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{{short description|Biblical figure and son of Jacob and Rachel}}
{{About|the Biblical figure Benjamin, son of Jacob|people named Benjamin|Benjamin (name)|other uses|Benjamin (disambiguation)}}
{{pp-semi-indef|small=yes}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Benjamin
| image = Benjamin
| caption = Painting by [[Arthur Pond]] (1745) after [[Francisco de Zurbarán]]'s portrait from the series (''[[Jacob and His Twelve Sons]]'') {{circa|1640|1645}}
| native_name = {{font|text=בִּנְיָמִין|font=Palantino}}
| native_name_lang = he
| pronunciation =
| birth_date = 11 [[Cheshvan]]
| father = [[Jacob]]
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* Gera (son)
* Naaman (son)
* Ehi (son)
* Rosh (son)
* Muppim (son)
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* [[Levi]] (half brother)
* [[Judah (son of Jacob)|Judah]] (half brother)
* [[Issachar]] (half brother)▼
* [[Dan (son of Jacob)|Dan]] (half brother)
* [[Naphtali]] (half brother)
* [[Gad (son of Jacob)|Gad]] (half brother)
* [[Asher]] (half brother)
* [[
* [[Dinah]] (half sister)
* [[Joseph (Genesis)|Joseph]] (brother)
* [[Leah]] (aunt/stepmother)
}}
}}
{{SpecialChars}}
'''Benjamin''' ({{
In the [[Samaritan Pentateuch]], Benjamin's name appears as "
▲'''Benjamin''' ({{Hebrew name 1 |{{font|text=בִּנְיָמִין|font=palantino}}|Bīnyāmīn|from [[Biblical Hebrew]] "Son of the right [stronger] person, or side" to underline he was the youngest}})<ref name=EtymologyBenjamin>[[blue letter bible]]: https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/h3225/kjv/wlc/0-1/ H3225 - yāmîn - Strong's Hebrew Lexicon (kjv)</ref> was the last-born of [[Jacob]]'s thirteen children (12 sons and one daughter), and the second and last son of [[Rachel]] in Jewish, Christian and Islamic tradition. He was the progenitor of the [[Israelites|Israelite]] [[Tribe of Benjamin]]. In the [[Hebrew Bible]] unlike Rachel's first son, [[Joseph (Genesis)|Joseph]], Benjamin was born in [[Canaan]].
▲In the [[Samaritan Pentateuch]], Benjamin's name appears as "Binyaamem" ({{Hebrew name 1|בנימים||"Son of my days"}}). In the [[Quran]], Benjamin is referred to as a righteous young child, who remained with Jacob when the older brothers plotted against Joseph. Later rabbinic traditions name him as one of four ancient Israelites who died without sin, the other three being [[Chileab]], [[Jesse]] and [[Amram]].
==Name==
The name is first mentioned in letters from King [[Sîn-kāšid]] of [[Uruk]] (1801–1771 BC), who called himself “King of Amnanum” and was a member of the [[Amorite]] tribal group the “Binu-Jamina” (single name “Binjamin”; Akkadian
According to the [[Hebrew Bible]], Benjamin's name arose when Jacob deliberately changed the name "Benoni", the original name of Benjamin, since Benoni was an allusion to Rachel's dying just after she had given birth, as it means "son of my pain".<ref>Genesis 35:18</ref> Textual scholars regard these two names as fragments of naming narratives coming from different sources - one being the [[Jahwist]] and the other being the [[Elohist]].<ref>[[Richard Elliott Friedman]], ''Who wrote the Bible?''</ref>
According to classical rabbinical sources, Benjamin was only born after [[Rachel]] had [[fasted]] for a long time, as a religious devotion with the hope of a new child as a reward. By then [[Jacob]] had become over 100 years old.<ref name = "bdmtze"/> Benjamin is treated as a young child in most of the Biblical narrative,<ref name = "bdmtze"/> but at one point is abruptly described as the father of ten sons.<ref name="xhbyqx">{{bibleverse||Genesis|46:21|HE}}</ref> Textual scholars believe that this is the result of the genealogical passage, in which his children are named, being from a much later source than the [[Jahwist]] and [[Elohist]] narratives, which make up most of the [[Joseph (Genesis)|Joseph]] narrative, and which consistently describe Benjamin as a child.<ref name = "bdmtze"/>
By allusion to the biblical Benjamin, in [[French language|French]], [[Polish language|Polish]] and [[Spanish language|Spanish]], "Benjamin" (
==Israelites in Egypt==
[[Image:BenjaminandJoseph.jpg|thumb|left|Benjamin (right) embracing his brother [[Joseph (Hebrew Bible)|Joseph]]
The Torah's Joseph narrative, at a stage when Joseph is unrecognised by his brothers, describes Joseph as testing whether his brothers have reformed by secretly planting a silver cup in Benjamin's bag. Then, publicly searching the bags for it, and after ''finding'' it in Benjamin's possession, demanding that Benjamin become his [[slave]] as a punishment.<ref name=Gen44>{{bibleverse||Genesis|44|HE}}</ref>
