Parshas Vayechi
This is in the merit of my grandmother Esther bat Mazal. May she have a speedy and complete recovery.
A note: Comments within double brackets, [[abc]], are notes I write for myself so that when I look back later on the topics I discussed, I see all the sources I looked at and how I understood them. Readers are encouraged to skip them.
Question:
“Joseph then ordered his servants, the physicians, to embalm his father. The physicians thus embalmed Israel” (Genesis 50:2).
How could Joseph have Jacob embalmed?!
Healthy Growth
Joseph then took the two boys. He placed Ephraim to his right (to Israel's left), and Manasseh to his left (to Israel's right). He then came close to [his father]. Israel reached out with his right hand and placed it on Ephraim's head [even though] he was the younger son. He [placed] his left hand on Manasseh's head. He deliberately crossed his hands, even though Manasseh was the firstborn.
When Joseph saw that his father had placed his right hand on Ephraim's head, he was displeased. He tried to lift his father's hand from Ephraim's head and place it on Manasseh's.
'That's not the way it should be done, Father,' said Joseph. 'The other one is the first-born. Place your right hand on his head.'
His father refused and said, 'I know, my son, I know. [The older one] will also become a nation. He too will attain greatness. But his younger brother will become even greater, and his descendants will become full-fledged nations.'
On that day [Jacob] blessed them. He said, '[In time to come] Israel will use you as a blessing. They will say, 'May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.' ' He [deliberately] put Ephraim before Manasseh. (Genesis 48:13-14,17-20).
Why did Jacob, after all the trouble such things caused hive, put the younger son ahead of the older one? Additionally, why did Jacob see Ephraim and Manasseh as a model that we should bless our children to be like?
In the Artscroll Pocket Zemiros (religious song) book (pages 10-11), it cites Agra d’Pirka who says that while Ephraim was greater than Manasseh, Ephraim was not arrogant and did not look down on his brother and Manasseh was not jealous of his younger brother. I think then the blessing is that we should all grow as much as we personally can while neither being jealous nor haughty.
Food for thought and discussion:
The blessing to be like Ephraim and Manasseh is for sons while the parallel blessing for daughters is to be like the Matriarchs, Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel, and Leah. The two blessings seem to be completely different (for girls – the Matriarchs, for boys – two grandchildren of Jacob), what is going on?
These blessings are given at Friday night before the Shabbas meal. Why?
Have a good Shabbas,
Mordechai
This is in the merit of my grandmother Esther bat Mazal. May she have a speedy and complete recovery.
A note: Comments within double brackets, [[abc]], are notes I write for myself so that when I look back later on the topics I discussed, I see all the sources I looked at and how I understood them. Readers are encouraged to skip them.
Question:
“Joseph then ordered his servants, the physicians, to embalm his father. The physicians thus embalmed Israel” (Genesis 50:2).
How could Joseph have Jacob embalmed?!
Healthy Growth
Joseph then took the two boys. He placed Ephraim to his right (to Israel's left), and Manasseh to his left (to Israel's right). He then came close to [his father]. Israel reached out with his right hand and placed it on Ephraim's head [even though] he was the younger son. He [placed] his left hand on Manasseh's head. He deliberately crossed his hands, even though Manasseh was the firstborn.
When Joseph saw that his father had placed his right hand on Ephraim's head, he was displeased. He tried to lift his father's hand from Ephraim's head and place it on Manasseh's.
'That's not the way it should be done, Father,' said Joseph. 'The other one is the first-born. Place your right hand on his head.'
His father refused and said, 'I know, my son, I know. [The older one] will also become a nation. He too will attain greatness. But his younger brother will become even greater, and his descendants will become full-fledged nations.'
On that day [Jacob] blessed them. He said, '[In time to come] Israel will use you as a blessing. They will say, 'May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.' ' He [deliberately] put Ephraim before Manasseh. (Genesis 48:13-14,17-20).
Why did Jacob, after all the trouble such things caused hive, put the younger son ahead of the older one? Additionally, why did Jacob see Ephraim and Manasseh as a model that we should bless our children to be like?
In the Artscroll Pocket Zemiros (religious song) book (pages 10-11), it cites Agra d’Pirka who says that while Ephraim was greater than Manasseh, Ephraim was not arrogant and did not look down on his brother and Manasseh was not jealous of his younger brother. I think then the blessing is that we should all grow as much as we personally can while neither being jealous nor haughty.
Food for thought and discussion:
The blessing to be like Ephraim and Manasseh is for sons while the parallel blessing for daughters is to be like the Matriarchs, Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel, and Leah. The two blessings seem to be completely different (for girls – the Matriarchs, for boys – two grandchildren of Jacob), what is going on?
These blessings are given at Friday night before the Shabbas meal. Why?
Have a good Shabbas,
Mordechai
posted by Mordechai18 at 1:34 AM
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