Parashat Mi-Qeytz

(Genesis 41:1 - 44:17)

1. But what did take place was that at the end [mi-qeytz] of two years to the day, the Pharaoh had a dream, and, behold, he was standing by the [Nile] River.

Two years to the day: literally, two years of days, or, a pair of duplicated (or repeated) days. The latter idea strongly hints of Yom T’ruah (Rosh haShanah), which is the only festival in the Land that is celebrated for two days because preparations had to be made before it was certain whether the new moon would be spotted the first day. The message of this day is “Wake up!”, and it is interesting that verse 4 includes that very theme. On the heels of Yom T’ruah comes Yom Kippur, the day of judgment, and both Egypt and Yoseyf wqere about to be judged. We will see more confirmations of this time-frame throughout the chapter. Standing by the Nile: i.e., to worship it. It was considered one of the deities of Egypt, for it was seen as what gave life to the land.

Marsh-grass is a sign of plenty of water.

4. Then the ugly, gaunt cows started eating the beautiful, robust cows! And then Pharaoh awoke.

5. But he fell asleep [again] and dreamt for a second time: and behold, seven ears of grain were sprouting on a single stalk—robust and healthy.

6. But suddenly seven ears of grain, wispy and scorched by the east wind, sprouted up behind them,

7. and the seven lean ears swallowed up the seven healthy, full ears. Then Pharaoh woke up, and, lo and behold, it had been a dream.

8. Yet in the morning his spirit was still troubled, so he sent someone to summon all the scribes of Egypt, and all its wise men. And Pharaoh related to them his dream, but there was no one who could interpret them to Pharaoh.

Scribes: engravers of hieroglyphics, hence well-versed in symbolism or, by extension, occult knowledge. But they had no formula that fit this dream. Or, like the boy Shmu’el, no one wanted to break the bad news to Pharaoh. It could have been risky since sometimes the bearer of bad news ends up getting killed.

Confess my faults: the major theme of Yom Kippur. If Pharaoh’s dream was right after Yom T’ruah, it would take several days to assemble all his wise men, so it is not unreasonable that this would fall on the tenth of the month. The cupbearer is thus repenting on the right day.

11. "And he and I both dreamed a dream on the same night, and we each dreamed in the same symbolism as appeared in each other's dream.

12. "And there was a young Hebrew there with us, a slave of the chief executioner. And we related our dreams to him, and he interpreted them for us—to each of us according to his dream.

13. "And it turned out that just as he had interpreted to us, so it came about—he restored me to my position, but hanged him."

14. So Pharaoh sent and summoned Yoseyf, and they hurried to bring him out of the dungeon. And he shaved and changed his clothing, and came to appear before Pharaoh.

Shaved: a disgrace to a Hebrew unless he had been a leper or was terminating the period of a Nazir's vow--which also involved the changing of clothes. That he did it at this point shows it was not his normal custom. But shaving one's head was the custom among Egyptians because of the prevalence of lice in Egypt. Only people with a certain rank could have facial hair in certain set patterns, and the style of the hair they had left identified their rank. Yoseyf could not look like a slave if he was entering Pharaoh’s presence in the role of dream interpreter. Most of Yoseyf’s descendants look “Egyptian”, being still in the church and entrenched within the Babylonian system that says a beard is something one wears to hide behind.

He is challenging him to live up to this reputation; otherwise he may end up back in prison—or worse.

Resides in me: i.e., it is not a permanent gift I carry with me to use whenever I choose, but, like all spiritual gifts, is available to me if I remain close to YHWH and ask Him for wisdom. Yoseyf does not try to take credit for what is really the power of Elohim.

18. "and there came seven cows, up from the River, robust and beautiful, and they were feeding among the reeds,

19. "when, lo and behold, seven other cows came up after them, languishing and very ugly and gaunt; I have never seen the likes of them in Egypt for ugliness!

20. "And these cows—the gaunt and ugly ones—ate the first seven cows—the robust ones!

21. "And though they went into their innermost parts, it was not evident that they had entered their inward parts; they looked as bad as at first. Then I woke up.

The Egyptians worshiped cows. Though the primary significance is explained below, Yehoshua 1:8 suggests that a cow is a picture of a righteous person who "ruminates on the Torah day and night". A cow eats only healthy food, then sifts and filters it to be equipped to feed to younger ones. So while some were doing this, there were others among them that were not eating enough of the Torah, and devoured their brothers who were doing what they should have been doing, yet still received no nourishment from them. They still remain ugly. Those who do nothing themselves yet complain about those who do will consume the healthy if allowed to remain among them. They should either start eating to become fat too, or stop pretending to be of the same kind. One false doctrine or bad attitude can destroy many years of healthy growth. After Yahshua was raised to power there was a period in which the “church” was healthy, walking in YHWH's commands, then was co-opted by the Roman Empire, which ate up the earlier teachings yet did not profit from them. Like these cannibalistic cows and the five virgins in Yahshua's parable who begged oil that the others needed, the church started worshipping the church, rather than YHWH.

23. "But, lo and behold, seven ears that were withered and blasted by the east wind sprouted up after them,

East wind: possibly a clue to the cause of the famine.

Seven ears on a single stalk resembles a menorah with its seven branches. Yahshua told seven congregations (Rev. 2 and 3) that He would remove their candles from them if they did not remain true to their calling (of forming "one bread" from many individual grains).

26. "The seven healthy cows represent seven years; the seven healthy ears also announce seven years. It is essentially one dream.

27. "And as for the seven scrawny cows that came up after them—they represent seven years; the seven empty stalks blighted by the east wind, too, are seven years--of famine.

Famine is literally simply "hunger" in Hebrew. An inscription was found in the tomb of an earlier Pharaoh bewailing the fact that there had been seven years when the Nile did not rise and the crops failed. Babies were dying, and the people were crying to the Pharaoh for bread, but he had none to give them. So this may have been a phenomenon that occurred naturally at certain intervals, like the El Niño weather patterns known today. But either this Pharaoh (possibly due to being of a different dynasty) had no recollection of it, or simply di dnot make the connection between the dream and this symbolism. Amos 8:11 warns of a coming "famine for hearing the words of YHWH".

29. "Note it well! Seven years of great plenty are coming for the whole land of Egypt,

30. "then after them, seven years of famine will arise—so terrible even that all the bounty of the land will be forgotten, and the famine will consume the land.

This famine may also be a picture of the seven years of Yaaqov's trouble, which follow the years when both houses of Israel are provided for with abundance to carry them through. The counterfeit "gospel" will be preached at that time and will torment those who follow the true one. The World Bank is storing huge reserves of food in Jordan “for the coming famine”. Interestingly, that will be where reunited Israel will be harbored while YHWH is cleansing His Land again during the time of Yaaqov’s trouble (Yeshayahu 16), and the counterfeit Messiah will not be permitted to overrun it. (Daniel 11:41)

We, too, tend to forget YHWH’s past blessings when times become more difficult.

A matter is established by two witnesses that agree. Unlike Yonah's prophecy to Nin'veh, it was determined, confirmed by two "witnesses" and could not be changed.

