{"id":39882,"date":"2018-07-09T18:50:17","date_gmt":"2018-07-09T15:50:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wall\/wall-45\/"},"modified":"2022-04-07T11:18:37","modified_gmt":"2022-04-07T08:18:37","slug":"wall-45","status":"publish","type":"wall","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wall\/wall-45\/","title":{"rendered":"chapter-Torah-Genesis-45"},"parent":0,"template":"","acf":{"type":"chapter","wall_id":"45","date":"20251030","book":"Genesis","chapter":"45","chapter_main_number":"45","books_group":"Torah","hide_acf":true,"home_image":false,"home_posts_title":"","posts_home":[],"home_posts":false,"posts":[{"order":1,"id":"39887","color":"#faeed8","size":"1","name":"Genesis 45 - Judy Hammond ","post_title":"Genesis 45 - Judy Hammond","slug":"genesis-45-judy-hammond","old_id":"39887","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":34686,"post_title":"Soundcloud","slug":"soundcloud","old_id":"34686","first_name":"","last_name":"","description":"","short_description":"","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":34656,"alt":"","title":"491","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","width":300,"height":300,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","medium_large-width":300,"medium_large-height":300,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","large-width":300,"large-height":300,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","1536x1536-width":300,"1536x1536-height":300,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","2048x2048-width":300,"2048x2048-height":300,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","post_full_size-width":300,"post_full_size-height":300,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","home_baner-width":300,"home_baner-height":300}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"45","type_929":"4","show_author_image":true,"old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"","post_main_content_content":"","post_main_content_image":"","post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"The Audio Bible","tile_main_caption":"Genesis 45","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"read by Judy Hammond","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":"","tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/929-bible\/genesis-chapter-45-read-by-judy-hammond","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","chapter_info":{"books_group":"Torah","book":"Genesis","chapter":"45","chapter_main_number":"45","date":"20251030","wall_id":"45"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":2,"id":"103726","color":"#f7e9e9","size":"1","name":"Joseph\u2019s Cows and Wagons ","post_title":"Joseph\u2019s Cows and Wagons","slug":"josephs-cows-and-wagons","old_id":"103726","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":78133,"post_title":"Josh Blechner","slug":"josh-blechner","old_id":"78133","first_name":"Josh ","last_name":"Blechner ","description":"Josh first finished the Tanach during Yeshiva in Mevaseret Zion. He and his daughter studied the Tanach again for her bat mitzvah. Josh has taught many classes on Tanach throughout the years and currently in the New Rochelle 929 group. When not studying for 929, Josh works as an in-house lawyer in New Jersey.","short_description":"Josh has taught many classes on Tanach throughout the years and currently in the New Rochelle 929 group, and is an in-house attorney in New Jersey. ","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":78134,"alt":"","title":"josh blechner","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","width":276,"height":351,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner-236x300.jpg","medium-width":236,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","medium_large-width":276,"medium_large-height":351,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","large-width":276,"large-height":351,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","1536x1536-width":276,"1536x1536-height":351,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","2048x2048-width":276,"2048x2048-height":351,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","post_full_size-width":276,"post_full_size-height":351,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","home_baner-width":276,"home_baner-height":351}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"45","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"By displaying his power, Joseph comforts Jacob and assures him that he is alive and thriving.\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

\u201cBut when they recounted all that Joseph had said to them, and when he saw the <\/span>agalot <\/span><\/em>\u00a0<\/em>that Joseph had sent to transport him, the spirit of their father Jacob revived\u201d (45:27).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

After the brothers return to reveal that Joseph is in fact alive, Jacob seems skeptical. This skepticism is removed only when Jacob sees the \u201c<\/span>agalot<\/span><\/em>\u201d that Joseph had sent. The word <\/span>agalah<\/em> <\/span>is normally translated as \u201cwagons,\u201d but the Hebrew word can also mean \u201ccows.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Rashi harnesses the second explanation and postulates that Jacob finally believed Joseph was alive when he saw the cows because Joseph was sending a secret message to Jacob. According to the midrash, Jacob and Joseph had been learning about the <\/span>egla arufah<\/span><\/em>, the cow that is ritually killed when a dead body is found in between two towns. The two had been learning this when Jacob had accompanied Joseph part of the way to see the brothers before they threw him in the pit. Joseph was afraid of Jacob wandering by himself back to his encampment. Jacob explained that in honor of Joseph\u2019s concern for the solitary traveler, God would enact a law to honor the solitary traveler through the <\/span>eglah arufah<\/span><\/em>. This is a very sweet message, but of course the <\/span>eglah arufah <\/span>would not be a rule for a few hundred years.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Chizkuni has a more practical reason. Only Jacob\u2019s son would have been kind enough to send wagons to help his elderly father and the young children travel the long journey to Egypt. Chizkuni translates the word in its straightforward sense. Of course practically if anyone had requested an elderly man travel to a faraway land, it would make sense that a wagon would be provided.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Rashbam has a similar explanation, combining the two meanings. Because the Egyptians revered cows as sacred objects, there was a rule that they were not allowed to leave the land lest they give birth in a foreign country. When Jacob saw that such carriages were traveling from Egypt with cows, he knew only a ruler could have overwritten the law of Egypt.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Rashbam\u2019s answer could be taken even further. As we saw when the brothers had first sat down to eat with Joseph, the Egyptians had a long-standing rule that Hebrews were not allowed to eat with Egyptians. Rashi explains that this rule was a result of the incident of Sarah and Abraham.\u00a0 Jacob would be very familiar with this story. Therefore, if he saw that wagons were being brought to him, it must mean not only that a ruler made an exception to the cow rule, but also that someone convinced that ruler to do so for a Hebrew. Only Joseph, a Hebrew himself, could have convinced Pharaoh to do so. That\u2019s why Jacob understands these wagons to be sent by Joseph.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

 <\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":103727,"alt":"","title":"-624c24d0ec582--624c24d0ec583gen45-ox cart 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And Testing ","post_title":"Teasing And Testing","slug":"teasing-and-testing","old_id":"103729","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":62571,"post_title":"Yaakov Bieler","slug":"yaakov-bieler","old_id":"62571","first_name":"Yaakov ","last_name":"Bieler ","description":"Rabbi Yaakov Bieler has been involved in Jewish education and the synagogue Rabbinate in New York, NY and Silver Spring, MD since being ordained by Yeshiva University in 1974. He has lectured and written extensively on Modern Orthodoxy, and blogs daily at https:\/\/yaakovbieler.wordpress.com ","short_description":"Rabbi Yaakov Bieler has been involved in Jewish education and the synagogue Rabbinate in New York, NY and Silver Spring, MD since being ordained by Yeshiva University. ","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":62572,"alt":"","title":"OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","width":141,"height":180,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler-141x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":141,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","medium-width":141,"medium-height":180,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","medium_large-width":141,"medium_large-height":180,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","large-width":141,"large-height":180,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","1536x1536-width":141,"1536x1536-height":180,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","2048x2048-width":141,"2048x2048-height":180,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","post_full_size-width":141,"post_full_size-height":180,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","home_baner-width":141,"home_baner-height":180}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"45","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"Joseph favoritism to Benjamin: repeating old mistakes, or shrewd test of character?\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

In Genesis 45:3, Joseph finally reveals his true identity to them: \u201cJoseph said to his brothers, \u201cI am Joseph. Is my father still well?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

He had been aware from the moment that they had come before him, that these were indeed his siblings, but until now, the text states that they had not known Joseph\u2019s true identity: \u201cFor though Joseph recognized his brothers, they did not recognize him\u201d (verse 8).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Beit HaLevi<\/em> <\/span>(Yosef Dov Soloveitchik, 1820-92) explains Joseph\u2019s addition \u201c\u2026Is my father still well?\u201d as a subtle rebuke. Since Joseph had earlier inquired regarding Jacob\u2019s well-being (43:27), his now posing the identical question intended to put the lie to the claim Judah was making:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Now, if I come to your servant my father and the boy is not with us \u2014 since his own life is so bound up with his - <\/span>\u00a0<\/b>When<\/span> he sees that the boy is not with us, he will die, and your servants will send the white head of your servant our father down to She\u2019ol in grief (44:30-1).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

If twenty years before, the brothers were able to coldly declare Joseph dead, why suddenly now re Benjamin, were they taking Jacob\u2019s state-of-mind into consideration?<\/span><\/p>\r\n

One could state that this entire situation was sharpened by a parent\u2019s publicly showing favoritism to one of his children (giving Joseph the special coat), leading the Talmud to declare:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

A person should never distinguish one of his sons from among the others, as due to the weight of two sela\u2019s of fine wool that Jacob gave to Joseph beyond what he gave the rest of his sons, his brothers became jealous of him, and the matter unfolded, and our forefathers descended to Egypt (Shabbat 10b).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Yet, upon revealing himself, instead of attributing in part his suffering to his father\u2019s indiscretion, Joseph compounds the tradition of preferential treatment, by conferring on Benjamin money and additional sets of clothing, far beyond what his brothers are given: \u201cTo each of them, moreover, he gave a change of clothing; but to Benjamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver and several<\/span> changes of clothing\u201d (45:22).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

As the Talmud itself (Megilla 16a-b) queries: \u201cIs it possible that in the very thing from which that righteous man (<\/span>Joseph<\/span><\/i>) had suffered, he himself should stumble?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Joseph reassured his siblings that he believed that it was God and not them who was responsible for all of his travails:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

God has sent me ahead of you to ensure your survival on earth, and to save your lives in an extraordinary deliverance. So, it was not you who sent me here, but God\u2026 (45:7-8)\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

