Goren-haʿatad, at the southwestern border of Canaan, is situated near a crossing point of Abel-Mitzrayim, the Brook of Egypt. It is named Yardan/Jordan Pass, after an obscure village in this region mentioned by Pharaoh Shishak, Josephus, and the Madaba map. A Syriac text describes a battle of Arab armies against Christians, Jews, and Samaritans that took place there in 634 C.E., and which likely ended in the village’s destruction.

Ezekiel’s vision of the dry bones did not assume personal resurrection, a belief that entered Judaism in a later period. In its original context, the imagery of bones rearticulating and coming back to life draws upon the ancient burial practices of Judahite family tombs, offering a message of hope to the exiles in Babylon that YHWH will return them to their land.

Was Jacob buried in the Cave of Machpelah, where Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca, as well as his wife Leah, were buried, or at Goren-ha-atad, in a grave Jacob dug for himself?

Today, Rachel’s tomb lies near Bethlehem, in the territory of Judah, son of Leah. However, reading the description of her burial in Genesis 35:19 and 48:7 together with the references to Rachel’s tomb in the story of Saul’s anointing (1 Samuel 10:2) and Jeremiah's prophecy of consolation (Jeremiah 31:14) directs us further north, to the territory of her son Benjamin.

Fine wine was appreciated in the ancient world just as it is today. Jacob, on his deathbed, blesses Judah that he will profit from the lucrative wine trade.

Before his death, David commands Solomon to kill two men: Joab, his loyal general, and Shimei, his enemy, whom he had sworn not to kill.

Esau’s attempt to block Jacob’s burial at the Cave of Machpelah ends in his gruesome death.

The Torah frames two different poetic descriptions of the tribes as the deathbed blessings of Jacob and Moses, pivotal points in Israel's history. Nevertheless, these poems express varying perspectives on the relative importance of the tribes and were once likely independent collections.

The Bible presents Israel as having twelve tribes from both northern Israel and southern Judah. In older northern lists, however, the southern tribes do not appear, and the full list seems to have developed in Judah, after the destruction of Israel. Moreover, the idea that the tribes are descended from Jacob developed even later.

An enormous ancient altar from the early twelfth-century B.C.E., uncovered at the site of El-Burnat, sheds light on the biblical account of Joshua’s altar at Mt. Ebal as well as on the famous story of Jacob crossing his arms to bless Ephraim over Manasseh with the birthright.

The Torah informs us that when Jacob blessed Joseph's two sons, “he placed Ephraim before Manasseh” (Genesis 48:20b). Surprisingly, the late 12^th century sage, R. Judah HeḤasid, asserts that this refers to Moses putting the tribe of Ephraim before that of Manasseh in the tribal listings (Numbers 2:18-21), leading R. Judah to conclude that the phrase must have been added later, and not by Moses.

Bringing Parashat Vayechi to Life

Does the Torah end with Deuteronomy or Joshua? The answer depends on whether we view the Torah as a law collection or as a narrative about a promise fulfilled.

חכלילי עינים מיין (Genesis 49:12) is an obscure phrase. In contrast to the standard interpretation, Nachmanides offered an original interpretation, which finds support in modern linguistic analysis and an archaeological find.

The division of the Torah into five books is not mentioned anywhere in the Bible, yet by the early first millennium C.E., the Torah became known by the Greek name Pentateuch, literally “five scrolls.” When and why was this division created?

How was ancient mummification carried out? What does it say about Jacob and Joseph that their remains were handled in accordance with Egyptian burial practices?

Why was Jacob’s funeral procession across the Jordan?