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Some classical rabbinical sources argue that Joseph identified himself for other reasons.<ref name = "bdmtze"/> In these sources, Benjamin swore an oath, on the memory of Joseph, that he was innocent of theft, and, when challenged about how believable the oath would be, explained that remembering Joseph was so important to him that he had named his sons in Joseph's honour.<ref name = "bdmtze"/> These sources go on to state that Benjamin's oath touched Joseph so deeply that Joseph was no longer able to pretend to be a stranger.<ref name = "bdmtze"/>
[[File:Morgan-bible-fl06.jpg|thumb|300px|An illustration from the [[Morgan Bible]] of Benjamin being returned to Egypt (Genesis 44)
In the narrative, just prior to this test, when Joseph had first met all of his brothers (but not identified himself to them), he had held a feast for them;<ref>{{bibleverse||Genesis|43|HE}}</ref> the narrative heavily implies that Benjamin was Joseph's favorite brother, since he is overcome with tears when he first meets Benjamin in particular,<ref>{{bibleverse||Genesis|43:30|HE}}</ref> and he gives Benjamin five times as much food as he apportions to the others.<ref>{{bibleverse||Genesis|43:34|HE}}</ref> According to textual scholars, this is really the Jahwist's account of the reunion after Joseph identifies himself, and the account of the threat to enslave Benjamin is just the Elohist's version of the same event, with the Elohist being more terse about Joseph's emotions towards Benjamin, merely mentioning that Benjamin was given five times as many gifts as the others.<ref name = "bdmtze"/>
== Jacob's blessing ==
Upon his death, the [[Jacob|patriarch Jacob]] [[Blessing of Jacob|blesses]] his youngest son: "Benjamin is a ravenous [[wolf]]; In the morning he consumes the foe, And in the evening he divides the spoil" (Genesis 49:27). This [[Wolves in folklore, religion and mythology|wolf symbolism]] has been interpreted to refer to several elements of the Tribe of Benjamin, including its heroic members like [[Saul|King Saul]] and [[Mordecai]], the tribe's often warlike nature, and the tribe's jurisdiction over the [[Temple in Jerusalem]] in which [[Korban|sacrifices]] were 'devoured' by flame.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Genesis 49:27 |url=https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.49.27?ven=The_Contemporary_Torah,_Jewish_Publication_Society,_2006&lang=bi&with=Commentary&lang2=en |access-date=2023-03-27 |website=www.sefaria.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Gottheil |first=Richard |title="Benjamin," in the Jewish Encyclopedia |year=1906}}</ref>
==Origin==
[[Image:Kever Binyamin.jpg|thumb|300px|An exterior view of a [[Mamluk]] [[caravanserai]] complex, including the mausoleum of Nabi Yamin, traditionally believed to be the tomb of Benjamin, located outside [[Kfar Saba]], Israel
Biblical scholars believe, due to their geographic overlap and their treatment in older passages, that Ephraim and Manasseh were originally considered one tribe, that of ''Joseph''.<ref name = "gzuhsh">''Jewish Encyclopedia'', ''Ephraim''</ref> According to several biblical scholars, Benjamin was also originally part of this single tribe, but the biblical account of Joseph as his father became lost.<ref name = "gzuhsh"/><ref name = "fxeide">''[[Peake's Commentary on the Bible]]''</ref>
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The description of Benjamin being born after the arrival in Canaan is thought by some scholars to refer to the tribe of Benjamin coming into existence by branching from the Joseph group after the tribe had settled in Canaan.<ref name = "fxeide"/> A number of biblical scholars suspect that the distinction of the ''Joseph tribes'' (including Benjamin) is that they were the only Israelites which went to [[Egypt]] [[the Exodus|and returned]], while the main Israelite tribes simply emerged as a subculture from the Canaanites and had remained in [[Canaan]] throughout.<ref name = "fxeide"/><ref>[[Israel Finkelstein]], ''The Bible Unearthed''</ref>
According to this view, the story of Jacob's visit to [[Laban (Bible)|Laban]] to obtain a wife originated as a [[metaphor]] for this migration, with the property and family which were gained from Laban representing the gains of the Joseph tribes by the time they returned from Egypt.<ref name = "fxeide"/> According to textual scholars, the [[Jahwist]] version of the Laban narrative only mentions the Joseph tribes
==Benjamin's sons==
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==In Islam==
Though not named in the [[Quran]],<ref
==See also==
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** For a list of persons with the given name Benjamin see {{lookfrom|Benjamin}}
* [[Tribe of Benjamin]]
* [[Paul the Apostle]],
* [[Mordecai]] the Jew, from the Tribe of Benjamin see Esther 2:5
*
==Citations==
{{Reflist}}
==External links==
*{{Commons category-inline|Benjamin (Biblical figure)}}
*
{{Characters and Names in Quran}}
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[[Category:Founders of biblical tribes]]
[[Category:Book of Jubilees]]
[[Category:Tribe of Benjamin]]
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