Mary and Joseph ended up in Bethlehem where the birth took place. They were directed into the province of Goshen and Joseph readied his chariot to meet his father there. The Bible tells us twice that Jacob had daughters. During the seven years of abundance, Joseph ensured that the storehouses were full and that all produce was weighed. These are the generations of Jacob. At the end of that period, the Pharaoh had a strange dream which none of his advisers could interpret. The genealogy of Jesus in the New Testament traces Jesus' ancestry lineally, from Abraham to David, and then from David to Jesus. 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. They also discovered that all of their money sacks still had money in them, and they were dismayed. [32], Jewish tradition holds that Joseph had his steward plant his personal silver cup in Benjamin's sack to test his brothers. Yusuf eventually obtains permission to marry her, she having lost none of her former beauty nor any of her first love for him. They were rapacious, while Joseph never enjoyed anything that was not his (Zeb. Cause me to die as a Muslim and join me with the righteous" (Qur'an 12:101). [35] This tendency is represented in John Chrysostom who said that Joseph's suffering was "a type of things to come",[36] Caesarius of Arles who interpreted Joseph's famous coat as representative of the diverse nations who would follow Christ,[37] Ambrose of Milan who interpreted the standing sheaf as prefiguring the resurrection of Christ,[38] and others. He wanted to know if they would be willing to risk danger in order to save their half brother Benjamin. Tyler Dawn How Many Wives did Jacob Have? 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. Joseph's wife is considered to be an Egyptian. Jacob had 12 sons, at Hebron. 5 Bibliography. The majority of modern scholars agree that the Joseph story is a Wisdom novella constructed by a single author and that it reached its current form in the 5th century BCE at the earliest. R. 14:16). . Jacob is 147 years old. 18A new Pharaoh arose in Egypt, who knew nothing of Joseph. Later, Joseph became Potiphar's personal servant, and subsequently his household's superintendent. Response: We read in Genesis 41:45 that Pharaoh gave Joseph Osnat daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, to be his wife. The merchants, meanwhile, brought Joseph to Egypt, where he was sold to Potiphar, an "officer of Pharaoh's, and captain of the guard" (Gen. 37:36). 84, xl. [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. The narrative also indicates that they went straight to Joseph or were directed to him, even by the Pharaoh himself (Genesis 41:3757). They may have been: (1) the sons of Mary, the mother of Jesus, and Joseph (the most natural inference); (2) sons of the Mary named in Mark 15:40 as "mother of James and Joses", whom Jerome identified with the wife of Clopas and sister of Mary the mother of Jesus; or (3) sons of Joseph by a former marriage. Notify me of followup comments via e-mail. Now Jacob had twelve sons. In the Bible, the name Joseph was first mentioned as the eleventh son of Jacob, and the The story of Yusuf and Zulaikha was a favorite love song in the Near East. Hope that makes sense. arose that night, and took his two wives, his two maidservants1 and his eleven children, and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. It is described in the Quran as the 'best of stories'. It was the first successful production in the career of Andrew Lloyd Webber. He has humbled her (had sexual relations with her) and cannot sell her to another man, he must allow her to go out for nothing (she came in with no dowry). Joseph was brought from prison to interpret the king's dream. The composition of the story can be dated to the period between the 7th century BCE and the third quarter of the 5th century BCE, which is roughly the period to which scholars date the Book of Genesis. Abravanel explains that she had accused other servants of the same crime in the past. Although this very well may offend our modern sensibilities, Zilpah and Bilhah had a better life than they had hoped for, in the end. Despite his wealth, most rabbis represent him as very modest, and was not vain of his power (Ex. Isaac and Rebecca's son Jacob was sent there to avoid the wrath of his brother Esau. 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. 