Parsha Miketz

(41,1) It was at the end of two full years, that Pharaoh had a dream, and behold, he was standing on the bank of the river.

(41,2) Behold, from the river emerged seven cows, fine-looking and well-fleshed, and they were grazing in the reed grass.

(41,3) And behold, seven other cows emerged after them, from the river, bad-looking and thin-fleshed, and they stood next to the cows that were [already] on the bank of the river.

(41,4) They ate—the bad looking, thin-fleshed cows [then ate] the seven fine looking, healthy cows, and Pharaoh woke up.

(41,5) He fell asleep and had a second dream. Behold, seven ears of grain [corn] came up on a single stalk, wholesome and good.

(41,6) And behold, seven ears, thin and scorched by the east wind, grew up after them.

(41,7) The seven thin ears swallowed the seven wholesome, full ears. Pharaoh woke up, and behold it was a dream.

(41,8) In the morning, he was agitated. He sent and summoned all the wizards of Egypt and all its wise men. Pharaoh related his dream to them, but none could interpret them for Pharaoh.

(41,9) The chief butler spoke to Pharaoh saying, I recall my sins today:

(41,10) Pharaoh was enraged at his servants, and he placed me under guard in the house of the chief executioner; me and the chief baker.

(41,11) We had a dream on the same night, I and he, each according to the interpretation of his dream, did we dream.

(41,12) With us there was a lad, a Hebrew, a slave of the chief of the slaughterers. We told him [about our dreams], and he interpreted our dreams, he interpreted each man’s dream accordingly.

(41,13) It came to pass, that as he interpreted for us, so did it occur; he restored me to my position, and him he hanged.

(41,14) Pharaoh sent and summoned Yoseif. They hurried him out of the dungeon, but [Yoseif first] shaved and changed his clothes. And then came to Pharaoh.

(41,15) Pharaoh said to Yoseif, I had a dream and there is no one to interpret it. I have heard it said about you that you hear a dream so as to interpret it.

(41,16) Yoseif answered Pharaoh, saying, Not I. God will respond to the peace of Pharaoh.

(41,17) Pharaoh spoke to Yoseif, In my dream, I was standing on the bank of the river.

(41,18) Behold from the river there emerged seven cows, well-fleshed and fine looking, and they were grazing in the reed grass.

(41,19) And behold seven other cows emerged after them, poor, very bad-looking and thin-fleshed. I never saw in the entire land of Egypt, such bad looking [cows.]

(41,20) The thin, bad-looking cows, ate the first seven cows, which were the healthy ones.

(41,21) They came inside them, but it could not be recognized that they had come inside them, [because] their appearance was as bad as it was previously. Then I woke up.

(41,22) Then I saw in my dream that behold seven ears of grain [corn], wholesome and good, came up on one stalk.

(41,23) And behold seven ears, shriveled, thin and scorched by the east wind, grew up after them.

(41,24) The thin ears swallowed the seven good ears. I said this to the wizards, but none of them could tell me [its meaning].

(41,25) Yoseif said to Pharaoh, Pharaoh’s dream is one. What God is about to do, He has told to Pharaoh.

(41,26) The seven good cows represent seven years, and the seven good ears represent seven years; it is one dream.

(41,27) The seven thin, bad [looking] cows who came up after them, represent seven years, and the seven empty, east wind—scorched ears, represent the coming of seven years of famine.

(41,28) This is the word that I have spoken to Pharaoh; what God is about to do, He has revealed to Pharaoh.

(41,29) Behold, seven years are coming during which there will be great abundance in the entire land of Egypt.

(41,30) Seven years of famine will rise after them, and all the abundance will be forgotten in the land of Egypt. The famine will devastate the land.

(41,31) Nor will be known the [former] abundance of the land because of that famine that will follow, for it will be very severe.

(41,32) As for the dream being repeated twice to Pharaoh, it is because the thing stands ready before God, and God is hurrying to do it.

(41,33) Now Pharaoh should seek a man of understanding and wisdom, and place him in charge of the land of Egypt.

(41,34) This is what Pharaoh should do: appoint officials over the land, and prepare the land of Egypt during the seven years of abundance.

(41,35) Let them gather in all the food during these good years that are coming, and let them store up grain under the hand [jurisdiction] of Pharaoh. Let the food be [kept] in the cities, and let them safeguard it.

(41,36) The food will be held in safe-keeping for the land, for the seven years of famine; which will be in the land of Egypt. Let the land not be cut off by the famine.

(41,37) This thing [plan] was good in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of all his servants.

