It's a wild ride of interpretations, isn’t it?
The passage opens with Jacob's words: "Reuben, you are my firstborn." Now, Rabbi [Yehuda HaNasi], the compiler of the Mishnah (the earliest code of rabbinic law), offers a double-edged interpretation. On one hand, it's praise. Reuben is the firstborn, unlike Esau, who, according to the text, would resort to theft if his hunting failed ("Esau went to the field to hunt game...if he found, fine; if not, 'to bring' from what he stole or took by force," Genesis 27:5). Reuben, however, "took mandrakes that were ownerless and not from what belonged to others" (Genesis 30:14). As Bereshit Rabbah 72:2 points out, he was honest!
Furthermore, the verse continues, "My strength, and the first of my potency" – representing the vanguard in battle, brave warriors "whose faces were like the faces of lions" (I Chronicles 12:9), as applied to both the Gadites and Reubenites, as Matnot Kehuna clarifies. So far, so good. Reuben's looking pretty heroic!
But then… the other shoe drops. Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi also sees criticism. “Reuben, you are my firstborn… you are firstborn and I am firstborn." See, Jacob is saying that he, at 84 years old, had never experienced a seminal emission until Reuben was conceived. The Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) is assuming Reuben was conceived the first time Jacob had relations with Leah. But Reuben… Reuben "went and lay with Bilha" (Genesis 35:22). This is where things get complicated.
Now, suddenly, "My strength, and the first of my potency" becomes the "first of my toil and the first of my travail," as he was the first child Jacob had to raise. And the honor? The power? Gone. The birthright, the priesthood, the kingship – all forfeited due to his sin. The birthright went to Joseph, the priesthood to Levi, and the kingship to Judah.
And then Rabbi Aḥa throws another wrench into the works. Was the birthright even really Reuben's to begin with? After all, Jacob only went to Laban for Rachel! Shouldn't the firstborn have come from her? Ouch. That’s gotta sting. As Nezer HaKodesh points out, Reuben was conceived the first time Jacob had relations with Leah, when he thought she was Rachel, and therefore by right the firstborn should have been from Rachel.
The passage then quotes Jacob's deathbed prophecy: "Impetuous as water, you shall not excel; because you mounted your father's bed; then you desecrated, he who ascended my couch" (Genesis 49:4). The Hebrew word for impetuous, paḥaz, is dissected by Rabbi Eliezer, who sees it as an acronym for paḥazta, ḥatata, zanita – you were impetuous, you sinned, you engaged in harlotry! Rabbi Yehoshua offers a slightly different take: you rebelled, you desecrated my couch, your evil inclination stirred within you.
Even then, the interpretations keep coming, with Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov and the mysterious Moda’i offering their own perspectives on Reuben's actions. It's a whirlwind of accusations and justifications!
But here's where it gets really interesting. Rabbi Pinḥas compares Reuben to those who "break their shins in the water" – those who leap before they look. And then, a glimmer of hope! "You sinned through water," the Rabbis say, "let the one who was drawn from water [Moses] come and draw you near: 'May Reuben live and not die'" (Deuteronomy 33:6).
Rabbi Eliezer HaModa’i offers a powerful image: Reuben made himself a ritual bath of water, purifying himself through repentance. He suggests that Reuben only sinned in thought, and his sincere remorse restored him to purity.
But the debate rages on. Did Reuben truly repent and find atonement? Or did he forever forfeit his birthright and blessing? The Rabbis are divided.
Then comes a defense. Rabbi Ḥiyya Rabba and Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi, in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai, suggest that Reuben wasn't driven by lust, but by a desire to protect his mother's honor! He rearranged the beds after Rachel's death, feeling it was wrong for Bilha to take Rachel's place. Is this a noble act of filial piety, or a further transgression?
In the end, the Rabbis leave Reuben in "loose abeyance," neither fully condemning nor fully forgiving him, until Moses comes along and offers a blessing. It's a story full of ambiguity, isn’t it?
