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. He became the second most powerful man in all Egypt. After they mentioned a younger brother at home, the Vizier (Joseph) demanded that he be brought to Egypt as a demonstration of their veracity. 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. Upon their return to Egypt with Benjamin, Joseph received them kindly and prepared a feast for them. Soon, the family took up residence in the town of Bethel and later moved to Hebron. 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. 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. Jacob was tricked into polygamy (Genesis 29:20-30) and later received two additional wives bringing the grand total of four wives (Genesis 30:4, 9). As a last resort, all of the inhabitants of Egypt, less the Egyptian priestly class, sold their properties and later themselves (as slaves) to Joseph for seed; wherefore Joseph set a mandate that, because the people would be sowing and harvesting seed on government property, a fifth of the produce should go to the Pharaoh. And as it was budding, its blossoms came out and they produced grapes. Joseph would have been approximately six years old when his family returned from Haran to Canaan. Judah appealed to the Vizier begging that Benjamin be released and that he be enslaved in his stead, because of the silver cup found in Benjamin's sack. Genesis 35:21-27 gives a list of Jacob's sons and the various woman he had them with. Angered by his running away from her, she made a false accusation of rape, and thus assured his imprisonment[d] (Genesis 39:120). 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. Joseph occupies a very important place in Rabbinical literature, and no patriarch was the subject of so many Midrashic traditional narratives. Here, their lamentation was so great that it caught the attention of surrounding Canaanites who remarked "This is a deep mourning of the Egyptians." Certain rabbis declared that Joseph was ready to yield to his mistress, but that his father's image suddenly appeared to him and called him to his duty (Sotah 36b; Gen. R. 87:9). well, that did go well. 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. Shechem was in the land which was allocated by Joshua to the Tribe of Ephraim, one of the tribes of the House of Joseph, after the conquest of Canaan. Is the word Bible pagan? 14 Then Joseph sent and called his father Jacob and all his relatives to him, seventy-five people. They shall be on the head of Joseph, And on the crown of the head of him that was separate from his brethren. Then the Hebrew phrase shm midyanm srm in verse 28 describes Midianite traders. He is Jacob's favorite (Genesis 37:3). His estranged brothers later reunited with him when they came to Egypt to buy grain during a famine, and thus Joseph became the central figure to lead the children of Israel (Jacob) during their course of exile in Egypt. As for kings - marriages were largely about political alliances (especially with . Joseph or Yosef (Hebrew: , Arabic: , Yusuf; "The Lord increases") is a major figure in the Book of Genesis in the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament). "[43] The story has a lot in common with the biblical narrative, but with certain differences. The sons of Leah; Reuben, Jacob's firstborn, and Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Zebulun: Genesis 29:32-35 And Leah conceived, and bare a son, and she called his name Reuben: for she said, Surely the LORD hath looked upon my affliction; now therefore my husband will love me 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. Joseph placed his brothers in prison for three days. : > 1. selling him to an Ishmaelite trade caravan. Tap the title above, next to the arrow, to go to thatlesson with a link back to thispage. Isaac had one wife. One opinion holds that the Holy Spirit dwelt in Joseph from his childhood until his death (Pirke R. El. Scripture doesn't tell us much about Asenath, the wife of Joseph, the son of Jacob. 3. How many children did Mary have after Jesus? | Servants of Grace Apologetics, Mishpatim in Context: Selling your daughter into slavery? The narrative describes his emotional reaction upon seeing Benjamin: "Deeply moved at the sight of his brother, Joseph hurried out and looked for a place to weep. Joseph was 11th of 12 sons of a wealthy nomad Jacob and his second wife Rachel. The Gadites would later be described as, "brave warriors, ready for battle and able to handle the shield and spear. 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). Tyler Dawn How Many Wives did Jacob Have? . Unaware of this secondary intention, the others obeyed him first. Others consider the story a semi-independent novella, which has been independently added to the biblical record. arose that night, and took his two wives, his two maidservants1 and his eleven children, and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. In the Elohist version it is Rueben intervenes on Joseph's behalf, while in the Yahwist version it is Judah that saves him. When the Vizier (Joseph) confronted them about the silver cup, he demanded that the one who possessed the cup in his bag become his slave. This is great, Tyler. Then he revealed to the Hebrews that he was in fact their brother, Joseph. 