Mikeitz – Page 4 – Peninim on the Torah

יעשה פרעה ויפקד פקדים על הרארץ וחמש את ארץ מצרים בשבע שני השבע

Let Pharaoh proceed and let him appoint overseers on the land, and he shall prepare the land of Egypt during the seven years of abundance. (41:34)

Yosef gave Pharaoh sound advice: Prepare during the seven years of abundance for a time in which food would be nothing more than a dream (or a nightmare). We do not focus on the periods of adversity when we are surrounded by plenty. We are unable to imagine what it means to be hungry while we are eating a succulent piece of meat. That is human nature. A chacham, wise person, has the vision to transcend his natural proclivity and see another time, another circumstance, when all will not be good, when every morsel of food will be considered a…

Home -> Mikeitz -> 5779

הם יצאו את העיר לא הרחיקו ויוסף אמר לאשר על ביתו... ואמרת אלהם למה שלמתם רעה תחת טובה

Sruly Schnair In 5779, Mikeitz

They had left the city, they had not gone far, and Yosef said to the one in charge of his house… “You shall say to them, ‘Why do you repay evil for good?’” (44:4)

Of all of the messages of rebuke that Yosef could have sent to his brothers, “Why did you repay evil for good?” is the last one you would expect. The most pressing question to be asked was, “Why did you steal my cup?” Instead, Yosef seems to be delivering a mussar shmuess, ethical discourse, to his brothers, concerning their jealousy and their turning against him. The Zera Shimshon explains that Yosef was implying, “You were so jealous of me, because our father made me a multicolored coat – jealous enough to sell me as a slave! Is this what I…

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ויקח מאתם את שמעון ויאסר אותו לעיניהם

Sruly Schnair In 5779, Mikeitz

He took Shimon from them and imprisoned him before their eyes. (42:24)

Chazal (Midrash Tanchuma, 4) teach that after Yosef said that one of the group would be held hostage until Binyamin was brought to Egypt, he selected Shimon to be that family “representative.” The reason for this choice was twofold. First, it was Shimon who had initiated the process of the sale of Yosef, when he called out, “Look, that dreamer is coming!” Later, it was Shimon who threw Yosef into the pit. An alternative explanation is that Yosef was acutely aware that Shimon and Levi did not comprise a good shidduch, match. He feared that the two would conspire to…

Home -> Mikeitz -> 5779

אבל אשמים אנחנו על אחינו אשר ראינו צרת נפשו בהתחננו אלינו ולא שמענו

Sruly Schnair In 5779, Mikeitz

Indeed, we are guilty concerning our brother inasmuch as we saw his heartfelt anguish when he pleaded with us, and we paid no heed. (42:21)

Twenty-two years had passed from that fateful day on which the brothers had sold Yosef as a slave. During this period, they no doubt saw their father constantly in a state of mourning over the loss of his son, lamenting over what had probably happened to him. What was worse, he did not know whether/how he had died. Yaakov Avinu could not get closure to the tragedy of his son’s disappearance. The brothers saw this daily – for twenty-one years, but they were not moved. Never once did they even question the veracity of their deed. Had they done the…

Home -> Mikeitz -> 5779

ויקרא פרעה שם יוסף צפנת פענח ויתן לו את אסנת בת פוטיפרע כהן און לאשה ויצא יוסף על ארץ מצרים

Sruly Schnair In 5779, Mikeitz

Pharaoh called Yosef’s name Tzafnas-Paneach and he gave him Osnas bas Potiphera, chief of On, as a wife. Thus, Yosef emerged in charge of the land of Egypt. (41:45)

Pharaoh was confronted with a major policy decision. A brilliant young man stood before him, who had the ability not only to save the country, but also to fill Pharaoh’s coffers with enormous wealth. The problem was that not only was he a slave – he was also a Hebrew. This would not sit well with his pagan populace. While they thought little of their slave population – they reviled Jews! What was Pharaoh to do? How was he to concoct an extreme makeover of Yosef and transform him into an “acceptable” Egyptian? The Torah gives us the answer when…

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אתה תהיה על ביתי ועל פיך ישק כל עמי

Sruly Schnair In 5779, Mikeitz

You shall be in charge of my palace, and by your command shall all my people be sustained. (41:40)

In Parashas Shemos (1:8), the Torah writes, Vayakam melech chadash al Mitzrayim, “A new king arose over Egypt.” Chazal debate the meaning of “a new king.” Was he actually a new king? Or was he the same Pharaoh that had coroneted Yosef as a viceroy over Egypt? He suffered from “memory loss,” quickly forgetting the benefits he had accrued as a result of Yosef’s wise counsel. Horav David Povarsky, zl, asks that if he was indeed the same Pharaoh who was so impressed with Yosef, why was it that the miracles and wonders of Moshe Rabbeinu and Aharon HaKohen did…

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ויהי מקץ שנתים ימים

Sruly Schnair In 5779, Mikeitz

It happened at the end of two years to the day. (41:1)

