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CHAPTER 37
1. But Yaaqov settled [yeshev] in the land of his father's sojournings—the land of Kanaan.
Settled: became comfortable (Rabbi Jonathan Case) or remained, in contrast with Esau, who left the Land. (36:6-8)
2. These are the chronicles of Yaaqov:
When Yosef was 17 years old, he began pasturing the flock with his brothers. He had spent his youth with the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father's wives, but Yosef brought their father a bad report about them.
Chronicles: This appears to be the point where Yaaqov’s account was appended to those who had passed the stories down before him. Zilpah, Rakhel’s handmaid, would naturally be expected to raise Rakhel’s sons. Yosef's first recorded act is that he brings a negative report, and Moshe does not tell what it was about, but he later demonstrated that he knew the rules well and was careful to follow them. Yet the result was that this painted his brothers in a bad light and made him look better, whether this is what he intended or not, and it earned him enmity from them. It is not Leah’s children that he is reporting on, but only those of the concubines who were caring for him after his mother’s death.
3. Yet of all his sons, Israel preferred Yosef, because he was a son of his old age, and he made him a long-sleeved robe reaching to his feet.
Son of his old age: the one chosen by an aged father to look after him constantly. This special new garment has been translated many ways, but it comes from a root word meaning the palms of the hands or the soles of the feet; i.e., it extended as far as both. Such a garment would be difficult to work in, especially as a shepherd who did not sit idyllically on a rock and play his harp while the sheep remained peaceful, but who had to run to chase down wandering sheep or fight off with his sling the predators that had a taste for mutton; it would get all tangled up in his sleeves! The labor required of his brothers was not expected of him, yet he was allowed to supervise them; in 2 Shmu’el 13:18ff, the same term is used of garments worn by the king’s daughters, indicating a life of leisure.
4. When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all of his brothers, they hated him, and were not able to speak peaceably to him.
The coat made it clear that Rakhel’s firstborn was Yaaqov’s choice as the next leader of the family. This was later forbidden (Deut. 21:17), though Yaaqov had reasons for denying the position to Leah’s first three sons, and the fourth, Yehudah did receive at least part of the birthright. Whatever his brothers were doing, by his report his father may have known some of the others were unworthy of leadership. He could not overlook their flaws just to be “fair” or just because they were older.
5. When Yosef had a dream, he related it to his brothers, but it only made them hate him even more:
One treated as a favorite is often unconsciously presumptuous. Yet in a pastoral society, dreams provided something to break up the monotony of daily life, and were often shared as a means of entertainment. The more detail one could give about them, the more the recounting was enjoyed. But their meanings were taken seriously, and Yosef's seemed more significant than usual.
6. He said to them, "Please listen to this dream that I have dreamed!
7. "Here we were out in the middle of the field tying up sheaves, when, lo and behold, my sheaf began to rise, and stood all the way up! And then, what do you know? Your sheaves came around and bowed down to my sheaf!"
8. But his brothers said to him, "Seriously, are you going to reign over us? Will you really rule over us?" And they resented him still more for his dreams and for his words.
9. Still, he had yet another dream, and he related it to his brothers. He said, "I have dreamed another dream, and even the sun, moon, and eleven stars themselves were bowing down to me!"
One might think he would have been wiser to keep quiet about such dreams, but a prophet must reveal what he receives, whatever the outcome.
10. When he related it to his father and his brothers, his father reproved him, saying to him, "What kind of dream is this one that you have dreamed? Will we indeed come and bow ourselves to the earth in front of you—I, your mother, and your brothers?"
The first dream was fulfilled during Yosef’s lifetime, but this included his mother, who was already dead by this time, so part of the prophecy must have a later fulfillment, relating to Yosef's descendants.
11. Though his brothers were jealous of him, his father kept what he said [in mind].
Kept in mind: observed, paid attention to, and safeguarded the matter. Yosef never even suggested an interpretation; Yaaqov, having had a revelatory dream himself, knew immediately that it was to be taken seriously. He may have recognized by this that Yosef was the one among all his sons who had the prophetic gifts. He knew there was probably some truth to it, but if Yosef had asked his father in private what this meant, he could have warned Yosef not to tell his brothers all he knew, since he knew that to speak about this to those who would not be understanding was likely to hurt them. He was strong in some areas, but inexperienced in others, and therefore not yet ready to exercise his gift. While Yosef was bearing some fruit, a tree’s fruit is not to be eaten of for the first few years (Lev. 19:23ff).
12. Now his brothers went out to pasture their
father's flock in Sh'khem.
Sh'khem: in a mountainous area 50 miles north of Hevron; Josephus says it was particularly rich pastureland. This is the land Yaaqov had purchased. (33:19) The flocks they had plundered from this town where they had killed all the men must have simply been left there, alternately under the family’s care and the care of the city’s surviving children.
13. Then Israel said to Yosef, "Aren't your brothers pasturing the flock in Sh'khem? Come, then, I will send you to them." So he said, "Here I am."
The name Sh’khem relates to shouldering a burden, and when he says, “Here I am” (ready to do your bidding), he is doing just that.
14. So he told him, "Please go and look into your brothers' welfare, and the welfare of the flock, and bring word back to me." Now he sent him out from the Valley of Hevron, and he arrived at Sh'khem.
Most people do not like their work checked on, audited, or judged, especially when they need it most, and to send a younger son would make them even more resentful. Hevron is the city with the highest elevation in Israel! But there is a valley running westward directly from it which is the greenest area in that whole vicinity—probably the only decent place to pasture flocks.
15. But a [certain] man met him, because here he was wandering around the field, so the man asked him, "What are you looking for?"
16. He replied, "I am looking for my brothers! Can you tell me where they are pasturing the sheep?"
This is another prophetic moment: Yosef is seeking his brothers. He identifies them as the people who are feeding the sheep. This is how we can find Yosef’s descendants as they “come back to life” today.
17. So the man said, "I'm sure they have left here, because I heard them say, ‘Let's go to Dothayin.’" So Yosef went after his brothers, and he did find them at Dothan.
Dothayin/Dothan: alternate spellings for a town 12 miles north of Sh'khem. Later a home of the prophet Elisha, its name means "a pair of wells" or cisterns—probably close together and fed from the same source of water. They were supposed to be at the place of shouldering the burden (the meaning of Sh’khem), but they moved on to what they thought were greener pastures, probably thinking no one knew about it. Yet YHWH made their secret known to Yosef. Today we find our brothers among Rabbinic Judaism and the Church, two religions that draw from the source of living water (Torah) but which no longer allow it to flow. (v. 24) So neither has the water the flocks need, and they keep them split into two flocks when they are meant to be one.
18. But they saw him coming from a distance, and before he approached them, they conspired against him, to kill him.
The guilty always conspire against the one who carries authority, since they do not want their guilt brought to light.
19. Each of them said to his brother, "Here comes this 'master' of those dreams!
20. "So, come on, let's kill him now and throw him into one of these pits, and say a wild beast has devoured him! Then we'll see what will become of his dreams!"
Though they were tired of Yosef, they must have had at least a little respect for these dreams, because they wanted to make sure they did not come true. These pits: the two cisterns there (v. 17).
21. But Re’uven heard them, and rescued him from their hands, saying, "Let's not strike him with a mortal blow."
Re’uven, the eldest, at least had a certain respect from his brothers, as crude as they were.
22. Re’uven told them further, "Don’t shed blood. Throw him into this pit here in the wilderness, but do not lay a hand on him." (He said this because he intended to later deliver him from their hands and return him to his father.)
Wilderness: where they assumed no one would hear his cries. Knowing he had displeased his father already by what he had done with his concubine, Re’uven may have been eager to get back into his father’s graces, or at least avoid getting in even deeper disfavor. He acted according to his role as eldest brother, the protector of his siblings.
23. So when Yosef reached his brothers, they stripped him of his long coat—the embroidered one that reached to his feet—
The first thing they wanted to do was take away his authority to prophesy.
24. and they picked him up and threw him into the pit (since it was an empty one, having no water in it).
Yosef probably assumed his brothers would eventually calm down, come back, and pull him out, because of what their father would do if they did not. But, in their mind, he had sold them out before, so they made sure he would not do so again. But they would need his insights and abilities sooner than they thought. The other cistern may have still held some water—possibly the reason they were there with the flocks.
25. Then they sat down to eat bread. Then they looked up and noticed a caravan of Yishmaelites coming from Gil'ad. Their camels were carrying spices, balsam resin, and myrrh, on the way to take them to Egypt.
This was cold, but they saw him as a spoiled brat whom they needed to teach a lesson. Those who made the decision to execute Yeshua also immediately enjoyed the Passover meal, oblivious to his suffering. Yishmaelites: Today they are called Arabs. Usually they only carried foul-smelling wares like tar and kerosene, but Rashi notes that this nicer-smelling cargo was YHWH’s sign to Yosef that even in these circumstances, He was watching over him. Gil'ad: across the Yarden River east of Dothan, on the same trade route. They would have been traveling by way of the Yizre’el Valley.
