Reuben and Bilhah ( Jubilees 33)

CHAPTER THREE REUBEN AND BILHAH ( JUBILEES 33) The story of Reuben and Bilhah, which appears in an abbreviated fashion in Gen 35:22, was expanded to an entire chapter in Jubilees. While Jacob is away, Reuben, his rst-born son, sleeps with Jacob’s concubine Bilhah. The Bible records no consequences of this act, but simply notes, , “and Jacob heard.” However, one nds negative evaluations of Reuben’s action elsewhere, particularly at Gen 49:4, in Jacob’s blessings for his sons: “ , Unstable as water, you shall excel no longer; for when you mounted your father’s bed, you brought dis- grace—my couch he mounted.” According to 1 Chr 5:1, Reuben’s act resulted in the revocation of his birthright and its transfer to Joseph. Despite the negative assessment found in these two passages, neither of them prescribes a punishment against Reuben himself; rather, they describe the penalty incurred by the tribe of Reuben as a whole for the actions of their forefather. This punishment differs from that generally meted out in the Pen- tateuch for this type of behavior, and from that prescribed by the specic law prohibiting intercourse with a father’s wife.1 According to Lev 20:11, in the case where a man sleeps with his father’s wife, both of the participants, the son and the wife, are to be put to death. One nds a similar prohibition, but without stipulation of the punishment, at Lev 18:8; Deut 23:1; 27:20. The Rewritten Narrative (33:1–9a) The short description in Genesis does not express any appraisal of Bilhah’s role in this story. She is not a developed character there, and possibly plays the part of a prop in Reuben’s premature attempt to 1 In the immediate story of Reuben and Bilhah, Gen 35:22 describes Bilhah as the , “concubine,” of Jacob. However, in Gen 30:4, Rachel gives Bilhah to Jacob “as a wife,” and Gen 37:2 describes Bilhah and Zilpah as , “the wives of his father.” 74 chapter three inherit Jacob’s position.2 Sleeping with one’s father’s wife is proposed as this kind of political tactic in 2 Sam 16:21–22 and 2 Sam 3:7, as well as in ancient Near Eastern sources. In the narrative section of its retelling (vv. 1–9a), Jubilees attempts to defend Bilhah by presenting her as the victim of rape, adding or changing the following details:3 (1) Reuben saw Bilhah bathing, and thus desired her. This theme appears to be taken from the story of David and Bathsheba in 2 Sam 11.4 But, in contrast to the biblical story, in which Bathsheba washed herself on the roof, a semi-public area, Jub. 33:2 emphasizes that Bilhah bathed in “a private place” (ba-F!bu). Bilhah cannot be accused of attempting to seduce Reuben.5 (2) Bilhah was asleep during the act of intercourse. Jub. 33:4 says she only awoke after Reuben had lain with her, a sure sign of her lack of participation.6 (3) As soon as she realized that she had been raped, Bilhah grabbed Reuben and screamed out. In the laws concerning the rape of the betrothed virgin in Deut 22:23–27, the shouts of the woman are evi- dence of the fact that she protests the actions of the man, and thus she is not culpable.7 After she released him, Reuben immediately ran 2 See for example Sarna 1989: 244–245. 3 Halpern-Amaru 1999: 110–111. 4 Heinemann 1954: 24; Anderson 1994: 21. Kugel (1995: 528–531; 1997: 272–273) has suggested that the motif of seeing Bilhah bathing derived from exegesis of Jacob’s blessing to Reuben in Gen 49:4, “ .” It seems more economical, however, to assume a direct borrowing from a detailed story about sexual impropriety (David and Bathsheba) in the expansion of the briefer story about Reuben and Bilhah, a common midrashic technique, than to assume that it is the result of creative exegesis of the enigmatic phrase in Jacob’s blessing. 5 Halpern-Amaru 1999: 110, n. 20. Kugel (1997: 272) suggests that the element of privacy was added to mitigate Reuben’s guilt—the circumstances caused him to sin. However, in light of the tendency found elsewhere in this rewritten narrative, it is preferable to view this detail as an attempt to portray Bilhah more favorably, and exonerate her from any guilt. 6 Kugel (1995: 533–535; 1997: 273–274) suggests that the motif of Bilhah sleeping is also the result of the interpretation of Gen 49:4: “ . ”—“you (sing.) went up to your father’s bed . he went up to my couch.” If Reuben alone went up to Jacob’s bed, then Bilhah must have been there already, and was thus presumably asleep when Reuben entered the bed. This motif, however, should be viewed in light of the general tendency of the rewritten narrative, present in almost all of its new elements, to absolve Bilhah of any guilt in the story. As a general methodological principle, Kugel has suggested that, “Ancient biblical interpretation is an interpretation of verses, not stories” (1997: 28), a statement which he has amply demonstrated in his many studies. At the same time, his focus on individual exegetical motifs can obscure the general interpretive tendencies present in complete narratives. 7 Halpern-Amaru 1999: 111..

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