Joseph (Hebrew Bible)

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Biblical longevity
Name	Age	LXX
Methuselah	969	969
Jared	962	962
Noah	950	950
Adam	930	930
Seth	912	912
Kenan	910	910
Enos	905	905
Mahalalel	895	895
Lamech	777	753
Shem	600	600
Eber	464	404
Cainan	—	460
Arpachshad	438	465
Salah	433	466
Enoch	365	365
Peleg	239	339
Reu	239	339
Serug	230	330
Job	210?	210?
Terah	205	205
Isaac	180	180
Abraham	175	175
Nahor	148	304
Jacob	147	147
Esau	147?	147?
Ishmael	137	137
Levi	137	137
Amram	137	137
Kohath	133	133
Laban	130+	130+
Deborah	130+	130+
Sarah	127	127
Miriam	125+	125+
Aaron	123	123
Rebecca	120+	120+
Moses	120	120
Joseph	110	110
Joshua	110	110

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Joseph or Yosef (Hebrew: יוֹסֵף ‎, Standard Yosef Tiberian Yôsēp̄, Arabic: يوسف‎, Yusuf ; "He (The Lord) increases/may add"), is a major figure in the Book of Genesis in the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament). He was Jacob's eleventh son and Rachel's first.^[1] He is also mentioned favourably in the Qur'an.

Joseph, son of Jacob, is one of the best-known figures in the Torah, famous for his coat of many colors (although this may be a mistranslation of the Hebrew word for "stripes") and his God-given ability to interpret dreams. Due to jealousy, his brother Judah sold him into slavery for 20 pieces of silver. Eventually he worked under the Egyptian official Potiphar, but was freed and became the chief adviser (vizier) to the Egyptian Pharaoh, allegedly during either the Hyksos Era or, according to Kenneth Kitchen, the Middle Kingdom of Egypt.

The shrine called Joseph's Tomb in [Nablus] is traditionally considered to be his tomb.^[1]

Contents 1 Biblical tradition 1.1 Imprisonment 1.2 Viceroy of Egypt 1.3 Revelation to brothers 2 Blessing 3 Timeline 4 Christian view 5 Islamic view 6 Differences of tradition 7 House of Joseph 8 Literature and culture 9 See also 10 References

[edit] Biblical tradition

The eleventh son of Jacob and the elder of the two sons of Rachel was born at Haran. The meaning given to the name (l.c.) is "shall add": "The Lord shall add to me another son." It seems probable, however, it has God as its first element, and is a contraction, the original form being "Jehoseph", while in Gen. 30:23 there is an allusion to the connection of "Joseph".

Upon Joseph centered the love of his father, Jacob (Matthew 1:16) or Heli (Luke 3:23), who showered upon "the son of his old age" many tokens of special favor, and arrayed him in a "coat of many colors". This favoritism, however, excited the envy of his older brothers, and Joseph increased their envy by telling them of two dreams which prognosticated his ruling over them (Gen. 37:2-11).

When a lad of seventeen, Joseph was sent by his father to inquire after his brothers, who were pasturing the flocks in Shechem. He found them at Dothan, and when his brothers saw him approaching they planned to kill him. Reuben, however, took his part, and, in order to remove him from the fury of the others, advised them to throw Joseph into a pit (Gen. 37:13-24). He intended to rescue Joseph and return him to Jacob later.

Detailed accounts are given of the sale of Joseph, which immediately followed; according to one, the brothers, while eating at some distance from the pit, sighted a caravan of Ishmaelites, to whom they decided to sell Joseph. In the meantime some Midianite merchants passing the pit drew Joseph out and sold him for twenty pieces of silver to the Ishmaelites, who took Joseph to Egypt (Gen. 37:25-28 ). The last statement is repeated in Gen. 39:1, while in Gen. 37:36 it is said that the Midianites (Hebr. "Medanites") sold him to Potiphar in Egypt. Midianites and Ishmaelites are interchangeable terms.