Now Yoseyf really takes a risk; he offers Pharaoh advice. He was not being haughty, but he was also not asked for it. He had already said the interpretation was not from himself, but now he shows Pharaoh what YHWH has put in him. Discerning and wise: binah and hokhmah, the root terms, are opposite each other on the mystical diagram of the "tree of life". A man must balance both discernment (clear recognition of the truth) with the understanding of how to use his knowledge in the best way. Neither is effective without the other. If you are lacking in one or both, you need to put yourself in a place where someone who does know how to apply the truth can teach you to do so. These are two of the highest characteristics of the image of YHWH in the restored Adam, which cannot be approached with out the Spirit (v. 38). Yoseyf proved to have both.

Deputy administrators: or trustworthy men. A fifth: what would have been spent on luxury. But since there are five books in the Torah, this is another reminder of how we will be able to make it through the difficult times ahead—by hiding YHWH’s word in our heart.

In the cities: perhaps so it would require less energy to distribute it when the populace was weakened by the coming famine. Oversight: literally, hand.

Decimated: literally, cut off; i.e., it would cease to exist as a nation and possibly altogether.

38. So Pharaoh said to his courtiers, "Could we find any other man like this one, in whom is the spirit of Elohim?"

Spirit of Elohim: or, in his mind, "the gods"; the Aramaic targums say "a spirit of prophecy from before Elohim".

I.e., since you yourself have come up with the plan. We now turn from seeing this history as an allegory of the House of Yoseyf within Christendom to on of Yahshua being raised to prominence by the only One who is greater than He. He is "anointed with the oil of joy [a picture of the Holy Spirit] above his companions." (Psalm 45:7)

This foreshadows the coronation imagery of Psalm 2, in which the Father establishes the Son's throne. As Yoseyf's antetype, Yahshua is second in authority only to the Father; otherwise, "all authority in heaven and earth are given" to Him by Another (Matt. 28:18). He sits at the Father's right hand and even on His throne, because he overcame (Rev. 3:21). Prophetically, Egypt often refers to Europe. Yahshua so impressed the rulers of Europe that they adopted monotheism, and thus could ride out the fall of their empire to barbarians, who by this truth were themselves transformed into great civilizations. He gave His followers (most of whom have been from the House of Yoseyf) the authority to rule on matters of how to practice Torah, to proclaim the restoration of the Kingdom to Israel, and to prohibit unclean spirits from obstructing this. Yet they began to present Him (and themselves by extension) as having authority even to alter the Torah. He derives His authority from the Torah, and thus does not have authority over it, just as Yoseyf had no authority over the throne of the one who gave him his position.

As with Yoseyf, even the Gentiles (or more properly, the Northern Kingdom, which left the Covenant and made themselves Gentiles) have also set Yahshua over themselves as well, though often without understanding all that this means.

Signet ring: the symbol of absolute authority to irrevocably seal decrees in the king's name. He was dressed exactly as Pharaoh would be dressed--a prototype of Yahshua (Luqa 9:29), who said, "He who has seen me has seen the Father", and who has his Father's name written on his thigh. For all practical purposes, Yoseyf "was" Pharaoh, yet he was not, even as to us Yahshua "is Elohim", yet he is distinct from and subject to YHWH, who says that it is to Himself that every knee shall bow (Yeshayahu/Isa. 45:23), yet he has been pleased to allow every knee to bow to the Son (Phil. 2:5-11), the title of the enthroned one “adopted” by Elohim on his coronation day. All authority was delegated to the Son (to speak for the Father as if he were the Father), yet he will one day hand it back over to the Father. (1 Cor. 15:24ff)

Bow the knee: The word is "abrekh!", seemingly related to the Hebrew word for "kneel" and "bless". But the word has persisted in Egypt until today. When Lord Kitchener visited there, Arab runners went before him with swords in their hands shouting "Abrekh!"—and they meant it as "Look out! Make way!" The root also sounds like "father of the king"--and in a way he was a "father" to Pharaoh, being wiser than he and his advisor. This was a very high role for any man at this time in history. The actual Biblical name for Yom Kippur is Yom haKippurim, which sounds like “the day that is like Purim” in Hebrew. There are indeed some huge parallels between Yoseyf and Mordekhai, as the roles are reversed and the despised one becomes the most honored in the kingdom. (See the book of Esther.)

Lift his hand: to mount on weapons; his foot: to get on a horse. Like Yahshua, he only exercised this power for the purpose of salvation and preparation for the future, not personal luxury.

Tzaf'nath-Paaneach: in Egyptian, it means "The one spoken to life" (in which it is easy to see parallels with Yahshua, the Word of YHWH, in whom was life, as per Yochanan chapter 1) or (according to one Egyptologist) " man with the food of life" (again paralleling Yahshua’s statement that he is the “bread of life”). To the Gentiles this is indeed the emphasis that was placed on Yahshua. He is to see to it that they do not starve. But the same name means "he who explains what is hidden" in Hebrew. And indeed, the mysterious/"deeper meaning" sense of everything in the Torah speaks of him. Appointees to a high position were often give a new name commensurate with their eminence; cf. Num. 13:16; Dan. 1:6; Phil. 2:9. It also helped conceal his identity from his brothers--so prophetic of Yahshua's experience. Poti-fera means “the one whom Ra gave”. On: from the word for sun—thus probably Heliopolis, "City of the Sun" near Cairo; or Tanis (as per the Aramaic targums). If the Pharaoh of his day was atually of the Semitic Hyksos, their paganism may not have been as severe as under the truly Egyptian Pharaohs. If “priest” is taken in its more basic sense of "officiator", and we read On according to its etymology as “strength or vigor”, he is an “officiator of strength” and may be another name for Potifar. Pharaoh may have been making a political statement that he did not believe Yoseyf had assaulted Potifar’s wife. He knows Yoseyf is the best man for the job, but in order to prevent repercussions from Potifar for Pharaoh’s putting Yoseyf in a higher position than he, gives him Potifar’s own daughter for he would be less likely to be jealous of one who was his own relative.

Moved freely about: or "passed before", i.e., being recognized by all. 30 years old: thus he had been a slave for 13 years. 13 is the numerical value of the Hebrew word ekhad (one or united). YHWH had now made Yoseyf essentially “one” with Pharaoh. Yahshua, like the Temple priests, was also raised to public prominence at age 30 (Luqa 3).

Here we also see the imagery of Sukkoth, the festival that follows hard on the heels of Yom Kippur. It is a time of plenty that determines one’s place in the Kingdom. (See Z’kharyah 14:17ff.) During the last few years knowledge about the true meaning of YHWH’s words has been pouring forth in unprecedented measure, to prepare Israel for the difficult days ahead.

Archaeologists believe they have unearthed Yoseyf’s storehouse cities in Goshen (45:10), since they have many classic three-room houses of the type otherwise found only in Israel—not even among other Semitic peoples.

This phrase is much like the promise to Avraham, where the sand refers to people gathered from among the nations through Yoseyf's own sons (v. 50-52) being scattered among them, to fill up the Body of the Messiah, who is its Head and enabled us to ride out the remaining years of history before His Kingdom would finally right everything again. During the early, purer years of the church, writings from the leaders who knew Yahshua directly were preserved for use throughout the leaner years ahead. As more and more people transmitted it and it was translated into more languages, it diminished in accuracy. Only the fruits of the ancient growth were available, and in minimized, dried-out form. But there was enough moral and ethical truth to barely keep society intact until the end of the age and preserve the skin and bones of the weakened Messianic community until food began to grow again (the latter rains came and the roots again began to thrive).