26. So Yehudah said to his brothers, "What profit is there for us to kill our brother and conceal his blood?
Yehudah's mind was only on how things could bring them profit. Yet he was already showing himself to be the leader who would father the tribe from which the kings would come.
27. "Come on, let's sell him to the Yishmaelites, but don't let our own hand be upon him—because he is, after all, our brother, our own flesh!" And his brothers accepted [this alternative plan].
Let our hand be upon him: as responsible for his murder.
28. Just then [some] men—Midyanite traders—came by. They pulled Yosef up, and got him out of the pit, and they sold Yosef to the Yishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver, and they took Yosef to Egypt.
Men: rather than just saying "Midyanites". "Men" in the text prior to this has often signified messengers of YHWH. Though these men here seemed to be evil, this was YHWH's plan, for benefit would come from it in a roundabout way. This had to take place, because the sign that would make Avram certain that YHWH had given him the Land was that his descendants would be enslaved in a foreign land. Midyanites were descendants of Avraham's later wife Keturah, and Moshe would marry one of them. They were the ones who pulled him from the pit, though the brothers must have still profited, because Yosef later tells them, “You sold me.” They may have come along while the brothers were debating what to do. 20 pieces of silver: YHWH later codified this as the price of a male slave between the ages of 5 and 20 years (Lev. 27:3). His true value would come out through his suffering and his faithfulness to YHWH in the midst of both trouble and success. All of these middlemen were sons of Avraham, tent-dwellers who knew something of YHWH. Thus YHWH made sure that he was kept safe all the way to Egypt.
29. When Re’uven came back to the pit, lo and behold, Yosef wasn't there! So he tore his garment.
Tore his garment: an expression of extreme emotion and despair. Re’uven was not with the other nine when they decided to sell him. Though his father would curse him for what he did with his concubine, Moshe reversed this in Deut. 33:6, saying, “Let Re’uven live and not die”, probably precisely because Re’uven had said, “Let Yosef live and not die!” But he was not quick enough to carry out his plan. Avram had run to meet his guests and show hospitality; Rivqah had run to water the camels. Failures are recorded in Scripture so we can know what to do to fix them. We must not make Yosef’s mistake of having a wonderful relationship with our Father but none with our brothers.
30. Then he returned to his brothers and said, "The young lad is not [here]! So as for me, where will I go?"
He may have assumed Yosef was dead. As the eldest, the responsibility for Yosef, when with his brothers, fell on him. He would not be able to answer for this, so they had to devise a plan to conceal their irresponsibility:
31. So they took Yosef's long cloak, killed a goat, and dipped the cloak in the blood.
This solution would not implicate any of them; they chose a goat because its blood resembles human blood.
32. Then they dispatched some messengers with the long coat reaching to the feet, and they brought it to their father, saying, "We found this. Please examine it carefully: is it your son's long coat [or not]?"
They possessed the covering that showed he was more loved than they, and with the profit in their “pockets”, they take it back to their father--an eerie payback for how Yaaqov had fooled his father by a garment made from a goat.
33. He recognized it, and said, "It is my son's long coat! A wild beast has eaten him! Yosef has been torn to pieces for sure!"
34. And Yaaqov tore his clothing and tied sackcloth around his loins, and mourned many days for his son.
Sackcloth: an uncomfortable material like burlap. Around his loins: as a reminder of his lost offspring.
35. And all his sons and daughters rose up to comfort him. But he refused to be comforted, saying, "I will go down into She'ol still mourning for my son." And his father bewailed him.
Daughters: if not some heretofore unmentioned, they would refer to either daughters-in-law or possibly some adopted from Sh’khem. Rose: to the occasion—they did their best. But he was saying that there was no way he could return to normal for the rest of his life. He must have questioned his own prophethood in recognizing Yosef as the next prophet of the family, wondering if his eyes were grown dim like his father's had become. He says, “Don’t tell me it’s going to be all right, that this will pass.” Now he wants to die, too. His focus is on death, and this did dim his vision, and meanwhile Yosef was also taken to a place with a fixation on death:
36. Meanwhile the Medanites sold him into
slavery in Egypt—to one Potifar, an official
in the Pharaoh's court, [specifically] the
chief of the executioners.
Medanites: Apparently he was passed off in
several trade deals along the way, for these
were the descendants of Midyan’s brother
Medan. (25:2) Chief of the executioners: or,
head of the butchers. Either way, he was
someone who killed on Pharaoh’s behalf.
Yet when Rakhel begins weeping like Yaaqov,
thinking her children are no more (Yirmeyahu/
Jer. 31:15), YHWH says, “Stop! Your work
will be rewarded after all. Your children will
come back from the land of the enemy!”
CHAPTER 38
1. Now what took place at that time was that Yehudah went down, away from his brothers, and turned aside to a man of Adullam named Khirah.
Adullam is 10 miles northwest of Hevron. Probably disgusted with his brothers’ murderous intentions, Yehudah has seldom in history been united with his brothers. Even while all Israel was still in the Land, Yehudah is described separately from the rest of Israel, except during the reign of the first three kings, and even before their reign as well. Yehudah was the last tribe to have scribes, and they could have changed this record had they wanted to put themselves in a different light, but they did not.
2. There Yehudah also saw a daughter of a Kanaanite man named Shua, and he took her as a wife, and went into her.
Kanaanite man: or, idiomatically, a prominent merchant. Shua means "wealth and opulence". This has always been a temptation for Yehudah's children; it even kept many in Europe when they could have escaped before the Holocaust.
3. And she conceived, and gave birth to a son, and named him Er [“arouse/awaken/expose”].
4. Then she conceived again and bore a son, and named him Onan ["vigorous"].
5. And still she continued to conceive and bore another son, and him she named Shelah, and he was at Kh'ziv when she gave birth to him.
Shelah means prosperous or at ease—another result of wealth. But Kh’ziv means “false”, so this was a false prosperity.
6. Then Yehudah took a wife for his firstborn, Er; her name was Thamar.
Thamar means "a date-palm tree"--one of the most beautiful sights in a parched land, with sweet fruit. Resilient because it bends, it can withstand strong winds. According to Psalm 92:12, it is symbolic of a righteous person.
7. But Er, Yehudah's firstborn, was evil in the eyes of YHWH, so YHWH let him die.
Evil in the eyes of YHWH: We are not told why, but anything that gets in one’s eye, no matter how small, consumes all of our attention. YHWH had His eye on the firstborn of the royal tribe in a special way. He was held to a higher standard. Let him die: if YHWH withdraws the breath from a person, nothing he does can keep him alive.
8. Then Yehudah told Onan, "Go into your brother's wife and marry her, and raise up descendants for your brother."
Marry: here, a special term denoting marriage by a brother-in-law to raise up an heir for his deceased brother, having the closest DNA to his. This later became mandatory (Deut. 25:5) so that each man He created would have the dignity of continuance even if he died before he could have children. It is a way YHWH graciously provided to get around the real possibility of untimely death. This is especially interesting in light of the fact that YHWH was not pleased with Er or Onan; still, He considered them worthy of the possibility of their descendants becoming better people than they were.
9. But Onan knew that the offspring would not be [considered] his, so what he did was that, whenever he was having relations with his brother's wife, he let his seed go to waste on the ground.
The descendants would not be his: They would be called his brother's, and would take away some of his own children's inheritance. (Ruth 4:6). But what could Yehudah say? He had let his brother go into captivity, too.
10. And what he did was evil in the sight of YHWH, so He caused him to die also.
The vigorous one now lay completely still. But note that although YHWH did not like whatever Er had been doing, and Onan would not carry on his name, YHWH perpetuated his name in this eternal text, unlike their mother, whose name is not written anywhere in the Book of Life, probably because Yehudah’s being joined to her resulted in nothing but trouble).
11. And Yehudah told Thamar, "Live as a widow in your father's house until my son Shelah has grown up"—because he said to himself, "What if he also dies like his brothers?" So Thamar went back and lived in her father's household.
Dies like his brothers: he thought she carried a curse, and was herself the cause of his sons’ deaths.
12. After many years had passed, Yehudah's wife, the daughter of Shua, died. When Yehudah was comforted, he went up with his friend Khirah of Adullam to supervise the sheepshearers.
Afraid to marry off his youngest son for fear of losing him too, Yehudah became without a lineage and fruitless.
13. And Thamar was told, "Behold, your father-in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his flocks."
Timnah, which means “portion”, is a further 10 miles northwest of Adullam.
14. So she took off her widow's garb, and covered herself with a veil, thus disguising her identity, and she sat down at the entrance to Eynayim, which is on the road to Timnah, for she saw that though Shelah had grown up, she had not been given to him as his wife.