What are we to make of all this? Perhaps the point isn't to definitively label Reuben as good or bad, but to recognize the complexities of human nature. We are all capable of both great deeds and terrible mistakes. The story of Reuben reminds us that even in our failings, there is always the potential for repentance, for purification, and perhaps, even for redemption. It's a powerful reminder that our stories are never truly finished, and that even after missteps, there's always the possibility of a new chapter.
“Reuben, you are my firstborn” – Rabbi [Yehuda HaNasi] would say [an interpretation] of this as praise and [an interpretation] as criticism. You are firstborn, and Esau is firstborn. “Esau went to the field to hunt game [to bring]” (Genesis 27:5) – if he found, fine; if not, “to bring” from what he stole or took by force. But you, “Reuben went during the days of wheat harvest [and found mandrakes in the field and brought them to his mother Leah]” (Genesis 30:14).14Reuven took mandrakes that were ownerless and not from what belonged to others (see Bereshit Rabba 72:2), unlike Esau. “My strength, and the first of my potency” – these are the vanguard in the battle. “Greater honor and greater power” – “their faces were like the faces of lions” (I Chronicles 12:9).15This is written regarding the Gadites, but since the Gadites and Reubenites both formed the vanguard in the conquest of Canaan, it is true of the Reubenites as well (Matnot Kehuna). He would say [an interpretation] about this as criticism – “Reuben, you are my firstborn” – you are firstborn and I am firstborn.16Jacob bought the birthright from Esau. I, at the age of eighty-four years old, had never seen a drop of seminal emission,17That is, until Jacob married Leah and fathered Reuben. The midrash assumes that Reuben was conceived the first time Jacob had relations with Leah. but you: “[Reuben] went and lay with Bilha” (Genesis 35:22). “My strength, and the first of my potency” – the first of my toil and the first of my travail.18He was the one with whom Jacob first experienced the travail of raising children. “Greater honor and greater power” – the birthright was yours, the priesthood was yours, the kingship was yours, but now that you sinned, the birthright was given to Joseph, the priesthood to Levi, and the kingship to Judah. Rabbi Aḥa said: The birthright was not yours. Is it not so that Jacob went to Laban only for Rachel? All the furrows that I plowed in your mother; was it not in Rachel that they should have been plowed?19This is a euphemism for marital relations. Reuben was conceived the first time Jacob had relations with Leah, when he thought she was Rachel, and therefore by right the firstborn should have been from Rachel (Nezer HaKodesh). Now, the birthright has returned to its owner. "Impetuous as water, you shall not excel; because you mounted your father's bed; then you desecrated, he who ascended my couch” (Genesis 49:4). “Impetuous as water, you shall not excel” – Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Yehoshua: Rabbi Eliezer said: You were impetuous [paḥazta], you sinned [ḥatata], you engaged in harlotry [zanita].20The Hebrew term for impetuous, paḥaz, is an acronym for paḥazta, ḥatata, zanita. Rabbi Yehoshua said: You rebelled [parakta ol], you desecrated [ḥilalta] my couch, your evil inclination stirred [za] within you. Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov said: You trampled [pasata] the law, you forfeited [ḥavta] your birthright, you became a stranger [zar] vis-à-vis your gifts. They said: Even now, we still need the Moda’i. Rabbi Eliezer HaModa’i came and explained: You shuddered [zata], you trembled [ḥaradta], the sin flew [paraḥ] from upon your head.21Reuben shuddered and trembled with remorse for his sin, and therefore was forgiven (Matnot Kehuna). Rabbi Pinḥas said: You acted like those impetuous ones who break their shins in the water.22They leap before they look. “As water” – the Rabbis say: You sinned through water,23Water in the sense of liquid, a reference to semen. let the one who was drawn from water come and draw you near: “May Reuben live and not die” (Deuteronomy 33:6).24This verse was stated by Moses, who was so called because he was drawn from the water (see Exodus 2:10). “As water” – just as water is released from place to place, so, you have been released.25Just as water flows, your sin has flowed away from you, i.e., you have been relieved of liability. Alternatively, the implication is: Your