Note the emphasis on their being born to Yorseyf. He was adding to Israel, not Egypt, and especially not the pagan priest’s family, through these sons. They would be circumcised and taught the ways of Yaaqov that he learned from the tents of Shem. Each Sabbath when we are blessing our sons that YHWH may make them like Efrayim and Menashe, we must remember that this means they belong to Israel, and must be taught to be Hebrews.

Though his very mention of his father’s household indicates that he really did still remember it, but now he was beginning his own household and there was no longer any bitterness connected with the memories of his old home. His descendants, however, all but forgot their roots. What he meant was that all he went through, including being cast out of his father’s house, was nothing in comparison to where it had brought him. He had spent nearly half his life as a slave, yet never stopped trusting YHWH. It was worth all the pain. Yoseyf thus was not only trustworthy; he could trust as well. Our yes must indeed be yes, but we must also trust—not men or the ways of the world, but the King and all His servants. That is, we must trust one another in large things as well as small.

This is a message of hope for us who ar sons of the House of Efrayim and again in exile. Yahshua’s purpose in being afflicted was also to bring this same son—Efrayim—out of captivity. The ultimate lesson from Yoseyf is that every trial, every hardship, is given so that we might bear fruit. The cupbearer had already proven faithful to Pharaoh, who is a picture of YHWH. YHWH has many faithful servants who are not in captivity. But until he remembered Yoseyf and bore witness to him so that he too could be “resurrected” from that dungeon, he was still at fault. We who have thus been “cupbearers” have to also remember Yoseyf—that we are Yoseyf—so that he can be fully freed from his captivity and take his proper place in Israel. We must “be Yoseyf” as we must “be Yahshua” (become “all Kingdom”), and store up the bread that is needed so that Yoseyf will be fully prepared to return. What is important to him is not all this wealth but that his afflictions have made Israel stronger. Like Yehudah his brother, and Moshe after him, he married the daughter of a pagan priest--a picture of the Northern Kingdom. Hoshea 2:2 says YHWH does not consider Efrayim's mother (v. 52) to be His wife because of her spiritual harlotry. The pagan church raised him up, but was never really YHWH's. Through Efrayim being "sown" throughout the nations, the seed of Avraham was preserved and added to while his own land went through its famine. (See Hoshea and Romans 11.) His regathering is set in place prior to the onset of the “time of Yaaqov’s trouble”. Yet his “mother” is connected with sun (day) worship, since most of restored Efrayim has been born out of the church.

54. the seven years of famine began to be manifest, just as Yoseyf had said they would. And the famine extended to all countries, but in the whole land of Egypt there was bread

Famine: very uncommon in Egypt (compare v. 19), especially in that time when even much of the Sahara was fruitful land. Since the hearing of YHWH’s word has been so plentiful, and most have been taught that they will be removed prior to the hardest times, many of the “virgins” have seen no need to “buy extra oil”. But they have been given the same permission to fill their vessels as those who actually have been filling them. It is not the fault of the rest that they did not choose to do so. The increase of oil comes through hearing His commandments and legal procedures, and guarding them—within the right time frame. (Deut. 7:11-13) Many have some oil, for they have chosen to keep them up to a certain point, but have no reserves, for they would not go the whole way. The Egyptians helped grow the grain, but this did not give them a right to eat the bread (a symbol of community, 1 Cor. 10:17). They had to buy it. Yahshua says those who persevere to the end will be the ones delivered. (Mat. 10:22) He has given us much; now is the time He is requiring something in return. (Mat. 25:15ff)

Yoseyf was more familiar with their plight, having been a slave and a prisoner. “The Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, because he is a son of man" (Yochanan 5:22ff), i.e., more experienced in what it is like to wrestle with human temptations. (cf. Hebrews 5:1-9) Yoseyf had all the grain; his descendants as well will prove to have received provision for the rest of Israel. No one else in Egypt (symbolic of the church as mixed with the world system) has authority any longer to distribute true food—only Yoseyf (the Northern Kingdom of Israel, which is still in exile in “Egypt” in our day). Do whatever he tells you: note the emphasis on action, not just belief—the balanced view of what is required, especially during the coming seven-year time of testing when all that can be shaken will be shaken.

There was scarcity even in Israel at this time, setting the stage for the next few chapters. But there was still food in Egypt, showing us that we should not rush to the Land of our inheritance before the proper time. Grain or bread is often symbolic of Yahshua, who is the living Torah, and the grain offerings were mixed with oil, completing the picture, as seen in the parable of the ten virgins. When the real test comes, the Gentiles who have gotten a "free ride" thus far will have to "buy their own oil" (as in Yahshua's parable) --demonstrate the reality of their faith by "buying from him" the proper garments of good works and what will really stand the test. (Revelation 3:18) If we want the "bread" badly enough, there is a price to pay; grace still requires us to take on Yahshua's yoke. He does not ask us to do anything he himself did not do; he laid down his life first.

Again a picture of Yahshua, whose salvation is available not only to His countrymen, but the world--but all must come through Him. He is the "keeper of the supplies".

CHAPTER 42

Found out: literally, saw; he was a prophet, and apparently had a vision. Looking at one another: There is rebuke in his voice. Each was looking to the others to do something about the situation. No one was willing to take the first step. Contrast the fact that Yoseyf had been doing something about it for probably eight years or more—since before the problem had even manifested itself! He clearly shows his primacy over his brothers yet again. We cannot help but notice the parallel with Yahshua’s disciples—also eleven—after his death. Rav Michael Hattin writes that the mention of Egypt forced the brothers to remember what they had done to Yoseyf, and made them hesitant to go there. There was grain available in Egypt only because Yoseyf was there. Other nations had come to Egypt for bread, but Yaaqov would only buy grain there. Why? Because bread is a picture of community, and Israelites cannot find this in foreign places, full of paganism like Egypt--though we can obtain the raw materials there. Indeed, Yoseyf and his sons were the real grain they were going there to get, though they did not know it. If there is plenty of bread in Israel’s Land, we don’t even need to look outside for any. Egypt also represents the church. Many Jewish charities are looking to people in the church for donations. At one time, we were sent there for spiritual food. Even now, as Yoseyf is making its exodus from the church, we have a key piece of the puzzle that the rest of Yaaqov’s family, headed by Yehudah, needs—Yahshua and His Body, the community that bread represents. YHWH has preserved the church and kept it as a source of supply for so long only because so many Israelites (specifically the House of Yoseyf) are still there. But why was there no grain in Israel? The answer is in the juxtaposition of Judges 21:25 and Ruth 1:1. There was a famine in the land in the days of the judges precisely because that was the time everyone did what was right in his own eyes. Yehudah (the leader, who had the Messiah in his loins) had gone off and lived his own separate life (ch. 38). The brothers had thought the right thing to do to preserve the peace in their household was to get rid of the tattletale dreamer. The seeds they had planted twenty years earlier had now grown into a tree that had to reckoned with. This small group of people affected the whole inhabited world, because YHWH’s eye is always on Israel. What one Israelite does moves major energy in the spiritual realm. Remember Yonah, whose sin brought a storm and threatened the lives of many people; when he was dealt with, the storm subsided. We can do nothing unto ourselves alone. Our every choice affects many others.