However, continuing Beit HaLevi\u2019s line of reasoning, perhaps he preferred to continue testing and probing to see if they had truly changed? How would they react if he were to give his one full sibling, Benjamin, extra \u201cswag\u201d?<\/span><\/p>\r\n

image:\u00a0Gerbrand van den Eeckhout: Josef and His Brothers<\/em>, 1657 \/ 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The tragedy begins with Joseph's coat.<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>It ends when Judah approaches Joseph face-to-face.<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>Not what represents us, but who we are<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

___<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Genesis 37:3-4, 44:18-Chapter 45<\/span><\/i><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":96748,"alt":"","title":"ecc7-glitch self critique","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc7-glitch-self-critique.jpg","width":1920,"height":1357,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc7-glitch-self-critique-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc7-glitch-self-critique-300x212.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":212,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc7-glitch-self-critique-768x543.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":543,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc7-glitch-self-critique-1024x724.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":724,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc7-glitch-self-critique.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1086,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc7-glitch-self-critique.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1357,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc7-glitch-self-critique-1200x848.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":848,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc7-glitch-self-critique-594x420.jpg","home_baner-width":594,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"929 Poetry Corner","tile_main_caption":"Represents","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Who we are","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":96748,"alt":"","title":"ecc7-glitch self critique","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc7-glitch-self-critique.jpg","width":1920,"height":1357,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc7-glitch-self-critique-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc7-glitch-self-critique-300x212.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":212,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc7-glitch-self-critique-768x543.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":543,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc7-glitch-self-critique-1024x724.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":724,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc7-glitch-self-critique.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1086,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc7-glitch-self-critique.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1357,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc7-glitch-self-critique-1200x848.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":848,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc7-glitch-self-critique-594x420.jpg","home_baner-width":594,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_link_for_pay":"0","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Torah","book":"Genesis","chapter":"45","chapter_main_number":"45","date":"20251030","wall_id":"45"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"362","name":"Poetry","old_id":"762"},{"term_id":"462","name":"Identity","old_id":"862"},{"term_id":"568","name":"Judah","old_id":"968"}]},{"order":5,"id":"45681","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"Shabbat With a Schmear: Vayigash - 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Shabbat With a Schmear: Vayigash - Parent's Joy, Parent's Pain<\/p>","post_main_content_image":"","post_main_content_embedded_video":"https:\/\/youtu.be\/i0AYVTYWEKI","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"Shabbat With a Schmear","tile_main_caption":"Vayigash - Parent's Joy, Parent's Pain","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Adam Mintz with Meredith Berkman (ShabbatMom)","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":"","tile_preview_video":"https:\/\/youtu.be\/i0AYVTYWEKI","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","old_create_date":"","links":false,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Torah","book":"Leviticus","chapter":false,"chapter_main_number":false,"date":false,"wall_id":"1022"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"368","name":"Parasha","old_id":"768"},{"term_id":"369","name":"Visual Arts","old_id":"769"}]},{"order":6,"id":"45702","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"Few and Evil Have My Days Been ","post_title":"Few and Evil Have My Days Been","slug":"few-and-evil-have-my-days-been","old_id":"45702","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":36663,"post_title":"Beth Kissileff","slug":"beth-kissileff","old_id":"36663","first_name":"Beth ","last_name":"Kissileff ","description":"Beth Kissileff is the editor of the anthology Reading Genesis (2016 - https:\/\/www.bloomsbury.com\/us\/reading-genesis-9780567381521), and the forthcoming Reading Exodus, and the author of the novel Questioning Return - https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Questioning-Return-Novel-Beth-Kissileff\/dp\/1942134231. \r\nHer journalism appears in many publications; she has taught most recently at the University of Pittsburgh. Visit her online at www.bethkissileff.com. ","short_description":"Beth Kissileff is the editor of the anthology Reading Genesis (Bloomsbury\/ T and T Clark, 2016) , a journalist and teacher.","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":36664,"alt":"","title":"BethKissileff","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/BethKissileff-e1533157952224.jpg","width":3478,"height":3200,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/BethKissileff-e1533157952224-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/BethKissileff-e1533157952224-300x276.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":276,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/BethKissileff-e1533157952224-768x707.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":707,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/BethKissileff-e1533157952224-1024x942.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":942,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/BethKissileff-e1533157952224.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1413,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/BethKissileff-e1533157952224.jpg","2048x2048-width":2048,"2048x2048-height":1884,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/BethKissileff-e1533157952224-1200x1104.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":1104,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/BethKissileff-e1533157952224-456x420.jpg","home_baner-width":456,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"1022","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"Jacob lacks the clarity to see past the pain he has endured in his short and difficult life","post_main_content_content":"

Everything has been resolved. The son thought to be dead so many years lives.\u00a0He doesn\u2019t blame the brothers who sold him into servitude, assuring them \u201cdon\u2019t be sad or angry in your own sight\u201d (Genesis 45:5).\u00a0He has risen to power and tells his fearful brethren\u00a0that it is \u201cnot you who sent me here but God\u201d (45:8).<\/p>\r\n

But resolution is non-existent for the father who has been in mourning, his soul plunged into grief because of his missing son.\u00a0For him, the prophecy he could access easily in happier times has been unobtainable all those years for him, his anguish keeping him distant from understanding the God he had once been close to.<\/p>\r\n

Jacob lives, true. The verse tells us \u201cand the spirit of Jacob their father lived\u201c (45:27).\u00a0 A part of his life prior to the disappearance of Joseph returns to him when he resumes his glimpses of God in\u00a0\u201cvisions of the night\u201d (Genesis 46: 2) in Beersheva and is then called twice by God, \u201cJacob, Jacob\u201d a mark of divine affection accorded to Abraham, also, at the binding of Isaac (Genesis 22:11).\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

There seems to be a restoration at work to bring Jacob\u2019s life back to what it had been, with the resumption of Jacob\u2019s connection to the \u201cruach hakodesh<\/em>,\u201d divine spirit, that enabled him to prophesy according to the Torah Temimah (on 45:27) and the Shechina, the indwelling divine spirit herself, according to Rashi.\u00a0However, Jacob\u2019s life never resumes\u00a0the contours of the lives of his ancestors. \u00a0<\/p>\r\n

For Isaac and\u00a0Abraham, the difficult aspects of their existence become nullified by the passing of time.\u00a0Abraham is blessed by God with \u201ceverything\u201d in Genesis 24:1; at the end of his life, he is described as having \u201ca good old age, ripe and full of years\u201d (25:8).\u00a0Abraham\u2019s sons bury him together, united; the expulsion of one from the household and near sacrifice of the other deleted from the ultimate accounting.\u00a0Isaac\u00a0is described as \u201cold and full of years\u201d\u00a0at his death\u00a0(35:29); together finally, his sons Jacob and Esau lay him to rest.\u00a0The truncated blessing\u00a0of one and the years of absence from Canaan of the other, do not mar the fullness of the end of his life.<\/p>\r\n

Jacob is different, the bitterness of the years he believed his beloved Joseph dead remain.\u00a0When meeting Pharaoh and asked\u00a0about his life, Jacob\u2019s response is \u201cThe days of the years of my living are 130 years, few and evil have the days of the years of my life been and they did not attain the days of the years of the life of my fathers\u201d (Genesis 47:9). Based on this verse and others, the rabbis of the Talmud in Megillah 17a calculate that Jacob was 63 when he left his father\u2019s house, almost exactly half of his life was spent in that home environment rather than with Laban or in Egypt.<\/p>\r\n

Unlike his father Isaac who ended his life blind, Jacob has vision, even night vision, toward the end of his life.\u00a0Jacob lets Pharaoh know that he still lacks the clarity to see past the pain he has endured in his short and difficult life.\u00a0<\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":102798,"alt":"","title":"-6228d5ef944ca--6228d5ef944ccgen25-age old elderly 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Vayigash 5779","tile_main_caption":"Few and Evil Have My Days Been","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Jacob lacks the clarity to see past the pain he has endured in his short and difficult life","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":102798,"alt":"","title":"-6228d5ef944ca--6228d5ef944ccgen25-age old elderly 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My Father Love Me? ","post_title":"Does My Father Love Me?","slug":"does-my-father-love-me","old_id":"45688","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":42813,"post_title":"Covenant & Conversation","slug":"covenant-conversation","old_id":"42813","first_name":"","last_name":"Covenant & Conversation","description":"Covenant & Conversation: Family Edition is a new and exciting initiative from The Office of Rabbi Jonathan Sacks. Written as an accompaniment to Rabbi Sacks\u2019 weekly Covenant & Conversation essay, the Family Edition is aimed at connecting older children and teenagers with his ideas and thoughts on the parsha. Each element of the Family Edition is progressively more advanced; The Core Idea is appropriate for all ages and the final element, From The Thought of Rabbi Sacks, is the most advanced section. Each section includes Questions to Ponder, aimed at encouraging discussion between family members in a way most appropriate to them. 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The final section is an Educational Companion which includes suggested talking points in response to the questions found throughout the Family Edition.","short_description":"Covenant & Conversation: Family Edition is a new and exciting initiative from The Office of Rabbi Jonathan Sacks","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":42814,"alt":"","title":"CCfamilylogo-693x457","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/CCfamilylogo-693x457.jpg","width":693,"height":457,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/CCfamilylogo-693x457-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/CCfamilylogo-693x457-300x198.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":198,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/CCfamilylogo-693x457.jpg","medium_large-width":693,"medium_large-height":457,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/CCfamilylogo-693x457.jpg","large-width":693,"large-height":457,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/CCfamilylogo-693x457.jpg","1536x1536-width":693,"1536x1536-height":457,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/CCfamilylogo-693x457.jpg","2048x2048-width":693,"2048x2048-height":457,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/CCfamilylogo-693x457.jpg","post_full_size-width":693,"post_full_size-height":457,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/CCfamilylogo-693x457-637x420.jpg","home_baner-width":637,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"1022","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"","post_main_content_content":"