[edit] Imprisonment

In Potiphar's house Joseph fared well, for, seeing that he prospered in all that he did, his impressed master appointed him superintendent of his household.^[2] But Joseph was "a goodly person and well favored", and his master's wife conceived a passion for him.^[2] Her repeated advances being repulsed, she finally attempted compulsion; still failing, she brought a false accusation against him before her husband, and Joseph was thrown into prison.^[2]

There, too, God was with Joseph; the keeper of the prison, seeing that he could place confidence in him, committed the other prisoners to his charge (Gen. 39).^[2] Soon afterward, two of Pharaoh's officers, the chief butler and the chief baker, having offended the king, were thrown into the prison where Joseph was, and Joseph was appointed to serve them.^[2]

One morning both officers told Joseph their dreams of the previous night, which they themselves were unable to interpret.^[2] Joseph concluded from their dreams that the chief butler would be reinstated within three days and that the chief baker would be hanged.^[2] Joseph requested the chief butler to mention him to Pharaoh and secure his release from prison, but that officer, reinstalled in office, forgot Joseph (Gen. 40).^[2]

Joseph remained two years in prison, at the end of which period Pharaoh had an uneasy dream of seven lean kine devouring seven fat kine on the Nile, and of seven withered ears devouring seven full, ripe ears.^[2] Great importance was attached to dreams in Egypt, and Pharaoh was much troubled when his magicians proved unable to interpret them satisfactorily.^[2]

Then the chief butler remembered Joseph and spoke of his skill to Pharaoh.^[2] Accordingly he was sent for, and he interpreted Pharaoh's dream as foretelling that seven years of abundance would be followed by seven years of famine and advised the king to appoint some able man to store the surplus grain during the period of abundance.^[2] Pleased with his interpretation, Pharaoh made him viceroy over Egypt, giving him the Egyptian name of Zaphnath-paaneah and conferring on him other marks of royal favor.^[2]

Shortly afterwards, Joseph was married by Pharaoh to Asenath, the daughter of Potipherah, priest of On, through whom he soon had two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim (Gen. 41:1-52).^[2]

[edit] Viceroy of Egypt

During the seven years of abundance, Joseph amassed for the king a great supply of grain, which he sold to both Egyptians and foreigners (Gen. 41:48-49, 54-57).^[3] The famine, having extended to all the neighboring countries, caused Joseph's brothers, with the exception of Benjamin, to go to Egypt in search of wheat.^[3] Joseph recognized his brothers, who prostrated themselves before him and therein fulfilled, in part, his dreams.^[3] He received them roughly and accused them of being spies, thereby compelling them to give him information about their family.^[3]

Desiring to see Benjamin, Joseph demanded that they substantiate their statements by sending one of their number for Benjamin while the others remained behind.^[3] He accordingly imprisoned them for three days, and then sent them away with wheat, retaining Simeon as a hostage (Gen.42:1-25).^[3]

The famine in Canaan continuing, Jacob was again obliged to send his sons to Egypt for corn.^[3] As Joseph had commanded them not to appear before him again without Benjamin, Jacob was compelled to let Benjamin go with them.^[3] He sent also a present to Joseph in order to win his favor, together with the money which had been, by Joseph's orders, put into their sacks.^[3]

[edit] Revelation to brothers

The second time Joseph received them very kindly and prepared a feast for them, but paid special attention to Benjamin (Gen. xliii.).^[4] Desiring to know what his brothers would do if under some pretext he retained Benjamin, Joseph gave orders to fill their sacks with wheat, put their money into their sacks, and put his silver goblet in Benjamin's.^[4] On the following morning the brothers departed, but before they had gone far a messenger overtook them, accusing them of stealing the goblet.^[4] The messenger searched their sacks and found the goblet in Benjamin's sack; this compelled them to return.^[4]

Joseph reproached them for what they had done, and Judah, speaking on behalf of his brothers, expressed their willingness to remain as slaves to Joseph.^[4] The latter, however, declined their offer, declaring that he would retain Benjamin only (Gen. 44:1-17).^[4]

Overcome by Judah's eloquent appeal (Gen. 44:18-34) and convinced of his brothers' repentance, Joseph disclosed himself to them.^[4] He inquired after his father, but as they were too much amazed and startled to answer him, he assured them that in treating him as they did they had been carrying out the will of God. He then urged them to return home quickly, loaded them with presents for his father, and supplied them with vehicles for the transportation of the whole family (Gen. 40).

Joseph met his father in the Land of Goshen.^[5] He recommended his brothers to represent themselves as shepherds so that they might remain in Goshen unmolested. Then he presented five of his brothers to Pharaoh, who granted them a domain in Goshen; and, after having introduced Jacob to Pharaoh, Joseph domiciled the whole family, at Pharaoh's command, "in the land of Ramesses", where he supplied them with all they needed (Gen. 44:29-47:12).

As a ruler, Joseph changed the system of land-tenure in Egypt. The famine being severe, the people first expended all their money in the purchase of wheat, then they sold their cattle, and finally gave up their land. Thus all the cultivated land in Egypt, except that of the priests, became the property of the crown, and the people farmed it for the king, giving him one-fifth of the produce (Gen. 47:14-26).

