Reuven and Bilhah/1/en
Reuven and Bilhah
Introduction
The Torah discusses Reuven's actions with Bilhah in but half a verse, revealing almost nothing of the incident:
וַיְהִי בִּשְׁכֹּן יִשְׂרָאֵל בָּאָרֶץ הַהִוא וַיֵּלֶךְ רְאוּבֵן וַיִּשְׁכַּב אֶת בִּלְהָה פִּילֶגֶשׁ אָבִיו וַיִּשְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל וַיִּהְיוּ בְנֵי יַעֲקֹב שְׁנֵים עָשָׂר.
And it came to pass, while Israel dwelt in that land, that Reuben went and lay with Bilhah his father's concubine; and Israel heard of it. Now the sons of Jacob were twelve:
At first glance, the episode appears straightforward; Reuven had relations with his father's concubine. The Torah does not share Reuven's motives leaving the reader to wonder whether Reuven was simply overcome by desire, or whether the act had some ulterior goal. In addition, Torah does not share