Family study materials on Parashat Vayigash from \"Covenant and Conversation\"<\/a><\/p>\r\n

 <\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":42816,"alt":"","title":"covenant and conversation - Sacks","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/covenant-and-conversation-Sacks.jpg","width":723,"height":426,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/covenant-and-conversation-Sacks-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/covenant-and-conversation-Sacks-300x177.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":177,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/covenant-and-conversation-Sacks.jpg","medium_large-width":723,"medium_large-height":426,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/covenant-and-conversation-Sacks.jpg","large-width":723,"large-height":426,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/covenant-and-conversation-Sacks.jpg","1536x1536-width":723,"1536x1536-height":426,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/covenant-and-conversation-Sacks.jpg","2048x2048-width":723,"2048x2048-height":426,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/covenant-and-conversation-Sacks.jpg","post_full_size-width":723,"post_full_size-height":426,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/covenant-and-conversation-Sacks-713x420.jpg","home_baner-width":713,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"Family Study Materials","tile_main_caption":"Does My Father Love Me? ","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"for Parashat Vayigash","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":42816,"alt":"","title":"covenant and conversation - Sacks","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/covenant-and-conversation-Sacks.jpg","width":723,"height":426,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/covenant-and-conversation-Sacks-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/covenant-and-conversation-Sacks-300x177.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":177,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/covenant-and-conversation-Sacks.jpg","medium_large-width":723,"medium_large-height":426,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/covenant-and-conversation-Sacks.jpg","large-width":723,"large-height":426,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/covenant-and-conversation-Sacks.jpg","1536x1536-width":723,"1536x1536-height":426,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/covenant-and-conversation-Sacks.jpg","2048x2048-width":723,"2048x2048-height":426,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/covenant-and-conversation-Sacks.jpg","post_full_size-width":723,"post_full_size-height":426,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/covenant-and-conversation-Sacks-713x420.jpg","home_baner-width":713,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","old_create_date":"","links":false,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Torah","book":"Leviticus","chapter":false,"chapter_main_number":false,"date":false,"wall_id":"1022"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"368","name":"Parasha","old_id":"768"}]},{"order":8,"id":"39907","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"Shades of Murder ","post_title":"Shades of Murder","slug":"shades-of-murder","old_id":"39907","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":37918,"post_title":"Shai Held","slug":"shai-held","old_id":"37918","first_name":" Shai ","last_name":"Held","description":"Rabbi Shai Held, theologian, scholar, and educator, is President, Dean, and Chair in Jewish Thought at Hadar, where he also directs the Center for Jewish Leadership and Ideas. A 2011 recipient of the prestigious Covenant Award for excellence in Jewish education, Rabbi Held has been named multiple times to Newsweek\u2019s list of the 50 most influential rabbis in America. He holds a doctorate in religion from Harvard; Rabbi Held's first book, Abraham Joshua Heschel: The Call of Transcendence, was published by Indiana University Press in 2013; The Heart of Torah, a collection of essays on the Torah in two volumes, was published by JPS in 2017.","short_description":"Rabbi Shai Held is President, Dean, and Chair in Jewish Thought at Hadar,","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":37919,"alt":"","title":"shai held","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/shai-held.jpg","width":150,"height":186,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/shai-held-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/shai-held.jpg","medium-width":150,"medium-height":186,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/shai-held.jpg","medium_large-width":150,"medium_large-height":186,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/shai-held.jpg","large-width":150,"large-height":186,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/shai-held.jpg","1536x1536-width":150,"1536x1536-height":186,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/shai-held.jpg","2048x2048-width":150,"2048x2048-height":186,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/shai-held.jpg","post_full_size-width":150,"post_full_size-height":186,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/shai-held.jpg","home_baner-width":150,"home_baner-height":186}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"45","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"Joseph protects the honor of those who wounded him","post_main_content_content":"

In Jewish ethics, humiliating another person is regarded as an extraordinarily grave offense. Take, for example, how Joseph acts towards his brothers.\u00a0<\/span>Seemingly still angry at his brothers for long ago selling him into slavery, the now powerful Joseph has made their lives extremely difficult, ending in Benjamin\u2019s imprisonment on trumped up charges. The brothers know that they cannot return to their father without Benjamin. Stricken, Judah begs to be enslaved in Benjamin\u2019s place (Genesis 44:33-34). <\/span><\/p>\r\n

Seeing how Judah, who had hatched the plan to sell him into slavery, now stands ready to do anything to help Benjamin avoid a similar fate, Joseph is overcome with emotion. What he does next strikes a Talmudic Sage as exceedingly strange: <\/span><\/p>\r\n

\u201cJoseph could no longer control himself before all his attendants, and he cried out, \u2018Have everyone withdraw from me!\u2019 So there was no one else about when Joseph made himself known to his brothers... Joseph said to his brothers, \u2018I am Joseph. Is my father still alive?\u2019\u201d (45: 1, 3). <\/span><\/p>\r\n

R. Samuel b. Nahman comments: \u201cJoseph put himself in grave danger, because if his brothers had killed him, no one would have known whom to blame. So why did he say, \u2018Have everyone withdraw from me?\u2019 This is what Joseph thought: better that I be killed than I humiliate my brothers in front of the Egyptians\u201d (Midrash Tanhuma, Vayigash 6).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Joseph would rather die than humiliate another person. Those whose feelings he wants to protect have hurt him immensely and caused him great pain and suffering. Perhaps, in learning from these biblical models, we are meant to reason as follows: if Joseph, nursing such deep wounds, nevertheless refused to humiliate those who have aggrieved him, how much more so must we subdue the impulse to shame and humiliate.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Why is Judaism so preoccupied with avoiding humiliation? Rabbeinu Yonah (d. 1263) suggests that humiliation has \u201cshades of murder\u201d to it (<\/span>avak retzichah<\/span><\/i>). Close your eyes for a moment and imagine the moment in your life when you have felt most deeply humiliated. How many people have found themselves wishing they could die rather than be humiliated in the same way again? <\/span><\/p>\r\n

The message of the Sages seems clear: humiliation is a heinous offense and there is rarely\u2014if ever\u2014an excuse for it. The Sages want us to live as if the dignity of the people we meet is the most important thing in the world.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

 <\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":59644,"alt":"","title":"2sam2-shame","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/2sam2-shame.jpg","width":1920,"height":1483,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/2sam2-shame-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/2sam2-shame-300x232.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":232,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/2sam2-shame-768x593.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":593,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/2sam2-shame-1024x791.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":791,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/2sam2-shame.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1186,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/2sam2-shame.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1483,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/2sam2-shame-1200x927.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":927,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/2sam2-shame-544x420.jpg","home_baner-width":544,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"Shades of Murder","tile_main_caption":"","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Joseph protects the honor of those who wounded him","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":59644,"alt":"","title":"2sam2-shame","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/2sam2-shame.jpg","width":1920,"height":1483,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/2sam2-shame-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/2sam2-shame-300x232.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":232,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/2sam2-shame-768x593.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":593,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/2sam2-shame-1024x791.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":791,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/2sam2-shame.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1186,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/2sam2-shame.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1483,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/2sam2-shame-1200x927.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":927,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/2sam2-shame-544x420.jpg","home_baner-width":544,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","old_create_date":"","tile_link_for_pay":"0","links":false,"send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Torah","book":"Genesis","chapter":"45","chapter_main_number":"45","date":"20251030","wall_id":"45"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"363","name":"Midrash","old_id":"763"},{"term_id":"586","name":"Shame","old_id":"986"},{"term_id":"587","name":"Dignity","old_id":"987"}]},{"order":9,"id":"39837","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"On Theological Certainty ","post_title":"On Theological Certainty","slug":"on-theological-certainty","old_id":"39837","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":36147,"post_title":"Aaron Koller","slug":"aaron-koller","old_id":"36147","first_name":"Aaron","last_name":"Koller","description":"Aaron Koller is professor of Near Eastern studies at Yeshiva University, where he is chair of the Beren Department of Jewish Studies. 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That\u2019s all we can say right now: maybe...","post_main_content_content":"

Having taking the extraordinary step of revealing himself to his brothers, Joseph is met with what must have been silence born of terror. Instead of an emotional reunion, then, we hear a theological discourse, as Joseph fumbles for words and thoughts to put his brothers at ease:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

