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Vayechi י ִחְיַו
£A Closed PortionA Closed PortionA Closed Portion
A Closed Portionortionortion
££A Closed PA Closed P
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Vayechi, the last portion in the book of Bereishit, begins on the same
line of a traditional Torah scroll as the last portion ends and there is
no space between them. This phenomenon, unique to the beginning
of this one portion, is referred to by the Rabbis as a “closed portion”
(parashah setumah), reflecting the fact that the new portion “closes”
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the last portion’s final line.
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Whatever the straightforward peshat reason for this graphical
distinction might be, Rashi, quoting the Talmud (Pesachim 56a) and
the Midrash (Bereishit Rabbah 98b), offers two homiletical derash
explanations. These take the word “closed” (setumah) and assume
that this format and its name are attempting to convey or reflect a
message central to the Torah portion. The first explanation suggests
that with Jacob and Joseph’s impending death “the eyes and hearts
of Israel were closed” because the period of bondage was about to
begin. As long as Jacob and Joseph were alive their merit protected
the children of Israel from descending into slavery. The second
explanation suggests that Jacob wanted to reveal his prophetic
vision of the End of Days to his sons but just as he was about to
speak the Shechinah left him; therefore, the ability to transmit this
information was literally “closed” off to him.
In addition to these interpretations, the subtle but jarring
juxtaposition between this being a closed portion (symbolizing
impending death and bondage and the loss of the prophetic spirit)
and the portion’s first word and name being “vayechi,” meaning
“and he lived,” requires an explanation. This need becomes even
more pronounced in a Chassidic context wherein “vayechi,” instead
of connoting the prosaic “dwelt” or “settled,” connotes Jacob’s
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Vayigash
of Jews in the far-flung Diaspora. Now, we just need to keep stoking
this longing and passion to bring the redemption ever closer.
Significantly, the portion of Vayigash is always read in very close
proximity to Chanukah. In addition to the connection between
Chanukah and Goshen, the portion also contains the very important
message of the brothers’ reconciliation. During Chanukah the
Maccabees fought not only the Greeks but also those Jews who had
sided with the Greeks. In the fight to preserve Jewish tradition and
sovereignty, they had been forced to battle their own brothers. The
brothers’ reconciliation in Vayigash sends a message of hope that in
the future all Jews, no matter what their affiliation, or lack thereof,
will be reunited in common purpose, cooperation, and brotherly love.
Then the lights of Chanukah will be transformed into the light of the
Messianic age that will light the way for all humankind.
££The Meaning of Money
£The Meaning of MoneyThe Meaning of Money
At the end of Vayigash, the Torah describes in great detail how Joseph
managed to centralize all the wealth of Egypt in Pharaoh’s hands. In
the process, he reconfigured the entire structure of Egyptian society.
Chassidut explains that on a deeper level Joseph was transferring
the wealth from the realm of the “evil inclination” to the realm of
holiness. The Slonimer Rebbe explains that Joseph had to do this
or else Jacob would never have agreed to come. Indeed, Joseph
especially instructed his brothers to tell Jacob that he was “ruling
over all of Egypt,” so that he would be willing to go to a land known
for its moral corruption.
In “The Dreams of Jacob – the Dreams of Joseph,” we discussed
the Midrash which demonstrated that everything that happened to
Jacob likewise happened to Joseph (Bereishit Rabbah 84:6). Here
we see this parallelism again. Just as Jacob had cleverly managed
to transform Laban’s wealth into his own, Joseph ingeniously took
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