23 Leah's sons were Reuben (Jacob's first-born), Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun. Is Polygamy Really Biblical? J. M. Sel. 84, xl. Full Bible Timeline - section on the life of Jacob. According to Legend of the Jews, the name of Potiphar's wife is Zuleikha and when she was enticing Joseph to give up to her sinful passion, God appeared unto him, holding the foundation of earth (Eben Shetiyah), that He would destroy the world if Joseph touched her. Esau. (Genesis 50:2226). When they were brought to Joseph's house, they were apprehensive about the returned money in their money sacks. Joseph and Asenath. Why did Jacob go to paddan? The words do not share the same lemma and so are unrelated. I saw the tents of Cushan in affliction; the curtains of the land of Midian did tremble. Afterward, Joseph's family personally met the Pharaoh of Egypt. In Jewish tradition, Joseph was the progenitor of the northern tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh, named for his two sons. The Pharaoh honored their stay and even proposed that if there were any qualified men in their house, then they may elect a chief herdsman to oversee Egyptian livestock. [54], This article is about the Joseph of the Book of Genesis. 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. 2:1; 2 Ne. 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 Hub Confronting a Devastating Doctrine: Are Children Is Hand Washing Commanded? He interpreted the dream as seven years of abundance followed by seven years of famine, and advised the Pharaoh to store surplus grain. The two halves of Manasseh were often treated as two separate units in the biblical account. She named him Joseph. These are the generations of Jacob. 2) Simeon was next, and he was also a son of Leah. Designed by Elegant Themes | Powered by WordPress, Judgment in Context: Honor, Shame, and the Command to Judge Not., Confessions of a Former Torah Terrorist Pt II. The genealogy of Jesus in the New Testament traces Jesus' ancestry lineally, from Abraham to David, and then from David to Jesus. Not only did Joseph resemble his father in appearance, but the main incidents of their lives were parallel. As Jacob's favorite son, he received from his father a coat of many colors, which made his brothers jealous to . When Rachel had successfully provided Jacob with an heir, Leah felt her position was tenuous. Isaac and Rebecca's son Jacob was sent there to avoid the wrath of his brother Esau. Now why? He then tested them further, by accusing Benjamin of theft. I think some translators/editors have erred when they separate the two sections. The sons by . 18A new Pharaoh arose in Egypt, who knew nothing of Joseph. 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. In the ancient Near East, according to the laws of many of the surrounding nations, a woman had two years to bear a child to her husband and if she didnt, she could legally be divorced. [32], Jewish tradition holds that Joseph had his steward plant his personal silver cup in Benjamin's sack to test his brothers. Who is Dans mom? I asked. She then had three more sons: Simeon, Levi and Judah. In the Kitb-i-Aqdas, Bah'u'llh states that "from my laws, the sweet-smelling savour of my garment can be smelled" and, in the Four Valleys, states that "the fragrance of his garment blowing from the Egypt of Baha," referring to Joseph. 51 Joseph called the name of the first-born Manas'seh, "For," he said, "God has made me forget all my hardship and all my father's house." 52 The name of the second he called E'phraim, "For God has . In the interim, Joseph's mother died giving birth to his brother, Benjamin. According to Josephus, Reuben tied a cord around Joseph and let him down gently into the pit. 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). She has seen her sister Leah bear Jacob three sons (presumably within three years), and can no longer take the pain of being the barren wife. These years were followed by seven years of famine "over all the face of the earth," when "all countries came into Egypt to Joseph to buy grain" (Gen. 41:56, 57; 47:13,14). The community seems to confuse quite often what is description vs prescription. 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. Bah' commentaries have described these as metaphors with the garment implying the recognition of a manifestation of God. the time has come for the Israelites to be rescued from their oppressors; come up and do not cause us any further delay!" 18:7, 19; 2 Ne. [44] In the Quran the brothers ask Jacob ("Yaqub") to let Joseph go with them. The scene is a fitting resolution to Jacob's own drama, in which his father, Isaac, had been old and blind when Jacob himself deceived deceived him in order to obtain his blessing, meant for Esau. They were directed into the province of Goshen and Joseph readied his chariot to meet his father there. Cause me to die as a Muslim and join me with the righteous" (Qur'an 12:101). The children of Israel remembered their oath, and when they left Egypt during the Exodus, Moses took Joseph's bones with him. These dreams, implying his supremacy, angered his brothers (Genesis 37:111) and made the brothers plot his demise. Deut 21:15 says that if a man has two wives, one loved and one unloved that he cannot disinherit the child of the unloved wife doesnt this say that men can have two wives? Then Israel called all of his sons in and prophesied their blessings or curses to all twelve of them in order of their ages. Every time a son was born I asked my boys to tell me who the sons belonged to and it worked fine until we got to Dan. [6], The Bible offers two explanations of the name Ysf: first it is compared to the Hebrew root (-s-p), meaning "to gather, remove, take away":[7] "And she conceived, and bore a son; and said, God hath taken away my reproach" (Genesis 30:23);[8] Ysf is then identified with the similar root (y-s-p), meaning "to add":[9] "And she called his name Joseph; and said, The LORD shall add to me another son." Jacob did not wholly believe that Joseph was dead, because he could not forget him, while the dead are soon forgotten. Convinced of his brothers' repentance and overcome with emotion, Joseph finally revealed himself to them. 