The Fourth Row of Zebulun, Joseph, and Benjamin

Midrash Aggadah Targum Pseudo-Jonathan on Exodus 28:20 View source

Curated by The Jewish Mythology Team · Published January 10, 2025

The Targum Pseudo-Jonathan on Exodus 28:20 closes the breastplate's geography with the fourth row: chrysolite, onyx, and jasper, engraved with Zebulun, Joseph, and Benjamin. The verse ends with a small but charged detail — set in gold shall they be, in their completeness. All twelve stones had to rest in their settings whole. A cracked gem disqualified the breastplate from service.

The three names of this row are the Rachel-leaning tribes and their trading partner. Zebulun, at the beginning, was the merchant who dwelt at the haven of the sea (Genesis 49:13) and supported Issachar's scholarship. Joseph, in the middle, was already split in the tribal map into Ephraim and Manasseh, and his single stone on the breastplate bound both halves back together. Benjamin, the youngest, closed the row and the chart of the tribes.

The takeaway is about completion. The Sages read in their completeness as a refusal to leave anyone out. The row that closes the breastplate is the row that heals old rifts — Rachel's sons reunited, Joseph's halves rejoined, the youngest brother given equal weight with the firstborn. Only a whole Israel can be carried into the sanctuary.

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