ויקרא יעקב אל בניו, “Yaakov called in his sons.” According to a Midrash, Yaakov commenced his blessing from the point where Yitzchak had concluded blessing his son as it is written: “Yitzchak called Yaakov and blessed him” (Genesis 28,1). Moses in turn commenced his blessing (Deut. 33,1) from the point where Yaakov had left off. David in turn, at the commencement of the Book of Psalms, began with the words with which Moses had left off, i.e. אשרי האיש, “happy the man who has not followed the counsel of the wicked.” Moses had concluded (Deut. 33,29) his blessings of the Jewish people with the words: “happy Israel, who can compare to you?” Referring to this David said in Psalms 119,100 “I have gained more understanding than my elders .”

באחרית הימים, “in the End of Days.” The time Yaakov referred to is the messianic age. It was quite appropriate that he should tell his sons matters dealing with the redemption from Egypt rather than matters dealing with the redemption in a distant future. How could he have preferred to concentrate on matters far distant instead of revealing some of what was relatively close at hand?

We surmise that perhaps he had already given his sons allusions of the redemption from Egypt when he told them in 48,21 “and the Lord will be with you and He will bring you back to the land of your fathers.” After all, had it not been for the incident with the spies the redemption at the time of the Exodus would have resulted in Israel immediately taking possession of the land of Canaan. Seeing that he had alluded to the Exodus in the previous verse, it was quite normal that at this point Yaakov would want to reveal something about a final redemption. After all, both redemptions have this in common that the Jewish people would emerge from a very terrible exile. Besides, we have it on the authority of our prophets that the final redemption will parallel the redemption from Egypt in many respects. The principal difference will be that the final redemption will result in mankind acquiring a far greater knowledge of G’d and His attributes. When you examine Yaakov’s introduction you will note that he was going to concentrate on two assemblies i.e. he said האספו והקבצו, “assemble yourselves,” and in the next verse “gather yourselves.” The first expression האספו referred to the exiled people of the Kingdom of Israel and the Kingdom of Yehudah respectively, just as mentioned in Isaiah 11,12 “and assemble the banished of Israel and gather the dispersed of Yehudah.” Isaiah 56,8 also speaks of G’d “gathering in the dispersed of Israel.” This indicates that there will be two redemptions after Isaiah’s time. It most likely refers to the redemption of the ten tribes in a separate redemption after the tribes of Yehudah and Binyamin have been redeemed first. The only time all of the tribes were redeemed simultaneously was at the Exodus from Egypt. The next time this will happen would be the final redemption. This is why the prophet (Isaiah 11,11) says “in that day My Lord will again apply His hand to acquire the other part of His people who have been left over.” Seeing that at the redemption from Babylon only 42.000 Israelites were redeemed the prophecy could not apply to that redemption. This is why the verse in Isaiah refers to a “second” redemption.

הקבצו ושמעו, “assemble and listen!” Yaakov refers to both of his names when addressing his children. He speaks of “Yaakov” when referring to his בנים, children, as at the time when his sons were still children he had not yet been given the name “Yisrael.” When he refers to himself as simply “your father,” he uses his name “Yisrael.” It is also possible to understand the words אביכם ישראל as a reference to “your Heavenly father O Israel.” In that event Yaakov introduces his blessings by exhorting his sons to remain loyal to G’d, who is known in Rabbinic terms as ישראל סבא, “grandfather (of) Israel.” This would account for the repetition of the names Yaakov and Yisrael respectively in these two verses.

I have found some support for this theory in Bereshit Rabbah (Vilna edition under the heading שיטה חדשה לברכת יעקב),”on the first of Yaakov’s blessings.” The Midrash says that what occurred at this stage in Yaakov’s life may be compared to the following parable. A king had a trusted servant and was in the habit of leaving everything in that servant’s care. When the servant was about to die he called in his sons in order to make free men out of them, and to tell them where they could find the documents proving that they were free men. When the servant suddenly noted that the King was observing what he was about to do, he did an about-turn by asking his sons to serve the King all their lives just as he himself had served him all his life. Yaakov experienced something similar. First he wanted to reveal to his sons the end of their exile, when and how they would be redeemed. When he noted that G’d looked at the matter he was going to do with disfavour, he switched gears and exhorted his sons to remain loyal to G‘d throughout their lives just as he had been i.e. האלו-הים אשר התהלכו אבותי לפניו, “the Lord before Whom my fathers have walked.” G’d had expressed concern that whereas Yaakov had called upon his sons, he had not called upon Him. This is what the prophet (Isaiah 43,22) referred to when he said: “upon Me you did not call O Yaakov!” When Yaakov heard this he prostrated himself at the head of the bed and whispered “blessed be the name of His exalted Majesty forever more.”

ראובן בכורי אתה, “Reuven you are my first-born.” As a first-born Reuven was entitled to three advantages over his younger brothers. He was entitled to all the privileges normally accruing to the first-born; he was entitled to be the family priest; and he was entitled to a position of authority including Royalty if and when his family would develop into a nation. He lost all three parts of what would have accrued to him by reason of his being the biological first-born due to his sin. He lost the ordinary privileges of being a first-born as Yaakov gave those privileges to Joseph. He lost the priesthood to Levi, and he lost his status as potential king of the Jewish people to Yehudah. This is the deeper meaning of Yaakov saying (verse 4) “water-like, impetuously-you cannot be foremost.” The expression פחז is used in that sense by our sages in Shabbat 88 where they quote a Gentile referring to the Israelites saying to G’d at Mount Sinai: “we shall do and we shall hear,“ ”you are still an impetuous nation referring with your mouth to matters your ears have not heard yet.” Yaakov referred to the priesthood when he said יתר שאת, “foremost in rank.” Yaakov referred to the eventual status of Royalty when he said יתר עז, “foremost in power.” The expression עז denoting such power is found in Samuel I 2,10 ויתן עז למלכו as well as in Psalms 99,4 ועז מלך משפט אהב, “Mighty king who loves justice.”

כי עלית משכבי אביך, “because you mounted the couch of your father.” Yaakov revealed here that when the Torah wrote of Reuven that he “slept with Bilhah” (Genesis 38,22) that that verse is not to be taken literally, but that all he did was to disarrange the sheets on his father’s couch, compare Shabbat 55 where it is made clear that Yaakov criticised Reuven only for mounting the bed. This in itself was an act of desecration. According to the Talmud the words אז חללת...אביך must be understood as “then you desecrated your father (in heaven) whose Presence was associated with my bed.” Proof of the validity of this interpretation is the fact that Yaakov spoke of משכבי אביך, “your father’s beds (pl).” On the same folio of the Talmud our sages also said that this means that Reuven desecrated two couches, two sheets, that of his father, and that of the Divine Presence. The authors of that interpretation were forced to say this as they were of the opinion that the Divine Presence, שכינה, was ever present in Yaakov’s vicinity. G’d was never out of Yaakov’s thoughts. We have an interesting nuance in Genesis 30,16 where the Torah speaks of Yaakov sleeping with Leah on a night which was not originally her turn [in return for her giving Reuven’s dudaim to Rachel. Ed.]. The Torah does not write וישכב עמה בלילה ההוא, “he slept with her on that night,” but it writes: וישכב עמה בלילה הוא, “He (G’d) slept with her at night.” This is proof that the Divine Presence was present even on Yaakov’s couch. Leah’s conceiving on that night may well have been helped by that Divine Presence. She may have been aware of this when she called the son born to her as a result יששכר. This episode also teaches that anyone who honours his father also honours G’d vicariouly. Conversely, anyone who dishonours his father dishonours G’d at the same time. All of this corresponds to what our sages (Kidushin 30) taught that every human being is the result of input by three partners, i.e. his father, his mother, and G’d (who provides the soul). As a result, G’d accounts it as a meritorious deed when someone honours his father and mother, seeing that by honouring His partners such people honour G’d Himself. By doing this they treat G’d as if He were present in the company of his parents.

Another Midrash (Yalkut Shimoni 157) states that the words אז חללת יצועי עלה, reflect Yaakov saying to his son Reuven: “your sin will not be fully expiated until the presence on earth of the one of whom the Torah writes (Exodus 19,3) ומשה עלה אל האלו-הים, ‘and Moses ascended to G’d.’” When Moses came to Mount Eyval (Deut. 27,20) and appointed the tribe of Reuven as the first one (amongst the ones who would utter the curses) we find that the paragraph contains the words: “cursed anyone who sleeps with the wife of his father.” This is proof that by that time Reuven’s misdemeanor had finally been totally expiated.

You should also know that the very name Reuven is an allusion to the attribute of Justice and how it operates in our terrestrial world. I have dealt with the subject of the mystical dimension of the names of the twelve sons of Yaakov in Genesis 29, 32-34.

