Filed under: Parsha Vayagash, Serach the daughter of Asher | Tags: “secular” Isreal, “secular” Jews, Malchut, Mashiach, parsha Vayagash, YHV"H, Yosef ha sadeek
UPDATED MAY 29th 2015
In the beginning of our parsha when Yosef tells his brothers that Benyamin must stay because the chalice was found in his bag. Yuhuda makes the tikun (fixing) for his past behaviour of abandoning his brother and selling him as a slave, by volunteering his own life as he says “ Let me remain as a slave, but let the lad go ”. Thus he does the opposite of the transgression he made against Yosef which caused such grief to his father Yisrael. As with Yosef who he sold into slavery, here he offers himself as a slave. Yuhuda does the opposite of the transgression making a complete tikun. After this Yosef reveals himself. The redemption will come unexpectedly as the revelation of Yosef to his brothers. It is also interesting that just about everything that happened to Yaakov happened to Yosef. This one was hated by his brother and that one was also hated. Both had a brother who wanted to kill them. It is written that Yosef looked just like Yaakov. Its also interesting to note that Yaakov tricked his father Yitzchak taking the blessing away from Asev by wearing Asev’s coat deceiving his father Yitchak. Later Yaakov himself is deceived with his Son Yosef’s coat when Yuhudah brings it back bloody and pretend Yosef is Dead. And finally Yuhudah can get back his belongings from the women who he gave them to. Yuhudah said “I was fooled by the women who wanted a goat”. Safer ha Yashir says that when Yakov’s sons returned from Egypt and wanted to inform Yakov that Yosef was alive and the ruler of Egypt they were afraid their father may die from shock on hearing this news so they had Serach the daughter of Asher play music to Yakov and sing “Yosef lives and rules Egypt”. Yakov said to Serach “The mouth that told me Yosef lives shall not taste death. Serach was one of those who left Egypt entered the Holy land and lived till the time of King David. She was the “wise woman” who turned Sheva ben Bichri over to Joab, She also did not die but entered Heaven alive ! After seeing Yuhudah sell his brother Yosef one might think that he would be the last person from whom God would choose the Messiah to come from but Mashiach precisely comes from Yuhuda. But we understand why as in the end Yuhuda does the opposite of his sin against Yosef and offers his own life instead of handing over Benyamin to Yosef. Not only this but Yuhudah dared to challenge Yosef, who was the viceroy of Egypt, the second most powerful man in the world in his day. So to try to save his brother Benyamin. To act in such a was was very dangerous. Yuhudah went from being callous when he sold Yosef to being caring and loving, he was willing to suffer the same fate he forced on Yosef to protect Benyamin. The Yuhudah who sold Yosef was not the same Yuhudah who stood out on a limb to protect Benyamim. He was a changed man, he made complete “tesuva”. We also see this between Yuhdah and Tamar when Yehuda say “She is more rightious than I”. It is for this reason Mashiach come from Yuhudah, as it know that David HaMelech opened the way for people to do “Teshuva”. They say the only reason it appears that David sinned was to show others the way of “teshuva”. Rabbi Avahu said in Gemore Brachot that in a place a “Bal Teshuva” stands a complete sadeek cannot stand.
On the simple level we see the tikun of the elder brother Yuhuda, as he being the leader of the brothers he should have stopped the evil from being perpetrated, so he needs to make the tikun . But what deeper implications are seen by this sequence of events. We know the 12 sons of Yisrael the fathers of the 12 tribes correspond and are conduits of the 12 mazzolot (constellations). Each being a aspect of the Shechinah. We know of Yuhuda that from his tribe came David haMelech, and will come Masiach. The tribe of Yuhuda is a conduit of the sefira Malchut (the Divine presence and rulership of Hashem). Yosef is known as “Yosef ha sadeek”, a sadeek (righteous man) is a conduit of the sefira Yesod (gate way of divine energy that creates Divine providence). In the beginning of the parsha Yosef ha sadeek was not known to his brothers, they did not recognize him. This is similar to what goes on today in “secular” Isreal. The Sadeekem who Yosef represents are not recognised for the value of the work they do, their contribution to society by the “secular” Jews of the world or the Government in control of the State of Israel. It is in the merit of their work that we are able to live. It is necessary for Yuhuda, Malchut (the government) to make its tikun. secular Jews must make their tikun for throwing Yosef, sedek (righteousness) in the pit and selling it into slavery. This is reminiscent of the words of the Prophet Amos “ So says YHVH for three transgressions of Yisrael or four, I will not return them. For selling a righteous man for money” (2:6). Meaning that the Jewish people need to raise the value of the service of Hashem in their own eyes, and the value of those among them who dedicate their life to this work. They must give the talmid chuchmim (Holy Scholars) the respect due to them. Know we are commanded to stand up when a talmid chuchmim enters a room as before a Torah scroll itself. This says a lot. Its necessary For the Jewish people to recognise the greatness of their true Torah Leaders and their disciples, and help them with their needs when they can. Its written that a Rabbi who prevents a student from doing an act of kindness to him, is withholding from his student the good of heaven. When we realise how great a service those who learn Torah are providing for us, as it is written in the midrash “ if it were not for the sages who sit and learn torah the world long ago would have been destroyed”. Thus it is a travesty that those who learn Torah in collels are some of the lowest paid workers. It is truly in the merit of those who learn and observe the Torah that the Jewish people have it so good, and have not been destroyed. In earlier generations all the Levi and Coheniam dedicated their lives to the Service of Hashem and most of the Jewish people learned some level of Torah. Now all is resting on the shoulders the few who occupy in Torah, so give them their due. It is said Yosef feared God just as much when he was a slave as when he was ruler of Egypt.
The numerical value of יוסף “Yosef” (Joseph) is the same as קנה “kinah” (jealousy) 156 including 1 for collel. When Yoseph’s brothers all saw that Joseph personified the masculine principle and they all personified the feminine principle, they became very jealous of him. Thus we see that the numerical value of “Yosef” (Joseph) is the same as “kinah” (jealousy).
With this we can understand that Yuhuda-Mulchut (the government) does its tikun by recognizing the value of its righteous inhabitants. By doing this they recognize Hashem. Then Yosef will be revealed this being the true value of righteousness, what the sadeekem represent. Thus recognising the Greatness of Hashem and His Torah. Then will Manifest the Power of Mashiach ben Yosef and the Mashiach of the House of David with the Temple built quickly in our days.
And may it be that we see this Greatness very soon in a complete redemption.
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