Vayechi - 1st Portion

Join me as we learnish for today paras. [snorts] The first Torah reading for Sunday of Paras 47 verse 28. We finished a previous Torah reading of Paras Vigash of how the Jewish people settled in the land of Goshan. How Yoseph was in control and owned almost all the property of the land of Egypt and bringing in lots of money to Pharaoh. Now the Jewish people continue to prosper and grow and settling in the land of Gosh. This week's Torah reading brings us to the last days of Yakov's life. And Jacob lived in the land of 17 years. The last 17 years of his life and the years of Jacob at this point was 147 years. If you notice between every para there's three PS there's a space between the para when one learns par before there is no space between the last Torah reading and this Torah reading as well why is this para closed meaning why is there no opening before it this is because Jacob passed on this week's reading the eyes of the Jews and the heart because of the suffering of the enslavement that happens afterwards that happens after his passing that they started making them work another explanation is wanted to reveal the end of days to his to the Jewish people to his children wanted to tell them when Mashiach was coming as later on he tells them gather around and I will tell you the end of days and it was blocked from him and he was not able to do it. The Reb learns from here the lesson that Jacob teaches every Jewish legal want to reveal the time of the coming of Mashiach that every single one of us should want and desire to bring about reveal the coming of Msiah. Verse 29. It came close to and and it came the time drew near for Israel to die and he called his son Yseph. He tells him if you will find favor in your eyes. Please place your hand under my thigh and you'll do with me genuine kindness. Please do not bury me in Egypt. Call me anytime where it says the terminology getting close to die. He doesn't come to the and the ears of his father lived 180 years live only 147 by David you find a similar number of shim because his father lived 400 some people say 80 years and he only lived 70 years and he called his son Yseph. why he called his son Yseph. The reason why Yoseph and that son particularly because he was the one that had the power to do it because he was the viceroy of Egypt. Hold, put your hand, meaning hold the place of where are the bristes and swear because when a person takes an oath he has to hold a object of a mitzvah and the only physical object of the mitzvah was the bris that was done at the time genuine strength genuine kindness and Rashi explains because why is this considered pure kindness kindness you do with dead people who is genuinely kind because it is impossible and you do not look to see how that person will reciprocate in kind. It's the only time where a person can do something kind and not anticipate being rewarded for it. Do not bury me in Egypt. Why didn't want to be buried in Egypt? He knew that there were going to be the plague of of lice which is going to affect the earth and it's going to be lice going to be crumbling all over my body and therefore he did not want to be buried in Egypt. That's reason number one. Reason number two, the time comes for the resurrection of the dead. Those that are buried outside of Egypt are going to have to go through different tunnels and roll into the land of Israel. And therefore he didn't want to go through that suffering as well. Another reason being that he was the one that brought an end to the hunger. Therefore he was concerned that the Egyptians may make him into an idol and make him into considered a god. Therefore he said I don't want that to happen and therefore bury me in the land of Israel. Where is it going to be? Therefore he asks of his son as follows. and I'm going to lie with my father down with my fathers in the you must carry me out of Egypt and you'll bury me in their burial place and said to him I will do as you say verse 30 whenever it says the VV is connecting to the previous verse meaning and this This is what he's telling him. You I want you to take an oath and my end is that I want to be able to be buried in less and lay with my fathers. That means I am making you and you will then carry me out of Egypt and bury me there. Meaning that he's making him take an oath on that fact. You cannot say that I will live with my fathers. It has to do with the burial meaning when my father's in the in the cave because already says afterwards carry me out of Egypt you'll bury me. So what's he saying that you're going to bury me? He says it later you're going to bury me. So therefore this must be going to what he said before even more so many time we find in the verse the word to lie with his fathers that's the actual passing and not the burial so you have the passing the carrying out of Egypt and then stage number three is the burial as we see this David and it talks about that he passed he lied down with his fathers and only afterwards it says David that he was buried in the land of Beloved, I want you to swear to me bowed to the head of the bed. Verse 31. Even the why is it respectful that he should bow to his son? But this is like a usual terminology that people say that even a fox as it success when it's even a fox when it's successful it is bowed to that means even though Yoseph who was on a lower level than Yakov at this point he was worthy enough because he is the ruler and therefore Jacob bowed to him wind the head of the bed he turned himself to the side to the head of the bed let's add to the divine presence from Here our sages tell us as it says in the attracted of Shabas that the divine presence is above the head of an individual and therefore Yakov turned his way to the head of a sick person at the head of a sick person that the head of the bed of an ill individual that's where the divine presence le rests another explanation meaning at the head of the bed meaning he was thankful for the fact that it's coming the end of his life and All his children were perfect. There was no one evil amongst them. Even Yseph, he was a king in the land of Egypt. And he was captured amongst the nations of the world. And still in all he was righteous, holy, and pure. Chapter 48 verse one. Was after those words after that what his father told him that he's about to die. Ysef and Yseph was told, "Behold, your father is not ill. Your father's ailing. He's not well." And he took his two sons with him as a mana and aim. At that time, Manasha was 25 years old and Aphraim 24 years old. And he brought them to get blessed by their grandfather. Who is the one that told Ysef? One of the people told him this. This is a shorthand verse. Some explain was a used to study by learn to his father to Egypt to tell him that his father is ill and he took his two sons with him that should bless them before he passes. Verse two was told to behold your son Yseph is coming to you. And he strengthened himself and he sat up on the bed. Who was the one that told him? The person who came and told the news doesn't say who. We find a lot of times in the verse where it's keeps it short. Keeps short that it doesn't say who and what when did it. It just tells us the activity that happened and he strengthened himself set himself even though he's my son and he really has to respect me he's a king and I will give him respect from here we learn one always has to give respect to kingdom even though if the king himself may not be worthy of it still in all you have to give respect we find covered the malus. Moshe gave respect to the kingdom of Egypt even though he was the king of Egypt and he was hurting the Jewish people that all of your servants