Serah
Serach bat Asher was, in the
In the Torah
There are two mentions of Serach in the Torah. The first is in Genesis, 46:17, in a passage that begins “These are the names of the Israelites, Jacob and his descendants, who came to Egypt,” and continues to mention all of Jacob's sons, his daughter Dinah, his grandsons, and one granddaughter—Serach. The passage reads “The sons of Asher: Imnah, Ishvah, Ishvi, Beri’ah, with Serach their sister.” This sentence is repeated later in the Hebrew Bible in Chronicles, 1 Chronicles 7:30. One would suppose that, since the Torah mentions 53 grandsons and only one granddaughter, she was a person of significance.
The second time Serach is mentioned is in the Book of Numbers, 26:46.
In Sefer HaYashar
According to The Book of Jasher, Asher married Adon bat Aflal ben Hadad ben Ishmael. She died before bearing children.
Asher then married Hadurah bat Abimael ben Heber ben Shem, the widow of Malkiel ben Elam ben Shem. Hadurah bore one daughter to Malkiel, whom he named Serach. After Malkiel died, mother and daughter returned to the house of Abimael. Upon Asher's marriage to Hadurah, he adopted Serach and brought them to Canaan to live in the house of Jacob. This is one of the sources that the Talmud (Megilla) uses to show that an adopted child is considered the child of the adopted parent, as opposed to the genetic parent, in Torah Law. This text praises Serach for her musical skill, beauty and intellect and notes she was raised as an Israelite.[3]
In tradition
A number of
Joseph makes his brothers swear that they will bring his bones from Egypt to be buried in the land of Canaan (Genesis 50:25). The Midrash relates that Moses addressed himself to Serach when he wished to learn where the remains of Joseph were to be buried. Without Joseph's bones, the Israelites could not leave Egypt, so the Pharaoh had Egyptians put him in a lead coffin and had it cast into an underground flooded chamber the Nile. This was an attempt to prevent the Israelites ever leaving Egypt. Only Serach was still alive to remember exactly where to find Joseph's bones as she had seen the Egyptians place the coffin in the Nile at the time and the rest of the generation had since died out.[6] According to the Midrash,[7] Serach was "the wise woman" who caused the death of Sheba ben Bichri.[8]
Another story in the Midrash[9] relates that Rabbi Yochanan was discussing the parting of the Red Sea and wondered what the walls of water looked like. There was a discussion in the House of Study as to whether the sea took on the shape of latticework or brickwork. At that moment, Serach bat Asher peered into the window of the study hall and attested, "I was there. They were like lighted [brick] windows." According to another legend, Serach lived until the tribe of Asher was exiled by Shalmaneser V, went with them into exile, and died there, nearly 1,000 years old. According to the legend, her grave is located in Pir Bakran, a small town about 30 km southeast of Isfahan. The site consists of a small synagogue and a huge cemetery which is probably 2,000 years old.
Some consider her the guardian of Israel's communal memory.
Cultural associations
- Edward Einhorn's absurdist comedy The Living Methuselah, appearing in his book of plays entitled The Golem, Methuselah, and Shylock, gives another perspective on both Serach and Methuselah. In it, Methuselah and Serach have lived to modern day, through all the major disasters of human history.
References
Resources
- Bacher, Wilhelm and Isaac Broydé. "Serah". Jewish Encyclopedia. Funk and Wagnalls, 1901–1906.
- Sermon on Serach