JOSEPH COULD NO LONGER

CONTROL HIMSELF BEFORE ALL HIS ATTENDANTS, AND HE CRIED OUT, "HAVE

EVERYONE WITHDRAW FROM ME!" SO THERE WAS NO ONE ELSE ABOUT WHEN JOSEPH

MADE HIMSELF KNOWN TO HIS BROTHERS.

(Bereishit 45:1-2)

Joseph could no

longer control himself – Loss of Control?

Consideration for his Brothers and Father?

Joseph could no

longer control himself – he could no longer make the effort to remain

unrecognized by them, as he had up to now, acting coldly towards them.

Could no longer – When he [Judah]

repeatedly mentioned the misfortune which may befall his father, Joseph became overwhelmed

with pity, and could not refrain from crying, and because of all the attendants

he cried out have everyone withdraw from me

(RaDaK, ad loc.)

This means to say that he wanted to control himself and to maneuver Jacob into fulfilling [the

dream of] "The sun and the moon… bowing down to me." There

was no reason for him to pity his brothers, for they paid him no heed when he

pleaded with them, but it was not proper [for him to continue manipulating

them] before all the attendants who were not aware of the whole story; to them

he would appear as a cruel person with a merciless, evil heart. He could not control

himself because of the attendants.

(Meshekh Hokhma, ad loc.)

Comments and Illuminations on the Characters of Reuben and Judah in the

Book of Bereishit

David Levinstein

When Jacob's sons appear as individual figures, Reuben, the eldest,

Simeon and Levi, Judah and Joseph are all active, while Benjamin is passive.

Reuben failed in his role as eldest, and he was

stripped of that status. Simeon and Levi took action in the Dinah episode,

while, noticeably, neither Reuben nor Judah joined them, even though Dinah was their

sister as well. Let us turn out attention to Judah and Reuben.

Reuben sins with Bilhah, his father's concubine. We never hear of

forgiveness or contrition in this connection. Furthermore, the sin is echoed in

Jacob's blessings to his sons (Bereishit

49:4). Judah was also involved

in an intimate sin. That story is related in chapter 38; when his

daughter-in-law Tamar becomes pregnant and proves that Judah is himself the

father of her twin sons, he admits "She is more in the right than I"

(38:26). Here, Judah resembles

King David, who sinned with Batsheva and admits: I have sinned to the Lord

(II Samuel 12:13).

Adam excused his behavior, blaming the woman who you gave to be with

me (Bereishit 3:12), and Eve explained

that the serpent duped me (verse 14). Such

is human nature, and so King Saul behaves as well: who is guilty? I saw the

people leaving me and scattering (I Samuel 13:11), and so on. David replaced Saul not because David was blameless, but

rather because he knew how to admit to his deeds, to be contrite and take

responsibility for them, while Saul looked for excuses and dumped the

responsibility on others.

Reuben and Judah also play main roles in the selling of Joseph: Reuben

foils the first idea – and they said to each other, let us go kill him… by

saying we shall not harm him mortally. Joseph is thrown into the pit,

from which Reuben intends to save him, but when an Ishmaelite caravan comes by,

Judah says, what gain is there in killing our brother? Following Judah's

proposal, Joseph is sold into slavery and arrives in Egypt, the place where his

dreams will be realized. If Reuben had succeeded, would the brothers' jealousy

and hatred for Joseph have disappeared? No, it seems that Joseph's removal was

necessary.

It is worth mentioning that no one complains when Benjamin is not sent

with his brothers to get food. Perhaps the brothers had learned their lesson

and were sorry for their treatment of Joseph. Benjamin never claims to lead his

brothers, and so, despite being his father's darling, he does not earn his

brother's deep hatred.

After Joseph demands that Benjamin be brought down to Egypt, Reuben

says, did I not tell you, "Do not sin with the child" (42:22). While Reuben's intentions were good, he had not

actually said this. He had been too weak to say that Joseph had been treated unfairly.

Judah says together with his brothers: but, we are guilty for our brother

(verse 21).

