Bilhah

בִּלְהָה/BIL-hah/

“Faltering, or bashful”

Summary

Rachel's handmaid whom she gave to Jacob as a concubine, becoming the mother of Dan and Naphtali; also the name of a town in Simeon.

☩Rachel's Handmaid

Bilhah was the handmaid whom Laban gave to his daughter Rachel. When Rachel remained childless, she gave Bilhah to Jacob as a concubine, saying 'that I may also have children by her.' Through Bilhah, Jacob fathered Dan and Naphtali. Later, Jacob's firstborn Reuben committed incest with Bilhah, an act for which Jacob rebuked him on his deathbed, resulting in Reuben losing his birthright privileges.

Key verses:Genesis 29:29Genesis 30:1-8Genesis 35:22Genesis 49:4

☩Town in Simeon

A place called Bilhah was assigned to the tribe of Simeon. It is the same place called Balah in Joshua 19:3 and Baalah in Joshua 15:29.

Key verses:1 Chronicles 4:29Joshua 19:3Joshua 15:29

Related Verses13 mentions

Genesis· 10 verses

29:29 30:3 30:4 30:5 30:7

1 Chronicles· 2 verses

4:29 7:13

Joshua· 1 verse

19:3

References

1.John McClintock and James Strong, "Bilhah," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. I (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).
2.James Orr (ed.), "Bilhah (1)," in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, vol. I (Howard-Severance Company, 1915).
3.George Morrish, "Bilhah," in Morrish's Concise Bible Dictionary (George Morrish, 1898).