שמעון ולוי אחים, “Shimon and Levi are brothers, etc.” Who did not know that these two were brothers? According to the plain meaning of the verse Yaakov wanted to state that when these two brothers attacked the people of Shechem they were both of one mind that only violence was the solution to the problem of releasing Dinah which confronted them. When Yaakov uses the termמכרותיהם , the meaning is similar to סעודותיהם, that which is “their meal,” i.e. what provides them with סעד, support, sustenance. The word מכרה is related to כרה, i.e. a meal (compare Kings II 6,23). What Yaakov meant was that these brothers use the tools of violence to live and sustain themselves. Yaakov implied that when the brothers Shimon and Levi killed the male inhabitants of Shechem they killed people who personally had not done any harm to them, but on the contrary, had made a covenant with them. Yaakov therefore felt the need to apologise and to make clear that he had not been a party to their scheme. This is why he stressed בסודם אל תבא נפשי, ”may my soul not enter their conspiracy.”

A Midrashic approach to this verse (Bereshit Rabbah 99,7) “Shimon and Levi are brothers when it comes to taking revenge for the rape of Dinah, but when it came to their behaviour vis-a-vis Joseph they certainly did not act as brothers.” By using the word מכרותיהם, Yaakov alluded to the sale of Joseph i.e. מכירה. We should remember that the four brothers Reuven, Shimon, Levi, and Yehudah were the senior brothers. Seeing that the Torah reported that both Reuven and Yehudah considered the sale of Joseph as inappropriate (compare 37,22 and 37,26), this leaves Shimon and Levi as the ones who must have suggested that Joseph be sold. This explains why when the brothers went to Egypt, Joseph detained only Shimon.

כלי חמס מכרותיהם, “instruments of violence are their stock-in-trade.” According to Bereshit Rabbah 99,7 the arms in their hands are used to perpetrate acts of violence and have been stolen from Esau. The Midrash bases himself on Ovadiah 10, “for the outrage to your brother Jacob, disgrace shall engulf you.” [— The abuse of Yitzchak’s blessing to Esau “you will survive by your sword.” Yaakov had not attacked Esau. Ed.]

A kabbalistic approach: please refer to 29,32 where I have explained the mystical dimension of these words.

אחלקם ביעקב¸ ”I will disperse them within Yaakov,” so that they will not be able to conspire together. Yaakov added ואפיצם בישראל, ”and I will scatter them in Israel.” He wanted to make it difficult for the members of these tribes to all assemble in one place simultaneously. History proves that Yaakov’s intention was carried out. The territory of the tribe of Shimon was an enclave within the territory allocated to Yehudah (compare Joshua 19,1), and the Levites were assigned 48 separate towns throughout the territories of the various tribes. The dispersal of the Levites was to prove especially beneficial as it helped fulfill Moses’ blessing in Deut. 33,10 that the Levites were to disseminate Torah knowledge throughout the land of Israel.

You will note that Yaakov did not dispense a blessing to either Reuven, Shimon, or Levi, but instead accused them of faults. He accused Reuven of the indiscretion involving the tent of Bilhah, and he accused Shimon and Levi of their high-handed handling of the males of Shechem. He did see fit to dispense a blessing to all the other sons however.

יודוך אחיך, “your brothers will acknowledge you.” According to the plain meaning of the text this is a reference to the Israelites eventually acclaiming David, a descendant of Yehudah as their king. ישתחוו לך בני אביך, “the sons of your father will prostrate themselves before you.” He did not say: “the sons of your mother.” There was no need for him to say that Leah’s sons would acknowledge Yehudah as their leader. The point Yaakov made was that even the sons of his other wives would also acknowledge him as their leader. Yaakov referred to Yehudah (verse 9) as גור אריה instead of as אריה, a fully grown lion. He added the word גור seeing Yehudah had still been a child (less than 20 years old when the brothers first deferred to him). He called him אריה on account of his physical power which [paralleled that of the lion, the king of the beasts. He is also called גבור, to reflect Proverbs 30,30 “the lion is the mightiest of the beasts and recoils before none.” Yehudah is described in similar terms in Chronicles I 5,2.

מטרף בני עלית , “from the prey, my son, you elevated yourself.” Yaakov referred to his suspicion that it had been Yehudah who had “torn Joseph like a wild beast” (37,33). Yaakov refers to Yehudah’s having had second thoughts when he had said: “what advantage is there in killing our brother?”

He mentioned that “the scepter shall not depart from Yehudah until the arrival of Shiloh.” This was an allusion to the redemption from the exile in Egypt which was relatively close at hand (in terms of Jewish history). Yaakov did not feel that he could fail to allude to this redemption in view of the fact that this particular exile was about to commence as soon as he had died. How could he fail at least to allude to the first redeemer of Israel, the one who would be from the tribe of Levi, while he did allude to the eventual redeemer? He therefore alluded to the first and last redeemer by the same word, the numerical value of the word שילה being the same as the numerical value of the name משה, i.e. 345. The immediate meaning of the verse is that up until the arrival of the first redeemer, i.e. Moses, the leadership of the Jewish people will be in the hands of Yehudah. At that time the leadership of the Jewish people would revert to the tribe of Levi. Moses’ position of “king” is stressed in Deut. 33,5 ויהי בישורון מלך, “he became King in Yeshurun.” Concerning the appointment of Moses as de facto king of Israel Yaakov said here כי לו יקהת עמים, “for to him an assembly of people will congregate.” Deut. 33,5 phrases this as בהתאסף ראשי עם, “when the heads of the people would assemble around him.” The fact that the people of Israel are referred to as עמים, “nations (pl), is not unique but occurs also in Deut. 33,3. In other words, the paragraph containing the blessing of Yehudah contains also references to the first redemption the Jewish people would experience.

In commenting on the plain meaning of the text of this verse, Nachmanides writes as follows: “the words ‘the scepter will not depart from Yehudah’ mean that Yaakov granted Yehudah the status of Royalty and blessed him by saying that he would not be deprived of that status by any of the other tribes. He assured him that as long as the Israel would be a kingdom, its king would be from the tribe of Yehudah The meaning of the blessing, however, was not that Israel would always be a kingdom and would always be ruled over by a king. After all we have an explicit verse in Deut. 28,36 that under certain conditions “G’d will lead you as well as your king whom you will set up over yourself to a nation you never knew, etc.” Moreover, it is an undeniable fact that nowadays we do not have a king nor princes.” It follows that Yaakov’s promise applied only to the periods in history when the whole Jewish people would be ruled over by a single king. If, temporarily, the Jewish people would be deprived of the conditions which call for it to be ruled by a king, in due course when the proper conditions return, the kingship would again be accorded to a member of the tribe of Yehudah.” This is why David said (Chronicles I 28,4) “The Lord G’d of Israel chose me of all my father’s house to be king over Israel forever. For he chose Yehudah to be ruler, and of the family of Yehudah, my father’s house; and of my father’s sons He preferred to make me king over all Israel;” We also have a verse in Chronicles II 13,5: “surely you know that the Lord G’d of Israel gave David kingship over Israel forever- to him and his sons- by a covenant of salt.” Seeing that by rights the kingship of Israel was granted only to descendants of the tribe of Yehudah, any kings from another tribe who occupied that throne were punished and could not perpetuate their dynasties. Even King Saul, the first king over Israel, was killed in battle and his sons died a violent death. The Hasmoneans (from the tribe of Levi) who claimed the throne of the Jewish people were all punished and died violent deaths as they had disregarded this cardinal rule established by Yaakov. The Hasmoneans wound up by becoming slaves to slaves (to the extent that any of them survived at all). He who took the crown by force was punished by having it taken away from him by force. Our sages in Baba Batra 3 go so far as to say that anyone claiming to be a descendant of the Hasmonean Kings is an impostor and is in fact a slave (who has falsified his genealogy). This is what Hoseah 8,4 had in mind when he said: “they appointed kings without My permission, and they made officers but not of My choice.” Apart from the fact that slaves or their descendants must not become Kings over Jews, the tribe of Levi and in particular the priests were prohibited from ascending the temporal throne. We have an explicit verse in Numbers 18,7 telling the Levites and the Priests to dedicate themselves exclusively to their tasks in tending to the altar and what is beyond the curtain. Seeing that the Hasmoneans who appointed themselves kings neglected to observe this commandment they became liable to such terrible punishment.

The Jerusalem Talmud Horiot 3,2 specifically rules that priests must not be anointed as kings. Rabbi Yehudah there explains the linkage between Deut 17,20 “so that he and his descendants may reign long in the midst of Israel,” with the following verse (18,1) “the levitical priests, the whole tribe of Levi, shall have no territorial portion with Israel,” as clear evidence that the spiritual leadership of the Jewish people and its temporal leadership, i.e. the kingship, are to be separate.

