In Memory of our beloved David Schwartz, who fell in battle sanctifying God’s name, on 27 Tevet, 5784 (8 January 2024).
“Le’David Barchi Nafshi” is a compilation of essays written on the weekly Torah reading by David Schwartz, of blessed memory. First published on the occasion of his marriage to Meital, David’s unique Torah thoughts that delve into the depths of the Torah are shared now to elevate his memory and sanctify his soul.
The extensive story of Joseph and his brothers unfolds in Vayeishev, beginning the chain of events that eventually leads Jacob down to Egypt, as it was decreed: “your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs” (15:13). The story describes how hatred for Joseph began to fester due to his reports to their father and his lofty dreams. After Joseph receives the coat of many colors, his brothers’ hostility increases. They conspire, throw him into a pit, and sell him to the Ishmaelites.
From that low point, he proceeds to rise up and attains greatness. Joseph’s legendary achievements are recounted through the generations, so that he is known as: Yossef HaTzaddik. From the literal reading of the verses, however, it is difficult to understand what was unique about Joseph. Was there a characteristic of Joseph that brought him special love from his father and which characterizes his personality?
It seems to me that there truly is a central point that illuminates his uniqueness. We find this when we look closely at the verses describing his phenomenal success. It states as follows.
“The Lord was with Joseph, and he was a successful man; and he stayed in the house of his Egyptian master. And when his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord lent success to everything he undertook, he took a liking to Joseph. He made him his personal attendant and put him in charge of his household, placing in his hands all that he owned.
"And from the time that the Egyptian put him in charge of his household and of all that he owned, the Lord blessed his house for Joseph’s sake, so that the blessing of the Lord was upon everything that he owned, in the house and outside” (39:2-5).
Rashi uses language that opens a tiny window for us to understand Joseph’s character here. Rashi succinctly explains the reason for Joseph’s success: “‘For the Lord was with him’ - This means, he frequently carried the name of God on his lips.” To clarify that dramatic statement of Rashi, let us delve deeper into Joseph’s attributes throughout the Torah to understand what this means that Joseph carried the name of God with him.
When Joseph justifies his refusal in the episode with the wife of Potiphar, the verse states: Joseph refused:
“He said to his master’s wife, “Look, with me here, my master gives no thought to anything in this house, and all that he owns he has placed in my hands. He wields no more authority in this house than I, and he has withheld nothing from me except yourself, since you are his wife. How then could I do this most wicked thing, and sin before God?” (39:8-9)
Joseph explains that Potiphar did not withhold anything from me except you, and that is okay; but that is not the main obstacle. Rather, the issue is: “How then could I do this most wicked thing, and sin before God?” That fear of God is what guides Joseph and prevents him from that sin. The Ramban explains: “The verse tells us that he refused to do her will even though she was the wife of his master, and he was afraid of her, because he feared the name of God more.”
When Joseph interpreted the dreams of the officers of Pharaoh, he said: “Do not interpretations belong to God?” (40:8) And to Pharaoh, before he interpreted his dream, he said: “God will give Pharaoh an answer of peace” (41:16).
In the Torah reading of Mikeitz, when the brothers went down to Egypt to find food and before they realized that Joseph stood in front of them, Joseph asserted: “I fear God” (42:18). After that event and after he had made himself known to them, he said: “Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that you sold me here: for God did send me before you to preserve life (45:5) … And God sent me before you to preserve you as a posterity in the earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance” (45:7). Joseph does not hold a grudge against his brothers from their relationship in the past, but he notes: “But as for you, you thought evil against me, but God intended it for good in order to accomplish that a vast people be kept alive, as they are today” (50:20).
Before his death, he said to his brothers: “God will surely visit you” (Ex. 13:19). In truth, it seems that Joseph carries the name of God with him in every situation, whether in situations of stress or well-being, and it seems that Rashi specifically was pointing to these statements in his commentary.
To clarify the meaning of his using the name of God in his speech, the Midrash explains:
The Midrash (Gen. Rab. 86:6) states: “Rav Huna said in the name of Rav Aḥa: He would whisper and enter and whisper and exit. Potiphar would say pour me boiling water and it would be boiling; pour me lukewarm water, and it would be lukewarm …”
In my opinion, the intent of the Midrash is to explain that Joseph would constantly whisper a prayer to God and request God’s help in every moment of activity.
In every instance then, Joseph would share his actions with God and ask for His help. This expresses Joseph’s clear understanding and absolute reliance on God. As it states in Proverbs (3:6): “In all your ways acknowledge him.” This is the great lesson that Joseph teaches us through his behavior.
Our Sages established that our prayers to God should be said three times daily. In establishing this, they have rooted our lives in faith and trust in God through consistent practice. We can connect this to the actions of Joseph. When he carries the name of God on his lips, it is an expression of his complete reliance on God.
Throughout his journey and through all his trials, Joseph clung to this belief. It was as if he foretold the essential words of the Gemara. The Talmud states: “And Rabbi Ḥanina says: A person only injures his finger below, on earth, if they declare about him on high that he should be injured (Hullin 7b). From within it one comes to the recognition and complete trust in God Almighty. Whereas a person may say that faith is tested or needs expression only in extreme situations of distress or sorrow, from Joseph’s story we learn that a person needs faith on a constant basis for the simple trials of everyday life, and not just for the great trials that one may encounter. Everyone knows the wounds of his or her heart, and everyone knows in what places one must strive to become stronger to completely trust in God.
This same teaching is also relevant to Hanukkah. We see that this critical idea of faith being visible is integral to Hanukkah. Let us take that clear light that shines with strength through the candles and draw that light into the long nights of the month of Tevet.
May it be His Will that we attain the clear light of faith in God. May God’s name be constantly with us at all times, so that the verse from the Joseph story "And all that he does, the Lord makes prosper" be fulfilled in us as well. So may it be God’s will. Amen.