Did Yaakov's Sons Marry Canaanites/2

Did Yaakov's Sons Marry Canaanites?

Exegetical Approaches

This topic has not yet undergone editorial review

Overview

Commentators differ in both their understanding of whom Yaakov's sons married and their evaluations of these choices.  On one end of the spectrum, several Midrashic sources are averse to the possibility that the tribes could have intermarried with Canaanites, and they therefore attempt to reinterpret any verses which might imply such actions.  On the opposite end of the spectrum, R. Nechemya allows for the possibility that a number of the brothers might have married their local neighbors.  Finally, Ibn Ezra charts a middle position which claims that although most of the brothers refrained from marrying Canaanites, Yehuda and Shimon did intermarry and were denigrated for their deeds.

None Intermarried

Yaakov's sons, like their father and grandfather before them, were careful not to take wives from the women of Canaan.

Sources:R. Yehuda in Bereshit Rabbah80:1184:2184:35 (Theodor-Albeck)About Bereshit Rabbah¹, Resh Lakish in Bavli PesachimPesachim 50aAbout Bavli Pesachim, Targum Yerushalmi (Yonatan)Bereshit 38:1-2,6,24Bereshit 46:10About Targum Yerushalmi (Yonatan)²

Is marriage to a Canaanite problematic? This position assumes that marrying a Canaanite would have been problematic, either because it is prohibited by Torah law, or because the Canaanites were viewed as an abhorrent and cursed people which would have tainted the line of Yaakov.

Yehuda and Bat Shua – "בַּת אִישׁ כְּנַעֲנִי" – Targum Yerushalmi (Yonatan)³ asserts that the term "כְּנַעֲנִי" refers not to the ethnicity of Shua but to his profession as a merchant.  As evidence for this meaning, Resh LakishPesachim 50aAbout the Bavli points to Hoshea 12:8 and Yeshayahu 23:8.⁴  However, in Divrei HaYamim I 2:3, Bat Shua herself is referred to as "הַכְּנַעֲנִית" which makes this read somewhat difficult.  RambanBereshit 38:2About R. Moshe b. Nachman attempts to respond that she was so called after her famous father.

"שָׁאוּל בֶּן הַכְּנַעֲנִית" – According to this position, the word "כְּנַעֲנִית" in this verse, too, is not to be taken as a description of the woman's nationality.  Opinions in Bereshit Rabbah⁵ identify the Canaanite woman with Dinah and assert that she is given the title either because she had slept with a Canaanite or acted like one.⁶  They suggest that after Dinah was violated by Shekhem, Shimon agreed to marry her so that she would not be forsaken in disgrace.⁷

Tamar – This approach assumes that Tamar, as well, was a non-Canaanite.  Bavli SotahSotah 10aAbout Bavli Sotah asserts that she was a convert, while R. Meir⁸ and Targum Yerushalmi (Yonatan) maintain that she was the daughter of Shem, whom they identify with Malkizedek,⁹ priest of Shalem.¹⁰

Yosef and Osnat b. Potifera

Whom did everyone else marry?

• Sisters – R. Yehuda asserts that the tribes married their sisters.¹¹  This solution would seem to be problematic, as Torah law prohibits marriage to sisters.  However, under Noachide law, marriage to a half sister is permitted,¹² and the Patriarchs might have found this preferable to marrying the "abominable" Canaanites. 
• Local non-Canaanites – Alternatively, the  brothers married local women who were of non-Canaanite origin.¹³  It is possible that, unlike Yitzchak and Yaakov, the tribes did not have the option of returning to Charan so easily since Yaakov and Lavan's relationship was fragile.¹⁴

Avot and Mitzvot

• Kept entire Torah – These sources assume that the forefathers were careful to keep even laws that were not yet commanded, such as the prohibition to marry a Canaanite.¹⁵  For more, see Avot and Mitzvot – Was Avraham the First Jew?
• Did not keep all mitzvot – Alternatively, the forefathers were not obligated in future commandments.  Yaakov's sons were more simply following Avraham and Yitzchak's warning not to marry Canaanites.  For various understandings of what might have motivated Avraham's directive, see Wanted: A Wife for Yitzchak.

