4. The offspring of Jacob's sons became the tribes of Israel following the Exodus, when the Israelites conquered and settled in the Land of Israel. Notes on Each Passage: Genesis 29:31-30:24 and 35:16-20 - the births of the first eleven sons are mentioned in chronological order, along with the meanings of their names; the last son, Benjamin, is born significantly later. To Reuben (whose name means, See, a son), Jacob said, Reuben, you are my firstborn, my might, and the first fruits of my strength, preeminent in dignity and preeminent in power. When Reuben, the eldest, mentioned that they needed to bring Benjamin to Egypt to prove their word as honest men, their father became furious with them. info), Tiberian:Yaq; Arabic: , romanized:Yaqb; Greek: , romanized:Iakb),[1] later given the name Israel, is regarded as a patriarch of the Israelites and is an important figure in Abrahamic religions, such as Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Joseph was born at the very end of the seven years during which Jacob's first twelve children were born, so that puts the seven years from 1808 to 1801 BC. Tamar then disguised herself as a prostitute and talked Judah into sleeping with her (Gen 38:14-18). The Israelites were the twelve sons of the biblical patriarch Jacob. [44], Sometime afterward, the sons of Jacob by Leah, Bilhah and Zilpah, were feeding his flocks in Shechem. The following table lists the names of the sons, in order of birth . Then Rachel gives Bilhah, her servant girl to Jacob, so that she may give birth on my behalf (Genesis 30:3). (Zilpah)good fortune Bible Study Guide For All Ages. Ex. [102], Archaeologist William G. Dever wrote in 2001: "After a century of exhaustive investigation, all respectable archaeologists have given up hope of recovering any context that would make Abraham, Isaac, or Jacob 'historical figures. Many lessons can be gleaned from the sons of Jacob, including: Actions equal consequencesReuben defiled his fathers bed and forfeited his rights as the eldest son. The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler . The archers bitterly attacked him, shot at him, and harassed him severely, yet his bow remained unmoved; his arms were made agile by thehandsoftheMightyOneofJacob (fromthereistheShepherd, the Stone ofIsrael), bytheGodofyourfather who will helpyou, bytheAlmightywhowillblessyou with blessings of heaven above, blessingsofthedeepthat crouches beneath, blessings of the beasts and of the womb. Jacob had twelve sons through four women, his wives, Leah and Rachel, and his concubines, Bilhah and Zilpah, who were, in order of their birth, Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebulun, Joseph, and Benjamin, all of whom became the heads of their own family groups, later known as the Twelve Tribes of Israel. As a result, his blessing went to Josephs two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh.). He is also the head of the church of the firstborn (Colossians 1:18, Hebrews 12:23). [39], The house of Jacob dwelt in Hebron,[40] in the land of Canaan. For New Testament believers, this is picture of the Church that perseveres and is able to bear fruit despite the struggles they encounter when they are hated by the world because they do not conform to it, but conform to Jesus. It will be remembered that Jacob had bargained with Laban to serve him seven years for his daughter Rachel. (God created marriage to be between one man and one woman. Simeon 12. He feared his father would curse him as soon as he felt him, but Rebecca offered to take the curse herself, then insisted that Jacob obey her. Seven years? Joseph Hi, Zilpah, Leahs maidservant, in Genesis 30:9-13 has Gad and then Asher. The Promised Land [Canaan], plus an area on the east side of the Jordan River, was allocated among the 12 Tribes. Without doubt Joseph is torn to pieces." Thanks! x\m6} ]G>cMN+C_[+u1B6>}q"}7|3Z_}[Tgm{Th_e|89__^eH48B HH~qvi(KeM9wT$}=&12==c[s^Cx#}t~q4_
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93XgQo2$o. When Joseph came to visit his father, he brought with him his two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. Of the life of Jacob, the Quran narrates two especially important events. Jacob had scarcely left the room when Esau returned from the hunt to prepare his game and receive the blessing. One must apply solid hermeneutical methods (hermeneutics is principles of proper biblical interpretation) when looking at Scripture. Simeon: the name means one who hears - Whose mother was Leah. The elegant carriage stood in front of the humble dwelling, surrounded by a swarm of black-clad chassidim. With prompting from his mother Rebekah, Jacob deceived his father Isaac into giving him the blessing of the firstborn (Genesis 27) and then promptly ran away to his uncle Laban, Rebekah's brother. Birth Order. %PDF-1.3 To Issachar, Jacob said that he was strong and resolute in his laboring, and he blessed his hard-working nature. [83][bettersourceneeded], Rashi explained that Isaac, when blessing Jacob instead of Esau, smelled the heavenly scent of Gan Eden (Paradise) when Jacob entered his room and, in contrast, perceived Gehenna opening beneath Esau when the latter entered the room, showing him that he had been deceived all along by Esau's show of piety. This is clear and no mystical or strange correlation need be applied. 