In one of the most dramatic episodes in all of Tanakh, Yehudah stands up for his vulnerable brother Binyamin, correcting a past mistake of not standing up sufficiently for Yosef. Yosef finally reveals his identity, taking his brothers by surprise. Yosef and his brother Binyamin embrace after 22 years apart.

בראשית מה:יד

וַיִּפֹּ֛ל עַל־צַוְּארֵ֥י בִנְיָמִֽן־אָחִ֖יו וַיֵּ֑בְךְּ וּבִ֨נְיָמִ֔ן בָּכָ֖ה עַל־צַוָּארָֽיו׃

Bereisheet 45:14

He fell on his brother Benjamin’s neck, and wept, and Benjamin wept on his neck

רש"י בראשית מה:יד

ויפל על צוארי בנימן ויבך – על שני מקדשות שעתידין להיות בחלקו של בנימן וסופן ליחרב.

ובנימן בכה – על משכן שילה שעתיד להיות בחלקו של יוסף וסופו ליחרב.

Rashi Bereistet 45:14

And he fell on his brother Benjamin’s neck and wept: for the two sanctuaries which were destined to be in Benjamin’s territory and would ultimately be destroyed. [From Meg. 16b]

and Benjamin wept on his neck: for the Tabernacle of Shiloh, which was destined to be in Joseph’s territory yet would ultimately be destroyed. [From Meg. 16b, Gen. Rabbah 93:12]

Rashi’s comments, based on the Midrash, are difficult to understand. What movie is Rashi watching? What is the idea behind Rashi’s comment? How do his comments help us understand the essential narrative? This is especially difficult given Rashi’s famous comment about the objective of his commentary:

רש"י בראשית לג:כ

ואני ליישב פשוטו ושמועו של מקרא באתי

Rashi Bereshit 33:20

But I have come to establish the simple meaning of the verse.

The book of בראשית –Genesis, is the story of humanity unfolding across the landscape of time. It begins with man, human society, and then focuses in on Avraham. We witness the emergence of an ethical way of life, in stark contradistinction to the surrounding world. As the Rav, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, expressed it, Genesis “is the creation of the world, but also the creation of the ”כנסת ישראל”, the community of the Jewish people.

The Ramban famously highlights a concept expressed in the midrash by our Sages:

רמב"ן בראשית פרשת לך לך פרק יב:ו

כל מה שאירע לאבות סימן לבנים -תנחומא ט

Ramban Commentary on Bereisheet 12:6

All that occurs to the forefathers is indicative of [what will occur] to their children.

It is a difficult phrase to translate, but it conveys “All that occurred to our forefathers is symbolic of the future for us.” In the words of the Rav, it is “the blueprint of Jewish history for all days” (1968).

When our Sages read these parshiyot, they see more than the particular episode. The Haftorah which accompanies the parsha of Vayigash describes a prophecy of יחזקאל –Ezekiel.