Evaluation of the Avot – The readings of this position are all motivated by a desire to portray the marriages of the sons of Yaakov in the best possible light.

Some Exceptional Cases

Although most of Yaakov's sons refrained from marrying Canaanites, Yehuda, Shimon, or both, did marry Canaanites.

Sources:Jubilees20:1-834:26-3341:1-9About Jubilees, Testament of JudahChapters 10, 11, 13, 14, 17,¹⁶ Bereshit Rabbah85:185:2About Bereshit Rabbah, Tanchuma (Buber)Vayeshev 9About the Tanchuma, Ibn EzraBereshit 38:2Bereshit 46:10About R. Avraham ibn Ezra, RadakBereshit 38:2Bereshit 46:10About R. David Kimchi, RambanBereshit 38:2About R. Moshe b. Nachman, Ma'asei HashemMa'asei Avot 36

Meaning of the word "כְּנַעֲנִי/ת" – According to Jubilees, Ibn Ezra, and the Ma'asei Hashem, the term "כְּנַעֲנִי/ת" found by the marriages of both Yehuda and Shimon literally refers to a person of Canaanite ethnicity.  Radak and Ramban agree with this reading by the marriage of Shimon, but not by Yehuda,¹⁷ while the Testament of Judah agrees with regards to Yehuda, but does not address the case of Shimon.

Tamar – Jubilees, the Testament of Judah, and Ramban all claim that Tamar was a non-Canaanite, with the earlier sources suggesting that she was from Aram, and Ramban positing that she was the daughter of one of the sojourners in the land.¹⁸ Though the text makes no mention of Tamar's origins at all, Ramban argues that it is impossible that King David and the Mashiach would have descended from the cursed line of Canaan.

Whom did the other brothers marry? Ibn Ezra points out that it is only by Shimon and Yehuda that Canaanites are mentioned, because they were the only ones to marry them.  Both he and Ramban assume that the other brothers married women from the surrounding nations (Egyptians, Midianites, Edomites, etc).  Jubilees, in contrast, posits that the other brothers, like their ancestors, married women from Aram Naharayim.¹⁹

Yosef and Osnat b. Potifera – Ibn Ezra raises the possibility that Potifera was a monotheistic priest, in which case Yosef's marriage, too, was not problematic.  However, even if he was idolatrous, since Yosef was given his wife by Paroh, and had no choice in the matter, he might be evaluated differently than Yehuda and Shimon regardless.

Avot and Mitzvot

• Partial observance – According to Jubilees and Ibn Ezra, the Patriarchs only selectively observed the commandments.  Jubilees, nonetheless, maintains that even at that time, sleeping with an idolator was considered an abomination, and presents Avraham as explicitly prohibiting marriage to a Canaanite in his last will and testament to his sons and grandsons. Thus, Shimon and Yehuda erred in marrying non-Canaanites.²⁰
• Full voluntary observance in Israel – Ramban posits that the forefathers voluntarily observed the commandments while in Israel.  This leads him to suggest that Shimon was the exception rather than the norm, and that Yehuda must not have married a Canaanite at all.

Evaluation of the action – These sources all negatively evaluate the brothers who married Canaanites. 

