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Mikeitz – מִקֵּץ (Genesis 41:1−44:17)

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This Week’s Torah Portion: Mikeitz – מִקֵּץ (Genesis 41:1−44:17)

“And Pharaoh called Josef Zaphenath-Paneah, and gave him Asenat, daughter of Potifera’, priest of On, for a wife.” Genesis 41:45)

Joseph gets an Egyptian name, an Egyptian wife who is an Egyptian priest’s daughter, swears by Pharaoh’s name (Pharaoh is also a god), and dresses like an Egyptian. Thanks, God, for allowing him to forget his ancestral home.
Joseph is the paradigm of assimilation, and yet he is also the paradigm of success, saving his family’s lives and saving the entire world from hunger.

Parsha Mikeitz – מִקֵּץ Torah Summary:

Joseph interprets Pharaoh’s two dreams and predicts seven years of prosperity followed by seven years of famine. (41:1-32) Pharaoh places Joseph in charge of food collection and distribution. (41:37-49) Joseph marries Asenath, and they have two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. (41:50-52) When Joseph’s brothers come to Egypt to buy food during the famine, Joseph accuses them of spying. He holds Simeon hostage while the rest of the brothers return to Canaan to retrieve Benjamin for him. (42:3-42:38) The brothers return to Egypt with Benjamin and for more food. Joseph continues the test, this time falsely accusing Benjamin of stealing and declaring that Benjamin must remain his slave. (43:1-44:17) Mikeitz – מִקֵּץ “And Pharaoh called Josef Zaphenath-Paneah, and gave him Asenat, daughter of Potifera’, priest of On, for a wife.” Genesis 41:45) Joseph gets an Egyptian name, an Egyptian wife who is an Egyptian priest’s daughter, swears by Pharaoh’s name (Pharaoh is also a god), and dresses like an Egyptian. Thanks, God, for allowing him to forget his ancestral home. Joseph is the paradigm of assimilation, and yet he is also the paradigm of success, saving his family’s lives and saving the entire world from hunger.

Vayeishev – וַיֵּשֶׁב (Genesis 37:1−40:23)

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This Week’s Torah Portion: Vayeishev – וַיֵּשֶׁב (Genesis 37:1−40:23)

“His brothers saw that their father loved him more than his brothers

and they hated him and could not speak to him peaceably (l’shalom).” Genesis 37:4

Our rabbis teach that because Jacob favored Joseph and made him a special garment, we ended up slaves in Egypt for 400 years. We should never treat one child better than their siblings. Do not play favorites with your children; this is the teaching here.

Parsha Vayeishev – וַיֵּשֶׁב Torah Summary:

Jacob is shown to favor his son Joseph, whom the other brothers resent. Joseph has dreams of grandeur. (Genesis 37:1-11) After Joseph’s brothers had gone to tend the flocks in Shechem, Jacob sends Joseph to report on them. The brothers decide against murdering Joseph but instead sell him into slavery. After he is shown Joseph’s coat of many colors, which had been dipped in the blood of a kid, Jacob is led to believe that Joseph has been killed by a beast. (Genesis 37:12-35) Tamar successively marries two of Judah’s sons, each of whom dies. Judah does not permit her levirate marriage to his youngest son. She deceives Judah into impregnating her. (Genesis 38:1-30) God is with Joseph in Egypt until the wife of his master, Potiphar, accuses him of rape, whereupon Joseph is imprisoned. (Genesis 39:1-40:23) Vayeishev – וַיֵּשֶׁב “His brothers saw that their father loved him more than his brothers and they hated him and could not speak to him peaceably (l’shalom).” Genesis 37:4 Our rabbis teach that because Jacob favored Joseph and made him a special garment, we ended up slaves in Egypt for 400 years. We should never treat one child better than their siblings. Do not play favorites with your children; this is the teaching here.

Vayishlach – וַיִּשְׁלַח (Genesis 32:4−36:43)

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This Week’s Torah Portion: Vayishlach – וַיִּשְׁלַח (Genesis 32:4−36:43)

“When Israel sojourned in that land, Reuven went and lay with Bilhah,
his father’s co-wife and Israel heard.
The sons of Jacob were twelve.” (Genesis 35:22)

Why do we need to read again that Jacob has 12 sons? We know this already!

