Wikipedia's first sentence called it “second and favorite wife of jacob and mother of joseph and benjamin”. Today it says “hebrew bible figure”.
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Machine-checked against the full current article on 2026-08-03.
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The opening as it read in 2005
She is the younger sister of Leah , Jacob's first wife, and both are daughters of Laban .1Jacob intended to marry her, not Leah, but was tricked by Laban. Jacob accepted this and persevered, working another seven years for Laban to procure his chosen bride as well (see Genesis 29). Then, unable to conceive for many years while her elder sister bore Jacob four sons, she offered her handmaid Bilhah to her husband as was the custom, and named the two sons she bore, indicating they were to be her heirs. But finally, after Leah produced another two sons and a daughter, and Leah's handmaid Zilpah another two sons, Rachel herself bore two sons, dying as a result of the difficult birth of the second. The traditional site of Rachel's tomb is about one mile from Bethlehem and four from Jerusalem , and is a significant site for many Jews . In Jeremiah 31:15 the prophet speaks of 'Rachel weeping for her children' ( KJV ): This is interpreted in Judaism as Rachel crying for her descendants' sufferings and exiles following the destruction of the First Temple in ancient Jerusalem . Judaism does not record any "slaughter" of "Hebrew babies" at that time, as Judaism's Torah teaches in the book of Exodus that it was the Egyptian Pharaoh who issued a decree that Hebrew male infants be drowned during the time of the birth of Moses , the true redeemer of the Jews .2
This is Wikipedia's own text, saved in our repository. Their copy of it is revision 17916605.
The opening as it stood in 2010 7 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Rachel and Jacob by William Dyce Rachel ( Hebrew : רחל , Modern : Raḥel , Tiberian : Rāḫēl, Rāḥēl ; meaning "ewe {idiomatically: one with purity}" ), as described in the Hebrew Bible , is a prophet and the favorite wife of Jacob , one of the three Biblical Patriarchs , and mother of Joseph and Benjamin .She was the daughter of Laban and the younger sister of Leah , Jacob's first wife.Jacob was her first cousin, as Jacob's mother Rebecca was Laban's sister.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 370544757.
The opening as it stood in 2015 2 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Rachel ( Hebrew : רָחֵל , Modern : Rakhél , Tiberian : Rāḥēl , Rahil or Rohail ) was the favorite of Biblical patriarch Jacob 's two wives as well as the mother of Joseph and Benjamin who helped father the twelve tribes of Israel (along with their brothers).The name "Rachel" is from an unused root meaning: "to journey as a ewe that is a good traveller." Rachel was the daughter of Laban and the younger sister of Leah , Jacob's first wife.Jacob was her first cousin and she was the younger niece of Rebekah .
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 668934741.
The opening as it stood in 2020 3 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Biblical character This article is about the biblical figure.Rachel ( ) was a Biblical figure, the favorite of Jacob 's two wives , and the mother of Joseph and Benjamin , two of the twelve progenitors of the tribes of Israel .Rachel's father was Laban .Her older sister was Leah , Jacob's first wife; their mother was Adinah.Her aunt Rebekah was Jacob's mother.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 965297999.
The opening as it stood on October 6, 2023 1 passage from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Biblical character This article is about the biblical figure. Rachel ( ) was a Biblical figure, the favorite of Jacob 's two wives, and the mother of Joseph and Benjamin , two of the twelve progenitors of the tribes of Israel . Rachel's father was Laban . Her older sister was Leah , Jacob's first wife. Her aunt Rebecca was Jacob's mother.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1177164035.
The opening as it stood in 2025
Biblical figure This article is about the biblical figure. Rachel ( Hebrew : רָחֵל , romanized : Rāḥēl , lit. ' ewe ' ) was a Biblical figure, the favorite of Jacob 's two wives, and the mother of Joseph and Benjamin , two of the twelve progenitors of the tribes of Israel . Rachel's father was Laban . Her older sister was Leah , Jacob's first wife. Her aunt Rebecca was Jacob's mother.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1296818272. This is our newest snapshot; the live article may have moved again since.
Today
Wikipedia's first sentence called it “second and favorite wife of jacob and mother of joseph and benjamin”. Today it says “hebrew bible figure”. Read the current article and compare.
2005
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2020
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2025
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What Wikipedia says this is
Every article opens by defining its subject. This one was redefined since 2005, and today's defining sentence is their current revision.
Then
second and favorite wife of jacob and mother of joseph and benjamin
Now
hebrew bible figure
Struck red text is no longer in the article; dotted amber text was rewritten. Every revision id links to Wikipedia's copy; the text shown is our own saved copy. Data: /data. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA; quoted for the record; not affiliated with Wikipedia.
