ויגש

VAYIGASH (AND HE DREW NEAR)


Parashat Vayigash

Judah Pleads for Benjamin

18 Then Judah approached him and said, “I beg your pardon, my lord. Please let your servant say a word in my lord’s ears, and don’t be angry with your servant, since you are like Pharaoh. 19 My lord asked his servants saying, ‘Do you have a father or a brother?’ 20 So we said to my lord, ‘We have a father who is old, a child born to him of his old age is young. Now his brother is dead, so he is the only one of his mother’s children left, and his father loves him.’ 21 Then you said to your servants, ‘Bring him down to me so that I can look at him.’ 22 But we said to my lord, ‘The boy cannot leave his father. If he were to leave his father, he would die.’ 23 Then you said to your servants, ‘Unless your youngest brother comes down with you, you won’t see my face again.’

24 “Now when we went up to your servant, my father, we told him my lord’s words. 25 Then our father said, ‘Go back, buy us a little grain for food.’ 26 So we said, ‘We won’t go down unless we have our youngest brother with us—then we’ll go down. For we won’t see the man’s face unless our youngest brother is with us.’

27 “Then your servant my father said to us, ‘You yourselves know that my wife bore me two sons. 28 One went out from me, so I said, “He must have been torn to shreds,” and I haven’t seen him since. 29 And if you also take this one away from before me and an accident happens to him, then you’ll bring my grey hair down to the evil of Sheol.’

30 “Now if I come to your servant my father and the boy isn’t with us, since his life is bound to his life, 31 when he sees that the boy is no more, he’ll die. Then your servants will bring the grey hair of your servant our father down to Sheol in grief. 32 For your servant became pledge for the boy with my father saying, ‘If I don’t bring him back to you, I will bear the blame before my father all my days.’ 33 So now, please let your servant remain as my lord’s slave in the boy’s place, and let the boy go up with his brothers. 34 For how can I go up to my father and the boy is not with me? Else I must see the evil that would come upon my father!”

Joseph Reveals Himself

45 Now Joseph could no longer restrain himself in front of all those who were standing by him, so he cried out, “Get everyone away from me!” So no one stood with him when Joseph made himself known to his brothers. But he gave his voice to weeping so that the Egyptians heard, and Pharaoh’s household heard. Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?” And his brothers were unable to answer him because they were terrified at his presence.

Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Please come near me.” So they came near. “I’m Joseph, your brother—the one you sold to Egypt,” he said. “So now, don’t be grieved and don’t be angry in your own eyes that you sold me here—since it was for preserving life that God sent me here before you. For there has been two years of famine in the land, and there will be five more years yet with no plowing or harvesting. But God sent me ahead of you to ensure a remnant in the land and to keep you alive for a great escape. So now, it wasn’t you, you didn’t send me here, but God! And He made me as a father to Pharaoh, lord over his whole house and ruler over the entire land of Egypt.

“Go up quickly to my father and say to him, ‘Thus says your son, Joseph: God has made me lord over all Egypt. Come down to me. Don’t delay. 10 Then you’ll live in the land of Goshen, and be close to me, you and your children and your children’s children, your flocks and your cattle, and everything that belongs to you. 11 I’ll provide food for you there—for the famine will last another five years—otherwise you’ll lose everything, you and your household, and everything that belongs to you.’ 12 And look, you and my brother Benjamin can see with your own eyes that it’s my mouth that’s speaking to you. 13 You must tell my father about all my honor in Egypt, and about all that you’ve seen. And you must quickly bring my father down here.”

14 Then he fell upon his brother Benjamin’s neck and wept while Benjamin wept upon his neck, 15 and he kissed all his brothers and wept upon them. Finally after this, his brothers talked with him.

16 When the commotion was heard in Pharaoh’s house—“Joseph’s brothers have come!”—it was good in the eyes of Pharaoh and his servants, 17 So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Say to your brothers: ‘Do this! Load your animals and go to the land of Canaan. 18 Then get your father, your households, and come to me. I’ll give you the best of the land of Egypt, and you will eat the fat of the land.’ 19 You are also commanded to say: “Do this! Take for yourselves wagons from the land of Egypt for your little children and for your wives, and pick up your father and come. 20 Don’t be concerned about your goods, because the best of all the land of Egypt is yours.’”

