Yaakov's response to Mechiras Yosef
Daniel Levy
Did Yaakov ever find out about the brothers’ sale of Yosef? (And why do the pesukim never indicate an answer?)
If yes, why did he never rebuke them as he does with Shimon & Levi?
If not, how is this kept hidden from him? When Yosef turns up alive in Egypt isn’t it obvious that the ‘blooded coat’ charade was a lie?
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Hassans - International Law Firm
57/63 Line Wall Road
PO Box 199
Gibraltar
Tel: +350 200 79000
Fax: +350 200 77343
Web: http://www.gibraltarlaw.com
P Before printing, think about the environment
-------------------------------------------------------------------
This e-mail is confidential and may also be privileged. If you are not the intended recipient please notify us immediately by return e-mail or by telephoning the number shown above. You should not copy it or use it for any purpose nor disclose its contents to any other person. It is also recommended that any attachments in this message be scanned prior to opening, as we cannot accept liability for any loss or damage caused by software viruses.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Daniel Westbrook
If not, how is this kept hidden from him? When Yosef turns up alive in Egypt isn’t it obvious that the ‘blooded coat’ charade was a lie?
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Hassans - International Law Firm
57/63 Line Wall Road
PO Box 199
Gibraltar
Tel: +350 200 79000
Fax: +350 200 77343
Web: http://www.gibraltarlaw.com
P Before printing, think about the environment
-------------------------------------------------------------------
This e-mail is confidential and may also be privileged. If you are not the intended recipient please notify us immediately by return e-mail or by telephoning the number shown above. You should not copy it or use it for any purpose nor disclose its contents to any other person. It is also recommended that any attachments in this message be scanned prior to opening, as we cannot accept liability for any loss or damage caused by software viruses.
----------------------------------------------------------------
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "beisparsha" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to beisparsha+...@googlegroups.com.
To post to this group, send email to beisp...@googlegroups.com.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
Daniel Coleman
And if yaakov didn't know, how did he (in retrospect) understand the viceroy's 'cruelty' to the brothers on their successive visits to Egypt?
rafi
Sent from my iPhone
Daniel Levy
The Ramban (45:27) clearly holds that Yaakov did not know. (Interestingly, he uses Rafi’s #1 as evidence of this)
{כז} וידברו
אליו את כל דברי יוסף.
יראה לי על דרך הפשט שלא הוגד ליעקב כל ימיו כי אחיו מכרו את יוסף אבל חשב כי היה תועה בשדה והמוצאים אותו לקחוהו ומכרו אותו אל מצרים כי אחיו לא רצו להגיד
לו חטאתם אף כי יראו לנפשם פן יקצוף ויקללם כאשר עשה בראובן ושמעון ולוי (להלן
מט ג-ז) ויוסף במוסרו הטוב לא רצה להגיד לו ולכך נאמר ויצוו אל יוסף לאמר אביך צוה לפני מותו לאמר וגו' ואלו ידע יעקב בענין הזה היה ראוי להם שיחלו פני אביהם
במותו לצוות את יוסף מפיו כי ישא פניו ולא ימרה את דברו ולא היו בסכנה ולא יצטרכו לבדות מלבם דברים
I think you can explain Rashi’s shittah either way. E.g.
וַיְצַוּוּ, אֶל-יוֹסֵף לֵאמֹר: אָבִיךָ צִוָּה, לִפְנֵי מוֹתוֹ לֵאמֹר
אביך צוה - , (ב"ר יבמות סה) שינו בדבר מפני השלום כי לא צוה יעקב כן שלא נחשד יוסף בעיני
Does Rashi mean Yosef wasn’t נחשד because:
(a) Yaakov knew Yosef was sold, but did not suspect since Yosef is a tzaddik/not vengeful/had already forgiven them/Yosef told Yaakov he had forgiven them
(b) Yaakov had no idea Yosef was sold and so didn’t have any reason to suspect Yosef
Re the seeming references to mechiras Yosef in the brochos, either he knew or they were prophetically and unwittingly hinted at. Without an explicit reference to mechiras Yosef in Yaakov’s brochos, this is not difficult to say.
And it was not all forgiven. According to something I read quoting Rabbeinu Bachya: according to Chazal, Yosef did not forgive the brothers, and this was the reason for the asara harugei malchus. This makes sense, I would add. If Yaakov and Yosef both forgave the brothers, then why the need for the gezeira min hashamayim that chet mechiras Yosef needs teshuva? Surely, it was bein odom l’chaveiro (and done with good machshovos, according to most Rishonim), and Yosef forgave them. It would seem that either Yosef and/or Yaakov held this against them, even if this is not explicit in the pesukim.
Finally, if Yaakov did know, it should have been mentioned in the brochos. The split between Yosef and the brothers had far greater resonance throughout the ages than, for example, Shimon & Levi’s episode in Shechem. It exists throughout history. E.g. Yehoshua/Gidon/Shiloh/Sho’ul (all Yosef) v Dovid/Chevron/Yerushalayim (all Yehuda) [till Shlomo from Yehuda bridges the divide with a BHMK straddling land of Yehuda & Binyonim] ; Yerovom/10 Shevotim in North/Malchus Yisroel v Malchus Yehuda & the South; ultimately Moshiach ben Yosef/Dovid. If Yaakov saw the rift had started (Mechiras Yosef), then repaired or not, he should have mentioned it in the brochos.