• Full blame – Bereshit Rabbah asserts that the language of "וַיֵּרֶד יְהוּדָה" suggests that, in marrying a non-Jew, Yehuda downgraded his standing.²¹  In addition, the Testament of Judah and Ibn Ezra suggest that Yehuda was punished for his act through the death of his sons.²²
• Mitigation of wrongdoing – Both Radak and Ma'asei Hashem try to minimize the misdeed.  Radak asserts that Shimon took a Canaanite only as his second wife after bearing most of his sons,²³ while Ma'asei Hashem claims that Shimon slept with, but did not marry, a Canaanite.²⁴   Since it was specifically marriage that was problematic, Shimon's actions were not as egregious.²⁵

Future Descendants

• Bat Shua's line dwindles – It is perhaps telling that, of Bat Shua's descendants, only Shelah survived.  It appears almost as if Hashem was purposely cleansing Yehuda's line.  Ma'asei Hashem explains Shelah's survival by positing that Bat Shua converted before his birth.²⁶  Even if one discounts this, it is only the line of the non-Canaanite Tamar which is chosen, and through which the Davidic dynasty rises.
• Shimon's descendants – It is perhaps not coincidental that the future line of Shimon is infamous for its prince Zimri's fornication with Midianite women,²⁷ as if the deeds of the fathers are passed to the sons.  The tribe of Shimon is later swallowed up by that of Yehuda, and its unique identity is to some extent erased, again possibly suggesting that the Canaanite traces needed to be eradicated.

Biblical parallels

• Keturah – Ramban raises the possibility that Avraham's wife, Keturah, was Canaanite, suggesting that Avraham cared only about the lineage of the mothers of his chosen line, but was unconcerned about the origins of the others.²⁸  This rationale, though, would not apply to Yaakov's children, since all of them were chosen.  See above, though, that Radak does try to minimize their sin in a similar manner, by suggesting that it was only Shimon's second wife who was Canaanite.²⁹
• Shekhem – Yaakov's consent that his family and the clan of Shekhem intermarry, as long as they agreed to circumcision, might argue against this position's negative evaluation of such intermarriage.  These commentators might respond that Yaakov's words were insincere, and were only part of the ruse to take vengeance on the city.  For more, see Sin and Slaughter of Shekhem.

Placement of the Yehuda and Tamar Story – M. Ben Yashar³⁰ suggests that the story of Yehuda in Bereshit 38 is placed in the middle of the Yosef narratives in order to show the reader Hashem's providence.  Yosef was sent to Egypt, putting the process of exile and enslavement into motion, as this exile was necessary to prevent repetition of Yehuda's intermarriage.  Yehuda's actions demonstrated that the brothers were not immune to assimilation and intermarriage, and that staying in Canaan before the nation was solidified could prove disastrous.  For elaboration on this approach to the need for the exile, see Purposes of the Egyptian Bondage.

Many Intermarried

Numerous sons of Yaakov may have married Canaanites, and the explicit cases of Yehuda and Shimon were not singular occurrences.

Sources:R. Nehemiah in Bereshit Rabbah80:11(Theodore Albeck) 84:35About Bereshit Rabbah, R"E Samet³¹

Meaning of the word "כְּנַעֲנִי/ת" – According to this position, both occurrences of "כְּנַעֲנִי/ת" speak of a person of Canaanite origins, and both Yehuda and Shimon married Canaanite women.

Tamar – R"E Samet assumes that Tamar, too, was Canaanite.  If Yehuda himself married a Canaanite, he would certainly have had no issue with his sons marrying one of the local women.

Whom did the other brothers marry? According to these sources, Yehuda and Shimon's actions were not unique, and the other brothers acted similarly.  If such marriages were the norm, though, it is puzzling why the Torah felt a need to single out the marriages of Yehuda and Shimon.³²

Is marriage to a Canaanite problematic? R" E Samet posits that although Avraham and Yitzchak were strict about their sons not marrying from the surrounding Canaanites, this warning did not apply to Yaakov's sons.  Yitzchak and Yaakov had been single heirs, who could have easily assimilated into their in-laws families.  Yaakov's sons, in contrast, were already a clan, and anyone marrying in would be subsumed by them.

