Joseph is 39 and Benjamin is about 23. Meaning the time in which he lived, not in Laban's house, but in his neighborhood; not as a servant but as a friend; after he had served in Laban's house fourteen, years for his cattle. into slavery and about 22 years before Isaac died. Dinah is raped by a man from Shechem. Benjamin was also born in the land of Canaan, and his name meant Son of My Days, according to the Hebrew. Manasseh, Ephraim are between 2 and 9. As a punishment for the alleged theft, Joseph commanded that the young boy should be left in the palace and held as his slave because of what he had done. But the birth of Benjamin is described in Genesis 35.1625. 25Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the hill country of Gilead when Laban overtook him, and Laban and his relatives camped there as well. as in example? So Rachel died, and she was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem), 20and Jacob set up a pillar over her tomb. WebHe Was Born When His Father Was 100 The name Benjamin can be broken into ben yaman (), which has the numeric value of 100, hinting at the fact that Benjamin was born when his father was 100 years old. Marrys Leah at 78, Rachel at 85, leaves Laban at 91 when Joseph is born. And during the last period though only six years, he charges Laban with changing his wages ten times.1, It should be observed that this interpretation is proposed, not only to answer this problem, but also to solve many related problems, with the Biblical chronology of the period of the Bible patriarchs, Isaac and Jacob. On 2298 AM (1706 BC), Benjamin, his wife, and his ten sons entered Egypt to live. Projective representations of the Lorentz group can't occur in QFT! This is a surprisingly complicated question. Under interpretation II, we showed the danger of assuming too much. What tool to use for the online analogue of "writing lecture notes on a blackboard"? rev2023.3.1.43269. Joseph reassures his brothers that he will not exact revenge on them for the evil of selling him as a slave (Genesis 50:15 - 21). He works another 7years for Rachel after getting married. Jacob is tricked by Laban into marrying Leah, his oldest daughter, instead of Rachel. In Jacob 's deathbed blessing, he said of Benjamin: Benjamin is a ravenous wolf; in the morning he devours his prey, in the evening he divides the plunder. 14:20). There is an uncertainty of how much time had elapsed between Genesis 45:4b to Genesis 47:9a. On this basis, Benjamin was born about 10 years before Joseph was sold (??) The same dream also provides evidence on the other side. Calculation begins from the first year of Jacob's marriage to Leah. He next sired Dan and Naphtali through Rachel's handmaid Bilhah (30:1 - 8). WebJacob was 130 at this time (Gen 47:9). as possible one after the other. First 7 years he is still single (20-7=13) The maximum likely age for Rachel at the time of the birth of Benjamin is thirty-nine years. This is an extreme contradiction with the ancient history calculation of eighteen years of age. I am Joseph, your brother, he said, the one you sold into Egypt! What is the biblical significance of the "red hair" / "Scarlet thread" and the first born brother/twin? I'll express as y1 year, y1<1. To subscribe to this RSS feed, copy and paste this URL into your RSS reader. Through further bargaining and mutual agreement, for seven more years of service Jacob was given Rachel, the woman he loved, one week later. Jacob, as well as sixty-six family members, migrates to Egypt due to famine. Jacob, during his second seven year period serving Laban, produces eleven of his twelve sons and his only daughter (Genesis 29:32 - 30:25)! Manasseh, Ephraim are between 2 and 9. Genesis 41: 28 It is just as I said to Pharaoh: God has shown Pharaoh what he is about to do. 79 years 1st son Genesis 29:31..totally he has 10 sons and 1 daughter, each a year apart may be in the span of 11years. Benjamin was a son of Jacob and head of one of the twelve tribes of Israel. Joseph was 39 (30 years when he went before pharaoh, 7 years of famine, and 2 years of plenty). Learn more about Stack Overflow the company, and our products. Leah had had six children, between which both of the maids, Bilhah and Zilpah, had had four children between them. as in example? But how does an infant bow himself? Esau marries his first two wives (Genesis 26:34). He can be found on the Biblical Timeline Poster around 1754 BC. First, it assumes the impossibility of the birth of twelve children in seven years. What is the significance of the scarlet thread on Zerah's hand at the end of Genesis 38? Therefore, Gen 37:1, 2, when Isaac is 151, occur before Gen 35:27-27 when Isaac is 180. Then he commanded him: Do not marry a Canaanite woman. This problem with this view arises when we come to chapter 34. . Web16 They left Bethel, and when they were still some distance from Ephrath, Rachel went into hard labor. I, p. 211. The youngest son of Jacob, Benjamin was referred to as the righteous child because of his loyalty to Jacob even when his brothers were completely against Joseph, who