No one was doing anything, so he sent them all. Now was not the time to wait for someone else to act, or they would all die. Yahshua emphasized the importance of acting when it was time, and not waiting until earthly obligations were met before doing the work of the Kingdom. (Luqa 9:59ff, based on the precedent in 1 Kings 19:20ff) Those whom he chose as his closest students were the kind of people who dropped everything to follow him when it was time. (Mat. 4:18; 9:9) There is no room for hesitation, though we do need to wait on YHWH. Survive instead of perishing: or, live and not die. This is not redundant, for in Efesians 2:1-3 and Col. 2:13 we are told that while we were walking in the ways of the Gentiles, we were dead. As the survival of the whole nation of Israel literally depended on Yoseyf (though they did not know it), there is a very physical salvation that cannot come to the rest of Israel until the House of Yoseyf unites with Yehudah. (Ovadyah 18). Go down: An idiom for leaving the Land of Kanaan. Israel is a light to the nations that they are meant to come to us for. Usually we do not descend, but there are times to lower oneself to another’s level—not of behavior, but of understanding, so we can lift them to a higher level. This does not mean we violate Torah in order to identify with those who come to Israel for light, but we must step back to the basics if the infants would starve otherwise. But we go to get them and then get out; we do not camp there. Yaaqov’s messengers descend to serve, but then come back to ascend further. And we do not have time to rescue those who do not want to be rescued. Like a lifeguard, we must let go of those who fight being brought to a higher place, so that we do not drown along with them. How can we test whether they want to ascend or whether they will drag us back down? The Sabbath is the door. Reveal this to them, and see if they care to receive it. Then build on that. There is no point beginning if one is not planning to follow all the way through. Of course no one will become completely mature overnight, but do they begin to move into it? If not, swim back to shore. Buy something: This way they would not be indebted to the Egyptians.

At right: A satellite view of the Levant showing Kanaan and Egypt (lower left).

4. but Yaaqov did not send Binyamin, Yoseyf's brother, with his brothers, because he said, "What if harm comes to him?"

Yoseyf’s brother: son of the same mother, and all Yaaqov has lefty now of his favorite wife. The reason Yaaqov had sent Yoseyf to the other ten brothers in the first place was because he did not trust them when out of his sight. So he does not entrust his treasured son to them again.

Sons of Israel: Thus far in the chapter they have also been called the sons of Yaaqov (since at that point they were passive and slow to act—Yaaqov’s weakness) and the brothers of Yoseyf (when they left to fulfill Yoseyf’s prophetic vision that involved them). Now that they have set out to fight the famine in the Land—a picture of the lack of hearing the Word of YHWH—they are truly acting as sons of Israel. There are Kingdom lessons to be learned from each of these three roles.

Bowed down to him: as in his first dream, when only the sons who were working in the field were players; Binyamin would not have been among them, being the youngest and protected as we see here. The context of that dream was grain, though they are herdsmen, so the lack thereof should have begun to jog Yaaqov’s memory and that of his sons. Now they were Yoseyf’s sheaf arose and stood upright; he was now the one who had been raised to the highest position. The second dream included Binyamin, but also their father and mother. This never was fulfilled physically, since his mother was already dead. So it has a deeper meaning. The context there was the heavens. The “mother” and “father” are the names for two of the three conceptual “columns” in the “Ancient Adam”, the mystical representation of the image of YHWH. Lying between them like the door to Shlomo’s Temple between the two columns Boaz and Yachin, the third column is called the “son”. From this triad the Christian concept of the “trinity” was misconstrued. Rev. 21:23 tells us that in the new Yerushalayim, there would be no need for the light of the sun and moon, because the Lamb (the Son) would be its light. This does not mean they would no longer exist, for Yeshayahu (Isaiah) 60:20 says they will never set there, but v. 19 says they will no longer serve as our light. But, as Yeshayahu 24:23 says, the sun and moon would blush in shame, and the context there again is when YHWH takes the throne on Mt. Tzion. The only aspect of YHWH that can physically reign on earth is the Son, so in this sense the “sun and moon” bow in deference to the one who, like a Lamb that had been butchered, was worthy as such to open the deed to heaven and earth. (Rev. 5). The connection becomes complete when we see that the role in which Messiah is this suffering servant is called “the son of Yoseyf”. On the etymological level, Mashiach Ben Yoseyf means “the building-stone anointed by Yoseyf”; thus far, Yahshua has been recognized more by the House of Yoseyf than the House of Yehudah.

Yoseyf's brothers come to him to be fed, because he is the dreamer--the one who understands divine revelation. It seems backwards, since the House of Yehudah has stuck to the Torah more faithfully, but they have "frozen" their halachic rulings according to their own interpretation rather than keeping them fluid (though still maintaining the Torah standard), and Yahshua said this too often leads to nullifying the Torah by one's own traditions. So they may end up coming to the House of Yoseyf for the spiritual interpretation of Torah when they come up dry from focusing on the letter alone. Behaved as if he were a stranger: possibly to test them to see whether they had changed. Harsh words: There was an open door for revenge if he chose to take it.

Or, while Yoseyf looked after his brothers, they did not acknowledge him. The House of Yoseyf is keeping Yehudah’s nation afloat now both financially and politically, yet largely unbeknownst to Yehudah because we have for so long been in “Egyptian” garb, speaking the language of the church and looking like Gentiles.

How vulnerable: or barren; literally, "the nakedness of the land". This may have jogged the memory of the brothers as they recalled the vulnerability of the men of Sh'khem after they had been circumcised. This would frighten them into wondering if their reputation had preceded them. This may be why Shim'on, one of their slayers, figures prominently in the next part of the story. In his longing to reunite with them, Yoseyf still did not try to appease his brothers who had remained at home with their heritage, because he had something they desperately needed, just as his descendants have the key to Yehudah's redemption today. He tests them and pushes them to become more of who they really were meant to be. YHWH will move the part of Israel that remains as a people to jealousy through those who are “not a people” (Deut. 32:21), a phrase Hoshea 1 tells us refers to the Northern Kingdom of Israel (the House of Yoseyf).

11. "We are all the sons of one man; we are honest! Your servants are not spies!"

12. But he said to them, "No, you have come rather to spy out the vulnerability of the land."

13. But they replied, "Your servants were twelve; we are brothers, sons of [but] one man in the land of Kanaan; the youngest is back there with our father right now, and the other one is no longer with us."

One man: a phrase used throughout Scripture when Israel acts in unity. (Judg. 20:8, 11; 2 Shmuel 19:14; Nechemyah 8:1) No longer with us: or, missing to us.

That is why: He drops a hint that he himself (the missing brother) is the reason he is treating them so harshly, but they do not pick up on it. The real reason they have come, in YHWH’s eyes, is to find him and reunite the family. The root word for spies is “foot”, i.e., those who are walking about, not bowing down. They have lived out his dream, but do not recognize it. They did not come to pay homage, but to see what they could take away from Egypt.

As Pharaoh lives: they did not care if Pharaoh lived or died; this was again part of his ruse to keep them from recognizing him.

17. So he kept them in custody together for three days,

He had to give them all a taste of what he had gone through—false accusations and prison—so they could identify with him as true brothers.

None was brave enough to volunteer to be the one to break their father’s heart, so he came up with a different plan. The third day: when YHWH grants a reprieve to the repentant in Israel (Hoshea 6:1, 2; compare 2 Kings 20:5).