21 So the sons of Israel did so. Joseph gave them carts by Pharaoh’s command and he gave them provisions for the journey. 22 To each of them he gave a change of clothes, while to Benjamin he gave 300 pieces of silver and five sets of clothes. 23 Also to his father he sent the following: ten donkeys carrying from the best of Egypt, and ten female donkeys carrying grain and food and provisions for his father’s journey. 24 Then he sent his brothers off, and as they departed, he said to them, “Don’t be anxious on the way.”

25 Then they went up from Egypt and came to the land of Canaan, to Jacob their father. 26 They told him saying, “Joseph is still alive and he is ruler of the whole land of Egypt!”

His heart went numb, for he did not believe them. 27 But they told him all of Joseph’s words that he had told them. When he saw the wagons that Joseph had sent to pick him up, the spirit of their father Jacob revived. 28 Then Israel said, “Enough! My son Joseph is still alive. I must go and see him, before I die.”

Jacob Goes to Egypt

46 So Israel set out, along with everything that belonged to him. When he came to Beersheba, he offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac. In visions of the night God said to Israel, “Jacob, Jacob.”

Hineni,” he said.

“I am God, the God of your father,” He said. “Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will turn you into a great nation there. I Myself will go down with you to Egypt and I Myself will also most certainly bring you up. Joseph will put his hands on your eyes.”

Then Jacob arose from Beersheba and Israel’s sons carried Jacob their father, their little children, and their wives in the carts that Pharaoh had sent to carry him. They also took their livestock and their possessions they had acquired in the land of Canaan and they came to Egypt, Jacob and all his offspring with him. His sons and his grandsons with him, his daughters and his granddaughters, and all his offspring, he brought with him to Egypt. Now these are the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt, Jacob and his sons: Jacob’s firstborn, Reuben, and Reuben’s sons: Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron and Carmi. 10 Simeon’s sons: Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zochar and Shaul the son of the Canaanite woman. 11 Levi’s sons: Gershon, Kohath and Merari. 12 Judah’s sons: Er, Onan, Shelah, Perez and Zerah. Er died along with Onan in the land of Canaan. Perez’s sons were Hezron and Hamul. 13 Issachar’s sons: Tola, Puvah, Iob and Shimron. 14 Zebulun’s sons: Sered, Elon and Jahleel. 15 These are Leah’s sons whom she bore to Jacob in Paddan-aram, along with his daughter Dinah. The tally of all of his sons and daughters was 33 people.

16 Gad’s sons: Ziphion, Haggi, Shuni, Ezbon, Eri, Arodi and Areli. 17 Asher’s sons: Imnah, Ishvah, Ishvi, Beriah, and Serah their sister. Beriah’s sons: Heber and Malchiel. 18 These are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to Leah his daughter. She bore these to Jacob: 16 people.

19 The sons of Jacob’s wife Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin. 20 Manasseh and Ephraim were born to Joseph in the land of Egypt—Asenath the daughter of Potiphera priest of On bore them to him. 21 Benjamin’s sons: Bela, Becher, Ashbel, Gera, Naaman, Ehi, Rosh, Muppim, Huppim and Ard. 22 These are Rachel’s sons who were born to Jacob. The tally of all the people was 14.

23 The sons of Dan: Hushim 24 Naphtali’s sons: Yachzeel, Guni, Yezer and Shillem. 25 These are the sons of Bilhah whom Laban gave to Rachel his daughter and she bore these to Jacob. The tally of all the people was seven. 26 All the people belonging to Jacob who came to Egypt—those coming from his loins (not counting the wives of Jacob’s sons)—the tally of all the people was 66. 27 The sons of Joseph who were born to him in Egypt was a tally of two people. The tally of all the people belonging to Jacob’s house who came to Egypt was 70.

28 Now he sent Judah before him to Joseph to show him the way to Goshen. When they came to the land of Goshen, 29 Joseph harnessed his chariot and went up to Goshen to meet his father Israel. As soon as he appeared before him, he fell upon his neck, and wept on his neck for some time.

30 Then Israel said to Joseph, “At this time I am ready to die, after seeing your face in person—for you’re still alive!”