Ibn Ezra explains the words “the scepter shall not depart from Yehudah” as an indication that the kingship of Yehudah would not commence until David was crowned king. Accordingly, the word לא יסור must be translated: “he will not attain;” in other words: none of the descendants of Yehudah will attain a position of which it can be said that a “lawgiver has emerged from between his feet until Shiloh.” The word יסור does appear in that sense in Exodus 3,3 אסורה נא ואראה, as well as in Ruth 4,1 סורה שבה פה. In both instances the word expresses a desire to attain either information or it is an instruction to do something. עד כי יבא שילה, “until the coming of Shiloh.” According to the plain meaning of the text “until the destruction of Shiloh;” [the word יבא in the sense of “the sun is setting, i.e. its light is failing. Ed.] We also have a specific verse indicating that the reign of the house of David did not commence until after the destruction of Shiloh. In Psalms 78,67-70. Asaph says: ‘“He rejected the clan of Joseph; He did not choose the tribe of Ephrayim. He did choose the tribe of Yehudah, Mount Zion, which He loved. He built His Sanctuary like the heavens, like the earth that He established forever. He chose David, His servant, and took him from the sheepfolds.” Historically speaking, after the destruction of Shiloh (in which Eli presided as High Priest) the prophet Samuel anointed David as King (while Saul was still on the throne).

It is also possible to explain this entire paragraph in which Yaakov blesses Yehudah without reading anything between the lines. Yaakov alluded to two redeemers, both in the distant future. The first one is David, son of Yishai. The second one is David reincarnated as the Messiah.

I believe the very fact that the Torah devotes three separate verses to Yehudah’s blessing before mentioning the excellence of the territory Yehudah would inherit in the land of Israel (verses 11-12) supports this line of interpretation. In each of the three verses 8-10 Yehudah is mentioned by name; (something most unusual, something that does not occur in connection with any of the other sons). The reason that the name of Yehudah appears on three separate occasions in his blessing is that the blessing refers to three distinct periods of Jewish history. The Torah refers to Yehudah, son of Yaakov. Then it refers to King David. Finally, it refers to King Messiah. The first verse in which Yaakov says that his brothers will acknowledge Yehudah refers to his biological son Yehudah. In that verse Yaakov blesses his son by granting him גבורה, both spiritual and physical strength, the ability to lead his brothers in warfare as well as the authority needed to be a leader. To make certain we understand this, Yaakov addressed Yehudah by saying to him: אתה, “you.”. The second verse, where Yaakov speaks of Yehudah as גור אריה, a lion cub, he refers to King David. The reason he calls him “Yehudah” in that verse is because David is descended from Yehudah. He refers to him as גור, “a cub,’ i.e. not fully matured, as at the time when Samuel anointed David, Saul was still the effective King over Israel. David qualified for the description אריה, “lion” only after Saul had died. The words מטרף בני עלית “you arose from the prey my son,” is a reference to David having been saved from Saul’s persecution of him The words כרע רבץ כאריה, “he crouched and lay down like a lion,” refer to the time of Solomon, David’s son, when each and every Israelite is described as securely resting “under his grapevine and under his fig tree” (Kings I 5,5). Finally, the third verse, in which Yaakov says לא יסור שבט מיהודה, “the scepter will not depart from Yehudah,” is a reference to Israel’s final redeemer the King Messiah. This is why Yaakov said עד כי יבא שילה, “until ‘Shiloh’ arrives, i.e. a “son” of David [descendent, reincarnate]. The reason Yaakov described the final redeemer as “Shiloh” instead of as a son (descendant) of Yehudah is that he wanted to make sure we understand that this final redeemer would be a human being in the full sense of the word, i.e. born משלית אשה, “by woman including her afterbirth.” [Clearly the author wants to dispel the Christian concept of the Messiah being the “son of God.” Ed.] The letter ה at the end of the word שילה is a reference to the last letter in G’d’s Ineffable Name י-ה-ו-ה, a certain attribute of G’d. We have discussed this on numerous occasions. This “letter” is also known in kabbalistic jargon as בתו של אברהם, “the ‘daughter’ of Avraham,” the one married to King Solomon, the one who represents the foremost attribute of the Messiah. Concerning this attribute the prophet uses five separate expressions in Isaiah 11,2-3: “The spirit of the Lord shall alight upon him: a spirit of wisdom and insight; a spirit of counsel and valour; a spirit of devotion and reverence for the Lord. He shall sense the truth by his reverence for the Lord.” In his time “the land shall be filled with knowledge of the Lord as waters covers the sea” (verse 9). The meaning of our verse then is: “once Shiloh=the Messiah has arrived, the kingship will never again depart from this descendent of Yehudah.”

According to a Midrash quoted by Rashi, the word שילה is a composition of the words שי לו, “at that time people will bring gifts to him” (the Messiah). According to Onkelos the meaning of the word שילה is שהמלכות שלו, “the kingdom belongs to him.” In this connection my own teacher Rabbi Shlomoh Adret explained that the word עד in this instance means the same as לעד, “forever.” This is to teach that the word עד does not belong to the expression כי יבא שילה. This explains why Onkelos translated it as “forever.” Onkelos translated the word כי יבא שילה as דייתא משיחא, “when the redeemer arrives.” Anyone who translates the sequence as “until the Messiah arrives” is in error. The whole message is that once the Messiah arrives the kingship will not depart anymore from Yehudah forever. We find confirmation of this theme in Daniel 2,44: “In the days of these kingdoms the G’d of heaven will establish a kingdom that will never be harmed nor will its sovereignty be left to another people; it will crumble and consume all these kingdoms and it will stand forever.” Seeing that the Christians have used this very verse to prove their theory that the Messiah (in the form of Jesus) has already arrived by interpreting our verse that the rule of Yehudah would last only until the advent of the Messiah, my teacher responded to them that, on the contrary, Yaakov stated and Daniel predicted that the kingship of Yehudah once it commences will endure forever Seeing this is not the case in our time, this is proof that the Messiah has not come until now.

You should realise that when Yaakov said עד כי יבא שילה, the first redeemer as well as the last redeemer are both included. [By the “last” redeemer, the author refers to the period of the resurrection. Ed.] Both will be descendants of Yehudah and both will tend the flock of G’d in the Holy land. This is what the Talmud (Sanhedrin 91) had in mind when it discusses the fact that in Exodus 15,1 the Torah reports Moses and the Jewish people as אז ישיר instead of as אז שר “then he will sing,” instead of as “then he sang.” This wording is considered as proof that the resurrection is a Biblical Promise.

Devarim Rabbah at the end of the third section uses Exodus 34,1 where G’d tells Moses to carve the second sets of tablets himself, the ones which G’d in turn will inscribe with the Ten Commandments. G’d said to Moses: “by your life, seeing you went to such lengths to secure a second set of tablets for the Jewish people in this life, when the time comes and I will send the prophet Elijah in advance of the Messiah, you too will reappear on earth.” What proof do we have that the opinion cited by the Midrash is correct? We read in Nachum 1,3: “He (G’d) travels in בסופה, whirlwind, and storm.” This is a reference to Moses of whom it is said ותשם אותו בסוף, “she (his mother) placed him in theסוף . Of Elijah we are told that ויעל אליהו בסערה השמים, “Elijah ascended to heaven in a storm” (Kings II 2,11). We have other allusions and predictions concerning the same matter such as Micah 7,15 who predicts that G’d will perform miracles in those days which parallel or excel those He performed during the time of the Exodus. The prophet quotes G’d as saying to him אראנו נפלאות, “I will show him miracles.” We would have expected G’d to say: “I will show you miracles.” This can only mean that G’d will display miracles to him who has once before experienced such miracles. This is the reason that as soon as Yaakov had concluded with his blessing for Yehudah, he added אסרי לגפן עירה ולשרקה בני אתונו, “he will tie his donkey to the vine and his donkey’s foal to the vine branch.” The similes refer to the excellence of the land of Israel, its produce and its fruit.

A Midrashic approach based on (Bereshit Rabbah 99,8) The words יודוך אחיך, “your brothers will acknowledge you,” are designed to put Yehudah’s mind at rest. When Yehudah had heard his father chastise all three of his older brothers he had become afraid that his father would level criticism at him also.for his having slept with Tamar. Instead, his father used the word יודוך as a reminder of Yehudah owning up to his making his daughter-in-law Tamar pregnant. This confession of his would cause his brothers to acknowledge him as their leader. He would be their king both in the terrestrial world and in the world to come. In this terrestrial world 30 kings descended from Yehudah ascended the throne. We know this from Ruth 4,18 “these are the descendants of Peretz, etc.” When you count the number of Kings starting with David through Yehoyachin you will find a total of 20 kings. The Temple was destroyed during the reign of Tzidkiyahu. David was the tenth generation from Peretz son of Yehudah. David will also be pre-eminent in the world to come as we know from Ezekiel 37,25 “and My servant David will be their prince forever.”

