Biblical Parallels Index – Bereshit 44
Overview
This index is meant to help the reader explore Biblical parallels, be they two accounts of the same event, stories with similar motifs and themes, or units of text which are linguistically similar and perhaps alluding one to the other. The page includes links to tools that aid in comparison, primary sources that touch upon the parallels, and summaries of and links to articles which analyze them in depth.Pleading Before a Higher Power
Comparing Avraham's pleas to save Sedom with Yehuda's pleas to save Binyamin makes one question how one should approach a superior power to plead one's cause. What should be the balance between submissiveness and audacity? Interestingly, too, in both these stories commentators debate whether the plea is for mercy or for justice.
Tools
- Concordance – A concordance search1 reveals that the phrase "ויגש...ויאמר" is somewhat rare in Torah. It appears in the stories of Avraham pleading before Hashem on behalf of Sedom (Bereshit 18:43), and Yehuda pleading on behalf of Binyamin,2 (Bereshit 44:18) and only in one other story.3 The shared openings and themes of the narratives invite further comparison.
Articles
- See Yehuda's Oration and Avraham's Prayer for Sedom for individual analysis of each story, with each topic questioning whether the protagonist is pleading for mercy or for justice, and in the former, whether he is approaching from a place of submissiveness or audacity.
Theft in Sefer Bereshit
There are two stories in Sefer Bereshit in which someone is accused of theft: Lavan's accusation of Yaakov and Yosef's accusation against the brothers.
Tools
- Concordance – The concordance demonstrates that the root "גנב" occurs in only two sets of stories in Sefer Bereshit, in the interactions between Yaakov and Lavan and in the story of Yosef, when Binyamin is accused of stealing Yosef's goblet.
- Tanakh Lab – Use the Tanakh Lab to compare Yaakov's claim of innocence when accused of stealing Lavan's terafim (Bereshit 31:32), with the brother's claim of innocence when accused of stealing the goblet (Bereshit 44:9). In each case the accused is so certain of innocence that he is willing to suggest that whoever is found guilty should die. The comparison highlights the irony of the situations. The brothers are not actually guilty of theft although the incriminating evidence is found on Binyamin’s person, whereas Rachel has stolen the terafim but the objects are not found by Lavan.
Articles
- See גניבת התרפים מול עלילת הגביע, by Oz Vered for a comparison of the stories, and the suggestion that Yosef's actions in setting up the plot are, in part, motivated by his anger at Yaakov for declaring an early death on Rachel in stating that whoever has the teraphim will die.
Yehuda’s Pledge
Yehuda’s offer of himself as a pledge for Binyamin calls to mind the pledge he offered to Tamar in place of payment in Bereshit 38, and underscores the significance of the episode of Yehuda and Tamar within the larger narrative of Yosef and his brothers.
Tools
- Concordance – The concordance shows that the root "ערב" appears in only one story in Torah, Yehuda's taking responsibility for Binyamin (see Bereshit 43:9 and 44:32), while the related noun "ערבון" appears also in but one story, that of Yehuda and Tamar in Bereshit 38.
Articles
- See ערבונו של יהודה, by Professor Yonatan Grossman, for analysis of the story of Yehuda and Tamar as background to Yehuda’s confrontation of Yosef. In both, Yehuda takes responsibility through the act of offering a guarantee, but his dramatic offering of himself in the second story reflects the extreme moral strength he has developed over the course of his narrative. The parallels between the two stories also reflect Yehuda’s growing identification with Yaakov through their shared experience of bereavement.
- See Purpose of the Yehuda and Tamar Story for exploration of the idea that the story of Yehuda and Tamar begins Yehuda's process of change and repentance for the sale of Yosef, which culminates in his taking responsibility over Binyamin.
Yehuda and Esther
The language of Esther's plea to Achashverosh to save the Jewish people is surprisingly similar to that of Yehuda when beseeching Yosef to spare Binyamin. These parallels indicate that both Yehuda and Esther are motivated to save the Jewish people as a whole; Yehuda has learned the importance of ensuring the family’s continuity, even when it requires his own sacrifice, as Esther is willing to take personal risk to ensure the survival of the nation.
Tools
- Tanakh Lab – Use the Tanakh Lab to compare Yehuda's pleas to Yosef on behalf of Binyamin in Bereshit 44:34 with Esther's plea to Achashverosh to save the nation in Esther 8:7. Compare also Bereshit 44:33 with Esther 7:4 (see here), where both figures mention the willingness to be slaves if that would ensure continuity and the saving of lives.