(41,38) Pharaoh said to his servants, Can [another] one like this be found, a man who has God’s spirit in him?

(41,39) Pharaoh said to Yoseif, After Elohim has informed you of all this, there is no one so understanding and wise as you.

(41,40) You shall be over my house, and by your word shall all my people be fed. Only by [virtue of] the throne will I be greater than you.

(41,41) Pharaoh said to Yoseif, Behold, I have placed you in charge of the entire land of Egypt.

(41,42) Pharaoh then took off his ring from his hand, and he placed it on Yoseif’s hand. He dressed him in linen garments, and put a gold chain around his neck.

(41,43) He had him [Yoseif] ride in his second-ranking carriage, and they proclaimed before him, Avreich. He thus placed him over the entire land of Egypt.

(41,44) Pharaoh [then] said to Yoseif, I am Pharaoh, but without you, no man will lift his hand or his foot in the entire land of Egypt.

(41,45) Pharaoh gave Yoseif the name Tzafnas Paneiach, and he gave him Osnas, the daughter of Poti Phera, priest of On as a wife. Yoseif [then] went out over the land of Egypt.

(41,46) Yoseif was thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh, king of Egypt. Yoseif left Pharaoh’s presence, and traversed throughout the entire land of Egypt.

(41,47) The earth produced during the seven years of abundance by handfuls.

(41,48) He gathered in all the food of the seven years [that was produced] in the land of Egypt, and placed the food in the cities. The food of the fields surrounding each city was placed within [the city].

(41,49) Yoseif piled up grain like the sand of the sea—in great abundance, until that they gave up counting it, because there were no [more] numbers.

(41,50) Two sons were born to Yoseif before the years of famine came. They were born to him by Osnas, the daughter of Poti Phera, Priest of On.

(41,51) Yoseif named the first-born, Menasheh, For God has made me forget all my trouble, and all that was in my father’s house.

(41,52) He named the second one Ephraim, Because Elohim has made me fruitful in the land of my suffering.

(41,53) The seven years of abundance came to an end, [the good years] that were in the land of Egypt.

(41,54) The seven years of famine started to come, just as Yoseif had said. There was famine in all the lands, but in all the land of Egypt there was bread.

(41,55) When all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried out to Pharaoh for bread. Pharaoh said to all of Egypt, Go to Yoseif. Whatever he says to you, do.

(41,56) The famine spread over the entire face of the land. Yoseif opened everything that held grain, and sold [grain] to the Egyptians. The famine became severe in the land of Egypt.

(41,57) All [countries] of the land came to Egypt to buy [grain] from Yoseif, for the famine was severe in all the land.

(42,1) Yaakov saw that food was being sold in Egypt. Yaakov said to his sons, Why would you have everyone gazing at you?

(42,2) He said, Behold, I have heard that there is food for sale in Egypt. Go down there and buy for us from there, so that we will live and not die.

(42,3) Yoseif’s ten brothers went down to buy grain from Egypt.

(42,4) But Binyamin, Yoseif’s brother, Yaakov did not send along with his brothers, for he [Yaakov] said, Misfortune might befall him.

(42,5) The sons of Yisrael came to buy among the others who came, for there was famine in the land of Canaan.

(42,6) Yoseif was the ruler over the land; he was the one who sold to all the people of the land. Yoseif’s brothers came and they prostrated themselves to him with their faces to the ground.

(42,7) Yoseif saw his brothers and he recognized them, but he acted like a stranger to them. He spoke harshly to them, and said to them, Where did you come from? They said, From the land of Canaan to buy food.

(42,8) Yoseif recognized his brothers, but they did not recognize him.

(42,9) Yoseif recalled the dreams that he had dreamt about them, and said to them, You are spies. You have come to see where the land is exposed.

(42,10) They said to him, No my master. Your servants have come to buy food.

(42,11) We are all the sons of one man. We are honest [men]. Your servants have never been spies.

(42,12) He said to them, No, You have come to see where the land is exposed.

(42,13) They said, Your servants are twelve brothers, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan. Behold the youngest one is this day with our father, and one is no more.

(42,14) Yoseif said to them, That is just what I said to you, saying: you are spies.

(42,15) You shall be tested in this manner. By Pharaoh’s life, you shall not leave from here unless your youngest brother comes here.

(42,16) Send one of you and let him bring your brother. You will remain locked up and your words will be tested whether there is any truth with you. If not, by Pharaoh’s life, you are spies.

(42,17) He [then] put them together in prison for three days.

