Read the latest from JWA from your inbox. It does not negate the previous identification of them as possible wives in Josephs story. Now, I try to keep Bilhah and Zilpah in mind in my daily life. Bilhah and Zilpah are considered lower-status individuals. Rachel and Leah in the Bible - Biblical Archaeology Society Genesis 30 records that, when Rachel saw that she bare Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister; and said unto Jacob, Give me children, or else I die. Im about to head out the door. During the final stage of labor a woman would squat and be supported under the arms by one or two other women. The account of Zilpahs role as Leahs surrogate mother can be found in Genesis 30:9-13. Yet they did it out of love--love for Rachel and Leah, knowing that they could given them something they could not get themselves. Why I Include Bilhah and Zilpah in the Imahot - Evolve For Kristine Casey, 61, it meant giving the gift of motherhood to her infertile daughter by carrying and giving birth to her own grandson. I am looking to do research on the women Bilhah and Zilpah. Though her reaction is not recorded, Bilhah gives birth to two sons, Dan and Naphtali, who are named by Rachel but referred to as "the sons of Bilhah." I have issued a standing challenge for all my readers The Women in the Scripture Challenge are you super brave and daring enough to take the challenge? And this is how Laban wanted it to remain. We could defy the patriarchal constraints of the Torah, and highlight significant women regardless of their status. Why Did Christ Ride a Donkey on His Triumphant Entry? Jacob hears about what Reuben did and does nothing at the time. The Rabbis brought it from here: "If you afflict my daughters" (Bereishit 31:50) gives two. Leah started popping out kids left and right, four boys to be exact. Mignon R. Jacobs, Gender, Power and Persuasion: The Genesis Narratives and Contemporary Portrait (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2007), 160.2. I thought about how there are two versions of the Amidah in some prayer books, one including the first four matriarchs names, and one without them. But more importantly, we will question why these two womens children receive blessings and an inheritance when other sons of women in other stories did not. I have to say that when I hear of the positive results of agreements between women, for one to bear anothers child and then give that child to her,with love,I can see the love of our Heavenly Father. Wow,what an interesting post. Thank you for sharing it with us. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomb_of_the_Matriarchs, New blog post from our CEO Prashanth: Community is the future of AI, Improving the copy in the close modal and post notices - 2023 edition. I found this article concerning surrocacy with a mother and daughter: "A mother's love takes many forms. I first became fans of Zilpah and Bilhah when I was assigned them for a presentation in a graduate class on women in the Book of Genesis. Thus, they have been forgotten as unworthy or ignored as unremarkable. Bilah is cited a few verses later in verse 25 of the same genealogy. In a similar way, when I omit Bilhah and Zilpah, the mothers of 4 of the 12 Israelite tribes, missing in the liturgy due to their subordinate status, I collude in the marginalization of those whom society has assigned a lower status. Elizabeth Wyner Mark, The Four Wives of Jacob: Matriarchs Seen and Unseen, The Reconstructionist (Fall 1998): 2224.13. Bilhah is said to be buried in the Tomb of the Matriarchs in Tiberias. In their historical and cultural context, the mistress had full procreative rights over the maid-slave, including control of access and consent regarding her sexual behavior.3Jacobs, Gender, Power and Persuasion, 159160, 168. Zilpah is referenced in the genealogy in Genesis 46:18. Daughter of Laban the Aramean and NN ., Concubine 24:16 says that Yehoyada Kohen Gadol was buried in Jerusalem, but there's a grave in Tzfas shown as his (and I believe it was identified as such by the Arizal). [1] Genesis 29:29 describes her as Laban 's handmaiden ( ), who was given to Rachel to be her handmaid on Rachel's marriage to Jacob. and Alib . Frymer-Kensky, Tikva. This was a normal thing for concubines. xcolor: How to get the complementary color. Zilpah is given to Leah as a handmaid by Leah's father, Laban, upon Leah's marriage to Jacob (see Genesis 29:24, 46:18). There's a place in Tiberias that is supposed to be the common gravesite of several prominent women from Tanach; a sign there lists Bilhah, Zilpah, Yocheved, Tzipporah, Elisheva, and Avigayil. These two handmaidens, Bilhah and Zilpah, made great sacrifices. Jacob, of course, is thefather of Joseph and all his siblings, but the thirteen siblings havefour different mothers: Leah and Rachel, who are themselvessisters (the daughters