Vayeshev (parsha)

Vayeshev (Hebrew: וַיֵּשֶׁב, "And he settled") is the ninth weekly Torah portion, covering Genesis 37:1–40:23. It tells of Joseph's dreams and his brothers' hatred, his sale into slavery, Judah and Tamar, and Joseph in Egypt (Potiphar's house and prison).

Joseph's Dreams

וְיוֹסֵף בֶּן שְׁבַע עֶשְׂרֵה שָׁנָה הָיָה רֹעֶה אֶת אֶחָיו בַּצֹּאן

"Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age; and he made him a coat of many colors." (Genesis 37:3)

Joseph is 17. He brings an evil report of his brothers to their father. Israel loves Joseph more than all his children and makes him a coat of many colors (כְּתֹנֶת פַּסִּים, ketonet passim). His brothers hate him and cannot speak peaceably to him. Joseph dreams: "Behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about and made obeisance to my sheaf" (Genesis 37:7). His brothers say: "Shall you indeed reign over us?" (Genesis 37:8). He dreams again: "The sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me" (Genesis 37:9). He tells his father and brothers; Jacob rebukes him: "Shall I and your mother and your brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to you to the earth?" (Genesis 37:10). But Jacob keeps the matter in mind.

Joseph Sold into Slavery

Joseph's brothers go to pasture their father's flock in Shechem. Israel sends Joseph to check on them. Joseph finds them in Dothan. They see him from afar and conspire to kill him: "Behold, this dreamer comes. Come now therefore, and let us slay him, and cast him into some pit, and we will say, 'Some evil beast has devoured him'" (Genesis 37:19–20). Reuben, the eldest, says: "Let us not kill him... cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness, but lay no hand upon him" (Genesis 37:22), intending to rescue him later. They strip Joseph of his coat and cast him into an empty pit. They sit down to eat. They see a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead with spices and balm, going to Egypt. Judah says: "What profit is it if we slay our brother and conceal his blood? Come, and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites" (Genesis 37:26–27). They sell Joseph for twenty pieces of silver. The Midianites (or Ishmaelites) take Joseph to Egypt and sell him to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard.

They take Joseph's coat, dip it in the blood of a kid of the goats, and send it to their father, saying: "This have we found; know now whether it be your son's coat or no" (Genesis 37:32). Jacob recognizes it and says: "It is my son's coat; an evil beast has devoured him; Joseph is without doubt rent in pieces" (Genesis 37:33). He rends his clothes, puts sackcloth on his loins, and mourns many days. His sons and daughters try to comfort him, but he refuses: "I will go down into Sheol mourning for my son" (Genesis 37:35).

Judah and Tamar

Judah separates from his brothers and marries the daughter of a Canaanite named Shua. She bears him Er, Onan, and Shelah. Judah takes Tamar as a wife for Er. Er is wicked and God slays him. Judah tells Onan to perform levirate marriage (yibbum) with Tamar. Onan, knowing the child would not be his, spills his seed on the ground; God slays him too. Judah tells Tamar to wait until Shelah grows up. Tamar, seeing that Shelah is grown but she is not given to him, disguises herself as a harlot and sits by the road to Timnah. Judah, not recognizing her, lies with her. She takes his signet, cord, and staff as a pledge. Later, Judah is told: "Tamar your daughter-in-law has played the harlot; and moreover she is with child by whoredom" (Genesis 38:24). Judah says: "Bring her forth, and let her be burnt" (Genesis 38:24). Tamar sends the pledge, saying: "By the man whose these are, am I with child" (Genesis 38:25). Judah acknowledges: "She has been more righteous than I, because I gave her not to Shelah my son" (Genesis 38:26). Tamar bears twins: Perez (פֶּרֶץ, "breach") and Zerah (זֶרַח, "brightness"). Perez is an ancestor of King David.

Joseph and Potiphar's Wife

Joseph is brought down to Egypt. The Lord is with Joseph; he is a prosperous man in the house of Potiphar. Potiphar sees that the Lord is with him and makes him overseer of his house. Joseph is "well-favored and goodly to look upon" (Genesis 39:6). Potiphar's wife casts her eyes upon Joseph and says: "Lie with me" (Genesis 39:7). Joseph refuses: "Behold, my master... has committed all that he has to my hand... how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?" (Genesis 39:8–9). She persists day after day; he does not listen. One day she grabs his garment; he leaves it in her hand and flees. She tells the men of her house that Joseph tried to assault her, and Potiphar is angry. Joseph is put in prison. But the Lord is with Joseph and shows him mercy, giving him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison, who commits all the prisoners to Joseph's hand.

Joseph in Prison

Pharaoh's butler (cupbearer) and baker offend their lord and are put in prison. Joseph is charged with them. They dream on the same night. Joseph interprets: the butler's dream of a vine with three branches means in three days Pharaoh will lift up his head and restore him to his office. The baker's dream of three baskets of bread means in three days Pharaoh will lift up his head and hang him on a tree. It happens as Joseph said: the butler is restored, the baker is hanged. Joseph asks the butler: "Think on me when it shall be well with you, and show kindness, I pray you, unto me, and make mention of me unto Pharaoh" (Genesis 40:14). But the butler forgets Joseph.

Major themes

• Jealousy and hatred: The brothers' hatred of Joseph.
• Providential suffering: Joseph's suffering leads to his eventual rise.
• Temptation and integrity: Joseph resists Potiphar's wife.
• Dreams: Joseph's prophetic dreams; the dreams of the butler and baker.
• Divine providence: "The Lord was with Joseph" — repeated throughout.
• Judah and Tamar: A story of justice, responsibility, and the lineage of David.

Classical commentaries

Rashi

Rashi explains that the "coat of many colors" was a special garment given to Joseph because he was the son of Rachel, Jacob's favored wife. On Judah and Tamar, Rashi notes that Judah's confession ("she has been more righteous than I") is a model of acknowledging one's mistakes. On Joseph's resistance, Rashi says Joseph saw a vision of his father's face, which strengthened him.

Ramban

Ramban explains that Joseph's dreams were prophetic and that his brothers' hatred was a fulfillment of the pattern of the younger supplanting the elder. On Potiphar's wife, Ramban emphasizes Joseph's fear of God as the key to his resistance.

Midrashic interpretations

• Bereshit Rabbah 84:8: Joseph resembled Jacob in appearance.
• Bereshit Rabbah 84:9: The brothers sold Joseph for 20 pieces of silver, paralleling the 20 years Joseph was away from his father.
• Bereshit Rabbah 85:2: Joseph saw his father's image and the temptation left him.
• Bereshit Rabbah 85:9: The butler's forgetfulness was a divine plan to keep Joseph in prison until the right time.
• Tanhuma, Vayeshev 2: The coat of many colors was made from the same material as the High Priest's garments.

Haftarah

The haftarah (Amos 2:6 – 3:8) condemns the sale of the righteous for silver and the trampling of the poor, connecting to Joseph's sale by his brothers. It also speaks of God's covenant with Israel and the consequences of sin.

References

1. Genesis 37:1 – 40:23 (Masoretic Text)
2. Rashi, Commentary on the Torah
3. Ramban, Commentary on the Torah
4. Bereshit Rabbah (Midrash)
5. Tanhuma, Vayeshev
6. The JPS Torah Commentary: Genesis (Nahum M. Sarna, 1989)
7. Etz Hayim: Torah and Commentary (JPS, 2001)
8. Sefaria.org, "Vayeshev" (parasha)