(42,18) Yoseif said to them on the third day, Do this and live. I fear God.

(42,19) If you are honest, one of your brothers will be imprisoned in your place of guarding, and you [the others] go bring food for your famished households.

(42,20) Bring your youngest brother to me, so that your words will be verified, and you will not die. They decided to do so.

(42,21) They said to one another, In truth, we are guilty regarding our brother. We saw the anguish of his soul when he pleaded with us and we did not listen. That is why this trouble has come upon us.

(42,22) Reuvein answered them saying, Did I not say to you to the following: Do not sin against the lad, but you did not listen; and now his blood is being avenged.

(42,23) They did not know that Yoseif listened [understood], because the interpreter was between them.

(42,24) He turned away from them and cried. He returned to them and spoke to them. He took Shimon from them, and had him bound before their eyes.

(42,25) Yoseif gave orders—and their vessels were filled with grain, and each one’s money was replaced in his sack; and they were given provisions for the journey. This is what he did for them.

(42,26) They placed their purchases of grain on their donkeys and they departed from there.

(42,27) The one opened his sack, to feed his donkey where they stayed overnight, and he saw his money, for behold it was in the opening of his bag.

(42,28) He said to his brothers. My money has been returned, and behold it is also in my bag. Their hearts failed them and they trembled, saying one to another, What is this that Elohim has done to us?

(42,29) They came to their father Yaakov, to the land of Canaan, and they told him all that had happened to them, saying,

(42,30) The man, the master of the land spoke to us harshly; and considered us as spies of the land.

(42,31) We said to him, We are honest people, we have never been spies.

(42,32) We are twelve brothers, sons of our [the same] father. One is no more, and the youngest is this day with our father in the land of Canaan.

(42,33) The man, the master of the land, said to us, This is how I shall know that you are honest. Leave one of your brothers with me, and take food for your famished households and go.

(42,34) Bring your youngest brother to me, and then I will know that you are not spies, but that you are honest men. I will return your brother to you, and you will [again] do business in the land.

(42,35) They were emptying their sacks, and behold each man’s bundle of money was in his sack. They saw their bundles of money—they and their father and they were afraid.

(42,36) Yaakov, their father, said to them, You have deprived me of children; Yoseif is no more, Shimon is no more, and you would take Binyamin: All this has happened to me.

(42,37) Reuvein spoke to his father saying, Put my two sons to death if I do not bring him [Binyamin] back to you. Give him into my hands, and I will return him to you.

(42,38) He [Yaakov] said, My son will not go down with you; for his brother is dead, and only he remains. Should misfortune befall him on the way you are going, you will bring my white head down to the grave in sorrow.

(43,1) The famine was severe in the land.

(43,2) When they had finished eating the food that they had brought from Egypt, their father said to them, Go back and buy a little food for us.

(43,3) Yehudah spoke to him saying, The man warned us repeatedly, saying, You had better not see my face unless your brother is with you.

(43,4) If you will send our brother with us, we will go down and buy food for you.

(43,5) But if you will not send [him] we will not go down; for the man said to us, You had better not see my face unless your brother is with you.

(43,6) Yisrael said, Why did you do such harm to me, by telling the man that you had another brother.

(43,7) They said, The man asked us repeatedly, about ourselves and about our family, saying. Is your father still alive? Do you have a brother? We told him according to his words. Could we have known that he would say, Bring your brother down?

(43,8) Yehudah said to his father, Yisrael, Send the lad with me, and we will get up and go; let us live and not die, we, you and our children.

(43,9) I will be security for him. You will demand him from my hand. If I do not bring him to you, and set him before you, I will have sinned to you for all time.

(43,10) If we had not hesitated until now, we could have been there and back twice.

(43,11) Their father Yisrael said to them, If so, here, this is what you must do: Take of the best fruits of the land in your vessels, and take an offering to the man, a little balsam, a little honey, gum, labdanum, pistachios and almonds.

(43,12) Take double the money in your hands; and the money that was returned in the opening of your bags return by your own hands. Perhaps it was an oversight.

(43,13) Take your brother, get up and return to the man.

(43,14) May the Almighty, Shaddai, grant you compassion in the presence of the man, that he may release to you your other brother along with Binyamin. If I have been bereft of my children, I will be bereft.

(43,15) The men took that offering, and they took double money in their hands, and [they took] Binyamin. They rose and went down to Egypt, and they stood before Yoseif.

