Not Just Idle Dreams! (15 December 2015, 3 Tevet, 5776)
Contents:
1. Rabbi Yaacov Tsvi Mecklenburg
2. Joseph
3. Joseph as an Apprentice to his Brothers, the sons of handmaidens.
4. Rabbi Mecklenburg and the Humility of Joseph
5. Rabbi Avraham Feld: "Ephraim" should learn humility from Joseph!
===============================
1. Rabbi Yaacov Tsvi Mecklenburg
Rabbi Yaacov Tsvi Mecklenburg (1785-1835, Germany) in his work "HaKetav veHaKabalah" (i.e. "Script and Tradition") discusses the figure of Joseph. The father of Ephraim and Manasseh had not been an overweening spoiled proud brat as some readings might indicate.
Rabbi Mecklenburg points out that the Hebrew text indicates that Joseph was a paragon of humility.
===============================
2. Joseph
Jacob the Forefather of the Israelite tribes had four wives. The wives of Jacob (also known as "Israel") were the two sisters, Leah and Rachel, and the handmaidens of the sisters, Bilhah and Zilpah. Leah was the elder of the sisters and the first one that Jacob marred so she was considered the senior wife. Leah bore 6 sons, while Rachel, Bilhah, and Zilpah bore 2 sons each. This made for a total of twelve. Joseph and Benjamin were the sons of Rachel. Joseph was the favorite son. Joseph had dreams that were understood to mean that he would become like a monarch and rule over the rest of the family. Jacob presented Joseph with a coat of many color or in Hebrew a "cotonet pasim". We have shown elsewhere that a "cotonet pasim" was actually a tartan coat and indicated rank and royalty. This is explained by the Commentary of the Radak who points out that Tamar the daughter of David also wore a "cotonet pasim" [2-Samuel 13:19 translated in the NASB as "long-sleeved garmet"] and that it was a kind of uniform worn by the royal family.
For this and other reasons the brothers bore a grudge against Joseph. He provoked his brothers, especially the sons of Leah, into fearing and hating him. They seized hold of Joseph and sold him as a slave into Egypt. After a time of tribulation he became the virtual ruler of the nation. In Egypt Joseph helped save the country and all the nations around from famine. Eventually he met his brothers who came to Egypt to buy grain. They were reconciled and induced to bring their father and all their families to settle in Egypt where they increased and multiplied.
===============================
3. Joseph as an Apprentice to his Brothers, the Sons of Handmaidens.
Genesis 37 (NASB):
2 These are the records of the generations of Jacob. Joseph, when seventeen years of age, was pasturing the flock with his brothers while he was still a youth, along with the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father's wives. And Joseph brought back a bad report about them to their father.
Alternate Reading from the Hebrew as understood by Commentator:
Genesis 37:
2 These are the happenings of Jacob. Joseph, when seventeen years of age, was pasturing the flock with his brothers as an apprentice to the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, the wives of his father. And Joseph brought back a bad report about them to their father.
Rashi explains that the bad report was about his elder brothers the sons of Leah, and NOT the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah.
The word translated in the NAMS as "while he was still a youth," and in our version as "as an apprentice" in Hebrew is "naar". Literally this means "young man" but it is also used to mean "servant, apprentice, assistant".
Joshua, the servant of Moses, is described as a "naar" (Exodus 33:11) translated as "young man" even though he was close to eighty at the time. Joshua was an apprentice, in training to succeed Moses as he eventually did when Moses died.
===============================
4. Rabbi Mecklenburg and the Humility of Joseph
"HaKetav veHaKabalah" (Rabbi Mecklenburg) on Genesis 37:2 concerning the description of Joseph as a "naar".
# "Naar" as it says concerning Gehazi "naaro" [translated as "his servant". Gehazi was the assitant of Elishah, " cf. 2-Kings 4:12 "Then he said to Gehazi his servant..." ]. Gehazi was the servant of Elishah. The explanation was that Joseph conducted himself with humility and self-effacement in serving [in apprenticeship] the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah even though they were the offspring of handmaidens. Even more so did he not act haughtily towards his brothers the sons of the leading lady [i.e. Leah, the senior wife], see Abarbanel. We learn from this that his dreams indicating great elevation did not emanate from fancies of grandeur. They were rather prophetical revelations. They were [also] an intended reward for his lack of vanity.
Humility is a prerequisite for honor (Proverbs 15:33). Wealth and honor come as a result of humility (Proverbs 22:4).
Proverbs (NASB) 15:
33 The fear of the LORD is the instruction for wisdom,
And before honor comes humility.
Proverbs (NASB) 22:
4 The reward of humility and the fear of the LORD
Are riches, honor and life.
Rabbi Mecklenburg has shown from the text that Joseph had served as an apprentice to his brothers, the sons of handmaidens. This demonstrated his inner humility. It also helps prove his dreams were genuine Prophetic visions.
Not only that but his very diffidence enabled the dreams to come true.
We trace the descendants of Joseph mainly to the English-speaking peoples. In general a significant proportion of Western Nations are descended from the Lost Ten Tribes among whom the Tribe of Joseph is predominant. Non-Jewish Christian believers in their Hebrew ancestry often refer to themselves as "Ephraimites" after Ephraim one of the two sons of Joseph.
5. Rabbi Avraham Feld: "Ephraim" should learn humility from Joseph!
Rabbi Avraham Feld remarks that "Ephraimites" should learn humility from Joseph.
They should be prepared to learn from Judah instead of attempting to impose their own preconceptions on the Jewish People.