THE FIRST JEWISH ETHICAL WILL: JACOB
Yalkut Shimoni, as quoted in the Ethical Wills: A Vault for for Future Generations curriculum
At the end of Jacob's life, he called out to God: “Ruler of the World,” he cried, “Take not my soul until I have encouraged/instructed my children.” And his wish was granted.
1) What is Jacob asking for and why? Describe in your own words.
2) Jacob makes his request because he senses he will die soon; are there other times in life when we might make a similar request?
3) What is this text telling us about time?
At the end of Jacob's life, he called out to God: “Ruler of the World,” he cried, “Take not my soul until I have encouraged/instructed my children.” And his wish was granted.
1) What is Jacob asking for and why? Describe in your own words.
2) Jacob makes his request because he senses he will die soon; are there other times in life when we might make a similar request?
3) What is this text telling us about time?
Genesis 47:28-30
(28) Jacob lived seventeen years in the land of Egypt, so that the span of Jacob’s life came to one hundred and forty-seven years. (29) And when the time approached for Israel to die, he summoned his son Joseph and said to him, “Do me this favor, place your hand under my thigh as a pledge of your steadfast loyalty: please do not bury me in Egypt. (30) When I lie down with my ancestors, take me up from Egypt and bury me in their burial-place.” He replied, “I will do as you have spoken.”
(28) Jacob lived seventeen years in the land of Egypt, so that the span of Jacob’s life came to one hundred and forty-seven years. (29) And when the time approached for Israel to die, he summoned his son Joseph and said to him, “Do me this favor, place your hand under my thigh as a pledge of your steadfast loyalty: please do not bury me in Egypt. (30) When I lie down with my ancestors, take me up from Egypt and bury me in their burial-place.” He replied, “I will do as you have spoken.”
Genesis 48:21
(21) Then Israel said to Joseph, “I am about to die; but God will be with you and bring you back to the land of your ancestors.
(21) Then Israel said to Joseph, “I am about to die; but God will be with you and bring you back to the land of your ancestors.
Genesis 48:15-16
(15) And he blessed Joseph, saying, “The God in whose ways my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, The God who has been my shepherd from my birth to this day— (16) The Messenger who has redeemed me from all harm— Bless the lads. In them may my name be recalled, And the names of my fathers Abraham and Isaac, And may they be teeming multitudes upon the earth.”
(15) And he blessed Joseph, saying, “The God in whose ways my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, The God who has been my shepherd from my birth to this day— (16) The Messenger who has redeemed me from all harm— Bless the lads. In them may my name be recalled, And the names of my fathers Abraham and Isaac, And may they be teeming multitudes upon the earth.”
Genesis 49:29-32
(29) Then he instructed them, saying to them, “I am about to be gathered to my kin. Bury me with my ancestors in the cave which is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, (30) the cave which is in the field of Machpelah, facing Mamre, in the land of Canaan, the field that Abraham bought from Ephron the Hittite for a burial site— (31) there Abraham and his wife Sarah were buried; there Isaac and his wife Rebekah were buried; and there I buried Leah— (32) the field and the cave in it, bought from the Hittites.”
(29) Then he instructed them, saying to them, “I am about to be gathered to my kin. Bury me with my ancestors in the cave which is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, (30) the cave which is in the field of Machpelah, facing Mamre, in the land of Canaan, the field that Abraham bought from Ephron the Hittite for a burial site— (31) there Abraham and his wife Sarah were buried; there Isaac and his wife Rebekah were buried; and there I buried Leah— (32) the field and the cave in it, bought from the Hittites.”
What do you notice about Jacob's words to his sons and grandsons? Why do you think he felt it was so important to share these words?
MOSES'S ETHICAL WILL
Deuteronomy 1:38-39
(38) Joshua son of Nun, who attends you, he shall enter it. Imbue him with strength, for he shall allot it to Israel.— (39) Moreover, your little ones who you said would be carried off, your children who do not yet know good from bad, they shall enter it; to them will I give it and they shall possess it.