Shelah was given a different wife, for we see his descendants listed in Numbers 26:20. Widow’s garb: A particular mode of dress identified her clearly as a widow, so others would be careful to treat her well, since YHWH expresses special concern that widows and orphans not be further oppressed. At the entrance to Eynayim: or “at the opening of the eyes”. In order to open his eyes, she covered hers:
15. When Yehudah saw her, he thought she was a prostitute, since she had veiled her face.
This was a common Kanaanite way of identifying prostitutes.
16. And he turned aside to her on the roadway, and said, "Come, please, let me consort with you."—because he did not realize that she was his daughter-in-law. But she said, "What will you give me, since you want to come into me?"
Israelite men are not to make their daughters prostitutes (Lev. 19:29). But to Thamar this pretense seemed the only way she could find to obtain justice.
17. So he said, "I will send a kid from among the goats in my flock." But she said, "What will you give me as a pledge until you actually send it?"
18. So he said, "What kind of pledge would you like me to give you?" So she said, "Your signet ring, your cord, and the staff you have in your hand!" So he gave them to her, and had relations with her, and she became pregnant by him.
The pledge tokens were all marks of identity and station in life. His ring was used to press into a wax seal to stamp his ownership on his possessions or the merchandise he was selling. It probably had his name on it. Cord: the same word for the thread of blue later required in the fringe on Israelite garments as a reminder to keep YHWH’s commandments (Num. 15:38), and it might have required leaving his entire garment with her. If this is indeed what this means, he was the only one in town with such a fringe on his garment, so it would be clearly identifiable as his. And a rod was a symbol of authority, and a shepherd's staff typically had the events of his life carved into it. There would be no question who these belonged to.
19. Then she got up and left, and took the veil off her face, and put her widow's garb back on.
20. When Yehudah sent the young goat by the hand of his Adullamite friend, in order to receive back the pledge from the woman's hand, he could not find her!
21. So he asked the men of her place, "Where is the prostitute who was by the roadside at Eynayim?" But they said, "There was no prostitute here!"
Prostitute: the term here is not the one used in verse 15, but is actually the term for “holy one”, because a cult prostitute was set apart unto a particular deity’s temple (a practice also tied to Saturnalia, the pagan festival that was mixed into Christmas). He thus casts the situation in a better light, because no one in that town would have faulted Yehudah for going to a temple prostitute; they all would be used to doing that.
22. So he returned to Yehudah and said, "I didn't find her! And the men of the place said, 'There's never been a prostitute here'!"
23. So Yehudah said, "Let her keep them for herself, so that we don't become a laughingstock. I really did send this kid, but you couldn't find her."
I.e., "I've done my part. To try any further will only be an embarrassment."
24. But after about three months passed, Yehudah was told, "Your daughter-in-law Thamar has committed adultery, and not only that, she is even pregnant by her whoredom!" So Yehudah said, "Bring her out and let her be burned!"
This would give him an easy way out of giving her to his youngest son. But for her pregnancy to be known after only three months, she had to have made it known, probably to force Yehudah’s hand. Men were regarded as less guilty than women for engaging in such incontinence. (Compare Yochanan/John 8:1ff.) Though a widow and no longer even living in his household, she was still expected to be faithful to her dead husbands, and had to answer to Yehudah. But normally, Israelite women were only stoned to death for adultery. Only priests' daughters are required to be burned for harlotry (Lev. 21:9); they are held to a higher standard of exemplary living.
25. But as she was being brought out, she sent word to her father-in-law, saying, "I am pregnant by a man to whom these things belong." And she said, "Identify, please, whose this signet ring, bracelet, and staff are."
All for the promise of having a goat sent, the apparent "harlot" who is actually Yehudah's kinswoman, keeps possession of what Yehudah despised, and it is her salvation. These proofs say, "I am not a prostitute! Why did I have to use such a roundabout way to get you to raise up a descendant for your dead son?”
26. When Yehudah looked at them closely, he had to say, "She is more righteous than I, because I did not give her to my son Shelah." And he never had relations with her again.
Reminded of his own question to Yaaqov about whom Yosef's coat belonged to, Yehudah hears his own words and treats her with the respect she is due.
27. At the time of her delivery, it turned out that there were twins in her womb!
28. And while she was giving birth, what took place was that one baby thrust a hand out, and the midwife took hold of it and tied a piece of crimson thread on his hand, signifying "this one came forth first".
29. But when he pulled his hand back, his brother unexpectedly came forth! So she said, "How you have broken through! This breach will be your responsibility!" So he was named Paretz.
I.e., "With what strength you have asserted yourself!" Paretz means "breach-maker". There was an heir for not just one, but both of Yehudah's sons who died without one. But we see something of Yaaqov and Esau's rivalry revisited here. But even more; there is a picture here of the first and second Adam: Yeshua existed before Adam (being called the "Arm" of YHWH, with the "scarlet cord" of blood redemption being his sign), yet Adam appeared on the earthly scene before him. (Yoch. 1:30) Yeshua withdrew from view, but later was raised to the highest place when he succeeded in being faithful.
30. Then his brother—on whose hand the crimson was tied—came forth, and he was named Zarakh.
Zarakh means "to rise, dawn, or shine forth." (e.g., Yeshayahu/Isa. 60:1) Yehudah's descendant Boaz, in another levirate marriage, was told (Ruth 4:12), "May your house[hold] be like the house of Paretz, whom Thamar bore to Yehudah, of the seed which YHWH shall give to you from this young woman"--a seemingly unflattering blessing, considering the circumstances of his conception. But, as in the case of Boaz, it was a roundabout means by which YHWH established the continuation of the line from which the Davidic dynasty would come, which had been threatened here with being lost as well. The "seed" refers not only to the immediate redemption, but also to the descendant of hers who would fulfill the prophecy of Genesis 3:15. In Ruth 4:18 lies the key to the strange blessing: "These are the generations of Paretz". This discourse pattern signals the continuity of this genealogy, reiterated several times throughout Genesis. After Adam's fall, this word "generations" (tol’doth) is spelled "defectively", with one letter missing (though pronounced the same way) in every case until this one, where the full spelling is restored. Oved's birth, like that of Paretz, sealed the guarantee that the throne would be established. The missing letter has the numeric value of 6, the number of man. In a traditional song to welcome the Sabbath, the Messiah is referred to as “the man who is the descendant of Paretz”. The crimson or scarlet cord imagery appears again in Rahav (another, very sinful Gentile saved from destruction, who became an ancestress of kings), the Tent of Meeting, and the cleansing of lepers (Lev. 14:4), as well as what was tied to the goat’s horn on Yom Kippur (Yeshayahu 1:18). Since the cord is often associated with sin and since Yeshua was actually the son of Paretz, a different angle on the metaphor is be that the strong-armed “shining one” (Yesh. 14:12) who appeared to be forever the occupying ruler of the earth, due to Adam’s forfeiting the role, was ousted by the one who broke through (Mikha 2:13; cf. Mat. 11:12) and set the “sheep” free. Yehudah had other descendants who were not from Paretz, and some (through Shelah) came from the line of this nameless Kanaanite woman (even another named Er). One of Shelah’s sons became a ruler in Moav (1 Chron. 4:21-22), and by tradition, Ruth was from the royal family in Moav. We are told that she not just came but “returned” to Yehudah’s land with Naomi—as if she had come from there as well. She may have been one of these descendants of Shelah!
CHAPTER 39
[c. Year 2218 from creation; 1782 B.C.E.]
1. Now when Yosef had been taken down to Egypt, Potifar, a court official of the Pharaoh (chief of the executioners)—an Egyptian man—bought him from the Yishma'elites who had made him go down there.
Egypt was the world’s only superpower at this time, but this was probably the time that Egypt was ruled by a line of Semite kings called the Hyksos, who, being outsiders like Yosef, would be better disposed toward him than the Pharaohs that followed when Egypt was retaken by the native dynasties (Ex.1:8). Thus it would not be redundant to mention that this official was a native Egyptian, not a foreigner like Pharaoh. Potifar means “belonging to the sun”.
2. And YHWH was with Yosef, and he was a prosperous man, and he was in the house of his master, the Egyptian,
He was owned as a slave, yet he still made progress. He was very young and had been somewhat spoiled, so one might think he would not know very well how to serve, especially after his dreams about being the one who was served. But he decided to be all that he could be, even here, for it is the only place he could serve YHWH at this time. He decided not to be discouraged or depressed or pine for the coat he had lost and waste his life away, but “bloom where he was planted”, and he actually ended up more successful here than he had been among his brothers, who did not listen to him. (Compare Luke 14:16-24) He had been trained in Shem’s tents, and this taught him to apply courage to the situation at hand rather than becoming angry. He was stationed “in the house”, a higher post than being in the field, since he was seen to be more trustworthy than his fellows:
3. when his master noticed that YHWH was with him, and that everything that Yosef did was prospering in his hand.