31 Then Joseph said to his brothers and to his father’s household, “I’ll go up and tell Pharaoh, and say to him, ‘My brothers and my father’s household who were in the land of Canaan have come to me. 32 The men are shepherds, for they’ve been men who handle livestock, who have brought their flocks and cattle and everything that they possess.’ 33 So when Pharaoh calls you and says, ‘What is your occupation?’ 34 you must say, ‘Your servants have been men who handle livestock since the time of our youth until now, both we and our fathers,’ so that you can live in the land of Goshen, because every shepherd is loathsome to the Egyptians.”

Jacob Blesses Pharaoh

47 Then Joseph came and informed Pharaoh, “My father and my brothers and their flocks and their cattle and everything that belongs to them have come from the land of Canaan, and behold, they are in the land of Goshen.”

From among his brothers he took five men and presented them before Pharaoh. Pharaoh said to his brothers, “What is your occupation?”

So they said to Pharaoh, “Your servants are shepherds, both we and our fathers.” Then they said to Pharaoh, “We came to dwell temporarily in the land, since there is no pasture for the flocks that belong to your servants, for the famine is severe in the land of Canaan. So now, please let your servants live in the land of Goshen.”

Pharaoh said to Joseph saying, “Your father and your brothers came to you. The land of Egypt is before you—settle your father and your brothers in the best part of the land. Let them live in the land of Goshen. If you know of any capable men among them, make them overseers of the livestock—over those that are mine.”

Then Joseph brought his father Jacob and presented him before Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. Pharaoh asked Jacob, “How many days are the years of your life?”

Jacob said to Pharaoh, “The days of the years of my sojourn are 130 years. Few and evil have been the days of the years of my life. Moreover, the days of the years of my life have not attained the days of the years of the lives of my fathers, in the days of their sojourn.”

10 And Jacob blessed Pharaoh and went out from Pharaoh’s presence. 11 Joseph settled his father and his brothers and gave them property in the land of Egypt, in the best part of the land, in the land of Rameses, just as Pharaoh commanded. 12 And Joseph supported his father and his brothers and his father’s entire household with food for the mouths of the little ones.

Joseph’s Leadership in the Famine

13 Now there was no food in all the land because the famine was very severe. Both the land of Egypt and the land of Canaan languished because of the famine. 14 Joseph collected all the money that could be found in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan for the grain that they bought, and Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh’s house. 15 Then the money of the land of Egypt and of the land of Canaan ran out and all of Egypt came to Joseph saying, “Give us food. Why should we die in front of you because the money is gone?”

16 Joseph said, “Give your livestock and I’ll give it to you for your livestock, if the money is gone.” 17 So they brought their livestock to Joseph and Joseph gave them food in exchange for horses, for flocks of sheep, for herds of cattle and for donkeys. He provided them with food in exchange for all their livestock that year. 18 When that year came to an end, they came to him in the second year and said to him, “We won’t hide from my lord that the money has run out and the livestock and the domestic animals are my lord’s. There is nothing left in my lord’s sight except our bodies and our land. 19 Why should we die before your eyes—both we and our land? Buy us and our land for food—we and our land will become Pharaoh’s slaves. Provide seed so that we may live and not die, and the land won’t be deserted.”

20 So Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh because the Egyptians, each one, sold his field, for the famine overcame them. Thus the land became Pharaoh’s. 21 He made the people slaves from one end of Egypt’s border to the other. 22 Only he did not buy the land belonging to the priests, because the priests had an allotment from Pharaoh, and they ate their allotment that Pharaoh gave them. Therefore they did not sell their land.

23 Then Joseph said to the people, “Behold, I have bought you and your land today for Pharaoh. Here is seed for you, so that you can sow the land. 24 During the harvest you must give a fifth part to Pharaoh and four-fifths will be for you, for seed for the field and for your food, and for those in your houses, and for food for your little ones.”

25 “You’ve saved our lives,” they said. “We find favor in the eyes of my lord, and we’ll be Pharaoh’s slaves.” 26 So Joseph set it as a statute until this very day concerning the land of Egypt: a fifth-part goes to Pharaoh. Only the priests’ land did not become Pharaoh’s.

