Random thoughts on this week’s parsha. Surprises and no surprises.
Surprise … I was surprised when God did something nice at Genesis 46:2. God has often acted like a petulant child up to now. This week, he comes to Jacob in a “night vision” to reassure Jacob about going to Egypt. Nice move, God!
P.S. to surprise … God’s visits up until now were described as “God appeared” or “God spoke,” but this time we are told (URJ Modern Commentary) that God came to Jacob in a “night vision.” That would be a dream, right? That’s what I thought that all God’s other visits to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob were anyway, so I like this very much! I take this (reading much too much into it, but it’s fine because it supports my view :) ) to mean that all God’s “visits” in the Torah are really dreams.
No surprise … it is no surprise that Joseph continues to re-enact the pain that he feels (see my commentary from last week). He has not worked through his hurt about the way his brother’s treated him (or his own feelings about the way he treated them), so he continues to perpetuate the family pain. This week, he verges on cruelty in the way that he makes his brothers beg and scrape and grovel before he finally admits the truth about who he is. And then at Genesis 45:22, he send the brothers to go fetch Dad, but he gives Benjamin the best stuff for the trip. Like father, like son! Let the family dysfunction continue for another generation!
Final thought … very disappointing to hear Jacob talking to Pharaoh at Genesis 47:7-10. “Cool,” I think to myself, “Our patriarch Jacob/Israel is going to speak to the leader of Egypt. Something profound will be said; something amazing will happen!” But no, Jacob just bitches that he has had a shit life and whines that he has not lived as long as his dad and granddad.
Bummer. Our patriarch Jacob is a grumpy old man.
Your blog posts are so insightful! Continuing with your theory about Joseph re-enacting his painful past, might that explain his actions when the famine becomes so severe that Joseph "acquires" the Egyptian people (as in slavery) and their land for Pharaoh (Gen, 47:23) - just like Joseph himself was sold into slavery? Talk about surprising! Not to mention this act comes back to bite the Jews a generation later when we became enslaved ourselves.
ReplyDeleteP.S. Your final observation about Jacob cracks me up!
Wow, cool thought! I like it very much.
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