privileges have been taken from you (Matnot Kehuna). Rabbi Eliezer HaModa’i says: One does not make a ritual bath of wine or of oil, but rather of water; so, you made yourself a ritual bath of water and you purified yourself in it.26Rabbi Eliezer HaModa’i is of the opinion that Reuben sinned only in thought but not in deed, as he did not carry out his sinful thoughts. Therefore, his thoughts of sincere repentance restored him to a state of purity, as though he had immersed in a ritual bath (Etz Yosef). “You shall not excel [totar]” – Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Yehoshua, both of them said this: Nothing was relinquished [vitarta] for you.27You have not been absolved from punishment. This is derived from the fact that totar and vitarta are derived from the same root in Hebrew. Rabbi Eliezer HaModa’i says: There will be nothing remaining [vitaron] for you from your sin. “Because you mounted [alita]” – Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Yehoshua, both of them said: Because you mounted in its plain sense.28They interpret the phrase “because you mounted your father’s bed” in the plain sense as indicating that Reuben literally sinned with Bilha. Rabbi Elazar said: Because you mounted [alita]29He interprets alita to mean “you elevated [he’eleita],” meaning that Reuben brought about benefit regarding his father’s bed. This occurred in the incident of the mandrakes, which led to the birth of Issachar. – where? In the case of the mandrakes. “Your father’s bed [mishkevei avikha]” – Rabbi Berekhya said: It is not written here: Your father’s bed [mishkav] , but rather, “your father’s beds [mishkevei]”30The term mishkevei, generally translated “bed,” is actually a plural term, such that a literal translation would be “beds.” – the bed of Bilha and the bed of Zilpa.31Accordingly, not only did Reuben literally sin, but he did so with Zilpa as well as with Bilha. Rabbi Abbahu, and some say Rabbi Yaakov, in the name of Rabbi Ḥiyya Rabba, and Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai: We learned: One who is suspect in some matter neither judges in its regard nor testifies in its regard.32Mishna Bekhorot 4:10. Is it possible that he is destined to be one of the six tribes that were standing on Mount Eval and saying: “Cursed is one who lies with his father’s wife” (Deuteronomy 27:20), and he performed this very act? Rather, he was defending his mother’s honor. All the days that Rachel was alive, her bed was situated alongside the bed of Jacob our patriarch. When Rachel died, Jacob our patriarch took Bilha’s bed and placed it alongside his bed. [Reuben] said: Is it not enough that my mother was jealous during her sister’s lifetime, that she must be so even after her death? He rose and rearranged the beds. Rabbi Yehuda bar Simon disagrees with this and [says that] Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi [said] in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai: This is analogous to one who was suspected of selling teruma as non-sacred produce.33Teruma, which could be eaten only by priests and the members of their households, and only in a state of ritual purity, would command a much cheaper price than non-sacred produce. They investigated him and inspected, but did not find any substance to these claims, and they appointed him in charge of setting prices in the marketplace. “Then you desecrated” – Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Yehoshua, both of them said: “Then you desecrated” – in its plain sense. “Ascended” – Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Yehoshua, both of them said: You ascended from your sin. Rabbi Eliezer HaModa’i said: You ascended from your gifts.34Numerous commentaries suggest that the text should read that according to Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Yehoshua, “you ascended from your gifts,” meaning that due to his sin, Reuben lost out on the priestly gifts, and Rabbi Eliezer HaModa’i says, “you ascended from your sin,” meaning that Reuben repented and achieved atonement for his sin. The Rabbis say: I am neither distancing you nor drawing you near. Instead I am leaving you in loose abeyance until Moses, in whose regard it is written: “And Moses ascended to God” (Exodus 19:3), comes, and does with you what he perceives to be correct. When Moses came, he began to draw him near: “May Reuben live” (Deuteronomy 33:6). The Rabbis say: The same was true of the congregation of Koraḥ, .35See the end of section 2.
