In this week’s Parsha, VaYigash, the pent-up emotions that have been brewing within us for weeks are finally released. Those of us who got caught up in the narrative of Yosef and his brothers never imagined it could end so happily. This is perhaps the most dramatic narrative in the entire Torah. Why did Yosef suddenly conclude the charade?
Yehuda’s Sacrifice and Yosef’s Revelation
After witnessing the heroic gesture of Yehuda, who offered to remain as a prisoner to Yosef in order to enable Binyamin to return to Yaakov, he knew that his brothers had accomplished Teshuva Gemura (complete repentance). There was no further need to maintain the deception. The Torah’s depiction of Yosef’s perspective is most visceral,
“And Yosef could not hold himself back with all the people near him so he commanded that all people should be removed from his presence; and there was no person with him when he revealed himself to his brothers. And he let out a cry; which was heard in Egypt and heard in the house of Pharaoh”. (Bereishit 45:1-2)
And then, at last, comes the moment we have been waiting for:
“Yosef said to his brothers, ‘I am Yosef, is my father still alive?’; and his brothers could not answer him because they were bewildered before him”. (Bereishit 45:3)
One can imagine the emotions of the brothers. Never in their wildest dreams did they imagine that such a moment might transpire. There was great shock that the brother they had disposed of was alive and ruler of Egypt and now held them in his clutches. How much emotional turmoil can a person safely experience in one instant?
Divine Providence as Yosef’s Reassurance
It seems that Yosef had prepared for this encounter. He understood that his brothers would be gripped by fear of his retaliation. In response, he sought to reassure them by giving them a lesson in the workings of Divine Providence. All this, he told them, had happened for a reason. Hashem had foreseen the famine that would grip the world and had sent him down here to become the ruler of Egypt in order to be in a position to sustain the family of Yaakov during this time of hunger.
Yosef had two interrelated objectives. He needed to convince his brothers and also Yaakov that they should relocate themselves to Egypt, where he could provide their needs during the remaining years of the famine. In order to achieve that, it was absolutely essential that he remove any fears they might have that he still harbored resentment against them for what they had done to him. This would not be so easy.
His main approach was to assure them that while they intended to harm him, Hashem had transformed their actions into a great good. He even went so far as to say:
“Now, it is not you who sent me here but the L-rd; and He established me as a father to Pharaoh and over the entire land of Egypt.” (Bereishit 45:8)
G-d’s Plan and Human Accountability
But we must ask what exactly did Yosef mean with this argument? Did he mean that when something happens that is part of G-d’s plan, then the humans involved are exempt from any responsibility? This is a major theological question which has been dealt with by the greatest Jewish thinkers throughout history.
It would seem from this story that Yosef, despite his readiness to forgive his brothers, did not thereby declare that they were innocent because they had enacted the plan of Hashem. In fact, when the brothers had initially been incarcerated by Yosef they declared one to the other:
“‘Indeed we are guilty regarding our brother in that we saw his suffering when he pleaded with us, and we did not listen; therefore has this calamity come upon us’. Reuven responded to them saying, ‘I told you not to sin against the youth, but you did not listen, and now his blood is being demanded of us’”. (Bereishit 42:21-22)
All the actions that Yosef took against them were not for the purpose of afflicting them, but solely for the sake of propelling them towards Teshuva (repentance). This was the reason behind his demand that they bring their younger brother down to him. His objective was to force Yaakov to overcome his extreme love for Yosef which had now been transferred onto Binyamin.
When Yehuda offered to relinquish his own freedom in order to return Binyamin to Yaakov, it constituted a rectification of the sin of hating Yosef because he was his father’s favorite. It was only after all the parties involved in the transgressions regarding Yosef had repented that he decided it was time to begin the healing process of reconciliation.
In my opinion, therefore, Yosef did not mean to absolve them from sin when he told them that it wasn’t they who had sent him down to Egypt but rather Hashem. While it was indeed G-d’s plan for the family to settle in Egypt, this did not compel the people involved to sin. For as the Rambam says (Moreh Nevuchim, Guide for the Perplexed) Hashem generally does not interfere in man’s free-will.
[Note: The Rambam does hold that in certain instances of great evil, such as that of Pharaoh, Hashem punishes the wicked by taking away their free-will so that they will be unable to do Teshuva and will inevitably be punished for their sins. But He never compels them to sin in the first place.]
In this manner, the Rambam resolves the question of why the Egyptians who afflicted the Jews were punished when it was actually the plan of G-d that they should be enslaved in Mitzrayim (Egypt). He says that Hashem’s plan did not call for any particular individual to act wrongfully against the Jews. Each person had complete freedom to act righteously, and undoubtedly there were those who were not hostile to the Hebrews.
And what if every single Egyptian had chosen to not afflict any Jew, and they therefore did not become enslaved in that country? There is a famous Rabbinical statement that asserts, Harbei Sheluchim LaMakom (Hashem has many messengers). If all the Egyptians had chosen to be righteous, Hashem would have brought about the enslavement of the Jews in a different manner.
Forgiveness, Growth, and the Path Forward
Therefore, it is my opinion that Yosef had no intention of telling them that he did not regard what they did to him as sinful. What then did he mean? I believe that he meant to reassure them that he would not take revenge against them for their harsh actions. He revealed his philosophy of life in which he viewed everything that transpired from the standpoint of Divine Providence.
With that perspective, he recognized that what had occurred to him was actually an enactment of G-d’s plan to save His People and move them to the next stage of their national development. He rejoiced in the fact that he had been selected by Hashem to play a major role in this historical odyssey.
It did not matter that he had suffered some pain in the unfolding of this process. Undoubtedly he had also reviewed his own “youthful” behaviors and the role that they had played in arousing the hostility of the brothers. But he bore them no ill will, for his main focus was not on avenging the past but continuing to implement the Divine Plan, which called for the reunification of the family and their resettlement in the land of Egypt.
The epic saga of Yosef and his brothers contains many lessons for all people. Certainly everyone, even very righteous individuals, have their flaws and sometimes commit devastatingly destructive actions. But the divine spark within them causes them to rethink their deeds and reevaluate their opinions and rectify their mistakes. They are able to rectify the past, make amends with those they have offended, forgive those who wronged them and move on to a glorious future.
May we seek to emulate the behavior of Yosef HaTzadik (the righteous) who overcame his emotions and lived his life on the basis of fulfilling the Divine Will.
Shabbat Shalom.
Questions? Comments?
Please reach out to Rabbi Mann on WhatsApp at 050-709-2372 or by email at rebmann21@aol.com.
Alternatively, contact Mitch Rosner on WhatsApp at 054-426-3419 or by email at mitchrosner@gmail.com.