Is Polygamy Really Biblical? So the final birth order of Jacob's thirteen children by these four women was: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebulun, Dinah, Joseph, and Benjamin. They shall be on the head of Joseph, And on the crown of the head of him that was separate from his brethren. Joseph was brought from prison to interpret the king's dream. What does Ex 22:16-17 tell us about the rape of Dinah in Genesis, Episode 164: Purim 2023Honor, Shame and Two Brave Queens, Episode 163: Sociology IIReligion, Weird Science, and Practical Linguistics, Episode 162 Sociology I: Groupthink, Holy/Profane and Clean/Unclean, Episode 161: The Advent of John the Baptist in Luke, Episode 160: Special Teaching #1The Advent of the Messiah in Matthew, Challenging the "Everything is Pagan" Meme Culture, Infertility, Barreness, Miscarriage, Stillbirth and Child Loss. 2. Your email address will not be published. How many wives did Abraham have? Was Joseph married before Mary? | GotQuestions.org The Bible states that this name was given to Jacob as by God later in his life: "And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed." (Genesis 32:28 . He stored up in Egypt all the gold and silver of the world, and it was carried away by the Israelites when they left Egypt. Leah was "Tender Eyed". She also bore Benjamin and was a faithful wife to Jacob. As for kings marriages were largely about political alliances (especially with David who was shoring up support with the various tribes as well as maintaining his connection with Sauls royal line), except for Solomon, who was. He withdrew to his chambers and wept. Later we read, "His . Known best for his coat of "many colors" and his God-given ability to interpret dreams, Joseph was sold into slavery by his jealous half-brothers. Joseph ordered the steward to go after the brothers and to question them about the "missing" silver cup. [32], Jewish tradition holds that Joseph had his steward plant his personal silver cup in Benjamin's sack to test his brothers. He even forced them to throw out their babies to die. It simply was a rarity. The two halves of Manasseh were often treated as two separate units in the biblical account. The family prostrated before him hence the fulfilment of his dream aforetime.[52]. Elkannah had two women but again, one of them was barren so I suspect that Peninah was a concubine. He is the founder of the Israelite Tribe of Joseph. The true faith in Jesus Christ stands the test and wins victory. 13When they went the second time Joseph was recognized by his brothers, and Josephs origins were revealed to Pharaoh. (Acts 7:9-13). There Jacob worked for Laban, fathered eleven sons and daughter, Dinah, (Gen. 35:22-26; 46:15), and amassed livestock and wealth. The latter third of the book of Genesis relates the complex and vola- tile relationship of the patriarch Jacob, his four wives, and their thirteen children (twelve sons, one daughter). As for kings - marriages were largely about political alliances (especially with . But Israel refused saying, "but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he," a declaration he made just as Israel himself was to his firstborn brother Esau. Here is the list lifted from my answer to Who was Joseph in the Bible? Jacob did not wholly believe that Joseph was dead, because he could not forget him, while the dead are soon forgotten. The money they had brought was double what they had offered on the first trip. From the various midrashim, a wondrous story emerges: You see, when Shechem abducted Dinah, she became pregnant with his child. And Joseph brought a bad report of them to their father. The Bible tells us twice that Jacob had daughters. I have written six books on the ancient Near Eastern and First Century context of Scripture, including a family curriculum series. The eleventh son of Jacob and elder of the two sons Rachel (Genesis 30:23, 24). The sons by . "[43] The story has a lot in common with the biblical narrative, but with certain differences. The Persian poet Firdowsi wrote an epic on this subject. When Joseph and his mother bowed to Esau (Gen. 33:7), Joseph shielded his mother with his body (Targ. It starts with the 12 tribes and ends with the 12 gates with 12 pearls representing the tribes and the 12 kinds of fruit. 