What work has Rachel done for which she will be rewarded?

The Lord responds to Rachel’s weeping with words of comfort. Keep your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears. The time for sadness is over, the Lord will turn their mourning into joy (Jeremiah 31:13) for there is a reward for your work. The work referred to here is probably the work of bearing children and weeping for them. The reward is that the Lord will bring them back from the land of the enemy¹. There is therefore great hope for the future of Rachel’s descendants because your children will come back to their own country. Rachel’s story of tragedy is ultimately turned into one of hope and joy because of the Lord’s faithfulness and her story is indeed the story of Israel.