He probably did not know it was YHWH in particular, but recognized that he was clearly favored and that something was different about him. He was not whining or bitter about his lot or even concentrating on trying to either escape or move up higher, but focused on doing his job. Those who do the best work are the ones promoted:
4. So Yosef found favor in his sight, and he became his assistant, and he appointed him as head over his house, and he placed all that he owned in Yosef's custody.
5. And it came about that starting from the time he appointed him over his house and over all that he owned, YHWH blessed the Egyptian's household for Yosef's sake. And the blessing of YHWH was on all that he had, both in the house and in the field.
The only reason this Egyptian’s house was blessed was Yosef’s presence. How much more would it be blessed if everyone in the house was serving as he did? As far as his father knew, Yosef was dead, but he was very much alive, bringing blessing to Egypt. Those who today are best known by the name Israel (Yehudah) generally do not know the House of Yosef is still alive and well is because all of its blessing has been going to a different household. (But that is changing...)
6. And he left Yosef in charge of all that he had; he did not concern himself with anything he had except the bread he was eating.
However, there are both positive and negative results when a servant is promoted:
But Yosef was also both handsome in face and attractive in physical appearance.
He inherited his looks from his mother and grandmother, but one also becomes attractive when he relaxes in his trust of YHWH.
7. And after these things what took place is that his master's wife cast her eyes upon Yosef and said, "Come to bed with me!"
8. But he refused, telling his master's wife, "Look, my master doesn't concern himself with anything that is in the house with me, and all that he owns he has put under my authority.
9. "No one in this house is higher than I, and he has not withheld anything from me except you, since, after all, you are his wife! So how could I do this horrible wickedness, and sin against Elohim as well?"
Yosef had seen the results of illicit sexual encounters both in his brother Re’uven and his sister Dinah. But the sin would not only be against his master, but against YHWH. Keeping YHWH’s standards in mind was also teaching the once-arrogant lad not to presume to go beyond his limits, though thriving to the highest degree within them.
10. But it kept recurring, and though she spoke the same way to Yosef day after day, he would not listen to her and lie beside her, or be with her.
He not only refused to be intimate with her; he would not even be seen with her (abstaining from even the appearance of evil, as in 1 Thessalonians 5:22). Had he given in, at best he would have put down his roots permanently in Egypt, but more likely she would have killed him when she grew tired of him, because the adulteress is a liar who will ultimately leave one stranded. (Compare Prov. 2:11-19; 7:21-26.)
11. But on one such day, it turned out that when he went into the house to do his work, not a man of the household staff was there in the house:
That working in the house was not a pretext for being around her is supported by a detailed house plan found in the tomb of an Egyptian high priest, showing that all the storerooms (which Yosef had charge of) were all the way in the back of the house (so the house was where he would need to be most of the time).
12. She caught him by his cloak, and said, "Come to bed with me!" But instead he left his cloak in her hand, and ran away, going outside.
Yosef literally "fled fornication" (1 Cor. 6:18; 2 Tim. 2:22), choosing the right way even when it was inconvenient.
13. Then what took place was that, when she saw that he had left his cloak in her hand and fled out into the street,
14. she called for the men of her household and complained to them, "Look! He has brought us a Hebrew man to mock us! He came onto me, presuming to have sexual relations with me, and I screamed.
The first “he” refers to her husband, and she is blaming him (not surprising if she was willing to commit adultery). He chose a Semite, another like those who had the upper hand, occupying Egypt, to rule this Egyptian house. It would seem to her like a betrayal to bring another Semite into the house, as if he were somehow in league with the foreign governors! Or it may be that the incident of Avraham the Hebrew’s wife with a former Pharaoh might still have been remembered because of the trouble it brought on Egypt.
15. "And when he heard me scream, he ran away and went outside, forgetting that he'd left his cloak with me."
16. She kept his garment close by her until his master came back home.
One’s garment is often a mark of authority, as it had been in his father’s household. Thamar (ch. 38) had used the symbols of Yehudah’s rank to prove his guilt, and Potifar’s wife was trying to do the same. If only she had used her craftiness in a more positive way, Egypt could have benefitted from her intelligence instead of becoming more doubtful that anything was sacred as yet another person in the public eye was toppled by a scandal.
17. Then she told him what had taken place, using the same ruse: "The Hebrew slave whom you brought in to us came inside where I was, to have fun with me!
18. "But what happened was that when I raised my voice and screamed, he left his robe beside me and fled outside!"
19. And it worked: when his master heard the argument that his wife put to him, saying, "Your slave did to me everything I said"—his anger glowed.
But this anger appears to be more against his wife than against Yosef, for being the chief executioner, Potifar would have been likely to have simply killed Yosef otherwise. He knew of his wife’s tendencies. But because of his honor and his wife’s influence, he had to do something publicly:
20. Then Yosef's master took him and put him into the prison where the king's own prisoners were held, and he remained there in the prison-house.
He suffered for something he did not do, and for positively doing the right thing. This was not a common prison, but a royal one, so the conditions would not have been as bad. It may have even been to protect Yosef from the wrath of a woman scorned that he put him there. But the prison-house must have reminded him of the pit his brothers had put him in, and he could have thought, “I already passed this test!” But not at this level. What was once a minor matter has escalated to a major problem, but YHWH has also been increasing Yosef’s skills in the meantime. He had only passed the first part of the test, in order to build him up for further tests in preparation for his intended purpose, just as a high school test is more difficult than one in third grade, but bring us closer to our goal. He was in an exile within an exile. Still, he was not inclined to be bitter or discouraged. He knew he had to pay attention to what YHWH was telling him through it, for He is trying to strengthen us in areas we will one day need. Yosef was fully “there” even in the prison and did not waste even this time.
21. But YHWH was with Yosef, and extended kindness to him, giving him favor in the eyes of the prison's warden,
Extended kindness to him: or "endowed him with grace/charisma".
22. and the prison warden put all the prisoners therein under Yosef's jurisdiction, and whatever they did there was carried out as [if it were] something he had done.
He got credit for whatever they accomplished. Instead of being in the deep trouble “Jezebel” hoped he would be in, he was already in authority again, for even the Egyptians trusted one who was faithful in any circumstance and did everything he was given to do well. He did not do it “as if” it was unto YHWH, but he did it knowing it was indeed ultimately for YHWH that he continued to walk uprightly, even outside the context in which his fathers had taught him. So He sought to find YHWH in every context.
23. The warden never investigated anything that was under Yosef's authority, seeing that YHWH was with him, and that YHWH was causing everything he was doing to prosper.
This is one of the highest compliments anyone could be given.
CHAPTER 40
1. And after these things [what] took place [was] that the king of Egypt's cupbearer and baker wronged their master—the very king of Egypt himself.
Cupbearer: the one responsible for making sure the king's food had not been poisoned. Wronged: Literally, missed the target, which has led many to conclude that they were aiming to kill Pharaoh, but failed and were caught because someone else died, so Pharaoh knew someone was trying to poison him. He may have arrested both because they were both logical suspects. But to simply not perform up to the highest standard would constitute grounds for arrest. This was the king’s table—the place he entertained dignitaries from around the world. What is on his table defines him to his guests. Someone could misrepresent him just by preparing a mediocre meal. For this someone had to pay, and thus both of these men were counted jointly responsible until an inquiry could be carried out.
2. And the Pharaoh was angry with both of his officials—with the chief of the cupbearers and the chief of the bakers.
Officials/chief: This suggests that it might have been someone under their authority who wronged Pharaoh, but their supervisors were held accountable. They were responsible to make sure his commands were carried out, whether they did so themselves or delegated others.
3. And he put them in custody in the prison-house of the chief executioner's household—the place where Yosef was incarcerated.
4. And the chief of the executioners assigned Yosef to them, and he attended them, and they remained in his ward for a set number of days.
The chief of the executioners: apparently Potifar himself. This might be why Yosef was given authority, though imprisoned; Potifar knew he was innocent, but had to keep him out of his wife’s sight. But he had seen the prosperity that had come with having Yosef in his house, so he gave him the same authority within the prison.
5. And they each dreamed a dream, both on the same night, each according to the symbolism of his dream—the cupbearer and the baker who worked for the king of Egypt, and who were incarcerated in the prison.
Each according to the symbolism of his dream: i.e., each dream held a different interpretation.
6. When Yosef came to them in the morning, he looked at them, and, looking [at them, he could tell] they were troubled!
Troubled: haggard, vexed, or fretting. They were worried because they knew their dreams meant something.
7. So he asked the officers of Pharaoh who were with him in custody in the house of his master, "Why do you look so awful today?"
8. And they told him, "We have each had a dream, and there is no one to interpret them." But Yosef asked, "Don't interpretations belong to Elohim? Please tell me the dreams!"
