פרשת ויגש תש"ד - התגלות יוסף

And Joseph said unto his brethren: ‘Come near to me, I pray you.’ And they came near. And he said: ‘I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt.

ועלו אל אבי AND GO UP TO MY FATHER — he said “go up” because the land of Israel is situated higher than all the neighbouring countries (Kiddushin 69a).

פן תורש — The Targum renders this by דלמא תתמסכן LEST THOU BE IMPOVERISHED, for the verb is of the same root as we find in (1 Samuel 2:7) “The Lord maketh poor (מוריש) and maketh rich”.

LEST YOU SUFFER WANT. You be expelled from the land through hunger, as in (Deut. 9:3), "that you may quickly dispossess and destroy them." From the root y-r-sh [to inherit; to disposess] it says "tivaresh." From y-k-sh, it says (Deut. 7:25), "tivakesh bo" (lest you be ensnared).

And, behold, your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Benjamin, that it is my mouth that speaketh unto you.

והקל נשמע בית פרעה AND THE FAME THEREOF WAS HEARD IN PHARAOH’S HOUSE — It is the same as בבית, in the house of Pharaoh and here it denotes the actual house (cp. 45:2).

ואתה צויתה NOW THOU ART COMMANDED — supply the words by me (lit, by my mouth) to say unto them

So he sent his brethren away, and they departed; and he said unto them: ‘See that ye fall not out by the way.’

אל תרגזו בדרך BE NOT AGITATED BY THE WAY — Do not busy yourselves with Halachic discussions lest the road become unsteady for you (i.e. lest you lose your way). Another explanation is: Do not take very long steps and enter the town where you will stay over night while the sun is still shining (Taanit 10b). According to the plain sense of the verse, however, it must be explained thus: Because they felt ashamed he feared that they might quarrel on the way about his having been sold, arguing one with another. One would say: “It was through you he was sold”. Another: “It was you who made slanderous statements about him and caused us to hate him”.

אל תרגזו, do not be nervous about robbers that you might encounter on the route. I have no hostile neighbours on any of my borders. This is also the meaning of the word רגזו in Psalms 4,5. The verse there implies that you should be worried not to commit a sin against G’d. If you are, you will not have to worry about any man-made hazards. The meaning of the same root in Deuteronomy 28,65 is also the same, i.e. as a result of your sinful conduct G’d burdened you with a heart which is constantly worried about all kinds of disaster that may befall you. This is part of the punishment you will experience for not having worried about ignoring G’d’s commandments previous to the retribution. Chabakuk 3,7 as well as Isaiah 32,11 make similar points. On the other hand, the same root used in Job 9,6 or when it appears in the Book of Daniel and the Book of Ezra refers to a state of anger. The word טרנבלד (old French for trembling) is the translation of כעס for anytime that word appears in the 24 books of the Bible.

אל תרגזו בדרך, “do not worry of dangers on the way;” Joseph reassured the brothers that although they would migrate with great herds and flocks, something that would draw attention to them all over, his status in the region was such that no one would dare to attack them as they were his brothers. We have encountered the meaning of “nervousness” as being רגז, also in Deuteronomy, 28,65, לב רגז. An alternate exegesis: even though I have loaded you with great wealth in a time of famine when everyone else suffers from possessing very little, you have no reason to be nervous about its implications.

And they told him, saying: ‘Joseph is yet alive, and he is ruler over all the land of Egypt.’ And his heart fainted, for he believed them not.

וכי הוא מושל, do not be afraid to come to him.

And they told him all the words of Joseph, which he had said unto them; and when he saw the wagons which Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of Jacob their father revived.

And Israel said: ‘It is enough; Joseph my son is yet alive; I will go and see him before I die.’

רב ENOUGH or MUCH — Much joy and pleasure is still in store for me, since my son Joseph is yet alive.

רב; my heart has stood still long enough during all the years I did not think that Joseph was still alive now I am definitely convinced עוד יוסף בני חי, all the commentaries of others which are convoluted are way off. I, though a junior, say that the meaning of the line רב עוד יוסף בני חי וכי הו מושל בארץ מצרים is: “enough! I am satisfied to have heard that my son Joseph is still alive. The fact that he is ruler in Egypt is totally irrelevant to my joy. I would be perfectly happy without that additional information. I am going to see him before I die, ruler or no ruler.”