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| Parashat Beshalach (A)
V
RAV SAMET'S EXPLANATION
Rav Elhanan Samet, of Makhon Herzog, suggests that we are misled in our understanding of Yosephs' dreams because we assume that the reactive-interpretations of both brothers and father are accurate. To wit, we believe that both dreams foretell Yoseph's future role as "king" of the family and that his brothers, father and mother(!) will bow to him in subjugation. That understanding seems to be adopted by Yoseph himself, as reflected by the evocation of these dreams when the brothers appear before him in Egypt:
And Yoseph knew his brothers, but they knew not him. And Yoseph remembered the dreams which he dreamed of them, (42:8-9)
Rashi, ad loc., comments that now Yoseph saw the dreams fulfilled, since his brothers were bowing to him. Ramban disagrees and maintains that as a result of Yoseph remembering the dreams, he realized that they were not yet fulfilled, since father was not yet here, nor were all the brothers. (Ramban utilizes this interpretation to defend Yoseph against the claim that he erred in not notifying his father that he was alive and well. See the Akedat Yitzhak ad loc. for a critique of Ramban's approach).
One could argue that the brothers never did bow to Yoseph -for even when they bowed to the Egyptian governor, they did not know of his identity. The essence of subjugation lies in awareness - the slave prostrates himself before his liege because he is aware that that selfsame ruler is his master. If the brothers bowed to the Egyptian Tzaph'nat Pa'aneach, that seems to have little, if anything, to do with the fulfillment of these dreams.
The only time that they knowingly bowed to Yoseph was after father Ya'akov's death (50:18) - and it seems difficult to see this act, over 40 years after Yoseph's dreams, as having anything to do with them.
Rav Samet suggests that we err in understanding Yoseph's dreams as the brothers did - because we aren't paying sufficient attention to "dream language". Since we accept the notion that the sheaves, stars, sun and moon are all symbolic - why are we assuming that the prostration is literal? If we interpret the dreams consistently, than we should understand the prostration of the family members as a symbolic act.
What, then, could their bowing to brother Yoseph symbolize?
Although bowing often indicates subservience, we find numerous occasions where it has other uses. For instance, Avraham bows to the Hittites twice during his negotiations for the Cave of Makhpelah (23:7,12) - and Avraham certainly did not accept their dominion (they called him a prince). We also find that Ya'akov bowed to Yoseph (albeit without prostration - he was in bed) when Yoseph committed to burying Ya'akov in K'na'an (47:31).
In other words, the act of bowing within T'nakh context may indicate appreciation and dependence - without implying subservience or servitude.
Let's see how this understanding of "prostration" (in dream language) plays out in an interpretation of Yoseph's dreams:
A: THE FIRST DREAM
The first dream, involving the sheaves, has clear literary "markers" which set off three independent scenes - each introduced with the word "Hinei":
1) For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and,
2) lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and,
3) behold, your sheaves stood around, and made obeisance to my sheaf.
The framework and setting of this dream are clear - the field, representing agriculture and sustenance.
In the first scene, the brothers are all working together - representing a common economic venture. This is most plainly understood as representing the period of "the present" - when the entire family is still working as one cohesive financial unit.
In the second scene, only Yoseph is present - the brothers are "off-stage". In other words, there will be a period in the future when Yoseph will comprise an independent financial unit, separate from that of the family. This sheaf rises and stands upright - implying consistent and stable financial success in this new, independent position.
The final scene (the focus of the brothers' angry reaction) has the brothers (represented by their sheaves) bowing to Yoseph (represented by his sheaf. Once we understand "bowing" as symbolizing a relationship of dependence, we can clearly see the complete realization of this dream. When Yoseph finally revealed himself to his brothers, one of the first things he said was:
And there will I nourish you; (45:11).
Again, after the burial of Ya'akov:
Now therefore do not fear; I will nourish you, and your little ones. (50:21)
The entire family was totally dependent on Yoseph for their sustenance - a role he was only too happy to fulfill.
We might even argue that this "enlightened" understanding of the meaning of the dreams occurred to Yoseph when his brothers came before his throne:
And Yoseph remembered the dreams which he dreamed of them, (42:9)
The word "Lahem" (of them) may be translated "about them"; to wit: he remembered the dreams that he dreamt about his brothers. It may, alternatively, be understood as "on their behalf", meaning "he remembered the dreams that he dreamt for them." In other words, Yoseph now understood that he had risen to this great position in order to help the family out of their present financial crisis (see our essay on Parashat Vayyigash this year).