They had no access to professional interpreters, which were plentiful in Egypt. Manuals have been found in Egypt delineating over 200 types of symbolism found in dreams. E.g., if someone saw a cat in his dream, he would have a full harvest. But Yosef was saying that such formulas were not necessary. He does not take credit for interpreting the dreams, but he was confident that YHWH could give the interpretation through him, because he knew YHWH’s standards and could weigh them out according to these. When Yosef’s brothers called him “the master of dreams”, they were prophesying even though they were mocking him. His father had known how to interpret his dreams when he still did not know how, but now this calling is beginning to come to fruition in one very familiar with dreams.
9. So the chief of the cupbearers recounted his dream for Yosef. He told him, "In my dream, here before me was a vine.
10. "And the vine was made up of three branches. As soon as it budded, out came its blossoms, and its clusters ripened into grapes.
As soon as: this is much more quickly than usual. It was one vigorous vine! Ripened: or, grew to maturity.
11. "And the Pharaoh's cup was in my hand, and I took the grapes and squeezed them into Pharaoh's cup, and I placed the cup in the palm of Pharaoh's hand."
12. Then Yosef told him, "This is the interpretation: the three branches—these [represent] three days.
13. "Within another three days, the Pharaoh will lift up your head and return you to your position, and you will place Pharaoh's cup into his hand as was your custom earlier when you were his cupbearer.
14. "But remember me along with yourself, when it is again going well for you, and please do me this kindness: mention me to Pharaoh, and get me out of this house—
15. "because I was in fact brought by stealth from the land of the Hebrews, and I have not done anything here either that justified their putting me in the dungeon."
Brought by stealth: or kidnapped, stolen. He did nothing to deserve this, but he made the best of where he was, improving it in many ways.
16. Now when the chief of bakers saw that the interpretation was favorable, he told Yosef, "In my dream I also saw three baskets of white bread upon my head,
He expected that his interpretation would also be pleasing. White bread: from the most refined flour. While we now know it was not the healthiest kind of bread, it was considered more fit for a king’s table--a common mistake throughout history. Often YHWH lets the masses have the true advantage even though it does not appear to be so!
17. "and in the top basket, samples of all kinds of foods to be served to Pharaoh—all the work of a baker. But the birds were eating them from the basket on top of my head."
There is a play on words here in Hebrew: “baker” is ofeh, which sounds much like the word for birds-- ‘of.
18. So Yosef answered and said, "This is its interpretation: the three baskets represent three days.
19. "Within another three days, Pharaoh will lift up your head from upon you and hang you on a tree, and the birds will eat your flesh from off of you."
Note the twist on "lift up your head" as seen in verse 13. This time it literally means “lift off”. Tree: or any wooden pole, as in a gallows. Verse 5 said that the interpretations would be found right within the dreams, and so it is, when we compare the elements in each with one another. Each of them focused on something to do with the man’s position, yet one predicted life and the other predicted death. What was different about them? Their attitudes and actions, as revealed by their own descriptions of their dreams. The cupbearer saw blessing in what was in front of him, while the baker saw his task as a burden. The vine was full of life and was making progress, and the cupbearer took hold of the open door, and focused on turning this fruitfulness into something that would please his master. He speaks of Pharaoh three times in his recounting of the dream. The baker, on the other hand, mentions Pharaoh only once in passing, and has none of the enthusiasm we can hear in the cupbearer’s voice. He does not even seem to have baked the bread he is carrying, yet he presents it as his own. He seems not to even try to defend it from the birds that are attacking it, as Avraham did. (15:11) Even in his dream he does not accomplish his task for his master as the cupbearer does in his. There are no resources to make more bread—no field ripe for harvest as there was for the cupbearer. Pharaoh essentially said, “Enough excuses; enough laziness!”
20. And so it occurred: on the third day—which was Pharaoh's birthday—he prepared a feast for all his courtiers, and he lifted up the heads of the chief cupbearer and chief baker among his servants,
Lifted up the heads: here an ambiguous idiom for “paid attention to”, though the results were at opposite poles. Birthday: every time birthdays appear in Scripture, they are related to Gentile rulers or bad things occur. This does not mean they are innately evil, but it shows that YHWH does not necessarily place a high priority on celebrating them, nor does He ask that His Son's birthday be celebrated as such. He only indirectly tells us when it was, and it is not when most people think. But this gesture of throwing a party for his servants is an example of the consideration this Pharaoh, though in the highest position on earth at that time, could still show, and knowing that this is the kind of king he was is probably what gave Yosef confidence to think he would be willing to give his case a fair hearing. (v. 14)
21. and he restored the chief cupbearer to his cupbearer's office, and he once again placed the cup into Pharaoh's hand;
22. but he hanged the chief of the bakers.
He destroyed the one who did not take care of his bread--which is the same as the parable of the vineyard-keepers (Mat. 21:33-41) and the prophecy about the self-seeking shepherds who let the flock ail. (Yehezqel 34) But with the counterfeit out of the way, a true "preserver of the bread" was waiting in the wings.
23. However, the chief of cupbearers did not remember Yosef, but forgot about him.
Yosef brought him relief from worry, and he made an implicit promise (vv. 14-15). Yosef extended to him the kindness that YHWH had given him (39:21), but he did not reciprocate. Once he got what he needed and was a free man again, he essentially abandoned and neglected the one who had so helped him.
INTRODUCTION: The sages say that the lives of the patriarchs foreshadow the history of their lineage. That definitely holds true in this Torah portion.
The first chapter is about the rise and loss of the one who ended up in the position of the firstborn—taken away and forced to live among the Gentiles, just as would occur to his descendants, who also came to be called YHWH’s “firstborn”. (Yirmeyahu 31:9)
The next chapter describes Yehudah’s attempts at fruitfulness while separated from his brothers, and how the only way it is finally achieved is by a roundabout means whereby (as with Yaaqov’s birth) one who actually appeared first was “bumped” from his position by one with more motivation to hold the position. The royal line was saved by this birth, the first of several miraculous or circuitous passings-down of the heirship when its continuance was well beyond in doubt and, humanly speaking, had hit a dead end. This way YHWH could both keep His all-important plot absolutely fascinating—and its key player, a special seed--hidden from the one whose head might not have been crushed so easily had he been able to see clearly who was carrying it at each juncture.
What follows is a story that sounds like it could have come from this week’s headlines—another trusted public official felled by the revelation of sexual harassment. There is nothing new under the sun! The problem is, this time it was a ruse—the conniving of a “woman scorned”, a leisured lady with no better outlet for her cleverness than to bring someone truly noble down to her own level. Yet Yosef, because of the kind of man he was, brought order and prosperity even to the darkest dungeon, refusing to wallow in self-pity even though he did take reasonable measures to get out. Even there he remained confident in the One to whom interpretations belong and risked his credibility on the hope that He who had put him through these things still thought enough of him to reveal the mysteries to him. And He did—but still not the mystery of why he was in that unjust situation…
Portion VaYeshev
("And he settled")
Genesis 37:1 - 40:23
Settling In
This Torah portion begins and is named after Yaaqov’s settling into the Land to which YHWH had brought him safely back. That was as it was meant to be. But this portion is also about Yosef and Yehudah, and the experiences of the three of them can teach us some things about when to settle down and when not to.
At first (chapter 37) we see Yosef refusing to settle in where he was actually sent, because he could not find his brothers there, and so he kept moving until he found them, because that was the real goal of his father’s command. We, his descendants today are again seeking out our long-lost brothers and letting them know who they are or who we are, and while it is nice if we have a place to bring them home to, sometimes we have to spend more time finding them than in furnishing the home base. Note that they did not exactly receive him with open arms (though they did eventually treat him a bit better because of the blood connection), and maybe at first we should not expect them to welcome us either.
Yaaqov, upon hearing of Yosef’s apparent demise, settled into a mourning mode. While it is important to take time to mourn when we suffer a genuine loss, he decided he could never rebound for the rest of his life, and this made life difficult for everyone around him.
Yehudah, who by now had decided to settle somewhere else (chapter 38), but when two of his sons died childless, he settled into a rut and did not remedy the situation when he could have, out of fear that somehow his daughter-in-law was the reason they were dying. She, a foreigner, turned out to be more concerned that his name be carried on than he was, and it took a drastic and risky move on her part to shake him out of his lethargy and remind him that he could not just let this situation go on as if it was normal.
Yosef, meanwhile, is forced to resettle, but he does not mope or chafe at the bit (other than wanting to get out of prison, as any innocent person would), but rather blooms where he is planted. Whether in Potifar’s household or the dungeon, he makes it a much better place than it was before he arrived. He brings prosperity even to the dungeon, to the point where his superiors know he can be trusted to run with a job with no one looking over his shoulder.
