OSNAT BAT POTIFERA

 

¿WHO WAS OSNAT?

Asenath, known in Hebrew as Osnat, was an Egyptian aristocrat. Asenath, it seems, was a foreigner who became the mother of two of the most important tribes of Israel. 

She is a minor figure in the Book of Genesis. Was Asenath truly an Egyptian aristocrat? How did a high-born Egyptian woman, from the court of the king and the pharaonic nobility, become Jewish? Who was this aristocrat really?

Asenath married Yosef (Joseph, son of Jacob). Yosef had become the viceroy of the Egyptian Empire, and the Pharaoh (the emperor of that time) gave her in marriage to him. Asenath was the daughter of Potiphera.

Asenath had two sons with Yosef (Joseph), thus becoming the mother of the Jewish tribes of Manasseh (Manashé) and Ephraim (Efraím). 

But who really was this Osnat (Asenath) Bat Potiphera?

There are two rabbinic approaches regarding Asenath: one holds that she was an ethnic Egyptian woman who converted to Judaism to marry Joseph, seeing that the king had decided she would be the wife of the viceroy, who was none other than the Jew, Joseph, son of Jacob Avinu. 

a) This viewpoint shows her accepting the Eternal before marriage and raising her two sons in the principles of Judaism. This presents her as a positive example of conversion and places her among the most devout converted women in the Bible. 

b) The other approach maintains that she was not truly of Egyptian descent but a lost descendant of Jacob's family. Traditions connecting her to Jacob's family state that she was born as the daughter of Dinah.

When Dinah, her supposed mother, became pregnant after being raped by the prince of Shechem (Siquém, the current Palestinian city of Nablus or Neapolis). This makes Asenath a true princess and not just a mysterious Egyptian aristocrat. 

In this account, Dinah left the princess Asenath, her daughter, at the wall of Egypt, where she was later found by Potiphar. Thus, she was raised by Potiphar and married to him. She is the same person as Zuleika, Potiphar's wife. After Joseph became the viceroy, the main figure in the Pharaoh's kingdom, he forgave her, and they married.

The significance of Asenath relates to the birth of her two sons, who later became ancestors of two of the 13 tribes of Israel.

It is believed that her name derives from ancient Egyptian, meaning "belonging" in the sense of: "She belongs to Neith." Neith was an Egyptian goddess. It also means she belongs to her father.

"Osnat" or "Asenath" in Hebrew, also pronounced "Osnát," is a common feminine name in present-day Israel.

Representation

Mentioned for the first time in Genesis 41:45, Asenath is said to be the wife of Joseph and the mother of his sons, Manasseh (Manashé) and Ephraim (Efraím). In the Book of Genesis, she is known as the daughter of Potiphera, priest of On (in Greek, Heliopolis). In the Book of Jubilees, it is said that the Pharaoh gave a daughter of Potiphar, high priest of Heliopolis, to marry Joseph, the viceroy. That account speaks of her without clarifying whether this Potiphar is the same Potiphar whose wife falsely accused Joseph of attempting to rape her. 

Meanwhile, in the Midrash and the Targum Pseudo-Jonathan, it is said that she is the daughter of Dinah, Joseph's sister, and Shechem, born from an illicit union, described as premarital sex or rape, depending on the narrative. 

A later apocryphal publication, written in Greek, believed to be a Nozri document called Joseph and Asenath, details their relationship and his 48-year reign as viceroy of Egypt; in it, Asenath marries Joseph, whose brothers conspire to kill him because of the Pharaoh's son, who wanted Asenath to marry him. However, their efforts were thwarted by Joseph's younger brother, Benjamin.

Who Was Osnat (Asenath) Bat Potiphera?

We Continue with Her Story

Parashat Miketz (Genesis 41:1-44:17)

The Yalkut Shimoni,  a compendium of ancient Midrashim compiled approximately in the 12th century, tells us the following: “

"Yesh Nashím Geh' eerot Ve Chassidot"

Translated as: There are pious women who chose to belong to the people of Israel, one could add, righteous. And these are some of their names: Hagar, Osnat (Asenath), Tzipora (Zipporah), Shifra, Pua, Bat Paróh (Pharaoh's Daughter), Rahab, Ruth, and Yael, the wife of Heber the Kenite.

There are nine women that the Midrash text presents to us; most of them not only chose to be part of the people of Israel but also achieved acts of tremendous courage and were decisive in their lives and in the life of the entire people.

To understand this, one only needs to look at the list: Tzipora, the wife of Moshe (Moses), or Shifra and Pua who saved newborn children from certain death, or the so-called Bat Paróh (Pharaoh's Daughter) who adopted Moshe from his early years, or the story of Ruth the Moabite, a story we all know, who later became the great-grandmother of King David. It is very interesting to see how these women who chose by their own decision to join the Jewish people became heroines for Am Israel, key figures in the destiny of the people they chose.

Now, pay attention to the next aristocrat on our list of heroines.