מטרף בני עלית. These words are understood by the Midrash as referring to four people whom Yehudah saved personally, i.e. Joseph, Tamar, Peretz and Zerach. G’d saved four more people, all of them descendants of Yehudah, i.e. Daniel, Chananyah, Mishael and Azaryah. Thus far Bereshit Rabbah. The Midrash tells us that G’d saved Daniel from the pit of lions as a reward for Yehudah having saved Joseph from the pit. He saved the three righteous men Chanayah, Mishael and Azaryah from a fiery death at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar’s furnace (Daniel 3,25) because Yehudah their ancestor had saved Tamar and the twins Peretz and Zerach inside her womb from death by burning. The Midrash refers to further repercussions in the distant future due to Yehudah’s conduct, citing the fact that the first Temple was built by Solomon a descendant of Yehudah whereas the second Temple was built by Zerubabel, also a descendant of Yehudah. (compare Chagai 2,23), Zecharyah 4,9 and Zecharyah 4,7) The third Temple which we hope will be built soon will be erected by the King Messiah, also of David’s i.e. Yehudah’s descent. We base this on Isaiah 11,10.

A kabbalistic approach to the words יהודה אתה יודוך אחיך, sees in the name Yehudah the beginning of an expanded awareness of a mystical connection between this world of matter and the celestial world of the spirit. The word יוודך אחיך suggests that he will be the one who transmits greater awareness of these connections to the other brothers. If Yehudah mastered the attribute of גבורה it was due to his ability to acknowledge his own mistakes. The letters in his very name are indicative of this. We find something similar in Genesis 29, 34-35 where Leah acknowledged with thanks that she had given birth to more children for Yaakov than she was entitled to on the basis of each of Yaakov’s wives bearing him three sons. Leah expressed her feelings in naming her fourth son יהודה. [The ethical lesson to be learned from all this is that gratitude, i.e. acknowledging that G’d does more for us than we are entitled to, leads to a deeper understanding of the mystical bonds that hold the terrestrial world and the celestial world together. Ed.]

אוסרי לגפן עירה, “he will tie his donkey to a grapevine.” Yaakov predicted that the territory of Yehudah would produce wine in abundance, that wine would flow there just like a fountain. The meter of the verse is: “a man from Yehudah would tie his donkey to one vine and would completely load it with the grapes from that single vine. Similarly, a she-ass would be loaded fully with the produce from a single choice vine. When Yaakov continued with: “he laundered his garments in wine,” he also alluded to the abundance of wine in his land.

According to Onkelos our verse speaks of Jerusalem and Israel respectively. The words אוסרי לגפן refer to the people of Israel, the word עירה to Jerusalem. The word שורקה again refers to Israel as we find Jeremiah saying in Jeremiah 2,21: “I have planted it (Israel) as a choice vine.” The words:בני אתונו are rendered by Onkelos as עמא יבנון היכלה, “the people who will build the Sanctuary.” Clearly, Onkelos understands the word בני as related to בנין, “building.” He understands the word אתון as based on Zecharyah 9,9: “riding on a male donkey the son of a she-ass.” The prophet thus describes the arrival of the Messiah.

חכלילי עינים מיין, “Red-eyed from wine,” This too is a hyperbole relating to the abundance of wine to be found in the tribal territory of Yehudah. Yaakov said that every person in the territory of Yehudah would have red-looking eyes due to the abundance of wine. The word חכלילי is really spelled backwards. Its meaning is as if it had been spelled כחלילי. The idea is that the people would actually have blue eyes, i.e. כחול, [women always used a blue tint to enhance the appearance of their eyes. According to the Talmud they used פוך, antimony, as eye-shadow to achieve this effect. Ed.] Just as women throughout the rest of the country colour their eyes blue so the eyes of the women of Yehudah would be coloured red from the abundance of wine. White teeth would be white by contrast due to the abundance of milk in the valley and the abundance of milk yielding flocks of sheep.

According to Bereshit Rabbah 99,8 the word חכלילי is a composition of the three words חיך לי לי, i.e. when the palate, חיך, has tasted the wine of the land of Yehudah its owners will request refills of this beverage by saying לי, לי “more for me, more for me.” Onkelos believes that the mountains on the land of Yehudah are reddish looking due to the vineyards which cover them. This is why he described them was עינים, “eyes,” organs which are on top of the body. Mountains on earth are similar to the eyes in the body. He describes the valleys as white-looking due to the abundance of sheep and the milk they yield. The word שינים when used by the Targum here is related to שיני סלעים, the “teeth of rocks.” If you will examine this paragraph carefully you will find that it contains all the letters of the alphabet except the letter ז. The message is that the Kingdom of Israel as represented by Yehudah does not base its military victories on its arms, כלי זיין, as do the other nations whose inheritance is the power of the sword. The Jewish people did not conquer the land of Canaan because of superior arms or superior military skills of its soldiers. Its entire success or failure is due to the system of reward and punishment by which G’d operates in this world and specifically in the land of Israel. This is all symbolised by the fact that Yehudah’s name contains all the four letters of the Ineffable Name. When the Israelites act in accordance with G’d’s laws they will always be able to perform deeds of valour (compare Numbers 24,18). Their Kingdom will progressively become stronger and more secure and its inhabitants will not need to resort to force of arms at all. All of this is hinted at in the absence of the latter ז during the lengthy blessing given to Yehudah. There is also a moral message in the addition of the letter ד to the letters of the Ineffable Name in the name יהודה. The letter ד, meaning “four,” is reminiscent of the fourth day of creation, the day the sun was placed in orbit. Yehudah was also the fourth of Yaakov’s sons symbolising the fact that the fourth son was to shine forth just like the sun which was placed in orbit on the fourth day. The fact that the Kingdom of Yehudah is compared to the sun is already reflected in the words of the psalmist (Psalm 89,37) “his throne is as the sun before Me.” Alternatively, seeing that that the specific attribute of Yehudah has been described by Moses as זאת (Deut. 33,6), he has been crowned with the letter ז, already, so that there was no need for Yaakov to include this letter in Yehudah’s blessing here. Yaakov had already alluded to this when he said to Yehudah: “your hand will be on your enemies’ nape” (49,8). This was an allusion to the bow which is described as Yehudah’s weapon [The word קשת in this connection refers to the original קשת, the rainbow, which was the sign of G’d’s covenant with man (Genesis 9,12)]. This is the mystical significance of Samuel II 1,18 (where David eulogises King Saul) “He ordered the members of the people of Yehudah to be taught (the song of) the bow. It is recorded in the Book of Yashar.” We needed the verse in Deut. 33,6 to explain the meaning of the verse in Samuel. When Moses continued in Deut, 33,6 ידיו רב לו “his hands fight for him,” this helps round out the meaning of Yehudah’s blessings.

We may also find an additional reason why the letter ז is the only letter of the alphabet missing in Yehudah’s blessing here. The reason is that Yehudah was the seventh of the “patriarchs” counting from Avraham, Yitzchak, Yaakov, Reuven, Shimon, Levi, Yehudah.” Accordingly, Yehudah corresponds to the number “seven,” i.e. the seventh day, the Sabbath. This is also why the word יודוך, “they will acknowledge you” appears in connection with Yehudah seeing that the psalmist also uses that word in connection with the Sabbath when he says (Psalm 92,2) טוב להודות לה', “it is appropriate to acknowledge the Lord on the Sabbath).” The words מטרף בני עלית also assume a new significance in that context, meaning that on the Sabbath it is appropriate to desist from the struggle to gain a livelihood, something comparable to the animal devouring its prey. Yaakov’s words parallel those of the Torah that on the Sabbath one must refrain from any manner of work, even the kind of work which helps one to stay alive in this world. When Yaakov continued: “when he crouched and lies down like a lion, or even like a lion cub, who dares to rouse him,” this also parallels what the Torah commands the Jewish people to do on the Sabbath, i.e. שבו איש תחתיו, “let every man remain in his place” (Exodus 16,29). The words ומחוקק מבין רגליו, are an allusion to the commandment to circumcise Jewish males on the eight’s day after birth. The performance of this commandment on time (unless there is danger to the baby’s life) overrides even the prohibition to perform work on the Sabbath. [the male organ which is situated בין רגליו, between the baby’s legs, is exempt from the commandment not to perform any work on the Sabbath. Ed.] Yaakov continued with אוסרי לגפן עירה ולשורקה בני אתונו, to alert us to the fact that the work prohibition on the Sabbath also includes one’s beasts as we know from Exodus 23,12: “in order that your that your ox and your donkey rest, etc.” The words כבס ביין לבושו, are an allusion to the requirement to sanctify the Sabbath by reciting a benediction over a cup of wine. When Yaakov added the word חכלילי עינים מיין, this may be a reference to the statements of our sages Berachot 43 that he who makes big steps (on the Sabbath) impairs his eyesight by doing so to the extent of 0.2%. By drinking a cup of wine on Friday night one can counteract the damage one has inflicted on his eyesight by taking big steps.

