According to the Book of Genesis, Asenath (אָסְנַת, Standard Hebrew Asənat, Modern Hebrew Osnat, Tiberian Hebrew ʼĀsənạṯ) was an Egyptian woman whom Pharaoh gave to Joseph son of Jacob to be his wife. The daughter of Potipherah, a priest of On, she bore Joseph two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, who each became patriarchs of their own tribes of Israel. Modern scholarship says her name derives from the Egyptian "holy to Anath"; her name may be phonetically transliterated from the New Kingdom Egyptian hieroglyphs as Ns-Nt. Genesis (Greek: Γένεσις, having the meanings of birth, creation, cause, beginning, source and origin) is the first book of the Torah (five books of Moses) and hence the first book of the Tanakh, part of the Hebrew Bible; it is also the first book of the Christian Old Testament. ... The Modern Hebrew language is a Semitic language of the Afro-Asiatic language family. ... The Modern Hebrew language is a Semitic language of the Afro-Asiatic language family. ... Tiberian Hebrew is an oral tradition of pronunciation for ancient forms of Hebrew, especially the Hebrew of the Bible, that was given written form by masoretic scholars in the Jewish community at Tiberias in the early middle ages, beginning in the 8th century. ... Pharaoh was the ancient Egyptian name for the office of kingship. ... Joseph interprets the dream of the Pharaoh. ... Jacob Wrestling with the Angel – Gustave Doré, 1855 Jacob or Yaakov, (Hebrew: יַעֲקֹב, Standard  Tiberian ; Arabic: يعقوب, ; holds the heel), also known as Israel (Hebrew: יִשְׂרָאֵל, Standard  Tiberian ; Arabic: اسرائيل, ; Struggled with God), is the third Biblical patriarch. ... Potiphar (or Potifar) (Hebrew: פּוֹטִיפַר / פּוֹטִיפָר, Standard  Tiberian  /  ; Egyptian origin:  ; the one whom Ra gave. ... Heliopolis (Greek: or ), was one of the most ancient cities of Egypt, and capital of the 13th Lower Egyptian nome. ... The Tribe of Manasseh (Hebrew alphabet מְנַשֶּׁה, Samaritan Hebrew Manatch, Standard Hebrew MÉ™naÅ¡Å¡e, Tiberian Hebrew MÉ™naÅ¡Å¡eh: from נשני naššānî who makes to forget) is one of the Hebrew tribes, which the Bible says was founded by Manasseh, the son of Joseph. ... Tribe of Ephraim (Hebrew: אֶפְרַיִם / אֶפְרָיִם , Standard Efráyim Tiberian / ; double fruitfulness) took precedence over that of Manasseh by virtue of Jacobs blessing (Gen. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Anat, also ‘Anat (in ASCII spelling `Anat and often simplified to Anat), Hebrew or Phoenician ענת (‘Anāt), Ugaritic ‘nt, Greek Αναθ (Englished as Anath), in Egyptian rendered as Antit, Anit, Anti, or Anant, is a major northwest Semitic goddess. ...

Genesis records nothing more about Asenath, but her story is elaborated in the apocryphal Joseph and Asenath. There, she is a virgin who rejects several worthy suitors in favor of Joseph, but Joseph will not have a pagan for a wife. She locks herself in a tower and rejects her idolatry in favor of Joseph's god Yahweh, and receives a visit from an angel who accepts her conversion. A ritual involving a honeycomb follows, and Joseph now consents to marry her. She bears him their sons Mannaseh and Ephraim. Pharaoh's son wants Asenath for himself, however, and with the aid of Joseph's brothers Dan and Gad, he conspires to kill her husband. The loyal brother Benjamin interferes, and Pharaoh's son is ultimately slain. Asenath forgives the conspirators, and she and Joseph rule over Egypt for 48 years, after which they pass the crown to Pharaoh's grandson. Apocrypha (from the Greek word απόκρυφα meaning those having been hidden away[1]) are texts of uncertain authenticity or writings where the authorship is questioned. ... Joseph and Aseneth (alternatively spelled Asaneth) is an ancient apocryphal expansion of the Book of Genesiss account of the patriarch Josephs marriage to Aseneth. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Tetragrammaton. ... Honeycomb Honeycombs on a Sacred fig tree A honeycomb is a mass of hexagonal wax cells built by honey bees in their nests to contain their larvae and stores of honey and pollen. ... Dan (דָּן Judge, Standard Hebrew Dan, Tiberian Hebrew Dān) is one of the sons of Jacob and Bilhah, Rachels maidservant (Genesis 30:4). ... Gad is a son of Jacob and Zilpah. ... Benjamin (Hebrew: בִּנְיָמִין; standard transliteration Benyamin, Tiberian vocalization Benyāmîn) is a Hebrew Bible figure. ...

According to the Jewish midrashim, Asenath was actually the daughter of Joseph's sister Dinah, conceived in her rape by Sechem. Midrash (Hebrew: מדרש; plural midrashim) is a Hebrew word referring to a method of exegesis of a Biblical text. ... Dinah (Hebrew: דִּינָה, Standard Tiberian  ; Judged; vindicated), mentioned in the Book of Genesis as the daughter of Jacob and Leah. ... Map of the West Bank, with Nablus in the center north. ...

External links

• Text of Joseph and Asenath