Yaakov and Shekhem – This position might be supported by Yaakov's consent to Shekhem's offer that the families intermarry, with only the condition that the Shekhemites circumcise themselves.  He does not appear to find anything intrinsically wrong with mingling with the Canaanites, and he may have even considered it to be a peaceful alternative to the ultimate conquest.³³

The Avot and Mitzvot – According to this approach, the forefathers did not observe future commandments before they were given at Sinai.  As such, the Biblical prohibition against marrying a Canaanite did not apply to them.  For elaboration, see Avot and Mitzvot.

Death of Er and Onan – The deaths of Yehuda's sons were caused by their own personal sins, and did not come as a punishment for Yehuda's marriage.

Future descendants – This position might suggest that the fact that the Davidic line came from Tamar, herself likely a Canaanite, demonstrates that the Torah saw nothing wrong about that marriage.

Evaluation of actions – This position views the marriages of Yaakov's sons in a neutral light.

The unique position of Rashi – RashiBereshit 37:35Bereshit 38:2, 24Bereshit 46:10Bereshit 50:13About R. Shelomo Yitzchaki is unique in taking the position that some of the brothers may have married Canaanites, but in nonetheless asserting that Bat Shua, Tamar, and Shimon's wife were all non-Canaanite.³⁴  He maintains that the Patriarchs and their families did observe the entire Torah, and viewed anyone who married a Canaanite in a negative light.  Thus, according to Rashi, Yaakov insisted that his coffin bearers not include any of the offspring born from such unions.

¹ R. Yehuda addresses the marriage of Shimon and that of the brothers as a whole, but does not speak specifically about Yehuda.  It seems likely, though, that he would agree that Yehuda, too, did not marry a Canaanite.

² The Targum addresses only the marriages of Yehuda and Shimon, but since he rereads these to refer to non-Canaanites, it seems that he would suggest that the other brothers also married non-Canaanites.

³ See also Bavli PesachimPesachim 50aAbout the Bavli and Bereshit Rabbah85:4About Bereshit Rabbah.

⁴ For similar usage see also Mishlei 31:24.  See, though, M. Ben Yashar, "פרשת יהודה ותמר", who points out that the metaphoric meaning of merchant is found only in poetic passages and may not be a viable understanding in Biblical prose. Cf. R"E Samet, "סיפור יהודה ותמר, סיפור בתוך סיפור‏?‏",‎ עיונים בפרשת השבוע סידרה שנייה, (Jerusalem, 2004): 161-181, who questions whether this usage would have been prevalent before the Monarchic period, as it was only then that Canaanites stood out as merchants.  In the Patriarchal period, in contrast, they were masters of the land, and not singled out in this capacity.  Finally, one might also question why the Torah would bother to tell the reader what Yehuda's father-in-law's profession was, as it seems to be irrelevant.

⁵ See R. Huna, R. Yehuda, and R. Nechemya there, and see also Rashi in their wake.

⁶ See also Targum Yerushalmi (Yonatan) who agrees that the term is metaphoric, but identifies Shaul with Zimri who fornicated in the way of the Cananaites.  This identification is extremely difficult according to the simple sense of the text as it assumes that Zimri lived for hundreds of years.

⁷ See below that this solution causes a new problem: how could Shimon marry his sister?

⁸ See Bereshit Rabbah85:10About Bereshit Rabbah and TanhumaVayeshev 17About the Tanchuma.

⁹ See R. Zechraya in Nedarim 32bNedarim 32bAbout the Bavli who identifies the two.

¹⁰ This identification is motivated by the fact that Yehuda condemns Tamar to death by burning which is not the regular penalty for adultery.  According to Vayikra 21:9, though, it is the punishment for a daughter of a priest who prostitutes.  However, see Ma'asei Hashem who points out that this would make Tamar extremely old.  Moreover, Yehudah tells Tamar, "שְׁבִי אַלְמָנָה בֵית אָבִיךְ", which suggests that her father was still alive at the time of the story, yet by this point Shem has already died, making the identification very difficult. [See Tosafot HaShalem Bereshit 38:21:11.]

