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ויברך את יוסף ... יברך את הנערים ויקרא בהם שמי ... ויברכם ביום ההוא לאמר בך יבורך ישראל

Sruly Schnair
In 5781, Vayechi

He blessed Yosef … shall bless the lads and shall call them my name… And he blessed on that day, saying: “In you shall Yisrael (be) blessed.” (48:15,16,20)

Yaakov Avinu actually gave two blessings: one to Yosef, and one to Ephraim and Menashe. Upon reading the text of the blessings, however, we confront an anomaly: Yaakov actually directed the blessing meant for Yosef at his sons – Ephraim and Menashe. The blessing that Yaakov Avinu gave to Ephraim and Menashe was all about Yosef. Concerning Yosef’s blessing, the Torah writes, Yevareich es ha’naarim, “He (Hashem) should bless the lads,” while, concerning Ephraim and Menashe, the Patriarch said, “In you (singular), shall Yisrael be blessed,” which implies that the blessing was to him. Horav Yisrael Belsky, zl, posits that…

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Home -> Vayechi -> 5781

ויחי יעקב בארץ מצרים

Sruly Schnair
In 5781, Vayechi

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

Rashi asks (based on a Midrash), “Why is this parsha setumah, closed?” Despite the fact that Vayechi begins a new parshah, it is “closed.” This means it is not set off by the usual number of spaces that would normally mark it as distinct from the previous parsha. (In other words, when there are no spaces it is difficult to discern the beginning of a new parsha.) Rashi offers his responses. I would like to focus on a meaningful explanation which Horav Nissan Alpert, zl, renders. Life (can be – and is) unpredictable and mysterious. Life is like a “closed…

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Home -> Vayechi -> 5780

ויראו אחי יוסף כי מת אביהם

Sruly Schnair
In 5780, Vayechi

Yosef’s brothers perceived that their father was dead… (50:15)

Yosef’s brothers felt that now that their saintly father, Yaakov Avinu, was gone, their protection from what they felt would be Yosef’s wrath had also come to an end. It seemed to them that Yosef’s attitude toward them had abruptly changed. No longer were they the beloved family whom he invited to dine with him in the palace. They feared that it was all because their father had been alive. Now that he was gone, Yosef’s lingering animosity toward them was becoming apparent. (This was in their perception. It was not true.) Indeed, Yosef had a reason for everything he…

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Home -> Vayechi -> 5780

ויעברו ימי בכיתו

Sruly Schnair
In 5780, Vayechi

When his bewailing period passed. (50:4)

The Midrash (Bereishis Rabbah 100:4) distinguishes between the mourning /weeping for Yaakov Avinu and the mourning for Moshe Rabbeinu. Concerning Yaakov, the Torah writes: “When his bewailing period passed,” while, regarding Moshe, it writes: Vayitmu yemei bechi eival Moshe, “Then the days of the tearful mourning or Moshe ended” (Devarim 34:8). The Midrash comments: Yaakov had those who mourned and bewailed him; therefore, it says that the bewailing period passed (not ended, simply passed). Moshe did not leave a grief-stricken following; therefore, it says that his mourning period came to an end. Clearly, this statement requires elucidation. Moshe was the…

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Home -> Vayechi -> 5780

בן פרת יוסף בן פרת עלי עין

Sruly Schnair
In 5780, Vayechi

A charming son is Yosef, a charming son to the eye. (49:22)

Chazal (Berachos 20a) teach that the progeny of Yosef, like Yosef HaTzaddik, were not affected by the power of ayin hora, evil eye. This is in connection with the above pasuk, “A charming son is Yosef, a charming son to the eye.” Yosef never sought to enjoy that which was not his (such as Potifar’s wife, who made every attempt to seduce him), thus, the evil eye affected neither him nor his descendants. Why should one suffer because another person is envious of what he possesses? Should one conceal himself and his good fortune from the public eye, just because…