of Laban), and Zilpah and Bilhah, who are themaidservants of Leah and Rachel, respectively. Simple deform modifier is deforming my object. . In the Book of Genesis, Zilpah was Leah's handmaid, whom Leah gave to Jacob "to wife" to bear him children. The first son Rachel named Dan saying, God hath judged me, and hath also heard my voice, and hath given me a son. The second son Bilhah bore she named Naphtali and said, With great wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and I have prevailed.After Bilhah bore Rachel two sons Leah found that even though she already had four sons she was no longer able to have children. Take the Challenge Was Aristarchus the first to propose heliocentrism? . Possibly because of this complexity and their inherent lowly slave status for much of their lives, Zilpah and Bilhah do not get equal status as Matriarchs along with Leah and Rachel, their contemporaries (and owners). According to Bereishit Rabbah 74:13 Bilhah and Zilpah were also daughters of Lavan. Probably the greatest sacrifice that any mother could ever make. The Israelites were divided into 12 tribes named after Jacob's sons and two sons of Joseph Manasseh and Ephraim. Bilhah, whose name is believed to mean bashful or faltering, was given to Rachel as her handmaiden by Laban, Rachels father, when Rachel was given to Jacob as a bride. 8 Zilpah means "to flow" ( lezalef ). Most havent. But apparently he considered it a major offense, for in his deathbed speech, he removes Reuben from his extra inheritance as firstborn and alludes to Reubens dreadful deed (Gen 49:4). For you are forgetting Bilhah and Zilpah, Jacob's other two wives. Bilhah must have been very young when she bore her children, because Jacobs eldest son Reuben (by Leah) has sex with her (Gen 35:22). The maid-slaves would not only serve the daughters, but they could also bear children for their mistress-owner as a surrogate if the mistress were barren. Boolean algebra of the lattice of subspaces of a vector space? Bilhah and Zilpah's Birth Stories: The Old Testament's Form of Adoption Share Bilhah and Zilpah were the handmaidens (servants) of the patriarch Jacob's wives, Leah and Rachel. All the Bilhahs and the Zilpahs who still selflessly give of themselves to bring children to women who are unable to have them any other way and all the Rachels and the Leahs who will never be able to repay the gift. more here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zilpah. Previous to joining academia, Heather worked in the IT field as a web developer for ten years, learning the importance of input data to output success. This name proved to be prophetic, as when Zilpah was toldas a young girlthat she was destined to join Leah in her marriage to the evil Esau, 9 tears would flow down her face. From the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Twelve Tribes Of Israel Explained - Grunge Black Hebrews - Hebrew Igbo Of Zilpah, Leah's handmaid, there are mentioned 2 sons, 11 grandsons, 2-great-grandsons, and 1 daughter (who is reckoned like Dinah, both here and Numbers 26:46, for some special reason, which is not particularly described); in all, 2 + 11 + 2 + 1 equals 16 souls. Whom were Bilhah and Zilpah descendant? Jacob did not become aware of the substitution until after the marriage acts had been committed. In midrashic texts, Rabbis have long given Zilpah and Bilhah matriarchal status, alongside Leah and Rachel. "[11], Some rabbinical commentators interpreted the story differently, saying that Reuben's disruption of Bilhah's and Jacob's beds was not through sex with Bilhah. The only other brothers who are not singled out with specific actions in the narrative are Leahs two sons Issachar and Zebulun.10. God's Covenants With Hagar, Bilhah and Zilpah | Sefaria This act caused Reuben to lose his birthright inheritance as pointed out in Genesis 49:3-4. It is common practice in my sphere to seek or pray, Center for Hebraic Thought at The King's College | 56 Broadway | New York, NY 10004. Since they were servants it wasn't really like they could say no, right? 1. As opposed to Isaacs story in which the maid-slave Hagars child is not included in the inheritance, the maid-slaves children are included in the inheritance in Jacobs story. This is reinforced by the fact that Rachel named both of the sons Bilhah bore. Bilhah and Zilpah gave birth to four sonsNaphtali, Dan, Asher, and Gadfathered by Jacob, who became the heads of four of the Twelve Tribes of Israel. Leah names the two sons of Zilpah and is directly involved in their upbringing. to Laban, the father of Leah and Rachel. why not correct the list to include the two maid-slave mothers? While Zilpah is a considered a minor Bible character, she was a vessel used to usher in two of the tribes of Israel. We have here something amounting to a status change for the maid-slaves