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> Genesis/Bereishis > Parshat Mikketz
> Joseph Q&A
Why
did Joseph subject his brothers to so much grief before revealing
himself?
1. He wished to fulfill his dream of their being his subjects.
2. He wished to allow them the opportunity to repent and show that they
had changed.
3. He wished to punish them a little. (Redak)
4. He wasn't sure what to do with them. That's why he changes his plan
several times.
5. He suspected that they had also killed Benjamin so he asked them to
bring him.
6. He wanted them to be able to prove themselves so that they need not
be embarrassed so much about their past deeds.
7. He wanted the brothers to be able to prove themselves and for Joseph
to be able to show his compassion so that the entire past could be
erased and Jacob would feel that all his children were good people. If
he had just revealed himself, Jacob would be happy to hear of Joseph's
return but disappointed in the brothers for their misdeeds. This way
the whole family was restored. (SR Hirsch)
Did Jacob think Joseph was dead?
Jacob in last week's portion seems to state that he believes that a wild
animal ate Joseph. However, a parent is not so likely to give up on a
child. For that reason he refused to be comforted all those years for
his loss. The Rabbis note that when Jacob prays for the return of Benjamin
and Simeon (who was placed in jail to assure the return of the
brothers), he also prays for the return of the "other brother."
This expression could refer to Simeon. Why didn't Jacob refer to him by
name? Because elsewhere Jacob says he doesn't wish to be associated with
Simeon and his murder of Shechem. But by the same token, since Jacob was
not so fond of Simeon, he may not have been referring at all to him, but
rather to Joseph, who, in his heart of hearts, he suspected was
still alive, perhaps even achieving great things, maybe even in Egypt.
Today Israel is plagued with 8 missing in action soldiers. 4 from the
Lebanon war in the 80's and 4 from the current conflict. While some
might give up on their missing in action after a while, we, as brothers
to those missing in action, can never give up hope. One never gives up
on family.
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