental custom of heavily veiling a prospective bride, and this doubtless contributed to the success of the ruse. Jacob had served seven years with Rachel in mind, but for this work he received Leah. Rachel was granted to him after he celebrated a week of seven days with Leah, but Jacob had to work seven more years to pay for Rachel.—Gen. 29:27, 28.

The account tells us that Leah was “hated.” (Gen. 29:31, 33) But it also recounts that, after he had finally gotten Rachel, Jacob “expressed more love for Rachel than for Leah.” (Gen. 29:30) Undoubtedly Jacob did not hold malicious hatred for Leah, but viewed Rachel more lovingly, as his favorite wife. He continued to care for Leah and to have relations with her. Leah’s being “hated,” therefore, would merely mean that Jacob loved her less than Rachel.—See HATE.

Leah became the mother of seven of Jacob’s children, his six sons Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar and Zebulun and a daughter, Dinah. (Gen. 29:32-35; 30:16-21) Accordingly, Leah is named at Ruth 4:11 along with Rachel as one of those who “built the house of Israel.” Leah had the honor of having borne Levi, who became the founder of Israel’s priestly tribe, and Judah, who became the father of the nation’s royal tribe.

Leah and her children accompanied Jacob when he left Paddan-aram and returned to Canaan, the land of his birth. (Gen. 31:11-18) Before Jacob met Esau en route, he protectively divided off the children to Leah and to Rachel and their maidservants, putting the maidservants and their children foremost, followed by Leah and her children, with Rachel and Joseph to their rear. (Gen. 33:1-7) Leah’s children accompanied Jacob into Egypt, but the Bible account does not say that she did so. (Gen. 46:15) The time, place and circumstances of her death are not furnished, but she may have died in Canaan. Whatever the case, the patriarch had her body taken to the family burial place, the cave in the field of Machpelah. Jacob’s instructions respecting his own remains show that it was his desire to be buried where Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, and Leah had been buried.—Gen. 49:29-32.

LEAVEN

A substance added to dough or liquids to cause fermentation, especially a portion of fermenting dough preserved for baking purposes. This type of leavening agent is specified by the Hebrew word s^eʼorʹ (“sour dough” [Ex. 12:15]) and by the Greek word zy’me (“leaven” [Luke 13:21]). A leavened thing is designated by the Hebrew word hha·metsʹ.—Lev. 2:11.

Wine, the fermented juice of grapes or other fruit, has long been known to mankind. Of course, wine ferments without the addition of leaven.

Beer, which requires a leavening agent for its production, was made by the early Egyptians, and they baked both leavened and unleavened bread. The Hebrews were likely familiar with “wheat beer.” (Isa. 1:22; Hos. 4:18, NW; Lexicon in Veteris Testamenti Libros by L. Koehler and W. Baumgartner, p. 646) Wild yeast such as might be obtained from the spores of certain fungus growths may have served as one of the leavening agents for these products. Excavations in Egypt have yielded porous bread containing dead yeast cells. The Egyptians are also said to have used natron (sodium carbonate) in making bread. Sodium carbonate would not bring about the process of fermentation as did sour dough, but it would provide gas bubbles to make the bread rise. In Egypt, as in Israel, the primary practice in breadmaking seems to have been to save some dough from a batch, let it ferment and use the resulting sour dough to leaven a fresh batch.

IN GOD’S LAW TO ISRAEL

No grain offering that the Israelites presented by fire to Jehovah was to be made of “a leavened thing.” (Lev. 2:11) However, leaven could be used in connection with thanksgiving communion offerings, in which the offerer voluntarily made the presentation in a spirit of thankfulness for Jehovah’s many blessings. The meal was to be one of cheerfulness; leavened bread was normally eaten on happy occasions. Along with the meat (that is, the animal) offered, and the unfermented cakes, he would bring ring-shaped cakes of leavened bread, which were not put on the altar, but were eaten by the offerer and by the officiating priest.—Lev. 7:11-15.

At the presentation of the firstfruits of the wheat harvest, on the day of Pentecost, the high priest waved before Jehovah two loaves of leavened wheat bread. (Lev. 23:15-21) It is noteworthy that, on Pentecost day, 33 C.E., the first members of the Christian congregation, namely, the disciples of Jesus Christ taken from among the Jews, were anointed with holy spirit. Jesus Christ, as Jehovah’s great High Priest, was able to present before God the first of his spirit-begotten brothers. These were taken from sinful mankind. (Acts 2:1-4, 41) About three years and four months later, the first Gentile converts to Christianity, Cornelius and his household, were anointed with holy spirit, thereby being presented before God. These were likewise from sinful humankind.—Acts 10:24, 44-48; Rom. 5:12.

The festival of unfermented cakes occupied the seven days following Passover day, namely, Abib or Nisan 15-21. During those days nothing leavened nor any sour dough was even to be found in the Israelites’ houses or “seen” with them. (Ex. 12:14-20; 13:6, 7; 23:15) This served to remind them of their hasty deliverance from Egypt by Jehovah’s hand, when they did not have time to wait for their dough to ferment, but, in their hurry, carried it with them along with their kneading troughs.—Ex. 12:34.

SYMBOLIC SIGNIFICANCE

“Leaven” was often used in the Bible to denote sin or corruption. Jesus Christ told his disciples: “Watch out for the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees,”