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Benjamin

Benjamin

Male - Yes, date unknown

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  • Name Benjamin  
    Gender Male 
    Died Yes, date unknown 
    Notes 
    • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin


      «b»Benjamin«/b» («u»Hebrew «/u»: , «u»Modern «/u» «i»Binyamin«/i» «u»Tiberian «/u» «i»Biny«/i») in the «u»Book of Genesis «/u», is a son of «u»Jacob «/u», the second (and last) son of «u»Rachel «/u», and the founder of the «u»Israelite «/u» «u»Tribe of Benjamin «/u»; in the Biblical account, unlike Rachel's first son \endash «u»Joseph «/u», the father of «u»Ephraim «/u» and «u»Manasseh «/u» \endash Benjamin was born after Jacob and Rachel arrived in «u»Canaan «/u». He died in Egypt on the 11th of «u»Cheshvan «/u» (which was also his birthday) 1443 BCE at the age of 111.
      However, some view these details as «u»postdiction «/u», an «u»eponymous «/u» «u»metaphor «/u» providing an «u»etiology «/u» of the connectedness of the tribe to others in the Israelite confederation.


      «b» Benjamin's sons
      «/b»The genealogical passage names each of the sons; classical rabbinical tradition adds that each son's name honors Joseph:
      «tab»«i»Belah«/i» (meaning «i»swallow«/i»), in reference to Joseph disappearing («i»being swallowed up«/i»)
      «i»«tab»Becher«/i» (meaning «i»first born«/i»), in reference to Joseph being the first child of Rachel
      «i»«tab»Ashbel«/i» (meaning «i»capture«/i»), in reference to Joseph having suffered captivity
      «i»«tab»Gera«/i» (meaning «i»grain«/i»), in reference to Joseph living in a «i»foreign«/i» land (Egypt)
      «i»«tab»Naaman«/i» (meaning «i»grace«/i»), in reference to Joseph having graceful speech
      «i»«tab»Ehi«/i» (meaning «i»my brother«/i»), in reference to Joseph being Benjamin's only full-brother (as opposed to half-brothers)
      «u»«i»«tab»Rosh «/u»«/i» (meaning «i»elder«/i»), in reference to Joseph being older than Benjamin
      «i»«tab»Muppim«/i» (meaning «i»double mouth«/i»), in reference to Joseph passing on what he had been taught by Jacob
      «i»«tab»Huppim«/i» (meaning «u»«i»marriage canopies «/u»«/i»), in reference to Joseph being married in Egypt, while Benjamin was not there
      «i»«tab»Ard«/i» (meaning «i»wanderer«/i»/«i»fugitive«/i»), in reference to Joseph being like a rose
      The Torah's Joseph narrative, at a stage when Joseph is unrecognised by his brothers, describes Joseph as testing whether his brothers have reformed, by secretly planting a silver cup in Benjamin's bag, then publicly searching the bags for it, and after «i»finding«/i» it in Benjamin's possession, demanding that Benjamin become his «u»slave «/u» as a punishment; the narrative goes on to state that when «u»Judah «/u» (on behalf of the other brothers) begged Joseph not to enslave Benjamin and instead enslave him, since enslavement of Benjamin would break Jacob's heart, this caused Joseph to recant and reveal his identity. The «u»midrashic book of Jasher «/u» argues that prior to revealing his identity, Joseph asked Benjamin to find his missing brother (ie. Joseph) via «u»astrology «/u», using an «u»astrolabe «/u»-like tool; it continues by stating that Benjamin «u»divined «/u» that the «i»man on the throne«/i» was Joseph, so Joseph identified himself to Benjamin (but not the other brothers), and revealed his scheme (as in the Torah) to test how fraternal the other brothers were. However, some classical rabbinical sources argue that Joseph identified himself for other reasons.«u»[5]«/u» In these sources, Benjamin swore an oath, on the memory of Joseph, that he was innocent of theft, and, when challenged about how believable the oath would be, explained that remembering Joseph was so important to him that he had named his sons in Joseph's honour; these sources go on to state that Benjamin's oath touched Joseph so deeply that Joseph was no longer able to pretend to be a stranger.
      In the narrative, just prior to this test, when Joseph had first met all of his brothers (but not identified himself to them), he had held a feast for them; the narrative heavily implies that Benjamin was Joseph's favorite brother, since he is overcome with tears when he first meets Benjamin in particular, and he gives Benjamin five times as much food as he apportions to the others. According to textual scholars, this is really the Jahwist's account of the reunion after Joseph identifies himself, and the account of the threat to enslave Benjamin is just the Elohist's version of the same event, with the Elohist being more terse about Joseph's emotions towards Benjamin, merely mentioning that Benjamin was given five times as many gifts as the others A version of the Joseph narrative appears in the «u»Qu'ran «/u», which also mentions Benjamin, describing him as having been regarded particularly highly by Joseph, and by Jacob; «u»Baidawi «/u», the «u»quintessential «/u» mediaeval commentator on the Qu'ran, records that there was a tradition that the brothers had been made to sit in pairs at the feast, so that Benjamin had to sit on his own, which resulted in Benjamin weeping over the loss of Joseph. Not only is Benjamin treated as the favourite brother of Joseph, and a favourite of Jacob, but classical rabbinical sources also stress the fact that Benjamin is referred to as the «i»beloved of Yahweh«/i» in «u»Deuteronomy «/u»; these rabbinical sources concluded that Benjamin died without ever committing «u»sin «/u» - one of only four men to have done so (the other three being «u»Amram «/u», «u»Jesse «/u», and «u»Kileab «/u»).
    Person ID I61480  Glenn Cook Family
    Last Modified 30 Jan 2013 

    Father Jacob (Isreal) Ben Abraham, King of Goshen,   b. Abt 1892 B.C., Haran Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. Abt 1745 B.C., Egypt Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Mother Rachel,   d. Yes, date unknown 
    Family ID F551617658  Group Sheet

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    Benjamin
    Benjamin
    Benjamin
    Benjamin
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    Joseph and his brothers.jpg
    Joseph and his brothers.jpg
    Benjamin (right) embracing his brother, Joseph