20. In addition to honoring him, there was a strong tendency in the patristic period to view his life as a typological precursor to Christ. To sum up, true Biblical (as well as ancient Near Eastern) polygamy (having more than one wife on purpose) was really limited to Kings, and that was historically for the purpose of creating alliances and safety for the kingdom. It is later mentioned in Genesis 41:50 that before the years of famine, Joseph had two sons with Asenath. The two principle sources are the Yahwist and the Elohist versions, with a few details included as well from the Priestly source. yosef] to me another son." Joseph is represented as a perfectly righteous man (tzadik gamur) and as the counterpart of his father Jacob. Israel (Jacob) agreed to his son's invitation to move to Egypt and began the journey to see Joseph. I want to point out something obvious about Joseph's wife Asenath I think many of us have a tendency to skip over without giving it much thought. Joseph likely also has this status because he is the eldest child of Jacob's favorite (deceased) wife, Rachel . Jacob loved Rachel more than Leah, and this made Leah sad. Joseph was the favorite son of his father, who made him a richly ornamented coat. (obviously would not happen to a wife). No, he had two (and not by his choosing) wives and two concubines four women to whom he was connected through children. The Amidah and the New Testament I: Long Prayers and Vain Repetitions? As Jacob's favorite son, he received from his father a coat of many colors, which made his brothers jealous to . These children are the offspring of four different women, Leah and Rachel, his wives, and Zilpah and Bilhah, their respective handmaids. In the second dream, the sun (father), the moon (mother), and eleven stars (brothers) bowed to Joseph himself. Indeed the name Potiphar may even be a version of Merenptah's name (Poti = Ptah, Phar = Pharaoh). The warden put Joseph in charge of the other prisoners,[14] and soon afterward Pharaoh's chief cup-bearer and chief baker, who had offended the Pharaoh, were thrown into the prison. whoa whoa whoa personal suite? Christian Apologetics & Intelligence Ministry, Tyler Dawn How Many Wives did Jacob Have? Later we will learn a lot more about Joseph, because he became a very important person. Joseph is between 39 and 56 years old. 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. He brought them closer and relayed to them the events that had happened and told them not to fear, that what they had meant for evil, God had meant for good. It has also been suggested that there are similarities between the rise to power of Joseph, and Manethos' tale of Osarseph, who was Syrian born, and rose to be Vizier of Egypt, beginning his career under Pharaoh Merenptah and his son Seti II. 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. And Joseph brought a bad report of them to their father. Joseph And His Brothers, The cultural impact of the Joseph story in early-modern times is discussed in, This page was last edited on 28 February 2023, at 10:50. Of all the sons, Joseph was preferred by his father, who gave him a "long coat of many colors". You are my Guardian in this world and in the Hereafter. The following morning the brothers began their journey back to Canaan. He comforted them and their ties were reconciled. the time has come for the Israelites to be rescued from their oppressors; come up and do not cause us any further delay!" popularly referred to as a "coat of many colors." Both were hated by their brothers. The time of the promises to Abraham spans the generations of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. How many wives did Abraham have? How many wives did Jacob have? He Was the Son of Isaac. The remaining brothers returned to their father in Canaan, and told him all that had transpired in Egypt. The problem lies in the fact that the Hebrew word for wife, isha, is also the generic word for woman (we see this same phenomenon in Greek), and so Bilhah and Zilpah were given to Jacob as women who were there for the express purpose of bearing children otherwise known as concubines. Really Bilhahs and Zilpahs lives would have looked bleak but they would have accepted it as their lot in life in ancient times people firmly believed that their conditions and station in life were pre-determined by the gods and hardly worth complaining about or trying to get out of. Joseph and Asenath. [28] Impressed with Joseph's interpretations, Pharaoh appoints him as second-in-command (Gen 41:41). They shall be on the head of Joseph, And on the crown of the head of him that was separate from his brethren. J. M. Sel. Part of the problem with that verse is that it is almost always separated from the context of the verses before it the case of the woman taken as a prisoner of war, brought into a mans home and taken as a wife. The brothers conferred amongst themselves speaking in Hebrew, reflecting on the wrong they had done to Joseph. Deceptively, Joseph also ordered the steward to put his silver cup in Benjamin's sack. His favourite, Joseph, walked closely with God, heard from Him and had great discernment. For an excellent read on many matters pertaining to women in the Bible (not all of which I agree with, of course), see Matthews, Victor H., Gender and Law in the Hebrew Bible and the Ancient Near East (1998) p 229 is directly relevant to this discussion. At their first meeting, the brothers did not recognize him. Even John Calvin, sometimes hailed as the father of modern grammatico-historical exegesis,[39] writes "in the person of Joseph, a lively image of Christ is presented. As we progress through the stories about Jacob and his family, you will notice that his wives are respectfully addressed by name while Bilhah and Zilpah are repeatedly called, the maidservants. Culturally, they were never elevated to the level of either Leah or Rachel and they probably never expected to be. Joseph ordered the steward to go after the brothers and to question them about the "missing" silver cup. (Genesis 37:35, Common English Bible). She then had three more sons: Simeon, Levi and Judah. 