Your households: All of them also had children by this time.

Rabbi Arie Hahn asks why Yoseyf, having the power that he now did, did not simply go visit his father or send for him to come down. He was testing his brothers to see if they had changed, because if they had not, his father would have gained one son back and lost ten (symbolic of a whole congregation). Also, it was Pharaoh’s throne that held him back, for Pharaoh had a job for him to do in Egypt. One thing Yoseyf was known for was his faithfulness: no matter what his personal circumstances were, he always did his work with his whole heart. This foreshadows Yahshua’s submission to His Father’s authority. He gave us limited authority, but not yet to restore the Kingdom to Israel, because He had a job to do in “Egypt” first. (Acts 1:6-8) Only when that is finished (when the community there is ready to return), the two houses can be reunited under one king. (Yehezqel 37:22)

Pleaded: for them to take him out of the pit they had put him in. Note the parallel with the distress of Yahshua's soul in Yeshayau/Isaiah 53:11-12. As they treated him, they were treated. (Mat. 7:2) This is the true “karma”—we reap what we sow (a concept that was known to be the norm as early as Iyov 4:7-8). They have to see that they should not expect to reap mercy when they have not sown it. This is heavenly accounting, for the books have to balance. There can be no return where there has been no investment. We will receive the types of things we ourselves do.

Re’uven was not present when Yoseyf was sold, and for all we know he may have never been told what they actually did to him, thinking they actually killed him as they had planned. But at least he is now picking up on the hint in v. 14. He is starting to get the point that they have to pay a price for their jealousy of Yoseyf. By allowing him to go into captivity, they had opened the door for all of their descendants to later be in captivity. Now Yoseyf is in a position to be the one to exact this penalty, and he knows how to do it. His blood: compare Luke 19:41-44. Now he sees that his brothers do remember him, at least, and count him as one of them. Yet they never even came looking for him. None of them had even cared enough to call him aside before this time and warned him that he was a little too ostentatious in parading the fact that he was the favorite son, nor did they warn the others to respect what was clearly special about him. He does not even consider revealing who he is until he hears this partial confession of blood-guilt.

An interpreter: This shows that Hebrew was much more widely spoken than just Yaaqov’s family. The Yishmaelites, who traded widely, would still have spoken it, and probably most of the Semites. The Hyksos rulers of Egypt may have even spoken it. "Jesus" is usually spoken of in non-Hebraic terms; once the true Yahshua’s words are placed back in their natural Hebraic context, their meaning becomes much more evident.

Wept: Yoseyf loved those who had been his enemies (Mat. 5:44, for which the context is those within Israel), but this was the form his love had to take. He did not want to do things this way, but he knew they still needed discipline, so he taught them a lesson so they would learn to become all that sons of Israel were meant to be. A higher performance level should have bee able to be expected of them. This is not cruelty, though it terrorized them, but was true compassion. By tradition, hearing for the first time that Re’uven had indeed tried to rescue him, Yoseyf saw that the responsibility for his being sold into slavery now fell on Shim'on, the second oldest. He may also have been testing his father to see if he would really put his favorite son Binyamin in danger for the sake of this son who had once angered him so greatly. Also, according to oral tradition, Shim'on was the one who had taken the initiative in plotting to kill him.

26. So they loaded their grain on their donkeys, and departed from there.

27. But when one of them opened his sack to give his donkey fodder at their lodging stop, he noticed his money right there in the mouth of his sack!

The word for money in Hebrew is the same as silver, which is often a symbol of blood. Now they have a vivid reminder that they could not escape the responsibility for their brother.

Hearts sank: literally, "departed". Elohim: the title that emphasizes YHWH’s judgment.

30. "The man who is the ruler of the land spoke harsh words to us, and thought we were there to spy out the land!

31. "But we told him, 'We are not spies! Honest!'

32. "'We are twelve brothers, all sons of one father; the one is no more, and the youngest is with our father in the land of Kanaan right now.'

33. "But the man—the ruler of the land—told us, 'This is how I will know that you are honest: leave one of your brothers with me, and take your provisions for the famine for those in your households, and go,

They conveniently skipped the part about all of them having been in detention for three days!

35. But then it occurred—as they were unloading their sacks: lo and behold, each one's money was in his sack, and they—along with their father—saw their bundles of money, and they were terror-stricken.

It would have appeared that they had stolen the money—or the grain. They probably expected an Egyptian army to come after them all.

He is still called Yaaqov here, since he is living in fear and thinking in terms of "me", not "us". Bereaved: The Hebrew term is like that for a miscarriage. Since Yoseyf, the seer, was taken away, his spiritual vision has dimmed.

Both firstborns—Re’uven and Yoseyf--each had two sons.

Down to She’ol: i.e., it would kill me! Yaaqov would not accept the strange reasoning that said that if he lost his son, he could go ahead and kill his grandsons as well. He knew through this lack of wisdom that Reuven could not serve as leader of his brothers. He also probably still did not trust Re’uven after what he had done with his concubine. But he never dealt with him, though Re’uven probably expected the harshest chastening. That he remained passive kept a wall between them, and now that they needed to communicate, Re’uven has not matured, because he was never given the rebuke that would allow him the occasion to repent. Yaaqov kept it bottled up until his deathbed, then spewed it out. It seems he did not think Re’uven was worth dealing with, so justice was never done, and since he did not confront him, he remained as guilty as the perpetrator. Not being held accountable probably made Re’uven lose respect for his father as well. Of ocurse, he never brought a confession either, so all is now in disorder in the household, for the firstborn cannot fulfill his role. No one could live up to his full potential until Yoseyf stepped in and forced them all to do something about their shameful situation. All I have left: of Rakhel, whom he considered his only true wife, just as Avraham considered Yitzhaq his only son, though he also had Yishmael, his son through a slave woman. He had already lost her elder son, Yoseyf. Yet to them it must sound as if none of them count to him. Binyamin may represent the Orthodox Jews, the favored of the father because of their piety, yet who are attached to Yehudah, and thus, considering the apostasy of the secular Jews and the government which couldn't care less about their heritage, are especially on their guard against having anything to do with Yahshua; yet it seems that since it is Yehudah that was first to recognize its king (2 Shmuel 2:4-10; Rom. 1:16; 2:10), yet later is last to do so (2 Shm. 19:11), most Messianic Jews are probably actually from the tribe of Binyamin rather than Yehudah, but are thus still one link between the two houses.

