Parshat Vayehi Genesis 47:28 – 50:26; Concluding the Book of Genesis by Rabbi Denise L. Eger
With this week’s portion we conclude the reading of the Book of Genesis. Parshat Vayechi is the last reading of this great story of our early family’s history and their journey from Creation through the stories of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph.
Joseph and his brothers have been reunited and now the brothers dwell at the invitation of Joseph in the land of Goshen in Egypt. They brought their father, Jacob down as well to Egypt as an old man at the request (demand?) of their powerful brother Joseph.
But in this week’s portion, Jacob is approaching his final days and he offers a last blessing to his sons. Just as his journey began when he received a stolen blessing from his father, his life will end as he gives the blessing to his sons and grandsons. The blessings he gives will ironically be not always a cheerful blessing. But depending upon the son and his character, Jacob will tailor the blessing (prophecy) to each one of them. So too in these blessings we can see how each son’s destiny is in part transformed from the individual person to the destiny of each of the 12 tribes.
One would expect Reuben as the eldest to receive the first blessing. But that blessing actually goes to Joseph’s sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. Jacob adopts the two grandsons with his blessing and thus they are elevated to tribal status (Gen. 48). Interestingly Jacob switches his hands during the blessings of his grandsons. He uses his right hand on the younger of the two—blessing Ephraim with the stronger hand. Jacob perpetuates this order of blessing as he too was the younger one who received the “first” blessing over his elder brother Esau. Even to this day we use Jacob’s blessing from Genesis 48:20) to bless boy children at the Shabbat table. We say, “May God make you like Ephraim and like Manasseh,” putting the younger before the elder!
Tradition also teaches us that by these grandchildren receiving Jacob’s blessing, they supplant Reuben, the eldest son of Jacob. Reuben is thus held accountable for his questionable behavior with his father’s handmaid, Bilhah. (See Genesis 35:22) Bilhah was Rachel’s handmaid and Jewish tradition teaches that after Rachel’s death Jacob took primary residence in Bilhah’s tent. Thus Reuben’s blessing—by his father Jacob reminds Reuben why he lost the primary position in the tribe (Gen. 39:3-4).
Each of the other sons receives a blessing from their father. Conspicuously absent from among the blessings is a blessing for Jacob’s sole daughter Dina. We haven’t heard of Dina since she was forcefully taken by Shechem and her brothers, Simeon and Levi sought revenge for her, murdering the townspeople of Shechem.
Jacob dies and Joseph and his brothers return to Canaan to bury him in the Cave of the Ancestors at Machpelah, fulfilling the request of their father to Joseph and his brothers (Gen 49:29).
Posted by Lee at January 2, 2007 11:01 AM