24 Rachel's sons were Joseph and Benjamin. That night, Joseph ordered his steward to load the brothers' donkeys with food and all their money. The word until speaks of a change to the first action . When the famine came which Pharoah had dreampt of, and Joseph had predicted, Joseph's father, brothers, and their families, settled in Egypt where there was food. She also bore Benjamin and was a faithful wife to Jacob. [16] Joseph requested that the cup-bearer mention him to Pharaoh to secure his release from prison,[17] but the cup-bearer, reinstalled in office, forgot Joseph. To cite this article click here for a list of acceptable citing formats.The history of earlier contributions by wikipedians is accessible to researchers here: The history of this article since it was imported to New World Encyclopedia: Note: Some restrictions may apply to use of individual images which are separately licensed. We can have a conquering faith in Jesus though we are tested by many tribulations. Plan to Trick Jacob. What is Jacob's new name? When he. (Genesis 48:122). Elkannah had two women but again, one of them was barren so I suspect that Peninah was a concubine. 14 Facts About Esau Everyone Should Know. Bible References: Rachel's story is told Genesis 29:6-35:24, 46:19-25, 48:7 . The musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is about Joseph's story. She told Jacob, "Here is my maid Bilhah. He kept the sacred records after Nephi (see 1 Ne. As they approached Egyptian territory, Judah went ahead to ask Joseph where the caravan should unload. Simeon in Apocryphal and Rabbinical Literature). of Potiphera, priest of On, to be his wife, Jacob, before he died, gave his blessing to Josephs two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. He could not control himself any longer and so he sent the Egyptian men out of the house. Is Polygamy Really Biblical? The Persian poet Firdowsi wrote an epic on this subject. 17:1; 1 Ne. Elkannah had two women but again, one of them was barren so I suspect that Peninah was a concubine. which references passages that point to Jacob having "daughters" (plural, more than one) such as Genesis 37:34-35. Since in the Bible, unlike in later Jewish law, ethnic identity is determined by the father, the fact that their mother is not an Israelite does not affect their status . The Pharaoh is said to have given Joseph, Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, as his wife. However, it is instructive to note that only Dinah is mentioned (Genesis 30:19-21; 34:1-3; 46:15) . during the Egyptian Middle Kingdom, to a later time during the Hyksos Era (16481540 B.C.E. He was also the first born of his mother Rachel, whom his father loved more than any of his wives and made Joseph Jacob's favorite son (Genesis 29-30:24; Genesis 37:1-4). Both the term "Joseph" and the term "Ephraim" were also frequently used by the biblical writers to refer to the norther tribes generally or to the later northern kingdom, usually called Israel. As the reputed ancestor of the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh, he is regarded by some as altogether legendary or even mythical by some critics. They were survival oriented, and so when greeted with the opportunity to be something greater in the family, not wives but the mothers of some of the heirs of the House, that was a chance to have a much better life and better prospects for the future. Some rabbis, however, charged Joseph with vanity, saying that, even before being sold, he took too much pains with his personal appearance (Gen. R. 84:7), and that he continued to do so as ruler over Potiphar's house, forgetting his father, who was mourning over his disappearance. [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]. 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. Joseph Born in the wilderness, he was the youngest son in the family. in accordance with New World Encyclopedia standards. Joseph is mentioned in the New Testament as an example of faith (Hebrews 11:22). Joseph was born the 11 th of 12 sons to his father Jacob. The twelve sons of Jacob (Israel) from oldest to youngest were as follows. He is presently pastor of the Evangelical Church of Archbold, Ohio. Abraham had one wife, and then only took a concubine when she was still barren at 80; he took a second wife only after the death of his first. Both were born after their mothers had been barren for a long time. So they named this spot Abel Mizraim. Laws of Hammurabi: [144] If a man take a wife and this woman give her husband a maid-servant, and she bear him children, but this man wishes to take another wife, this shall not be permitted to him; he shall not take a second wife. Habakkuk 3:7, in a paralellism (a literary device where something is said twice, slightly differently, in such a way as to equate two concepts), says this of Cushan. His story functions as an explanation for Israel's residence in Egypt. People just cherry pick with the descriptions to determine prescriptives without studying out the matter. 