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THE TANACH STUDY CENTER www.tanach.org
In Memory of Rabbi Abraham Leibtag
Shiurim in Chumash & Navi
by Menachem Leibtag
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PARSHAT VA'YESHEV - Who
Sold Yosef?
Could it be that the brothers DID NOT sell Yosef!
As shocking as this statement may sound to anyone familiar with the
story of Yosef & his brothers; a careful reading of that narrative in
Chumash may actually support this possibility!
In the following shiur, we explore this fascinating possibility (and
its consequences) while taking into account some important geographic
considerations.
INTRODUCTION
After throwing your brother into a pit
to die, would you be able to 'sit down to eat'?
The brothers did, so does the Torah tell us (see 37:24-25)! But when they sat down to eat, the Torah DOES
NOT tell us if they sat NEAR the pit, listening to Yosef's screaming and
pleading; OR if they sat FAR AWAY from the pit - to enjoy some 'peace and
quiet'?
So what difference does it make?
Believe it or not, this tiny detail
affects our understanding of almost every aspect of the story that ensues. Our shiur will entertain each possibility -
showing how this 'missing detail' may be what leads several commentators to
conclude that the brothers may never have sold Yosef after all!
However, before we discuss that detail,
we must first review the Torah's description of these events, making sure that
we understand not only what everyone is doing and planning, but more important
- what everyone is thinking!
[We
should also point out, that the distance between Hebron, where Yaakov is
living, and Dotan, where the brothers are grazing their sheep, is about 100
kilometers. Therefore, the brothers are
probably gone for at least several weeks.
Certainly, they don't come home to Hebron to sleep at night, rather,
they have set up a 'campsite' in the Dotan area.]
PLAN A - THE BROTHERS /
FIRST DEGREE MURDER
Recall that as soon as Yosef arrives at
Dotan, the brothers conspire to kill him (see 37:18-20). However, their plan concerning HOW to kill
him is revised several times.
To show how, let's begin with the brothers' original plan to kill
Yosef, as soon as they saw him [PLAN A]:
"They
(the brothers) saw him from afar, and before he came close... they conspired to
kill him. And they said to one another,
behold the 'dreamer' is coming. Now,
let's KILL him and throw his body into one of the pits..." (see 37:18-20).
Note
how the brothers originally plan to kill Yosef immediately (on the spot) and then
'bury him' in a pit - most likely to 'hide the evidence' (should their father
later accuse them).
Although Reuven opposes Yosef's murder,
he realizes that the brothers would not accept his opinion. Therefore, instead of arguing with his
brothers, he devises a shrewd plan that will first postpone Yosef's execution,
and enable him at a later time to secretly bring Yosef back home.
[See further iyun for
an explanation of why specifically Reuven wants to save Yosef.]
PLAN B - REUVEN'S PLAN /
SECOND DEGREE MURDER
As you read Reuven's plan, be sure to
differentiate between what Reuven SAYS (to his brothers) and what Reuven THINKS
(to himself):
"...
And Reuven said... 'Do not shed blood, cast him into a pit [in order that he
die] OUT IN THE 'MIDBAR' (wilderness), but do not touch him yourselves --'
[End
of quote! Then, the narrative continues by informing the reader of Reuven's
true intentions...]
"in order to
save him [Yosef] from them and return him to his father." (37:22).
Reuven's 'official' plan (that the
brothers accept) is to let Yosef die in a less violent manner, i.e. to throw
him alive into a deep pit to die, instead of murdering him in cold blood. However, Reuven's secretly plans to later
return to that pit and free him.
Note how Reuven even suggests the
specific 'pit' into which to throw Yosef - "ha-bor HA-ZEH asher
ba-midbar"! Most probably so that
he can later sneak away to that pit and save him.
[Compare
this to the brothers' original plan to throw him into "one of the
pits" (37:20) - possibly a pit closer by.]
Unaware of Reuven's true intentions, the
brothers agree.
Yosef arrives, and - in accordance with
PLAN B - the brothers immediately strip Yosef of his special cloak and throw
him alive into the pit (see 37:23-24).
Afterward, the Torah informs us, they sit down to eat (see 37:25).
WHERE ARE THEY EATING?
Until
this point, the plot is clear. Now, two
important details are missing which affect our understanding of the rest of the
story.