\u201cDon\u2019t be distressed or be remorseful that you sold me here; it was to keep life going that God sent me ahead of you. \u2026 God sent me ahead of you to ensure your survival on earth, and to save your lives in an extraordinary deliverance, so it was not you who sent me here, but God. He has made me a father to Pharaoh, lord of all his household, and ruler over the whole land of Egypt!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Whether Joseph believed this prior to encountering his brothers is impossible to say. Earlier he had thanked God for helping him escape the oppression of his father\u2019s Canaanite house, and for helping him flourish in his new land of affliction (41:51-52). In our chapter, he seems to be convinced that that original understanding of the plan was flawed, and the real purpose was only now fully revealed.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The role of God in the story of Joseph is, literarily, complicated. God disappears for the first time in the story of the sale (Genesis 37), and never \u201cappears\u201d to Joseph, although Joseph gives God plenty of credit throughout.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The idea that \u201cnow it all makes sense\u201d is a powerful one. But it is a fraught one, as well. Can anyone ever really be sure that it\u2019s all clear now? I prefer the honest approach of the farmer in the old Taoist story, whose horse ran away. Upon hearing the news, his neighbors came to visit. \"Such bad luck,\" they said sympathetically. \"Maybe,\" the farmer replied. The next morning the horse returned, bringing with it three other wild horses. \"Such good luck!\" the neighbors exclaimed. \"Maybe,\" replied the old man. The following day, his son tried to ride one of the untamed horses, was thrown, and broke his leg. \u201cSuch bad luck!\u201d \"Maybe,\" answered the farmer. The day after, military officials came to the village to draft young men into the army. They passed by the young man with the broken leg. \u201cSuch good luck!\u201d \"Maybe,\" said the farmer.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

On my reading, this is the approach of the author of Esther, as well. Everything works out in the end, and Esther and the Jews live happily ever after. But did it all work out so well for Joseph, actually? \u201cA new king arose, who did not know Joseph,\u201d and the bondage of Egypt began. The author of Esther won\u2019t say, therefore. There is no comment at the end of the book that \u201cthis turns out to have been a divine plan all along.\u201d Many Jews have read Esther and said, \u201cAha! I see God in the king, in the interstices, in the absence, in the very hiddenness.\u201d And to this the author, perhaps slightly wiser than Joseph, says only, \u201cMaybe.\u201d<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":96292,"alt":"","title":"lam3-maybe","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/lam3-maybe.jpg","width":1920,"height":1357,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/lam3-maybe-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/lam3-maybe-300x212.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":212,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/lam3-maybe-768x543.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":543,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/lam3-maybe-1024x724.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":724,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/lam3-maybe.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1086,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/lam3-maybe.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1357,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/lam3-maybe-1200x848.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":848,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/lam3-maybe-594x420.jpg","home_baner-width":594,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"On Theological Certainty","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Maybe. 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","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":39069,"alt":"","title":"ruthie yudelson","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/ruthie-yudelson-e1535868569585.jpg","width":740,"height":783,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/ruthie-yudelson-e1535868569585-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/ruthie-yudelson-e1535868569585-284x300.jpg","medium-width":284,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/ruthie-yudelson-576x1024.jpg","medium_large-width":576,"medium_large-height":1024,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/ruthie-yudelson-576x1024.jpg","large-width":576,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/ruthie-yudelson-e1535868569585.jpg","1536x1536-width":740,"1536x1536-height":783,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/ruthie-yudelson-e1535868569585.jpg","2048x2048-width":740,"2048x2048-height":783,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/ruthie-yudelson-675x1200.jpg","post_full_size-width":675,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/ruthie-yudelson-e1535868569585-397x420.jpg","home_baner-width":397,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"45","type_929":"4","show_author_image":false,"old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"","post_main_content_content":"","post_main_content_image":"","post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"929 Poetry Slam","tile_main_caption":"To Be Found By Your Brother","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Student Corner","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":"","tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/929-bible\/ruthie-yudelson","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","chapter_info":{"books_group":"Torah","book":"Genesis","chapter":"45","chapter_main_number":"45","date":"20251030","wall_id":"45"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":11,"id":"39839","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"Does Joseph Really Forgive? ","post_title":"Does Joseph Really Forgive?","slug":"does-joseph-really-forgive","old_id":"39839","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":33859,"post_title":"Avidan Freedman","slug":"avidan-freedman","old_id":"33859","first_name":"Avidan","last_name":"Freedman","description":"Rabbi Avidan Freedman is the Rabbi of Hevruta, the Shalom Hartman Institute's post high school program for Israelis and North Americans, and an educator in the institute's high school. He is an activist advocating for moral limits on Israeli arms exports, and on behalf of African refugees, and a proud husband and father of 5. He received his rabbinical ordination from Yeshivat Chovevei Torah in New York, and from the Israeli chief rabbinate.","credit":"","image_url":"","short_description":"Rabbi Avidan Freedman is the Rabbi of Hevruta, the Shalom Hartman Institute's post high school program for Israelis and North Americans, and an educator in the institute's high school. ","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":33860,"alt":"Avidan Freedman","title":"Avidan Freedman","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Avidan-Freedman-e1532029306365.jpg","width":856,"height":1024,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Avidan-Freedman-e1532029306365-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Avidan-Freedman-e1532029306365-251x300.jpg","medium-width":251,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Avidan-Freedman-e1532029306365-768x919.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":919,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Avidan-Freedman-e1532029306365-856x1024.jpg","large-width":856,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Avidan-Freedman-e1532029306365.jpg","1536x1536-width":856,"1536x1536-height":1024,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Avidan-Freedman-e1532029306365.jpg","2048x2048-width":856,"2048x2048-height":1024,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Avidan-Freedman-800x1200.jpg","post_full_size-width":800,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Avidan-Freedman-e1532029306365-351x420.jpg","home_baner-width":351,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"45","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"A close reading suggests that he was interested in his brothers\u2019 welfare only as a means to his father\u2019s well-being","post_main_content_content":"

Contrary the title of my essay for Chapter 44, Joseph seems to allow the brothers the easy way out, absolving them completely of responsibility for his sale. But a careful reading of the chapter suggests that his relationship to the brothers remains complicated, and that the real transformation occurs in Joseph's relationship with his father.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Consider this. After revealing himself, Joseph explains that the family must relocate to Egypt, because remaining in Canaan for another 5 years of famine means certain poverty. What was Joseph's plan before Judah's speech so moved him? Would his anger at his brothers cause him to abandon even his beloved father to such a fate? So it seems. Indeed, perhaps Joseph saw Benjamin as the only innocent party in this story. After all, it was Jacob who sent Joseph to his brothers. Joseph must have at least considered the possibility that his father knew about, or even planned his sale.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Judah's speech is the first testimony Joseph hears that Jacob was not part of the plan, that he was devastated by Joseph's disappearance. This revelation, more than anything else, must have been what caused Joseph's uncontrollable flood of tears. Understanding that Jacob had not rejected him allows Joseph to understand the events of the last 15 years in an entirely new light, to see his brothers as the means to the Divine ends of the fulfillment of his dreams, and the survival of the family.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Does this mean that the brothers are completely off the hook? No. Being reduced to the means to an end has its own price within a relationship, reflected in the subtle differences between the invitations extended by Joseph and Pharoah. As opposed to Pharaoh, who invites all the brothers, a careful reading reveals that Joseph's invitation \u00a0is really concerned with Jacob's fate. The brothers are included only insofar as they are Jacob's sons. In Joseph's eyes, the brothers are not actors significant in their own right, but merely the means to continue their father's legacy. Their choice to be a means rather than an end unto themselves remains with them.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":103666,"alt":"","title":"-624a7b42ec4a0--624a7b42ec4a2gen42-joseph 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Story in Music ","post_title":"Joseph\u2019s Story in Music","slug":"josephs-story-in-music","old_id":"39909","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":37927,"post_title":"Adapted from ALHATORAH.ORG","slug":"alhatorah-org","old_id":"37927","first_name":"Adapted from","last_name":"ALHATORAH.ORG","description":"ALHATORAH.ORG is a one-stop Tanakh study resource, providing the texts, tools, techniques, and technology to help scholars, educators, and laypersons make Torah come alive in the home, classroom, and synagogue. 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Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, a Broadway musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, is among the most well-known modern retellings of the Biblical story of Joseph and his brothers. Each song in the show retells a portion of the story, and the retelling often veers from the original. The differences between the musical and the Biblical narrative leads the audience to question their original assumptions and understanding of Joseph's story. Here at the climax of Joseph\u2019s story, we offer examples of songs in which the artists\u2019 choices highlight ambiguities, fill in omissions, or resolve other difficulties in the original text. <\/span>
\r\n<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>\u201cJoseph\u2019s Coat\u201d<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>Video can be found <\/span>here<\/span>
\r\n<\/span><\/a>Lyrics can be found <\/span>here<\/span><\/a>. <\/span>
\r\n
\r\n<\/span><\/p>\r\n

A Technicolor Dreamcoat?<\/b>
\r\n<\/b>What did Joseph's coat look like? Was it a \"dazzling coat of many colours?\u201d The word \"pasim\" in modern Hebrew means stripes, but in Biblical Hebrew the word appears only in the context of a \"k\u2019tonet pasim\", making it hard to define. Could it just be an \"elegant\" coat of \"tasteful style?\u201d Commentators propose everything from a long sleeved tunic to an embroidered garment.<\/span><\/p>\r\n


\r\n<\/span>What Was Jacob Thinking?<\/b>
\r\n<\/b>The song asserts: \"Jacob wanted to show the world he loved his son, To make it clear that Joseph was the special one.\" Was this really Jacob\u2019s aim? Was the coat supposed to send a message to the other sons that Joseph was the chosen one? The only other place a \u201ck\u2019tonet pasim\u201d appears in Tanakh is in the story of Amnon and Tamar, where we are told that this was the clothing worn by virgin princesses. Did such a coat represent a certain status in Jacob\u2019s time as well? If so, how did the brothers interpret the gift? Did they think that this meant that they, like Ishmael and Esau before them, were the rejected sons,and only Joseph would continue their father\u2019s line?<\/span>
\r\n
\r\n<\/span><\/p>\r\n

