Joseph and asenath, pseudepigraphic work the story of how asenath, daughter of pentephres, priest of heliopolis, converted to the worship of the god of israel and married joseph. Aseneths first participation in a dialogue comes at 4. Pdf orphanhood and parenthood in joseph and aseneth. And pentephres and his wife and all his relations went out to meet joseph. It is a valuable resource for subjects related to theology, philosophy, history, culture, and more. Scholars are divided over the relationship between the two stories preserved in joseph and aseneth. This site is like a library, use search box in the widget to get ebook that you want. View joseph and aseneth research papers on academia. Pharaoh bequeathed the crown to joseph, who ruled over egypt fortyeight years, and then left the throne to pharaohs youngest son, who, being an infant at the time of his father s death, was left in charge of joseph, who became a father to him. For god hath caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction. Joseph and aseneth is an excellent example of the controverted issues of text, dating and sitz im leben, when such decisions must be largely based on internal evidence. It recounts an attempt by pharaohs son to kill joseph and aseneth, his death. Its original language was probably greek, but it is available in syriac, slavonic, armenian, latin, and middle english versions.
And pharaoh said to joseph, behold, i have set you over all the land of egypt. Joseph and asenath joseph and asenath the confession and prayer of asenatpi daughter of pentephres the priest e. Pharaohs son, however, is in love with aseneth, and plots to take her away from joseph, with the help of joseph s brothers, dan and gad. Joseph and aseneth is an apocryphal expansion of genesis 41. Aseneth then secludes herself in her tower, repents of her idolatry, confesses her sin, and embraces josephs god. Joseph is the victim of many plots by the wicked ingenuity of the memphian woman. When joseph arrives he too is amazed at her beauty and asks her name. Joseph and aseneth in greek literary history 81 classified as an example of a rewritten biblical passage. Joseph and aseneth article about joseph and aseneth by. The text of joseph and aseneth probably dates back to around the first century a. Like the book of jubilees, the book attempts to answer a question which many people have about the story of joseph. The story begins after josephs own brothers sold him into slavery. Joseph and asenath, the confession and prayer of asenath, daughter of pentephres the priest by brooks, e.
The question of asenaths origins has significant consequences for the. Full text of joseph and asenath, the confession and. Dissimilarities between josas and the novels engage researchers no less than similarities between them. Joseph and aseneth download ebook pdf, epub, tuebl, mobi. It is also a story of religious intolerance, racism, sexism, subterfuge, betrayal, and hate. Joseph and asenath, the confession and prayer of asenath. Scholarly research barely relates to this story, probably since it inhabits the margins of the love. Aug 22, 2017 joseph and aseneth book is a romance, telling the story of josephs marriage to aseneth, the daughter of potiphera called pentepheres in this book. Asenath is instructed to prepare herself for his arrival, so she dresses beautifully. Dec 23, 2017 the heroism of the composer of joseph and aseneth, and the heroism of the rabbis afterwards, was to breathe life into an ancient text and make it relevant for the world in which they lived. And aseneth quickly left her father and her mother and ran upstairs and went into her room and stood at the big window that looked towards the east, so as to see joseph as he came into her father s house. Aseneth then secludes herself in her tower, repents of her. Two children resulted from this marriage and they were ephraim and manasseh.
This volume is a comprehensive but accessible guide to the major questions raised by the hellenistic jewish work, joseph and aseneth. Joseph and aseneth is an epic story of love, desire, sanctification, and forgiveness. And joseph and aseneth came into the land of goshen, and josephs brothers met them and made obeisance to them upon the ground. The heroism of the composer of joseph and aseneth, and the heroism of the rabbis afterwards, was to breathe life into an ancient text and make it relevant for the world in which they lived.
Asenath is mentioned in the torah as the daughter of potiphera gen. Beyond universalism versus particularism in the study of. And aseneth said to joseph, i will go and see your father, because your father israel is my father. It is not right for a man who worships god to repay his. Part i, chapters 121, details aseneths meeting of and eventual marriage to joseph. The story of joseph and aseneth was written between 100 bce and 100 ce, in a midrash style. Aseneth and joseph also stand as models for the ideal christian way of life, to be followed and imitated by other christians. Joseph and asenath is also the basis for the persian tale yusufo zuleikha. The first part of the work, which is also the longest chs. Aseneth, a virgin who has rejected numerous worthy suitors, falls in love with joseph when he, as vizier of egypt, visits her father. The son of pharaoh, angry at his father s love for joseph, made an unsuccessful attempt to slay his parent. And he said to him, give me aseneth the daughter of pentephres the priest 11 of heliopolis as my wife.
The story of joseph and aseneth is an ancient jewish romance. Joseph and aseneth is actually a nonbiblical story originating from as early as a century before christ, when a group of jews were trying to explain how the patriarch joseph had come to marry the daughter aseneth of an egyptian priest when jews were forbidden to intermarry. When joseph was enslaved in egypt, he eventually rose to power and married an egyptian woman named asenath. Nov 11, 20 aseneth, a virgin who has rejected numerous worthy suitors, falls in love with joseph when he, as vizier of egypt, visits her father. Joseph arrives for his second visit in chapters 1820. Full text of joseph and asenath, the confession and prayer of asenath, daughter of pentephres the priest see other formats bs 1830. For an interesting prophetic parable, see verses 7374.