14 Facts About Esau Everyone Should Know - Chabad.org Rachel is his mom, one of them gasped. He was the first of the two sons of Jacob and Rachel (Jacob's twelfth child and eleventh son). The Gadites would later be described as, "brave warriors, ready for battle and able to handle the shield and spear. Upon their return to Egypt, the steward of Joseph's house received the brothers. So Joseph supplied them Egyptian transport wagons, new garments, silver money, and twenty additional donkeys carrying provisions for the journey. Joseph had good reasons not to have an affair with Potiphar's wife: he did not want to abuse his master's trust; he believed in the sanctity of marriage; and it went against his ethical, moral and religious principles taught to him by his father Jacob. [54], This article is about the Joseph of the Book of Genesis. [5], In rabbinic tradition, he is considered the ancestor of a second Messiah called "Mashiach ben Yosef", who will wage war against the forces of evil alongside Mashiach ben David and die in combat with the enemies of God and Israel. She was no longer the mother of all of Jacobs children Rachel had a child now and she was the one who was truly regarded, by Jacob, as his wife. In the Bible, the name Joseph was first mentioned as the eleventh son of Jacob, and the The musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is about Joseph's story. Indeed the name Potiphar may even be a version of Merenptah's name (Poti = Ptah, Phar = Pharaoh). How many Josephs are there in the Bible? - Quora Am happy to have read this. : > 1. In Egypt, Joseph's character was antithetical to that of all the other slaves. When the steward caught up with the brothers, he seized them and searched their sacks. The word used by for echad in the LXX (Septuagint, the authorized Greek translation of the Tanach OT) and the NT (ie. 1653. yosef] to me another son." According to the Documentary Hypothesis Joseph's toy is a combination of two or more versions which were later combined into the current narrative. How many children did Jacob have? 15 So Jacob went down to Egypt; and he died, he and our fathers. Thus, Israel was able to bless the Pharaoh. [51] The remaining verses describe the migration of Jacob's family to Egypt and the emotional meeting of Jacob and his long lost son, Joseph. selling him to an Ishmaelite trade caravan. Yes, the Bible does indicate that Jacob had more than one daughter. Jacob lives in Egypt for seventeen years after his arrival (Genesis 47:28). Prophets of Allah - Prophet Jacob: 'Honourable and the son of the Here, Potiphar's wife (called Zuleika in later tradition) tried to seduce Joseph, which he refused. Although this very well may offend our modern sensibilities, Zilpah and Bilhah had a better life than they had hoped for, in the end. Full Bible Timeline - section on the life of Jacob. Joseph is regarded as a saint by several Christian churches, including the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod, which commemorates him as a patriarch on March 31. He admonished and forgave them, he sent also his garment which healed the patriarch's eyes as soon as it was cast unto his face. (Exodus 13:19) The bones were buried at Shechem, in the parcel of ground which Jacob bought from the sons of Hamor (Joshua 24:32), which has traditionally been identified with site of Joseph's Tomb, before Jacob and all his family moved to Egypt. The house of Israel acquired many possessions and multiplied exceedingly during the course of seventeen years, even through the worst of the seven-year famine. Who was Leah's 4th son? Later we will learn a lot more about Joseph, because he became a very important person. ", "The bones of Joseph which the children of Israel had brought up from the land of Egypt, they buried at Shechem in the plot of ground that Jacob had purchased from the sons of Hamor". According to the biblical account, Joseph was the son of Jacob by Rachel, the patriarch's favorite wife (Gen. 30:23, 24), who, on the occasion of Joseph's birth, said, "The Lord shall add [Heb. Joseph's brothers were motivated by fear. How old was Benjamin when Joseph was sold into slavery? - JesusAlive.cc God punished him, therefore, by setting against him Potiphar's wife (Gen. R. 87:3). How movie 'Shakespeare in Love' almost fell apart when original star I have questioned this over the years, but didnt understand the cultural context as well as you have laid out. Confronting Pseudo-archaeological memes Pt 4: Was Byblos the Goddess of Writing? [18] After two more years, the Pharaoh dreamt of seven lean cows which devoured seven fat cows; and of seven withered ears of grain which devoured seven fat ears. But Joseph had taken Mary to be his wife (Matthew 1:20), and there is no suggestion that her role as Joseph's wife was in any way different from the role of any other wife. And as for Jacob, he never intended to have any other wife but Rachel and only ended up in this polygamous situation because of trickery he chose to be a polygamist because it would seem that a man who was willing to work a grand total of fourteen years for a woman evidently could not imagine living without her. This family, with its sordid history of deceit, jealousy, and . According to Josephus, Reuben tied a cord around Joseph and let