Parashat HaShavua - Vayeshev
Talent isn’t everything. Throughout Parashat Vayeshev, Yosef is praised for his innate abilities but ultimately cannot find success on talent alone.
The Torah spends a significant amount of time describing Yosef’s brilliance and the ways in which other people recognize it. In his father Ya’akov’s house, “He dreamed another dream… told it to his father and brothers… and his father kept the matter in mind.” (Gen. 37:9-11) His father takes his words seriously and considers them to be significant. Even his brothers’ professed hate toward his dreams reads as a begrudging recognition of his talent “they hated him for his dreams and his words / עַל־חֲלֹֽמֹתָ֖יו וְעַל־דְּבָרָֽיו.” (Gen. 37:8)
When Yosef is sold into slavery in Egypt and works in Potiphar’s home, we are told God is with him and he is successful. (Gen. 39:3) He is so gifted that Poitphar explicitly recognizes his talent and quickly places Yosef in charge of everything in his personal empire. (Bereshit 39:4) Yosef’s leadership skills continue to be recognized. Even when he is eventually thrown in prison he is quickly recognized for his competence and put in charge of all the other prisoners. (39:21-22, 40:4)
Ironically, along with this emphasis on Yosef’s gifts, there is attention given to Yosef’s immaturity, particularly his emotional obliviousness. At best, the Torah describes Yosef as clueless to the feelings of others. The midrashim and mefarshim take this even further, writing that Yosef is conceited and self-centered.
In our first introduction to Yosef, the Torah describes him in the same verse as both 17 years old and as a youth. (Gen. 37:2) Rashi, noticing this redundancy - of course a 17 year-old is a youth! - interprets the need for both phrases to signify Yosef acted like a child, “His actions were childish: he dressed his hair, he touched up his eyes so that he should appear good-looking / שהיה עושה מעשה נערות, מתקן בשערו ממשמש בעיניו, כדי שיהיה נראה יפה.” According to Rashi, Yosef was superficial, perhaps a trait that is often characteristic of youth.
In the next scene, Yosef tattles on his brothers, “And Yosef brought bad reports of them to their father / וַיָּבֵ֥א יוֹסֵ֛ף אֶת־דִּבָּתָ֥ם רָעָ֖ה אֶל־אֲבִיהֶֽם.” According to the midrash, he spoke badly about them to make himself look good. To make matters worse, the accusations against his brothers were lies! (Bereshit Rabbah 84)
The psukim continue to present Yosef as a person who is self-involved and clueless about how his speech affects others. He recounts his dreams to his brothers, and famously, these dreams are all about his brother’s subservience to him. (Gen. 37:5-12) In this act, Yosef demonstrates how self-impressed he is; in his belief that he has dreams of significance so much so that he should recount them to his family and in his conviction that these dreams have inherent meaning. Yosef’s inability to see beyond himself doesn’t account for how his dream telling will impact his brothers’ feelings.
After being sold into slavery, Yosef lands in Potiphar’s house. There, while he is recognized for his talent, his self-absorption once again lands him in trouble. The Torah says that “[Potiphar] left all that he had in Yosef’s hands and, with him there, he paid attention to nothing save the food that he ate. Now Yosef was well built and handsome / וַיַּֽעֲזֹ֣ב כָּל־אֲשֶׁר־לוֹ֘ בְּיַד־יוֹסֵף֒ וְלֹֽא־יָדַ֤ע אִתּוֹ֙ מְא֔וּמָה כִּ֥י אִם־הַלֶּ֖חֶם אֲשֶׁר־ה֣וּא אוֹכֵ֑ל וַיְהִ֣י יוֹסֵ֔ף יְפֵה־תֹ֖אַר וִיפֵ֥ה מַרְאֶֽה.’’ (Gen. 39:6) Midrash Tanhuma interprets the juxtaposition between Yosef being put in charge of Potiphar’s house and the description of Yosef’s physical beauty in a striking way: “As soon as he realized his own importance, he began to eat, drink, and curl his hair, and say: “Blessed be the Omnipotent One who has caused me to forget my father’s house’.” (Tanhuma Vayeshev 8). Yosef’s ego causes him to continue to be self-absorbed. This then leads to disaster as Yosef is accused of impropriety and lands in jail.
Like many of us, Yosef’s failures are the result of his self-centeredness. Time and again he uses his innate talents for self aggrandizement, without once thinking about how his actions cause other people to suffer. He only begins to find a more sustained success when he finally recognizes the plight of other people. While he is in jail, Pharoah imprisons his chief cupbearer and chief baker. The two have dreams and Yosef recognizes an opportunity to use his talents of dream interpretation in support of those who need them, rather than for personal gain. (Gen. 40:6-7)
In this moment, the Torah emphasizes that Yosef recognizes the distress in the faces of his cellmates, and this is what causes him to ask, “Why do you appear downcast today / מַדּ֛וּעַ פְּנֵיכֶ֥ם רָעִ֖ים הַיּֽוֹם?” (Gen. 40:7) Midrash Lekah Tov, interpreting this verse, teaches that seeing others and responding with empathy and kindness is the sign of wisdom (Midrash Lekah Tov 40:7). It is at this point in the narrative that Yosef begins his slow but steady ascent to Egyptian leadership.
In our close read here of Yosef as both self-centered and talented, yet ultimately redeemed by using his talents to help others, there is wisdom for our own lives. The Torah gives Yosef the opportunity to fail, and doesn’t seem to think that failure is forever damning, but rather an opportunity for growth. Like Yosef, may we merit to be able to move beyond our own ego and flaws and to begin to use our talents to support others around us.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Yosi Cirlin
Middle School Judaic Studies Teacher