The Weekly Dvar Torah
Volume 2 Issue #12
The Light of Redemption Emanates From the Shadow of Darkness
Vayechi
Adapted from the wisdom of Rav Meir Simcha HaCohen of Dvinsk from the Meshech Chochmoh and Rav Tzadok HaCohen from Pri Tzadik and other works.
By Rav Yitzchak Schwartz Rosh Yeshiva Orchos Chaim Jerusalem
yschwartz@orchos.org.
This publication, Zichron Yehoshua, is in memory of Yehoshua Yakov ben Moshe-Jeffrey Nussbaum through a generous grant from Dr. Eric Nussbaum and family.
This issue is dedicated Avigail bas Yocheved, may she be blessed.
This week’s Torah portion opens with the following:
“And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years; so the days of Jacob, the years of his life, were a hundred forty and seven years.†(Breishit 47:27-28) The medrash points out that this verse is written as a continuation of the reading from last week’s portioon. In the Torah scroll, you will see that the last verse of last week’s reading (47:27) runs straight into the first verse of this week’s portion (47:28) without the customary blank spaces that serve as a break between chapters. Normally, chapters are separated in the Torah scroll by inserting several blank spaces between them. This is called the “open†format because the blank space are left open. However, in this week’s portion the customary blank/open spaces do not appear. Instead, the two chapters are written as on continuous sentence. This is called the “sealed†format. “And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt sev enteen years, etc.†The verse appears as an uninterrupted continuation of the last verse from last week’s reading: “And Israel dwelt in the land of Egypt, in the land of Goshen; and they were possessed therein, and were fruitful, and multiplied exceedingly.â€
The medrash gives three reasons for why the chapter is written in a “sealed†format. 1) Yakov’s death, related in this week’s reading, marks the beginning of the Egyptian oppression of the Jewish people. The torment of exile began to obstruct their eyes and seal their minds and hearts. 2) Before his death, Yakov began to reveal to his children what would occur in the end of days but Hashem sealed his prophetic vision so that he could not convey it to them. 3) Hashem sealed [within Yakov] all of the future troubles of the Jewish people.
Drawing upon the Zohar, Rav Tzadok HaCohen of Lublin offers a fascinating interpretation of this medrash. The Zohar comments that there is no apparent explanation [for the connection] between the opening verse of this week’s portion and the end of last week’s portion. Rav Tzadok explains that the “open†format is used to seperate between chapters in order to signal to us that it is time to pause to evaluate the deeper meaning of the verses. Even when Hashem dictated the Torah to Moshe, He gave him a break between chapters in order to reflect upon their meaning. In the case of our portion, no break is offered because the inner meaning of the connection between these portions is beyond the scope of our perception. Only Yakov, who possessed exceptional holy perception, was able to fathom the depths of this issue.
The most unlikely place and set of circumstances within which the Jewish people could grow and thrive was in Egypt. While in the clutches of a culture and society that was antithetical to everything that is sacred, the embryonic folk was transformed into an eternal holy nation: “And Israel dwelt in the land of Egypt, in the land of Goshen; and they were possessed therein, and were fruitful, and multiplied exceedingly.†This verse reveals a fascinating paradox. On the one hand the Jewish people thrive and succeed in the Egyptian homeland. But on the other hand, they become captives in the land. They were “possessed†by the land. They fell into the grips of the spiritual impurity that pervaded Egypt. Their eyes and minds were contaminated with microscopic pathogens that would eventually become malignant, threatening to bring down the entire Jewish people. The infiltration was so minute that the Jewish people were unaware that they had become carriers of a spiritual virus that would infect the entire Jewish people until their final redemption. This is the explanation of the first reason that the medrash gives why the chapters are “sealed.†The process was deeply concealed in the subliminal levels of their consciousness to the extent that they did not realize what was taking place. Furthermore, it teaches us that immediately after Yakov’s death his descendants were afflicted; the process was so quick and subtle that it was impossible to understand how it took place – it was “sealed.â€
The second reason the medrash gives is because Yakov was denied the ability to reveal the end of days to his sons. “And Jacob called unto his sons, and said: 'Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the end of days. Assemble yourselves, and hear, you sons of Jacob; and hearken unto Israel your father.†(Breishit 49:1-2) Although Yakov was able to convey to his sons a general map of their future, he was not able to give them a clear vision of their ultimate destiny. The “big picture†of their future was “sealed.â€
Based upon the Zohar, Rav Tzadok explains that Yakov was only able to reveal to his descendants that the Egyptian exile would end with their miraculous delivery and that they would subsequently receive the Torah at Mt. Sinai. Yet, he was not able to explain to them how and why the process of redemption and revelation would evolve from the bitterness of suffering and exile. Only Yakov, who possessed elevated sacred perception, was able to see how and why the light of redemption shines only after transcending through a path of darkness, exile and suffering. The Jewish people would not be able to understand this until they experienced the miraculous splitting of the Red Sea, the awesome prophecy at Mt. Sinai and ultimately, their full redemption. Only then would they be able to look back and “see†how light emanates from the shadow of darkness.
The third reason the medrash gives is that with his prophetic vision, Yakov could see all of the suffering that the Jewish people would have to endure over the course of their extended history. He was also able to understand how the pain and anguish of exile would serve as the medium by which they would receive unimaginable blessing. Nevertheless, he was not able to teach this essential fundamental to the Jewish people to the extent that they could internalize it deeply in their hearts. This indispensable lesson was “sealed†in depths of Yakov’s pure heart.