יחזקאל לז

(טו) וַיְהִ֥י דְבַר־יְהֹוָ֖ה אֵלַ֥י לֵאמֹֽר׃ (טז) וְאַתָּ֣ה בֶן־אָדָ֗ם קַח־לְךָ֙ עֵ֣ץ אֶחָ֔ד וּכְתֹ֤ב עָלָיו֙ לִֽיהוּדָ֔ה וְלִבְנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל חֲבֵרָ֑ו וּלְקַח֙ עֵ֣ץ אֶחָ֔ד וּכְת֣וֹב עָלָ֗יו לְיוֹסֵף֙ עֵ֣ץ אֶפְרַ֔יִם וְכׇל־בֵּ֥ית יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל חֲבֵרָֽו׃ (יז) וְקָרַ֨ב אֹתָ֜ם אֶחָ֧ד אֶל־אֶחָ֛ד לְךָ֖ לְעֵ֣ץ אֶחָ֑ד וְהָי֥וּ לַאֲחָדִ֖ים בְּיָדֶֽךָ׃ (יח) וְכַֽאֲשֶׁר֙ יֹאמְר֣וּ אֵלֶ֔יךָ בְּנֵ֥י עַמְּךָ֖ לֵאמֹ֑ר הֲלֽוֹא־תַגִּ֥יד לָ֖נוּ מָה־אֵ֥לֶּה לָּֽךְ׃ (יט) דַּבֵּ֣ר אֲלֵהֶ֗ם כֹּה־אָמַר֮ אֲדֹנָ֣י יֱהֹוִה֒ הִנֵּה֩ אֲנִ֨י לֹקֵ֜חַ אֶת־עֵ֤ץ יוֹסֵף֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר בְּיַד־אֶפְרַ֔יִם וְשִׁבְטֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל חֲבֵרָ֑ו וְנָתַתִּי֩ אוֹתָ֨ם עָלָ֜יו אֶת־עֵ֣ץ יְהוּדָ֗ה וַֽעֲשִׂיתִם֙ לְעֵ֣ץ אֶחָ֔ד וְהָי֥וּ אֶחָ֖ד בְּיָדִֽי׃ (כ) וְהָי֨וּ הָעֵצִ֜ים אֲֽשֶׁר־תִּכְתֹּ֧ב עֲלֵיהֶ֛ם בְּיָדְךָ֖ לְעֵינֵיהֶֽם׃ (כא) וְדַבֵּ֣ר אֲלֵיהֶ֗ם כֹּה־אָמַר֮ אֲדֹנָ֣י יֱהֹוִה֒ הִנֵּ֨ה אֲנִ֤י לֹקֵ֙חַ֙ אֶת־בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל מִבֵּ֥ין הַגּוֹיִ֖ם אֲשֶׁ֣ר הָֽלְכוּ־שָׁ֑ם וְקִבַּצְתִּ֤י אֹתָם֙ מִסָּבִ֔יב וְהֵבֵאתִ֥י אוֹתָ֖ם אֶל־אַדְמָתָֽם׃ (כב) וְעָשִׂ֣יתִי אֹ֠תָ֠ם לְג֨וֹי אֶחָ֤ד בָּאָ֙רֶץ֙ בְּהָרֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל וּמֶ֧לֶךְ אֶחָ֛ד יִהְיֶ֥ה לְכֻלָּ֖ם לְמֶ֑לֶךְ וְלֹ֤א [יִֽהְיוּ־] (יהיה) עוֹד֙ לִשְׁנֵ֣י גוֹיִ֔ם וְלֹ֨א יֵחָ֥צוּ ע֛וֹד לִשְׁתֵּ֥י מַמְלָכ֖וֹת עֽוֹד׃

Yechezkel 37

(15) And the word of the Lord came to me, saying: (16) And you, son of man, take for yourself one stick and write upon it, 'For Judah and for the children of Israel his companions'; and take one stick and write upon it, 'For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim and all the house of Israel, his companions.’ (17) And bring them close, one to the other into one stick, and they shall be one in your hand. (18) And when the children of your people say to you, saying, 'Will you not tell us what these are to you?’ (19) Say to them, So says the Lord God: Behold I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim and the tribes of Israel his companions, and I will place them with him with the stick of Judah, and I will make them into one stick, and they shall become one in My hand. (20) And the sticks upon which you shall write shall be in your hand before their eyes. (21) And say to them, So says the Lord God: Behold I will take the children of Israel from among the nations where they have gone, and I will gather them from every side, and I will bring them to their land. (22) And I will make them into one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel, and one king shall be to them all as a king; and they shall no longer be two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms anymore.

The Northern Kingdom of Yosef and the ten tribes fell in 722 BCE. The Southern Kingdom of Yehuda and Binyamin fell in 586 BCE. The prophet is sharing a message of hope to the exiled Jews in Bavel that just like Yosef and Binyamin reunite in this week’s Parsha, the kingdoms of Yosef and Binyamin will reunite in the future. That is why our Sages chose this Haftorah to accompany this particular Torah reading.

When we read these parshiyot in this context, we get a broader and deeper picture of the events. We start with creation, humanity, and then focus down into the emergence of the Jewish people. Rashi is indeed watching the same movie, but he is watching it with a different lens. He’s read the book, seen the prequel, and the sequel.

Why were Yosef and Binyamin crying over the destruction of the future Temples? Because they understood that the strife between the brothers in their generation was a microcosm of the strife that would occur within the Jewish people for generations to come, ultimately resulting in the destruction of the Temples and the people’s exile. What can we learn from the story of Yosef and the brothers? Everything about the story of the Jewish people, past, present, and future.

References

Rosenberg, A. (1980). A new English translation of the Hebrew Bible text and Rashi, with a commentary digest. New York: Judaica Press. Retrieved from: https://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/

Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik (1968). Lech Licha. Transcribed from a lecture given to the Rabbinical Council of America.

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