ON THE PARSHA
          Parshas VaYigash

          by Dovid Lipman, Israel
          Year 2, No. 11


Introduction

This parsha, which tells how Yaakov's family
reunited and relocated in Egypt, has five parts:
       1) Yoseif Reveals Himself  [RAUW]
       2) Yoseif Sends for Yaakov [ATTL]
       3) Yaakov Travels to Egypt [WON]
       4) Settling in Goshen
       5) The Famine Story

1. Yoseif Reveals Himself -- 44:17 (Beg.) to 45:15

Yehudah pleads with Yoseif to allow Binyamin to go
home with the brothers, and he himself would be a
slave in his place. Yoseif sends the Egyptians out
and reveals himself, adding that "no hard feelings".

   Rare and Unusual Words

   (45:5,8) "Heina". Yoseif uses this word, meaning
   here, to refer to Egypt, and Yaakov is quoted as
   using it (44:28) to mean "now", as in "I didn't
   see [Yoseif] until now." In the gemara (Yevamos
   3a) this word is used to link forms of immorality,
   so perhaps this connotation is meant: Yaakov knew
   Yoseif might be alive, but he had a vision of him
   in danger of succumbing to immorality, and that
   danger was the main one for which the brothers
   feared responsiblity, so Yoseif assured them it
   was a test sent from Heaven.

2. Yoseif Sends for Yaakov -- 45:16 to 45:28

Yoseif, with permission from Par'oh, sends wagons
with his brothers to take Yaakov and the whole
family to live in Egypt. At first, Yaakov can't
believe it, but when he does accept that Yoseif
is alive, he says he wants to go, to see him.

   A Time to Laugh

   (45:23) "...carrying the best from Egypt..."
   Rashi explains that it was wine. Why did the
   wine need ten separate donkeys? But we find
   in Mikeitz that the brothers rode donkeys. So
   Yoseif sent the food with mules, presumably
   with Egyptian riders, whom Yoseif couldn't
   allow to touch the wine, so he gave that to
   the brothers, who rode on donkeys.

3. Yaakov Travels to Egypt -- 46:1 to 46:30

The family stops in Be'er Sheva, where Hashem tells
Yaakov that He'll protect him in Egypt, and Yaakov
leaves confidently for Egypt. Seventy souls are the
family of Yaakov at this time, and Yehudah is sent
ahead to prepare for the resettling.

   Worthy of Note

   (46:1) "And Yisrael traveled..." In the second
   part of the trip, after Be'er Sheva, we see that
   Yaakov rode in a wagon - why aren't the wagons
   mentioned here? Perhaps Yaakov didn't want to
   lose the mitzvah of walking in the Israel where
   (K'subos 111a) "walking four amos" is a mitzvah
   - only after Hashem's assurance did he ride.

4. Settling in Goshen -- 46:31 to 47:12

At Yoseif's advice, the brothers get an isolated
home in Goshen by identifying themselves as keepers
of sheep, near which Egyptians won't live. Yaakov
meets and blesses Par'oh, who at first is impressed
at Yaakov's old age, which Yaakov downplays.

   From the Gemara

   (47:12) Bava Basra 123a - One opinion holds that
   Yoseif got the birthright Reuvain lost as a reward
   for supporting Yaakov in Egypt (with Rashi).

5. The Famine Story -- 47:13 to 47:27 [End]

The famine, which ended in Yaakov's arrival, lasted
two years, in which Egypt's livestock, and then its
citizens, all became Par'oh's property in exchange
for the needed food, at Yoseif's management.
Yaakov's family then settled and prospered in Goshen.

   Do You Remember? - from the files of On the Parsha

   1. Yocheved was "born on the border" - but why?
   2. Weren't extra clothes for Binyamin favoritism?
   3. Why can we still call Yaakov "Yaakov"?
   4. Where do we learn the power of rebuke?
   5. What are the two meanins of "l'horos"?