Parashat Vayigash: The Brothers’ Reunion

[This is part eleven in a series of analyses on appearances of ‘name,’ AKA shem in Hebrew, in the weekly Torah portion. Start here.]

shem follows each of Judah and Joseph in the Torah text, indicating that both of them are worthy of the Abrahamic legacy. But it had always been one father to one son, just one chosen from each generation. Who will serve as the next generational link after Jacob? Who will serve as God’s torchbearer?

The last two parshiyot portray the battles over legacy between the children of Leah — lead by Judah — versus the children of Rachel led by Joseph. The brothers try to get rid of Joseph, but even in captivity Joseph’s brilliance remains undimmed and he rises to power. He establishes a new life for himself and carves out a new legacy, rising to second-in-command of the world’s greatest empire. In naming his children with shem Joseph tries to move on, it seems, from the brothers who sold him and the father who abandoned him.

Then his brothers show up more than two decades since selling him away.

Joseph pretends not to know them and forces them to bring him his long lost maternal brother, Benjamin. He tricks them and threatens to keep Benjamin with him in Egypt as a ‘slave,’ separate from the rest of Jacob’s family. Perhaps he’s testing them — how will the brothers respond this time around?

In a display of repentance and remorse, the brothers collectively act as Benjamin’s guardian — with Judah as leader — and seek to prevent further rifts in the family. But Joseph is unmoved and the parasha ends without reconciliation.

This parasha begins with Judah delivering a passionate speech to Joseph. He succeeds in breaking down Joseph’s barriers and Joseph reveals himself to his brothers:

וַיֹּ֨אמֶר יוֹסֵ֤ף אֶל־אֶחָיו֙ אֲנִ֣י יוֹסֵ֔ף הַע֥וֹד אָבִ֖י חָ֑י וְלֹֽא־יָכְל֤וּ אֶחָיו֙ לַעֲנ֣וֹת אֹת֔וֹ כִּ֥י נִבְהֲל֖וּ מִפָּנָֽיו׃
Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph. Is my father still well?” But his brothers could not answer him, so dumfounded were they on account of him. (Genesis 45:3)

We spoke previously of the anguish Joseph must have felt all those years in Egypt not knowing what happened to his beloved father, the father who adored him and favorited him over the other brothers. How could such a father send him on a dangerous mission? And after he was sold into slavery, how could such a father abandon him? Joseph had no way of knowing what his father knew or didn’t knew about his sale, he had no idea that the brothers would feign his death. All he knew was that he was isolated, thrown out of the family, and no contact from them in decades since.

This perspective seems all the more compelling when we read of Joseph’s big reveal. In the very next breath after revealing his identity he asks of his father. Is he still alive? Could it be that he’s been alive all these years and hasn’t tried to find me, to save me? Where is my father?

Joseph’s question is rhetorical — maybe something of an emotional outburst — seeing as how the brothers don’t answer his question, and he had already asked about his father’s welfare previously (Gen. 43:27) and the brothers hadn’t left Egypt since he asked. So apparently there was no need to say it again now; perhaps they didn’t want to keep salting Joseph’s wounds.

There is a tearful, brotherly reunion before Joseph gets on with business. He tells them to bring down their father and the rest of the family to live out the remaining famine years.

Jacob, though ecstatic to hear the news of Joseph’s survival, has mixed feelings about expatriating to Egypt. God reassures him, instructing him to exile himself from Israel, go down to Egypt, and join Joseph. Jacob obeys and the Torah enumerates the members of his family who travel to Egypt:

וְאֵ֨לֶּה שְׁמ֧וֹת בְּנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֛ל הַבָּאִ֥ים מִצְרַ֖יְמָה יַעֲקֹ֣ב וּבָנָ֑יו בְּכֹ֥ר יַעֲקֹ֖ב רְאוּבֵֽן׃
These are the names of the Israelites, Jacob and his descendants, who came to Egypt. Jacob’s first-born is Reuben. (Gen. 46:8)

וַיִּוָּלֵ֣ד לְיוֹסֵף֮ בְּאֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרַ֒יִם֒ אֲשֶׁ֤ר יָֽלְדָה־לּוֹ֙ אָֽסְנַ֔ת בַּת־פּ֥וֹטִי פֶ֖רַע כֹּהֵ֣ן אֹ֑ן אֶת־מְנַשֶּׁ֖ה וְאֶת־אֶפְרָֽיִם׃
To Joseph were born in the land of Egypt Manasseh and Ephraim, whom Asenath daughter of Poti-phera priest of On bore to him. (Gen. 46:20)

כׇּל־הַ֠נֶּ֠פֶשׁ הַבָּאָ֨ה לְיַעֲקֹ֤ב מִצְרַ֙יְמָה֙ יֹצְאֵ֣י יְרֵכ֔וֹ מִלְּבַ֖ד נְשֵׁ֣י בְנֵי־יַעֲקֹ֑ב כׇּל־נֶ֖פֶשׁ שִׁשִּׁ֥ים וָשֵֽׁשׁ׃ וּבְנֵ֥י יוֹסֵ֛ף אֲשֶׁר־יֻלַּד־ל֥וֹ בְמִצְרַ֖יִם נֶ֣פֶשׁ שְׁנָ֑יִם כׇּל־הַנֶּ֧פֶשׁ לְבֵֽית־יַעֲקֹ֛ב הַבָּ֥אָה מִצְרַ֖יְמָה שִׁבְעִֽים׃
All the persons belonging to Jacob who came to EgypteNot including Joseph and Joseph’s two sons. — his own issue, aside from the wives of Jacob’s sons — all these persons numbered 66. And Joseph’s sons who were born to him in Egypt were two in number. Thus the total of Jacob’s household who came to Egypt was seventy persons. (Gen. 46:26–27)

This is shem’s lone appearance in this parasha. What can we learn from it?

Firstly, note that Reuben is still honored with the firstborn title despite his shortcomings noted earlier in the Torah.

In the ensuing list of Jacob’s descendants Joseph’s children stand out. They are singled out for having been born in Egypt and to a daughter — Joseph’s wife — of Egyptian nobility, whereas no other of the brothers’ wives are mentioned in the list. Then a second time, as the list was framed as those of Jacob’s family who traveled with him down to Egypt, Joseph’s sons are again singled at the end, as they were already living in Egypt.

So the Torah is focusing our attention on shem in the context of Jacob’s family versus Joseph’s sons. Is Joseph’s legacy separate from that of his family? Do his sons inherit his Egyptian legacy or his Abrahamic legacy as their primary heritage?

And who will be humanity’s torchbearer after Jacob — Joseph or Judah? And what of the rest of the brothers, are they all to be cast away like Esau and Yishmael in earlier generations? How will Jacob decide with whom to entrust his legacy, God’s legacy? Who will merit the ‘great name’ (Gen. 12:2) which God promised to Abraham and his descendants?

The parasha ends with these questions unanswered. The resolution will have to wait for next week, the final parasha of sefer Bereishit.