Why Does the Torah Call Her Osnat Bat Potiphera?

Osnat, or Asenath, as found in those Jewish texts, the princess and aristocrat who became the wife of the viceroy Yosef, son of Jacob. The Torah tells us thus:  

Vayikra Paróh Shem Yosef "Tzafnat Paneaj, vayiténlo et Osnat Bat Potifera Cohén On Le' ishá. 

Translation: And the Pharaoh called Joseph "Tzafnat Paneaj" and gave him as a wife Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera, the Cohén (priest) of On.

This means that the wife of Yosef, the son of Jacob (Israel), was to be none other than the daughter of Potiphera himself, whom many sages relate to Potiphar, the same one who bought Yosef as a slave to serve in his house, where Yosef was seduced by his master's wife, and upon refusing such dangerous pleasures, ended up in prison accused of attempting to rape Potiphar's wife. 

However, what interests us most now is to learn a little more about Osnat (Asenath). The one who would become the mother of Ephraim and Manasseh, the Matriarch of both tribes of Joseph. Ephraim and Manasseh are the names with their stories that we remember every Shabbat night in our families when blessing our children. For our sages, it is complex to accept that some biblical characters have no history, not knowing where they come from or who they are. And suddenly, they become the wives of our main heroes of the Torah. As in the case of Osnat (Asenath). 

Literally, she is the daughter of Potiphera. The Pharaoh gives her to Yosef as a wife. 

Now, Pirkei de Rabbi Eliezer tells us a very different story. Yosef, according to the Midrash, marries a niece of his father. The story of Asenath traces back to the misfortune of Dinah. When Dinah, the daughter of Yaakov, went out to see what was beyond her home, the text recounts the story of how Shechem, the son of Hamor,  seized her, taking her by force, and thus raped her. 

It is told that from this rape, Osnat (Asenath) was born, and she descended to Egypt, rejected by the sons of Yaakov (her own uncles), beyond the fact that it is also unknown what fate befell Dinah for the rest of her life. 

However, Yaakov helped his granddaughter by placing a golden object around her neck with the name of God, which would protect her throughout her journey. 

Potiphar heard Osnat's cries, alone and lost, and took her as his daughter to care for her all her life. Here ends the Midrash. And now the questions begin. 

The Midrash of Pirkei de Rabbi Eliezer is very significant. On one hand, it is simpler to accept the idea that Osnat is the daughter of an Egyptian priest (Cohén) of On, which, according to some authors, is the city of Heliopolis, than to accept this Midrash as possible. However, if we accept this possibility, then the question must be different. Why did the sons of Yaakov abandon Osnat? 

The same Midrash responds:  that it was so that no one would say that already  among the tents of Yaakov there is a house of prostitution. However, this is not a dignified way to respond to the problem. Osnat (Asenath) was not responsible for her situation, and neither was what happened to Dinah, her mother. 

One could also imagine a different Midrash about the fate that befell Dinah. She was a quiet young woman, very silent, whose voice was not heard. 

No one listened to her; no one in her house paid attention to her, as the sages themselves say: “do not prolong your speech with women”. 

That is why she went out to “see” the daughters of the Canaanites of the land. It was as if she were mute. That is why she went out to “see” and not to listen. Can you imagine that she did not scream when she was seized and raped? It was as if she were mute, and therefore, from her pain and shame, she remained silent forever. 

The Loneliness of Dinah is the Loneliness of Osnat (Asenath)

The mother and the daughter. Osnat, despite her uncles, managed to rebuild her life and form a family. Being a princess, she managed to marry Yosef, the new viceroy of Egypt, and they had their two sons, with whom we, the Jews, bless all our children to this day, as has been done through the generations. 

This speaks very well of Osnat, and of how she would understand that in life things are not easy, but with wisdom and love, they are achieved. On the other hand, the kindness of Potiphera, or of Potiphar, who recognized that this girl, a princess despite everything, whom he had found, was very special. And therefore, the text ends by calling her, “Bat Potiphera (the daughter of Potiphera) the Cohén of On”. 

Now, if Osnat is the daughter of Potiphera, why does the Midrash bring us such a complex story? When the same text tells us that she is his daughter? The same Midrash takes care of answering this question: 

The answer is: "Potiphera raised her, for he is her father." That is, it is the one who raises and not the one who conceives who is called father. It is the love, affection, respect, and care we have for our children that give us the title of parents, and not merely having conceived them.

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The Festival of the Daughters

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DICTIONARY OF TERMS RELATED TO OSNAT

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Below is a list of Hebrew words and names from the provided text that may require clarification or explanation due to their cultural, historical, or religious context. Each term includes a brief description to facilitate understanding:

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Osnat (אסנת): Hebrew name of Asenath, the wife of Yosef (Joseph) in the Book of Genesis. She is a biblical figure whose story and origins are debated in rabbinic traditions, with interpretations presenting her as both an Egyptian convert to Judaism and a descendant of Jacob's family.