¹¹ See R. Yehoshua in Bereshit Rabbah82:8About Bereshit Rabbah who claims that each of the brothers was born with a twin sister.  Even though Dina is the only daughter of Yaakov mentioned by name, Bereshit 37:35 says, "וַיָּקֻמוּ כׇל בָּנָיו וְכׇל בְּנֹתָיו לְנַחֲמוֹ", suggesting that he might have had other girls as well.

¹² This would not explain the position above which asserts that Shimon married Dinah, as they were full siblings.

¹³ See Ibn Ezra below.

¹⁴ See below, though, that Jubilees nonetheless asserts that at least several of the sons married Mesopotamian women.

¹⁵ See above, though, that if one assumes that they married their sisters instead, the solution is not much better than the problem.  See MaharalGur Aryeh Bereshit 46:10's full discussion of the issue and his suggestion that, although the forefathers kept commandments, they had a similar status to converts who are considered to be reborn ("גר שנתגייר כקטן שנולד דמי") and are not forbidden from marrying relatives.

¹⁶ Though the Testament of Judah speaks only of the actions of Yehuda, its negative evaluation thereof suggests that the deed was somewhat unique to him and not the norm among the brothers.

¹⁷ They assert, like the position above, that there the word is synonymous with merchant.

¹⁸ Cf. Bavli Sotah Sotah 10aAbout Bavli Sotahthat Tamar was a convert.

¹⁹ He does not say whether they traveled back to marry, or if perhaps when they had returned to Canaan, some female servants and relatives had joined who later married the brothers.

²⁰ It is not clear if Ibn Ezra thinks that marriage to a Canaanite was problematic due to its being a future Torah prohibition already accepted by the forefathers, or more simply because doing so would be detrimental.

²¹ This language is unique to him, suggesting that the other brothers did not similarly intermarry.

²² R" E Samet (in the above cited article) argues that the text does not attribute their deaths to Yehuda's sins but to their own.  M. Ben Yashar, though, points out that the verse does not say "ויעש ער את הרע בעיני ה‏'‏"  but rather "וַיְהִי עֵר בְּכוֹר יְהוּדָה רַע בְּעֵינֵי י"י".  It is his very existence, the product of an illicit union, that was bad in Hashem's eyes.

²³ Cf. Jubilees who posits the opposite, that at first Shimon married a Canaanite, but afterwards he followed his brothers in taking a wife from Aram Naharayim.

²⁴ The verse speaks of the offspring from the union, but does not mention Shimon's marriage.

²⁵ He apparently assumes that the problem with marrying a Canaanite lies not in contamination of the descendants, but the negative influence a wife might have on those around her.

²⁶ He asserts that the verses' emphasis on the fact that she was in Keziv when Shelah was born teaches that until then she had been part of her father's household and religion. Once she moved out, she forsook her previous ways, converted, and became a full part of Yehuda's household.  Shelah, as opposed to his brothers, was thus born in purity.

²⁷ See above note that Targum Yerushalmi (Yonatan) identifies Shaul, the son of the Shimon, with Zimri.

²⁸ For other opinions and elaboration, see Avraham's Many Wives.

²⁹ Perhaps Shimon viewed only his sons from his main wife as carriers of the line.

³⁰ See M. Ben Yashar, "פרשת יהודה ותמר" cited above.

³¹ See: סיפור יהודה ותמר, סיפור בתוך סיפור‏?"‏",‎ עיונים בפרשת השבוע סידרה שנייה, (Jerusalem, 2004): 161-181.

³² Had only Bat Shua's origins been mentioned, this would not be problematic, since one might explain that her character played a role in the narrative, while the wives of the other brothers did not.  However, the mother of Shaul (Shimon's wife) is mentioned only in passing in a genealogy list, and is no more central than any other wife.

³³ For more on this and other understandings of the story, see Sin and Slaughter of Shekhem.

³⁴ He suggests that Shua was a merchant, Tamar was the daughter of Shem, and Shimon married Dinah (not a Canaanite).  See the analysis of these claims above.