Parashat HaShavua - VaYigash

Are there times when we should actually avoid even the most important issues in our lives, those that weigh most heavily upon us? In this week’s reading of Vayigash, after Yosef reveals his true identity to his brothers, and provides wagons loaded with supplies for them to return home and then bring Yaakov to Egypt, his parting words are: “do not be agitated on the way / אַל־תִּרְגְּז֖וּ בַּדָּֽרֶךְ.” (Gen. 45:24) Not: ‘hurry back,’ or ‘be careful,’ or ‘take care of each other.’ Rather, “do not be agitated on the way.” Why were these Yosef’s parting words to his brothers?

According to the Maharal of Prague (1512-1609) in his commentary Gur Aryeh al HaTorah, “Yosef warned them because their sale of him would cause agitation and dispute / שהזהיר עליהם יוסף בשביל המכירה שיבואו לידי רוגז ומריבה.” Yosef anticipated this because, before he reveals himself this week in VaYigash, he has eavesdropped as they debated and shared blame for his disappearance. But why, the Maharal asks, didn’t Yosef simply caution them to not “argue” rather than “not be agitated?” This, he says, arises from the fact they were about to undertake a journey, to go “on the way / בַּדָּֽרֶךְ.” Yosef was concerned about any potential source of distraction, not only an argument, that could jeopardize their safety, because “agitation on the way causes a journey to become dangerous, as a journey in itself is a source of agitation / כי הרגזנות בדרך מביא לידי סכנת הדרך, והדרך מתרגז עליהם.” In other words, Yosef is saying, ‘Now is not the time; stay focused and keep it simple to give yourselves and us all the best chance at survival and reuniting.’

This interpretation by the Maharal also helps explain a rather bizarre (in my opinion) midrash on Yosef’s parting words that Rashi shares: “Do not take large steps and enter the city while the sun is shining / אַל תַּפְסִיעוּ פְסִיעָה גַסָּה וְהִכָּנְסוּ בַחַמָּה לָעִיר.” (Quoting Ta’anit 10b) What is this about? According to some, this is related to a concern about attracting unnecessary attention and creating a risk of robbery, as they are traveling with a wealth of goods thanks to Pharaoh and Yosef. In other words, be as discreet as possible, don’t act proudly; don’t agitate others with any showiness.

However, those fancy wagons and abundant supplies were bound to attract attention no matter what the brothers did! The Maharal, based on his understanding of Yosef’s parting words, offers an interpretation of this midrash that I find more convincing. “Do not take large steps” means to not do “anything extra / פעל נוסף” or “unplanned / אינו מסודר,” which can cause “agitation and disruption / הרגזה והרעשה” on their journey. Again, keep it simple: don’t do more than is absolutely necessary to get you from Egypt to Yaakov and back again. It wasn’t about risk, because Pharaoh and Yosef were the most powerful people in the region and could do whatever was needed to protect the brothers from others. Yosef’s parting words were meant to protect them from themselves.

Chanan Porat, in his commentary “Me’at min Ha’Or,” adds another important layer to what the Malbim offers. Do not think, he says, that because the brothers should avoid the topic of what they did to Yosef “on the way / בַּדָּֽרֶךְ,” they should never address it. To the contrary:

אי אפשר שירפאו את השבר…ויסתפקו בסליחתו של יוסף, מבלי לערוך בינם לבין עצמם חשבון נפש נוקב במגמה לתקן את חטאם ולהפיק לקחים לעתיד. אך עם זאת יש לדעת: לא כל עת יפה לחשבון נפש, הכרוך לפי טבעו בצער וברוגז. על כן כשיוצאים לדרך להביא את אבא וכל ביתו אל יוסף, יש צורך להתרכז במשימה ולדחות את הבירור הנוקב לשלב מאוחר יותר, לאחר שישובו מן הדרך. אפשר שלכך מכוונים דברי יוסף האומר: ׳אַל־תִּרְגְּז֖וּ בַּדָּֽרֶךְ,׳ ורומז להם בדרך זו: ׳אחים יקרים: עוד תגיע שׂעתכם לבירור האמת הנוקבת, אבל במטותא מכם – לא עכשיו, לא בדרך!

It is impossible for them to heal the rupture… and be content with Yosef’s forgiveness, without conducting a sharp self-examination among themselves with the aim of correcting their sin and drawing lessons for the future. However, it should be known: not every time is a good time for self-examination, which is inherently associated with difficulty and agitation. Thus when they set out to bring their father and all their family to Yosef, it is necessary to concentrate on the task and postpone the piercing analysis until a later stage, after they return from the journey. Perhaps this is what Yosef’s words are intended to convey: ‘Do not be agitated on the way,’ hinting to them this way: ‘Dear brothers: Your time will come for clarifying the piercing truth, but – against your nature – not now, not on the way! (Bereishit, p. 357)

As we can learn from Kohelet, paraphrases Porat, “there is a time to be agitated, and a time to distance from agitation / עת לרגוז ועת לרחוק מרוגז.” May we all have the insight and strength to distinguish between those times when we must engage in deep self-reflection and when it is best be defered in order to accomplish other important goals, for our own benefit and for the benefit of those around us.

Shabbat shalom,

Rabbi Jack Nahmod
Middle School Judaic Studies Head
Rabbinic Advisor