Parsha Miketz - Parsha Stumpers

פרשת מקץ

Parsha Stumpers and Something to Think About

1. Rashi (41:2,4) writes what the simanim in Pharoah's dreams meant. Why is Rashi telling us this here and not by Yosef's interpretations?
2. Rashi (41:8) differentiates between the dreams of Pharoah and those of Nevuchadnetzer. Nevuchadnetzer not only did not understand the meaning of his dreams, but also did not even remember his dreams. Why the difference?
3. Both Yosef and Pharoah had double dreams. Why?
4. The mefarshim explain that Yosef knew that the years of plenty and famine would happen very soon because Pharoah dreamed them one right after another. But what about Yosef's own dreams? He also had two dreams (seemingly one right after another) but his dreams did not come to reality until many years later?
5. Rashi (41:55) comments that Yosef made everyone in Mitzrayim get bris millah and move from their houses in order for the brothers to feel comfortable when they came down to Mitzrayim – a land where everyone had bris millah and everyone felt like a stranger after recently moving. Why would Yosef want to do this? As nice as it is to feel comfortable, is there not also a benefit to keeping distance when it comes to mingling among goyim?
6. The brothers exclaimed out of frustration, “What is this that Hashem is doing to us?” when they found that their money had been returned to them. Yet, we do not find such an expression when Shimon was taken to jail or when Yosef demanded them bring Binyamin to them, etc. Why only by this event?
7. When the brothers were trying to convince Yaakov to send Binyamin down with them, Reuvain spoke up and said that he could be trusted with Binyamin and if he does not take good care of him, then Yaakov could kill his two sons. What in the world was Reuvain thinking? Did he really believe that such talk would make Yaakov feel safe sending Binyamin with him?
8. When the brothers returned from Mitzrayim and realized that they were given back their money, they told Yaakov. However, Yaakov never seems to have reacted or responded with what they should do. Why?
9. The passuk (44:8) records that after Yosef accused the brothers of stealing his magic goblet, the brothers responded that if they were even willing to return the money that was given back to them “accidentally” when they could have gotten away with it, then certainly they would not actively steal something from Yosef. Rashi comments that this is actually one of ten kal v'chomeir's found in the Torah. What exactly is the kal v'chomeir though? Perhaps a magic goblet is something that would be worth taking since it seemingly gave Yosef power to know things about the shevatim that perhaps they would not want him to know. For example, we know that despite Yaakov avinu and his family not stealing anything from Lavan's house, Rachel stole his teraphim because she knew that Lavan would be able to use them to see where they ran to if she left them there (according to one explanation in Rashi there). So, what is the kal v'chomeir here?

Parshas Vayeishev - Parsha Stumpers

פרשת וישב

Parsha Stumpers

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?

Parshas Vayishlach - Parsha Stumpers

פרשת וישלח

Parsha Stumpers

1. Many know the famous Rashi in our parsha which says “with Lavan I have sojourned...and yet I have kept the 613 mitzvos”. However, many do not realize that that is the second explanation Rashi gives. The first is, “I did not become a dignitary or a notable, but rather a mere sojourner. It therefore does not befit you (Eisav) to hate me over the blessings of your father who blessed me, 'Be a lord to your brothers', for it has not yet been fulfilled in me.” Aren't these two explanations in a couple of ways contradictory to each other?

2. The passuk says (32:8), “And Yaakov became very frightened, and it distressed him....” Why was Yaakov afraid? Certainly a yarei shamayim like Yaakov avinu had complete bitachon in Hashem that his encounter with Eisav would be fine. After all, Hashem had promised to be with Yaakov. So, why was Yaakov afraid?

3. What is the difference between the way that Yaakov prepared to go to battle with Eisav and with the malach of Eisav? Why the differences?

4. Rashi explains that from the fact that Yaakov went back to retrieve the pachim k'tanim we see that tzadikkim stay away from stealing. What does going back for pachim k'tanim have to do with stopping from stealing?

5. Yaakov told the malach of Eisav to bless him, and in return the malach asked, “What is your name?” How was this a valid response to the question?

6. The Gemara in Berachos says that after Avraham and Sarah's names were changed, it is assur to call them by their original names. What is different about the name changing of Avraham and Sarah and the name change of Yaakov to Yisroel?

7. The Torah tells us that Yaakov heard what had happened to Dinah, but kept quiet until his children came back from the field. Why?

8. Despite the fact that now-a-days people name kids after deceased relatives all the time, it is pretty rare that you find names repeated in Torah. Why is that? And what are a few names in these week's parsha which are repeated elsewhere in Tanach?

9. Rashi again in this week's parsha says, “I do not know what this is coming to teach us”. Why does Rashi bother telling us that he doesn't know? Just write nothing!
   
   

Parshas Vayeitzei - Parsha Stumpers

פרשת ויצא

Parsha Stumpers

1. Where is there a ראיה in this week's parsha that one should wear a shtreimel? :)

2. Three types of people are called “dead” even while they are alive. All three appear in this week's parsha. What are they and where do they come up in the parsha?

3. How could Yaakov avinu come into a foreign land and start bossing around the shepherds and telling them that, as Rashi writes, “If you are hired workers, you have not yet completed the day's work. And if the animals are yours, there is still time in the day...”?

4. Eliphaz was sent by Eisav to kill Yaakov.

            a. Why is this included in kibud av?

            b. What did Yaakov do to get out of the situation?

            c. Why did this satisfy Eliphaz?

5. Why did Lavan not make a huge wedding for Rachel as he did for Leah?
   
   
   
   
6. There are two times other then the episode with the shepherds by the well that Yaakov seems to go on a rant, so to speak, and “lose his cool”. What is the connection between these three times?

7. Who named the shevatim?

8. Why did Leah only name her fourth son Yehuda? Was she not thankful for the first three?
   
   
   
   
9. How could Lavan continue going to Yaakov after Hashem told him explicitly not to? Who else did a similar thing?
   
   
   
   
10. Rashi (31:39) tells us that Yakkov told Lavan that he was very careful when watching his sheep and whether things were stolen during the day or night, Yaakov paid for it all. What would have been the hava amina to differentiate between things stolen during the day and things stolen at night?

11. Why did Yaakov curse the one who took Lavan's idols?

12. What is the significance of eating in this week's parsha? (continuing the theme from last week)

13. Where do you see in this week's parsha that “stealing” could be said in reference to intangible things which “can't be paid back”?

14. What was the difference between the way Lavan and Yaakov each named the גל? Clearly Lavan and Yaakov shared a language in common because they spoke (or at least argued) often, so shouldn't it have been that at the time of a peace treaty that they agree on what to call the mound - especially since what they ended up doing pretty much mean the same thing anyway? Why couldn't they just agree on a language?