\u201cBenjamin Calypso\u201d<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>Video can be found <\/span>here<\/span><\/a>.<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>Lyrics can be found <\/span>here<\/span><\/a>.<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>\"Take Me\"<\/b>
\r\n<\/b>Though Judah takes the lead in defending Benjamin, the song has the brothers participate as well. All claim together: \"Take me. Benjamin is straighter than the tall palm tree.\" What role do the brothers play in the text of Genesis? Before the cup is found, they all offer themselves as slaves if found guilty, but afterwards it is only Judah who speaks. In fact, it is not even clear if the other brothers are in the room at all when Judah makes his impassioned plea to Joseph! Did Judah alone feel responsible, due to his promise to his father, or did all the brothers support him?<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>\"We Are the Criminal Guilty Ones\"<\/b>
\r\n<\/b>In the calypso, when offering themselves as slaves in Benjamin's stead, the brothers say: \"We are the criminal guilty ones\u2026\" Similarly in the Bible, Judah tells Joseph\u2019s servant: \u201cGod has uncovered the crime of your servants.\u201d What does he mean by this statement? Is he referring to the theft of the silver cup, telling the servant that he has no way of denying the claim? Or, as the song might suggest, is he referring to the brothers' previous crime, of having stolen and sold Joseph?<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>Adapted from: ALHATORAH.ORG<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>For fuller analysis, see: <\/span>http:\/\/alhatorah.org\/Joseph_in_Music<\/span><\/a><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":39910,"alt":"","title":"Joseph_and_the_Amazing_Technicolor_Dreamcoat","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Joseph_and_the_Amazing_Technicolor_Dreamcoat.jpg","width":220,"height":312,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Joseph_and_the_Amazing_Technicolor_Dreamcoat-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Joseph_and_the_Amazing_Technicolor_Dreamcoat-212x300.jpg","medium-width":212,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Joseph_and_the_Amazing_Technicolor_Dreamcoat.jpg","medium_large-width":220,"medium_large-height":312,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Joseph_and_the_Amazing_Technicolor_Dreamcoat.jpg","large-width":220,"large-height":312,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Joseph_and_the_Amazing_Technicolor_Dreamcoat.jpg","1536x1536-width":220,"1536x1536-height":312,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Joseph_and_the_Amazing_Technicolor_Dreamcoat.jpg","2048x2048-width":220,"2048x2048-height":312,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Joseph_and_the_Amazing_Technicolor_Dreamcoat.jpg","post_full_size-width":220,"post_full_size-height":312,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Joseph_and_the_Amazing_Technicolor_Dreamcoat.jpg","home_baner-width":220,"home_baner-height":312}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"Joseph\u2019s 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They Fell on Each Other\u2019s Necks and Wept ","post_title":"And They Fell on Each Other\u2019s Necks and Wept","slug":"and-they-fell-on-each-others-necks-and-wept","old_id":"39841","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":39842,"post_title":"Avigayil Halpern","slug":"avigayil-halpern","old_id":"39842","first_name":"Avigayil ","last_name":"Halpern ","description":"Avigayil Halpern graduated from Yale in May of 2019 and is beginning study toward rabbinic ordination at the Hadar Institute. Avigayil has written extensively on issues of Jewish observance and gender in the Jewish media, and was an opinion columnist for the Yale Daily News.","short_description":"Avigayil Halpern graduated from Yale in May of 2019 and is beginning study toward rabbinic ordination at the Hadar Institute","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":39843,"alt":"","title":"A. 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Rashi, the prolific eleventh-century commentator, offers an evocative image of the dramatic embrace between Joseph and Benjamin in verse 14: \u201cAnd he fell upon his brother Benjamin\u2019s neck and wept, and Benjamin wept on his neck.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Rashi interprets the verse as follows, basing his comments on Genesis Rabbah:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

\u201cAnd he fell upon his brother Benjamin\u2019s neck and wept\u201d for the Temples which were to be in Benjamin\u2019s territory and which would ultimately be laid in ruins.<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>\u201cAnd Benjamin wept on his neck\u201d for the Tabernacle of Shiloh which was to be in Joseph\u2019s territory and which would ultimately be laid in ruins.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Rashi here transforms this moment of interpersonal healing into one that marks communal destruction. It would appear that Rashi does not imagine Joseph and Benjamin\u2019s weeping to be that of joy at their reconciliation, as it seems from the text. Rather, for Rashi the tears must be tears of mourning; that mourning is not \u00a0for the losses the two brothers have suffered in their relationship but maps onto a historical loss suffered by the Jewish people.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The shift Rashi applies to the verse, from personal relationship to national calamity, is the opposite of the shift that that we as Jews undergo between Tisha B\u2019av and the Yamim Noraim, <\/em>the High Holidays. We mourn the destruction of our Temple and linger in that mourning, comforted by the seven Haftarot of Comfort, until we reach Rosh HaShanah. Gradually, we move from national mourning to individual introspection.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Perhaps Rashi\u2019s understanding of Joseph and Benjamin\u2019s tearful embrace is not such a leap as it first appears. The damage in their relationship -- which lingers even as they begin to heal -- prefigures the damage done between the relationship between the Jewish people and God. Interpersonal harm is of a piece with communal harm. These relationships are not separable.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

We can imagine Joseph and Benjamin crying over both the time together they had lost and over the destruction of the Temple and Tabernacle. We have learned what it is to mourn massive communal loss, and we have been comforted. Now, we are faced with the knowledge that our community is built from our own personal relationships. The continuation of our communal consolation is to repair what we have damaged; we must fall upon our siblings and weep -- not just for destructions we all share, but for those between us as well.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":73520,"alt":"","title":"ez11-cold comfort","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez11-cold-comfort.jpg","width":800,"height":600,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez11-cold-comfort-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez11-cold-comfort-300x225.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":225,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez11-cold-comfort-768x576.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":576,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez11-cold-comfort.jpg","large-width":800,"large-height":600,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez11-cold-comfort.jpg","1536x1536-width":800,"1536x1536-height":600,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez11-cold-comfort.jpg","2048x2048-width":800,"2048x2048-height":600,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez11-cold-comfort.jpg","post_full_size-width":800,"post_full_size-height":600,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez11-cold-comfort-560x420.jpg","home_baner-width":560,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"And They Fell on Each Other\u2019s Necks and Wept","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Personal, interpersonal, communal and historical grief and consolation are all intertwined","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":73520,"alt":"","title":"ez11-cold comfort","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez11-cold-comfort.jpg","width":800,"height":600,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez11-cold-comfort-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez11-cold-comfort-300x225.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":225,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez11-cold-comfort-768x576.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":576,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez11-cold-comfort.jpg","large-width":800,"large-height":600,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez11-cold-comfort.jpg","1536x1536-width":800,"1536x1536-height":600,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez11-cold-comfort.jpg","2048x2048-width":800,"2048x2048-height":600,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez11-cold-comfort.jpg","post_full_size-width":800,"post_full_size-height":600,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez11-cold-comfort-560x420.jpg","home_baner-width":560,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","old_create_date":"","tile_link_for_pay":"0","links":false,"send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Torah","book":"Genesis","chapter":"45","chapter_main_number":"45","date":"20251030","wall_id":"45"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"366","name":"Commentators","old_id":"766"},{"term_id":"484","name":"Mourning","old_id":"884"}]},{"order":14,"id":"42795","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"2","name":"Vayigash - \u05d5\u05d9\u05d2\u05e9 ","post_title":"Vayigash - \u05d5\u05d9\u05d2\u05e9","slug":"vayigash-%d7%95%d7%99%d7%92%d7%a9","old_id":"42795","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":42650,"post_title":"Hillel Smith","slug":"hillel-smith","old_id":"42650","first_name":"Hillel ","last_name":"Smith ","description":"Hillel Smith is a graphic designer, marketing consultant, illustrator, and artist based in Los Angeles and Washington DC. 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When Joseph becomes a leader he covers up some aspects of his Jewishness. He takes on a new, Egyptian name. He wears different clothes. He speaks a different language, and most tragically, he names one of his sons after his own sense of personal abandonment in his father's house. <\/span><\/p>\r\n

Bestowing a name on a child that's designed to help us forget our own childhood wounds never works. With each mention of the child's name, the pain or the nostalgia returns. These outside changes pierce the existential question of Joseph's personal leadership identity. Who do I serve? How do I serve? Who am I?<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Joseph has a watershed moment when his royal and religious identities converge, forcing him to confront his past and his future. Joseph's brothers come down to Egypt seeking bread during famine. After testing them, Joseph observes that his brothers have matured in their notions of familial responsibility. Swept up in the emotion of this realization, Joseph can no longer withhold his emotion. <\/span><\/p>\r\n

In Genesis chapter 45 we read: \u201cJoseph 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. His sobs were so loud that the Egyptians could hear, so the news reached Pharaoh's palace.\u201d \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Joseph tries to separate his family identity from his life in the palace. He demands that all the Egyptians in his midst leave the room when he reveals his real identity to his brothers. But the text tells us that all the Egyptians hear his sobs; the news quickly reaches Pharaoh's palace. He can no longer play his game of doubles and hide his real self. <\/span><\/p>\r\n

Like this Biblical hero, we need to consider what is uniquely Jewish about our leadership and how sometimes different and competing values can merge together in a more integrated and authentic way. We live in an age that respects ethnicity and does not force our spiritual identities into hiding in order to compete in corporate or academic settings. The same goes for Joseph: Pharaoh respects Joseph's Jewishness and invites Joseph's family to live in the best land that Egypt has to offer. There are no recriminations. Joseph only becomes more whole as a result of his confession and the integration of his current and former selves. Coming to terms with our Jewish identities is one of the first acts of great Jewish leadership. It is an internal calibration that only we can undertake<\/span><\/p>\r\n

