Vayechi – Peninim on the Torah

יהודה אתה יודוך אחיך .... כרע רבץ כאריה וכלביא מי יקימנו (49:8-9)

Yehudah—you, your brothers shall acknowledge… He crouches, lies down like a lion, and like an awesome lion, who dares rouse him. (Bereishit 49:8-9)

Yehudah was the acknowledged king of the shevatim. He is compared to a lion, the king of beasts. This was Yaakov Avinu’s vision of Yehudah for the future. Horav Shalom Yosef Zevin, zl, expounds on these two terms: crouches; and lies down. Both are characteristics associated with the lion. A person’s emotional state affects both his physical and ethical/moral conduct and his demeanor. One who feels down or discouraged can easily fall into a state of despair, which not only affects his motivation and drive, but can also lead to ethical compromises. He simply does not care. When one feels…

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פחז כמים אל תותר כי עלית משכבי אביך אז חללת יצועי עלה

Sruly Schnair In 5785, Vayechi

Water-like impetuosity—you cannot be foremost because you mounted your father’s bed, then you desecrated Him who ascended my couch. (49:4)

Reuven had it all—and lost it—due to an impetuous move on his part. Make no mistake: Reuven did not mean to sin. Indeed, he thought he was acting virtuously to defend his mother’s honor. He even repented after he was informed of his own imprudence. Nevertheless, it does not change the fact that he acted impulsively. A king, a leader, a Kohen, must act with deliberation and circumspection. Thus, the birthright that had been Reuven’s was transferred to Yosef, the monarchy to Yehudah, and the Kehunah/Priesthood to Levi. A leader does not have the luxury of acting in haste. Yaakov…

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ואני נתתי לך שכם אחד על אחיך אשר לקחתי מיד האמורי בחרבי ובקשתי

Sruly Schnair In 5785, Vayechi

As for me, I have given you, Shechem, one portion more than your brothers, which I took from the Emori with my sword and with my bow. (48:22)

Yaakov Avinu awarded Yosef an extra portion of land: Shechem. This was bequeathed to him for taking the initiative to inter Yaakov Avinu’s remains in Eretz Yisrael. To protect Shimon and Levi, who had gone to Shechem to retrieve their sister, Dinah, and to avenge the family’s honor, the Patriarch took up arms, preparing to battle the Emori. Hashem provided the Patriarch with a miracle, so that he would emerge triumphant. Sword and bow are figurative terms for the spiritual weaponry that our Patriarch employed. This teaches us that true strength is not physical in nature, but rather, spiritual strength…

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ועתה שני בניך הנולדים לך בארץ מצרים...אפרים ומנשה כראובן ושמעון יהיו לי

Sruly Schnair In 5785, Vayechi

And now, your two sons who were born in Egypt… Ephraim and Menashe shall be mine like Reuven and Shimon (48:5)

Yaakov Avinu underscores the fact the Menashe and Ephraim were Egyptian-born. He could just as easily have said, “your two sons, Ephraim and Menashe,” without adding their origins. HaRav Yaakov Kamenetzky, zl, explains that Yaakov was concerned about his grandsons’ origins because of the harsh, foreign spiritual influences they might have sustained. In order to include them among the Shevatim, they had to have remained on a spiritual plateau in some way equal to the Shevatim. Yaakov intimates that he was bringing Ephraim and Menashe close because, since they were born and raised in Egypt, they needed that spiritual TLC….

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ברכת אביך גברו על ברכת הורי... תהיין לראש יוסף

Sruly Schnair In 5784, Vayechi

The blessings of your father surpassed the blessings of my parents… Let them be upon Yosef’s head. (49:26)

When Yaakov Avinu blessed his sons, he gave an extra blessing to Yosef. Rashi translates Gavru al Bircas horai, “The blessing of your father gavru, surpassed, the blessings of my father.” This means that the blessings that Yaakov received from Hashem surpassed the blessings he received from his father. These should rest upon Yosef. Targum Onkelos translate gavru as “in addition.” This means that all the blessings – Yaakov’s father and those of Hashem, should all come to fruition in Yosef. This was the Patriarch’s way of saying that all the blessings will rest upon the head of he who…

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ועשית עמדי חסד ואמת אל נא תקבריני במצרים

Sruly Schnair In 5784, Vayechi

And do kindness and truth with me – please do not bury me in Egypt. (47:29)

Chesed shel emes, true kindness, or kindness of truth, is a fundamental concept in Jewish life. It underscores the importance of performing acts of lovingkindness for others for the sake of “kindness,” for Heaven’s sake, and not for any form of remuneration. For the most part, it pertains to the compassion and respect inherent in preparing the deceased for burial. The Chevra Kaddisha, Jewish Sacred Society, is charged with seeing to it that every Jew is accorded a proper and dignified burial. Chesed shel emes highlights the selfless and unconditional love that one should exhibit towards others – at all…

