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The Ladder of Jacob: Ancient Interpretations of the Biblical Story of Jacob And His Children
Rife with incest, adultery, rape, and murder, the biblical story of Jacob and his children must have troubled ancient readers. By any standard, this was a family with problems. Jacob's oldest son Reuben is said to have slept with his father's concubine Bilhah. The next two sons, Simeon and Levi, tricked the men of a nearby city into undergoing circumcision, and then murdered all of them as revenge for the rape of their sister. Judah, the fourth son, had sexual relations with his own daughter-in-law. Meanwhile, jealous of their younger sibling Joseph, the brothers conspired to kill him; they later relented and merely sold him into slavery. These stories presented a particular challenge for ancient biblical interpreters. After all, Jacob's sons were the founders of the nation of Israel and ought to have been models of virtue.
In The Ladder of Jacob , renowned biblical scholar James Kugel retraces the steps of ancient biblical interpreters as they struggled with such problems. Kugel reveals how they often fixed on a little detail in the Bible's wording to "deduce" something not openly stated in the narrative. They concluded that Simeon and Levi were justified in killing all the men in a town to avenge the rape of their sister, and that Judah, who slept with his daughter-in-law, was the unfortunate victim of alcoholism.
These are among the earliest examples of ancient biblical interpretation (midrash). They are found in retellings of biblical stories that appeared in the closing centuries BCE--in the Book of Jubilees, the Aramaic Levi Document, the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs, and other noncanonical works. Through careful analysis of these retellings, Kugel is able to reconstruct how ancient interpreters worked. The Ladder of Jacob is an artful, compelling account of the very beginnings of biblical interpretation.
In The Ladder of Jacob , renowned biblical scholar James Kugel retraces the steps of ancient biblical interpreters as they struggled with such problems. Kugel reveals how they often fixed on a little detail in the Bible's wording to "deduce" something not openly stated in the narrative. They concluded that Simeon and Levi were justified in killing all the men in a town to avenge the rape of their sister, and that Judah, who slept with his daughter-in-law, was the unfortunate victim of alcoholism.
These are among the earliest examples of ancient biblical interpretation (midrash). They are found in retellings of biblical stories that appeared in the closing centuries BCE--in the Book of Jubilees, the Aramaic Levi Document, the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs, and other noncanonical works. Through careful analysis of these retellings, Kugel is able to reconstruct how ancient interpreters worked. The Ladder of Jacob is an artful, compelling account of the very beginnings of biblical interpretation.
278 pages, Hardcover
First published July 10, 2006
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
December 24, 2024
If there ever can be a ‘black sheep’ of Professor James Kugel’s impressive bibliography, it most likely would be The Ladder of Jacob. This is not in any way throwing shade on a book that almost to the very end is a wonderful read. Rather, that it came out about a year before his immensely more popular How to Read the Bible and along with it being quite short (for Kugel books at least) at just over 200 pages (plus a ton of footnotes in Kugel fashion) and admittedly being less a proper ‘book’ and more of an assembling of past essays may make it an automatic ‘pass’ for readers looking for something new.
Thus, for this reviewer and arm chair (at best) fan of biblical exegesis, buying it was a no-brainer and I’m glad I made the plunge.
As the sub-title notes, this is less an example of ‘wizened professor of the Bible summarizes traditional Jewish thought about certain episodes in the latter part of Genesis’ and more of him doing a deep dive into how our ancestors before even Rabbinic Judaism was formed dealt with these stories—including some of the more troubling elements.
The general gist of each of the half dozen (we’ll get to the last one in a moment, perhaps) essays is Professor Kugel talking about a certain controversial (or at least questionable) issue and using ancient texts—notably Jubilees and Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs along with a few others—to see how those around two millennia ago harmonized certain happenings.
How did Jacob actually tithe things if there were no priests? Was the Shechem incident justified? Reuben and Bilhah, did he get his just desserts? And more. The most enlightening chapter also happens to be the longest: How Levi Came to Be a Priest, but each aside from the final chapter which seems kind of out of place compared to everything that came before it are all enjoyable reads. Professor Kugel has a knack for writing for the common people like you and I. This is an extremely approachable yet academic work on an under-appreciated part of biblical history.
---Notable Highlights---
(on Dinah’s assault)
“...there is no way to know if the events recounted were approved or disapproved by God. The story ends, quite literally, with a question mark.”
“Jacob’s vow to give back to God a tenth (tithe) of what he receives must have seemed particularly troubling to ancient interpreters. Nowhere in the rest of the story of Jacob’s life is he ever said to have fulfilled this vow.”
“To be sure, many ancient Jewish texts contain or allude to exegetical motifs; Jubilees is almost unique, however, in its careful attention to interpretive problems in biblical narrative and, often, in its highly innovative solutions.”
Thus, for this reviewer and arm chair (at best) fan of biblical exegesis, buying it was a no-brainer and I’m glad I made the plunge.