CHAPTER 43

As they had dined while Yoseyf was in the pit, they also let Shim'on "stew" in Egypt until they had waited as long as they could to returnn. They might have argued that at least he was being fed. Knowing he was a bloodthirsty man, and that he was provided for in the prison, he may have thought Shim'on could fend for himself. Nothing had been done to secure his freedom; this is why the famine had to be kicked up a notch. In Hebrew the only difference between famine (ra’av) and abundance (rav) is the letter ayin, which means “eye”. Depending on how we look at things, we can have abundance while hungry or a famine amidst abundance. They were busy with their bellies and had taken their eyes off their brother, and thus were acting more like Esau than Israel. Esau’s descendants have lifted themselves high, but YHWH will bring them down. (Yirmeyahu 49:16-22) To remain in the high place in which YHWH has put us, we must keep ascending, even in the smallest matters. And which brother they had left behind is of utmost importance because of the meaning of his name. It means “hearing very well”. Only in Hebraic thought can one turn his eye away from hearing! When someone cannot hear, we must communicate with him through sign language. When we refuse to listen (and the Hebrew term includes obeying), it weakens the bread supply (a picture of community) and invites famine. YHWH has to send us signs instead. This is why Yahshua says it is a wicked and perverse generation that seeks a sign. (Mat. 12:39) It means they have stopped listening. This reminds us of the prophecy that YHWH will bring a famine of hearing His Word. (Amos 8:11) Famine is to make us seek His word, because that is the only place we can truly measure where our motives stand. Note that His word would not necessarily be lacking, but the hearing of it would be. Even the most learned in his day had, and he preferred that they simply read YHWH’s word for what it said—and carry it out. “Hear, O Israel” is meant to be an active, not passive, listening. The more we obey, the better our hearing will become; do not ask for better hearing if you are not carrying out what you have already heard. Then, if you are still not hearing, go learn from someone who is. Yaaqov was not willing to risk the “son of the right hand” for the one whose name means “hearing very well”. Even Orthodox Yehudah recognizes that in Psalm 110 the one sitting at YHWH’s right hand is the Messiah. So Binyamin is a picture of Yahshua. Most of Yoseyf’s descendants have not been willing to risk losing the Messiah in order to regain the hearing of the Word (the original Torah). They think they must forsake the one for the other, but that would only mean the famine was at its fullest power. YHWH is showing us in this day that we must put all our expectations about Yahshua to the test in order to hear and obey the original commandments, for both are the inheritance of the family of Israel and we need all that belongs to his household in order for the Kingdom to come. "A little food": not knowing how long the famine would last, he may have thought they could "ride it out".

4. "If you have it within you to send our brother with us, we will go down and buy food for you.

5. "But if you are not sending him, we will not go down, because the man told us, 'You cannot see my face unless your brother is with you'!"

The tribes who mixed with the nations may recognize their need for forgiveness in Messiah, but Binyamin has been a crucial link to the survival of both houses of Israel, as he is the son--considered Yaaqov's truest, as son of Rakhel--who remained faithful to the ancient covenant. For Yehudah today this means they cannot enter the presence of YHWH without Yahshua. The Orthodox must recognize that submitting to Yahshua's rule will not truly diminish their holiness at all (cf. Deut. 18:19). But he made a similar statement, telling the holy city (which is under Yehudah’s jurisdiction) that it would not see his face again until they said, “Blessed is he who comes in the Name of YHWH” (Mat. 23:39). It is not the current keepers of the city, but the House of Yoseyf that is now restoring the use of YHWH’s name. But the message here for the rest of Israel is that we must join with Yehudah if we truly want to know the Messiah, for that is the tribe from which he comes and to which he primarily belongs. All the tribes must be back together in order for any of us to see His face. This does not mean converting to Judaism as it is known today, but together as brothers seeking YHWH, Tzion, and the restoration of the covenant.

Israel, the spiritual man, is speaking, not the man of the flesh (Yaaqov), so his opinion is valid, even if this time it was too late to be heeded. He teaches us that giving too much information inevitably jeopardizes our brothers. The preservatin of Israel demands that we not tell everyone all that we know. Yahshua reminded us not to cast our pearls before swine or dogs. The more we talk, the less we can listen. Hindus and Buddhists are better at this, because we do not practice it enough. As they say, you cannot pour more tea into a full cup; if our own thoughts are fully occupying our attention, how can we hear YHWH? A later Yaaqov (“James”), who wrote overtly to all twelve tribes, warns in chapter 3 of the dangers of a tongue that is not kept under control. But this Yaaqov now recognizes that not only he himself but the whole community must be preserved, and capitulates.

Actually, all the text tells us Yoseyf had done was repeatedly make the statement, “You are spies!” Our memories can rewrite themselves in our favor. They thought they had to tell him more in order to overcome this charge.

Our toddlers: They reminded Yaaqov that they, too, had children who would also starve if they did nothing. Survive and not perish: They are bolder now because they are using the same words Yaaqov himself had said at first.

Yehudah, who also knows what it is like to lose two sons, finally persuades his overprotective father to entrust Binyamin to him, promising to repay him in kind if anything went wrong. Yehudah proves he is worthy to rule over his brothers by being the servant. Later his tribe and Yoseyf’s would be the only ones whose spies gave a favorable report about the Land—a privilege possibly allowed him because of his faithfulness at this time. All the days: an idiom for “forever”, because for 2,000 years, the tribe of Binyamin has been under the protectorate of the Jews (Yehudah) in a way none of the others but Levi have been. David (from the tribe of Yehudah) also made an oath that he would not harm anyone from King Sha’ul’s house (which was Binyamite), and even made special arrangements to protect the needy of his descendants. (2 Shmuel 9:1) Paul, also a Binyamite, was a key to the restoration of the lost tribes.

Yaaqov waited until it hurt too much to do nothing. He finally realizes that there is no way around sending Binyamin, as a test of faith of the same type his grandfather Avraham experienced when called to sacrifice Yitzhaq.

So they did have food after all--and rather luxurious types at that. They also still had livestock, which meant they had meat and milk. The Renewed Covenant says meat symbolizes the will of the Father, and milk, the pure teaching of the Torah. But though the Land was bringing forth fruit, without the bread (the community), it is inadequate. (Compare I Corinthians 13.) This shows the importance of grain to them. No matter how tasty or exiotic, the fruit of one individual is not enough to bring before the Father; we need the fruit of the entire community. Each grain represents one of the individuals that make up the "one bread" (1 Cor. 10:17), so if one is missing, the community is not complete, as Yaaqov knew well. There could be no bread without Yoseyf, and the same is true of Israel’s family today. Hoshea calls Efrayim a "pancake not turned over", showing its lack, but a Gentile woman survived spiritually on nothing but "crumbs" from the children's bread (Matt. 15:27), showing how powerful this metaphor is.

Double the money: he is paying back extra since it would seem like they had stolen the money, although they really had not.

Israel only ever called Rakhel’s children his sons. He made no apologies for considering the children of the one he counted his only true wife his favorites. YHWH did the same with David, though there were many holier than he. But here Israel emphasizes Yehudah’s responsibility for Binyamin by calling him his brother. The son of the right hand has been entrusted to Yehudah. Since he was faithful with the prototype, YHWH trusted Yehudah to bring forth the Messiah. The Hebraic viewpoint has been preserved chiefly through the Judaic point of view, and we must now see the Messiah differently than we used to—as a king under YHWH who keeps the Torah.

I.e., "If we starve here, I'll lose him anyway." He'll die one way or the other. Now he is thinking, like his grandfather Avraham, of the whole community. Esther took the same attitude, and everyone was rescued. Only if Binyamin left could the whole house of Israel be saved. Similarly, it was not until Jews began turning to Yahshua in much larger numbers (in 1967) that Yerushalayim could be restored to the hands of Israel. El Shaddai: the name that emphasizes the nourishing side of YHWH’s nature.

16. When Yoseyf saw Binyamin with them, he told the one in charge of his house, "Bring these men into the house, and make a great slaughter, and prepare [a feast], because the men are to eat with me at noon."

Noon: the root meaning is the gleam that comes from the pressing out of the oil, reminding us of Gat Shmaney, the “wine press used for olive oil”, where Yahshua made it possible for the components of the "bread" to come together.