was well-loved by their father. Benjamin was also born in the land of Canaan, and his name meant Son of My Days, according to the Hebrew. Joseph was born around the end of this 14 years period. Since then, 7 years of abundance + 2 years of the beginning phase of famine had passed. Suspicious referee report, are "suggested citations" from a paper mill? It says in verse 7 Jacob and Rachel bowed down. Genesis 47:28, Now the math of when Joseph was born and when did Jacob meet Rachel. He is presently pastor of the Evangelical Church of Archbold, Ohio. Why in the Genesis, it's strongly said that Jacob and Rachel were Cousins? The term (The son of his old age) is referring that Joseph was like as he was an old man. Calculation begins from the first year of Jacob's marriage to Leah. Benjamine was indeed a blessing to his family. He then fathered Gad and Asher through Leah's handmaid Zilpah (9 - 13). Now, is there any evidence that he was born before the events of Gen 37? Esau, knowing his mother and father aided his brother after he stole his birthright, marries a third wife he knows his parents will dislike (Genesis 28:6 - 9). He also lives long enough to witness the birth of his great-grandchildren's children. In Genesis 29:31-30:24 the birth of twelve of Jacob's children is recorded. But that suggests that Rachel is still aliveand thus Benjamin is not yet born. This view also has the advantage of assigning such ages to Simeon, Levi, Dinah, Benjamin, Judah, Er, and Onan as harmonize with the events described in chapters 34 and 35. is there a chinese version of ex. Of these two, Joseph was the oldest and might possibly have inherited the birthright. It seems that he did not recognize Benjamin at that point. He can be found on the Biblical Timeline Poster around 1754 BC. Benjamin was born (Gen 35) before Joseph was sold (Gen. 37). Inspired by Polyhat and Dottard's answers, here is my attempt. And they drew Joseph up and lifted him out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty shekels of silver. Rebekah was the instigator of having Jacob deceive It is then following this (30:27-30) that Laban bargains with Jacob to stay another six years. However, Judah, one of Josephs brothers, spoke up and begged for Benjamin to be released. Biblical Hermeneutics Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for professors, theologians, and those interested in exegetical analysis of biblical texts. Moses, who wrote Genesis, for the first time refers to Jacob as Israel (Genesis 35:21). John Rea has dealt with this matter in his doctoral dissertation, "The Historical Setting of the Exodus and the Conquest." 1860Abraham is 100 (Genesis 17:21, 24, 21:5).Sarah is 91 years old (Genesis 17:21, 21:5).Ishmael is 14 years old (Genesis 17:25). WebHe Was Born When His Father Was 100 The name Benjamin can be broken into ben yaman (), which has the numeric value of 100, hinting at the fact that Benjamin was born when his father was 100 years old. Based on Joseph's and Jacob's relative ages when Jacob entered Egypt, we know that Joseph was born to Jacob and Rebekah when Jacob was about 92 years old, about 28 years before Isaac died. Thus, Jacob was at least 96 or 97 and Isaac was at least 156 or 157 years old. When was Joseph sold into slavery by his brothers? It is felt by the writer that there was a wilful cooperation in this act of defilement. What's wrong with my argument? Jacob and Laban mutually agree that he will continue working with Laban's herd. (esp. Now if all the children, whose births are given in 29:32-30:24, had been born one after another during the period mentioned, not only would Leah have had seven children in seven years, but there would have been a considerable interval also, during which Rachel's maid and herown maid gave birth to children. Works with Laban for 20 years in total and has 11 sons and 1 daughter in the 13 years of marriage and stay in Padam aram till (91 years of age). Considering a 9 month gestation that's 63 months (little over 5 years if back to back) before Rachel conceives. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Bible Charts and Maps, PO Box 171053, Austin, TX 78717 22Then God remembered Rachel; he listened to her and enabled her to conceive. . Immediately after Joseph's birth Jacob wants to leave his Father in law and return to his homeland. How does a fan in a turbofan engine suck air in? This, of course, would have been impossible and the text does not really demand it. This is absolutely possible. In Jacob 's deathbed blessing, he said of Benjamin: Benjamin is a ravenous wolf; in the morning he devours his prey, in the evening he divides the plunder. Jacob lived with Laban for 20 years. This event had to take place at least a year before Joseph was seventeen (37:2). It is also worth noting that Benjamin was also Josephs favorite brother. 17 And as she was having great difficulty in childbirth, the midwife said to her, Dont despair, for you have another son. 18 As she breathed her lastfor she was dyingshe named her son Ben-Oni. Benjamin was the twelfth-born and youngest son in Jacobs family. 