From Erica Brown, <\/span>Inspired Jewish Leadership: Practical Approaches to Building Strong Communities<\/span><\/em> (<\/span>Jewish Lights, 2008)<\/span>, by courtesy of the author.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":103765,"alt":"","title":"-624c77f3ad11b--624c77f3ad11dgen45-fingerprints 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Sarah lives in Cleveland with her husband and four children, but is privileged to learn online with students all over the world through www.TorahTutors.org and www.WebYeshiva.org. \r\n\r\n","short_description":"Sarah Rudolph is a freelance Jewish educator, writer, and editor.","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":34251,"alt":"","title":"Sarah R","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Sarah-R.jpg","width":2824,"height":4246,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Sarah-R-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Sarah-R-200x300.jpg","medium-width":200,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Sarah-R-681x1024.jpg","medium_large-width":681,"medium_large-height":1024,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Sarah-R-681x1024.jpg","large-width":681,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Sarah-R.jpg","1536x1536-width":1022,"1536x1536-height":1536,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Sarah-R.jpg","2048x2048-width":1362,"2048x2048-height":2048,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Sarah-R-798x1200.jpg","post_full_size-width":798,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Sarah-R-279x420.jpg","home_baner-width":279,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"45","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"But even he didn\u2019t have the full picture","post_main_content_content":"

When Joseph reveals his identity to his brothers in one of the Torah\u2019s most emotional scenes, he hurries to set their guilt at rest. \u201cDon\u2019t be distressed\u2026 that you sold me here, for God sent me before you to sustain life\u2026 it was not you who sent me here, but God\u201d (45:5, 8). He points out that two years of famine have already passed, with another five foretold (v. 6) \u2013 and of course Joseph\u2019s position in Egypt will enable him to provide for his family during the rough times to come. <\/span><\/p>\r\n

He only has that position because he interpreted Pharaoh\u2019s dreams; he was only called on to interpret them because he had previously interpreted the dreams of his fellow prisoners; he was only in prison because of his master\u2019s wife; and he only had that master because his brothers had sold him. Joseph\u2019s hindsight enabled him to view this sequence of events as having been directed by God for the express purpose of this very moment: the day he and his brothers would be reunited in Egypt and he would be able to sustain them through the famine.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

On one hand, we might be impressed with Joseph\u2019s equanimity in viewing his suffering as the road to a divine destiny. We might be inspired to look for similar chains of events in our own lives, to find the hand of God behind apparently purely human machinations, and to reassure ourselves He will truly ensure everything works out for the best.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

On the other hand, even Joseph, will all his 20\/20 hindsight, didn\u2019t have the full picture. We know, because we read the whole story both before and after this scene, that Joseph\u2019s position in Egypt \u2013 which led to his family\u2019s move there, which led to their being enslaved there \u2013 was actually part of an even farther-reaching Plan. God told Abraham, \u201cYour offspring will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and they will serve them\u2026 and afterwards, they will come out with great wealth\u2026and the fourth generation will return here\u201d (15:13-16).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Joseph sees his slice of the story, with his slice of hindsight, and recognizes a finite chain of events he ascribes to God. But only God Himself can know the full reach of everything that happens to us, and how it all leads toward everything that will eventually unfold.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":103756,"alt":"","title":"-624c59f79c29a--624c59f79c29cgen45-rear view mirror 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","post_title":"I Am Joseph!","slug":"i-am-joseph","old_id":"39879","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":39363,"post_title":"Sara Cohen","slug":"sara-cohen","old_id":"39363","first_name":"Sara ","last_name":"Cohen ","description":"Sara Cohen is a member of Kibbutz Ketura and serves as a regional rabbi in the Eilot region in the southern Arava valley of Israel. ","short_description":"Sara Cohen is a member of Kibbutz Ketura and serves as a regional rabbi in the Eilot region in the southern Arava valley of Israel. ","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":39364,"alt":"","title":"sara cohen","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/sara-cohen-e1536047435864.jpg","width":2338,"height":2253,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/sara-cohen-e1536047435864-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/sara-cohen-e1536047435864-300x289.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":289,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/sara-cohen-e1536047435864-768x740.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":740,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/sara-cohen-e1536047435864-1024x987.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":987,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/sara-cohen-e1536047435864.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1480,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/sara-cohen-e1536047435864.jpg","2048x2048-width":2048,"2048x2048-height":1974,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/sara-cohen-e1536047435864-1200x1156.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":1156,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/sara-cohen-e1536047435864-436x420.jpg","home_baner-width":436,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"45","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"Holding on to our sense of self, is the most difficult aspect of post-traumatic processing, and also the one most necessary to enable healing","post_main_content_content":"

\u201cIt was God who brought me here,\u201d Joseph proclaims to his brothers. Sounds like some Monday-morning quarterbacking! In hindsight, Joseph can see that had his brothers been kinder, had they not reacted to his smart-alecky smugness with unspeakable cruelty, abandoning him and selling him into slavery, he \u00a0may not have ended up as the wealthy second-in-command to Pharaoh. Only because he can look back at his traumatic past from a position of power and privilege can Joseph see that it all turned out for the best.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Yet despite his success, in the two chapters just preceding this one, it is clear that Joseph still feels the pain of his brothers\u2019 treachery. He tricks them, he ties Simeon up, he demands they deliver Benjamin to him. These are not the actions of someone who has forgiven past betrayals, or who has completely overcome past traumas.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Being thrown into a ditch by your brothers and sold into slavery, can certainly be viewed as trauma. And, like anyone who has suffered a traumatic experience, Joseph\u2019s healing does not follow a straightforward path. One day he can see the silver lining in the cloud, and the next he can once again see only the cloud. <\/span><\/p>\r\n

Perhaps that is why the moment that Joseph declares \u201c<\/span>I am Joseph<\/i><\/b>\u201d is so powerful. The drama stems from the obvious physical revelation: Joseph\u2019s brothers do not recognize in the powerful prince the brother they last saw lying bloodied in a pit. But Joseph\u2019s words also speak to emotional processes: \u201cI am Joseph! Despite the changes, I am actually the same person you knew way back when. I am still that same smug, arrogant, shining Joseph. Yet I have also changed. I have undergone suffering and trauma, I have risen above it, I have healed; and I also carry the suffering with me.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Joseph\u2019s self-revelatory cry reminds us that retaining our identity, retaining our values and our perspective on the world, holding on to our sense of self, even when it is severely challenged in the aftermath of crisis, is simultaneously the most difficult aspect of post-traumatic processing, and also the one most necessary to enable healing. Perhaps it is to that place of balance between holding on to his identity, while recognizing that he has changed, that Joseph is referring to when he says, \u201cI am Joseph- and God has brought me here.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

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Rabbi Sacks passed away on 7th November 2020, aged 72. He was one of the greatest Jewish thinkers of the 20th century, who bridged the religious and secular world through his ground-breaking canon of work.","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"short_description":"Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks z\"k (1948-2020) was the former Chief Rabbi of the Commonwealth, and the International 929 president.","link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":36222,"alt":"","title":"JSacks","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/JSacks-e1532858712594.jpg","width":437,"height":548,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/JSacks-e1532858712594-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/JSacks-e1532858712594-239x300.jpg","medium-width":239,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/JSacks-768x448.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":448,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/JSacks-1024x597.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":597,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/JSacks-e1532858712594.jpg","1536x1536-width":437,"1536x1536-height":548,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/JSacks-e1532858712594.jpg","2048x2048-width":437,"2048x2048-height":548,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/JSacks-e1532858712594.jpg","post_full_size-width":437,"post_full_size-height":548,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/JSacks-e1532858712594-335x420.jpg","home_baner-width":335,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"45","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"Joseph has come to see himself as a man charged with a life-saving mission","post_main_content_content":"

Viktor Frankl writes about his experience in Auschwitz: <\/span>The last of the human freedoms \u2013 to choose one\u2019s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one\u2019s own way.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The mental shift this involved came to be known, especially in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, as <\/span>reframing<\/span><\/i>. The facts don\u2019t change, but the way we perceive them does. <\/span><\/p>\r\n

Joseph had been sold into slavery by his brothers. He had lost his freedom for thirteen years, and been separated from his family for twenty-two years. It would be understandable if he felt toward his brothers resentment and a desire for revenge. Yet he rose above such feelings, and did so precisely by shifting his experiences into a different frame. He says:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

\u201cI am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. And now do not be distressed, or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here; for <\/span>God sent me<\/span><\/em> before you to preserve life \u2026 <\/span>God sent me<\/span><\/em> before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors. So <\/span>it was not you who sent me here, but God<\/span><\/em>.\u201d (<\/span>Gen. 45:4-8<\/span><\/a>)<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Joseph had reframed his entire past. He no longer saw himself as a man wronged by his brothers. He had come to see himself as a man charged with a life-saving mission by God. <\/span><\/p>\r\n

This single act of reframing allowed Joseph to live without a burning sense of anger and injustice. It transformed the negative energies of feelings about the past into focused attention to the future. <\/span><\/p>\r\n