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. He was Rachel's firstborn and Jacob's eleventh son. [h] It had been over twenty years since Joseph had last seen his father. In the Qur'an a whole chapter (sura xii) is devoted to Joseph; and Islamic commentators add many details to this "best of stories.". As with Bilhahs offspring, Zilpahs children are claimed and named by Leah as her own. Her father, Jacob, saw that his family was deeply ashamed of his new granddaughter. When the famine came, it was so severe that people from surrounding nations came to Egypt to buy bread. Joseph (/dozf, -sf/; Hebrew: , lit. As they approached Egyptian territory, Judah went ahead to ask Joseph where the caravan should unload. The word until speaks of a change to the first action . How many kids did Mary have? 14Joseph sent for his father Jacob and his whole family, seventy-five souls, to come and live in Egypt. [28] Impressed with Joseph's interpretations, Pharaoh appoints him as second-in-command (Gen 41:41). 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. 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. As Bilhah and Zilpah were almost undoubtedly purchased by Laban as young girls from fathers who either needed to pay debts or who could not afford to provide dowries, this term does make sense again, these were women of a special class. Joseph, being seventeen years old, was pasturing the flock with his brothers. [49] When Jacob learned their story after their return, he wept in grief till he lost his eyesight because of sorrow. Tap the title above, next to the arrow, to go to thatlesson with a link back to thispage. On the third day, he brought them out of prison to reiterate that he wanted their youngest brother brought to Egypt to demonstrate their veracity. Upon stopping to speak to her, he discovers Zulaikha, who has been left in misery at the death of her husband. They returned with a wolf, but when Jacob began to reproach the beast for its cruelty, the wolf answered, in human language, that she had not committed the crime, and that she herself was searching for her lost cub. A fourth group in verse 36 is named in Hebrew as mdanm that is properly identified as Medanites. [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. Joseph was the favorite son of his father, who made him a richly ornamented coat. Rather, he requested to be carried to the land of Canaan to be buried with his forefathers. Seeing only the powerful minister who controlled their lives and fortunes, they "bowed themselves before him with their faces to the ground" (Gen. 42:6), thus fulfilling in part his earlier prophetic dream. Leah was "Tender Eyed". At this time, Joseph's father was 147 years old and bedridden. Joseph, son of Jacob and Rachel, lived in the land of Canaan with ten half-brothers, one full brother, and at least one half-sister. 25 Rachel's servant Bilhah's sons were Dan and Naphtali. Abraham married Sarah, who was his niece; Isaac married Rebekah, who was his first cousin once removed; and Jacob married Leah and Rachel, who were his first cousins. Both women had a crisis of identity Rachel wasnt a mother and Leah wasnt really a wife in her own eyes. His favourite, Joseph, walked closely with God, heard from Him and had great discernment. The Lutheran ChurchMissouri Synod commemorates him as a patriarch on 31 March. She gives birth to two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. 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. Israel. Although Bilhahs and Zilpahs children ranked lower than Leahs biological children (as Joseph will prove with his behavior later on) and Rachels future children, they were officially counted as the sons of the wives, not as the sons of the concubines. 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 . I love reading and studying from you. 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. 2. 1653. ", "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". The story begins in Canaan - modern day Palestine, Syria and Israel - around 1600 to 1700 BC. The shrine called Joseph's Tomb in Nablus/Shechem is traditionally considered to be his tomb. [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. [31] However, punishment could not have been avoided because of her class status and limited public knowledge of her scheme. 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). Joseph prospered in Potiphar's household and was eventually made head of the servants. (Genesis 37:35, Common English Bible). So Genesis 30 is what I was teaching my boys yesterday morning. What happens when a man is required to take his dead brothers wife, if he is already married Deut 25:5? Through his father, he also has six half-brothers: Dan and Naphtali (whose . The name of Reuben's wife is 'Ad 1 and the name of Simeon's wife is 'Adb'a, a Canaanite; 1 and the name of Levi's wife is Mlk, 2 of the daughters of Aram, of the seed of the sons of Terah; and the name of Judah . Joseph's wife is considered to be an Egyptian. We passed on to Zilpah, and they noticed it again Gad is Leahs son!, Very good, I smiled. . God blessed Leah with a firstborn son named Reuben. Israel is another name for Jacob as, son of Isaac as. How many children did Jacob have? After they had consumed all of the grain that they brought back from Egypt, Jacob told his sons to go back to Egypt for more grain. 34), and a whole chapter Yusuf (sura xii.) 