Aggada -- Translations into English; Bible. Old Testament -- Legends; Jewish legends; Midrash -- Translations into English
A special distinction was granted to the tribe of Ephraim, for God
allowed their prince to make his offering on the Sabbath, a day on
which otherwise none but the daily offerings were allowed to be
offered. This distinction the tribe of Ephraim owed to its ancestor
Joseph in recognition of his strict observance of the Sabbath as
governor of Egypt. The gifts of this tribe represent the history of
Jacob and of Joseph, for the descendants of the latter owed much to
Jacob's love for his son Joseph. The charger alluded to Jacob, the bowl
to Joseph, and as both these vessels were filled with fine flour
mingled with oil, so too were both Jacob and Joseph very pious men, and
the course of their lives ran evenly. The spoon symbolized Jacob's
right hand, which he laid on the head of Ephraim to bless him; the
spoon was filled with incense; Jacob laid his right hand upon Ephraim
and not upon his elder brother Manasseh because he knew that the former
was worthy of the distinction. The three burnt offerings corresponded
to the three Patriarchs, whereas the kid of goats stood for Joseph,
whose coat had been smeared with a kid's blood. The two oxen of the
peace offering indicated the two blessings that the sons of Joseph had
received from their grandfather, Jacob, and the three kinds of small
cattle that were offered as peace offerings corresponded to the three
generations of Ephraim that Joseph was permitted to see before his
death. [395]
Joseph not only observed the Sabbath, he was also chaste, not to be
tempted by Potiphar's wife, and he was faithful in the service of his
master. God therefore said to Joseph: "Thou hast kept the seventh
commandment, 'Thou shalt not commit adultery,' and has not committed
adultery with Potiphar's wife; and thou hast also kept the following
commandment, the eighth, 'Thou shalt not steal,' for thou didst still
neither Potiphar's money nor his conjugal happiness, hence there will
come a time when I shall give thee the reward due thee. When,
hereafter, the princes of the tribes will offer their offerings at the
dedication of the altar, the two princes among thy descendants shall
one after the other offer their offerings, the one on the seventh, the
other on the eighth day of the dedication, as a reward because thou
didst observe the seventh and the eighth commandments." The prince of
the tribe of Manasseh now followed that of Ephraim, trying like the
preceding, symbolically to represent Jacob's and Joseph's lives. The
charger, one hundred and thirty shekels in weight, indicated that Jacob
at the age of one hundred and thirty years migrated to Egypt for the
sake of Joseph. The bowl of seventy shekels corresponded to Joseph who
caused seventy souls of the Hebrews to migrated to Egypt. The spoon of
ten shekels of gold indicated the ten portions of land that fell to
Manasseh. The three burnt offerings corresponded to the three
generations of Manasseh that Joseph was permitted to see before his
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account