“Hope deferred makes the heart sick” (Proverbs 13:12), and Yosef learned this after it appeared he would be able to get out of prison sooner rather than later, but then the human link in the chain broke, and he was left hanging. But still we don’t see Yosef unduly complaining. There is no way that he could have known the things that YHWH had in mind for him later, other than whatever those dreams he had so long ago might mean. He had an inkling that he was supposed to be a leader instead of this, but knew that if YHWH had put him somewhere, He had a purpose for it. So even when he hoped and prayed his situation was not permanent, he still settled in where he was, and used the leadership skills he had at his disposal, even if they were not the ones he preferred to use. And this helped him to become the wise leader he would need to be--without the arrogance that could have gotten a foothold in him had he not gone through what the interim years brought on him.
So if you are “stuck” in a place you would not have chosen, don’t settle into self-pity or even just the same-old usual. Rather, settle into bringing out the full potential of the place you are in, remembering there is more to life than the limitations you have right now. Bring the broader perspective you’ve gained in more pleasant times to bear on what’s harder to put up with. That way you make it more tolerable for not just yourself but everyone else who has to be there, even before you are able to move on out of the tight spot.
Study questions:
1. What lessons on interpersonal relations can we learn from the mistakes of Yaaqov’s sons? (Genesis 37)
2. What anomaly is found in Genesis 37:10? What might this tell us about the chronology of these chapters and those that came before?
3. Though Yaaqov expressed skepticism, was he open to the possibility that there might be something more to this? (37:11) What in his own experience might have led him to pay attention to dreams? How ought we to approach ideas that seem too radical to be just someone’s imagination?
4. Yehudah thought it better to sell his brother than to kill him. (37:26-27) But what does YHWH say about the consequences for selling the righteous? (Amos 2:6)
5. Who else enjoyed a meal while a righteous relative was suffering? (37:24-25; compare Yochanan 18:28)
6. Thoiugh Yaaqov did not know all the facts, as a prophet he said Yosef was torn in pieces. (37:33) His descendants, the Northern Kingdom, have definitely experienced this. (Compare Yirmeyahu/Jer. 5:6)
7. Why do you suppose Yehudah separated from his brothers? (38:1) How has this pattern been repeated in history? Has his had positive or negative results?
8. What was the purpose of Tamar’s “targeted prostitution”? (38:13-15)
9. Have you been in a situation where a response like Yehudah’s in 38:26 is required? How well did you do on this “test”?
10. Why is Peretz‘s breakthrough significant? (38:29)
11. Why might it be emphasized that Potifar was an Egyptian? (39:1)
12. How do you think Yosef demonstrated that YHWH was with him (39:3-6), causing others to show him favor?
13. With connections to home severed and no expectation of them ever being re-established, and with an offer of license and unimaginable power, why was Yosef concerned about integrity? (39:8-9)
14. Who does Potifar’s wife blame when she feels scorned? (39:14)
15. Why do you think Yosef’s superiors trusted him? (39:6, 23)
16. Yosef rightly gives YHWH the credit for interpreting dreams (40:8). Yet still he tells the men to relate the dreams to him. (40:9) Where did Yosef get the raw material for YHWH to use in this regard? (Hint: see 37:10) What kinds of clues did he see in the dreams about what they might mean?
17. This portion ends on a sinking note. (40:23) With the favor that had earlier evidenced YHWH’s blessing (39:3-4; 39:21) no longer seeming to be in play, do you think Yosef still felt that YHWH was with him? When you are left “hanging”, do you still trust YHWH?
Companion Passage:
Map source: Projeto Timoteo - Patriarcas
The Sidewalk
for kids
Do you have brothers or sisters? Do you ever fight with them? Do you ever fight over who is your parents’ favorite? You know, “You never treat her that way!” Usually parents try not to play favorites, but they have to treat different children differently to help them become the best that they can be, and that is different for each of us.
Well, we know Yosef actually was his father’s favorite. Maybe that wasn’t a good thing. It seems his father did see that he could be a better leader than any of them, and he put him in the position of the firstborn, though most of them were older than he. That made them jealous, but what they did to him, and worse, what they really wanted to do to him, was a little more than he deserved. Jealousy and envy (they are not the same thing) can make us do some things that maybe we wouldn’t do if we could think more clearly about what the consequences could be.
But that is what occurred, and often we have to live with what really is, not what should be, although we need to try hard to get everything back to what it should be. And that really is what Yosef did, and because of that, he is a great example to us of what we can be, even when things around us aren’t right.
After Yosef was sold as a slave, he didn’t waste his life away wishing he was somewhere else. He made the best of the situation he was in, and still put his heart into everything he did. His master noticed this, and rewarded him with the highest position he could give him. (Genesis chapter 39) He trusted him with everything, and knew he didn’t have to worry that anything would be missing after Yosef had been in the house.
But someone tempted him to want something he was not given permission to do. Does that sound familiar? It really comes out when we hear what Yosef said in reply: “No one in this house is higher than I, and [my master] has not withheld anything from me except you.” Where have you heard something like that before—someone given complete freedom except for one thing, and then someone tempts them to think they have a right to take that one thing that was forbidden?
That’s right. It’s Adam and Chawwah, and that sneaky snake. I’m sure Yosef knew the story and could see how similar it was, because he didn’t fall for it; he said, “How could I do this terrible wrong, and sin against Elohim too?” He knew his limits, and that no one, not even someone favored above everyone else, should break the rules. This prepared him for an even bigger job where not just his boss, but the king, felt confident in trusting him with everything he owned—which in that case was a whole country, and it spilled over to help lots of other countries too—all because he did the right thing.
Now that doesn’t mean he got there right away. He had a lot of trouble because the person who tempted him was very powerful and could make life hard for anyone who didn’t do what she wanted. And that’s where this week’s story leaves us hanging. But that still didn’t stop Yosef from “blooming where he was planted” and making even that prison into a very orderly, almost enjoyable place.
Yeshua, too, was given a very high position, and, sure enough, that same old someone came around and tried to get him to want still more--something that wasn’t rightfully his. And guess what? It was the same thing he tempted Adam and Chawwah with—and in fact, the same thing haSatan himself had wanted, because, yes, once he was the highest except for YHWH. But he wanted more, and it was his downfall. He didn’t tell Adam or Yeshua that, though! He tried to put the best spin on a lie and made it sound like it must be true that they could really have that extra something—the very highest position in the universe, being just like Elohim or even in place of Elohim, because there can only be one at the very top.
Unlike Adam and Chawwah, Yeshua did not grab for that “one thing more” (Philippians 2:5-11), but since haSatan is still in a very powerful position, he did make it very hard for one who didn’t do what he wanted, and we are still living in that waiting time like Yosef where we still can’t see the payoff for Yeshua’s obedience showing up yet. We still have to trust YHWH’s words that because he did the right thing, he was rewarded with a position that will finally be higher even than haSatan’s and higher than anybody else except YHWH Himself. And we’re told that this won’t change, but that after everything else is put under his feet, Yeshua is going to give it all back to YHWH, because it really belongs to Him—just as Yosef knew that the things under his authority were not really his own, but Potifar’s. He was just taking care of them.
And that’s the attitude YHWH likes: that His “sheep” are cared for by a shepherd who really cares for them and won’t make them drink muddy water because he wants to clean his feet first or, worse, might decide to eat one of them because he is hungry.
Maybe Yosef, whom his father had given the highest position, didn’t quite understand that when he was young, and who could expect him to at 17? He didn’t know how his dreams would make his brothers feel. He had to go through some very humbling experiences, but because he knew that YHWH had not given up on him, he let the hard times make him both stronger and kinder, and the world is much better even today because he did.
Will people be able to say that about you?
The Renewal of
VA-YESHEV
Many commentators have noticed the many parallels between the life of Yosef and the life of Yeshua. They are clearly there, so let’s highlight a few of them:
“When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably unto him.” (Gen. 37:4) “And his brothers said to him: 'Shall you indeed reign over us? or shall you indeed have dominion over us?' And they hated him all the more for his dreams, and for his words.” (37:8)
Yeshua told a parable about his own reception by his brothers: “A certain personage of noble birth traveled to a distant land to actively accept a kingdom that was offered to him and then return… But his subjects detested him and sent a delegation of elders after him, saying, ‘We don’t want this man reigning over us!’” (Luke 19:12, 14)
Yet he had a heart to find them: “What I am searching for is my brothers.” (37:16) Though they mistreated him when they found him, eventually circumstances forced Yosef’s brothers to be unable to survive without him. That's getting ahead of the story, but keep that in mind as it unfolds.
Yeshua, too, was concerned to find his missing brothers: “The Son of Adam came to seek and to rescue those who were lost.” (Luke 19:10) “I came only for the lost sheep of the House of Israel.” (Mat. 15:24)
Yosef’s brothers could not quite agree on how to deal with this pariah of a brother:
“Before he came near unto them, they conspired against him to slay him…But Reuben heard it, and delivered him out of their hand; and said: 'Let us not take his life.” (37:18, 21)
“Therefore the Judeans sought all the more to kill him…” (Yochanan 5:18) “Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him.” (Yoch. 12:42)
Finally, one of them came up with a solution:
“Judah said unto his brethren: 'What profit is it if we slay our brother and conceal his blood? Come, and let us sell him…” (37:26-27)
Someone with the same name had the same idea: “Then one of the twelve, called Judah…, went unto the chief priests and said unto them, ‘What will you give me if I deliver him unto you?’ And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver.” (Mat. 26:14-15)
“They took him, and cast him into the pit…And they sat down to eat bread…” (37:24-25)
"Then they led Yeshua from Caiaphas to the hall of judgment …but they themselves went not into the judgment hall, lest they should be defiled, so that they might eat the Passover.” (Yochanan 18:28)
“They stripped Yosef of his coat” (37:23)—the one that set him apart from the rest of them.