Whatever situation we are in, by reframing it we can change our entire response, giving us the strength to survive, the courage to persist, and the resilience to emerge, on the far side of darkness, into the light of a new and better day.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":54853,"alt":"","title":"jo24-frame 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Sacks","old_id":"754"},{"term_id":"384","name":"God","old_id":"784"},{"term_id":"523","name":"Joseph","old_id":"923"}]},{"order":19,"id":"39904","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"A Different Joseph ","post_title":"A Different Joseph","slug":"a-different-joseph","old_id":"39904","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":39782,"post_title":"Yaara Inbar","slug":"yaara-inbar","old_id":"39782","first_name":"Yaara ","last_name":"Inbar ","description":"Yaara Inbar is an Israeli author who teaches Talmud in various educational venues.","short_description":"Yaara Inbar is an Israeli author who teaches Talmud in various educational venues.","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":3258,"alt":"","title":"","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/239-1-e1536738481499.jpg","width":288,"height":395,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/239-1-e1536738481499-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/239-1-e1536738481499-219x300.jpg","medium-width":219,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/239-1-e1536738481499.jpg","medium_large-width":288,"medium_large-height":395,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/239-1-e1536738481499.jpg","large-width":288,"large-height":395,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/239-1-e1536738481499.jpg","1536x1536-width":288,"1536x1536-height":395,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/239-1-e1536738481499.jpg","2048x2048-width":288,"2048x2048-height":395,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/239-1-e1536738481499.jpg","post_full_size-width":288,"post_full_size-height":395,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/239-1-e1536738481499.jpg","home_baner-width":288,"home_baner-height":395}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"45","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"What happens when he loses control: not the Joseph who dissociates himself \u00a0but who connects, who at his core is longing and yearning for an embrace","post_main_content_content":"

When Rachel called her son Joseph--she deliberately built within him an addition that erects a barrier and fence. \u00a0She implanted within him an ever-present armor and protective layer.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

These inner layers of defense, born with his name, became thicker with the stripes of his ornamented tunic. \u00a0They became colorful and crystallized. This is how he survived. This is also how he became second in command to the king of Egypt. \u00a0Level-headed, calculating, immune to harm, impenetrable, restrained. Up until our moment.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Suddenly, for the first time in his life \u201cJoseph could no longer control himself\u201d (Genesis 45:1). \u00a0When he removed all his attendants, he became stripped of all these constant protective layers. He pushed away the reality that he had adapted for himself. He no longer standing, no longer upright, no longer was he Joseph, the confident and calm, the unbreakable one, the one lacking for anything. \u00a0When he ordered everyone to withdraw (Genesis 45:6), he removed with the wave of a hand the accumulation of years of experience, as a man, and allowed himself to to be a child again.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Only when no one else was present (Genesis 45:6) could he break down, strip down to nothing. \u00a0The entryway to crying was opened.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

\u201cHis sobs were so loud that the Egyptians could hear,\u201d (Genesis 45:2)- Joseph was loud, his voice, his true voice. \u00a0In a flurry of orders, commands, and even advice, his voice was never exposed until now. His weeping alone was brought out to the world. \u00a0Thus, he made himself known to his brothers. He got to know them and himself afresh. He straightened his gaze.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

His cry returned and opened in Joseph the gate of speech, but when he entered it, now his tone of speech was different from ever before. \u00a0All the exclamation marks gave way to three dots\u2026.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

This is the beginning of the Joseph his mother desired \u201cMay the Lord add another son for me\u201d (Genesis 30:24), not the Joseph who dissociates himself \u00a0but who connects, who at his core is longing and yearning for an embrace.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

This Joseph can also connect to the additional significance of his name, to take away any disgrace (an adaptation of Isaiah 4:1) and forgive.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":"","post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"A Different Joseph","tile_main_caption":"What happens when he loses control: not the Joseph who dissociates himself \u00a0but who connects, who at his core is longing and yearning for an embrace","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":"","tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","old_create_date":"","tile_link_for_pay":"0","links":false,"send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Torah","book":"Genesis","chapter":"45","chapter_main_number":"45","date":"20251030","wall_id":"45"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"523","name":"Joseph","old_id":"923"},{"term_id":"551","name":"Names","old_id":"951"}]},{"order":20,"id":"39902","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"A Coat Of Many Colors ","post_title":"A Coat Of Many Colors","slug":"a-coat-of-many-colors","old_id":"39902","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":36669,"post_title":"Yakov Azriel","slug":"yakov-azriel","old_id":"36669","first_name":"Yakov ","last_name":"Azriel","description":"Yakov Azriel, who lives in Israel, has published five books of poetry in the USA and hundreds of poems in journals and magazines. His poems have won twenty-two prizes in international poetry competitions, and he has twice been awarded fellowships from the Memorial Foundation for Jewish Culture.","short_description":"Yakov Azriel is an English language poet who lives in Israel","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":36670,"alt":"","title":"Yakov.Azriel.Photo","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Yakov.Azriel.Photo_-e1533158407668.jpg","width":1099,"height":1519,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Yakov.Azriel.Photo_-e1533158407668-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Yakov.Azriel.Photo_-e1533158407668-217x300.jpg","medium-width":217,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Yakov.Azriel.Photo_-e1533158407668-741x1024.jpg","medium_large-width":741,"medium_large-height":1024,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Yakov.Azriel.Photo_-e1533158407668-741x1024.jpg","large-width":741,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Yakov.Azriel.Photo_-e1533158407668.jpg","1536x1536-width":1099,"1536x1536-height":1519,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Yakov.Azriel.Photo_-e1533158407668.jpg","2048x2048-width":1099,"2048x2048-height":1519,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Yakov.Azriel.Photo_-e1533158407668-868x1200.jpg","post_full_size-width":868,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Yakov.Azriel.Photo_-e1533158407668-304x420.jpg","home_baner-width":304,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"45","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"A road-map for pilgrims seeking a path to the sanctuary","post_main_content_content":"

\"\u2026 And Joseph said to his brothers, 'I am Joseph; is my father still alive?'\u2026\"<\/em> (Genesis 45:3)<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Our father Jacob made a coat of many colors for Joseph,<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>Who handed it down, mended, to all of Jacob\u2019s grandchildren.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

One color in this coat of many colors is the Torah,<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>Whose threads are all the hues of red:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

From scarlet to magenta to maroon to ruby, \u00a0<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>The threads of Torah and its secrets weave.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

One color in this coat of many colors is Israel,<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>Whose threads are all the shades of blue:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

From indigo to azure to aquamarine to sapphire,<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>The threads of Israel and its mystery weave.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

One color in this coat of many colors is the soul,<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>Whose threads are all the tones of yellow:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

From saffron to gold to lemon to topaz,<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>The threads of the soul, ascending and descending, weave.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The threads intertwine to create purples and oranges and greens,<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>Fusing soft lavender with dull copper and brilliant emerald.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The threads weave stripes that widen and narrow, twist and coil,<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>Forming a fabric of intricate patterns and complex design:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

When viewed from the side, these stripes are an abstract painting;<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>When viewed from above, these stripes are a score of music;<\/span><\/p>\r\n

When viewed from close-up, these stripes sketch a road-map<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>For pilgrims seeking a path to the sanctuary.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

And in merit of this coat of many, many colors,<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>Which is still as good as new,<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Our father, Jacob, lives.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":103763,"alt":"","title":"-624c763624788--624c763624789gen45-coat many 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- The Hebrew Corner - Gen 45 ","post_title":"MiliMiliM - The Hebrew Corner - Gen 45","slug":"milimilim-the-hebrew-corner-gen-45","old_id":"39912","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":34011,"post_title":"Jeremy Benstein","slug":"dr-jeremy-benstein","old_id":"34011","first_name":"Jeremy","last_name":"Benstein","description":"Dr. Jeremy Benstein is the managing editor of 929-English. He is one of the founders of the Heschel Center for Sustainability. He writes the MiliMiliM - Hebrew Corner on the site, and is the author of a book about the Hebrew language, \"Hebrew Roots, Jewish Routes: A Tribal Language in a Global World\" (Behrman House, 2019). ","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"short_description":"Dr. Jeremy Benstein is the managing editor of 929-English, and is the author of a book about the Hebrew language, \"Hebrew Roots, Jewish Routes: A Tribal Language in a Global World\" (Behrman House, 2019). ","link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":34232,"alt":"","title":"Jeremy Benstein","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Presentation1.jpg","width":1280,"height":720,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Presentation1-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Presentation1-300x169.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":169,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Presentation1-768x432.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":432,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Presentation1-1024x576.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":576,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Presentation1.jpg","1536x1536-width":1280,"1536x1536-height":720,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Presentation1.jpg","2048x2048-width":1280,"2048x2048-height":720,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Presentation1-1200x675.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":675,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Presentation1-747x420.jpg","home_baner-width":747,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"45","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"\u05d7\u05d9 - Chai - Life\/Alive\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

