Alexander and the Birthright of Israel

And to the sons of the concubines that Abraham had, Abraham gave gifts (Genesis 25:6). In the days of Alexander the Macedonian, the children of Ishmael came to challenge Israel regarding the birthright, and two wicked families of Canaanites and Egyptians came with them. They said, “Who will go and argue against them?” Geviah the son of Kosem said, “I will go and argue against them.” They said to him, “Be careful not to determine that the land of Israel belongs to them.” He said, “I will go and argue against them; if I defeat them, good, but if I do not, you will say, ‘Who is this humpback [Geviah] who argued against us?!’” [Geviah] went and judged them. Alexander the Macedonian said to them, “Who will bring a charge against whom?” The Ishmaelites said, “We bring the charge and we base our argument on their Torah—but he shall acknowledge the first-born, the son of the hated (Deuteronomy 21:17); and Ishmael was the first-born.” Geviah the son of Kosem said to [Alexander], “Your majesty the king, may a person not do as he wishes for his sons?” [Alexander] said to him, “Yes.” “And is it not written: And Abraham gave all that he had to Isaac (Genesis 25:5).” [Alexander] said, “But how has he then left a legacy [for all his children]?” [Geviah] said to him, “And to the sons of the concubines [that Abraham had, Abraham gave gifts]” (Genesis 25:6)]. And the [Ishmaelites] left in shame. The Canaanites said, “From their Torah we learn and bring [a case] against them! In every instance it is written: the land of Canaan—give us our land!” [Geviah] said to [Alexander], “Your majesty the king, may a person not do as he wishes with his servant?” [Alexander] said to him, “Yes.” [Geviah said,] “And is it not written: [Cursed be Canaan] a servant of servants he shall be for his brothers (Genesis 9:25)? And now they are our servants.” [The Canaanites] left in shame. The Egyptians said, “From their Torah we learn and bring [a case] against them, that 600,000 people left us loaded with vessels of silver and gold, as it says: And they despoiled the Egyptians (Exodus 12:36). Give us our gold and our silver!” Geviah the son of Kosem said to [Alexander], “Your majesty the king, 600,000 people served them for 210 years, some of whom were silversmiths and goldsmiths; let them give us a dinar for each and every day.” The philosophers sat and calculated but they had not even reached one hundred years when Egypt was found to [owe them] the value [of the gold and silver that the Israelites had taken], and [the Egyptians] left in shame.

Translated by Matthew Goldstone.