Parshas Vayeishev

פרשת וישב

Parsha Stumpers / Something to Think About

1. The Torah and Rashi describe that Yosef would to tell Yaakov about things he saw the shevatim do. He claimed to have eye-witnessed his brothers eating eiver min ha'chai, degrading the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, and doing gilui arayos. If these claims were true, how could we understand that the shevatim did such things and why was Yosef punished? And if not true, then how could Yosef say such things about them?

2. Yaakov grew up in a house of brother rivalry between him and Eisav. So, why does he anyway do so many things to single out Yosef over his brothers?

3. As we know, the Torah is written on many levels. When Yosef is telling Yaakov his dreams, Yaakov responds, “What is this dream that you dreamt? Are we to come – I and your mother and your brothers – and bow down to the ground to you?” Rashi explains that Yaakov was essentially saying that Rachel was dead and was not coming back to bow down to Yosef. Where is this hinted to in the passuk itself in what Yaakov said?

4. Who sold Yosef? (Read the passukim carefully).

5. Where in the parsha is there a hint to the concept we say in lecha dodi of “sof ma'aseh b'mach'shava techillah”?

6. Who cares that the caravan was selling nice smelling spices? Yosef was just thrown into a pit and is now being sold as a slave. Does he really care what it smells like in the caravan? Why is this so significant?

7. The meforshim explain that Yosef was “taken away” from Yaakov for 22 years just as Yaakov was away from his house. Why should Yaakov be punished this way? His parents told him to leave home?

8. Yosef told the Sar HaMashkim and Sar HaOfim that, “Do not interpretations belong to Hashem?” Doesn't the Gemara in Brachos (56a) say that “Dreams go after the mouth (I.e-the interpreter)”?

9. Who was the first one in the Torah to have a birthday party?

10. The last few passukim and Rashi describe that Yosef was punished for asking the sar hamashkim to “remember him to Paroah”. What was wrong about this? Yosef was just doing his hishtadlus?