45:3 - Joseph said to his brothers, \u201cI am Joseph. Is my father still well - <\/span>ha\u2019od avi chai<\/span><\/em>?...\u201d<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>45:5 - \u201cNow, do not be distressed or reproach yourselves because you sold me hither; it was to save life <\/span>ki lemichya<\/span><\/em> that God sent me ahead of you.\u201d<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>45:7 - \u201cGod has sent me ahead of you to ensure your survival on earth, and to save your lives <\/span>ulehachayot lachem<\/span><\/em> in an extraordinary deliverance.\u201d<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>45:26 - And they told him, \u201cJoseph is still alive; <\/span>od yosef chai,<\/em> <\/span>yes, he is ruler over the whole land of Egypt.\u201d His heart went numb, for he did not believe them.<\/span>
\r\n<\/span>45:27 - But when they recounted all that Joseph had said to them, and when he saw the wagons that Joseph had sent to transport him, the spirit of their father Jacob revived <\/span>vatechi ruach Yaakov.<\/span><\/em>
\r\n<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The Hebrew word for life is used 6 times in this chapter (the above, and in v 28 as well - Jacob exclaims <\/span>\u201c<\/span><\/i>od Yosef beni chai<\/span><\/em>!\u201d)<\/span><\/i>. Of course the word \u05d7\u05d9, <\/span>chai<\/span><\/em>, is well-known, if only as the name of that thing worn round the neck. Contrary to popular belief, it does not mean \u201clife\u201d - that is \u05d7\u05d9\u05d9\u05dd, chayim<\/em>, as in the toast and famous song from \u201cFiddler\u201d - <\/span>le\u2019chayim<\/span><\/em>, \u201cto life!\u201d Likewise, that other tree in the Garden, the Tree of Life, was known as the <\/span>etz ha-chayim<\/span><\/em>, which is of course also a name for Torah, \u201ca life-giving tree.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Chai<\/span><\/em>, <\/span><\/i>though<\/span>, <\/span><\/i>is an adjective (living, alive) as in vv. 3 and 26. The word for animal in Hebrew is <\/span>ba\u2019al chayim<\/span><\/em>, one that possesses life, whereas a <\/span>ba\u2019al chai<\/span><\/em>, simply means \u201ca live husband.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Another central form of this word is in the causative - to cause or grant life, to revive or enliven - of which there are actually two forms. One, seen above in v 7, is familiar from the blessing known as \u201cthe <\/span>s<\/span><\/i>hehecheyanu<\/span><\/em>\u201d - <\/span><\/i>\u201cwho has kept us in life\u2026\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The other appears in the prayer mentioning reviving the dead, <\/span>mechaye meitim,<\/em> <\/span>and \u00a0might also be familiar from Yiddish - a <\/span>mechaye<\/span><\/em>, often - a real <\/span>mechaye<\/span><\/em>! - or even, \u201cach, such a <\/span>mechaye<\/span><\/em>!\u201d something, anything refreshing, pleasurable, bringing joy and or relief. <\/span><\/p>\r\n

Since it looks like Jacob had a text-book example of shock-induced cardiac arrest, and so seeing proof of Joseph being alive was indeed <\/span>mechaye meitim...<\/span><\/em><\/p>\r\n


\r\nCover illustration<\/em> <\/span>- Jewelry sold as indigenous Navajo moose (don\u2019t believe me? see here<\/a>).\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":39913,"alt":"","title":"moose7296","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/moose7296.jpg","width":380,"height":255,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/moose7296-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/moose7296-300x201.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":201,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/moose7296.jpg","medium_large-width":380,"medium_large-height":255,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/moose7296.jpg","large-width":380,"large-height":255,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/moose7296.jpg","1536x1536-width":380,"1536x1536-height":255,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/moose7296.jpg","2048x2048-width":380,"2048x2048-height":255,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/moose7296.jpg","post_full_size-width":380,"post_full_size-height":255,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/moose7296.jpg","home_baner-width":380,"home_baner-height":255}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"

Artwork by: Ben Schachter<\/p>","tile_top_caption":"MiliMiliM - The Hebrew Corner","tile_main_caption":"\u05d7\u05d9 - Chai - Life\/Alive","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"... a word from the daily chapter...","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":39913,"alt":"","title":"moose7296","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/moose7296.jpg","width":380,"height":255,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/moose7296-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/moose7296-300x201.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":201,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/moose7296.jpg","medium_large-width":380,"medium_large-height":255,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/moose7296.jpg","large-width":380,"large-height":255,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/moose7296.jpg","1536x1536-width":380,"1536x1536-height":255,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/moose7296.jpg","2048x2048-width":380,"2048x2048-height":255,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/moose7296.jpg","post_full_size-width":380,"post_full_size-height":255,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/moose7296.jpg","home_baner-width":380,"home_baner-height":255}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"Robert Kneschke (shutterstock 161025986)","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","old_create_date":"","tile_link_for_pay":"0","links":false,"send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Torah","book":"Genesis","chapter":"45","chapter_main_number":"45","date":"20251030","wall_id":"45"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"361","name":"Hebrew language","old_id":"761"},{"term_id":"401","name":"Life","old_id":"801"}]},{"order":22,"id":"39997","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"Lessons on the Daily Chapter- Gen 45 ","post_title":"Lessons on the Daily Chapter- Gen 45","slug":"lessons-on-the-daily-chapter-gen-45","old_id":"39997","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":34686,"post_title":"Soundcloud","slug":"soundcloud","old_id":"34686","first_name":"","last_name":"","description":"","short_description":"","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":34656,"alt":"","title":"491","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","width":300,"height":300,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","medium_large-width":300,"medium_large-height":300,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","large-width":300,"large-height":300,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","1536x1536-width":300,"1536x1536-height":300,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","2048x2048-width":300,"2048x2048-height":300,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","post_full_size-width":300,"post_full_size-height":300,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","home_baner-width":300,"home_baner-height":300}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"45","type_929":"4","show_author_image":true,"old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"","post_main_content_content":"","post_main_content_image":"","post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"Lessons on the Daily Chapter - Gen 45","tile_main_caption":"Short talks by Adam Mintz and by David Silber","tile_main_caption_size":"2","tile_sub_caption":"Rabbi Silber's teachings are dedicated in memory of Joan Silverstein Meyers and Ellen Goodstein Koplow. ","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":"","tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/929-bible\/sets\/genesis-chapter-45","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"2","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","chapter_info":{"books_group":"Torah","book":"Genesis","chapter":"45","chapter_main_number":"45","date":"20251030","wall_id":"45"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":23,"id":"39889","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"Chapter Summary - Genesis 45 ","post_title":"Chapter Summary - Genesis 45","slug":"chapter-summary-genesis-45","old_id":"39889","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":false,"related_cahpter":"45","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"Chapter 45 Summary: A Sea of Tears*\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

Judah\u2019s speech in the previous chapter did the job. \u00a0However, it did not happen exactly as Judah had imagined it would happen, but the vizier certainly did not remain apathetic. \u00a0\u201cJoseph could no longer control himself\u2026.His sobs were so loud that the Egyptians could hear\u2026.Joseph said to his brothers, \u201cI am Joseph\u201d (Genesis 45:1-3). \u00a0This is a shocking discovery for the brothers. One can certainly understand them. At this moment, it becomes clear to them that the belligerent vizier who abused them in the last chapters is the brother that they nearly killed a few years ago. \u00a0Who knows what their fate will be now? However Joseph hurries to placate them: \u201cNow, do not be distressed or reproach yourselves because you sold me hither; it was to save life that God sent me ahead of you\u201d (verse 5). From his standpoint, his being sold into slavery by his brothers was part of a divine plan that brought Joseph to where he is at the moment so that he can save and bring back to life Egypt and all the surrounding areas during the years of famine.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Joseph asks his brothers to bring his father from Canaan to Egypt. \u00a0They leave on their way with many wagons (Egyptian equipment as a gift from Pharaoh) to help with the move and with the explicit request from Joseph regarding the family dynamics: \u201cDo not be quarrelsome on the way\u201d (verse 24).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Jacob gets very excited and finds it hard to believe: \u00a0\u201cEnough!\u201d said Israel. \u201cMy son Joseph is still alive! I must go and see him before I die\u201d (verse 28).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Points to Ponder:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    \r\n\t
  1. A sea of tears: \u00a0Joseph weeps in this chapter three times. \u00a0Benjamin cries once. Pay attention to the intensity of the weeping in verse 2 \u201cHis sobs were so loud that the Egyptians could hear, and so the news reached Pharaoh\u2019s palace.\u201d<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
  2. \u201cIs my father still alive?\u201d \u00a0This is the first question Joseph asks. \u00a0It is a surprising question for at the center of Judah\u2019s speech in the previous chapter stood the concern over his father\u2019s life.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
  3. Silence. \u00a0Pay attention how much Joseph speaks and how silent the brothers are.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
  4. The biblical perspective. \u00a0Joseph\u2019s perspective, which is essentially that of the Bible\u2019s, is that reality is conducted on two levels. \u00a0Human beings conduct their lives with freedom of choice but without knowing it, they actualize an even greater Divine plan.<\/span><\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n

    *A Sea of Tears - This is also the title of an album by singer Zohar Argov, a popular Israeli singer and a distinctive voice of Mizrahi music, who died at age 32.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":86314,"alt":"","title":"Points to ponder","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","width":1000,"height":1000,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-300x300.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-768x768.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":768,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","large-width":1000,"large-height":1000,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","1536x1536-width":1000,"1536x1536-height":1000,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","2048x2048-width":1000,"2048x2048-height":1000,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","post_full_size-width":1000,"post_full_size-height":1000,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-420x420.jpg","home_baner-width":420,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"The Daily Summary","tile_main_caption":"Points to Ponder: Genesis 45","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Insights and questions for personal reflection and group discussion","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":86314,"alt":"","title":"Points to ponder","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","width":1000,"height":1000,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-300x300.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-768x768.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":768,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","large-width":1000,"large-height":1000,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","1536x1536-width":1000,"1536x1536-height":1000,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","2048x2048-width":1000,"2048x2048-height":1000,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","post_full_size-width":1000,"post_full_size-height":1000,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-420x420.jpg","home_baner-width":420,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","old_create_date":"","tile_link_for_pay":"0","links":false,"send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Torah","book":"Genesis","chapter":"45","chapter_main_number":"45","date":"20251030","wall_id":"45"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false}],"static_cube_title":"","static_cube_brief":"","static_cube_color":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wall\/39882"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wall"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/wall"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39882"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}