Hearing of his father's sickness, Joseph went to him with his two sons, whom Jacob blessed, conferring upon Joseph at the same time one portion more than the portions of his brothers (Gen. 48). Joseph carried Jacob's remains to the land of Canaan, where he gave them stately burial. His brothers, fearing that he had only been waiting until after their father's death to avenge himself upon them, sent to implore his forgiveness. Joseph allayed their fears and promised that he would continue to provide for their wants.

He lived to the age of one hundred and ten, and saw his great-grandchildren grow up. Before his death, he made the children of Israel take an oath that when they left the land of Egypt they would take his bones with them. His body was embalmed and placed temporarily in a coffin. At the Exodus his bones accompanied Moses, and were finally buried in Shechem (Gen. l. 25; Ex. 13:19; Josh. 24:32).

[edit] Blessing

Jacob, before he died, blessed all his sons and included blessings for Joseph's sons. He first blessed Joseph's sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. Though Manasseh was the older brother, Jacob blessed Ephraim with a greater ambition than his older brother.

He then gave his blessing upon all his sons. Though he blessed them in order by their age, the blessing he gave Joseph was greater than the others:

'Joseph is a fruitful tree by a spring, whose branches climb over the wall. The archers savagely attacked him, shooting and assailing him fiercely, but Joseph's bow remained unfailing and his arms were tireless by the power of the Strong One of Jacob, by the name of the Shepherd of Israel, by the God of your father--so may he help you! By God Almighty--so may he bless you with the blessings of heaven above, and the blessings of the deep that lies below! The blessings of breast and womb and the blessings of your father are stronger than the blessings of the eternal mountains and the bounty of the everlasting hills. May they rest on the head of Joseph, on the brow of him who was prince among his brothers.' (Genesis 49:22-26)

[edit] Timeline

In his book, On the Reliability of the Old Testament, Kitchen writes:

"...the story of a young Joseph sold off [into slavery] into Egypt fits in easily, especially in the early second millennium, in the overall period of the late Twelfth/Thirteenth and Hyksos Dynasties. After a good haggle, his brothers got 20 shekels for their young brother (Gen. 37:28). This we know to be approximately the right price in about the eighteenth century. This is the average price (expressed as one-third of a mina) in the laws of Hammurabi (§§116,214,252) and in real-life transactions at Mari (exactly) and in other Old Babylonian documents (within a 15- to 30-shekel range, averaging 22 shekels).^[6] Before this period slaves were cheaper, and after it, they steadily got dearer, as inflation did its work...After the eighteenth/seventeenth centuries, prices duly rose. In fifteenth-century Nuzi and fourteenth/thirtenth-century Ugarit, the average crept up to 30 shekels and more. (cf. replacement price of 30 shekels in Exod. 21:32.)^[7] Then in the first millennium, male slaves in Assyria fetched 50 to 60 shekels.^[8]"^[9]

The controversial Egyptologist David Rohl, in his book Pharaohs and Kings, proposes an alternate chronology for the Old Testament. Dr. Rohl believes that Joseph was vizier during the reign of Pharaoh Amenemhat III.^[10] Christian scholars point to Apopi, Thutmose III or Amenhotep III, the last of these being the father of the monotheistic "heretic" pharaoh Akhenaten, as a possible Joseph's Pharaoh.^[11]

[edit] Christian view

Joseph is regarded as a saint by several Catholic churches. He is commemorated as one of the Holy Forefathers in the Calendar of Saints of the Armenian Apostolic Church on July 30.^{[citation needed]} In the Eastern Orthodox Church and those Eastern Catholic Churches which follow the Byzantine Rite, he is known as "Joseph the all-comely", a reference not only to his physical appearance, but more importantly to the beauty of his spiritual life. They commemorate him on the Sunday of the Holy Forefathers (two Sundays before Christmas) and on Holy and Great Monday (Monday of Holy Week). In icons, he is sometimes depicted wearing the nemes headdress of an Egyptian vizier. The Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod commemorates him as a patriarch on March 31.

Joseph's life has been seen as a type of Jesus' death and resurrection.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Islamic view

The story of Joseph or Yusuf as it is told in Qur'an has the same general outlines as the Biblical narrative; but in the Arabic account there is a wealth of accessory detail and incident. One significant departure in the Qur'anic account of the Joseph story is the use of an unspecified King in place of the Biblical Pharaoh. Joseph is regarded by Muslims as a prophet (Qur'an, suras vi. 84, xl. 36). He is beleived to have been very beautiful. In the Qur'an a whole chapter (sura xii.) is devoted to Joseph.

