\u05d1\u05e1”\u05d3<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Exodus 1:1 – 6:1<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n What is the significance in the fact that the \u201cnew king arose, a king that did not know Yosef\u201d (Exodus 1:8)?<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are two Divine Attributes, personality traits of G-d\u2019s, that become apparent to us through the way He guides the events of the world. One of these is referred to as \u05d9\u05e1\u05d5\u05d3<\/strong>, yesod<\/em>, \u201cfoundation\u201d, and another is referred to as \u05de\u05dc\u05db\u05d5\u05ea<\/strong>, malchut<\/em>, \u201ckingship\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Although Joseph was technically the viceroy and not the actual king of Egypt, the Pharaoh of his time empowered him in such a way that the only difference between him and Pharaoh was the \u201cthrone\u201d, the actual title. In all other ways, Joseph was responsible for governing the great Egyptian empire. Joseph\u2019s prophetic ability to interpret Pharaoh\u2019s dream, combined with his wisdom, enabled him to help the people of Egypt\u2014and surrounding countries\u2014to navigate their way through a famine and survive. Pharaoh recognized Joseph\u2019s uniqueness as a wise and holy leader, astonished by his sagacity, \u201cis there such a person as this, a man filled with the Spirit of G-d?\u201d (Genesis 41:38), and \u201cSince G-d has made all this known to you, there is none so discerning and wise as you. (ibid., verse 39)<\/p>\n\n\n\n Several generations later, there is a \u201cking who did not know Joseph\u201d. This king designated a minority population within his empire for slave labor. He devised a way to control their birthrate with a plan to kill all of their male children. He subjected them to \u05e2\u05d1\u05d5\u05d3\u05ea \u05e4\u05e8\u05da<\/strong>, avodat parech<\/em>, hard labor (Exodus 1:13). Here we have to distinguish between manual labor, which, although difficult, allows the body to become stronger and more capable. Avodat parech<\/em>, on the other hand, is a type of labor that completely overwhelms the body\u2019s capacities, causing it to fall apart (Rashi, ibid.).<\/p>\n\n\n\n If we compare the two kings, we discover that one sustains the entire population by marshalling all of its resources for the benefit of all, while the other aggrandizes power at the expense of his subjects. He builds his empire (Egypt was at its height during this historical period), but he does so on the backs of his people. The third<\/p>\n\n\n\n king is even worse; \u201cwho is G-d that I should listen to him?\u201d While it can be argued that of course Joseph, and even the successor to Pharaoh were conscious of G-d, the third king in this week\u2019s portion not only has no consciousness of G-d, but is of the type that attributes divinity to himself in his role as leader.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Returning to the topic of the Divine Attributes, the attribute of yesod<\/em> finds its description in the verse, \u201cfor all that is in Heaven and upon the earth\u201d (I Chronicles 29:11). Note the communication between Heaven and earth. The attribute of yesod<\/em> is like a pipe that connects Heaven and earth, a channel as it were, through which G-d sends sustenance to His world. The concept of a tzaddik is related to the attribute of yesod<\/em>, that person who, because of his holiness, connects people to G-d, and acts as a conduit of G-d\u2019s blessings to everyone. As a conduit, yesod <\/em>is like a neck, the body part that is required to bring food, air and water into the body for its survival.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Divine Attribute of malchut<\/em>, \u201ckingship\u201d, is self-explanatory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Joseph embodied the attribute of yesod<\/em>. When someone like that is in a leadership position, the world is sustained and cared for. The abundance that comes down from Heaven is perfectly distributed to support everyone. Thoretically, any king represents G-d\u2019s divine attribute of Kingship. Thus, the Pharaoh of Jospeh\u2019s time filled this role. The combination of yesod<\/em> and malchut<\/em> orchestrated a near-perfect form of government, where all subjects are sustained. Joseph says about his own misfortunes, that despite the tragedy of his having been sold by his brothers, \u201chad been sent to sustain life\u201d (Genesis 45:5).<\/p>\n\n\n\n But when the successor to Pharaoh, who did not know Joseph, became king, the synthesis of yesod<\/em> and malchut <\/em>was undone, their functions disconnected. At this point, there is a blockage in the \u201cneck\u201d on one hand, and power for power\u2019s sake on the other, causing terrible suffering for the people. Sustenance is no longer distributed, it is stored away for those who have elevated themselves above others, hence the \u201cstorage cities for Pharaoh\u201d (Exodus 1:11). Compare these to the grain silos Joseph had constructed to help Egypt through the immanent years of famine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Note the word Pharaoh, spelled in Hebrew as \u05e4\u05e8\u05e2\u05d4<\/strong>. When the letters are recombined, they spell \u05d4\u05e2\u05d5\u05e8\u05e3<\/strong>, which means, \u201cthe back of the neck\u201d, indicating a force that controls the channel of sustenance, opening and facilitating the flow, or closing it off. When the leader is a tzaddik, the \u201cneck\u201d is wide open to bring in that which sustains the body; when leadership is help by people who are disconnected from G-d, the channel is blocked. There are many different models of government, and arguments can be made for the benefit of each. But one thing is certain, if the people who sit in the seat of power are G-d-fearing, leadership will benefit all, and if they are not, government becomes the instrument of oppression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Holy Temple is referred to as the \u201cneck of the world\u201d. When Joseph and Benjamin are reunited, they fall upon each other\u2019s necks and weep. Rashi informs us there that they were weeping over the eventual destruction of the Temples that would stand and fall in their respective land inheritances (Genesis 41:14; Rashi, loc. cit). The Temple is a \u201cneck\u201d, because it too is a conduit that connects Heaven to earth, a space through which prayers ascend to G-d, and through which G-d bestows of His Goodness upon the world. May we be blessed to experience the joy of the day when this channel is reopened speedily, in our times, amen.<\/p> By Rabbi Tani Burton<\/strong><\/p> \u00a9 Copyright, all rights reserved. If you enjoyed this article, we encourage you to distribute it further.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Our blogs may contain text\/quotes\/references\/links that include copyright material of Mechon-Mamre.org<\/a>, Aish.com<\/a>, Sefaria.org<\/a>, Chabad.org<\/a>, and\/or AskNoah.org<\/a>, which we use in accordance with their policies.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u05d1\u05e1”\u05d3 Exodus 1:1 – 6:1 A New King? What is the significance in the fact that the \u201cnew king arose, a king that did not know Yosef\u201d (Exodus 1:8)? There are two Divine Attributes, personality traits of G-d\u2019s, that become apparent to us through the way He guides the events of the world. One of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":6487,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6486","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-parshot-of-the-rabbis"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nA New King?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The Divine Attributes: Yesod and Malchut<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The Holy Temple: the Neck of the World?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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