The brothers tell Jacob what had befallen them in Egypt, emphasizing

that they must take Benjamin there. At first Jacob refuses, but when the famine

becomes unbearable, Reuben offers, Kill my two sons if I do not return him

to you (42:37). Jacob still refuses –

Reuben's offer is illogical. If something were to happen to Benjamin, Jacob

would not just lose a son, but also two grandchildren as well.

Now Judah re-enters the picture. He speaks to his father forcefully: If

we shall not go down (43:5). After discussion,

Judah suggests: Send the boy in my care… I myself will be surety for him;

guilty before you forever (8-9). Lacking alternatives,

this time Jacob agrees.  

When the brothers descend to Egypt, a silver

chalice is slipped into Benjamin's saddle-bag and, following a search, the "theft"

is discovered. None of the brothers says whether or not he suspects Benjamin. Next,

Judah orates a long speech (44:18-34). He reviews parts of

their past experiences, and makes a concrete offer: Now please let your

servant stay in the boy's place as a servant to my lord… (verse 32). The offer makes sense; why should the viceroy

care if his servant's name shall be Benjamin or Judah? Benjamin is a pampered

youth who spent his whole life under his father's wing, while Judah is a

powerful and experienced man who could be of more use to his master. Judah's

words are very effective; Joseph breaks down and reveals himself to his

brothers. They have stood the test and did not abandon Rachel's son Benjamin. They

extended brotherliness to him, which Joseph had not enjoyed.

After Jacob is made aware that Joseph is still alive and rules in

Egypt, he takes his whole family down there. Here as well, a leadership role is

given to Judah; Jacob sends him ahead to point the way before him to Goshen

(46:28).

We shall conclude this study with Jacob's blessings to Judah and

Reuben. Reuben is the firstborn, and would seemingly deserve a superior

blessing. However, Jacob tells him: Unstable as water, you shall excel no

longer (49:4), and Ibn Ezra

explains: "You shall have no advantage." For you mounted your

father's bed in the Bilhah incident. The firstborn's advantage of

inheriting a double portion is taken from Reuben and given to Joseph, both of

whose sons found tribes as if they were sons of Jacob rather than mere

grandsons; and Judah is promised: the scepter shall not depart from Judah

(verse 10), which Rashi explains

as "From David onwards." RaMBaN says: "From the moment Judah

begins to bear the royal scepter, it shall not pass from him to another tribe."

In this way historical justice is served, both towards Reuben who disappointed

as a firstborn and failed as a leader, as well as to Judah, who took the

leading role upon himself, and whose deeds generally bore positive results.

David Levinstein has an MA in Bible.

Who is Courageous? He Who Makes a Friend of his

Enemy

Rabbi Shimon said: The firmament is made entirely

of water and the angels entirely of fire [as we read] his servants are fiery

flames. Yet the water does not extinguish the fire, nor does fire burn the

water. Judah and Joseph; this is a lion, the other an ox. Yesterday they gored

each other, and now one is sent as an emissary to the other, as it says: And

he sent Judah before him. [Therefore,] say: He makes peace in His

heights.

(Midrash Tanhumah VaYigash 6)

…from there on, Wind's spirit was lowered and he came politely. Since

he treats me politely, I treat him politely as well. When he comes, I go out to

meet him and ask him to sit with me on a bench in the garden between the trees.

And he comes and sits. And when he comes he brings a nice fragrance from the

mountains and from the valleys, and fans me as if with a fan. And since he acts

like a perfect penitent, I do not remind him of his earlier deeds. And when he leaves

me and goes, I ask him to return, as is customary with a good neighbor. Indeed,

we are good neighbors, and I love him with a complete love. It is even possible

that he loves me as well.

(S.Y. Agnon, Me'Oyeiv le'Ohev pg. 482)

Words that Come from the Heart Enter the Heart – the

Art of Diplomacy

A gentle response allays wrath; a harsh word

provokes anger (Proverbs 15:1): King Solomon teaches in this verse that a person must train his soul

and habituate his nature and tongue to offer gentle response, for a gentle response

calms and sets aside the wrath of the angry, while harsh words – which are the

opposite of gentle – give rise to anger

and wrath.

(Rabbeinu Behayey on Parashat Vayigash)

Even In Situations of Great Distress, There Is No

Justification For Slavery

Acquire

us and our lands

Joseph, however, hated slavery, that a person should rule over another

to his detriment. Therefore it is written, and Joseph acquired all the lands

of Egypt for Pharaoh but he did not purchase them as slaves; the land alone became Pharaoh's

property, whereas they were temporarily drafted to work for their bread,

becoming day laborers in field work. Therefore Joseph said Now that I have acquired you . . . today. This is to say: [You] temporarily, and your lands

forever for

Pharaoh. Therefore he transferred them to the cities, lest they continue to hold

their land, for how can one discern that he acquired their lands if they [the

sellers] were not sold and they continue to live on their land.

(Meshekh Hokhma, Bereishit 47:19)

"Let the poor be members of your

household" – and that he should not purchase servants to serve him.

(Rabbi Ovadiah of Bartinura, Avot 1:5)

"Let the poor be members of your household" Said the Tur (Yoreh Deah 251): "It is a mitzvah

that his household should include indigents and orphans, and better that he

take of them into his service than that he take many servants – and this will

be considered as a charitable act." But he should speak with them kindly,

and when mealtime approaches, he should treat them respectfully, feeding them

at his table, and with good cheer. And when takes them to serve him, he should

think: "Master of the Universe, I take these and not others in order to

fulfill you command: And let your brother live with you." And so in

all matters, even when a person does something in his own interest, if he can

elevate his action to the level of "in honor of His Name" he should bear

this in mind, and be motivated, and do it in joy.

(ShLaH, Megillah 24)

Is Man Responsible for the

Direction of his Actions and for their Results?

"It was not you who sent me here, but God"

– But they sold him of their own volition, in order to harm him! And

even if it developed that some benefit derived from the sale – their sin still

stands, for a person is judged not by what happens to evolve from his actions,

but only on the basis of his action and his intent; what happens to develop

later neither adds nor detracts.

(Abarbanel on Bereishit 45:8)

"On Prophecy"

The

haftarah (reading from the prophets) which goes with the portion of Vayigash is

a prophecy of the future: the unification of Judah and Joseph and the political

and spiritual rehabilitation of the united people after it had split into two

separate nations. This prophecy was never fulfilled. We therefore need to study

and discuss the significance of prophecies of the future, of what appears in

the words of the prophets as foretelling what will happen. Ezekiel said these

things after the ten tribes and Judah had gone into exile… Hosea and Amos

too, who prophesied the destruction of the Kingdom of Israel, went on to

prophesy that Israel would return. This didn't happen. And in this instance, it

is also impossible to accept the Midrashic view of prophecies that have not

been fulfilled to this day – that they are prophecies concerning the end of

days, and are destined to be fulfilled. The ten tribes, including those of the

sons of Joseph, were wiped off the face of the earth, apparently not through

being physically exterminated but through spiritual extermination; they

completely assimilated into the peoples among whom they were exiled, and there

is no trace of them in historical reality. In the Talmudic period, R. Akiva, who

knew the prophecies about the return of the ten tribes as well as we do, said: "The

ten tribes are not destined to return." He knew they were lost. His faith in

the true and righteous prophets was not undermined by this, because we understand

that their words do not tell us what will happen, but present the purpose and

the point of what will happen, and what should happen, which we ought to look

forward to and strive towards, even if no guarantee is given that it will come

about… it says in the Tosafot: "A prophet only prophesies about what

ought to happen, if there is no sin." The false prophets down the

generations have preached belief in the certainty of an unconditional

redemption – a redemption that comes even if man does not redeem himself from

sin.

(From Professor

Yeshyahu Leibovitz z"l's He'arot le'Parshsiyot ha'Shavu'a, pp.

35-36)

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