Did Yaakov's Sons Marry Canaanites/2

Did Yaakov's Sons Marry Canaanites?

Exegetical Approaches

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

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 who would have tainted the line of Yaakov.

Yehuda and Bat Shua, "בַּת אִישׁ כְּנַעֲנִי" – These sources assert that the term "כְּנַעֲנִי"  refers not to the ethnicity of Shua but to his profession as a merchant.¹  As evidence for this meaning, Resh LakishPesachim 50aAbout the Bavli points to Hoshea 12:8 and Yeshayahu 23:8.²  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 answers that she  was so called after her father, who was well known and an expert in his field.

"שָׁאוּל בֶּן הַכְּנַעֲנִית" – According to this position, the word Canaanite in this verse, too, is not to be taken as a marker of nationality.  Opinions in Bereshit Rabbah³ 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.⁴  They suggest that after Dinah was violated by Shechem, Shimon agreed to marry her so she would not be forsaken in disgrace.⁵

Tamar – This approach assumes that Tamar, as well, was not of Canaanite origins. Bavli Sotah asserts that she was a convert while R. Meir⁶ and Targum Pseudo-Jonathan maintain that she was the daughter of Shem, whom they identify with Malkizedek,⁷ priest of Shalem.⁸

Whom did everyone else marry?

• Sisters – R. Yehuda asserts that the tribes married their sisters.⁹  This solution would seem to be problematic, as Torah law prohibits marriage to sisters.  Howwever, under Noachide law,  marriage to a half sister is permitted,¹⁰ and the Patriarchs might have found this preferable to marrying the "abominable" Canaanites
• Local non-Canaanites – Alternatively, the  brothers married local women who were not of Canaanite origin.¹¹

Avot and Mitzvot

• Kept all of Torah – These sources assume that the forefathers were careful to keep even laws that were not yet commanded to them, such as the prohibition to marry a Canaanite.¹²
• Did Not Keep All – 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 (if not a Biblical command) see Wanted: A Wife for Yitzchak.

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

Rare Exception

Though most of Yaakov's sons married non-Canaanites, either Yehudah, Shimon, or both, married Canaanites.

Sources:Jubilees41:1-9About Jubilees, Testaments of YehudaChapters 10, 11, 13, 14, 17, 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 Hashem

Meaning of the word "כְּנַעֲנִי/ת" – According to Ibn Ezra and Ma'asei Hashem, by the marriages of both Yehuda and Shimon the term "כְּנַעֲנִי/ת" is understood literally to refer to a person of Canaanite ethnicity.  Radak and Ramban agree with this reading by the marriage of Shimon, but not by Yehuda,¹³ while Jubilees and Testament of Yehuda agree with this explanation with regards to Yehuda, but do not address the case of Shimon.

Tamar – Jubilees, the Testament of Yehuda, 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. Though the text makes no mention of Tamar's origins at all, Ramban argues that it is not possible 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.  He and Ramban assume that the other brothers married women from the surrounding nations (Egyptians, Midianites, Edomites etc).

Avot and Mitzvot

• Partial Observance - According to Jubilees and Ibn Ezra the Patriarchs observed the commandments only selectively.  Jubiless, nonetheless, maintains that sleeping with an idolator was considered an abomination even then, and Avraham explicitly prohibited marriage to a Canaanite. Thus, the actions of Shimon and Yehuda would be considered sinful.¹⁴
• 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 evaluate those who married the non-Canaanites negatively. 

• Full blame – Bereshit Rabbah asserts that the language of "וַיֵּרֶד יְהוּדָה" suggests that in marrying a non-Jew, Yehuda lowered himself.  In addition, the Testament of Yehuda and Ibn Ezra suggest that Yehuda was punished for his act through the death of his sons.¹⁵
• Mitigation of wrongdoing – Both Radak and Ma'asei Hashem try to minimize the wrongdoing.  Radak asserts that Shimon only took a Canaanite as his second wife after bearing most of his sons, while Ma'asei Hashem claims that Shimon slept with, but did not marry, a Canaanite.¹⁶   Since it was specifically marriage that was problematic, Shimon's actions were not egregious.¹⁷

Future Descendants

• Bat Shua's line dwindles –  It is telling that of Bat Shua's descendants only Shelah survived, as if Hashem was purposefully cleansing Yehuda's line.  Ma'asei Hashem explains his survival by positing that Bat Shua converted before his birth.¹⁸ 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 most infamous for its prince Zimri's fornication with Midianite women,¹⁹ 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 is to some extent erased as a unique identity, again suggesting that the Canaanite mark is meant to disappear.

