Literary Devices – Bereshit 48/0

Literary Devices – Bereshit 48

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Key Words

Father and Land Tanakh Lab demonstrates that the words that appear with greatest frequency in this chapter are "father" and "land", reflecting the theme of the blessings given by a father to his descendants before his death and the passing on of the covenantal promise of land given the Avot to their descendants. 

Right and Left

• The words “ימין” and “שמאל” appear only five and three times respectively in the chapter, but relative to their usage in the  rest of Tanakh, their prevalence here is significant. They highlight the scene of Yaakov’s crossing of his hands which might represent at least a partial resolution of the theme of rivalry between brothers that has run throughout Sefer Bereshit. Yaakov (like his forefathers) bestows a greater blessing on the younger child but in this case, the two brothers accept their blessings without conflict.