זבולון לחוף ימים ישכון, “Zevulun will reside along the coast of the seas, etc.” The order in which the names of the tribes are listed here corresponds to the order of their births The first six sons being blessed are the sons of Leah; they are followed by the list of the four sons born to the servant-maids, i.e. Dan, Gad, Asher and Naftali. They are followed by the sons of Rachel, Joseph and Binyamin. Actually, according to this principle, Issachar should have received his blessing before Zevulun, seeing that he was senior to him. However, Yaakov blessed Zevulun first as he foresaw that Issachar’s Torah study was due to Zevulun who provided for him so that Issachar did not have to worry about making a living. When we look at the order in which Moses blessed the tribes prior to his own death, we find that he too blessed Zevulun ahead of Issachar (Deut. 33 18).

The meaning of the words לחוף ימים ישכון is that seeing that his territory will be alongside the sea he will be near the sea constantly and will engage in maritime pursuits. His commercial activities will provide for his brother Issachar also, enabling him to pursue his Torah studies without financial worry. Zevulun’s share in the merit of Issachar’s Torah will be so great that we apply to it the verse in Kohelet 7,12: “to be in the צל of wisdom is to be also in the צל of money.” Normally, we would translate the word צל as “shadow.” In this instance we have to consider the word as derived from אצילות, “nobility,” something transcendent,” an emanation. The meaning would be that the emanation “wisdom” can be maintained by means of the nobility of the money. Using money to enable Torah to be studied ennobles the money itself, makes into something of transcendental significance, something of enduring value.

It is important to understand that the very name Zevulun alludes to what is called the קו האמצאי, the “middle line,” i.e. the line that forms the connection between the terrestrial and celestial world. This is why he is described as residing (being at home) לחוף הימים, at the beach of the seas. The wordימים appears in Genesis 1,10 ולמקוה המים קרא ימים, “and the accumulation of water he called seas, or oceans.” The word חוף is connected to חופה, the wedding canopy. Zevulun is viewed as the groom who emerges from his wedding canopy when he engages in commerce to supply his brother Issachar with the necessary funds to study Torah. No wonder then that he enjoys precedence over his older brother.

יששכר חמור גרם, “Issachar is a strong-boned donkey.” According to the plain meaning of the text he is like a donkey whose proportion of bones far overshadows the amount of its flesh. People who engage in constant study of Torah will not be found to amass much flesh. The people of the tribe of Issachar are burdened down by the weight of their Torah study as the donkey is burdened down with physical loads. רובץ בין המשפטים, “he lies down between the sheepfolds.” Donkeys work both by day and by night and even when they lie down briefly, they lie down between the boundaries of the towns instead of in their own stables at the home of their owners.

וירא מנוחה כי טוב, “He saw that tranquility was good;” Issachar realised that warfare and military activity was far inferior to Torah study, a quiet way of life. Torah study can flourish only when the body is physically as inactive as possible as the mental strain of studying drains the body of its strength. Torah study engages the opposite energies of the pursuit of vocations involving activity of one’s physique. The latter engage the body fully while leaving one’s mental faculties relatively uninvolved. The former makes great demands on one’s mental faculties while leaving the body relatively at rest. It is quite impossible for true Torah study to be successfully carried on by someone whose body has been worn out by physical labour or even by mental anguish and the like. This is one of the reasons that our sages included the request השיבה שופטנו כבראשונה ויועצינו כבתחילה, “restore to us our judges as in former times and our advisors as originally,” in our daily prayers. They added the words והסר ממנו יגון ואנחה, “and remove from us sorrow and anxiety,” as these factors are so inhibiting to anyone who wants to dedicate himself to Torah study. The purpose of this prayer is not that G’d should give us advisors to show us how to escape the burden of taxation, etc. This was not what the prophet Isaiah 1,26 had in mind when he promised that: “I will restore to you your judges as of old and your erstwhile advisors.” The prophet first and foremost had in mind the kind of advisors who had been able to calculate the occurrence of the new moon and other astronomical dates with precision. The judges who were able to do this were the ones who sat in the offices adjoining the Holy Temple. Once these types of judges will be restored to us the entire people would be able to upgrade the level of their Torah study. At that time the prophet’s promise that “the whole earth would possess a knowledge of G’d as the waters which cover the seas” (Isaiah 11,9) would be fulfilled. This is why the sages followed the request to restore these judges to us with the request to remove sorrow and sighing. They hinted that it would be impossible to pursue intensive Torah studies until the requisite conditions had been met with the help of G’d. These conditions include absence of sorrow and physical rest for the body. This benediction was suitably arranged by our sages as the next step following our return to the Holy Land i.e. תקע בשופר גדול לחרותנו, “sound the great horn heralding our freedom!”

כי טוב, “that it was good.” The word “good” in this connection is similar to כי לקח טוב נתתי לכם, “for I have given you a good instruction.” ואת הארץ, “and the earth.” This word is related to ומארצו יצאו in Ezekiel 36,20 meaning (according to Targum) “and it will emerge from religious discourse, from Torah study.” The words כי נעמה are a reminder of the verse דרכיה דרכי נועם, that “the ways of Torah are the paths of pleasantness” (Proverbs 3,17). ויט שכמו לסבול, “yet he bent his shoulder to bear.” The burden he bears is that of Torah study. We have another example of this kind of wording in Samuel II 22,10 ויט שמים וירד, “He bent the sky and came down.” Subjecting spiritually gigantic concepts to one’s understanding results in one’s back being bent. An additional meaning included in this may be that “by humbling oneself, i.e. bending down, Torah knowledge may be acquired.” Our sages stated that it behooves a Torah scholar to walk with a stoop. ויהי למס עובד, “he became an indentured labourer.” He was subservient to all of Israel, dispensing religious rulings, pointing out errors in Torah-observance made by the people. This is expressed more clearly in Chronicles I 12,33 where the tribe of Issachar (respectively its representatives at the crowning of King David) is described as “of the Issacharites, men who knew how to interpret the signs of the times, to determine how Israel should act; their heads consisted of 200 men and all their kinsmen acted according to their instructions.”

Bereshit Rabbah 99,11 on our verse writes: “the words ‘Issachar is a sturdy donkey,’ allude to when Yaakov returned from the field in the evening, and Leah heard the sound of his donkey which was lowing, she immediately went out towards him telling him that she had made a deal according to which he would spend this night in her tent The Torah reports that as a result of that night with Leah, Issachar was conceived. In other words, the donkey גרם, was the indirect cause, of her bearing Issachar.

A kabbalistic approach to the same verse: Kabbalists concentrate on the word רובץ in that verse comparing it to Deut. 22,6 והאם רובצת “while the mother (bird) is sitting (on her eggs)”. This is another allusion to the emanation בינה, associated with Issachar. We just quoted a verse from Chronicles in which Issachar is represented as the most insightful tribe (the one possessing בינה). This would account for the fact that Yaakov associated מנוחה with Issachar as without this quality no deep insights are possible.

דן ידין עמו, “Dan will judge his people.” This is a reference to Samson the judge who was a member of the tribe of Dan. The reason Yaakov said ידין “he will judge,” is because Samson was only a judge and not a king. כאחד שבטי ישראל, “uniting the tribes of Israel.” The word כאחד is to be understood as כמיוחד, “like the unique one amongst the tribes,” like Yehudah of whom it is said that his hands were at the nape of his enemies. The judge Samson from the tribe of Dan would display similar strength when vanquishing his enemies.

Bereshit Rabbah 99,11 understands the word כאחד as describing the judge from the tribe of Dan as having something in common with the “unique One,” i.e. with G’d. Just as G’d has no need of anyone, so Samson would be a one-man army not relying on anyone else to help him. Of G’d it is said (Isaiah 63,3) “I trod out a vintage alone; of the peoples no one was with Me. I trod them down in My anger, trampled them in My range.” Samson’s dealings with the Philistines who had aroused his justified anger could be described in similar terms. (Compare Judges 15,16: “with the jawbone of an ass I killed one thousand men.”)

