Commentary פַּרְשָׁנוּת
וַיֶּאְסֹ֤ר יוֹסֵף֙ מֶרְכַּבְתּ֔וֹ וַיַּ֛עַל לִקְרַֽאת־יִשְׂרָאֵ֥ל אָבִ֖יו גֹּ֑שְׁנָה וַיֵּרָ֣א אֵלָ֗יו וַיִּפֹּל֙ עַל־צַוָּארָ֔יו וַיֵּ֥בְךְּ עַל־צַוָּארָ֖יו עֽוֹד׃
Yosef ordered his chariot and went to Goshen to meet his father Yisrael;
He presented himself to him, and he fell upon his neck, and he cried on his neck a lot.
Our פַּרְשָׁנִים (parshanim, commentators) notice that the Torah seems to say that one person—not both—fell upon the other’s neck and cried.
The question is: Who fell on whose neck and cried, and why wasn’t the other one crying as well?
Ramban thinks Yaakov did the crying. He makes his point with a question (called a rhetorical question).
מִי דִּמְעָתוֹ מְצוּיָה, אִם הָאָב הַזָּקֵן הַמּוֹצֵא אֶת בְּנוֹ חַי לְאַחַר הַיֵּאוּשׁ וְהָאֵבֶל, אוֹ הַבֵּן הַבָּחוּר הַמּוֹלֵךְ?
Who is more likely to cry—an old father who finally finds his son alive after having given up on him and mourning for him, or the young son who is now a kind of king?
- What evidence can you think of for Ramban?
- Why do you think Ramban believes a king or another ruler like that would be less likely to cry?
הִרְבָּה וְהוֹסִיף בִּבְכִי יוֹתֵר עַל הָרָגִיל. אֲבָל יַעֲקֹב לֹא נָפַל עַל צַוְּארֵי יוֹסֵף וְלֹא נְשָׁקוֹ. וְאָמְרוּ רַבּוֹתֵינוּ: שֶׁהָיָה קוֹרֵא אֶת שְׁמַע.
He (Yosef) wept greatly and continuously, more than is usual. But Yaakov didn’t fall on Yosef’s neck or kiss him. Our Rabbis say this is because he was busy reciting Shema.
- Can you find evidence for Rashi in the first half of the pasuk? Can you think of other evidence from the story? (Check out the questions in the Parashah Scavenger Hunt!)
- Why do you think Yaakov was saying Shema right at that moment? What could this teach us about the Shema?
- Rashi and Ramban make such good arguments! Why might the Torah describe this important moment in a way that allows for these different possibilities? What do we learn by being encouraged to see it from both perspectives?
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