Biblical Parallels - Keturah – Ramban raises the possibility that Avraham's wife Keturah was Canaanite, suggesting that Avraham cared about the lineage of the mothers of his chosen line, but he was not concerned about the origins of the others.  However, since all of Yaakov's children were chosen, this justification cannot be used here.  See above, though, that Radak does try to minimize the sin by suggesting that it was only Shimon's second wife who was Canaanite.²⁰

Placement of the Yehuda and Tamar Story – M. Ben Yashar²¹ suggests that the story of Yehuda and Tamar is placed right in the middle of the Yosef narratives to show the reader Hashem's providence.  Yosef was sent to Egypt, putting the process of exile and enslavement in place; this process was necessary to prevent repetition of the Yehuda and Tamar story.  Yehuda proved 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

Several

A number of Yaakov's sons might have married Canaanites. The cases of Yehuda and Shimon mentioned in Tanakh were not singular occurrences.

Sources:R. Nehemiah in Bereshit Rabbah80:11(Theodore Albeck) 84:35About Bereshit Rabbah, R"E Samet²²

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 have no issue taking one of the local women to marry his son.

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 strange why Tanakh felt a need to single out the marriages of Yehuda and Shimon.²³

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 entities, who could have easily assimilated into their in-laws families.  Yaakov's sons, in contrast, are already a clan, and anyone marrying in would be subsumed by them.

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

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, proves that the Torah sees nothing wrong in the marriage.

Evaluation of actions – This position views the marriages in a neutral light.

¹ One might 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.

² 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. See, also, R"E Samet, "סיפור יהודה ותמר, סיפור בתוך סיפור?" 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.

³ See R. Huna, R. Yehuda, and R. Nechemya there and see also Rashi in their wake.

⁴ See also Targum Pseudo Jonathan who agrees that the term is a 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.

⁵ See below that this solution causes a new problem: how could Shimon marry his sister?

⁶ See Bereshit Rabbah85:10About Bereshit Rabbah and TanhumaVayeshev 17About the Tanchuma.

⁷ See Bereshit Rabbah 42:7 which identifies the two.

⁸ 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.

⁹ See R. Yehoshua 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.

¹⁰ This would not explain the position above which asserts that Shimon married Dinah, as they were full siblings.

¹¹ See Ibn Ezra below.

¹² See above, though, that if one assumes that they married their sisters instead, the solution is not much better than the problem.  See Maharal's full discussion of the issue and his suggestion that although the forefathers kept commandments, they were like converts who are not obligated in areas of sexual misdemeanors connected to relatives since they are as if reborn with no relatives.

¹³ They assert, like the position above, that there the word is synonymous with merchant.

¹⁴ It is not clear if Ibn ezra think that marriage to a Cannaite was problematic due to its being a future Torah prohibition already accepted by the forefathers, or more simply because doing so would be detrimental.

¹⁵ 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 his very existence, the product of an illicit union, that was bad in Hashem's eyes.

¹⁶ The verse speaks of the product of the union, but no where mentions taking in marriage.

¹⁷ 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.

¹⁸ 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 o her father's household and religion. Once she moved out, she forsook her previous ways, converted and became  a full part of Yeuda's household.  Shelah, as opposed to his brothers, was thus born in purity.

¹⁹ See above note that Targum Pseudo-Jonathan identifies Shaul, the son of the Shimon with Zimri.

²⁰ Perhaps Shimon only viewed his sons from his main wife as carriers of the line.

²¹ In his article cited above.

²² RashiBereshit 37:35Bereshit 38:2, 24Bereshit 46:10Bereshit 50:13About R. Shelomo Yitzchaki on Bereshit 50:13 also suggests that several of the brothers married Canaanites, but rereads the cases of Yehuda and Shimon to suggest that they did not.

²³ 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 only mentioned in passing in a genealogy list and is no more central than any other wife.
The unique mentions by Yehuda and Shimon might actually be what motivates Rashi to suggest that those verses are coming to share something different, that Shimon actually married Dinah, who had slept with a Cannanite, and that Yehuda married a merchant's daughter.