{"id":40163,"date":"2018-09-16T14:02:47","date_gmt":"2018-09-16T11:02:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=40163"},"modified":"2022-04-11T15:49:46","modified_gmt":"2022-04-11T12:49:46","slug":"jacobs-sorrow","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/jacobs-sorrow\/","title":{"rendered":"Jacob\u2019s Sorrow"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[281],"tags":[504,490,363,484],"acf":{"old_id":"40163","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":36544,"related_cahpter":"47","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_url":"","post_main_content":{"description":"Even the best news ever - \u201cJoseph is still alive\u05f4 - could not erase a broken heart","content":"

The encounter between Jacob and Pharaoh is described in four verses, a little that contains a lot.<\/span><\/p>\n

The description \u201cJacob blessed Pharaoh\u201d appears twice (Genesis 47:7 and 47:10), when they first meet and at the end. In contrast, the text does not tell us the content of Jacob\u2019s blessing. \u00a0As a result, the gates of midrash and commentary are wide open. There are those who saw in Jacob\u2019s blessing good manners and politeness, that is, a greeting and a farewell bidding, \u201cas is typical in the case of all who are granted an interview with kings at long intervals,\u201d according to Rashi (in Genesis 47:7).<\/span><\/p>\n

Others go in the reverse direction: \u201cJacob gave him two blessings\u2026.one that the Nile will flow up and irrigate his land and the other that the famine will come to an end,\u201d according to Midrash Ha-Chefetz. The difference is deep: A greeting of politeness sets up Pharaoh above Jacob whereas a blessing that would be actualized in reality sets up Jacob above Pharoah. \u00a0Perhaps the Torah\u2019s silence leads us to grab hold of both perspectives at the same time.<\/span><\/p>\n

Pharaoh\u2019s question \u201cHow many are the years of your life?\u201d (Genesis 47:8), is answered by Jacob with a direct response \u201cThe years of my sojourn [on earth] are one hundred and thirty\u201d (Genesis 47:9), and with a historical addendum, \u201cthey do not come up to the life spans of my fathers during their sojourns\u201d (ibid). But at the center stands an astonishing personal addition \u201cfew and hard have been the years of my life\u201d (ibid.). <\/span><\/p>\n

There are those who saw something negative in this personal testimonial: Jacob voiced an objection and was punished. \u00a0I think otherwise. I think that I understand Jacob. In order to understand him, one must look at the story of Joseph and his brothers from Jacob\u2019s perspective. When the brothers show Jacob Joseph\u2019s bloody ornamented tunic, \u201cJacob rent his clothes, put sackcloth on his loins, and observed mourning for his son many days\u201d (Genesis 37:34). \u201cTo mourn\u201d means living a way of life of mourning that involves both an emotion and certain practices. This combination of expressions lasted \u201cmany days.\u201d Afterwards, \u201cAll his sons and daughters sought to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted\u201d (Genesis 37:35) because his soul desired to die, \u201cNo, I will go down mourning to my son in Sheol\u201d (ibid.). <\/span><\/p>\n

Later, David will say of Absalom \u201cIf only had I died instead of you! O Absalom, my son, my son!\u201d (II Samuel 19:1), in other words, exactly the same idea. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cFew and hard have been the years of my life\u201d (Genesis 47:9). Even the best news ever, \u201cJoseph is still alive\u05f4 (Genesis 45:26) could not erase a broken heart. It is a type of sorrow that touches one\u2019s heart more deeply and completely than any other.<\/span><\/p>\n

(Cover photo by\u00a0\u00a0Sergey Furtaev)<\/p>\n","image":{"ID":40270,"id":40270,"title":"shutterstock_785164294","filename":"shutterstock_785164294.jpg","filesize":0,"url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/shutterstock_785164294.jpg","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/jacobs-sorrow\/shutterstock_785164294\/","alt":"","author":"7","description":"","caption":"","name":"shutterstock_785164294","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":40163,"date":"2018-09-16 20:31:45","modified":"2022-04-11 12:48:12","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":3616,"height":2411,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/shutterstock_785164294-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/shutterstock_785164294-300x200.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":200,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/shutterstock_785164294-768x512.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":512,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/shutterstock_785164294-1024x683.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":683,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/shutterstock_785164294.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1024,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/shutterstock_785164294.jpg","2048x2048-width":2048,"2048x2048-height":1366,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/shutterstock_785164294-1200x800.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":800,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/shutterstock_785164294-630x420.jpg","home_baner-width":630,"home_baner-height":420}},"embedded_video":"","video_duration":"","show_fb_comments":true,"credit_media":""},"tile":{"top_caption":"","main_caption":"Jacob\u2019s Sorrow","main_caption_size":"1","sub_caption":"Even the best news ever - 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