So begins the salvation of Yosef HaTzaddik, which would have commenced two years earlier had Yosef not shown a deficiency in his bitachon, trust in Hashem. After all has been said and done, Yosef truly suffered as a slave and a prisoner. He spent a good portion of his formative adult life away from family, alone in a pagan, immoral world. How did he do it? How was he able to maintain his extraordinary fidelity to Hashem amidst the multitude of tzaros, troubles, that accompanied him for thirteen years. This was followed by nine more years during which he was…

Home -> Mikeitz -> 5778

יאמר פרעה אל יוסף ראה נתתי אתך על כל ארץ מצרים

Roberto Szerer In 5778, Mikeitz

Then Pharaoh said to Yosef. “See! I have placed you in charge of all the land of Egypt.” (41:41)

Hakoras hatov, recognizing a favor and paying gratitude, is a defining middah, character trait. One who is an ingrate is not a mentch, decent human being. Nonetheless, some individuals who, although not by nature ingrates, find themselves hard-pressed to recognize that (a) they owe something to someone, (b) that they have sufficient reason to show their appreciation. In other words, they seek every excuse to justify their lack of gratitude. They owe no one for anything. We all know people who seek excuses not to show their gratitude. We observe another form of character deficiency. A person helps; he is…

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ויתן לו את אסנת בת פוטיפרע כהן אן לאשה

Roberto Szerer In 5778, Mikeitz

And he gave him Osnas bas Potifar, chief of On, for a wife. (41:45)

Certain words in the English language are anathema to the Jewish religion. Coincidence, believing that things “happen” without being designated by G-d, is the antithesis of Jewish belief. We could devote books to support the notion of Hashgachah Pratis, Divine Providence, but why look anywhere but in our parsha? This is, of course, true throughout the Torah, but the story of Yosef and his brothers and the need to have him descend to Egypt so that they would eventually follow, is a classic example of Hashgachah. Yosef’s marriage to Osnas is a classic tale of Hashgachah Pratis as stated by…

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ויוסף הוא השליט על הארץ הוא המשביר לכל עם הארץ

Roberto Szerer In 5778, Mikeitz

Now Yosef – he was the viceroy over the land, he was the provider to all the people. (42:6)

Simply translated, the pasuk informs us that Yosef was both ruler and provider to the people. Horav Moshe Cheifetz, zl (cited by Tzeil Ha’Eidah), derives from here that a community/group accepts the guidance/ rulership/governance of a person only after he has shown that he cares/provides for all of them. Thus, he interprets the pasuk as: Yosef was the (accepted) ruler because he was the provider to all the people. When the ruler provides, people listen; when the ruler thinks only of himself or those close to him, he will eventually deal with a mutiny, people rebelling against him. Obviously, one achieves…

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יעשה פרעה ויפקד פקדים על הרארץ וחמש את ארץ מצרים בשבע שני השבע

Let Pharaoh proceed and let him appoint overseers on the land, and he shall prepare the land of Egypt during the seven years of abundance. (41:34)

הם יצאו את העיר לא הרחיקו ויוסף אמר לאשר על ביתו... ואמרת אלהם למה שלמתם רעה תחת טובה

They had left the city, they had not gone far, and Yosef said to the one in charge of his house… “You shall say to them, ‘Why do you repay evil for good?’” (44:4)

ויקח מאתם את שמעון ויאסר אותו לעיניהם

He took Shimon from them and imprisoned him before their eyes. (42:24)

אבל אשמים אנחנו על אחינו אשר ראינו צרת נפשו בהתחננו אלינו ולא שמענו

Indeed, we are guilty concerning our brother inasmuch as we saw his heartfelt anguish when he pleaded with us, and we paid no heed. (42:21)

ויקרא פרעה שם יוסף צפנת פענח ויתן לו את אסנת בת פוטיפרע כהן און לאשה ויצא יוסף על ארץ מצרים

Pharaoh called Yosef’s name Tzafnas-Paneach and he gave him Osnas bas Potiphera, chief of On, as a wife. Thus, Yosef emerged in charge of the land of Egypt. (41:45)

אתה תהיה על ביתי ועל פיך ישק כל עמי

You shall be in charge of my palace, and by your command shall all my people be sustained. (41:40)

ויהי מקץ שנתים ימים

It happened at the end of two years to the day. (41:1)

יאמר פרעה אל יוסף ראה נתתי אתך על כל ארץ מצרים

Then Pharaoh said to Yosef. “See! I have placed you in charge of all the land of Egypt.” (41:41)

ויתן לו את אסנת בת פוטיפרע כהן אן לאשה

And he gave him Osnas bas Potifar, chief of On, for a wife. (41:45)

ויוסף הוא השליט על הארץ הוא המשביר לכל עם הארץ

Now Yosef – he was the viceroy over the land, he was the provider to all the people. (42:6)

YEARS

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