The first dream is not only less threatening to the brothers, but every detail comes true.
B: THE SECOND DREAM
Beside the shift from the agricultural to the cosmic arena (and the apparent inclusion of father and mother), the second dream is distinct from the first in that Yoseph is consistently represented as himself. The stars bow - not to Yoseph's star, rather to Yoseph himself.
If we are to explain these dreams with the same rigorous attention to detail as Yoseph employs in interpreting dreams in Egypt, we must take this nuance into account. In addition to this, we must also address the overall question of what new message this dream is conveying; otherwise, what need is there for a second dream?
Again, we must focus on the setting of the dream: The stars above. What do the stars represent in Sefer B'resheet (and throughout T'nakh)? The answer is quite simple: The stars represent the B'nei Yisra'el. Note B'resheet 22:17 (Avraham), 26:4 (Yitzhak), Sh'mot 32:13 (the Avot as a group), D'varim 10:22 (Mosheh).
[Parenthetic note: Although the B'nei Yisra'el are also compared, in their vast numbers, to the sand by the shore (e.g. B'resheet 22:17, 32:16, Hoshea 2:1), Haza"l sensitively point out that these do not reflect the same type of greatness:
This people is likened to the dust and it is likened to the stars. When they go down, they go down to the dust, and when they rise they rise to the stars. [BT Megillah 16a]
The comparison to the stars is, therefore, not just about the sheer multitude of Avraham's children - it is about their greatness, nobility and achievement of the objectives of that great blessing.)
Once we take this symbolism into account, the meaning of the second dream - and its significance independent of the first dream - becomes apparent. Again utilizing our interpretation that in dreamspeak prostration implies a dependence, the second dream means that the success of the family, as the continuation of the Avrahamic tribe and tradition, will be wholly dependent (at least at one point in time) on Yoseph.
Here is where the difference between the dreams, noted above, comes into play. Whereas Yoseph was represented by a sheaf in the first dream - putting him on somewhat equal billing (if not footing) as his kin, in the second dream they are all represented by heavenly bodies while Yoseph appears as himself.
The meaning becomes quite clear when we understand that the message of this dream is that Yoseph will be the one responsible for managing, maintaining and ensuring the success of the family in their noblest and most critical endeavor: Being a blessing for all of Mankind (B'resheet 12:3).
Indeed, upon the descent of the family to Egypt (B'resheet 46), Yoseph uses his position and cunning to create favorable conditions for the family to prosper - spiritually as well as economically - in their new environs. When presenting his brothers to Pharaoh, Yoseph advises them:
And it shall come to pass, when Pharaoh shall call you, and shall say, What is your occupation? That you shall say, Your servants’ trade has been keeping cattle from our youth until now, both we, and also our fathers; that you may live in the land of Goshen; for every shepherd is an abomination to the Egyptians. (46:33-34)
We now understand why Yoseph appears "as himself" in the second dream. It is not Yoseph as a "symbol" or as a figurehead that will ensure the survival and success of the family; rather, it is Yoseph as a person, using his own personality, charm and cunning, who will help keep the family alive.
This is most clearly seen in Yoseph's final words:
And Yoseph said to his brothers, I die; and God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land to the land which he swore to Avraham, to Yitzhak, and to Ya'akov. And Yoseph took an oath from the B'nei Yisra'el, saying, God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here. (50:24-25). How powerful a statement: It is Yoseph, the man who succeeded in Egypt like no other foreigner could have, the man who engineered the family's descent and resettlement there - it is that selfsame Yoseph who keeps the dream alive and reminds his brothers that "this is not home" and that God will surely bring them back home.
VI
THE SUN AND THE MOON
The section above is a synopsis (faithful, I hope) of Rav Samet's explanation of Yoseph's dreams.
There is one major problem with his explanation - the role of the sun and the moon. Although it would be tempting to accept his explanation - that the success not only of the children but also of their parents - is dependent on Yoseph, I believe that this is insufficient. If we accept the stars as symbolic of the B'nei Yisra'el, then the sun and moon have no place in their orbit. Although the sun and moon appear as the chief heavenly bodies throughout T'nakh (e.g. B'resheet 1:16, T'hillim 148:3, Iyyov 9:7), they are never associated with the B'nei Yisra'el.