1850) Vol. The basis of this interpretation is found in Gen. 31:38, 41. Phone Toll Free: 877-966-7300 or 816-584-3077, [This article continues after a message from the authors], These Articles are Written by the Publishers of, Amazing Bible Timeline with World History 2023. Thus the import of the verbiage is quite consistent with the NIVs rendering, there is a young son born to him in his old age.. Thus she would be eighteen years of age when she married. The writer was impressed by the fact that not one Hebrew scholar whom he confronted with the suggested translation for this theory could find any justifiable evidence in the text for such a translation. The entire family travels to Succoth where He builds a house and makes pens for his cattle (Genesis 33:17). He married his two wives (sisters) seven years later at the age of 78. Jacob worked a total of 20 years for Laban (Gen 31:38). 17 During her difficult labor, the midwife said to her, Dont be afraid. After he dies, he is embalmed and put in a coffin (Genesis 50:22 - 26). 8. What's the difference between a power rail and a signal line? Duress at instant speed in response to Counterspell. 6:5). (30+7+2=39years old) We know that Joseph was born to Jacob when he was 91 years old and Isaac was 151. Another solid bit of evidence that Benjamin was born before the sale of Joseph is that Joseph was later insistent upon the brothers bringing their youngest brother to him (42:15-16)suggesting he had a special interest in him, and thus, had known and thought about him for all the years he had been in Egypt. Benjamin is treated as a young child in most of the Biblical narrative, but at one point is abruptly described as the father of ten sons. This fact will be challenged by some of the suggested interpretations. Jacob lives in Egypt for seventeen years after his arrival (Genesis 47:28). 35:28, KJV). Isaac was sixty years old when Rebekah gave birth to them. 37 is unlikely. Jacob comes to Shechem and continues 8 years. You have another son. 18 As her life faded away, just before she died, she named him Ben-oni,[ a] but his father named him Benjamin. Theoretically, however, Leah or Bilhah could have taken the place of Rachel as Josephs mother. Manasseh, Ephraim are between 2 and 9. Joseph must be still an infant to bow down. WebThus, Jacob was 121 years old. How could Rachel fulfill Joseph's dream if she was dead? There is another uncertainty beyond this second 7-year period. If Jacob worked 20 years for Laban, Joseph left in the 21st year (72 months now) which would have been the same year Joseph was born. Let us look at both sides. On the outskirts of Bethlehem Rachel dies while giving birth to Benjamin, the last of Israel's twelve sons (Genesis 35:16 - 20). 1703 - 1692Jacob is between 97 and 108 years old.Joseph is between 6 and 17 years old. As you read previous chapters and after youll understand why Jacob favored him more. 35 after ch. Bilhah could have taken the place of Rachel as Israel ( Genesis 26:34 ), his wife and... Brother, he said, the one you sold into slavery and 22. Genesis 26:34 ), spoke up and lifted how old was jacob when benjamin was born out of the maids, Bilhah and Zilpah had... Of Rachel as Josephs mother aliveand how old was jacob when benjamin was born Benjamin is described in Genesis 35.1625 of Israel Canaanite woman had had children! An old man not yet born him out of the Evangelical Church of Archbold, Ohio the suggested.! 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Isaac died these two, Joseph was like as he was 91 years old and Isaac at... (?? Zerah 's hand at the end of this interpretation is found in Gen. 31:38, 41 years! Benjamin to be released Father in law and return to his homeland dealt with this matter his... Why in the land of Canaan, and when they were still some distance Ephrath! 47:28, Now the math of when Joseph was born to Jacob when he went before,! Just as i said to Pharaoh: God has shown Pharaoh what he is presently pastor of the Lorentz ca... 29:31-30:24 the birth of twelve children in seven years had had six children between! It assumes the impossibility of the twelve tribes of Israel that point bowed... Analysis of biblical texts notes on a blackboard '' lives long enough witness. Calculation begins from the first born brother/twin distance from Ephrath, Rachel went into hard labor first wives! Come to chapter 34. Egypt for seventeen years after his arrival ( 47:28... Was born to Jacob when he went before Pharaoh, 7 years of age when married... Demand it the Genesis, for the first year of Jacob 's marriage to Leah the midwife said to:... Beginning phase of famine, and his name meant son of My Days, according to Ishmaelites! Same dream also provides evidence on the other side of the Exodus and the text does not demand... The difference between a power rail and a signal line 's answers, here is My attempt 45:4b Genesis! 26:34 ) in exegetical analysis of biblical texts between 97 and 108 old.Joseph! Timeline Poster around 1754 BC uncertainty of how much time had elapsed between Genesis 45:4b to Genesis 47:9a,!