יהי דן, “Dan will be, etc.” There are several reasons why Yaakov in his blessing compares Dan to a serpent, a snake. The first one is that Samson, unlike others before or after him, did not command armies in his battles against the enemy of his people. He acted totally alone, just like a snake which attacks from an ambush, coming out of its lair. Secondly, just like a snake receives some mysterious whisper which causes it to act aggressively, so Samson would respond to the whisperings of Delilah. This is the deeper meaning of Judges 16, 16-17: “Finally, after she had nagged him and pressed him constantly, he was wearied to death and he confided everything to her. He said to her: ‘no razor has ever touched my head; for I have been a Nazirite to G’d since I was in my mother’s womb. If my hair were cut, my strength would leave me and I should become as an ordinary man.’” Furthermore, just as a snake is also known as שרף due to its venom which burns, so Samson burned down the fields of the Philistines when the corn in them was close to being harvested. (Compare Judges 15,5). Also, just as the snake attacks man in his heel, at is lowest point, seeing the first serpent had been condemned to crawl on its belly, and G’d had told it that the way it would attack man would be by biting man’s heel (Genesis 3,14), so Samson is described as נוקב עקבי סוס “attacking the heel of a horse,” i.e. bringing down the pillars of the temple of the Philistines (compare Judges 16,29). He killed 3,000 Philistines who were sitting on the roof of that temple (Judges 16,27). The reason Samson’s exploits are described here as causing “the rider to fall backwards,” is that when a snake bites the heel of a horse, the horse rears upwards with its front legs throwing its rider backwards. Just as the snake kills without the use of a sword, so Samson killed without conventional arms as mentioned in Judges 16, 30: “those who were slain by him (when he made the pillars of their temple collapse) outnumbered those whom he had killed while he was alive.” Bereshit Rabbah 99,11 relates that just as a serpent is vengeful so Samson was vengeful. This is based on Judges 16,28: “O, Lord give me strength once more to take revenge of the Philistines, if only for one of my two eyes.” Thus far the Midrash.

Know that in order to fully understand this Midrash we must remember that the very name Dan and what Yaakov predicts here reflects what is only hinted at in the name Reuven. This is the deeper meaning of “Dan will judge his people.” [The author had explained on Genesis 29,32 that the name Reuven was employed by Leah as an acknowledgment by her of the attribute of Justice which is concentrated in the final letter of the Ineffable Name. Yaakov had, of course, accepted that the names the mothers gave to his sons had been divinely inspired. Ed.]

שפיפון עלי ארח, “a viper by the path.” The smallest variety of snakes was called שפיפון. According to Sotah 10, Samson was lame on both feet, something derived from Bileam (Numbers 22,8) of whom the Torah reported that his she-ass squeezed one of his feet against a wall after which the Torah reports him as וילך שפי, “he walked with a limp”(Numbers 23,3). Seeing the word שפי implies limping on one foot, שפיפון implies being lame on both feet.

לישועתך קיויתי ה, “For Your salvation I do long, O Lord!” According to Nachmanides this verse is a prayer by Yaakov to G’d (not part of a blessing). This prayer came to Yaakov spontaneously when he foresaw that in spite of Samson’s deeds of valour it was not he who would be Israel’s redeemer. Yaakov’s blessing for Dan concluded with the words ויפל רוכבו אחור.

It is however possible to explain this verse as a prayer offered by Samson. Yaakov foresaw the death of this judge of Israel and how G’d had responded to his final prayer (Judges 16,28). Samson was content to die together with his enemies as long as G’d would help him to revenge himself on them as he himself said in Judges 16,30.

Know that experts in names and their meanings derive from this verse a name which by itself is designed to be a defense against one’s enemies. We find that it is written (Judges 16,30) concerning Samson who was able to kill so many of his adversaries: ויט בכח, “he pulled with (his) might,” though we would have expected the prophet Samuel to write: ויט בכחו, “he pulled with his might.” The implication is that the word בכח refers to G’d’s strength. Samson “co-opted” G’d’s strength to that of his own in order to bring about this impressive result, i.e. that 3,000 Philistines died as a result of his uprooting two pillars of the temple. The name of G’d which emerges from this verse is to be read in an unusual order. [The author refers to the custom of reading the words 'לישועתך קיויתי ה in three different sequences. He bases this on the fact that the mystique of the כח which assisted Samson lay in the re-arrangement of these three words in different permutations, קיויתי ה' לישועתך, לישועתך ה' קיויתי as well as ה' לישועתך קיויתי. When a prayer containing these words is offered in that manner it is liable to be effective. Ed.] By reversing the words, the enemy “falls ”backwards,” so to speak.

גד גדוד יגודנו, “Gad will recruit a regiment.” Yaakov praised Gad’s prowess, predicting that he would be involved in many military encounters and that troops would flock to his banner. והוא יגד עקב, “and he will retreat on its heel.” Yaakov meant that ultimately, after having helped his brethren to conquer the land from the Canaanites, its soldiers would return to their families on the East Bank of the Jordan. An alternative meaning is that Gad would vanquish the forces opposing him only in the end. We would then have to understand the word יגד as related to the Aramaic גדו אילנא in Daniel 4,11: “chop down the tree.” Actually, Moses explained this verse when he said in his own blessing of the tribe of Gad (Deut: 33,20) “blessed the One Who broadens Gad; he dwells like a lion tearing off arm and even head.”

When Yaakov realized that in spite of Samson’s deeds of valour he was not to be Israel’s redeemer, Yaakov now expressed the hope that Gad would produce the redeemer. The word עקב refers to the tribe that “follows” that of Dan in the sequence of his blessings. He based it on Maleachi 3,23: “Here I will send you Elijah the prophet,” etc. The prophet Elijah reputedly is from Gad. Thus far Bereshit Rabbah 71,9. [The prophet Elijah was a resident of Gilead, in the territory of Gad. This does not mean that he was not also a כהן, a priest. Ed.]

מאשר שמנה לחמו, “From Asher — his bread will have richness.” His food will contain much fat seeing that olives grow in his territory in abundance. He will extract the oil from these olives. Moses alludes to the same thing in his blessing of Asher in Deut. 33,24: “he will dip his feet in oil.” Actually we would have expected Yaakov to address Asher directly, saying: “Asher’s bread will be fat.”

Perhaps the letter מ at the beginning of the word אשר was intended to allude to the super-abundance of that oil. There would be so much oil that Asher would even export it to other countries, i.e. “from Asher.”

נפתלי אילת שלוחה, “Naftali is a hind let loose.” According to the plain meaning of the text Yaakov describes Naftali as exceedingly fleet-footed. His services are used to convey happy tidings.

According to Tanchuma Vayechi 13 the words refer to the valley of Ginosaur, situated in its territory which produced excellent and early ripening fruit. This speed is compared to the speed of a hind. הנותן אמרי שפר. “delivering beautiful sayings.” The people of Naftali used to honour the kings with gifts of their fruit and in the event the Kings had any complaints against them they had the facility to respond and disarm these complaints with pleasant words.

Another approach to this verse based on Bereshit Rabbah 95,22 and cited in Sotah 13: Naftali sprinted to Egypt when Esau made difficulties about burying Yaakov in the cave of Machpelah. He brought back the document proving Yaakov’s ownership. He did not return however until Chushim, son of Dan, had killed Esau who held up the burial.

A kabbalistic approach: the word אילה שלוחה is an allusion to the concept of צדיק, the truly righteous. The word is reminiscent of a messenger, שליח, the word אילת, is an allusion to the כנסת ישראל also known as אילת השחר. Naftali brings the prayers of the Jewish people to the throne of G’d with his exceptional speed. We have support for this from Shemot Rabbah 21,4 where we are told that a certain angel awaits the prayers of the Jewish people and weaves all of them into a crown to be placed on the head of G’d. This is based on Proverbs 10,6: “blessings rest on the head of the righteous.” The “righteous” par excellence is G’d, of course.

בן פורת יוסף, “Joseph is a charming son.” According to the plain meaning the word בן in this context means “a plant producing many offshoots.” Compare Psalms 80,16 בן אמצתה לך, “the stem You have adopted as Your own.” It would refer here to the fact that Joseph produced two tribes, Ephrayim and Menashe. This would also account for the fact that the word בן appears twice in this verse. The term בן פורת compares to Moses referring to Joseph in his blessing of him in Deut. 33,17 as both שור and ראם, two different animals. Moses there continues by speaking respectively of the myriads of Ephrayim and the “thousands” of the Menashites. The reason Yaakov begins by extolling Joseph before even naming him, something not the case in the blessings of any of the other sons, is probably due to the fact that he was forced to refer to Joseph by name twice, seeing he was to become two tribes. The first בן פורת refers to Menashe, Joseph’s senior son, the second בן פורת to Ephrayim. Seeing that Ephrayim was the more promising of the two Yaakov added the words עלי עין, “appealing to the eye.”

Nachmanides understands the words בן פורת as related to a statement by our sages in Baba Metzia119 אפריון נמטייה לרבי שמעון, “an accolade is due to Rabbi Shimon.” The word also occurs in a similar sense in Ketuvot 54, "פורנא ליתמי".

בנות צעדה עלי שור “each of the girls climbed the walls.” The girls of the most eminent families of Egypt climbed the walls in order to catch a glimpse of Joseph. Joseph, however, did not look at even one of them. This is why Yaakov added immediately: “but his bow was firmly emplaced,” i.e. he did not allow himself to get aroused by any of these alluring girls. A Midrashic approach based on Bereshit Rabbah 99,11: the words בן פרות = בן פורת, meaning that Joseph attained his outstanding greatness due to two sets of cows which Pharaoh had dreamt about. The words עלי עין should be understood as if the Torah had written: עולי עין, "rising above the eye". The verse is a reference to Joseph’s descendants which were not subject to the damaging influence of the evil eye.