17As the time of the promise drew near, the promise that God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt. In Genesis 29:31-30:24 the birth of twelve of Jacob's children is recorded. Muslim theologians, especially of the Sufi tradition, use this story to symbolize the spiritual love between God and the soul. Jacob lives in Egypt for seventeen years after his arrival (Genesis 47:28). At this time, Joseph's father was 147 years old and bedridden. The family, including the Egyptians, mourned him seventy days. He interpreted the dream as seven years of abundance followed by seven years of famine, and advised the Pharaoh to store surplus grain. 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 . Tap the title above, next to the arrow, to go to thatlesson with a link back to thispage. When Jacob calls his wives to him in Gen thirty-one only Leah and Rachel are named. Half of Manasseh's tribe settled east of the Jordan, while the other half settled west of it. In the midrash, the selling of Joseph was part of God's divine plan for him to save his tribes. He became the second most powerful man in all Egypt. The shrine called Joseph's Tomb in Nablus/Shechem is traditionally considered to be his tomb. Joseph did very well with God's help. The sons by Leah (Jacob's first wife) were: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun. Joseph's own remains were reportedly taken by Moses with the Israelites during the Exodus (Exodus 13:19) and later buried at Shechem (Joshua 24:32). Joseph was sold by his brothers into slavery in Egypt (Genesis 37). The sons by . 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. pseudo-Jonathan). Joseph was made a ruler over Egypt second to Pharoah. (7-14) Genesis 29:17. JOSEPH. ISBN links support NWE through referral fees, https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/p/index.php?title=Joseph,_son_of_Jacob&oldid=1017043, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License, More recently, Joseph figures prominently in Anita Diamant's novel. 5. He was the son of Leah, Jacob's first wife. (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 Haran controversy wrestles with the question of how long Abraham's grandson Jacob lived in Haran. 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). (Genesis 47:2731), Later, Joseph came to visit his father having with him his two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. | Servants of Grace Apologetics, Mishpatim in Context: Selling your daughter into slavery? Who was the angel of He worked under the Egyptian official Potiphar but was freed and became the chief adviser (vizier) to the Egyptian Pharaoh. Many of these amplifications have been borrowed by rabbinical tradition. Did Jacob have 4 wives? What is a forbidden marriage in the Bible? 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 was Jacob's eleventh son and Rachel's first. 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. [b] Upon imprisoning Joseph, the brothers saw a camel caravan carrying spices and perfumes to Egypt, and sold Joseph to these merchants. ACTS 7:13-15 13 And the second time Joseph was made known to his brothers, and Joseph's family became known to the Pharaoh. [47] But in Islam they returned leaving behind Benjamin because the mizzen bowl of the king was found in his bag. Joseph understood what they were saying and removed himself from their presence because he was caught in emotion. 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. 34), and a whole chapter Yusuf (sura xii.) They betrayed him by. (notice that she is given the same treatment as a wife but is not a wife), [147] If she have not borne him children, then her mistress may sell her for money. 2:1; 2 Ne. She gives birth to two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. 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. M. degrees from Grace Theological Seminary. [54], This article is about the Joseph of the Book of Genesis. Josephs ability to interpret dreams got him out of jail and into great favour with Pharoah. Her father, Jacob, saw that his family was deeply ashamed of his new granddaughter. 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. How many children did Jacob have? Isaac, the son of Abraham , was married to Rebecca for many years before being blessed with children. 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 correctly predicted their futures: one would be reinstated in his post while the other would be executed. Though Manasseh was the older brother, Jacob placed his right hand on Ephraim, the younger, and gave him the greater blessing.
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