1) WHERE did they sit down to eat, i.e.
close by or far away?
2) WHERE is REUVEN, eating with them, or
off on his own?
Even though the Torah does not tell us, we can attempt to answer these
two questions by employing some 'deductive reasoning'.
(1) Where are the brothers eating?
Recall that the brothers are grazing their sheep in the Dotan area [see
37:17/ today the area of Jenin, between Shechem and Afula], which is on the
northern slopes of central mountain range of Israel. The midbar" [wilderness], that Reuven is
talking about, is found some 5-10 kilometer to the east of Dotan (that
"midbar" is found along the eastern slopes of the entire central
mountain range).
Considering that the brothers throw Yosef into a pit 'out in the
MIDBAR', it would definitely make sense for them to return afterward to their
campsite in the Dotan area to eat (see 37:16-17). Besides,
it would not be very appetizing to eat lunch while listening to your little
brother screaming for his life from a pit nearby - see 42:21 for proof that he
was indeed screaming. ]
And even should one conclude that it would have been just as logical
for them to have sat down to eat near the pit, when we consider the whereabouts
of Reuven, it becomes quite clear that they must have sat down to eat farther
away.
[Later
in the shiur, we will bring textual proof for this assumption as well.
2) Where is Reuven?
Considering that Reuven's real plan is to later save Yosef from the
pit, it would only be logical from him to either stay near the pit, or at least
remain with his brothers (wherever they may be). Certainly it would not make
sense, according to his real plan, for him to go far away, and to leave his
brothers by the pit!
However, from the continuation of the story we know for sure that
Reuven did not stay near the pit, because he RETURNS to the pit only AFTER
Yosef is sold! Therefore, if Reuven left
the pit area, then certainly the brothers also must have left that area. Hence, it would only be logical to conclude
that the brothers are indeed eating away from the pit, and Reuven must be
eating with them!
After all, not joining them for lunch could raise their suspicion. Furthermore, the Torah never tells us that he
left his brothers.
In summary, by taking the logic of
Reuven's plan into consideration, we conclude that Reuven remains with his
brothers, as they all sit down to eat AWAY from the pit.
[Obviously,
this interpretation does not follow Rashi's explanation that Reuven had left
his brothers, as it was his turn to take of his father. See further iyun section for a discussion of
how and why our shiur disagrees with that approach, and prefers the approach of
Rashbam and Chizkuni.]
PLAN C - YEHUDA'S PLAN / A 'QUICK BUCK'
Now that we have established that Reuven
and the brothers are sitting down to eat at a distance far away from the pit,
we can continue our study of the narrative, to see if this conclusion fits with
its continuation:
"And
the brothers sat down to eat, and they lifted up their eyes and saw a
caravan of Yishmaelim coming from the Gilad carrying [spices]... to
Egypt.
Then Yehuda said to his brothers, 'What do we gain by killing our
brother ... let us SELL him [instead] to the Yishmaelim; after all, he is our
brother, our own flesh, and his brothers agreed" (37:25-27).
[From
Yehuda's suggestion, it becomes clear that the brothers truly planned to allow
Yosef to die in the pit. and were unaware of Reuven's intention to save him.]
If indeed Reuven is still sitting with
his brothers, then this new plan (to sell Yosef) puts him in quite a
predicament, for if the brothers would sell Yosef, his own plan to rescue him
would be ruined. Reuven has only one
alternative - he must 'volunteer' to fetch Yosef from the pit, in order to free
him - before his brothers may sell him.
What happens when Reuven returns to the
pit? We'll soon see. But before we continue, we must provide a
little background on Israel's geography, which is essential towards understanding
the psukim that follow.
THE ANCIENT TRADE ROUTE
Recall that Yosef met his brothers while
they were grazing their sheep in the hilly area of Dotan (see 37:17), north of Shechem. Recall as well that during their meal, the
brothers 'lifted up their eyes' and noticed a caravan of YISHMAELIM traveling
down from the GILAD (today, the northern mountain range in Jordan), on its way
to Egypt (see 37:25).
Now, when we read this story in Chumash,
most everyone assumes that this convoy will soon pass nearby the spot where the
brothers are eating. However, when we
consider the geography involved, it is more probable to arrive at a very
different conclusion!