According to a kabbalistic interpretation the words בן פורת are an allusion to the glory of Israel, the word פרת, being a derivative of תפארת. The words עלי עין, refer to the origin of the river Euphrates, i.e. פרת, which is one of the four rivers originating in גן עדן, in Paradise. Joseph gets his vital input directly from גן עדן. Seeing that the emanations נצח and הוד respectively appear left and right of the emanation תפארת in our usual diagrams, it is logical that he, Joseph, would produce two tribes instead of merely one. This is why Yaakov continued with בנות צעדה עלי שור which Onkelos translates as “two tribes will emerge from him.” This is what caused Moses to speak of both שור and ראם, in his blessing of the tribe of Joseph (Deut, 33,17) the former representing the emanation נצח, the latter the emanation הוד.

מאל אביך ויעזרך, “from the G’d of your father, and He will help you.” According to the plain meaning the attribute אל will provide help, i.e. when you are in trouble, whereas G’d’s attribute שדי will be the source of the blessings you will experience. The blessings will include both input from the heavens and input from the תהום, the depth of the earth. ברכות שדים ורחם, “the blessings of breasts and womb.” According to Onkelos this is an allusion to the combined blessings of Joseph’s father and mother. In Exodus 15,4, on the words ירה בים, Onkelos translates this as שדי בימא, “as something ‘flung’ into the sea.” He appears to understand the word שדים as related to an activity by the male, i.e. the ejaculation of sperm which is expelled like an arrow from a bow.

A kabbalistic approach: The word אביך is a reference to אביר יעקב, the attribute of G’d which protected Yaakov. It is this same attribute which Yaakov invokes when asking that it also protect Joseph after he had already received the heavenly blessings. The heavenly blessings are alluded to in the word שדים, the earthly ones by the word רחם. In mystical terms, “father and mother” are viewed here as symbols of heaven and earth.

ברכות אביך גברו על ברכות הורי, “the blessings of your father have surpassed the blessings of my parents.” According to the plain meaning of the words the word “my parents” refer to Avraham and Yitzchak (not to Yitzchak and Rivkah). Yaakov meant that his blessings were additional to the blessing which had already been bestowed by Avraham and Yitzchak on his offspring.

A kabbalistic approach: Yaakov meant that the emanation from which his own blessing would originate is more powerful than the emanation in which Avraham and Yitzchak and also their blessings were at home. Avraham and Yitzchak had primarily represented the emanation חסד and גבורה respectively. Yaakov’s emanation, i.e. the aegis under which he modeled his life was תפארת, harmony, a blending of the two emanations which each formed Avraham’s and Yitzchak’s guiding light. The reason the patriarchs are called הורי, “my parents,” is that they were the principal carriers of the שכינה, the “benevolent Presence of G’d on earth,” as we have explained repeatedly. [The word הורי may be read as without the letter ו, i.e. הרי, “my mountains,” i.e.. the ones I look up to. Ed.]. We find that David also refers to the patriarchs as mountains when he said in Palms 121,1 “I will raise my eyes to the mountains.” Midrash Tehillim on these words understands them as David raising his eyes to the spirits of the patriarchs. עד תאות גבעת עולם, “to the utmost bounds of the eternal hills.” Until the emanations will have played their parts in full. At that time G’d and His Name will be One, [there will no longer be a dichotomy between man’s ideals and his realising them. Ed.] The הורי of which Yaakov has spoken will then be identical with גבעות עולם. These “mountains” may then serve as “crowns”. The word גבעות has much in common with מ-גבעות, the headgear (Exodus 28,40) worn by the priests. The welfare of the whole world depends on the priests, and their garments are the זרועות עולם ”the arms of mankind.” Just as warriors wear a medallion on their arms as a charm of good luck, so the priests when the carry out their function suitably adorned, are the medallion of mankind (or at least of the Jewish people). The author quotes more verses showing that the word גבעות is used in that sense and linking the words פתחי עולם and שאו שערים to the same concept.

בנימין זאב יטרף, “Binyamin is a predatory wolf.” According to the plain meaning, Yaakov compares Binyamin to a predatory wolf seeing that in the future the surviving young men of Binyamin would kidnap girls and make them their wives. (Judges 21,21) Rashi there translates the words וחטפתם לכם איש אשתו, “grab yourselves each one his wife-to-be.”

A Midrashic approach: Binyamin had ten sons, a number which corresponds to the numerical value of the letters in the word זאב. בבוקר יאכל עד , “in the morning he consumes a foe.” This is a reference to King Saul (of the tribe of Binyamin) the first king of Israel who defeated numerous enemies of Israel ובערב יחלק שלל, “and by evening he would distribute the spoils.” Even after the sun had set over Israel when Nebuchadnezzar had destroyed the Temple, i.e. Israel’s fortunes were like an “evening,” Mordechai (Saul’s descendant) still triumphed over Haman when Esther made over Haman’s house to him (Esther 8,7).

A kabbalistic approach: Binyamin combined within him the two “great” emanations (attributes) גדולה וגבורה. This is why the Temple, i.e. the home of the שכינה stood on its territory. The שכינה, of course, is representative of all the emanations (all the ten attributes) Binyamin is compared by Yaakov to the altar which consumes a sheep in the morning and in the evening [the daily communal offerings in the Temple]. It is therefore not difficult to accept the simile of his being like a preying wolf, a predatory animal. Seeing he is so representative of all the ten emanations he was granted ten sons to symbolise this. The words יחלק שלל, are reminiscent of Psalms 68,13 ונות בית תחלק שלל, “the soul in the house would share out the spoils.” The soul of the house, is, of course, the שכינה. This is also why Onkelos translates our verse asבארעיה תשרי שכינתא “in his land the Shechinah will dwell.”

Having explained that the name of Binyamin (or Yaakov’s definition of his name) corresponds to celestial attributes and reflects either one or several emanations, let me just say that the same holds true for the names of each one of Yaakov’s sons. If you examine the Torah with your eyes open, you will discover that the colour of the gemstones which had these names engraved in them and which formed a part of the High Priest’s breastplate, reflects the respective attribute and emanation of that particular tribe. For instance, Reuven, whose name symbolized the attribute of Justice had his name engraved on a red-coloured gemstone called אודם, whereas the gemstone on which Binyamin’s name was engraved was called ישפה to reflect the fact that it was a multi-coloured stone. I will get back to this subject when we discuss Exodus 28,15.

כל אלה שבטי ישראל שנים עשר, “all these are the twelve tribes of Israel.” We would have expected the Torah to write אלה שבטי ישראל. Why did the Torah add the word "כל?" Seeing that Yaakov had severely criticized Reuven, Shimon, and Levi, I might have thought that the fact they were not given a blessing placed them outside the fold. In order to prevent us from making such an assumption the Torah had to add the word כל to show that all of Yaakov’s sons qualified for becoming founders of the twelve tribes of Israel (Rashi).

Personally, I believe that this verse is an allusion that all of existence is due only to the merit of the twelve tribes of Israel. This is the true meaning of the words כל אלה, “all of these.” The same expression has been used by the prophet Isaiah to describe the entire universe (Isaiah 26,2) “all of these My hand has created.” This is also what the sages in Bereshit Rabbah 1,4 had in mind when they said that prior to creating the universe G’d planned the creation of the Jewish people. This may be why the number 12 is so prominent in all three parts of the universe. In the “highest” part of the universe, the throne of G’d is “surrounded” by 12 angels just as Solomon’s throne which represented G’d’s throne on earth was guarded by 12 lions which faced each other on the 6 steps leading up to that throne (Kings I 10,20). Jeremiah added that no such throne was ever made for any other Kingdom. The central part of the universe contains 12 horoscopes which symbolize the forces which govern that part of the universe; finally, in our terrestrial part of the universe the twelve tribes of Israel represent the forces without which this part of the universe would cease to exist. This is the deeper meaning of what Solomon meant when he said in Kohelet 7,14 “the one no less than the other was G’d’s doing.”

וזאת אשר דבר אליהם אביהם, “and this is what their father spoke to them.” According to the plain meaning these words mean: “this is the blessing Yaakov gave to his sons.”

A kabbalistic approach: the word זאת is a reference to כנסת ישראל, the spiritual concept of “the people of Israel.” Of that concept it is written in Song of Songs 7,7: זאת קומתך דמתה לתמר, “such is your stature, likened to the towering palm tree.” the word זאת mening that Israel is G’d’s heave-offering to the world, so to speak. The words וזאת התרומה in Exodus 25,3 are being understood as the covenant. Both the covenant and the Torah itself have been described with the word זאת in Genesis 9,12 and Numbers 19,14 respectively. The Torah had been given by the Unique One, as the Torah said (Exodus 20,1) וידבר אלו-הים. (Compare author’s commentary on that verse). This (the giving of the Torah) is also what the prophet Chabakuk 3,10 alluded to with the words נתן תהום קולו, “loud roars the deep.” We find this attribute in Leviticus 16,3 בזאת יבא אהרן, “equipped with the attribute זאת Aaron may enter the Holy of Holies.” The reason is that “this is the gate which (only) the righteous may enter” (Psalms 118,20).