children. Rachel, who was Jacob's favorite wife, had not been blessed with children. Whats less clear, however, is their roles within the forming Israelite tribe, especially compared with the roles of Leah and Rachel. Zilpah is first introduced in the Bible in Genesis 29:24. Schneider, Mothers of Promise, 7475, 137.11. Bilhah, Rachel's servant and Jacob's concubine, bears two more sons, Dan and Naphtali. With a wry smile, I say to my family, Im, As a Pentecostal, I am familiar with revival language. I will use the term maid-slave to capture their feminine and slavish status. You can read about Jacob, also known as Israel, blessing Gad and Asher as tribes of Israel in Genesis 49:19-20. Who is Bilhah? Can you direct me to anything about their lineage? The text says nothing to suggest that the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is the God of Bilhah and Zilpah. Still without a child! How well do you know your Biblical stories? What did it take for them to share their husband with two other women? But in having a child, Hagar becomes prideful and disrespects her mistress Sarah. 8 Zilpah means "to flow" ( lezalef ). Claiming Bilhah and Zilpah | Jewish Women's Archive Leah and Rachel, of course! According to at least one opinion though, Bilhah came down to Egypt though as she was still alive at the time, thus fulfilling the "moon" part of Joseph's dream. I guess God works in mysterious ways. And for whatever reason, she just could not conceive. She is on the Biblical Timeline Poster between 1754-1704 BC. Laban gave Rotheus a wife named Euna, who was the girl's mother. They are the biblical women we view as relatable and worthy of emulation. Also, the scriptural text seems to indicate that the sons Bilhah bore were considered to be Rachels and that she would have raised them as her own. It makes me wonder what sort of relationship Rachel and Leah had with them. Not that it means that much, but I find it very interesting that most Christians believe all were white. At the end of the narrative (Gen 49), the children of Zilpah and Bilhah received blessings from their father Jacob at his death, along with Jacobs other sons by Leah and Rachel. Matriarchs: A Liturgical and Theological Category, Biblical Women in World and Hebrew Literature, Modesty and Sexuality in Halakhic Literature, The Shalvi/Hyman Encyclopedia of Jewish Women, Copyright 19982023, Jewish Women's Archive. Is "I didn't think it was serious" usually a good defence against "duty to rescue"? Of the sixty-six descendants of Jacob who journeyed to Egypt, twenty-three are accorded to Zilpah and Bilhah (Gen 46)that is more than one-third of the total. The only other brothers who are not singled out with specific actions in the narrative are Leahs two sons Issachar and Zebulun. Like many others, these named women have a voice, agency, and power within their stories, at least at times, and use it to achieve their ends. Something that sounds weird and wrong to me now might have made perfect sense in their day. Tammi J. Schneider notes that a shiphchah or a female slave differs from male slaves by also carrying out sexual and procreative functions, as legislated in Leviticus 19:20, raising the question as to whether these same functions are inherent in the type of slavery this term conveys in the current context. Features thousands of biographic and thematic essays on Jewish women around the world. This image of a woman being supported in a squat by other women is the most common image of women giving birth throughout history and around the world. [4] He was taken into captivity but redeemed by Laban, Rachel and Leah's father. As Ive thought about these two great women and reflected on their sacrifices I cant help but marvel at what amazing women these two handmaidens must have been. What was Bilhah and Zilpah's ancestry? - Mi Yodeya They are often presented as slave-like objects in the narrative with no voice, who only act at the behest of others. It's not them. Why did Avraham prefer the daughters of Aner, Eshkol and Mamre over Eliezer's daughter? English Standard Version What is significant about the names Rachel and Leah give their sons? Not exactly. Bilhah and Zilpah were the handmaidens (servants) of the patriarch Jacobs wives, Leah and Rachel. Their sacrifice reminds me of all the women who make similar sacrifices around the world today. Rachel in turn gives Bilhah to Jacob as a wife when Rachel is found to be barren. [3] Zilpah is given to Leah as a handmaid by Leah's father, Laban, upon Leah's marriage to Jacob (see Genesis 29:24, 46:18 ). Any children born of the union were considered to be legally the children of the mistress wife. (Bereishit 31:43) gives [another two equaling] four.'