him down gently into the pit. At the end of that period, the Pharaoh had a strange dream which none of his advisers could interpret. Isaac and Rebecca's son Jacob was sent there to avoid the wrath of his brother Esau. The cupbearer took this opportunity to inform the king of Joseph's gift and recommended his services. When the Vizier (Joseph) appeared, they gave him gifts from their father. At their first meeting, the brothers did not recognize him. The younger daughter of Laban and wife of Jacob, Rachel is the mother of Joseph and Benjamin, who become two of the twelve tribes of Israel ( Gen 35:24; Gen 46:15-18). They betrayed him by. However, Joseph was displeased that his father's right hand was not on the head of his firstborn, so he switched his father's hands. When Rachel did not have any children, she became upset. Zilpah bore Jacob his seventh and eighth sons, Gad and Asher. After his phenomenal rise to power, as he is passing through the street one day, his attention is attracted by a beggar woman whose bearing shows traces of former greatness. [50] He thus charged his sons to go and inquire about Joseph and his brother and despair not of God's mercy. Jacob also had some daughters, but the Bible gives the name of only one of them. After being beaten by his brethren, Joseph was thrown by Simeon into a pit, among serpents and scorpions; but Joseph prayed to God and the reptiles retired to their holes (Targ. Joseph was made a ruler over Egypt second to Pharoah. Joseph disguised his identity and devised a plot to bring the rest of the family to him: He accused them of being spies and imprisoned them for three days. Because Joseph the Dreamer predicts the future by analyzing dreams, alternative Jewish tradition claims that he practiced divination using this silver cup as the steward charged[33] and as Joseph himself claimed in Genesis 44:15.[34]. These dreams, implying his supremacy, angered his brothers (Genesis 37:111) and made the brothers plot his demise. For the New Testament Joseph, see, Another possible translation is "coat with long sleeves" (. In Genesis 29:31-30:24 the birth of twelve of Jacob's children is recorded. The later reunion of Joseph with Jacob (Israel), though anti-climactic after two previous reunions with his brothers, is one of the most poignant in the Bible. Her father contracted with her husbands father that she would be a wife in that house, that she would provide heirs to the house who would have rights to his share of the inheritance. Then Israel laid his left hand on the eldest Mannasseh's head and his right hand on the youngest Ephraim's head and blessed Joseph. Short answer: Jacob worked 7 years for Laban before he married his two wives, Leah and Rachel.Long answer: Jacob worked 7 years to pay . Later, Joseph became Potiphar's personal servant, and subsequently his household's superintendent. 13. When Jacob calls his wives to him in Gen thirty-one only Leah and Rachel are named. Glad to hear from you Brian, I have received many heartbreaking messages from women whose husbands seem to think they can force them into this lifestyle when they havent even bothered to look at whether or not the reasons that existed then still exist now, which of course they do not. which references passages that point to Jacob having "daughters" (plural, more than one) such as Genesis 37:34-35. The story of Joseph or Yusuf as it is told in Arabic literature has the same general outlines as the Biblical narrative; but in the Arabic account there is a wealth of accessory detail and incident. What does religion have to say about artificial intelligence? - Los Though Manasseh was the older brother, Jacob placed his right hand on Ephraim, the younger, and gave him the greater blessing. The archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him: But his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the Mighty God of Jacob (From thence is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel), Even by the God of your father who shall help thee; and by the Almighty who shall bless thee With blessings of heaven above, Blessings of the deep that lieth under, Blessings of the breasts and of the womb. This caused a stir amongst the brothers. Rav Huna adds one more sale by concluding that after the Medanites sold him to the Egyptians, a fifth sale occurred when the Egyptians sold him to Potiphar. JOSEPH. Through his father, he also has six half-brothers: Dan and Naphtali (whose . One tradition holds that Jacob's other children came into the world only for Joseph's sake. in accordance with New World Encyclopedia standards. So they named this spot Abel Mizraim. This article abides by terms of the Creative Commons CC-by-sa 3.0 License (CC-by-sa), which may be used and disseminated with proper attribution. When he regained