The message is that you are still one of us, a member of the family, a member of the tribe, even when you stray and sin. We do not cut off our children.

Parsha Vayishlach – וַיִּשְׁלַח Torah Summary:

Jacob prepares to meet Esau. He wrestles with a “man,” who changes Jacob’s name to Israel. (32:4-33) Jacob and Esau meet and part peacefully, each going his separate way. (33:1-17) Dinah is raped by Shechem, the son of Hamor the Hivite, who was chief of the country. Jacob’s sons Simeon and Levi take revenge by murdering all the males of Shechem, and Jacob’s other sons join them in plundering the city. (34:1-31) Rachel dies giving birth to Benjamin and is buried in Ephrah, which is present-day Bethlehem. (35:16-21) Isaac dies and is buried in Hebron. Jacob’s and Esau’s progeny are listed. (35:22-36:43) Vayishlach – וַיִּשְׁלַח “When Israel sojourned in that land, Reuven went and lay with Bilhah, his father’s co-wife and Israel heard. The sons of Jacob were twelve.” (Genesis 35:22) Why do we need to read again that Jacob has 12 sons? We know this already! The message is that you are still one of us, a member of the family, a member of the tribe, even when you stray and sin. We do not cut off our children.

Vayeitzei – וַיֵּצֵא (Genesis 28:10−32:3)

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This Week’s Torah Portion: Vayeitzei – וַיֵּצֵא (Genesis 28:10−32:3)

וַיִּיקַ֣ץ יַעֲקֹב֮ מִשְּׁנָתוֹ֒ וַיֹּ֕אמֶר אָכֵן֙ יֵ֣שׁ יְהֹוָ֔ה בַּמָּק֖וֹם הַזֶּ֑ה וְאָנֹכִ֖י לֹ֥א יָדָֽעְתִּי׃

As Jacob awoke from his slumber he said, “Surely Adonai is in this place and I did not, I did not know.” (Genesis 28:16).

When Jacob flees to his uncle to escape his brother, he stops in a particular place to sleep. After having an awe-inspiring dream of angels ascending and descending on the mystical ladder and encountering God, Jacob wakes up to a startling revelation—God was with him all along; he just needed to pause to recognize it. This Shabbat, I pray we can all take a moment to pause and open ourselves to the possibility of experiencing the Divine in even, if not especially, the most unusual of places. Shabbat Shalom! 

Parsha Vayeitzei – וַיֵּצֵא Torah Summary:

Jacob dreams of angels going up and down a ladder. God blesses him. Jacob names the place Bethel. (28:10-22) Jacob works seven years in order to marry Rachel, but Laban tricks Jacob into marrying Leah, Rachel’s older sister. (29:16-25) Jacob marries Rachel but only after having to commit himself to seven more years of working for Laban. (29:26-30) Leah, Rachel, and their maidservants, Bilhah and Zilpah, give birth to eleven sons and one daughter. (29:31-30:24) Jacob and his family leave Laban’s household with great wealth. (31:1-32:3) Vayeitzei – וַיֵּצֵא וַיִּיקַ֣ץ יַעֲקֹב֮ מִשְּׁנָתוֹ֒ וַיֹּ֕אמֶר אָכֵן֙ יֵ֣שׁ יְהֹוָ֔ה בַּמָּק֖וֹם הַזֶּ֑ה וְאָנֹכִ֖י לֹ֥א יָדָֽעְתִּי׃ As Jacob awoke from his slumber he said, “Surely Adonai is in this place and I did not, I did not know.” (Genesis 28:16). When Jacob flees to his uncle to escape his brother, he stops in a particular place to sleep. After having an awe-inspiring dream of angels ascending and descending on the mystical ladder and encountering God, Jacob wakes up to a startling revelation—God was with him all along; he just needed to pause to recognize it. This Shabbat, I pray we can all take a moment to pause and open ourselves to the possibility of experiencing the Divine in even, if not especially, the most unusual of places. Shabbat Shalom!