Yaakov had attained this virtue (attribute) called זאת which he employed to bestow the various blessings on his children. Tanchuma Vayechi 16 understands these words as follows: Yaakov told his sons that in the future there would arise a man not unlike him who will give them a blessing commencing with the words with which he had ended his blessing. Tanchuma meant that Yaakov had alluded to זאת as his ultimate achievement. This is why the author of that Midrash emphasises Yaakov speaking of where he “left off,” Moses, however, who had attained a higher level of insight than Yaakov could use the word זאת as a point of departure in his blessings of the Jewish people (Deut. 33,1 וזאת הברכה). Using that word he would ascend and penetrate ever deeper into holy domains. This may also be the reason that Moses alluded to all ten emanations, something which I hope to explain in more detail on Deut. 33,8.

איש אשר כברכתו ברך אותם, “he blessed each one of them according to the blessing appropriate for him.” This seems peculiar; after all he had already bestowed the blessings on each of his sons! According to the plain meaning the words ויברך אותם apply to the collective blessing. The words איש אשר כברכתו apply to the individualised blessing he gave to each son. Alternatively, the words: “he blessed them,” referred to the blessing for the immediate future. The words: “each according to his appropriate blessing,” referred to individual blessings intended to meet specific requirements of that tribe in the future.

A Midrashic approach based on Bereshit Rabbah 99,4: seeing that Yaakov had singled out Yehudah by describing him like a lion, and he had singled out Naftali describing him like a hind, etc., I could have thought that these sons were not part of the collective blessing. The Torah therefore said: “he blessed them (all),” to make certain we understand that all the sons were included in the collective blessing.

A kabbalistic approach: the words “he blessed each one of them, etc.” mean that the twelve tribes each represent one of the twelve lifelines from the celestial regions from which heavenly blessings are channeled to the creatures in this terrestrial universe. The number 12 in this respect is found in Psalms 122,4 “for there the tribes make pilgrimage, the tribes of the Lord who are testimony of Israel praising the name of the Lord.” David calls the “tribes” of the celestial regions שבטי ה', referring to them by the same appellation as the 12 tribes of Israel on earth. We have pointed out elsewhere that when these tribes are enumerated in the Torah, each name beginning with a prefix ה, and ending with the suffix י such as in הראובני, השמעוני, this is a clear allusion to the fact that parallel “tribes” exist in the celestial regions. When Yaakov said איש אשר כברכתו, he referred to the fact that each tribe received a blessing appropriate to his corresponding counterpart in heaven.

ויגוע ויאסף אל עמיו,“He expired and was gathered to his people.” The word מיתה is not mentioned in connection with Yaakov. This prompted our sages in Taanit 5 to say: “our patriarch Yaakov never died.”

Seeing that we see from the reports of the Torah here that he was treated as if dead, i.e. embalmed, buried, etc., surely this is evidence that he did die!

We must therefore understand the statement of our sages who said “he did not die,” to mean that Yaakov’s soul remained hovering over his body due to the degree of holiness he had attained. Whereas other righteous people who did not attain the level of holiness that Yaakov attained are forced to return their souls to celestial regions, and once they have returned there they do not return to earth, Yaakov’s soul was in a constant state of commuting between heaven and earth. Only extremely rarely did great men attain this degree of holiness in their lives, Rabbi Yehudah (the editor of the Mishnah) being one of those select few. it is said of this Rabbi Yehudah in Ketuvot 103 that his soul returned to his former residence on earth every Sabbath eve. It happened on one such Sabbath eve that a neighbour of his widow came to visit her calling to her from the doorway. Her maid said to the neighbour: “Be quiet, the Rabbi is sitting here!” As soon as Rabbi Yehudah (his soul) heard this he decided to stop visiting his former home on earth. He did this so that people should not say that previous scholars whose soul had not been observed as returning to earth had been inferior to him in piety. If this was true of Rabbi Yehudah, how much more so must it have been true of Yaakov who had acquired (almost genetically) three levels of holiness. 1) Yaakov had been equipped with the holiness of Avraham, i.e. he was sired by someone whose body had already been circumcised. 2) He had had the residue of the holiness of his father who had submitted his life to G’d at the Akeydah. 3) He had acquired holiness in his own right becoming the third pillar of the מרכבה, the “chariot” supporting G’d’s Presence on earth when G’d had told him that He would even descend to Egypt with him. The practical demonstration of Yaakov’s personal holiness was the fact that all his children followed in his footsteps and embraced his outlook on life. For all these reasons we find that G’d Himself is referred to as קדוש יעקב, (Isaiah 29,23) “the Holy One of Yaakov”, and we do not find such an expression "Holy One of Abraham" or Holy One of Yitzchak".

A kabbalistic approach to the statement that “Yaakov our patriarch did not die.” Yaakov’s attributes were not of the usual kind, i.e. that every virtue has its negative counterpart. Usually, the more extreme someone is in the practice of a particular virtue the greater the contrast with people practicing the opposite. When we look at scales we find that the more we depress one side, the higher the other side rises. This seems to be a law of nature. In human society there is a similar phenomenon. Extremes of one kind are usually counterbalanced by extremes on the opposite side. In a certain sense life therefore is the opposite of death. Yaakov who pursued the golden mean in his outlook on life and in his conduct, did not need to die as he did not need to “balance the scales.” The same did not apply to Avraham and Yitzchak respectively. The former’s life concentrated almost entirely on involvement on behalf of his peers, whereas the latter’s concentrated almost entirely of perfecting his own personality. As a result of this balance in Yaakov’s life there was no need for him to achieve such a balance of either his body or soul posthumously, as do the souls and bodies of ordinary people. This “body” of Yaakov which remained “alive,” was what is called the “second body,” something very diaphanous, not like the “body” that we normally think of. This “second” body serves as clothing for the soul and is therefore not something merely allegorical. According to tradition such a “second” body clothes the soul either once a week on Sabbath eve to the end of the Sabbath, or from the onset of the Day of Atonement until its end. During the rest of the year this “body” floats around in the atmosphere at the direction of G’d. It becomes visible to those whom G’d has taken a liking to. Yaakov’s “first” body, i.e. the kind of body he had in common with everyone else, was embalmed and buried in normal fashion just as the Torah writes, and as the Rabbi in Sotah called out when he was told of the fact that Yaakov did not die. This Rabbi had referred to the “first” body, whereas his colleague had referred to Yaakov’s “second” body. The first Rabbi then told him that he had not come to his conclusion on his own, but had derived it from the verse (Jeremiah 46,27) “Here I am going to deliver you from far away, your folk from their land of captivity; and Yaakov again shall have calm and quiet, with none to trouble him.” The fact that Jeremiah addresses both Yaakov and his descendants in the same breath indicated to the first Rabbi that Yaakov was still alive. Jeremiah addressed the “second” body of Yaakov which I have mentioned.

I believe that this is also what is alluded to in the Midrash Eycha Rabbati 2,9 where the verse in Lamentations 2,3: ”He has ravaged Yaakov like flaming fire, consuming on all sides,” is dealt with. The author says that when disaster struck the Jewish people only Yaakov “felt” it. Similarly, when the redemption comes only Yaakov will “feel” it. This is why the psalmist (Psalms 14,7) says: ”Yaakov will exult, Israel will rejoice.” You are aware that he expression מרגיש, “feeling something, experiencing a sensation,” cannot be used in connection with bodies which have been embalmed and buried. This term could only be applied to this diaphanous “second” body of which we spoke earlier. This is also the way we have to understand the passage in Ketuvot dealing with Rabbi Yehudah’s return to earth every Sabbath eve. The same applies to the passage in Shabbat 152 where Rabbi Acha remonstrated with grave diggers who had disturbed his peace (he had long been dead and buried). If such people’s “second body” survived, how much more so is this plausible in the case of our patriarch Yaakov? This may be the mystical dimension of Proverbs 10,2 וצדקה תציל ממות, “that charity saves one from death.” Clearly, the meaning is not that people who give charity will enjoy eternal physical life in the normal sense here on earth. Rather, they may retain this “second” body as did Yaakov and Rabbi Yehudah. This may also be the meaning of what we recite daily in our prayers that G’d זוכר יצורים ברחמים, “remembers the creatures (human beings) in mercy.” Our sages who composed this line meant that an ongoing existence is due to G’d exercising His attribute of Mercy. Our sages in Bereshit Rabbah 68,12 explain that even at the early stage of Yaakov’s life when he had the dream (vision) of the ladder (Genesis 28,12), the message of the angels “ascending and descending the ladder” is that they wanted to compare Yaakov’s features with the features of the face engraved under the throne of G’d.