. The Children of Jacob - SMU For this reason, some modern Jewish feminists have reclaimed Bilhah and Zilpah as matriarchs. In Jewish tradition, Zilpah is believed to be buried in the Tomb of the Matriarchs in Tiberias. Genesis chapters 29-30 and 35 detail the births of Jacob's many children. What did it take for Bilhah and Zilpah to share their children with two other women? Walking with the Women Books Though both Leah and Rachel were bought by Jacob to be his covenantal wives with his years of labor that functioned as a bride-price1cobs, Gender, Power and Persuasion: The Genesis Narratives and Contemporary Portrait (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2007), 160. Possible meanings for the Hebrew name Bilhah are "simplicity," "modesty," "timid," or "faltering." Bilhah is also the name of a town in the south of Judah ( 1 Chronicles 4:29 ). Though Zilpah and Bilhah could never have been the full wives of Jacob while the treaty with Laban stood, once Labans two daughters died, Jacob may have viewed the stipulation of no other wives as no longer applicable, since it was meant to protect Labans daughters. @CashCow Do you happen to know the source for this opinion? Lines and paragraphs break automatically. Jewish Women's Archive. One afternoon when I was in the 7th grade, my Hebrew tutor, Sarah, was wearing a shirt that read: Sarah & Rebecca & Rachel & Leah & Bilhah & Zilpah. The first four names, the names of the matriarchs, were familiar to me. Enjoying this article? He was taken into captivity but redeemed by Laban, Rachel . Thus, we shall proclaim the following revised celebratory benediction: Praised are You, Lord our God, and the God of our ancestors. While Leah and Rachel, who are also often named together, competed against each other for Jacobs attention and to accumulate sons, Zilpah and Bilhah were always accommodating, respectful, and supportive of each other and authority figures. It only takes a minute to sign up. Zilpah and Bilhah, who are usually named together, had each other, while Hagar was alone. Probably the greatest sacrifice that any mother could ever make. Acts - Revelations Rachel, who was Jacobs favorite wife, had not been blessed with children. Where did Bilhah and Zilpah come from? - Daily Justnow Passing negative parameters to a wolframscript, Two MacBook Pro with same model number (A1286) but different year. Jacob favored Rachel, his other wife, and even loved her maidservant Bilhah more than Zilpah. In the Books of Chronicles, Shimei's brothers were said to have lived in a town called Bilhah and surrounding territories prior to the reign of David. 31 December 1999. It must have been hard, really hard. Attractive design ideal for your home, office, church . What a lovely, thoughtful, and inspiring piece. Just you wait. I like your take on it, but I guess it always seemed like Bilhah and Zilpah didn't have any choice. ; Beor . Is there a minhag or halacha that states that men and women should be buried in separate cemetery plot areas? Interestingly, the mother is not directly named in any of the sons blessings. Bilhah bore two sons. [9], Reuben was Jacob's (Israel) eldest son with Leah. What a great plan. The morning after the wedding, Laban explained to Jacob, "This is not done in our place, to give the younger before the older" (Genesis 29:26). Only the tribe of Judah are Jews. However, Laban gave Leah as the veiled bride to Jacob instead. Nonetheless Bilhah and Zilpah would have been able to see their sons every day and their sons would have know that they were their birth mothers. Who was the mother and father of Bilhah and Zilpah? Zilpah gave birth to two sons, whom Leah claimed as her own and named Gad and Asher. How hard it must have been to be an un-loved wife. The entire tribe of Israel as we have established were akin to the Egyptian in color and looks. Bilhah and Zilpah most likely died in Israel (Genesis 46 sounds like they didn't come down to Egypt), but hadn't they been living in the South part of the country, not anywhere near Tiberias? Rachel, who was Jacobs favorite wife, had not been blessed with children. Sarah explained to me that Bilhah and Zilpah were handmaidens of Rachel and Leah who were given to the sisters by their father. This being the case, it is likely the sons of Jacob from Bilhah and Zilpah were darker than the rest of their brothers. Bilhah, Zilpah, and Me - Medium Also, the scriptural text seems to indicate that the sons Bilhah bore were considered to be Rachel's and that she would have raised them as her own. Leah named the first son Gad and declared, "A troop cometh." Yet in the potentially dangerous situation with Esau, she reverts to being called a maid (Hebrew shifhah). The content of this field is kept private and will not be shown publicly. How to force Unity Editor/TestRunner to run at full speed when in background? Thank you. What did it take for Bilhah and Zilpah to share their children with two other women? After Leah has birthed four sons to Jacob, her competitive