The narrative of Jacob's partiality towards his son Benjamin is a significant theme in the biblical account of the patriarchs, illustrating the complexities of familial relationships and the consequences of favoritism. This partiality is rooted in Jacob's deep affection for Rachel, his beloved wife, and the mother of both Joseph and Benjamin. Rachel's death during Benjamin's birth (Genesis 35:16-19) further intensified Jacob's emotional attachment to Benjamin, as he became a living reminder of Rachel.

Jacob's favoritism is evident in several key passages. After the presumed death of Joseph, whom Jacob had also favored, Benjamin became the sole remaining son of Rachel, heightening Jacob's protective instincts. In Genesis 42:4 , Jacob's reluctance to send Benjamin to Egypt with his brothers is clear: "But Jacob did not send Benjamin, Joseph’s brother, with the others, because he feared that harm might befall him." This protective stance underscores Jacob's deep-seated fear of losing another son of Rachel.

The partiality is further highlighted during the brothers' second journey to Egypt. Judah's plea to Jacob in Genesis 43:8-9 reflects the gravity of the situation and Jacob's attachment to Benjamin: "Then Judah said to his father Israel, 'Send the boy with me, and we will go at once, so that we may live and not die—we and you and our children. I will guarantee his safety; you may hold me personally responsible. If I do not bring him back and set him before you, I will bear the blame before you all my life.'" Judah's willingness to take personal responsibility for Benjamin's safety indicates the importance of Benjamin to Jacob and the entire family.

The climax of this partiality is seen in Genesis 44, when Joseph, now a powerful figure in Egypt, tests his brothers by placing a silver cup in Benjamin's sack. When the cup is discovered, the brothers are brought back to Joseph, and Judah offers himself as a substitute for Benjamin, recognizing the devastating impact Benjamin's loss would have on their father. In Genesis 44:30-31 , Judah articulates the depth of Jacob's attachment: "So if the boy is not with us when I return to your servant, my father, and if my father, whose life is closely bound up with the boy’s life, sees that the boy is not there, he will die. Then your servants will have brought the gray head of your servant our father down to Sheol in sorrow."

Jacob's partiality towards Benjamin, while understandable given the circumstances, serves as a poignant reminder of the potential pitfalls of favoritism within a family. The narrative invites reflection on the importance of equitable love and the challenges parents face in navigating their affections for their children.Genesis 42:4
But Benjamin, Joseph's brother, Jacob sent not with his brothers; for he said, Lest peradventure mischief befall him.
Nave's Topical Index

The Book of Jubilees
... of practising divination Isaac repents of his partiality for Esau ... as his true son
and heir; so Jacob in late ... devotion by his obedience to his parents, and the ...
//christianbookshelf.org/deane/pseudepigrapha/the book of jubilees.htm

John Smith, Platonist --"An Interpreter of the Spirit"
... aged." It appears incidentally that his parents were poor ... God and all true Goodness,
without Partiality and without ... in precisely the same manner as Jacob Boehme ...
/.../chapter xvi john smith platonistan.htm

Scriptural Poems; Being Several Portions of Scripture Digested ...
... the lion: He took thereof, and eating, on he went, And to his parents did a ... Thus
Jacob's ten sons were to Egypt sent, But Joseph's brother Benjamin ne'er ...
/.../scriptural poems being several portions.htm

The General Conference of 1840
... Raper, RO Spencer, John F. Wright, Jacob Young ... Mississippi Conference: Benjamin M.
Drake, William Winans ... of mercy and good fruits, without partiality or hypocrisy ...
/.../chapter 15 the general conference.htm

Tiglath-Pileser iii. And the Organisation of the Assyrian Empire ...
... Jehoash in Israel, Amaziah in Judah, were, at first, like their parents, merely
the ... Moses, the triumphal Ode of Deborah, and the blessing of Jacob.* They were ...
/.../chapter iitiglath-pileser iii and the.htm

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