(38) Joshua son of Nun, who attends you, he shall enter it. Imbue him with strength, for he shall allot it to Israel.— (39) Moreover, your little ones who you said would be carried off, your children who do not yet know good from bad, they shall enter it; to them will I give it and they shall possess it.
Deuteronomy 6:1-9
(1) And this is the Instruction—the laws and the rules—that your God יהוה has commanded [me] to impart to you, to be observed in the land that you are about to cross into and occupy, (2) so that you, your children, and your children’s children may revere your God יהוה and follow, as long as you live, all the divine laws and commandments that I enjoin upon you, to the end that you may long endure. (3) Obey, O Israel, willingly and faithfully, that it may go well with you and that you may increase greatly [in] a land flowing with milk and honey, as יהוה, the God of your ancestors, spoke to you. (4) Hear, O Israel! יהוה is our God, יהוה alone. (5) You shall love your God יהוה with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. (6) Take to heart these instructions with which I charge you this day. (7) Impress them upon your children. Recite them when you stay at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you get up. (8) Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them serve as a symbol on your forehead; (9) inscribe them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
(1) And this is the Instruction—the laws and the rules—that your God יהוה has commanded [me] to impart to you, to be observed in the land that you are about to cross into and occupy, (2) so that you, your children, and your children’s children may revere your God יהוה and follow, as long as you live, all the divine laws and commandments that I enjoin upon you, to the end that you may long endure. (3) Obey, O Israel, willingly and faithfully, that it may go well with you and that you may increase greatly [in] a land flowing with milk and honey, as יהוה, the God of your ancestors, spoke to you. (4) Hear, O Israel! יהוה is our God, יהוה alone. (5) You shall love your God יהוה with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. (6) Take to heart these instructions with which I charge you this day. (7) Impress them upon your children. Recite them when you stay at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you get up. (8) Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them serve as a symbol on your forehead; (9) inscribe them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
Deuteronomy 8:3-10
(3) [God] subjected you to the hardship of hunger and then gave you manna to eat, which neither you nor your ancestors had ever known, in order to teach you that a human being does not live on bread alone, but that one may live on anything that יהוה decrees. (4) The clothes upon you did not wear out, nor did your feet swell these forty years. (5) Bear in mind that your God יהוה disciplines you just as a householder disciplines his son. (6) Therefore keep the commandments of your God יהוה: walk in God’s ways and show reverence. (7) For your God יהוה is bringing you into a good land, a land with streams and springs and fountains issuing from plain and hill; (8) a land of wheat and barley, of vines, figs, and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey; (9) a land where you may eat food without stint, where you will lack nothing; a land whose rocks are iron and from whose hills you can mine copper. (10) When you have eaten your fill, give thanks to your God יהוה for the good land given to you.
(3) [God] subjected you to the hardship of hunger and then gave you manna to eat, which neither you nor your ancestors had ever known, in order to teach you that a human being does not live on bread alone, but that one may live on anything that יהוה decrees. (4) The clothes upon you did not wear out, nor did your feet swell these forty years. (5) Bear in mind that your God יהוה disciplines you just as a householder disciplines his son. (6) Therefore keep the commandments of your God יהוה: walk in God’s ways and show reverence. (7) For your God יהוה is bringing you into a good land, a land with streams and springs and fountains issuing from plain and hill; (8) a land of wheat and barley, of vines, figs, and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey; (9) a land where you may eat food without stint, where you will lack nothing; a land whose rocks are iron and from whose hills you can mine copper. (10) When you have eaten your fill, give thanks to your God יהוה for the good land given to you.
Deuteronomy 31:6
(6) Be strong and resolute, be not in fear or in dread of them; for it is indeed your God יהוה who marches with you: [God] will not fail you or forsake you.
(6) Be strong and resolute, be not in fear or in dread of them; for it is indeed your God יהוה who marches with you: [God] will not fail you or forsake you.
What are some of the themes you pick up on from these exerpts of Moses' ethical will?
