Recognition

 Mikketz

Gen. 41:1-44:17

Précis: At the end (mikketz) of two years of Joseph’s imprisonment, Pharaoh dreams of cows and ears of corn. The butler who had shared Joseph’s cell now remembers him and calls him from prison. Joseph predicts seven years of plenty, followed by seven years of famine. Pharaoh is so impressed that he appoints Joseph as his chief vizier and Joseph goes about storing grain during the times of plenty.

            Joseph marries Asenath and they have two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. When the famine comes, Jacob sends his sons to Egypt to purchase food. Joseph has them brought in while he remains in cognito. He accuses the brothers of spying and sends them home after they leave one brother hostage and promise to return with their youngest brother, Benjamin. Upon their return, the brothers (including Benjamin) meet the still unrevealed Joseph. Joseph has their bags filled not only with grain but also with the money used to purchase the grain and has a gold cup hidden in Benjamin’s belongings. When they are “caught” by Joseph’s men, they learn that whoever stole the cup would become Joseph’s slave, while the others would return to their homeland. On this cliffhanger, the parasha ends.

 

Gen. 42:8 “And Joseph recognized his brothers but they did not recognize him.”

 

Rabbi Sacks reminds us that “The Torah is a deep book” (Rabbi Sacks Legacy,12/14/23). We err by reading the text superficially. 22 years before, a slim teenager was thrown into a pit by the brothers. Now in front of them is a regally dressed man with an Egyptian name who rules Egypt. He looks nothing like they remember their brother, so why should they recognize him? Sibling rivalry is a leitmotif in Genesis, from Cain and Abel to Isaac and Ishmael to Jacob and Esau, and now to Joseph and his brothers. The sibling rivalry among these brothers is a premonition of today’s reality.

While Judaism was the world’s first monotheism, two other “siblings” emerged (Christianity and Islam), claiming descent from Abraham. Judaism (and the Jewish People) have played the role of the despised brother. While over millennia there have been occasions of acceptance, much of history is that of Joseph’s: expulsion or murderous intent from our “siblings.”

When the modern State of Israel came into existence in 1948, Israel sought peace with its “brother” nations. The “brothers” denied then​, and continue to deny its existence. There are scores of Islamic nations, and all but a rare few refuse to recognize Israel, a vivid reminder of how Joseph’s brothers failed to recognize him. Until this version of sibling rivalry ends, Israel and the Jewish People remain in danger.

At the end of the Joseph saga, Joseph is finally “recognized” by his brothers, and they can live together in peace. So may it be in our times.       

Accountability

Vayeshev

Gen. 37:1 - 40:23

 

Précis: The story of Joseph (the longest narrative in the Five Books) begins with the words, “And Jacob dwelt (vayeshev) in the land of his father’s travels.” Joseph is Jacob’s favorite son and receives the famous coat of many colors. He dreams and relates them to his brothers and father, creating additional concern and jealousy on their parts. The sons conspire to do away with Joseph, but before he dies, they sell him into slavery. Jacob is devastated when the sons present “evidence” of Joseph’s “death.” 

            We then have an intervening story about Judah, who marries off his first son to Tamar. The son soon dies, and the next son, Onan, is married to the widow (“levirate marriage.”) He too dies, and Judah is loath to offer another third son. The widow dresses as a harlot, seduces Judah, becomes pregnant, and reveals herself to Judah as a woman wronged. He acknowledges her as a rightful daughter.

            The scene shifts back to Joseph, who is now a servant in the household of Potiphar, an Egyptian official. Potiphar’s wife attempts to seduce Joseph, but he refuses her advances. She accuses him of attempted rape, and Joseph is tossed into prison. There, he meets jailed servants of Pharaoh, for whom he interprets dreams. When the chief butler is restored to his post, he promises to “remember” Joseph, but the parasha ends with the words, “but he forgot him.”

 

Gen. 40:20-22 “On the third day – his birthday – Pharoah made a banquet for all his officials, and he singled out his chief cupbearer and his chief baker from among the officials. He restored the chief cupbearer to his position, and he placed the cup in Pharaoh's hand, but the chief baker he impaled, just as Joseph had interpreted to them.”

 

Why are the two officials treated differently? A clue appears in Midrash (Bereshit Rabbah, 88:2) which states that the cupbearer and the baker were in jail because they didn't do their jobs properly. The cupbearer served Pharaoh wine with a fly in it. The baker made bread that contained splinters of wood. The cupbearer was eventually pardoned and allowed to return to his work because Pharaoh’s counselors determined that he could not have prevented the fly from landing in the Pharaoh’s goblet. The baker, however, was put to death because the splinters could only have gotten into the bread through his own carelessness.

This offers an insight which remains applicable today. One who acts wrongly (though innocently) is not to be held responsible for his error. On the other hand, one who acts wrongly through carelessness or intentionality is responsible for his actions. This we call “accountability.”