2. Rachel therefore gave Leah the signs so that Jacob would not realize the switch. They and their brothers killed Shechem and all the other men. 12 sons of Jacob -- pdf. Israel then said, "Now let me die, since I have seen your face, because you are still alive. In the Bible, Israel and Judah may refer to either the literal biological descendants of Abraham or the spiritual descendants of Abraham (the New Testament Gentile Church). For instance, Samson was one of the judges in the Old Testament and he was of the tribe of Dan. (Mother)Name Means The lessons are numerous. She also is a member of BRRC. Israel in exile: the history and literature of the sixth century B.C.E. Jacob returned to Bethel, where he had another vision of blessing. The notable 12s list starts with the 12 sons of Jacob who became the 12 tribes of Israel and ends with 12 kinds of fruit on the tree of life(Revelation 22:2). He stooped down; he couched as a lion and as a lioness; who dares rouse him? These sons became the heads of the twelve tribes of Israel and were blessed according to the covenant God had made with their great-grandfather Abraham. [16] Rebecca blessed Jacob and she quickly ordered Jacob to bring her two kid goats from their flock so that he could take Esau's place in serving Isaac and receiving his blessing. [84], According to the Talmud, Jacob did not flee directly to Haran (as would seem from the Biblical text), but rather studied for 14 years at the study house of Shem and Eber before continuing towards Haran.[85]. Their reunion was an emotional one. Jacob fell in love with Laban's younger daughter, Rachel, Laban had him work for seven years, but then tricked him into marrying him to his older daughter, Leah. The 12 sons of Israel are Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Zebulun, Issachar, Dan, Gad, Asher, Naphtali, Joseph and Benjamin. Isaac then requested that Esau make "savory meat" for him out of the venison, according to the way he enjoyed it the most, so that he could eat it and bless Esau. Before they left, Rachel stole the teraphim, considered to be household idols, from Laban's house. After Isaac sent Jacob away to find a wife, Esau realized his own Canaanite wives were evil in his father's eyes and so he took a daughter of Isaac's half-brother, Ishmael, as another wife. Zebulun Dinah (daughter) Judah's descendants have long been called "Jews." However, Judah is just one of the sons of Israel. And so forth. His first-born Reuben was the son of Leah, who later gave birth to Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun. The sons of Jacob in order of birth (and to whom) are as follows: Leah gives birth to (1) Reuben, (2) Simeon, (3) Levi, and (4) Judah. Now the sons of Jacob were twelve: 23The sons of Leah; Reuben, Jacob's firstborn, and Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Zebulun: 24 The sons of Rachel; Joseph, and Benjamin: 25 And the sons of Bilhah, Rachel's handmaid; Dan, and Naphtali: 26 And the sons of Zilpah, Leah's handmaid; Gad, and Asher: these are the sons of Jacob, which Suddenly, a 6-year-old child stood in front of the carriage, boldly holding onto the horse's reins and bawling his head off. Yakub? Benjamin Surprised that Esau was back so soon, Isaac asked how it could be that the hunt went so quickly. The twelve sons of Jacob are the patriarchs of the twelve Tribes of Israel. Article Images Copyright 2023 Getty Images unless otherwise indicated. Israel's youngest son Benjamin, born from Rachel, stayed behind by his father's order to keep him safe. When Rebecca heard about his murderous intentions,[20] she ordered Jacob to travel to her brother Laban's house in Haran, until Esau's anger subsided. After the week of wedding celebrations with Leah, Jacob married Rachel, and he continued to work for Laban for another seven years. Numbers 1: The census taken a month after the Exodus from . As a result, his blessing went to Joseph's two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. [88] Along with other patriarchs his feast day is celebrated in the Byzantine rite on the Second Sunday before the Advent (December 1117), under the title the Sunday of the Forefathers. But Israel refused saying, "but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he." The same name is recorded earlier still, in c. 1800 BC, in cuneiform inscriptions (spelled ya-ah-qu-ub-el, ya-qu-ub-el). To be a mighty man of God you have to be faithful and strong in your obedience, and this is what this blessing alludes to. Self-righteous Christians who "kill" God's potential flock spiritually by making them feel like they are not and will never be material for God because of their past. How Daniels Prophecy of 70 Weeks Connects to the End Times, 4 Ways the Parable of the Sower Encourages Spiritual Growth. The Hebrew word for "doe" comes from a root word, meaning "leader, mighty man, noble man", a word that express strength and prominence. And he blessed them; he blessed each one according to his own . Finally, Joseph's father was brought out to meet the Pharaoh. Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. To Dan, Jacob said that he would "judge" Israel, and his tribe indeed was righteous for a time and "judged" in the Promised Land. How many judgmental - holier than thou - Christians have you seen in church? Then Rachel gives Bilhah, her servant girl to Jacob, "so that she may give birth on my behalf" ( Genesis 30:3 ). Jacob first appears in the Book of Genesis, where he is described as the son of Isaac and Rebecca, and the grandson of Abraham, Sarah, and Bethuel. Then he decided it was time to go back to the Promised Land. Then Joseph began to have dreams that implied that his family would bow down to him. [67], Jacob, through his two wives and his two concubines had 12 biological sons; Reuben,[68] Simeon,[69] Levi,[70] Judah,[71] Dan,[72] Naphtali,[73]Gad,[74] Asher,[75] Issachar,[76] Zebulun,[77] Joseph[78] and Benjamin[79] and at least one daughter, Dinah (if there were other daughters, they are not mentioned in the Genesis story).