The Depth of the Rebuke: The Secret Behind the Cry of Yosef HaTzaddik
Lesson No. 43 | 18 Tishrei 5756, 3rd day of Chol HaMoed Sukkos - Yahrtzeit (anniversary of passing) of Rebbe Nachman, in the Yeshiva
Why did the souls of the brothers depart (faint from shock) specifically when Yosef asked, "Is my father still alive?" After all, they had already told him that Yaakov was alive! Through the explanation of the Beis HaLevi, the depth of Yosef's rebuke is revealed, exposing the true motives for his sale. This is the power of the true tzaddik – to illuminate for a person the root of their actions and bring them to complete teshuvah (repentance).
The holy brothers were certain that they had acted according to Halacha (Jewish law). When they sold Yosef, they did not think there was any flaw in their actions. From their perspective, Yosef had the status of a rodef (a pursuer with intent to kill), and they judged him in their Sanhedrin (rabbinical court) according to Torah law. They did everything according to Halacha and did not think for a moment that there was a flaw in the sale, but rather they understood that they had committed some other severe sin for which they were now being held accountable.
The Question That Terrifies the Soul
When the brothers go down to Egypt for the second time, Yosef inquires about their father's welfare. He asks them:
"And he asked of their welfare, and said, 'Is your father well, the old man of whom you spoke? Is he still alive?'"
The brothers answer him: "Your servant our father is well, he is still alive," and they bow and prostrate themselves as a sign of gratitude that the Egyptian ruler is inquiring about their father's welfare. But when Yosef reveals himself to them, he lets out a cry that shakes their world:
"I am Yosef; is my father still alive?"
The Torah testifies that at that moment: "And his brothers could not answer him, for they were terrified at his presence." The Gaon Rabbi Yosef Dov Ber (Yoshe Ber) of Brisk (author of the Beis HaLevi) asks a tremendous question here: Why is the rebuke hidden specifically in the words "Is my father still alive?" Why did their souls depart? After all, everyone thinks the shock was from the mere revelation that he was Yosef. Furthermore, why does he ask "Is my father still alive?" when he had already asked them earlier and they had answered him twice that he was alive!
Yehuda's Cry: We Do Not Compromise on Father's Pain
To understand this, we must observe the course of the trial that preceded the revelation. Initially, Yehuda ruled as the head of the Sanhedrin that whoever the goblet was found with would die, and the rest of the brothers would become slaves. Yosef, on the other hand, presented a more "merciful" position: only the one in whose hand the goblet was found would be a slave, and the rest would go free.
Suddenly, Yehuda overturns the entire trial. He is willing to destroy Egypt, to fight against the whole world, just so that Binyamin will be released and he will remain a slave in his place. Why? Because Yehuda argues:
"And his soul is bound up with his soul... and it will come to pass, when he sees that the lad is not with us, that he will die."
Yehuda cries out: This is not a game! Father will die of sorrow! We will not compromise even a hairsbreadth on our father's pain. For our father, we will destroy the entire world! We will fight the whole world, but we will not give up on our father's pain.
The Piercing Rebuke: Where Were You for Twenty-Two Years?
Here lies Yosef's terrible rebuke. The Beis HaLevi explains that Yosef was essentially saying to them: "Now you have mercy on father? Now you care about his pain? After all, when you sold me, father died for twenty-two years!"
Yosef reveals the bitter truth to them: "The Shechinah (Divine Presence) departed from him and he cried endlessly. Where was your mercy then? Your personal biases acted here, your cruelty acted here. Because of your personal bias, you sold me for twenty-two years, and now you come to have mercy on father?"
At that moment, the brothers understood the magnitude of their mistake. They realized that if they had truly had mercy on their father, they never would have sold Yosef. The hatred and jealousy toward Yosef drove them out of their minds, until they forgot that they had a father in the world. They convened a Sanhedrin and ruled on Halacha, but it all stemmed from personal biases. When they heard the words "Is my father still alive?", their souls departed (they fainted), because they suddenly saw their own falsehood.
The Power of the True Tzaddik
From this realization, their teshuvah (repentance) was accepted, and in this merit, the Nation of Israel was established. This is exactly the concept of drawing close to the true tzaddik. When a person comes to the tzaddik, the tzaddik opens his eyes and shows him where his mistakes and personal biases are hiding.
A person might think he is acting for the sake of Heaven, but in the presence of the tzaddik, he remembers all his blemishes from the day he was born. His soul is shaken, and he washes away his sins with rivers of tears. Only through breaking this self-deception is his teshuvah (repentance) truly accepted, and he merits a good year and the complete Geulah (Redemption).
Part 1 of 3 — Lesson No. 43