27 Meanwhile, Israel settled in the land of Egypt in the land of Goshen, acquired property in it, and were fruitful and multiplied greatly.


Reunification of Southern and Northern Kingdoms

15 The word of Adonai came to me saying: 16 “You, son of man, take one stick and write on it, ‘For Judah’—for Bnei-Yisrael joined with him. Then take another stick and write on it, ‘For Joseph’—the stick of Ephraim and all the house of Israel joined with him. 17 Join them one to another for yourself, as one stick, so they may become one in your hand.

18 “When the children of your people speak to you saying, ‘Won’t you tell us what you mean by these?’ 19 say to them, thus says Adonai Elohim: ‘Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph—which is in the hand of Ephraim and the tribes of Israel joined with him—and I will put them together with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick. They will be one in My hand.’ 20 The sticks that you write on will be in your hand before their eyes.

21 “Then say to them, thus says Adonai Elohim: ‘Behold, I will take Bnei-Yisrael from among the nations, where they have gone. I will gather them from every side and bring them into their own land. 22 I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel, and one king will be king to them all. They will no longer be two nations and never again be divided into two kingdoms. 23 They will never again be defiled with their idols, their detestable things or with any of their transgressions. I will save them out of all their dwellings in which they sinned. I will purify them. Then they will be My people and I will be their God. 24 My servant David will be king over them. They will all have One Shepherd. They will walk in My ordinances and observe My rulings and do them. 25 They will live in the land that I gave to My servant Jacob, where your ancestors lived. They will live there—they, their children and their children’s children, forever, and My servant David will be their prince forever. 26 I will cut a covenant of shalom with them—it will be an everlasting covenant with them. I will give to them and multiply them. I will set up My Sanctuary among them forever. [a] 27 My dwelling-place will be over them. I will be their God and they will be My people. 28 Then the nations will know that I am Adonai who sanctifies Israel, when My Sanctuary is in their midst forever.’”

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Appointing the Twelve

12 And it was during these days that Yeshua went out to the mountain to pray, and He spent all night in prayer to God. 13 When day came, He called His disciples, choosing from among them twelve whom He also named emissaries— 14 Simon, whom He also named Peter, and Andrew his brother; and Jacob and John; and Philip and Bartholomew; 15 and Matthew and Thomas; Jacob the son of Alphaeus; Simon who was called the Zealot; 16 Judah the son of Jacob; and Judah from Kriot, who became a traitor.

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Seven Woes

23 Then Yeshua spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, saying, “The Torah scholars and Pharisees sit on the seat of Moses. So whatever they tell you, do and observe. But don’t do what they do; for what they say, they do not do. They tie up heavy loads, hard to carry,[a] and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves aren’t willing to lift a finger to move them. All their works they do to be noticed by men. They make their tefillin wide and their tzitziyot long. [b] They love the place of honor at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called rabbi by men.

“But you are not to be called rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers. And call no man on earth your father; for One is your Father, who is in heaven. 10 Nor are you to be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Messiah. 11 But the greatest among you shall be your servant. 12 Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled, and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.

13 “But woe to you, Torah scholars and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut people out of the kingdom of heaven. For you do not enter yourselves, nor do you let those enter who are trying to go in. (14 )[c]

15 “Woe to you, Torah scholars and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel over land and sea to make one convert. And when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of Gehenna as yourself.

16 “Woe to you, blind guides! You say, ‘Whoever swears by the Temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the Temple, he is obligated.’ 17 O fools and blind ones! Which is greater, the gold or the Temple that made the gold holy? [d] 18 And you say, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the offering on it, he is obligated.’ 19 O blind ones! Which is greater, the offering or the altar that makes the offering holy? [e] 20 Therefore, whoever swears by the altar, swears both by the altar and everything on it. 21 And whoever swears by the Temple, swears both by the Temple and by Him who dwells in it. 22 And whoever swears by heaven, swears both by the throne of God and by Him who sits on it.

23 “Woe to you, Torah scholars and Pharisees, hypocrites! You tithe[f] mint and dill and cumin, yet you have neglected the weightier matters of Torah—justice and mercy and faithfulness. It is necessary to do these things without neglecting the others. 24 O blind guides, straining out a gnat while swallowing a camel!