(43,16) When Yoseif saw Binyamin with them he said to the one in charge of his house, Bring these men to the house. Slaughter an animal and prepare it, for these men shall dine with me at noon.

(43,17) The man did as Yoseif said, and the man brought the men to the house of Yoseif.

(43,18) The men were afraid because they had been brought to Yoseif’s house, and they said, Because of the money that was returned in our bags previously are we being brought [here]; that he may turn on us and come down on us, and take us for slaves along with our donkeys.

(43,19) They approached the man, who was in charge of Yoseif’s house, and they spoke to him at the entrance to the house.

(43,20) They said, Please, my master, we came down the first time to buy food.

(43,21) When we came to the inn and opened our bags, behold each man’s money was in the opening of his bag. It was our own money in its full weight. We have brought it back in our hand.

(43,22) We have [also] brought other money in our hand to buy food. We do not know who put the money in our bags.

(43,23) He [the man] said, Peace be with you, do not fear. Your God, and the God of your fathers, has given you a hidden gift in your bags. Your money has come to me. He then brought Shimon out to them.

(43,24) The man brought the men into the house of Yoseif. He gave them water and they washed their feet. He had feed given to their donkeys.

(43,25) They prepared their offering [to be ready] when Yoseif came at noon, for they had heard that they would eat there.

(43,26) Yoseif came to the house, and they brought the offering that was in their hand, to him in the house. They prostrated themselves on the ground to him.

(43,27) He inquired about their welfare, and said, Is your old father at peace, the one about whom you spoke? Is he still alive?

(43,28) They said, Your servant, our father is at peace. He is still alive. They bowed their heads and prostrated themselves.

(43,29) He raised his eyes and saw his brother Binyamin, his mother’s son, and said, Is this your youngest brother of whom you spoke to me? He [then] said, Elohim be gracious to you my son.

(43,30) Yoseif hurried [to go out] because his compassion was aroused toward his brother, and he wanted to weep. He went into [his] room and wept there.

(43,31) He washed his face and came out. He composed himself, and said, Serve bread.

(43,32) They set [a place] for him by himself, and for them by themselves, and for the Egyptians who ate with him by themselves, since the Egyptians could not eat food with the Hebrews, because it was loathsome to the Egyptians.

(43,33) They were seated before him, the first born [the oldest] according to his birthright, and the youngest according to his youth. The men looked at each other in astonishment.

(43,34) He had portions carried from before him to them. Binyomin’s portions was greater than all of their’s—five times as much. They drank with him and became intoxicated.

(44,1) He commanded the one in charge of his house, saying, Fill the men’s bags with as much food as they can carry, and place each man’s money in the opening of his bag.

(44,2) And my goblet, the silver goblet, put in the opening of the youngest one’s bag, together with the money for his purchase of food. He acted according to the word Yoseif had spoken.

(44,3) With the morning light, the men were sent [on their way] together with their donkeys.

(44,4) They had just left the city, they had not gone far, when Yoseif said to the one in charge of his house, Get up, pursue the men, and when you catch up with them, say to them, Why did you repay good with evil.

(44,5) Why, this is [the goblet] from which my master drinks. He uses it for divination. You have acted badly in what you have done.

(44,6) He caught up with them, and spoke these exact words to them.

(44,7) They said to him, Why does my master speak such words? It would be degrading for your servants to do such a thing.

(44,8) Behold the money that we found in the opening of our bags, we brought back to you from the land of Canaan. How then could we have stolen silver or gold from your master’s house?

(44,9) He among your servants with whom it is found, he shall die. We will also be servants to my master.

(44,10) And he said, Your words are now also correct. The one with whom it is found, he shall be my slave, and you shall be guiltless.

(44,11) They hurried, and each man lowered his bag to the ground, and each man opened his bag.

(44,12) He searched, beginning with the oldest, and ending with the youngest. The goblet was found in Binyomin’s bag.

(44,13) They tore their garments [in grief]. Each man loaded his donkey, and they returned to the city.

(44,14) Yehudah and his brothers came to Yoseif’s house. He was still there, and they fell to the ground before him.

(44,15) Yoseif said to them, What is this deed that you have done? Do you not know that a man like me is an expert diviner ?

(44,16) Yehudah said, What shall we say to my master? What can we speak? How can we justify ourselves? God has found the iniquity of your servants. Let us be slaves to my master, both we, and the one in whose hand the goblet was found.

(44,17) He [Yoseif] said [to them], It would be degrading for me to do such a thing. The man in whose hand the goblet was found, he shall be my slave, and [the rest of] you go up in peace to your father.