By Rav Yitzchak Schwartz Rosh Yeshiva Orchos Chaim Jerusalem
yschwartz@orchos.org.
This publication, Zichron Yehoshua, is in memory of Yehoshua Yakov ben Moshe-Jeffrey Nussbaum through a generous grant from Dr. Eric Nussbaum and family.
This issue is dedicated Avigail bas Yocheved, may she be blessed.
This week’s Torah portion opens with the following:
“And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years; so the days of Jacob, the years of his life, were a hundred forty and seven years.†(Breishit 47:27-28) The medrash points out that this verse is written as a continuation of the reading from last week’s portioon. In the Torah scroll, you will see that the last verse of last week’s reading (47:27) runs straight into the first verse of this week’s portion (47:28) without the customary blank spaces that serve as a break between chapters. Normally, chapters are separated in the Torah scroll by inserting several blank spaces between them. This is called the “open†format because the blank space are left open. However, in this week’s portion the customary blank/open spaces do not appear. Instead, the two chapters are written as on continuous sentence. This is called the “sealed†format. “And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt sev enteen years, etc.†The verse appears as an uninterrupted continuation of the last verse from last week’s reading: “And Israel dwelt in the land of Egypt, in the land of Goshen; and they were possessed therein, and were fruitful, and multiplied exceedingly.â€
The medrash gives three reasons for why the chapter is written in a “sealed†format. 1) Yakov’s death, related in this week’s reading, marks the beginning of the Egyptian oppression of the Jewish people. The torment of exile began to obstruct their eyes and seal their minds and hearts. 2) Before his death, Yakov began to reveal to his children what would occur in the end of days but Hashem sealed his prophetic vision so that he could not convey it to them. 3) Hashem sealed [within Yakov] all of the future troubles of the Jewish people.
Drawing upon the Zohar, Rav Tzadok HaCohen of Lublin offers a fascinating interpretation of this medrash. The Zohar comments that there is no apparent explanation [for the connection] between the opening verse of this week’s portion and the end of last week’s portion. Rav Tzadok explains that the “open†format is used to seperate between chapters in order to signal to us that it is time to pause to evaluate the deeper meaning of the verses. Even when Hashem dictated the Torah to Moshe, He gave him a break between chapters in order to reflect upon their meaning. In the case of our portion, no break is offered because the inner meaning of the connection between these portions is beyond the scope of our perception. Only Yakov, who possessed exceptional holy perception, was able to fathom the depths of this issue.
The most unlikely place and set of circumstances within which the Jewish people could grow and thrive was in Egypt. While in the clutches of a culture and society that was antithetical to everything that is sacred, the embryonic folk was transformed into an eternal holy nation: “And Israel dwelt in the land of Egypt, in the land of Goshen; and they were possessed therein, and were fruitful, and multiplied exceedingly.†This verse reveals a fascinating paradox. On the one hand the Jewish people thrive and succeed in the Egyptian homeland. But on the other hand, they become captives in the land. They were “possessed†by the land. They fell into the grips of the spiritual impurity that pervaded Egypt. Their eyes and minds were contaminated with microscopic pathogens that would eventually become malignant, threatening to bring down the entire Jewish people. The infiltration was so minute that the Jewish people were unaware that they had become carriers of a spiritual virus that would infect the entire Jewish people until their final redemption. This is the explanation of the first reason that the medrash gives why the chapters are “sealed.†The process was deeply concealed in the subliminal levels of their consciousness to the extent that they did not realize what was taking place. Furthermore, it teaches us that immediately after Yakov’s death his descendants were afflicted; the process was so quick and subtle that it was impossible to understand how it took place – it was “sealed.â€
The second reason the medrash gives is because Yakov was denied the ability to reveal the end of days to his sons. “And Jacob called unto his sons, and said: 'Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the end of days. Assemble yourselves, and hear, you sons of Jacob; and hearken unto Israel your father.†(Breishit 49:1-2) Although Yakov was able to convey to his sons a general map of their future, he was not able to give them a clear vision of their ultimate destiny. The “big picture†of their future was “sealed.â€
Based upon the Zohar, Rav Tzadok explains that Yakov was only able to reveal to his descendants that the Egyptian exile would end with their miraculous delivery and that they would subsequently receive the Torah at Mt. Sinai. Yet, he was not able to explain to them how and why the process of redemption and revelation would evolve from the bitterness of suffering and exile. Only Yakov, who possessed elevated sacred perception, was able to see how and why the light of redemption shines only after transcending through a path of darkness, exile and suffering. The Jewish people would not be able to understand this until they experienced the miraculous splitting of the Red Sea, the awesome prophecy at Mt. Sinai and ultimately, their full redemption. Only then would they be able to look back and “see†how light emanates from the shadow of darkness.
The third reason the medrash gives is that with his prophetic vision, Yakov could see all of the suffering that the Jewish people would have to endure over the course of their extended history. He was also able to understand how the pain and anguish of exile would serve as the medium by which they would receive unimaginable blessing. Nevertheless, he was not able to teach this essential fundamental to the Jewish people to the extent that they could internalize it deeply in their hearts. This indispensable lesson was “sealed†in depths of Yakov’s pure heart.