18. And the men were frightened when they were taken directly to Yoseyf's house. They surmised, "It must be because of the silver that was returned to our sacks last time that we are being brought in, so he can seek a pretext against us, then overpower us and seize us as slaves—and our donkeys too!"

Overpower us: or fabricate a charge. Our donkeys: Donkeys are symbolic of the world (22:5), so figuratively they are saying that their whole world would be overturned if this happened. But they also had a special appreciation for the beasts that served them, even feeding them out of the food bought for their families. (42:27)

20. saying, "Please, my master, we had indeed come down the first time to buy food,

21. "but it turned out that, when we arrived at the lodging place and opened our sacks, there was each one's money in the mouth of his sack—our silver in its exact weight! So now we are bringing it back in our hand,

22. “and we have brought more silver in our hand to buy food; we do not know who put our money in our sacks!"

23. But he said, "Calm down. Don't be afraid; your Elohim and the Elohim of your father must have hidden a treasure in your sacks Himself; I received your payment." And he brought Shim'on out to them.

Someone had to deal with the situation as it existed. When the brothers took responsibility for what had taken place, even though they did not think they were guilty in the matter, their “hearing” (Shim’on) was restored. Received: He is telling the truth, though he did not keep the money after receiving it, because Yoseyf had told him to return it. Yoseyf had taught his servant well, for he knew how to answer them. Elohim is seen as working through Yoseyf.

Washed their feet: an important form of hospitality in a dusty land. Like Rivqah, he cares for their animals also.

26. When Yoseyf came into the house, they brought him the tribute they had carried with them into the house, and they bowed themselves to the earth before him.

Now all of his brothers had fulfilled his dream--but not his father or mother; that is still to come even in our day. It must await the Kingdom when Rakhel, too, is resurrected. Tribute: the term was later used of a grain offering in the Tabernacle. Indeed, the eleven brothers are finally offering themselves to be components in the “bread” which could be made now that they were reunited with Yoseyf.

28. And they said, "Yes, your servant, our father, is well; he is still alive." And they fell down and bowed themselves [in homage] before him again.

Here Yaaqov is also included in their bowing down, as in his second dream, since they include him as one of Yoseyf’s servants. In a way, Rakhel is bowing also, through Binyamin her son. Notice also that they had heeded their father’s complaint, and learned to divulge as little as possible, though this time Yoseyf actually did ask the questions they had answered before he asked them. If they are face to the ground, they do not need to speak!

“Little” brother--though he had already fathered ten children! (46:2) Just the opposite will befall haSatan: when revealed, he will prove to be much smaller than his reputation. (Yeshayahu 14:16)

Inner room: a private, enclosed chamber, perhaps his bedroom. (Compare Mat. 6:16.) The root word means "innermost part", showing that he wanted his physical surroundings to match the fact that his emotional response came from the innermost part of his being. "Emotions" here can literally mean "intestines" or, in the case of a woman, "a womb", the most protected part; the particular emotion associated with it is usually "compassion". We could literally read this as, “his guts were being burned out”. Yet, like Yahshua, he waited for the right time to speak. (Yochanan 5:19, 30) He did not gather Yerushalayim when He wanted to, because they were not ready. Yoseyf had to test his brothers to see if they were really ready to risk their own lives for their brothers. He was not being mean, but was doing the hard thing so they could prove to themselves that this time they would stand up for one another. (Compare 2 Cor. 2:9.)

Set out the bread: Though there would be a feast with many animals slaughtered (v. 16), their focus was all on the bread, for that was what they lacked and what they had come there for. Figuratively, establish the community! Now that all twelve of them were back together, this could actually begin to take place.

Note that the Egyptians (a picture of the world and the church) did not eat the same bread the Hebrews were eating. An abhorrent thing: The Hebrews ate cattle and sheep, which the Egyptians worshiped. (Ex. 8:25ff) Were they vegetarians, since their religion came from the same source as today's Hindus (Babylon)? But shepherds are an important picture YHWH wanted to show us of His chosen Shepherd, so He included them in His economy. And if anything, His priests ate too much meat, for they had to have stomach doctors on hand to treat them since a large percentage of the food the rest of Israel brought to them was meat.

34. Then he had someone serve them portions from his own table, and Binyamin's portion was five times bigger than the portions served to all the rest of them! And they drank and became drunk with him.

Portions from his own table: a custom dignitaries used to honor special guests. It is as if they are all eating from the king’s table, and to them it appears as if the famine is over. Though they ate lunch nonchalantly while he was crying out in the pit, he still feeds them, but the one who had no part in sending him into captivity receives much more. Five times bigger: literally "five hands", and this may partly explain 41:47. This may have been to give them a clue that he was Binyamin’s brother. This may have also been a test to see if they were still jealous of special favor shown to Rakhel's children. Fifteen portions were served in all, in addition to Yoseyf's, and eleven brothers are there. The numeric value of the first two letters in YHWH’s name is 15, while the value of the last two total 11. At Sukkoth, the feast that most fully prefigures the Messianic Kingdom, we speak every day of intending to unify the “yodh-hey” with the “vav-hey”, making His name one. (Zkh. 14:9) Having all 12 sons of Israel eat from the same table is the same picture. They do not know it yet, but this is a very historic moment. Yehudah was responsible for Binyamin, but it is Yoseyf that was actually feeding him. Thus both houses of Israel have shown concern for Binyamin's welfare, and indeed his tribe was later split between the Northern and Southern Kingdoms. The celebration of all the brothers is another reparation for their crime against Yoseyf, because the phrase “and they rejoiced with shouting” (Lev. 9:24) also has the numerical value of 272. (See note on v. 1.)

CHAPTER 44

As much as they are able: another instance of his generosity, just as YHWH's kindness leads us to repentance. (Rom. 2:4) Money: literally, "silver", which is based on the verb, "to yearn for". Yoseyf may have been again reminding them that they had sold him for silver, and hinting at the fact that they could never repay him for the trouble they had put him through for twenty years, since like the sheaves of grain, they had already bowed to him.

3. At the [first] light of morning, the men were sent off, along with their donkeys.

Why are their donkeys mentioned so often? There is a symbolic reason beyond the literal. In 22:5 we saw that a donkey represented the rest of the world. But we can be more specific. Exodus 13:13 specifies that the firstborn of a donkey must be redeemed with a lamb, or have its neck broken. Thus we see that a donkey, though an unclean beast, can be redeemed. Yeshayahu 66:3ff shows that a dog cannot be redeemed, though some had apparently failed to distinguish between a dog and a donkey. But Ex. 11:7 says not even a dog would move its tongue against the children of Israel—man or beast, to show that YHWH was making a distinction between Egypt and Israel. So some beasts are called “children of Israel” here, while elsewhere in Scripture dogs are paralleled with the congregation of the wicked (Ps. 22:16), workers of evil (Phil. 3:2), and sorceres, immoral, idolaters, and liars (Rev. 22:15). The price of a dog is not to be brought into the House of Elohim. (Deut. 23:18) Yahshua tells us not to give what is holy to dogs. (Mat. 7:6) Dogs were worshipped by both Egyptians and Phoenicians. Thousands of mummified ones have been found. But we never see an Israelite in Scripture owning a dog. So dogs are a picture of the completely wicked (who cannot be redeemed, like Kanaan, Amaleq, and Edom), while donkeys are a picture of the third category, often simply called “sinners”--those who can still be redeemed. Not all of them will be, but many will. These donkeys were associated with the patriarchs of Israel, and likewise we see the two houses of Israel having additional companions (Yehezqel 37:16-19) who are useful to them. Yahshua says “Many are called (invited), but few are chosen (hand-picked).” (Mat. 22:14) The brothers represent those who are hand-picked, but a much larger number, represented by the donkeys, are also invited and can also then become part of the Commonwealth of Israel if they wear the proper wedding garment. Even fools are counted among the redeemed if they stay on YHWH’s path. (Yeshayahu 35:8) The wise thing is to follow the invited where they are going, which is to Tzion. Before Yahshua’s time, the Great Sanhedrin had already proclaimed that the ten lost tribes were so engrained among the nations that they could be categorized simply as Gentiles. This forms an important framework for understanding the Renewed Covenant’s references to Gentiles, but Yahshua came to prove this assessment wrong, since in His view, though we had ceased to be men, we were not dogs; we were redeemable by a Lamb!

