Amanda Bradley-Tell all the truth, but tell it slant: Serach bat Asher (Vayigash)

One of my favorite women of Tanach makes her first appearance in this week’s parsha. Serach, the daughter of Asher, is named as one of the “70 souls” who accompanied Jacob to Egypt — but she is one of only two women listed (the other one is Dinah), and the only granddaughter of Jacob to have a name in the entire book of Genesis. She appears only once more in the Torah — as one of the few individuals named in the census taken in the Book of Numbers, chapter 25, just before entering the Land of Israel. Over 200 years passed between the two mentions of her name, making her remarkably long-lived (for comparison, Moses lived for 120 years, Joseph for 110 years, and Jacob for 147).

Although Serach gets nothing more than a namecheck in the written Torah, the Oral Torah gives her far greater importance. From reading midrash, it is clear that Serach is the master of the power of speech, using it to repair vital broken connections within the nation of Israel.

According to the midrash, when the brothers returned home after Joseph’s revelation, they grew scared about breaking the news to Jacob. How could they suddenly tell their father, who was old and frail, that Joseph was alive, and the second in command over Egypt? They were anxious that the shock might kill him.

Read the full article on the Times of Israel