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RACHEL'S THEFT OF THE TERAPHIM: HER STRUGGLE FOR FAMILY PRIMACY 1

Theft is the leitmorif of the story of the Jacob's relationship with Laban and the family's departure from Haran.2 Rachel's is the only act of thievery which rcceives no textual explanation. Neither her motive nor the significance of the teraphim is ever discussed. The biblical account simply states that during Laban's absense "Rachcl stole the teraphim that were her father's" while Jacob 405

"Stole the heart of Laban the Aramaean" by leaving without first informing his father-in-law. Laban gave chase and accused Jacob of absconding with his daughters, depriving him of a proper farewell, and stealing his gods. Jacob's response comprised a litany of the acts of deception and hardships perpetrated upon him by Laban (Gen xxxi 19-31). The text makes clear that Rachel's act was the only one which remained undetected Jacob was never aware of the theft (xxxi 32), and Laban never recovered his lost gods. Ancient and traditional commentaries offer several explanations. Josephus claimed that Rachel took the cultic objects so she could use them to obtain her father's pardon in the event the family was caught (Antiquities 1.xix.8 = § 311). Rashi suggested that she removed them from her father's possession in order to deter him from the practice of idolatry. Ibn Ezra refuted this notion and argued that Rachel stole the teraphim to prevent her father from consulting them and successfully following and recapturing the family.3 On the basis of extra-biblical evidence, modern scholars have pointed out that the teraphim were emblems of authority and that Rachel stole them in order to establish Jacob as the family leader.4 4 I propose to demonstrate that Rachel's action was part of her continuing struggle for primacy within Jacob's household. Since Jacob was never aware of the theft, it seems unlikely that it was for his sake she acted. Her objective was to prevail over her sister in the contest for family supremacy. The ultimate expression of her success would be the appointment of her son as his father's chief heir. Since Leah had borne several sons, including Jacob's first- born, Rachel perceived that the teraphim would invest her own son, Joseph with a mantle of authority which would override all other considerations. The story is thus part of the textual basis for the legitimacy of the house of Joseph as the leader of the family and subsequently of the nation of Israel. The teraphim are mentioned several times in the Old Testament. They served as part of the priestly cultic paraphernalia (Judg. xvii 5, xviii 14, 17; Hos. iii 4), and for the purpose of divination and obtaining oracles (1 Sam. xv 22-3; 2 Kgs xxiii 24; Ezek. xxi 26; Zech. x 2). Michal made use of them as an effigy of her husband David (1 Sam. xxix 11-17).5 The only instance in which their func- tion is not clearly indicated is the Rachel incident. H.A. Hoffner has compared the teraphim to the Hittite tarpif,