control of himself, he returned and ordered a meal to be served. When we look at Jacobs situation, the >description< of it and how much sorrow and dysfunction followed, it's not for us to overlook all that and consider it as a prescription to do to our own family! Then Israel called all of his sons in and prophesied their blessings or curses to all twelve of them in order of their ages. However, they agreed to be escorted back to Egypt. They were directed into the province of Goshen and Joseph readied his chariot to meet his father there. Jacob is between 130 and 147 years old. [24] Its redaction history may have included a first "Reuben version" originating in the northern kingdom of Israel and intended to justify the domination by the "house of Joseph" over the other tribes, this was followed by a later "Judah-expansion" (chapters 38 and 49) elevating Judah as the rightful successor to Jacob, and finally various embellishments so that the novella would function as the bridge between the Genesis and the story of Moses and the Exodus.[25]. What Leah knew was that her husband, although she had given him many sons, had no regard for her Jewish tradition even states that Jacob moved to Bilhahs tent after the death of Rachel (I dont think he ever got over that anger from the morning after the wedding). Answer (1 of 13): There are thirteen persons in the Bible who bear the name Joseph. After Jacob's death, Joseph received the Pharaoh's permission to travel with a great caravan to Canaan in order to bury the patriarch. Because the Pharaoh had such a high regard for Joseph, practically making him his equal,[23] it had been an honor to meet his father. [a] When Joseph was seventeen years old, he shared with his brothers two dreams he had had: in the first dream, Joseph and his brothers gathered bundles of grain, of which those his brothers gathered, bowed to his own. He persuaded them to throw Joseph into a pit and secretly planned to rescue him later. The shrine called Joseph's Tomb in Nablus/Shechem is traditionally considered to be his tomb. 14. Who was Jacob's first wife? [c] Thereafter the guilty brothers painted goat's blood on Joseph's coat and showed it to Jacob, who therefore believed Joseph had died (Genesis 37:1235). So they immediately informed the steward of what had transpired. Joseph, being seventeen years old, was pasturing the flock with his brothers. Did Jacob have 4 wives? "Give me children, or I shall die," she says to Jacob (Genesis 30:1). Biblical context is very much important. Tsaphenath Paneach", "Allusions to the Joseph Narrative in the Synoptic Gospels and Acts: Foundations of a Biblical Type", The Story of Joseph in the Babi and Baha'i Faiths, "The New Media Bible: Book of Genesis (Video 1979)", "Jewish religious life in the Persian period", The Composition of Genesis 37: Incoherence and Meaning in the Exposition of the Joseph Story, "The Odyssey and the myth of Joseph; Autolykos and Jacob", "Strange Bedfellows: Politics and Narrative in Philo", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joseph_(Genesis)&oldid=1142074895, 1979, New Media Bible Genesis Project (TV)-cap. Esau took a third wife to please his father Isaac (Genesis 28:6-9). In the time of the Exodus, Serah, daughter of Asher, showed Moses where the coffin was sunk. The motif of dreams/dream interpretation contributes to a strong story-like narrative. Old and nearly blind, Jacob is overwhelmed with joy, saying: "I never expected to see your face again, and now God has allowed me to see your children too" (Gen 48:11). Jacob, before he died, blessed each of his sons and two of his grandsons, the two sons of Joseph. Joseph became the slave of Potiphar a very high official in Egypt. 11Then a famine came over all the land of Egypt and Canaan, causing great affliction. How many wives did Joseph have in the Old Testament? The Lutheran ChurchMissouri Synod commemorates him as a patriarch on 31 March. The Amidah and the New Testament I: Long Prayers and Vain Repetitions? Jacob, Hebrew Yaaqov, Arabic Yaqb, also called Israel, Hebrew Yisrael, Arabic Isrl, Hebrew patriarch who was the grandson of Abraham, the son of Isaac and Rebekah, and the traditional ancestor of the people of Israel. More rabbinical literature has been generated concerning him than any of the other sons of Jacob, and he is also a significant figure in Islamic tradition. [47] But in Islam they returned leaving behind Benjamin because the mizzen bowl of the king was found in his bag. . What about the Ethiopian woman that Moses took as a wife in Numbers 12:1? The Priestly source adds some statistics and gives a list of the people who went down to Egypt, while a later editor has supplied details to make the accounts appear as one, such as Joseph's subterfuge of sending the brothers back to Canaan first to get Benjamin, and later to get Jacob. In an essay posted without fanfare to its website in late October, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints said for the first time that Joseph Smith, founder of the Mormon church, had as many as 40 wives. 