Why do you think Moses is offering these words? What does he hope the recipients will remember from it? What is the goal of this ethical will?
Why do you think Moses is offering these words? What does he hope the recipients will remember from it? What is the goal of this ethical will?
DAVID'S ETHICAL WILL
1 Chronicles 22:7-10, 12-13
(7) David said to Solomon, “My son, I wanted to build a House for the name of the LORD my God. (8) But the word of the LORD came to me, saying,‘You have shed much blood and fought great battles; you shall not build a House for My name, for you have shed much blood on the earth in My sight. (9) But you will have a son who will be a man at rest, for I will give him rest from all his enemies on all sides; Solomon will be his name and I shall confer peace and quiet on Israel in his time. (10) He will build a House for My name; he shall be a son to Me and I to him a father, and I will establish his throne of kingship over Israel forever.’... (12) Only let God give you sense and understanding and put you in charge of Israel and the observance of the Teaching of the LORD your God. (13) Then you shall succeed, if you observantly carry out the laws and the rules that the LORD charged Moses to lay upon Israel. Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid or dismayed.
(7) David said to Solomon, “My son, I wanted to build a House for the name of the LORD my God. (8) But the word of the LORD came to me, saying,‘You have shed much blood and fought great battles; you shall not build a House for My name, for you have shed much blood on the earth in My sight. (9) But you will have a son who will be a man at rest, for I will give him rest from all his enemies on all sides; Solomon will be his name and I shall confer peace and quiet on Israel in his time. (10) He will build a House for My name; he shall be a son to Me and I to him a father, and I will establish his throne of kingship over Israel forever.’... (12) Only let God give you sense and understanding and put you in charge of Israel and the observance of the Teaching of the LORD your God. (13) Then you shall succeed, if you observantly carry out the laws and the rules that the LORD charged Moses to lay upon Israel. Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid or dismayed.
1 Kings 2:2-4
(2) “I am going the way of all the earth; be strong and show yourself a man. (3) Keep the charge of the LORD your God, walking in His ways and following His laws, His commandments, His rules, and His admonitions as recorded in the Teaching of Moses, in order that you may succeed in whatever you undertake and wherever you turn. (4) Then the LORD will fulfill the promise that He made concerning me: ‘If your descendants are scrupulous in their conduct, and walk before Me faithfully, with all their heart and soul, your line on the throne of Israel shall never end!’
(2) “I am going the way of all the earth; be strong and show yourself a man. (3) Keep the charge of the LORD your God, walking in His ways and following His laws, His commandments, His rules, and His admonitions as recorded in the Teaching of Moses, in order that you may succeed in whatever you undertake and wherever you turn. (4) Then the LORD will fulfill the promise that He made concerning me: ‘If your descendants are scrupulous in their conduct, and walk before Me faithfully, with all their heart and soul, your line on the throne of Israel shall never end!’
What are some of the themes you pick up on from these exerpts of David's ethical will?
Why do you think David is offering these words? What does he hope the recipients will remember from it? What is the goal of this ethical will?
Why do you think David is offering these words? What does he hope the recipients will remember from it? What is the goal of this ethical will?
We have now studied the first ethical wills that are found in the Tanakh. There are later ethical wills found in the apocrypha, Talmud, medieval and modern Jewish literature, containing the words parents wish to pass on to their children.
Ethical wills need not be written at the end of one's life. On the contrary, writing an ethical will can benefit people who write them anytime.
In our last class we will discuss the wide array of formats our ethical wills can take. Often they contain in some way some or all of the following
1) Lessons learned from one's personal experiences
2) Values, beliefs, and reflections on the present
3) Advice, hopes, and requests for the future.
Ethical wills need not be written at the end of one's life. On the contrary, writing an ethical will can benefit people who write them anytime.
In our last class we will discuss the wide array of formats our ethical wills can take. Often they contain in some way some or all of the following
1) Lessons learned from one's personal experiences
2) Values, beliefs, and reflections on the present
3) Advice, hopes, and requests for the future.