This CARAVAN of Yishmaelim (camels et
al.) most likely should be traveling along the ancient trade route (better
known as the Via Maris), which crosses through Emek Yizrael (the Jezreel
Valley) on its way toward the Mediterranean coast. Therefore, this convoy, now sighted by the
brothers as it descends from the Gilad Mountains in Transjordan, must first
pass through the Bet She'an valley, continuing on towards Afula and Megiddo in
Emek Yizrael, on its way towards the coast.
Certainly, it would NOT pass the hilly area of Dotan, for it would make
no sense for the caravan to climb the Gilboa mountain range to cross through
the Dotan area to reach the coast. Let's
explain why.
Dotan, today the area of Jenin (about 20
kilometers north of Shechem) lies about 10 kilometers SOUTH of this main
highway (the Via Maris) as it crosses Emek Yizrael. In altitude, Dotan sits about 300-400 meters
above Emek Yizrael. Hence, from the
hills of the Dotan/Gilboa area (where the brothers are eating lunch), one has a
nice view of both the Gilad and parts of the Jezreel valley. However, the trade route itself follows
through valley that cuts between the mountains.
This explains why the brothers are able
to see a Ishmaelite caravan (convoy) as it was descending from the Gilad
towards Bet She'an on its way to Emek
Yizrael. Even though it was in sight, it
was still far enough away to allow the brothers at least several hours to meet
it, when it would pass some ten kilometers to the north. Therefore, in order to sell Yosef to that
caravan, the brothers would have to first fetch Yosef from the pit, and carry
him on a short trip till they meet the caravan in Emek Yizrael. They have ample time to first 'finish their
meal', go fetch Yosef from the pit in the 'midbar' (on their way to the Emek),
and then meet the convoy to sell Yosef.
SOMEBODY GOT THERE FIRST
With this background, we now return to
the story of 'mechirat Yosef' in Chumash.
Let's take a careful look at the next pasuk, noting its grammar:
"And
a group of Midyanite TRADERS passed by, and THEY pulled, and they lifted
Yosef out of the pit, and THEY sold Yosef to the Yishmaelim for twenty pieces
of silver, and brought Yosef to Egypt."
(37:28)
[Carefully
read this pasuk again, noting the difference between the Midyanim and
Yishmaelim and the startling fact that the brothers are never mentioned!]
Based
on the wording of this pasuk, it's quite clear that the Midyanim and the
Yishmaelim are two DIFFERENT groups of people!
To support this, note how the Torah describes the Midyanim as local 'traders'
("socharim"), while the Yishmaelim are described as international 'movers'
("orchat Yishmaelim - a transport caravan). Hence, a simple reading of this pasuk implies
that a group of Midyanite traders happened to pass by the pit (they most
probably heard Yosef screaming), and pulled him out. As these Midyanim are 'traders', they were
probably on their way to sell their wares (now including Yosef) to the Ishmaelite
caravan.
If this explanation is correct, then the
MIDYANIM themselves pulled Yosef out of the pit and sold him. [After all, the brothers are never mentioned
in this pasuk.]
[This
interpretation also explains why the Torah needs to tell us about both MIDYANIM
and YISHMAELIM, for understanding that these are two DIFFERENT groups is a
critical factor in the story.]
So where were the brothers during all of
this? Most probably, still eating! Recall our explanation above: the brothers
had thrown Yosef into a pit out in the 'midbar' and returned to their grazing
area to eat. They are far enough away
that they do not see or hear what transpired between Yosef and the Midyanim!
And WHERE was Reuven? Again, as we explained above, he must have
been eating WITH his brothers. However,
as soon as he heard Yehuda's new plan (and the brothers' agreement) to sell
Yosef, he would have to get back to the pit (before his brothers) to save Yosef
- and that's exactly what he does! [But
it's too late.] Note how this
explanation fits perfectly into the next pasuk:
"And
Reuven RETURNED ("va-yashov") to the pit, and behold, Yosef
was no longer in the pit!;
Then,
he tore his clothes." (37:29)
Reuven is not the LAST brother to find
out that Yosef was sold (as commonly assumed).
Rather, he is the FIRST brother to recognize that Yosef is missing!
