Vayigash (Genesis 44:18−47:27)

Parsha Vayigash Torah Summary:

Judah pleads with Joseph to free Benjamin and offers himself as a replacement. (44:18-34) Joseph reveals himself to his brothers and forgives them for selling him into slavery. (45:1-15) Although the famine still rages, Pharaoh invites Joseph’s family to “live off the fat of the land.” (45:16-24) Jacob learns that Joseph is still alive and, with God’s blessing, goes to Egypt. (45:25-46:33) Pharaoh permits Joseph’s family to settle in Goshen. Pharaoh then meets with Jacob. (47:1-12) With the famine increasing, Joseph designs a plan for the Egyptians to trade their livestock and land for food. The Israelites thrive in Egypt. (47:13-27) “Then Joseph said to his brothers, ‘Come forward to me.’ And when they came forward, he said, ‘I am your brother Joseph, he whom you sold into Egypt.’” For twenty years Joseph is in Egypt, Pharaoh (the good and kind one) changed his name, he dressed like an Egyptian, he worshiped the Egyptian Gods, and he blessed God for making him forget his father and his family. And yet in one moment of seeing his brothers coming near him, he is Joseph again. Such a powerful statement about our own identity. We try to change; we try to adopt new ways of life and beliefs. But at the end, can we really change who we are? Can we really escape our family roots?