Yeshua also was stripped of a garment valuable enough for the Romans to make it the prize for winning a wager. (Mat. 27:28, 35)
“And Jacob tore his garments, and put sackcloth upon his loins, and mourned for his son many days.” (37:34)
“…They shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.” (Zech. 12:10)
He was banished to the Gentiles (37:36), much as Yeshua was, being rejected by “his own”. (Yochanan 1:11-12) But there, everyone kept recognizing that YHWH was with him, and there everyone kept leaving everything in his charge and not being concerned about it—at every level, everywhere he went, even in jail! (39:3-6; 39:21-23; 41:38-44) Likewise, the “prophet not recognized in his own hometown” (Mat. 13:57) is recognized everywhere else. (Compare 2 Shmu’el 19:11.)
Yet Yosef knew his limits (39:8-9; compare 41:40), and would not go beyond his authority. Likewise, unlike Adam, Yeshua did not grab for a position that was not offered to him. (Philippians 2:6; 1 Cor. 15:27; Luke 12:14)
That lack of arrogant ambition is precisely what earns him an additional reward (Phil. 2:9) though he was despised by some men and his own nation (Yeshayahu/Isaiah 49:6-7), just as Yosef kept being honored with higher and higher positions because he proved that he was more interested in meeting needs wherever he was than in being recognized. He didn’t spend his energy trying to find ways to get out of a less-than-ideal spot (though he did make requests when there was an opening—40:14), but rather, he “bloomed where he was planted”.
Like Daniel later, stuck in exile from his homeland, he interpreted dreams—the language by which YHWH often spoke to Gentile rulers—and thus showed them who YHWH was. But Yosef was just as willing to help his fellow prisoners as he was to help the king in this regard.
And that is where this becomes practical and applicable to us, for Yeshua also says that anyone who proves to be a faithful steward of the small things he has entrusted to us will be given “charge over all that he has”. (Luke 12:44) So be faithful in what may seem small to you now (Luke 16:10), and if you remain humble (realistic about your own limits), you will be “exalted in due time”. (1 Kefa/Peter 5:6)
But don’t do it with that ulterior motive; just do it because it is what needs to be done. As Yeshua said, “When you have done all those things which are commanded you, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants: we have [only] done that which was our duty to do.’” (Luke 17:10)
“Unprofitable” here means “not indispensable”; i.e., don’t have too high an opinion of your own importance. That way we will not have unrealistic expectations if YHWH decides that in the overall scheme of things it will work out much better if we wait a lot longer than we would prefer for some results.
Don’t pin your hopes on humans who may forget (Gen. 40:23), but on YHWH Who does not, and who remembers to bring justice to those who are unjustly oppressed. He is not slow about justice (Luke 18:8; 2 Kefa/Peter 3:9), but is waiting for the best possible time. If Yosef had not been stuck in that prison, how would they have found him so quickly when the bigger crisis came up?
Why the Separation?
Long before the ten tribes "seceded from the union", we still read of incidents where "the men of Yehudah" and "the men of Israel" are seen as two different entities. (1Sam. 11:8; 17:52; 2 Sam. 19:41-42; 20:; 24:9; 1 Kings 2:32; 12:21; 1 Chron. 21:5) And in this week's portion, we see where it all got started. Yehudah separates from being with his brothers. (Gen. 38:1) This is certainly understandable, considering what they had just done to Yosef. And this season of Hanukkah underlines the fact that there are definitely times when it is right to separate ourselves.
But the text actually says he "went down from with his brothers". This separation was a descent! Why? One could argue that he was only descending physically from Hevron, which is the city with the highest geographical elevation in Israel. But Proverbs 18:1 says, "To seek after what is desired, one separates himself, breaking out [in contention] against all [advancement based on] sound judgment."
The patriarch Yehudah did come back to be with his brothers, and Yaaqov saw the leadership potential in him already, sending him on ahead to scope out and prepare the temporary dwelling place for all Israel.
But the fact that Moshe had to pray that YHWH would bring Yehudah back to his people (Deut. 33:7) shows that the problem was not fully solved at that point. It got much worse.
In Proverbs 18 the term "separates" does not mean to go down, but to part ways, scatter, or divide--the very thing that the rest of the tribes ended up doing in response to the oppression the king of Yehudah's desire to advance himself at their expense brought upon them. YHWH said that separation was from Him, and by it He foremd two witnesses. Yet He later reached out through all the prophets and ultimately through Yeshua to heal the breach and make Israel into one people again.
But this separation still persists today, and is all the clearer now that it is coming to light just who those present-day brothers of Yehudah, whose identity was so long lost even to ourselves, are. Tellingly, Yehudah's religion itself is named after the tribe, not after the content of its creed. We, too, have much in our religious history to repent for in order to heal the breach. Yet after we give up the pagan accretions, why does Yehudah still seek to remain separate?
We can only pray that that blessed tribe will follow the precedent set in the aftermath of Avshalom's dividing of the kingdom, when the rest of Israel has seen their error, and the elders of Yehudah are asked, "Why are you--his own bone and flesh--the last to bring the king back to his own home?" (2 Sam. 19:11-12). And prophecy would seem to bear it out: When YHWH lets us "look on the one we have [all] pierced", each tribe and family will mourn separately for one last time. (Z'kharyah 12:10-14)
After Babylon is removed from the equation, the two divisions will seek YHWH--and our no-longer-temporary homeland--together. (Jeremiah 50:4-5)
Dothan
Sustenance While
Still in the Dark
Whenever the righteous prosper, as they will when they dedicate themselves to doing what YHWH has commanded (Psalm 1), the enemy takes notice and tries to thwart it—to “steal, kill, and destroy” (Yoch. 10:10), for how can he who knows he is condemned stand to see others experience joy? We see it again and again—with Y’hoshafat, Hizqiyahu, Daniel, Yeshua: jealous individuals try to take down those who, because they have done things rightly, are experiencing the blessings inherent in doing so. We see it now with prosperous nations, not the least of which is Israel, which those who mismanaged its land want back.
That is nothing new. Though Potifar’s wife was attracted to Yosef, once her will was crossed, she could no longer hide her anti-semitism. (39:14, 17) She kept referring to “that Hebrew”. The closer we get to the heart of the world system (as Egypt was), whoever wants to please Elohim will be persecuted. (2 Tim. 3:12) That is the kind of war we are in. But it assures us we are on the right side. (Mat. 5:10-12)
But while that makes it bearable, it does not make it easy. We see these as epic histories of heroes, but they are also very personal accounts of real people’s emotions. Imagine how they felt in the middle of the “stories” when they didn’t know the outcome. No matter how strong our faith, we still feel the pain.
But several times we are told, at each stage of his supposed unseating, “YHWH was with Yosef, and showed kindness to him, and gave him favor … and whatever he did, YHWH made to prosper.” (39:2, 21,23) His kindness even extended to the fact that, as one Midrash points out, the caravan on which he was taken to Egypt was one loaded with sweet-smelling spices (37:25) rather than alternative, foul-smelling cargo which would truly have made his journey awful. Even their fragrance kept hope alive.
Yet despite success everywhere he went, Yosef still wanted to get out of his situation. (40:14-15) There’s nothing wrong with that; YHWH never commanded him to go to prison. It may have been the natural result of refusing to take the easy path, but it was still an injustice he did not deserve. It was an illicit pot-shot from someone who thought she deserved whatever she wanted, and that is exactly the attitude of Jezebel (1 Kings 21)—and haSatan, who aspired to something he was not built for. (Isa. 14:14) While such treatment is standard for the age in which he still retains a hold, his clutches have been dislodged and it is only a matter of time until he loses his grip altogether. It is a joyful thing when all the injustices of this age are finally resolved and haSatan is bound. All the heavens and the righteous on earth (many of whom were its victims) rejoice at Babylon’s fall. (Rev. 18:20) That is right and good.
So while we are empowered to be content in any circumstance (Philippians 4:11-13), a large part of what drives that power is the knowledge that our forerunner has already “overcome the world”, and we can therefore not only have peace, but even “be of good cheer” (Yochanan 16:33) despite the trouble that is inevitable while we still wear mortal flesh, for these conditions are only temporary.