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ויחי יעקב בארץ מצרים שבע עשרה שנה

Sruly Schnair In 5784, Vayechi

Yaakov lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years. (47:28)

After (what seemed to be) a life of difficulty, Yaakov Avinu arrived in Egypt to spend the last seventeen years of his mortal existence. The tranquility, joy and harmony that he enjoyed in some way ameliorated what he had endured in the past. While there can be no tradeoff for the pain and sorrow that our Patriarch experienced, we do know that the last seventeen years of his life were reasonably calm and filled with nachas. Chazal (Talmud Yerushalmi, Kesubos 65b, Bereishis Rabbah 96:5) teach that Yaakov Avinu and Rabbi Yehudah HaNasi were intrinsically joined. This matter was not unknown…

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וירא מנוחה כי טוב... ויט שכמו לסבול

Sruly Schnair In 5783, Vayechi

He saw tranquility that it was good… Yet he bent his shoulder to bear. (49:15)

We have before us a paradox concerning Yissachar, the symbol of the ben Torah, who devoted his life to Torah study and spiritual pursuits. If he sees that tranquility is good, why does he bend his shoulder to bear? Why should he toil if he has an easier way? Horav Moshe Shternbuch, Shlita, explains that the Torah is lauding Yissachar’s devotion in that he remains committed, despite the easy way out – tranquility. Torah is so valuable to him that he would rather toil in Torah than relax. All the worldly pleasures which avail themselves to him do not stand…

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ויברכם... בך יברך ישראל לאמר ישמך אלקים כאפרים וכמנשה

Sruly Schnair In 5783, Vayechi

So he blessed them… saying, “By you shall Yisrael bless saying, ‘May G-d make you like Ephraim and like Menashe.’” (48:20)

Yaakov Avinu blessed his grandsons with what has become the standard of blessing. Horav Yechezkel, zl, m’Kuzmir, notes that the word becha, by you, is singular, as if the speaker is addressing one person, which is not the case. Both Menashe and Ephraim were present during this blessing; thus, bach refers to both of them. The Kuzmirer explains that bach alludes to complete unity in which two individuals – in this instance, Menashe and Ephraim – who are unified in complete harmony as one person. Only when perfect amity prevails can brachah, blessing, radiate to Klal Yisrael. When Yosef presented…

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וימאן אביו ויאמר ידעתי בני ידעתי

Sruly Schnair In 5783, Vayechi

But his father refused, saying, “I Know, my son, I know.” (48:19)

Yosef made a move to show his father that Menashe was his older son; thus, he warranted the blessing on the right/stronger side. One would have expected Yaakov Avinu to simply inform him that Ephraim will ultimately be the greater of the two. Why does he preface his response with Yadaati, b’ni, yadaati? Horav Yisrael Aharon Kupshitz, Shlita (Torah Ohr, quoted by Horav Eliezer Turk, Shlita), comments that the Torah is teaching us an important principle with regard to our seeking advice from a gadol, Torah giant. We must never forget that the reason he is where he is, and…

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יהודה אתה יודוך אחיך .... כרע רבץ כאריה וכלביא מי יקימנו (49:8-9)

Yehudah—you, your brothers shall acknowledge… He crouches, lies down like a lion, and like an awesome lion, who dares rouse him. (Bereishit 49:8-9)

פחז כמים אל תותר כי עלית משכבי אביך אז חללת יצועי עלה

Water-like impetuosity—you cannot be foremost because you mounted your father’s bed, then you desecrated Him who ascended my couch. (49:4)

ואני נתתי לך שכם אחד על אחיך אשר לקחתי מיד האמורי בחרבי ובקשתי

As for me, I have given you, Shechem, one portion more than your brothers, which I took from the Emori with my sword and with my bow. (48:22)

ועתה שני בניך הנולדים לך בארץ מצרים...אפרים ומנשה כראובן ושמעון יהיו לי

And now, your two sons who were born in Egypt… Ephraim and Menashe shall be mine like Reuven and Shimon (48:5)

ברכת אביך גברו על ברכת הורי... תהיין לראש יוסף

The blessings of your father surpassed the blessings of my parents… Let them be upon Yosef’s head. (49:26)

ועשית עמדי חסד ואמת אל נא תקבריני במצרים

And do kindness and truth with me – please do not bury me in Egypt. (47:29)

ויחי יעקב בארץ מצרים שבע עשרה שנה

Yaakov lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years. (47:28)

וירא מנוחה כי טוב... ויט שכמו לסבול

He saw tranquility that it was good… Yet he bent his shoulder to bear. (49:15)

ויברכם... בך יברך ישראל לאמר ישמך אלקים כאפרים וכמנשה

So he blessed them… saying, “By you shall Yisrael bless saying, ‘May G-d make you like Ephraim and like Menashe.’” (48:20)

וימאן אביו ויאמר ידעתי בני ידעתי

But his father refused, saying, “I Know, my son, I know.” (48:19)

YEARS

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