[edit] Differences of tradition

There are certain points in which the Islamic story differs from the Biblical.^[12] In the Qur'an the brothers ask Jacob to let Joseph go with them.^[12] The pit into which Joseph is thrown is a well with water in it,^[12] and Joseph was taken as a slave by passing-by travellers (Qur'an 12:19).

In one account, Joseph's face possessed such a peculiar brilliancy that his brothers noticed the different light in the sky as soon as he appeared above the edge of the well, and they came back to claim him as their slave.^[12] This same peculiarity was noticeable when they went to Egypt: although it was evening when they entered the city, his face diffused such a light that the astonished inhabitants came out to see the cause of it.^[12]

In the Bible, Joseph discloses himself to his brethren before they return to their father the second time after buying corn.^[12] The same in the Islamic story but they are compelled to return to Jacob without Benjamin, and the former weeps himself blind.^[12] He remains so until the sons have returned from Egypt, bringing with them Joseph's garment healed the patriarch's eyes as soon as he put it to his face (Qur'an 12:96).^[12]

In one Talmudic story, Joseph was buried in the Nile, as there was some dispute as to which province should be honored by having his tomb within its boundaries. 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. There is no mention of that in the Bible or the Qur'an.

[edit] House of Joseph

[edit] Literature and culture

Lists of miscellaneous information should be avoided. Please relocate any relevant information into appropriate sections or articles. (November 2007)

Thomas Mann retells the Genesis stories surrounding Joseph in his four novel omnibus, Joseph and His Brothers, identifying Joseph with the figure of Osarseph known from Josephus, and the pharaoh with Akhenaten.

Joseph figures prominently in Anita Diamant's novel The Red Tent, which retells the story of Dinah, his sister.

The musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is about Joseph's story.

The 1995 miniseries "The Bible: Joseph" is a dramatic retelling of the Biblical story of Joseph. It stars Paul Mercurio in the title role, and received an Emmy for Outstanding Miniseries.

In the video game "Castlevania: Symphony of the Night", there is an item called "Joseph's Cloak" which allows the player to change the colors of Alucard's cape.

In 2000, DreamWorks produced an animated film based on the story of Joseph called Joseph: King of Dreams.

[edit] See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Joseph

• Torah portions on Joseph: Vayeshev, Miketz, Vayigash, and Vayechi.

v • d • e Prophets in the Hebrew Bible Patriarchs Abel · Kenan · Enoch · Noah (rl) · Eber · Abraham · Isaac · Jacob · Sarah (rl) · Rebecca · Rachel · Joseph Israelite prophets in the Torah Moses (rl) · Aaron · Miriam · Eldad & Medad · Phinehas Prophets mentioned in the First Prophets Joshua · Deborah · Eli · Elkanah · Hannah · Abigail · Samuel · Saul · David · Solomon · Gad · Nathan · Jeduthun · Ahiyah · Elijah · Elisha · Shemaiah · Iddo · Azariah · Hanani · Jehu · Micaiah · Jahaziel · Eliezer · Zechariah ben Jehoiada · Oded · Huldah · Uriah · Hilkiah Major Prophets Isaiah (rl) · Jeremiah · Ezekiel · Daniel (rl) Minor Prophets Hosea · Joel · Amos · Obadiah · Jonah (rl) · Micah · Nahum · Habakkuk · Zephaniah · Haggai · Zechariah · Malachi Noahide prophets Beor · Balaam · Job (rl) · Eliphaz · Bildad · Zophar · Elihu Other prophets Amoz · Beeri · Baruch · Buzi · Mordecai · Esther (rl) Italics denote that the status as a prophet is not universally accepted.

v • d • e Prophets in the Qur'an آدم إدريس نوح هود صالح إبراهيم لوط إسماعيل إسحاق يعقوب يوسف أيوب Adam Adam Idris Enoch Nuh Noah Hud Eber Saleh Shelah Ibrahim Abraham Lut Lot Ismail Ishmael Is'haq Isaac Yaqub Jacob Yusuf Joseph Ayoub Job شُعيب موسى هارون ذو الكفل داود سليمان إلياس إليسع يونس زكريا يحيى عيسى مُحمد Shoaib Jethro Musa Moses Harun Aaron Dhul-Kifl Ezekiel Daud David Sulayman Solomon Ilyas Elijah Al-Yasa Elisha Yunus Jonah Zakariya Zechariah Yahya John Isa Jesus Muhammad

[edit] References

• This article incorporates text from the 1901–1906 Jewish Encyclopedia, a publication now in the public domain.