True or False? Joseph and His Brothers

Essential Questions:

1. How might commentaries help us see different possibilities within the same story?

2. Do Joseph and his brothers ever completely “make up” after they sold him into slavery?

3. Is there such a thing as a “white lie” - meaning, is it ever okay to say something that isn’t true?

Learning Outcomes

1. Learners will be able to explain how the different commentaries’ perspectives on this story change the overall meaning and impact of the Joseph story.

2. Learners will develop and refine their own reading of the story and determine how the relationship between Joseph and his brothers is resolved at the end of the book of Bereishit.

3. Learners will articulate their own stance on whether and when “white lies” might be allowed or even advisable.

Lesson Overview (note that this covers approximately 3 class periods, depending on pace)

Part I: Students read Genesis 50:14-20 in hevruta pairs, and answer the questions printed below. Follow up with an in-class discussion (detailed below as well). The text may be read from a book or from Sefaria, and the questions may be presented digitally or on a printed sheet, or both. This is followed by a class discussion to process and clarify.

Part II: Parshanut (Commentaries): Students read the texts in hevruta pairs, and complete the sorting assignment outlined and linked below. This is followed by a class discussion to process and clarify.

Part III: White Lies: The dictionary defines white lies as “lies that are harmless or trivial, especially ones told to avoid hurting someone’s feelings.” In this section of the lesson, student will study Jewish texts that discuss whether any lie is ever a "white" or acceptable lie. This unit ends with a Padlet activity that encourages students to share their own stories and conclusions.

Note: This lesson plan is based on a sheet by Nechama Leibowitz. The full gilyon, or sheet, may be found here in English and Hebrew.

Part I: Genesis 50:14-20

Read the verses in hevruta. Please take turns reading the verses (you read the first verse, your hevruta reads the second one, etc.). Then, take turns answering the questions below. Make sure that each person responds to each question!

Remember to LISTEN while your hevruta tells you what they think, to respectfully ASK questions once they are done if there’s anything you didn’t understand, and, if you can, try to offer texts or other details to SUPPORT their ideas.

Questions:

1. Think back on what we have studied (or, skim through the last few chapters in English). Does the Torah record any conversation between Jacob and any of his sons about how Joseph ended up in Egypt? If so, what is said in that conversation?

2. How do you think Joseph’s brothers feel towards Joseph right now? Why? How do you know?

3. Do you think the brothers were telling Joseph the truth in these verses? Why or why not?

Part I: Class Discussion

Reconvene the class for a discussion. The teacher should help the students notice that:

• There is no explicit conversation between Jacob and any of his sons about how or why Joseph is still alive and why he is living in Egypt. However, students may remember that in Chapter 45, Joseph tells his brothers not to be upset about their past history. Meaning, the brothers and Joseph have confronted the past, at least briefly, but there is no evidence that Jacob was brought into a conversation about this.

• Children sometimes behave differently when their parents are around. It may be that Joseph never acted angry at his brothers because he thought it would upset his father, and now that his father is dead, he’s going to try to get back his siblings for what they did to him. Or, it could be that this is not what Joseph is thinking, but that’s what his brothers think that he is feeling! Alternatively, maybe the brothers were nice to Joseph because their father was watching, and now they won’t be - or, maybe that’s not true, but maybe Joseph is worried! And of course, they are probably all feeling sad and vulnerable because their father has died.

• Students can debate whether or not they think the brothers were lying. On the one hand, the Torah didn’t tell us about this conversation happening before Jacob died. On the other hand, the Torah doesn’t tell us everything, and this sounds like a reasonable and parental thing to say. On the other hand, Jacob was very upset when his favorite son “died” - would he really have reacted this way to the news that his other sons were to blame? See what arguments the students suggest on either side of this debate.

Part II: Parshanut (Commentaries)

The rabbis who wrote commentaries on the Torah each had a slightly different way of understanding what happened between Joseph, his brothers, and their father. As you read each source, try to figure out:

1. According to this commentary, were the brothers lying about what Jacob said to them, or were they telling the truth?

2. How does each commentator prove or justify their interpretation?

Remember to take turns reading with your hevruta, and remember to LISTEN while your hevruta tells you what they think, to respectfully ASK questions once they are done if there’s anything you didn’t understand, and, if you can, try to offer texts or other details to SUPPORT their ideas.

A sheet with the texts and questions are here (the texts from the assignment also appear below).

Part II: Parshanut Sorting Activity

The Torah commentators listed on this sheet each have a slightly different way of understanding this story. Now that you have thought about what each commentator is saying, let’s focus on one question: Are the brothers telling the truth when they say that Jacob told them to tell Joseph to forgive his brothers, or are they lying?

Instructions (you can find the full assignment here. To assign to students, make sure you are in "edit" mode on the sheet. Then, select "Assignments" from the file menu, and click "assign this sheet." Copy the URL provided by Sefaria and share it, via email or class webpage, with all your students. When a student clicks on the link, Sefaria automatically generates a copy of the sheet that is specific to that student, and will also be accessible to the teacher).

1. First, click "save" in the upper right hand corner. This sheet is now saved in your account, and will also be submitted to the teacher.

2. Click on “file” in the upper left-hand corner, and select “visualize” from the menu.

3. In the new view, each source will be on its own “post-it” - a box that you can click and drag to move around. Take the box that says “The Brothers Were Lying” and put it on one side of the page, and take the box that says “The Brothers Were Telling the Truth” and put it on the other side of the page.

4. Now, click and drag to move each commentary to the side on which it belongs, to make two columns. You can also drag the borders of the box to change the size, and click to change the color of the box.

5. Not sure? Think that one of the commentators isn’t totally clear? Feel free to put any of the commentaries in between the two extremes of “Lying” and “Telling the Truth” - just be ready to explain your answers!

Part II: Class Discussion

The teacher visualizes the sheet and project it on the board or displays it on the SmartBoard. The teacher then leads the class in a discussion of the various positions. Depending on the timing, the teacher may want to fully explore the questions listed above:

1. According to this commentary, were the brothers lying about what Jacob said to them, or were they telling the truth?

2. How does each commentator prove or justify their interpretation?

OR the teacher may simply want to ensure that all students understand the correct way to sort the commentaries.

Rashi and the Ramban argue that the brothers were lying. Seforno and the Netziv entertain the possibility that the brothers were telling the truth. Be sure to give the students a chance to debate!

Part III: White Lies

Read this piece from the Gemara with your hevruta, and then answer the questions below.

Remember to take turns reading with your hevruta, and remember to LISTEN while your hevruta tells you what they think, to respectfully ASK questions once they are done if there’s anything you didn’t understand, and, if you can, try to offer texts or other details to SUPPORT their ideas.

1) Do you think it is ever ok to lie? If not, why not? If so, what is a good reason to lie?

2) Can you think of a time when you said something that wasn't true because you thought it would make a bad situation better? Tell your hevruta the story. Did it turn out to be a good idea, or a bad idea?​​​​​​​

Part III: Padlet Activity

1) Create a padlet and give students access. Ask each student to add a brief version of their story about lying, and whether, in retrospect and having learned this piece from the Talmud, they believe it was right to lie in this case.

2) Ask students to comment on one another's stories and ideas.

3) Optional (advanced): Here is another very famous text about the value (or not) of lying. Consider adding it to the padlet as one of the stories, and having students comment.