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Home -> Vayechi -> 5780

יששכר חמר גרם ... וירא מנוחה כי טוב ואת הארץ כי נעמה ויט שכמו לסבול

Sruly Schnair
In 5780, Vayechi

Yissachar is a strong-boned donkey… He saw tranquility that it was good, and the land that it was pleasant, yet he bent his shoulder to bear and he became an indentured servant. (49:14,15)

Rashi interprets the metaphor of a strong-boned donkey and the reference to the land as alluding to Yissachar’s relationship with the Torah. Yaakov Avinu points out Yissachar’s spiritual role as bearer of the yoke of Torah and cultivator of the spiritual treasures of our people. Why does the blessing include “his seeing tranquility and it was good”? The significance of the blessing is Yissachar’s relentless commitment to bearing the yoke of Torah, even if it might be a challenging task at times. His ability to rest while standing up, without having to remove his parcels, demonstrates that regardless of the…

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Home -> Vayechi -> 5780

קחם נא אלי ואברכם

Sruly Schnair
In 5780, Vayechi

Bring them to me, if you please, and I will bless them. (48:9)

Yaakov Avinu wanted to bless Yosef’s sons. We do not find him blessing any of his other grandchildren. Perhaps, since it was his plan to grant Menashe and Ephraim Shevet/Tribe status, it was necessary to meet in order to bless them. Chazal give many explanations for Yaakov’s decision to make Menashe and Ephraim the paradigms of Jewish blessing: “Yesimcha Elokim k’Ephraim v’k’Menashe. Something was special about these two young men and the manner in which they were raised, special enough that Yaakov wanted every Jewish father throughout the millennia to bless his children in a similar manner. Why? The continuity…

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Home -> Vayechi -> 5779

קברו אתי אל אבתי אל המערה אשר בשדה עפרון... שמה קברו את אברהם ואת שרה אשתו שמה קברו את יצחק ואת רבקה אשתו ושמה קברתי את לאה

Sruly Schnair
In 5779, Vayechi

Bury me among my fathers, in the cave that is in the field of Ephron… there they buried Avraham and his wife, Sarah; there they buried Yitzchak and his wife Rivkah; and there I buried Leah. (49:29,31)

The Meoras HaMachpeilah (as explained by Rashi, Ibid 23:9) was called machpeilah, which means double. Chazal gave it this name either because it contained upper and lower chambers or due to the fact that zuggos, couples, that were buried there. It was the burial site of the Patriarchs and Matriarchs, couples united in life and death. Thus, Yaakov Avinu concluded his request to be buried there next to his “wife,” Leah. If Yaakov’s only reason for burial in the cave was to be buried next to his wife, he could have been buried next to Rachel Imeinu on the road…

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Home -> Vayechi -> 5779

ראובן בכורי אתה... פחז כמים אל תותר

Sruly Schnair
In 5779, Vayechi

Reuven, you are my firstborn… water-like impetuosity – you cannot be foremost. (49:3,4)

The Midrash (Yalkut Shemoni Mishlei 15, remez 953) teaches, “Because Reuven, Shimon and Levi accepted the rebuke of their father, Yaakov Avinu, they merited to have their lineage enumerated together with that of Moshe and Aharon” (Shemos 6:14). The first three sons of Yaakov achieved an enviable pinnacle of spiritual merit by accepting their father’s rebuke. The fact that Hashem rewarded them indicates that accepting rebuke is a challenging feat, a battle which they won, and one that apparently from which others not as strong as they might not have successfully emerged. There is no question that no one looks forward…

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Home -> Vayechi -> 5779

ועשית עמדי חסד ואמת

Sruly Schnair
In 5779, Vayechi

And do kindness and truth with me. (47:29)

Rashi explains that the kindness performed towards the dead is the kindness of truth, altruistic kindness. Every act of loving kindness carries with it the possibility of reciprocity or of some form of recompense. When one performs kindness for the deceased he has no hope for any return. This is pure altruism, ie, truth. Rashi seems to be describing the acts of chesed as consisting of two levels: plain chesed; and chesed infused with emes. Yaakov Avinu was asking Yosef to commit to an act of kindness which reflected truth, an extraordinary act of kindness, unlike any other: kindness characterized…

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