And pharaohs firstborn son heard about her and he kept entreating his father to give her to him for his wife. During the blessing ceremony, joseph places them before jacob, and jacob. Aseneth appears just three times in the hebrew bible, in genesis 41 and 46. In genesis, aseneth is described as the wife of the patriarch joseph and as the daughter of potiphera the priest of on. And thereupon 1 she hasted and went down the stairs from her loft and came to her father and. Ad 100 and perhaps as early as the first century bc. The pharaoh of egypt gave her to wife to the hebrew patriarch joseph.
Aseneth, and they made attempts to fight against each other because of her. Translated by david cook hyptertext version by dr mark goodacre, university of birmingham. It recounts an attempt by pharaohs son to kill joseph and aseneth, his death and josephs 48year rule over egypt. Aseneth, levi, and joseph demonstrate magnanimous mercifulness to their enemies, and joseph becomes king of egypt. The narrative of joseph of arimathea the lost books of. And pentephres and his wife and all their family and household went out to meet joseph. The first part of the story chapters 121, an expansion of genesis 41. Ye see, therefore, my children, how great things patience worketh, and prayer with fasting.
Joseph and his brothers reading group see the joseph image widget, for example, and i was delighted to find david cooks translation of joseph and aseneth online. Pdf recent scholarship on joseph and aseneth 198820. In a blistering rejection scene, joseph dramatically declares that he cannot use the same mouth both to bless the living god and to kiss a woman who worships dead and mute idols. The tenuous basis of this anecdote is one verse in genesis 41. The marriage of the chaste and pious joseph to the pagan asenath was problematic for strictly observant jews. Simeon, levi, and benjamintakejosephssideand,aidedbydivine intervention, foil the plot. If joseph was such a godly jew, how could he marry an egyptian, especially one whose father is a pagan priest. Click download or read online button to get joseph and aseneth book now.
Recent scholarship on joseph and aseneth 198820 369 some features of the story might have been interpreted by certain readers in one way or another, similar to nir. Joseph and asenath is also of interest, since the story is repeated in the passions of saint barbara, saint christine, and saint irene. Aseneth daughter of putiphare, priest of on, and wife to the hebrew patriarch joseph. But when asenath regarded joseph from on high the tower, she repented her of the words she spoke concerning him, and saidn obehold the sun and the chariot of the sun. An egyptian man purchased joseph to be a servant to his wife. Thanks to levis intervention, even pharaohs son is treated with compassion. Joseph and aseneth book is a romance, telling the story of josephs marriage to aseneth, the daughter of potiphera called pentepheres in this book. Essenes, therapeutae, or some unknown form of judaism shaped in the iamge of a. Interestingly, aseneths answer completely opposes pentephres. It provides an introduction into the vexed question of genre, given the numerous literary. And his firstborn son said to pharaoh, father, give me aseneth, the daughter of pentephres, the priest of heliopolis, for my wife. The fact that conversion does not involve baptism weighs heavily against christian composition. Introduction by dr mark goodacre, duke university 1 who is aseneth.
Joseph had gone to the capital to sell corn, and asenath was left with six hundred men as her bodyguard, benjamin being at her side in the chariot, when suddenly, from behind the. Joseph, however, rejects her as an unworthy idol worshiper. This translation of joseph and aseneth is taken from h. It recounts an attempt by pharaohs son to kill joseph and aseneth, his death and joseph s 48year rule over egypt. Aseneth, the wife of joseph, she became the main character of a widely disseminated jewish novel from hellenistic or roman times, now called joseph and aseneth josas. Apocrypha and aseneth in the catholic encyclopedia. Joseph and asenethchapters 2229 journal of hebrew scriptures.
Absolutely no scholar will take this book seriously. Catholic answers is pleased to provide this unabridged entry from the original catholic encyclopedia, published between 1907 and 1912. The patriarch immediately and unexpectedly refuses her advance. She is so striking her foster father says at last the lord god of heaven has chosen you as a bride for his firstborn son, joseph.
Joseph and aseneth article about joseph and aseneth by the. Josasen appears to have originated in the jewish diaspora of egypt, no later than c. Introduction the pseudepigraphic work joseph and aseneth consists of two main stories. Full text of joseph and asenath, the confession and prayer. That joseph and asenath is a fifthcentury christian work, based upon a jewish writing, is a dated conclusion p. Joseph and aseneth is a narrative that dates from between 200 bce and 200 ce. Aseneth, the wife of joseph by angela standhartinger although the bible does not have much to say about asenath osnat, lxx. The likelihood of jewish authorship is confirmed by the laudatory reference to hebrew women in ch. This translation is rendered in a modern, easy to read format with history, background, and commentary.
The joseph and asenath allegory of jesussimon and mary magdalenequeen helen. The text in question is neither lost nor a gospel, and the allegorical reading of the syriac version of joseph and aseneth is little more than a wishful hope that it would be so, employing little more than name substitution and a desire to prove the davinci code true. Aseneth just discovers that josephs father god trumps her own father. Prompted by her father at their first meeting, aseneth moves toward joseph with lips pursed. Benjamin take josephs side and, aided by divine intervention, foil the plot. And joseph stretched his hands out and embraced aseneth, and aseneth embraced joseph, and they greeted each other for a long time and received new life in their spirit. It must not be reproduced elsewhere without their permission.
The rabbis found it difficult to accept that joseph, who withstood the wiles of potiphars wife and proclaimed his loyalty to the lord in the palace of pharaoh, would marry a nonisraelite woman. He then went with six hundred spearmen to capture asenath. Aug 22, 2017 joseph arrives for his second visit in chapters 1820. And joseph sent and summoned jacob his father and all his kindred, seventyfive persons in all. Wills proposes to apply a new hermeneutic to works such as greek daniel, greek esther, judith, and joseph and aseneth.