What can Reuven do? Shocked, he immediately returns to his
brothers [probably by now eating dessert] with the terrible news:
"And
he RETURNED ['va-yashov'] to his brothers and said, 'The boy is
gone! And for myself, what am I going to
do?" (37:30).
Note the word 'va-yashov' [and Reuven
RETURNED] in both 37:29 and 37:30. This
verb proves that the brothers could not have been eating near the pit, for if
so, Reuven would not need to 'RETURN' to them.
However, based on our explanation above, 'va-yashov' in both psukim
makes perfect sense. Since Reuven and
his brothers are eating away from the pit, Reuven must first RETURN to the pit,
then he must RETURN back to his brothers to tell them the news - hence TWICE
the verb 'va-yashov'!
WHAT DO THE BROTHERS THINK?
At this point in the story the brothers
must be totally baffled, for they have no idea what happened to Yosef. Assuming themselves that most probably was
eaten by an animal, they don't want their father to think that he may be
missing, nor would they want their father to accuse them of killing him - so
they plot once again. They will trick
their father into thinking that Yosef had been killed by a wild animal on his
way to visit them. They dip Yosef's coat
in blood and have it sent to their father (see 37:31-32). This plan works, as when Yaakov sees the
coat:
"And
he recognized it and said, 'My son's "ktonet", "CHAYA RA'A
ACHALATU; tarof, taraf Yosef" - he
was surely devoured by a wild beast
(37:33).
Ironically, the end result of this final
plan echoes the brothers' original plan (see "ve-amarnu - chaya ra'a
achalatu" 37:20 -compare 37:33).
Yaakov reaches the same conclusion that the brothers themselves may have
reached, but for a very different reason!
Even more ironic is how the brothers final
plan 'to sell Yosef' came true, even though they never sold him; and how (they
thought that) their original - for Yosef to die - came true, even though they
never killed him.
In retrospect, one could even suggest
that the brothers may have never been able to 'gather the courage' to either
kill or sell Yosef. Despite their
various plans and intense hatred of Yosef, just as they had quickly retracted
from their first two plans to kill Yosef (see 37:22 & 26), they most
probably would have retracted from their plan to sell him as well.
Nevertheless: they talked; they planned; they plotted - and in God's
eyes - are considered guilty, even though they never actually killed or sold
Yosef.
WHAT DOES YOSEF THINK?
So far, our explanation has followed
Rashbam and Chizkuni. [I recommend that
you read their commentaries and note how they reach the same conclusion
regarding who sold Yosef, even though they don't explain the events in the
manner that we did.]
Even though this interpretation seems to
explain the psukim quite well, there is a pasuk in Parshat Vayigash that seems
to 'ruin' this entire approach. When
Yosef finally reveals himself to his brothers, he states explicitly:
"I am Yosef your brother, whom you SOLD to
Egypt"(45:4)
Based on this statement, it's quite
clear that Yosef himself thinks that his brothers SOLD him! But if our above interpretation is correct,
Yosef should have thought that the Midyanim had sold him, and not his
brothers! In fact, this pasuk is most
probably the primary basis for the more popular interpretation (advanced by
Rashi and Radak - see Further Iyun section) that the brothers indeed did sell
Yosef.
The Chizkuni, bothered by this pasuk,
explains that Yosef knows that the Midyanites sold him, but since the brothers
threw him in the pit, it was the brothers "who CAUSED me to be sold to
Egypt".
Alternately, one could explain, based on
the above shiur that Yosef truly did think that his brothers had sold him, even
though the brothers themselves had no idea concerning what really happened.
To explain why, let's consider these
events from Yosef's perspective.
Yosef was not aware of any of the
brothers' conversations. All that he
knew was that, as soon as he arrived, his brothers took off his coat and threw
him into the pit. A short time later,
some Midyanim passed by, took him out of the pit, and sold him to the
Yishmaelim who, later, sold him to the Egyptians. Yosef, trying to piece together what had
happened, probably assumed that his brothers had set it all up beforehand. In other words, he thought that the brothers told
the Midyanim that they had thrown Yosef in a certain pit, and that they should
take him from there to sell to the Yishmaelim.