25 “Woe to you, Torah scholars and Pharisees, hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and uncontrolled desire. 26 O blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, so that the outside may become clean as well.

27 “Woe to you, Torah scholars and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean. 28 In the same way, you appear righteous to men on the outside, but are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

29 “Woe to you, Torah scholars and Pharisees, hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the monuments of the tzaddikim. 30 And you say, ‘If we’d been alive in the days of our forefathers, we wouldn’t have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31 So you testify against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. 32 Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers! 33 O snakes, you brood of vipers! How will you escape the condemnation of Gehenna?

34 “Because of this, behold, I’m sending you prophets and wise men and Torah scholars. Some of them you will kill and execute at the stake, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city. 35 And so, upon you shall come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berechiah,[g] whom you murdered between the Temple and the altar. [h] 36 Amen, I tell you, all these things will come upon this generation.”

Holy Temple to Be Destroyed

37 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her! How often I longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! 38 Look, your house is left to you desolate! [i] 39 For I tell you, you will never see Me again until you say, ‘Baruch ha-ba b’shem Adonai. Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’”[j]

24 Now when Yeshua went out and was going away from the Temple, His disciples came up to point out to Him the Temple buildings. “Don’t you see all these?” He responded to them. “Amen, I tell you, not one stone will be left here on top of another—every one will be torn down!”

Signs of the End of Time

As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things happen? What will be the sign of Your coming and of the end of the age?”

Yeshua answered them, “Be careful that no one leads you astray! For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will lead many astray. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must happen but it is not yet the end. For nation will rise up against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.[k] And there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. But all these things are only the beginning of birth pains.

“Then they will hand you over to persecution and will kill you. You will be hated by all the nations because of My name. 10 And then many will fall away and will betray one another and hate one other. 11 Many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. 12 Because lawlessness will multiply, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But the one who endures to the end will be saved. 14 This Good News of the kingdom shall be proclaimed in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.

15 “So when you see ‘the abomination of desolation,’[l] which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the Holy Place (let the reader understand), 16 then those in Judea must flee to the mountains. 17 The one on the roof must not go down to take what is in his house, 18 and the one in the field must not turn back to get his coat. 19 Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! 20 Pray that your escape will not happen in winter, or on Shabbat. 21 For then there will be great trouble,[m] such as has not happened since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will. 22 And unless those days were cut short, no one would be delivered. But for the sake of the chosen, those days will be cut short.

23 “Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here’s the Messiah,’ or ‘There He is,’ do not believe it. 24 For false messiahs and false prophets will rise up[n] and show great signs and wonders so as to lead astray, if possible, even the chosen. 25 See, I have told you beforehand.

26 “So if they say to you, ‘Look, He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out. Or, ‘Look, He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. 27 For just as lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so also will be the coming of the Son of Man. 28 For wherever the carcass is, there the vultures will gather.

29 “But immediately after the trouble of those days,

‘the sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light
and the stars will fall from heaven
and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.’[o]

30 Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the land will mourn, and they will see ‘the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven’[p] with power and great glory. 31 He will send out His angels with a great shofar, and they will gather together His chosen from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.”[q]

Watching for Messiah’s Return

32 “Now learn the parable from the fig tree. When its branch becomes tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. 33 So also, when you see all these things, know that it is near, at the door. 34 Amen, I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things happen. 35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away. [r] 36 But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven nor the Son,[s] except the Father alone.

37 “For just as the days of Noah were, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For in those days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark. 39 And they did not understand until the flood came and swept them all away.[t] So shall it be at the coming of the Son of Man. 40 Then two men will be in the field, one taken and one left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill, one taken and one left. [u] 42 Therefore stay alert; for you do not know what day your Lord is coming. 43 But know this, that if the master of the house had known what time the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and not let his house be broken into. 44 So you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”

The Faithful Servant

45 “Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master put in charge of his household to give them food at the proper time? 46 Blessed is that servant whose master finds him so doing when he comes. 47 Amen, I tell you, his master will put him in charge of all his possessions. 48 But if that wicked servant says in his heart, ‘My master is taking a long time,’ 49 and he begins to beat his fellow servants, and he eats and drinks with drunkards, 50 the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know. 51 And he will cut him in two and assign his place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”