The answer to this final "missing piece" of the puzzle of Yoseph's dreams is found much later in Israelite history. Whereas the "sheaf" dream is fulfilled rather immediately - within the lives of all who were originally involved with the dream - the "stars" dream is only realized after a number of generations.
Before suggesting a solution to this puzzle, I'd like to point out one last anomaly - this time at the end of Sefer B'resheet:
And Yoseph lived in Egypt, he, and his father’s house; and Yoseph lived a hundred and ten years…So Yoseph died, being a hundred and ten years old; (50:22,26)
Why does the text mention his life-span twice within a matter of five verses? Even Mosheh, whose age of 120 becomes the archetype for the life of an extraordinary person (e.g. Rabbi Akiva), only has his final age mentioned once (D'varim 34:7. Mosheh does own up to his age in his farewell speech - [31:2], but that is a full three chapters away and within the context of his speech. Yoseph is still the only person in Torah whose age at death is mentioned by the text twice).
I'd like to suggest that although Yoseph died in Egypt at the age of 110, his mission (as laid out in the dreams) was not yet complete and would not be complete until the B'nei Yisra'el were brought back to Eretz Yisra'el as a nation.
This mission would only be accomplished through his descendant, Yehoshua bin-Nun, of the tribe of Ephraim - who lived to the ripe old age of 110.
VII
BACK TO YESHOSHUA
Although Yehoshua had the allegiance of all of the tribes of Yisra'el - more so than any leader since - his greatest moment was undoubtedly during the battle against the alliance of the five southern kings, as their armies fled the B'nei Yisra'el down the slopes of Beit Horon:
Then spoke Joshua to Hashem in the day when Hashem delivered the Amorites before the people of Yisra'el, and he said in the sight of Yisra'el,
Sun, stand still upon Gibeon; and you, Moon, in the valley of Ayalon.
And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, until the people had avenged themselves upon their enemies. Is not this written in the Book of Yashar?
So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and hastened not to go down about a whole day.
And there was no day like that before it or after it, when Hashem listened to the voice of a man; for Hashem fought for Yisra'el. (Yehoshua 10:12-14)
There was never a man to whom the sun and moon showed obeisance - save Yehoshua bin-Nun, a member of the tribe of Ephraim, a son of Yoseph.
We now understand why Yoseph's bones were kept with Yehoshua's army until his storied career came to a close. Yehoshua's task was Yoseph's - that which the ancestor had begun, the descendant had to complete.
We also understand why there is a veiled reference to the possible inclusion of Sefer Yehoshua in the canon of Torah at the end of the Sefer:
And Yehoshua wrote these words B'sefer Torat Elokim
since Yehoshua's mission was the completion of the task of that hero of Sefer B'resheet, his ancestor Yoseph.
Although Sefer Yehoshua remains outside of the Torah, the many textual and thematic associations which bind it to the Humash will be the focus of next week's shiur, as we attempt to understand Yehoshua, the man, the leader and the disciple of Moshe Rabbenu.
VIII
POSTSCRIPT:
SEFER HAYASHAR
In the critical section from Yehoshua 10 quoted above, the text states that this story and/or prayer/song was written in Sefer haYashar. What is this book?
Most scholars follow Ibn Ezra's lead (Bamidbar 21:14) that the T'nakh text will refer to Sefarim that existed at the time of the T'nakh and are lost to us (e.g. Sefer Milhamot Hashem, Sefer haYashar, Sefer haShir), Haza"l interpret Sefer haYashar as referring to any number of books within the canon. In the central Talmudic section, the first assay is:
What is the Sefer haYashar? — Said R. Hiyya b. Abba in the name of R. Yohanan: It is the book of Avraham, Yitzhak and Ya'akov, who are designated as Yesharim (righteous), (BT Avodah Zarah 25a)
Although the Gemara goes on to find a faint allusion to the miracle of the sun and moon standing still, I'd like to suggest that if Sefer haYashar is indeed Sefer B'resheet, the text is quite clear in asking: Is it not written in Sefer haYashar?
Indeed, it is clearly written:
Behold, I have again dreamed a dream; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me. | |
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| Mikra, Copyright © 2012 by Rabbi Yitzchak Etshalom and Torah.org. The author is Educational Coordinator of the Jewish Studies Institute of the Yeshiva of Los Angeles. |
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