If so, then Yosef was totally unaware
that it was only 'by chance' that the Midyanim were passing by, nor did he
think that the brothers originally wanted him to die in the pit. Rather, he thought all along that his
brothers had sold him, even though they had no idea what had happened.
In next week's shiur, we will see how this understanding helps explain
Yosef's behavior during his many years in Egypt. It will also explain why the
brothers assume that Yosef is either missing (see 42:13) or dead (see 42:22
-"hineh gam damo nidrash"), even though Yosef thinks that his
brothers sold him (see 45:4).
[Furthermore,
this can also explain why Yosef why Yosef tells his cellmates (in prison) that
he was 'stolen' from the Land of Ivrim (see 40:15)
HASHEM'S PLAN
Even though the brothers had three
different plans for 'getting rid' of Yosef, God had a different plan.
The Hand of Providence led the brothers
to believe that THEIR 'dream' [to rid themselves of Yosef] had come true. In reality, it was their plotting that
eventually led to the fulfillment of Yosef's dreams to come true.
Finally, as will be seen in the story
that follows, this was all part of God's long-term plan for the people of
Israel to become a nation in the Land of Egypt, as the forecasts of "brit
bein ha'btarim" now begin to unfold.
shabbat
shalom,
menachem
FOR FURTHER IYUN
================
A. RASHI'S SHITTA
To explain Rashi's 'shitta' (opinion)
that the brothers sold Yosef, we must return to the two questions raised
earlier in the shiur: i.e. where are the brothers eating, and where Reuven is -
and change our conclusions.
According to this opinion, the brothers
sat down to eat nearby the pit, and for some reason (see below) Reuven left
them.
Then, there are two ways to explain what
happened next. Either when the Midyanim
came by, the brothers employed their services as 'middlemen' to sell Yosef to
the Yishmaelim (see Rashbam's second explanation), OR possibly, the term
Yishmaelim is synonymous with the term Midyanim (see Radak).
To explain why Reuven had left his
brothers, Rashi offers two reasons- either he went 'home' to take care of his
father, or he had taken a short walk to do some 'soul-searching' (see Rashi
& Radak).
Re: Rashi's quote of the Midrash that it
was Reuven's turn to go home to take care of his father, it would be difficult
to consider this pshat, for it's over 100 kilometers from Hebron to Dotan, and
hence it would be totally against Reuven's own plan to save Yosef, from him to
leave his brothers at a time like this!
One could suggest that this Midrash is not coming to explain pshat
about what 'happened', but rather gives us insight regarding how 'frum' the
brothers were, and the fact that they cared about the mitzvah of 'kibud av', but their hatred of Yosef was much
greater than their love for their father.
If so, what point is this Midrash making
regarding the nature of 'sin'at achim'.
Rashi's second opinion, that Reuven was
'fasting', may relate to Reuven's own plan - as discussed below:
WHAT'S IN IT FOR REUVEN!
B. For some reason, Reuven is interested in
saving Yosef. Why does Reuven suddenly
become so dedicated to his father?
One could suggest that Yaakov was quite
angry with Reuven since the incident with Bilha (see 35:22), after which he was
most likely cursed by his father (see 49:4), and hence lost his 'bechora'. Reuven may have hoped that by saving Yosef
from the brothers, he would 'prove himself' once again worthy to his father. This would explain his reaction when he tells
his brothers that Yosef is missing - "va-ani ana ani ba". This was his big chance to redeem himself. Now, it only looks worse for him. After all, should Yaakov find out what
happened, bottom line, it was Reuven's idea to throw him in the pit! For Reuven, this could have been 'strike
three'! [Just a thought.]
WHY THE BROTHERS HATED YOSEF
One could suggest that the brothers' hatred of Yosef may have been more
than just 'petty sibling jealousy'.
Considering that they all realized that they were a chosen family, with
great goals for their future, and also realizing that in previous generations,
certain children were chosen, and others 'rejected' - they may have felt that
it was their spiritual 'responsibility' to 'expel' Yosef from this 'chosen
family', considering his behavior.
Examine Yosef's dreams. Compare
them to Yitzchak's original bracha to Eisav /Yaakov, and the standard blessing
of bechira.
How would this confirm the brothers' fear? Do the brothers have reason
to believe that Yaakov is making a mistake by favoring Yosef? Do they have a precedent for 'intervening'?