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. Required fields are marked *, nine = 27 .hide-if-no-js { Zulaikha is the wife of Kitfir (the Biblical Potiphar), through whose accusations Yusuf is thrown into prison. Jacob's favoritism for Joseph made his half-brothers so jealous that they were ready to murder him (see Genesis 37). Joseph was the first son of Rachel and Jacob, and the 11th of Jacobs 12sons, Joseph was sold by his brothers into slavery in Egypt, Joseph became the slave of Potiphar a very high official in Egypt. With Reuben and Judah's persistence, they persuaded their father to let Benjamin join them for fear of Egyptian retribution (Genesis 42:2943:15). Later we read, "His . Joseph, in the Old Testament, son of the patriarch Jacob and his wife Rachel. She became angry and told lies about him, so he was put in jail. (obviously would not happen to a wife). 11Then a famine came over all the land of Egypt and Canaan, causing great affliction. In Hebrew Joseph means: increaser. Jacob became greatly distressed, feeling deprived of successive sons: Joseph, Simeon, and (prospectively) Benjamin. Thats an interesting word, because although the lemma is the same isha as I discussed above neshe is tied in to the idea of a debt. 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. Jacob's partiality to Rachel was the source of a great deal of hostility and scheming among Jacobs's wives and concubines (see Genesis 30). Answer (1 of 13): There are thirteen persons in the Bible who bear the name Joseph. (Genesis 50:1521), Joseph lived to the age of 110, living to see his great-grandchildren. Answer (1 of 10): If you are talking about Jacob (Israel)'s son Joseph, then he had one wife. Abraham then died at 175 years of age (25 . Gad and Asher: On the heels of Rachel's entry into the battle of the babies, Leah decided to give her maid, Zilpah to Jacob ( Genesis 30:9-12 ). Moses threw a pebble into the water there and cried out: "Joseph! He persuaded them to throw Joseph into a pit and secretly planned to rescue him later. Jacob should not have had more than one wife.) popularly referred to as a "coat of many colors." Judah, too, counseled against murder and convinced the brothers to sell Joseph to a company of Ishmaelite merchants, who bought him in exchange for 20 shekels of silver. When he regained control of himself, he returned and ordered a meal to be served. [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. 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). Joseph did very well with God's help. When the Vizier (Joseph) appeared, they gave him gifts from their father. Jacob loved Rachel more than Leah, and this made Leah sad. In Canaan, Rachel gave birth to Jacob's final son, Benjamin, but, tragically, she died in childbirth. . Joseph Born in the wilderness, he was the youngest son in the family. 50 Before the year of famine came, Joseph had two sons, whom As'enath, the daughter of Poti'phera priest of On, bore to him. [41], Joseph (Arabic: , Ysuf) is regarded by Muslims as a prophet (Quran, suras vi. It was after this that Isaac married Rebekah and Abraham took Keturah as a wife (possibly a concubine) (see Genesis 24 and 25:1). When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel commanded him to do. "All Pharaoh's officials accompanied himthe dignitaries of his court and all the dignitaries of Egyptbesides all the members of Joseph's household and his brothers and those belonging to his father's household Chariots and horsemen also went up with him. Joseph's story is recounted in some detail in the New Testament, during Saint Stephen's speech before the Sandhedrin in Acts 7. New World Encyclopedia writers and editors rewrote and completed the Wikipedia article 20-21). His story functions as an explanation for Israel's residence in Egypt. 13When they went the second time Joseph was recognized by his brothers, and Josephs origins were revealed to Pharaoh. (Acts 7:9-13). How many children did Jacob have? Home To add to the distinction within the family, in chapter thirty-seven, when Joseph goes tattling on his brothers, it specifically mentions that they are the sons of the neshe Bilhah and Zilpah. This article incorporates text from the 19011906 Jewish Encyclopedia, a publication now in the public domain. 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. [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. As a result, he was envied by his half-brothers. . [15] Both men had dreams, and Joseph, being able to interpret dreams, asked to hear them. "[40], In addition, some Christian authors have argued that this typological interpretation finds its origin in the speech of Stephen in Acts 7:9-15, as well as the Gospel of Luke and the parables of Jesus, noting strong verbal and conceptual collocation between the Greek translation of the portion of Genesis concerning Joseph and the Parable of the Wicked Tenants and the Parable of the Prodigal Son. And after Joseph perished, the sons of Jacob took unto themselves wives. (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. Joseph is between 39 and 56 years old. The family, including the Egyptians, mourned him seventy days. Joseph is represented as a perfectly righteous man (tzadik gamur) and as the counterpart of his father Jacob. How many wives did Joseph son of Jacob have? Christian Apologetics & Intelligence Ministry, Tyler Dawn How Many Wives did Jacob Have? The first mention of Ishmaelites (Yishma'elm) is in verse 25. He and his family took everything they owned. God punished him, therefore, by setting against him Potiphar's wife (Gen. R. 87:3). Edit: I have been getting some great questions so I will share my answers. Knowing that his brothers would come to buy grain, Joseph gave orders that nobody should be permitted to enter until he had given in writing his own and his father's names. The steward put them at ease, telling them not to worry about the money, and brought out their brother Simeon. 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.