Asenat (Heb. ‘í‚senath, “worshiper of Net”; transliteration of the Egyptian female name Ns-Nit or ‘lws-Nit, both meaning “one who belongs to Neit”). She wife of Joseph, daughter of Potifera, priest of On or Heliopolis (Gen 41:45). She was the mother of Manasseh and Ephraim (41:50-52; 46:20), the parents of 2 important tribes of Israel.
Source: Evangelical Bible Dictionary
See Asnat.
Digital Bible Dictionary, Grupo C Service & Design Ltda., Colombia, 2003
Source: Digital Bible Dictionary
Daughter of Potifera, priest of On. Pharaoh gave her to Joseph as her wife (Gen 41:45-50) and she gave birth to Manasseh and Ephraim before the famine began.
Source: Hispanic World Bible Dictionary
Joseph’s wife. She was † œdaughter of Potiphera priest of On † (Gen 41:45, Gen 41:50; Gen 46:20).
Source: Christian Bible Dictionary
tip, BIOG MUJE MUAT Egyptian proper name meaning “possession of the goddess Neit.” In the Bible she is the name of the daughter of Potifera, the priest of the city of On, who gave her as wife to Joseph (Gen. 41:45). Asenath was the mother of Manasseh and Ephraim (Gen. 46:20).
Source: New Illustrated Bible Dictionary
“And Pharaoh gave him (Joseph) Asenath the daughter of Potipherah, priest of On” (Genesis 41:45).
Read: Genesis 41:45-52. Pharaoh was determined to make Joseph completely Egyptian; he wanted this young Hebrew to assimilate into the national way of life. He had liked José, he was a valuable man; Pharaoh considered him a genius, a true statesman. But he had no idea of the God of Israel, who was the one who had sent Joseph to save Egypt. From the beginning Pharaoh opposed Jehovah.
To transform Joseph into a pearl of the crown of Egypt, he grants him all kinds of honors. He changes his name to Safnat-paneach (meaning “declarer of the hidden”), and gives him Asenath as his wife. This was an honor, for she was the daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, the holy city of the sun worshippers. The caste of priests was very high in Egypt, men with deep studies and who were the repository of the wisdom of Egypt, known in history in a traditional way.
Joseph could interpret dreams, and he could penetrate the secrets of nature. He was also a sage, and it stands to reason that he was assimilated into the priestly caste. We do not know if José was happy with this arrangement. In any case, the result of it was, without a doubt, to implicate him in Egyptian idolatry and becoming a member of this caste brought him the prestige resulting from this idolatry.
We have no right to assume that Joseph married this woman with enthusiasm. We know that Joseph could resist the temptation of the flesh, as we are shown by the fact that Potiphar’s wife, undoubtedly a woman of great experience in this respect, failed in her repeated attempts to make him fall for her charms.
However, we know that Asenath entered Joseph’s house as his wife. And the very names of the two children that José had with her give us an idea that José was beginning to reap the fruit of her lightness and little strength. The first was called Manasseh, because Joseph said: “God made me forget all my work and all my father’s house.” The second was named Ephraim: “God made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.” Pharaoh’s plan to make Joseph an Egyptian was successful. Asenath was helping Joseph resign himself to the idea that he had died for his father’s house.
It happened, as we know, that by the providence of God, the house of his father recovered him again, in Egypt. Then Joseph himself rejoined his own to the point that he insisted that his bones be buried with those of his parents in Canaan.
Had there been no other influences on his marriage to Asenath, Joseph would have been buried in Egypt. But there is something of the blood of Asenath in the veins of Ephraim and Manasseh, which divides them from the true Israel. From these two sons there arose in time the schism and separation between the succeeding generations of Jacob. Ephraim opposes Judah, and Jeroboam opposes Solomon’s son. This results in the conflict between Samaria and Jerusalem. It is in Samaria that the service of Baal predominates; it is there that Jezebel puts to death the prophets of the Lord. So Joseph, who rose to a position of authority and distinction, ends up completely eliminated. The glory of Jacob’s family rests only on Judah.
If you wonder why the tribe of Joseph was wiped out so quickly, Scripture gives us the answer: “Joseph married Asenath, daughter of Potiphera, priest of On.”
Suggested Questions for Study and Discussion:
1. Did God permanently bless the marriage of Joseph and Asenath? What proof can we give?
2. Did Joseph become an Egyptian at all?
3. What can we learn from this marriage regarding the relationships we are to have with the world?
4. What is God’s teaching regarding mixed marriages?
Source: Women of the Bible
Daughter of Potifera, the Egyptian priest of On, whom Pharaoh gave to Joseph as his wife. She was the mother of Manasseh and Ephraim. (Ge 41:45, 50-52; 46:20)
Source: Dictionary of the Bible
Daughter of “Potifera priest of On” in Egypt, whom Pharaoh gave Joseph as wife (Gen. 41.45) and, therefore, mother of Manasseh and Ephraim (Gen. 41.50-52; 46.20). The name Asenath (Heb. ˒āsenaṯ) is clearly Egyptian, following the pattern ‘I(w).snX, ‘she belongs to X’, where X is a deity or one of the parents, or a pronoun referring to one of them. Three equally acceptable possibilities would be: ‘Iw.s-(n)-Nt, ‘she belongs to (the goddess) Neit’, ‘Iw.sn-‘t, ‘she belongs to (her) father’, or ‘Iw. sn.t (t instead of Ï), ‘she belongs to you’ (fem., either a goddess or the mother). Such names have been well confirmed in the Middle Kingdom and Hyksos periods (ca. 2100–1600 BC) of Egyptian history, corresponding to the time of the patriarchs and Joseph.
K.A.K.
Douglas, J. (2000). New Biblical Dictionary: First Edition. Miami: United Bible Societies.
Source: New Bible Dictionary