But this portion ends without resolution. Yosef had only the promises given to his fathers to hang onto, but their few testimonies of YHWH’s faithfulness carried him through times in which most would have given in and just assimilated to the pessimism around us. Today we have many more “exceedingly great and precious promises” (2 Peter 1:4) to hold onto, by which we can “escape the corruption in the world” —and more, and thus have all the more empowerment: “The joy of YHWH is your strength.” (Neh. 8:10)
The banner we are carrying is the same one passed on to us from the likes of Yosef and Daniel, and the finish line, with its reward, is nearly in sight. (2 Tim. 4:7-8) So though things still look all wrong, don’t give in to despair. Press on. The same Elohim that sustained Yosef is with us—if we stay with Him.
The Significance of Paretz
The scarlet cord on the wrist of Yehudah’s son/grandson Zarakh (Gen. 38:28-30) is a redemptive theme we see again in Joshua 2:18-21 and a picture of the first and second Adam. Yeshua (called the "Arm of YHWH” in Isaiah 53:1-2) existed before Adam, yet Adam appeared on the earthly scene before him. (Yoch. 1:30) After red blood marked his wrists, Yeshua withdrew from view, but later was raised to prominence (Philippians 2:9).
But it is easy to gloss over his brother who, like Yaaqov, fought his twin to be born first. After all, he does not play a part in the rest of the story in Genesis, where Yosef resumes center stage. But there is a song (L’cha, Dodi) traditionally sung at the opening of the Sabbath that has a very curious couplet:
“You will break forth to the right and to the left. By the hand of the man [who is the] son of Paretz, we will be glad and we will rejoice.”
This is a reference to the coming of the Messiah. But what is so special about Paretz, that the Messiah is known not just as the “Son of David”, but also as the “Son of Paretz”?
Paretz means "breach-maker", by which we can “break forth” (a related word) as in the song. (That part is based on Isa. 54:3.) But how? He shows up again when Naomi is blessed: “May your household be like the House of Paretz, whom Thamar bore to Yehudah, through the seed YHWH gives you from this young woman." (Ruth 4:12)
A seemingly unflattering blessing, considering the circumstances of Paretz’s conception! But the "seed" here alludes to the first usage in the prophecy of the “Seed of the Woman” (Gen. 3:15).
The key is that Ruth ends with a section that begins, “These are the generations of Paretz”, a genealogy seen nowhere else in Scripture. But this pattern—“these are the generations” (tol’doth)—is repeated many times throughout Genesis (first in 2:4). After Adam's fall, tol’doth is spelled "defectively", with one letter (vav/waw) missing (though pronounced the same) in every case until this one in Ruth 4:18, where the full spelling is restored.
Why is this important?
Remember that line, “the man [who is the] son of Paretz”? “Man” is an integral part of the description. Why? The missing letter has the numeric value of 6, the number of man. Adam was created on the 6th day. But after Adam disobeyed, YHWH asked him, “Where have you gone?” (3:9) The man, as He created him, was missing!
There is a pattern in Torah: the women who carry the promised seed (Sarah, Rivqah, Leah, and Thamar) are always concerned that the father’s name is carried on through the right son. It was important that this line in particular continue.
But there was another glitch: Descendants of an illegitimate birth (for Yehudah’s liaison with Thamar is forbidden in Lev. 18:15) may not be leaders in Israel until the 10th generation. (Deut. 23:2) That’s why Israel had to wait so long for Gen. 49:9 to be fulfilled. But David was the 10th from Yehudah! (Mat. 1:3-6)
Like Boaz, Paretz was a roundabout means by which YHWH restored the Messianic line, which had hit a dead-end because of Yehudah's failure to allow his firstborn son's widow the proper levirate redemption. Ruth’s son Oved's birth likewise sealed the guarantee that the throne of David, and thus Messiah's throne, could be established.
The man is restored! The Seed of the Woman made a breach in the government that was usurped by the one he called “the ruler of this age” (Yochanan 12:31) and restored the dominion of earth to mankind again. Pontius Pilate said a lot more than he realized when he pointed to the one on trial and said, “Behold the man!” (Yn. 19:5)
And like Boaz, Yeshua was the kinsman redeemer from the tribe of Yehudah who became YHWH’s amazing, roundabout solution to the restoration of the scattered tribes to their original inheritance. (Isa. 49:6) His legacy has not been lost, though at first he seemed to have failed, because after a long and circuitous route, here we are! And through this recombining of the Two Houses of Israel, “one new man” is formed. (Eph. 2:15).
The Same Story in
Many Different Pictures
This appears to be the part Yaaqov recorded (Gen. 37:1), but since it focuses more on Israel’s children than the patriarch himself, the narrative becomes even more personal for both Jews and those of us who are non-Jews returning to Torah covenant with YHWH. It spotlights both the Jews’ ancestor (Yehudah) and ours (Yosef/Joseph).
The haftarah (Zech. 2:14-4:7) is related to Hanukkah (the particularly-Jewish season when this portion is read) because of its references to a menorah. It starts out (Zech. 2:16) with Yehudah back in the holy land after the Babylonian exile. (Since the scattering of Ephraim in 722 B.C.E., it, with Benjamin and Levi, has been the only part of Israel to legally inhabit the Land.)
But it connects with Yosef’s story as well, for Yosef’s descendant Yarav’am (Jeroboam), from the tribe of (Yosef’s son) Ephraim, led the northern kingdom of Israel so far astray that the nation had to be disbanded and exiled. So Genesis 37 is not the last time Yosef was taken captive by several nations. But all the other prophets tell us that Ephraim will also return to our land one day. (Ezek. 34:13; 37:21; 39:28, etc.) And just as YHWH was with Yosef and showed him favor through all of his trials (Gen 39:2, 21), He said that during Yosef’s descendants’ exile He would still be a “little sanctuary” to us in whatever country He sent us to. (Ezekiel 11:16)
But Yehudah had already separated himself from his brothers (Gen. 38:1) in his own lifetime, and there it was called a descending. But YHWH has foretold that this separation will not remain forever. In another return from Babylon (Jer. 50:8), Yehudah and the rest of Israel will return together to Zion (Jer. 50:4-7; Isa. 11:10-13)
Back to the haftarah: Y’hoshua the high priest and those who attend him are said to be symbolic. (Zech. 3:8) Of what? The verse tells us: of a special servant of YHWH known as the “Offshoot” whom He would bring on the scene. Offshoot of what? First, the line of David that was put under a curse to never sit on his throne again. (Jer. 22:30) Like the stump of a cut-down tree, it appeared the promised Messiah (Isa. 9:7) could not come after all.
But Zerubbavel (Zechariah 4; more detail in Haggai 2) was the means by which that would be remedied. He was in the kingly line, but, true to the prophecy, had no throne. Nonetheless, because he was faithful though his position was diminished, he was given a pivotal role in Yedudah’s first return and also in circumventing the curse, for Zerubbavel is in both genealogies of Yeshua (Matthew 1:13 and Luke 3:27). Luke’s genealogy appears to be of Miryam, Yeshua’s mother, to show her descent from David as well. Dr. Arthur Custance surmised there was a levirate marriage (She’altiel being counted as Zerubbavel’s father though his surviving brother actually was) so there could be a legal passing on of the position, but direct descendants of the cursed Y’khonia not be physical progenitors of the one who would still inherit the title through the line of Yeshua’s adoptive father (interestingly also named Yosef—a double-entendre in the Jewish tradition of the suffering servant being called “Messiah ben Yosef”. Zerubbavel would nevertheless still be Yeshua’s ancestor through “the seed of the woman” (Gen. 3:15, a prophecy of which the description of Y’hoshua as “plucked from [already being in] the fire” as a rebuke to haSatan, carries strong echoes). And as Yosef was spared from death, his people, though lost, would be restored.
How was this accomplished? As told to Zerubbavel himself, “‘Not by [military] might, nor by [human] power, but by My Spirit’, declares YHWH.” (Zech. 4:6) YHWH’s Spirit through another kind of power from the Almighty is the means by which the virgin was able to conceive. (Luke 1:35; Isa. 11:1-2—note the “branch” motif again.) We are given no more detail than that, so it’s dangerous to speculate as to the how until we receive more understanding about the unfertilized egg that survived--and maybe that is just the point of Zech. 4:6. As an offshoot of yet another cut-off line much further back, Yeshua salvaged the human race itself, as a “latter Adam” (1 Cor. 15:45)
If you are not a biological descendant of Yehudah or another tribe of Israel, Zechariah still speaks of you: “In that day many nations will join themselves to YHWH, and shall be My people.” (2:15) Yosef seeks his missing brothers (Gen. 37:16); Yeshua ben Yosef seeks the lost and makes them children of Israel as well. (Luke 19:9-10)
So while He chose Yehudah to make all of this possible (Zech. 3), Israel is no exclusive club. But it is the trunk into which all those salvaged must be grafted. (Gen. 28:14) So be careful how you, as a branch, treat the root. (Rom. 11:16-18)
