Parasha Vayigash: Reuben’s good intentions

Judah not only had the right intentions but could also enter the minds of his adversaries and make the kind of offer they would accept.

By SHLOMO RISKIN
field biblical_521 (photo credit: (weisssi@bezeqint.net http://www.flickr.com/photos)
field biblical_521
(photo credit: (weisssi@bezeqint.net http://www.flickr.com/photos)
‘Then Judah approached him and said “If it please my lord, may your servant speak a word in the lord’s ears, and let not your anger flare up at your servant”’ (Genesis 44:18)
Harking back to the portion of Toldot, it is fairly clear that Isaac’s initial intention was to divide the material blessings (brachot) and the religious leadership (bechora); Jacob was to receive the bechora of religious leadership and Esau the brachot of material blessings. Rebekah convinces him that Jacob can and must utilize the techniques (hands) of Esau when the occasion demands it, so both the blessings and the firstbornship must go to the same son. Jacob’s tent of Torah study must have the technological, financial and military backing to spread the values of ethical monotheism around the world.
But Jacob himself repeats the division that his father had attempted and gives the material blessings – fruitfulness and a double portion of land – to Joseph, and religious domination – the scepter of leadership (Genesis 49:8-10, see Targum and Rashi) – to Judah. Why does Jacob pass over his firstborn, Reuben, in favor of his fourth son, Judah?
We cannot help but admire the “stiff upper lip” of a self-sacrificing Reuben. He had earlier attempted to quell his brothers’ anger against Joseph and save him from destruction, even though he had the most to gain from Joseph’s removal.
The Midrash emphasizes precisely this when Leah names Reuben: “And Leah conceived and bore a son, calling his name Reuben because she said that the Lord has seen into my affliction because now my husband shall love me.”
In Hebrew, these words may be seen as an acrostic from Reu’ven. Hence the Midrash expands on the acrostic, “See [re’u] the difference between my son [Reuben] and the son of my father-in-law [Esau]; Reuben did not sell his birthright to Joseph and still he did not protest when Jacob gave Joseph the coat of many colors; even more, he sought to extricate him from the pit” (Gen. 39:20-22).
My revered teacher Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik suggested that Reuben received this ability to express largesse toward Joseph from his long-suffering mother, Leah. When Leah says, “The Lord has seen my affliction,” the Targum explains: “my shame has been revealed before God” – that is to say, before God and not before anyone else. Leah sobbed into her pillow but did not say a word to anyone else. She swallowed her pride and accepted her status in the eyes of her husband as long as she could fulfill her mission by bearing and nurturing many of the future tribes of Israel. Similarly, Reuben believed that as the firstborn, he had to protect the brothers from jeopardizing their position as “the tribes of God,” even if it meant forfeiting his own chance for the bechora patrimony.
However, with all his good intentions, Reuben does not succeed in saving Joseph. He didn’t read his brothers’ thoughts perceptively enough. When Reuben heard his brothers say “Let us kill him and cast him into one of the pits,” he said, “Let us not destroy a life... Do not shed blood. Cast him into this pit which is in the desert, but let no hand be sent out against him...” (Gen. 37:21-22).
In order to understand Reuben’s ploy, we must accept the Midrash’s opinion that there were snakes and scorpions in the pit. Since Reuben sees that they want Joseph dead, he implores them not to strike the death blow themselves but rather allow Joseph to die “naturally” in the pit. The verse concludes by informing us that Reuben’s intent was to rescue Joseph after the brothers dispersed – but by then it may have been too late. Reuben might well have found a dead brother when he was finally able to come back. Reuben may get an “A” for effort, but he did not fulfill his mission to save Joseph.
When Jacob hears that the brothers have told the Grand Vizier about their youngest brother, Benjamin, and that the ruler has insisted that Benjamin accompany them on their next journey to Egypt, he is disconsolate. He refuses to give up Benjamin, saying, “You have made me bereft of children; Joseph is gone, Simeon is gone, and now you wish to take Benjamin away...” (Genesis 42:36).
Reuben again courageously “steps up to the plate” but with a strange offer: “You can slay my two sons if I don’t bring [Benjamin] back to you…].” Father Jacob obviously refuses such a guarantee and doesn’t even mention it.
In both instances, Judah succeeds where Reuben failed; Judah not only had the right intentions but could also enter the minds of his adversaries and make the kind of offer they would accept.