Yosef (יוסף): Hebrew name of Joseph, son of Jacob (Yaakov) and a central figure in Genesis. He becomes the viceroy of Egypt and marries Osnat, with whom he has two sons who give rise to two tribes of Israel.

Manashé (מנשה): Hebrew name of Manasseh, one of the two sons of Yosef and Osnat. He is a member of one of the tribes of Israel.

Efraím (אפרים): Hebrew name of Ephraim, the other son of Yosef and Osnat, and ancestor of one of the tribes of Israel.

Potifera (פוטיפרע): Hebrew name of Potiphera, the father of Osnat, identified as a priest of On (Heliopolis) in Egypt. His relationship with Potiphar, an earlier character in Yosef's story, is a subject of debate in rabbinic sources.

Dina (דינה): Hebrew name of Dinah, the daughter of Jacob and Leah, whose story includes an episode of rape by Shechem. Some rabbinic traditions suggest that Osnat is her daughter.

Shejém (שכם): Hebrew name of Shechem, a Canaanite prince who, according to the biblical account, raped Dinah. It is also the name of a historic city in the Samaria region (today Nablus).

Yaakov (יעקב): Hebrew name of Jacob, patriarch of the twelve tribes of Israel and father of Yosef and Dina.

Jacob Avinu (יעקב אבינו): Hebrew expression meaning "Jacob our father," an honorific title used to refer to the patriarch Jacob as an ancestor of the Jewish people.

Tzafnat Paneaj (צפנת פענח): Hebrew name given to Yosef by the Pharaoh, meaning "decipherer of the hidden" or "revealer of secrets," in reference to his ability to interpret dreams.

Cohén (כהן): Hebrew term meaning "priest." In the context of the text, it refers to Potifera as a priest of On (Heliopolis).

On (און): Hebrew name of an Egyptian city, identified with Heliopolis, an important religious center in ancient Egypt.

Midrash (מדרש): Hebrew term referring to a method of rabbinic interpretation of the Scriptures, as well as to collections of stories and teachings that expand on biblical narratives.

Targúm (תרגום): Hebrew term meaning "translation" or "interpretation," used for Aramaic versions of the Bible that include additional explanations.

Parashat Miketz (פרשת מקץ): Hebrew expression meaning "portion of Miketz," referring to a specific section of the Torah (Genesis 41:1-44:17) read in a weekly cycle.

Yalkut Shimoní (ילקוט שמעוני): A medieval collection of midrashic interpretations on the Torah and other biblical texts.

Yesh Nashím Gue'irot Ve Jasidot (יש נשים גערות וחסידות): Hebrew phrase meaning "there are women converts and pious ones," used in the text to highlight non-Jewish women by origin who joined the people of Israel and performed significant acts.

Tzipora (צפורה): Hebrew name of Zipporah, the wife of Moses (Moshe).

Shifra (שפרה) and Pua (פועה): Hebrew names of the midwives who disobeyed the Pharaoh and saved Hebrew children in the Book of Exodus.

Bat Paróh (בת פרעה): Hebrew expression meaning "daughter of the Pharaoh," referring to the woman who adopted Moses.

Rajav (רחב): Hebrew name of Rahab, the woman from Jericho who helped the Israelite spies.

Rut (רות): Hebrew name of Ruth, the Moabite who converted to Judaism and is an ancestor of King David.

Yael (יעל): Hebrew name of Jael, the woman who killed Sisera, an enemy general of Israel.

Moshé (משה): Hebrew name of Moses, the leader who freed the Israelites from Egypt.

Am Israel (עם ישראל): Hebrew expression meaning "people of Israel," referring to the Jewish nation.

Shabat (שבת): Hebrew term for the day of rest mentioned in the Bible, the Sabbath (Saturday), during which special blessings are made for children, mentioning Ephraim and Manasseh.

Torá (תורה): Hebrew term meaning "instructions," often translated as "law"; however, it is more appropriately translated as "teaching," referring to the five books of Moses (Pentateuch), the foundation of Jewish tradition and what the world calls the Old Testament.

Pirkei de Rabbi Eliezer (פרקי דרבי אליעזר): A midrashic text offering additional interpretations and stories about biblical characters, such as Osnat.

These terms are fundamental to understanding the cultural and religious context of the text, and each reflects important aspects of the biblical narrative and rabbinic interpretations. If you need a more detailed explanation of any of them, feel free to ask.

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1 Midrash Yalkut Shimoni Sefer Joshua 247/ 9
2 Bereshit 41/45
3 Pirkei de Rabbi Eliezer Perek 37
4 Bereshit 34/1
5 Heliópolis, importante centro de culto del dios solar Ra. Ver Génesis: el origen de las diferencias. Daniel Colodenco. Lilmod. Pag. 275

6 Dirshuni. Israeli Women Writing Midrash. Nehama Weingarten-Mintz/ Tamar Biala. Pag 67

7 Midrash Hagada Bereshit (Buber) Perek 41

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