Just when they thought their troubles were finally over, a messenger is sent to ask them a question Yoseyf has been wanting answered for over 20 years.

Divines: discerns omens, practices fortunetelling, foretells the days to come. The divining cup appears in many pictographs of Babylonian and near eastern deities. This practice of reading the movements of wine when swirled around in the cup is called hydromancy. It was seen as a sign from the “other side” of something that was already laid out there and heading their way. It was much like the practices still extant today of reading tea leaves, horoscopes, or even going to church prophets for “a word from the L-rd”. "Serpent" in 3:1 is the noun form of the same word. The serpent did indeed foretell what would take place with Adam and Chawwah. The Aramaic targum explained that Yoseyf had used it to appear to be divining when he seated the brothers by order of age. The Torah would later forbid such practices; looking anywhere but in the Torah for a message about tomorrow was actually punishable by death. (Deut. 18:11) Yeshayahu (Isaiah) 8:18ff tells us that the reason is that we should seek our Elohim instead; the only sign to look for is a people who live by His words. If we find that, we will be able to see what is on the horizon. We cannot assume that something is bound to take place at a certain time no matter what. That would bring us a false sense of security. What occurs tomorrow is dependent on how faithful we are today. Where we stand in relation to obedience to YHWH’s Torah is the sign of what is coming and how soon it will come. The Kingdom is the only tomorrow with which we should be concerned; it is not here yet because we have not yet surrendered well enough to the order that is in the Torah. Efrayim is returning and many in Yehudah are returning to their roots; these are signs pointing to the fact that the Kingdom is drawing closer. Looking anywhere else for answers, even if they turn out to be true, will not bring any further light (clarity), but only confusion, and that is exactly what Yoseyf is doing by speaking of divination. His claimed use of the cup was a “set-up” to keep them from recognizing him as Yoseyf, who would never actually carry out this practice.

He said exactly what he was told to say, though the situation must have seemed very illogical to him.

They had really stolen nothing this time. But the repayment with evil that he was really alluding to (v. 4) was what they had done to him about 22 years earlier.

9. "Anyone among your servants with whom you find it with will incur the death penalty! In addition, the rest of us will become slaves to my master."

Here he was again trying to jog their memory by doing exactly what Lavan had done to their father (tracked them down and accused them of stealing something), and they respond in exactly the same way their father had. Yehudah assumed none of them had taken the cup, or he would not have spoken so rashly. But Yoseyf had gotten them drunk (43:34) so they could not be absolutely sure of what they might have done the night before. YHWH gave him this leverage so he could make them understand that they really had no control over their own lives, to make them feel a bit of what he had gone through.

This servant has amazing insights for an Egyptian. He is well-trained to speak for his master, but Yoseyf had said nothing about killing anyone, so he tones down Yehudah’s offer. This very type of offer was the reason Yoseyf’s and Binyamin’s mother had died so young. Yet Yehudah repeated the mistake Yaaqov had made, and thus called a curse upon both Binyamin and the whole family. This is why the servant still affirms that what Yehudah has said will come true, though not at this time. It would be delayed many years, but first all of Israel would indeed be enslaved to the one Yoseyf represented (Pharaoh), then centuries later still, though Binyamin had actually committed no crime, all but 600 men of his tribe would be killed by the other Israelites because of an incident in which they were unwilling to turn over the guilty to be judged—and YHWH made Yehudah’s tribe attack them first (Judges 20), specifically because he is the one who called this curse on his brother simply because he was not careful in his words. He was from a prophetic family--the wrong family to speak haphazardly, and so are we, because our words have more power than we realize. We will end up going where our tongues take us, so they must be tamed. A guard must be placed on our mouths. It may be the nose—for we can take a deep breath before speaking and ask ourselves if this is really what should proceed from us. We also have to consider to whom we are speaking. The most important part of speaking is listening: Does this person need to—or even want to—hear what I want to say? If not, we must clamp down so we will not bring evil on ourselves by blurting out the first thing that comes to mind. Do we always talk about how bad we feel, yet still expect our ills to be defeated? Which do we really want? Are we putting more weight on the problem with our words, or on the solution? Certainly you should ask others to pray for you, but after that, if you truly believe in YHWH, why continue complaining as if He were not aware of the situation? Most of this chapter is how words affect people; there are very few actions otherwise. The Torah takes vows so seriously that a man can annul the words of a woman who is under his authority; this does not mean YHWH takes her words lightly, for he must do so on the first day he hears about her ill-considered promise. As we see here, what we say todaycould even our great-grandchildren. That is why Yahshua says to let our “yes” be simply “yes”, and that anything beyond that opens the door for great evils.

12. And he searched in the oldest one's sack first, and the youngest one's last—and the cup was found in Binyamin's sack!

13. Then they tore their clothes, and each of them reloaded his donkey and they all returned to the city.

Tore their clothes: in agony as strong as mourning. They could only imagine all the ramifications this would have.

Interestingly, Yehudah is again seen as the leader, though Reuven was the eldest. And they again fulfill his dream.

He feigned being unable to imagine how they thought they could get away with this if he could divine who had his goblet. It must have seemed very confusing to them how he could find them out in this way if Binyamin had his divining cup! He is playing with their minds so they can begin to feel what it was like when they did such an injustice to him when he was 17 years old. The cumulative effects of all of these events is whipping them into a frenzy. They are speechless:

Elohim has caught...in their iniquity: i.e., uncovered their guilt. He has no answer, but he knows there is something to pay for. This is the best answer he could give. It may not have been at this time that they were guilty; indeed it was not. But it is obvious to them that somewhere in the past they have done wrong, and they all realize what it is. But if we respond properly to adversity even when we have been guiltless in the immediate past, YHWH can restore to us what we are lacking. Yehudah is now taking responsibility for his brother, for he iis beginning to see that if one of the community is guilty, all of them are in it together. This is exactly what Yoseyf was after.

Go back up: even this "Egyptian" is admitting that returning to Israel's land is ascending. Yet they did not catch the hint. He was also saying that innocent men should not have to pay for others' guilt--perhaps designed to remind them of what they had done to him. He puts them through even further stress to the point of their realizing the real possibility that their father will indeed die from this heartbreak--so they might actually repent. But notice that the Egyptian justice system would break the family’s unity.