Vayechi D'var Torah

Summary:

Jacob was getting pretty close to dying, so he asked Joseph to bury him where his ancestors were buried, not in Egypt. Some time after, Jacob was ill, so Joseph went to see him. Jacob told him that Ephraim and Manasseh, Joseph’s sons, would be treated just like Jacob’s sons and that they would be fertile and numerous. Jacob then blessed Ephraim and Manasseh, but he placed his right hand on Ephraim, the younger brothers’ head, and his left hand on Manasseh, who was older (this was backwards, apparently the right hand is supposed to go on the older one’s head). Joseph saw this and tried to switch Jacob’s hands to the right way, but Jacob said that it was on purpose, and although Manasseh would become a people and he would be great, Ephraim would be greater and his offspring would be plentiful enough for nations.

Jacob called all of his sons in to tell them what would happen to them after he died. According to Jacob, Reuben, his first-born, would no longer continue to excel, and that he was unstable as water. He decided that Simeon and Levi would not be counted in his council, because “For when angry they slay men, And when pleased they maim oxen.” He promised to divide them in Israel. Jacob then praised Judah, and said that good things would happen to him and he would continue to rule. Jacob continued to go through his sons, Zebulun, Issachar, Dan, Gad, Asher, and Naphtali. He then gives Joseph many blessings, and ends with Benjamin. His last words instructed his sons where to bury him, in the same place as Abraham, Isaac, Sarah, Rebekah, and Leah were buried. At the age of 147, Jacob then died. His sons buried him, and at the end of the portion, Joseph died as well.

Commentary:

Today, I’ll focus on the part of the portion where Jacob blessed his children, and I’ll do it in a different format this time by instead focusing on who were the biggest “winners” and “losers” after Jacob’s speech.

Winner: Judah

Jacob had a lot of praise for Judah, and much more than any of his other eldest sons. In fact, Jacob said that Judah’s brothers would praise him, and they should bow low to him. He also compared Judah to a king of beasts, and he said Judah would always be a ruler. Surprisingly, Judah probably got the most praise from Jacob out of all of the sons (except for Joseph).

Losers: Simeon and Levi

Jacob told Simeon and Levi together that he didn’t want them to be associated with him because they were too violent and mean. He cursed their anger and said he would scatter them around Israel, away from their brothers.

Winner: Dan

Jacob also gave Dan an unexpectedly positive message, as he said Dan would govern his people as one of the tribes of Israel, and he would be a serpent “that bites the horse’s heels so that his rider is thrown backward” (Genesis 49:17). While others got negative or conflicting blessings, Jacob blessed Dan to live a good life as a good leader.

Loser: Zebulun

Jacob didn’t say anything mean to Zebulun, but he just didn’t say anything good either. He told Zebulun that he would “dwell by the seashore” and “be a haven for ships” (Genesis 49:13). While Jacob was praising his other kids for being strong or good leaders or will be a baker or raider, Zebulun was just told that he would be stuck around the water like a port. That just sounds really boring compared to some others, so I think Zebulun came out on the negative side of these blessings.