04 December 2015

Parshat Vayeishev 5776

22 Kislev 5776
Erev Shabbat Kodesh

To me, this is the most poignant scene in all the Torah.


5 comments:

  1. It is poignant in deed as is the situation we all are in by screaming and crying to the government who is selling us, our houses and HaShem's land out to our enemies not for money but for empty words of political correctness.

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  2. And what a price the 10 brothers ultimately paid for this crime. We read about it in our Yom Kippur davening...

    Emunah

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  3. Shimon was the brother who always had the bad history;' a real troublemaker. This whole story is a lesson why we must be united. The govt is a different story; it is now truly being ruled by unJews. This bit of history is also a lesson that favoritism with one's children should never be. nili

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    1. Moshe Rabeinu could not even bless Shimon in Zot HaBrachah because of his attitude problem. Oy vey to not even get a parting blessing from Moshe Rabbeinu. Looking deeper into the matter, Reuven had the Midat HaChessed which was not tempered well by the Midat HaDin. Shimon had the Midat HaDin not tempered by the Midat HaChessed. Leivi, through Kahath specifically, learned to temper the Midat HaDin that he shared with Shimon with the Midat HaChessed to judge people based on their extenuating circumstances. This is the Midat HaEmeth which is the primary midah of the Torah. Perhaps Moshe himself never accepted that the Bnai Shimon never made the journey with the Bnai Leivi to discover the Midat HaEmeth. Of all the tribes, Shimon was had the temper of the Yishmaelim, G-d forbid. I believe that this was ultimately refined by Rabbi Akiva though who was martyred for Shimon's attribute.

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    2. In reality it is Esav who did not temper the Midat HaDin with a Midat HaChessed to get the Midat HaEmeth. Yishmael ultimately tried to make up for his impure Chessed with Sharia, which is pure Din. a bit complicated.

      Yet, Shimon's sin was rectified by Rav Akiva and his martyrdom. What is even more interesting is Yehudah's whose sin was "more refined" as it were. He thought that selling Yosef as a slave was the lesser evil than Murder. As true as that was, it was a misappropriation of Chessed to temper the Midat HaDin. In that way at that particular moment, Yehudah behaved more like Yishmael. Perhaps that is why he sold Yosef to Yishmaelite traders going to Mitzraim, for he was behaving like them in this particular case of misjudgement. In reality his teshuvah even until this very day was not complete, for although he was Binyamin's complete guarantor against becoming a slave to the viceroy, he did not recognize Yosef before Yosef revealed himself. If he had completed his repentance process which he valiantly started, he would have recognized his long lost half-brother with the same visage as Binyamin for whom he had become an guarantor. So when will this be rectified? with the coming of Mashiach ben David. How will this be rectified? I have an idea, but you likely won't believe it. So I will keep it to myself until it happens.

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