ויאמר פרעה אל יוסף... אין נבון וחכם כמוך אתה תהיה על ביתי ועל פיך ישק כל עמי
In Shemos 1:8, the Torah records, “A new king arose over Egypt who did not know Yosef.” The Talmud (Sotah 11a) contains a debate between Rav and Shmuel concerning the “new” Pharaoh: Was he truly a new monarch who had now ascended to the throne? Or was he the same Pharaoh of Yosef’s time who conveniently forgot who it was that had benefited Egypt in their time of national need? If, indeed, it was the same Pharaoh whose benevolence to Yosef now donned a cloak of despotism concerning the Jews, how is it that he was not impacted by the…