sister Rachel decides to give Bilhah, her shiphchah, to Jacob as an ishah, meaning complicatedly woman or wife (Gen 30:4). In an ancient Nuzi marriage contract it stipulated that a woman whose servant bore the children of her husband should have full authority over the offspring. (Source) This adoption ceremony was often conducted by placing the son or daughter on the knees of the mistress and declaring it her child. It must have been hard, really hard. This effort is what has been missing from the feminist movement. Leah was the oldest daughter in lieu of an elder brother. LITERATURE IN SUPPORT OF LAW: THE PROBLEM OF BILHAH AND ZILPAH - De Gruyter Half sister of Matriarch Rachel / ; Matriarch Leah / ; Chorash . The only other time Zilpah and Bilhah are termed wife/woman is when their mistresses give them to Jacob to fulfill the procreative, wifely role in their mistresses place. Required fields are marked *. Jacobs, Gender, Power and Persuasion, 159160, 168.4. Bilhah: Bible | Jewish Women's Archive (Gen 30:3). This pushes me to actively seek out women who have been overlooked by our tradition, whether from the Torah or from more recent history. They were however mothers of 4 other tribes of Israel. [3] Genesis 35:22 expressly calls Bilhah Jacob's concubine, a pilegesh. I had never heard of them before. Probably the greatest sacrifice that any mother could ever make. Wow, and what a crazy story about a 61 year old woman giving birth to her grandson that is really strange! The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Read the latest from JWA from your inbox. However, Reuben, Leah's eldest, felt that this move slighted his mother, who was also a primary wife, and so he moved Jacob's bed into his mother's tent and removed or overturned Bilhah's. I now discuss these two amazing biblical women every chance I get, including here, because their story resonates with so many who are voiceless or powerless. Zilpah . (-1670 - d.) - Genealogy Bilhah and Zilpah - Bodies Exploited, Evangelical Focus Despite their sons being adopted by Rachel and Leah, the sons are associated with their birth mothers. Old Testament Geni requires JavaScript! Many of the brothers directly speak and act within the familial affairs. It makes me wonder what sort of relationship Rachel and Leah had with them. Rachel and Leah | Encyclopedia.com While Leah, Rachels older sister, had given birth to four sons. Please enable JavaScript in your browser's settings to use this part of Geni. Elsewhere in the World The best answers are voted up and rise to the top, Not the answer you're looking for? and Asher . We could continue this tradition by claiming Bilhah and Zilpah as matriarchs. I came to realize that being a Jewish feminist means elevating women, those from our sacred texts who have been forgotten like Bilhah and Zilpah, and Jewish women today. Presumably, Hagar raised Ishmael to act so badly when playing with Isaac that Sarah casts them out (Gen 21:9). How is the difference to be accounted for? Zilpah bore Leah two sons. They were considered concubines, or secondary wives of Jacob. This piece was written as part of JWAs Rising Voices Fellowship. The second son Zilpah bore Leah named Asher and said, "Happy am I, for the daughters will call me blessed." Gender was never an issue. : Ethel Reynolds Smith, Why Having a December Birthday is NOT a Bummer. They are casualties of nation building. In light of their wifely and motherly contributions to creating the Israelite family of Jacob, regardless of their actual status in the narratives, their status as Matriarchs should be upheld and celebrated. I don't think we know. Coming to this realization was inspiring, but it also reminded me of the upsetting reality of the patriarchal nature of Judaism. And my goal, at least for now, is to continue the act of reclaiming these women, and making them known. One suggestion I've seen is that many or most of these are cenotaphs - memorials to these people, but not their actual burial places. Some of these are easier to swallow than others. And this is why the children are mentioned sans mothers, because the difference in status was no more for any involved, mothers or children. For me, this was a revelation. Humane Imagination, What Does the Bible Say about Anxiety? The promises of God endure from generation to generation. This is really an interesting conflict in the bible. We Should Regard These Two Overlooked Women as Biblical Matriarchs Just like Sarai/Sarah gave her handmaid, Hagar, to Abraham to have children on behalf of Sarai/Sarah, These handmaids were basically considered 'surrogates' if you will, for lack of a better word. I have long identified as a feminist and have always been interested in Judaism, but before this, I had never really considered how the two could overlap.
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