As the sub-title notes, this is less an example of ‘wizened professor of the Bible summarizes traditional Jewish thought about certain episodes in the latter part of Genesis’ and more of him doing a deep dive into how our ancestors before even Rabbinic Judaism was formed dealt with these stories—including some of the more troubling elements.
The general gist of each of the half dozen (we’ll get to the last one in a moment, perhaps) essays is Professor Kugel talking about a certain controversial (or at least questionable) issue and using ancient texts—notably Jubilees and Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs along with a few others—to see how those around two millennia ago harmonized certain happenings.
How did Jacob actually tithe things if there were no priests? Was the Shechem incident justified? Reuben and Bilhah, did he get his just desserts? And more. The most enlightening chapter also happens to be the longest: How Levi Came to Be a Priest, but each aside from the final chapter which seems kind of out of place compared to everything that came before it are all enjoyable reads. Professor Kugel has a knack for writing for the common people like you and I. This is an extremely approachable yet academic work on an under-appreciated part of biblical history.
---Notable Highlights---
(on Dinah’s assault)
“...there is no way to know if the events recounted were approved or disapproved by God. The story ends, quite literally, with a question mark.”
“Jacob’s vow to give back to God a tenth (tithe) of what he receives must have seemed particularly troubling to ancient interpreters. Nowhere in the rest of the story of Jacob’s life is he ever said to have fulfilled this vow.”
“To be sure, many ancient Jewish texts contain or allude to exegetical motifs; Jubilees is almost unique, however, in its careful attention to interpretive problems in biblical narrative and, often, in its highly innovative solutions.”
August 17, 2017
All of James L. Kugel's books are superb, easy to read and very informative. He is an expert in Bible studies, history, and literary analysis, the use of ancient sources such as the finds at the Dead Sea, and is very able in communicating his understandings. In this volume, he examines the biblical tales of Jacob and his children. The ancient rabbis in the Talmuds and Midrashim, as well as medieval Bible commentators such as Rashi and Rashbam, and modern scholars found many difficulties in the tales and in the words used to tell the stories. The tales are filled with obscurities and ambiguities. readers can disagree whether an act was proper or not and quote texts to prove their view. Are the stories tales of a dysfunctional family? Kugel addresses all of this.
There is the episode of Jacob's oldest son Reuben sleeping with his father's concubine Bilhah. But is this what the Bible is saying? If he did sleep with her, why did he do it? Why does the Talmud claim that Reuben only moved his father’s bed?
Going down the line, the next two sons, Simeon and Levi lied to the people of Shechem when they told them that if they circumcise all males, Jacob's family will join them and allow the prince to have Dinah whom he raped. Then they killed all the males in the city. Was this wrong? Why did Dinah place herself in a situation where she could be raped? What was Jacob's reaction? Why was he silent at first?
Did Judah, the fourth son, do wrong when he married a Canaanite, or is Rashi and others correct when they say he married the daughter of a merchant? Was he wrong when he slept with his sons' wife? Did he live with her after this act?
And there is much more in Kugel's book. It is a pleasure to read it.
There is the episode of Jacob's oldest son Reuben sleeping with his father's concubine Bilhah. But is this what the Bible is saying? If he did sleep with her, why did he do it? Why does the Talmud claim that Reuben only moved his father’s bed?
Going down the line, the next two sons, Simeon and Levi lied to the people of Shechem when they told them that if they circumcise all males, Jacob's family will join them and allow the prince to have Dinah whom he raped. Then they killed all the males in the city. Was this wrong? Why did Dinah place herself in a situation where she could be raped? What was Jacob's reaction? Why was he silent at first?
Did Judah, the fourth son, do wrong when he married a Canaanite, or is Rashi and others correct when they say he married the daughter of a merchant? Was he wrong when he slept with his sons' wife? Did he live with her after this act?
And there is much more in Kugel's book. It is a pleasure to read it.
July 25, 2025
Good Scholarly Treatment
This is a very good study, however it is not for everyone. This volume does a Th job at doing exactly what it sets out to do, provide astudy of early Jewish readings of the Jacob stories in Genesis. Much of the information won't be of a concern for the average Bible reader but the background is extremely helpful in places.
This is a very good study, however it is not for everyone. This volume does a Th job at doing exactly what it sets out to do, provide astudy of early Jewish readings of the Jacob stories in Genesis. Much of the information won't be of a concern for the average Bible reader but the background is extremely helpful in places.
Read
November 4, 2023Kugel's entire project seems to be concerned with laying bare the idiosyncrasies of ancient interpreters so we can more clearly see how the Bible has historically been understood, and so we can consciously separate those readings from the more rigorous findings of modern scholarship. I dig it
March 7, 2011
A very interesting book that takes some of the Bible's stories of Jacob and his children and adds information and depth from some sources outside of the traditional source- the Book of Jubilees (early 2nd century BCE and The Testament of the Twelve Prophets( I think time of the second temple)
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews