Parshas Vayeishev - Q & A

1)Why does the Torah use the root SHAV (VAYEISHEV) to describe Yaakov living and GUR (MEGUREI) to describe his father living? (37:1)


2)Reuven never told his brothers that his plan was to rescue Yosef from the pit. What, then, could Reuven have meant when he discovered that Yosef was missing and he proclaimed, AND I, WHERE WILL I GO? (37:30)


3)Why does the Torah interrupt the narrative about Yosef with a seemingly unrelated story, specifically about Yehuda? (chapter 38)


ANSWERS

1)The Kli Yakar explains that SHAV refers to a more permanent dwelling while GUR is more temporary. Yitzchak viewed his dwelling in this world as completely temporary and he never felt at home in this world. Yaakov's mistake was desiring a more permanent and comfortable dwelling in this world as captured by the use of SHAV and this led G-D to bring him struggles and challenges which eventually uprooted him and forced him to live in a more temporary manner.


2)The Ohr HaChayim answers that Reuven was saying that now that Yosef is gone, he, as the first born would be asked by Yaakov to search the world for Yosef. Had Yosef been killed by an animal in the pit as appeared to the brothers to be Reuven's plan, then they could simply bring the dead body to Yaakov. But now that Yosef is missing, Reuven asks, WHERE WILL I GO in the search which Yaakov will demand of me? This is why Reuven was pacified with the plan to dip Yosef's coat into the blood which would stop Yaakov from asking for a search.


3)The Seforno teaches that Yehuda, as a leader of the tribes, could have saved Yosef by convincing the brothers to simply return him to Yaakov. Instead, Yehuda led the brothers in the selling of Yosef into slavery thereby causing Yaakov years of grief and sorrow with Yosef missing. G-D punished Yehuda immediately for this and two of his sons die in this chapter. Thus, this interruption in the story shows G-D's attribute of justice at work.

*Courtesy of Rabbi Dov Lipman Shlit"a
*Picture from yosefdreams.com

First PETA convention

How was it that the Achim could have actually taken part in such a grave sin like Ever min HaChai? They were not Amei HaAretz, they were the Gedolei Hador!

Yosef and his brothers obviously had 2 separate definitions of what constituted the issur of Ever min HaChai:

a. Brothers – Eating from the animal after it was shechted but moving a little is alright because this is the law for Jews

b. Yosef – We are still Bnei Noach and because of this we must abide by their laws. This means that we are only allowed to eat from the animal when it entirely STOPS moving.

(Gemara Brachos)After G-d changed Yaakov’s name to Yisrael, we see that unlike Avraham and Sarah his new name was just added onto his old name. Sometimes he was Yaakov and other times he was Yisrael.

The tribes had 2 different within their history. They were Bnei Yaakov which included all of Yaakov’s sons and then they were Bnei Yisrael, which was minus Levi and Yosef and in their place there was Efraim and Menashe.

This distinction is essential to the accusations in which Yosef put forth to Yaakov. During this episode in which Yosef accuses the brothers of eating from the live animal, Yosef is of the opinion that because Efraim and Menashe have yet to be born, the tribes cannot be distinguished as Bnei Yisroel, therefore eating from the animal while it was still moving was a complete issur!

The Brothers however, felt that because Yaakov’s name had been changed after his skirmish with the Malach of Esav they WERE ALREADY Bnei Yisrael.

For that reason, we see that the Brothers were not idiots being malicious and insensitive. But they had methodically and systematically thought out every decision which they had made, this included the eating of the “live” animal.

Parshas Vayeishev - Patience is a Virtue

This week’s Parsha has an especially nostalgic sentiment to it, in that I learned it for the first time in 4^th Grade with R’ Mordechai Zucker Shlit”a. We learned it with a distinct jingle that I will never forget.

I hope that everyone had a restful vacation. Just in case you did not have time to prepare a vort for Shabbos here is a little something…

Quickie/Funfact: It is stated in the second pasuk of this weeks parsha,

Breishis 37:3 “This is the history of Yaakov; Yosef at the age of seventeen years, would tend the sheep with his brothers, and the lad was with the sons of Bilhah, and the sons of Zilpah, his father's wives. Yosef brought back bad reports (Dibatan Ra'ah) about them to their father.

Rashi remarks on this verse that Yosef’s reports on his brothers was not just a simple tattle but he was in fact, telling his father that his brothers were taking part in a grave sin. One of cruelty and insensitivity. A sin so cruel, that it is listed as one of the seven mitzvos of Bnei Noach. They were eating the limb of a live animal!

The Question is however, how did Rashi know that this is what Yosef had told his father? The Baal Haturim answers, that the Gematria of “bad reports (Dibatan Ra'ah)” is the same as, “They were eating the limb of a live animal (Shehem achlu Ever Min Hachai)”.

As a result of the relationship of Tamar and Yehuda, two beautiful boys are brought into this world. A peculiar event happens during their births however. As the “first” child Zoreach, sticks his hand outside of the womb Yehuda ties a rope around his wrist anticipating the baby’s birth. Suddenly and amazingly Zoreach pulls his hand back into the womb and out comes the real first born son, the father of the Messiah himself, Peretz.

Rabbi Yaakov Kaminetsky in his work, Emes LiYaakov, tells us that this story is not just a paranormal occurrence, but in fact has a message that we all can carry with ourselves for the rest of our lives.

Often times we jump to conclusions and are disappointed when our initial expectations do not come to fruition. This story with Zoreach and Peretz is telling us that the Messiah will come, but when we least expect it. We might assume that because of certain events in the world or in history that the Mashiach is on the horizon. The truth is however that this is in Hashem’s hands to decide not ours. Patience is a Virtue.