118b); they were given to lust, while Joseph was chaste and resisted temptation. The sons by Leah (Jacob's first wife) were: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun. 1. At this time, Joseph's father was 147 years old and bedridden. In analyzing Genesis Chapter 37, there are five different Hebrew names used to describe five different groups of people involved in the transaction of selling Joseph, according to Rabbi Judah and Rav Huna. Joseph is represented as a perfectly righteous man (tzadik gamur) and as the counterpart of his father Jacob. (Genesis 47:147:12) The family was then settled in Goshen. Why Were the Sons of Jacob Chosen to Be the 12 Tribes of Israel? 34), and a whole chapter Yusuf (sura xii.) Cindy Crawford's son Presley Gerber, 23, opens up about 'mistakes' he made during his battle with depression: 'I feel like it should be talked about a lot more than it is' Then he prepared a great ceremonial journey to Canaan leading the servants of the Pharaoh, and the elders of the houses Israel and Egypt beyond the Jordan River. The first group identified, are Joseph's brothers when Judah brings up the idea of selling Joseph in verses 26 and 27. Joseph's story is recounted in some detail in the New Testament, during Saint Stephen's speech before the Sandhedrin in Acts 7. Moses, led there by an ancient holy woman named Serach, was able by a miracle to raise the sarcophagus and to take it with him at the time of the Exodus. The cup-bearer's dream was about a vine with three branches that was budding. Joseph is 56 and Benjamin is about 40. Notify me of followup comments via e-mail. Jacob's daughters, like too many Bible women, often go unnamed, are mentioned only in passing, or both. Did Joseph Marry Out? - Chabad.org (Genesis 37:35, Common English Bible). You can also subscribe without commenting. He then sent them away with grain, retaining Simeon as a hostage (Gen. 42:1-25), while ordering them not to return without Benjamin, the only one of his brothers born of Joseph's own mother, Rachel. In the Elohist version it is Rueben intervenes on Joseph's behalf, while in the Yahwist version it is Judah that saves him. Joseph is commemorated as one of the Holy Forefathers in the Calendar of Saints of the Armenian Apostolic Church on 26 July. popularly referred to as a "coat of many colors." For example, just before his death he predicted that God would visit the children of Israel and lead them out of Egypt and into the promised land. During the seven years of abundance, Joseph ensured that the storehouses were full and that all produce was weighed. Scripture doesn't tell us much about Asenath, the wife of Joseph, the son of Jacob. How many sons did Jacob have with bilhah? The story concludes by Joseph praying, "My lord you have indeed bestowed upon me of the sovereignty and taught me something of the interpretation of dreams- the (only) creator of heavens and the earth! After the (presumed) death of Joseph, we read, "All of his [Jacob's] sons and daughters got up to comfort him . To Joseph, he gave a portion more of Canaanite property than he had to his other sons; land that he fought for against the Amorites. His story functions as an explanation for Israel's residence in Egypt. They were rapacious, while Joseph never enjoyed anything that was not his (Zeb. The text says that they are Jacobs wives, and yet wives would retain ownership over their own children, so how can they be actual wives?. The story of Joseph's near seduction by his master's wife bears a marked similarity to the Egyptian story of the Tale of Two Brothers, which was popular at the time of Pharaoh Seti II. 'He shall add';[1] Standard: Ysef, Tiberian: Ysp; alternatively: ,[2][3] lit. Joseph understood what they were saying and removed himself from their presence because he was caught in emotion. Because the 12 sons of Jacob became the 12 tribesGod's covenantal peoplethe 12 stones on the high priest's breastplate of course represent God's promise to them ( Genesis 28:12-15 ). Joseph was born the 11 th of 12 sons to his father Jacob. The majority opinion of the rabbis is that Joseph always kept in mind his father and brothers. I think Ill stick with my one wife (Staci) of 23 years. Paul even specifically said that male leadership within the Body was to be limited to those men who only had one wife (I Tim 3:2, 12; Titus 1:6). The story of Joseph also inspired the popular autobiographical song "Coat of Many Colors," written and recorded early in the career of country icon.