will come down to me. And so to when he talks to of the king that he put on a proper cloak and garb himself quickly the way he came to be respectful before the king. So no matter how the king may act, you still have to have respect for the office so to speak of the king. Verse number four. And he said, verse three, Yseph, God Almighty appeared to me in the land of he blessed me. Verse four, and he said to me, "Behold, I will make you fruitful and numerous. and I will make you a community of people community of people and I will give this land to your to you to your descendants that come after you as a permanent estate. This is what Jacob was telling Ysephi. God told me that will come for me more communities of people, more nations. Who is this going to be? More tribes. Even though God already gave me the promise go a nation and another community of nations go when God told me the nations who that three a community of nations that's another two besides but I didn't have any children afterwards because one of my tribes one of my children are going to be split into two and now that gift that God has gifted me that one my children. Their children are going to be as considered as part of the tribes I'm going to give to you. And with that, he continues in verse number five. The two children that were born to you better, the land of Egypt until my coming here and Egypt. They will be considered to as mine will be to me just like and verse five. She says as follows meaning before I came were born from when you separated from me until I came to meet you here today. the means to their mind. They're going to be part of my children. They'll be part of one of the tribes that each one of them will get their own allotted portion in the land of Israel. Verse six, however, those offsprings that are born to you after them, they will be on your name. They will inherit your portion. when they inherit the land, they will be included under their brother's names of Ephraim and Manasha. Verse six, Rashi says, "If you can have other children besides, they're not going to be counted amongst my children. They'll be included in the tribes of they will not have their own name concerning the other tribes as when you want to talk when it discussed about inheriting the land of Israel. Rashi then continues and notes even though that when the land of Israel was split as we see in the book of numbers it went according to the amount of people the word the population of every tribe and every person was able to get the same besides the firstborn of each family were able to get double they got double but the only ones that were called tribes This refers to them when it came to make the allotted portions and it came to decide who should get which portion of the land of Israel. They took all the tribes and the national were included as part of the tribes that were divided and therefore they also had a leader for each one of their tribes the gumaz and they also had a flag for their tribe. They were counted as all the tribes as everybody else. There was no change no difference. They were considered as one of Jacob's family. Verse seven, and now I selected you for the distinction for the following reason. When I was coming, when I came from your mother died on me in the land of Cananan while we were still traveling on the way and there was still a good stretch of land until we would reach Ephra and I buried buried there on the side of the land on the road on the way to Ephas which today he based Lim which is called Bethlehem. verse seven. You may ask, this is going back to where Jacob asks of Yoseph that he should be buried in the land of Israel. And he's saying, you may ask, one second, you didn't do that to my mother. You buried the rat on the spot. And even though I'm bothering you to take me to the land of Israel after my passing to be buried in which is a very long distance, a very far stretch away. I didn't do that to your mother. She died near what does it mean? some big stretch of land about 2,000 which is the amount of land that a person is not allowed to walk on the amount you can walk on chabas and after that you can no longer walk on chabas like says don't say I cannot say that it wasn't that the rain held me back from bringing her to he because at that time was the summer. Oh yeah. Was the dry. It was land. There were land was dry. It was actually the beginning of fall [snorts] and everything. There was nothing that should hold me back. It was an easy travel that I should be able to go and take her and I did not take her to but I buried her there. I didn't even take her to which is at the entrance. It's to take her to a place which is settled. And I know that in your heart you have issues with it a lie. And you're upset. Why didn't I take her to a place and bury her properly? Why in the side of the road? You should know but I didn't do this on my own. It was by divine intuition that God told me I should do it that I buried her there that later on she should be able to help her children at the destruction of the holy temple that when the king of the king of Babylonia will exile the Jewish people from the land of Israel they will stand there they will go past her grave site her burial place and is going to say and ra will come out and cry for the Jewish people. And she's going to pray that God have pity and mercy on the Jewish people. As it says in the book of Jeremiah, as it says, that the voice upon heaven is heard. And who is it that is crying for her children? And God answers her, I heard your crying. There's going to be reward for your actions. that the Jews will ultimately return to their homeland. Rashant and he says that the word also comes that that it means the measurement of the Shabas. He says the tear game. However, the las translates to meaning the amount of space that it takes to plow for one day and I say there was a certain amount of space a certain measurement which means the amount that you plow was considered a measurement like it says that we find it in other places in the terminology which is a certain space a measurement of how much a person can plow or how how much the animal can plow in a certain distance. Verse eight, and saw the children of Yseph and he said me, who are these? Verse eight. What does it mean? He didn't see them. I thought the fra was learning with him. What does it mean? He didn't know who they are. But he wanted to know he wanted to bless them and the went away from him. The divine presence left him. Why did divine presence leave him? He saw that two evil people and were going to come from them. The kings of the land of the is the 10 tribes are going to come from. So therefore he sees look what's going to come from these children. And therefore he said, "Who are these children? Who are these children? Are they are they worthy for a blessing that they're not worthy for a blessing? Can I give them a blessing?" Nine verse 9 says to his father, "These are my children that God gave me with this." And he said, "If so, bring them to me so that I can bless them." Verse 9. What does it mean that God gave them to me with this? He showed him the document that he was properly married. And saw how his father was struggling that divine presence left him. And therefore, Yoseph begged and prayed to God. And the divine presence came back to Yakov and he was able to bless his children once the divine presence came back. He was able to bless them. That's why it says in the verse meaning I became used to meaning I brought divine presence on Jacob and because of that this way Aphraim should be blessed because Yakov took him in his arms and blessed them. This concludes that the first Torah reading of parasi.