Accusation of the Brothers

The second of the confrontations between Yosef and his brothers has been given much less thought than the original dramatic, ויגש אליו יהודה. It is however much more depressing. Here, the brothers have lived together for a number of years and once their father dies they are immediately concerned that their brother may want to plot his revenge. The discouraging nature of the encounter is not merely limited to the event but to the striking parallel of the accusation.

Note, that the brothers are assuming that Yosef has been lying in wait until his father dies to exact revenge. They do not approach him directly but first send a messenger to speak with him. Only then do they feel finally approach him themselves and upon so doing the bow down and subserviate themselves to him.

It is difficult to miss the echoes of Yaakov’s confrontation with Eisav with the brother’s confrontation with Yosef. Eisav planned on waiting until his father dies to kill Yaakov; the brothers assumed Yosef was doing the same. Yaakov sent messengers to greet Eisav; the brother’s did the same. And finally Yaakov bowed down as he finally approached Eisav; the brother’s followed suite.

One can hardly fault Yosef for breaking down in tears following the accusation. The brothers are not only assuming he was one to hold a grudge for so many years, they are also denying the very essence of his role. Yosef is described as the anti-Eisav. עבדיה famously describes Yosef as the spark who will light the fire that will eventually destroy the house of Eisav, “והיה בית יעק אש ובית יוסף להבה ובית עשו לקש.” In fact, Rashi uses the פסוק to explain why Yaakov waited until Yosef was born before confronting Eisav. Only after the anti-Eisav, the spark that would light the fire, was born did Yaakov feel comfortable facing Eisav.

So what went wrong? How could Yosef have allowed the circumstances to unfold that would lead his brothers to assume he would take the role of an Eisav instead of the one fitting of the great Yosef HaTzaddik?

While there are many characters in Tanach that have complex characters, both Yosef and Eisav are relatively analytically simple. Yosef will always do what he believes is right without question. He avoids temptation because it would involve betraying a master who was good to him. He tells his father of his brother’s misgiving because he believes justice must be done. Eisav is one who will also chose the evil sinister option. And even his best moments are interpreted as ones that are rooted in evil. A simple kiss from this man is dotted, not only in the midrash, but in the Torah scroll itself to highlight an attempt at murder.

The anti-Eisav and the Eisav actions are often quite similar, even if done for different purposes. After Yaakov dies, it is conceivable that either one would now attempt to murder the brothers. The Eisav because he wishes revenge and the anti-Eisav because they are deserving of punishment.

However what the brothers failed to understand and what Yosef failed to properly convey to them is that his simple one-sided character has changed. Gone was the man who refused to reveal himself to them in a twisted way to demand justice for what they had done because that was the right thing to do. He was now a complicated individual capable of thinking in shades of grey.

This formidable transition may have occurred at the ברכות given to Yosef before Yaakov passed away. Most Rishonim assume that the ברכות were not individualized comments on one of the 12 Shevatim’s behavior but rather words of advice for generation to come. Yosef is different. Even the few Rishonim that assume Yaakov was not giving advice exclusively to his son but to his future generations as well, admit that there are component of the confusing ברכה that is directly related to Yosef.

Yaakov understood that Yosef required his own bracha. Before Yaakov was sent to exile because of a brother that wanted to kill him, he too received a bracha. Before that bracha, he was an איש תם יושב אוהלים. A man who lived a simple life where everything was black and white. Then he could sit in a tent and not be distracted by the world outside. Once receiving the bracha, he was capable of maintaining his values while encountering a complicated world. Yaakov was able to comfortably enjoy the gray. He married girls his parents would have approved of and raised children that his grandparents could recognize belonging to a chain of our tradition.

Yosef had no such luck. He did not receive parting words or a bracha from his father before he was sent to exile because of brothers that wanted to kill him. He was not given the wisdom to allow him to excel in the gray. Instead, he married an Egyptian girl, his father could not recognize his children and, in fact, his brothers and father could not even recognize him. Yosef did not have the tools to live in the gray and so he did what he had done until that point, he excelled in the black and white. He was not a Jew living amongst Egyptians. He was an Egyptian, an ethical Egyptian, he would not dare succumb to temptation, but an Egyptian nonetheless.

The bracha Yaakov gives Yosef allows him to embrace the gray. No longer a simple man, he was now one who could embrace his brothers on the one hand while not considering the justice they so rightly deserve. In fact, the צרור המור, reads the second encounter between Yosef and his brothers as both a personal and a generational request. The brothers beg Yosef to not seek revenge on him but to also forgive the encounter so the terrible tragedy of the עשרה הרוגי מלכות never occurs. To them Yosef responds, התחת אלוקים אני, I would never seek revenge on you, I simply wish to hug you and bring you close, but simultaneously I cannot prevent the terrible generational outcomes of brothers selling one of their own. Yosef fully embodies living in the gray, he loves his brothers but informs them of terrible events that will occur because of their actions.

This delicate balance is one that we all encounter in our daily lives and in hearing about current events. Living a life of black and white is simple, it is easy. Calling for the complete and utter destruction of Gaza so we need not sacrifice any of our brothers and sisters, is easy. Considering whether we allow the legalization of abortive procedures based on our political parties, is easy. Working in the hospital on Shabbat while ignoring all aspects of that holy day, is easy. Going to work each day and only spending time learning Torah on Shabbas when we are in Shul, is easy. We cannot be so simple. Our lives are complicated. The life we lead maintaining our values while confronting, and often embracing, a complicated word is difficult. Living in the gray is difficult. Destroying Hamas while protecting civilians at a unbearable cost, is difficult. Considering difficult political considerations through the prism of Halacha, is difficult. Working in the hospital on Shabbas while maintain the ambiance of the holy day, is difficult. Infusing Talmud Torah as part of our daily schedule, is difficult. But we cannot, we must not strive for simplicity. We must embrace the difficult, complicated, wonderful world we live in.