Shabat shalom. While I was preparing for this d’rash I discovered that life really does go fast when you’re not paying too much attention to everything. It’s been six years since the last time I stood before you to share my thoughts with a d’rash. In fact, the last time I spoke at the Library Minyan it was for Sh’mot the morning after the dreaded Y2K event.

While those of you that want to follow along are searching for page 294, let’s’ recall that Ya’akov came into the world holding onto his brother Esav’s ankle. He had a shrewd mind and an acute awareness of the ways of the world. He cheated his brother of his birthright, stole his father’s blessing, took the best of his father-in-law’s cattle, and blatantly played favorites among his family members. He struggled to keep his growing clan alive and prosperous moving from place to place to ensure food and water and to protect them from hostile clans and enemy alliances. His children caused him great grief in many ways including killing all the men in a city and causing him to believe that his favorite son was dead. He was aware of many of his faults, yet he also knew that there were certain bounds within which everyone is expected to behave to maintain societal order.

So, in today’s par’shah he realized that he was about to leave this world, and he needs to attempt to impart his wisdom, one last time, to his children. He knows that he hasn’t been “perfect,” but he also knows that the future depends on strong moral leadership if God’s promise that his descendants will be as plentiful as the stars in the sky is to be fulfilled. The torah does two very curious things in telling this story. One is that the story seems to be very disjointed and intertwined with itself. It is sometimes clear that he is speaking about his individual son, and other times it alludes to a premonition of the future for the tribe. The other curiosity is how it is constantly switching it back and forth between the names Ya’akov and Yis’rael. Remember, when Ya’akov was first told his name would be changed to Yis’rael, he was dubbed “the one who struggled with beings divine and human and prevails.” Throughout the narrative, Ya’akov is the frail mortal at the end of his earthly life, and Yis’rael is the transcendent patriarch of our people. Watch this play out:

For example, in chapter 48 verse 2 says, “When Ya’akov was told, ‘your son Yosef is here,’ Yis’rael summoned his strength and sat up in bed.” In a trance it is as Ya’akov that he explains that he will adopt Yosef’s two sons, Ef’rayim and M’naseh on a par with his own two first born sons: R’uven and Shim’yon. It is as Ya’akov that he recounts the sorrow he still feels from losing his beloved wife and Yosef’s mother, Rachel along one of the journeys. How pained he feels that she isn’t buried with the rest of the family. But it is as Yis’rael that he takes note of the presence of Yosef and his two sons there in the room. Though Yis’rael’s eyes are dim, he embraces them, and kisses them. He marvels that he’s been granted the unexpected privilege of seeing his favorite son and his grandchildren. He bestows a blessing on Yosef through his sons. Even as Yosef arranges his sons so that they may receive their proper blessing by birth order, it is Yis’rael that acts once again, in long-standing family tradition, to thwart the cultural norms by blessing Ef’rayim and M’naseh in that order. His adoption of Ef’rayim and M’naseh provide Yosef the “double portion” of the first-born son.

It all seems to start over again in chapter 49. Ya’akov calls his sons together to prophesize what will come of them. In this segment, the parting thoughts are shared in poetry, and notice the opening phraseology: “Assemble and listen children of Ya’akov; listen to Yis’rael your parent.” It is Yis’rael who is speaking to them. In this story, he speaks to each of his sons in turn, but again not exactly in birth order.

R’uvein is acknowledged as the eldest, but destined to lose his rank and honor, because he overstepped his bounds by consorting with Bil’hah. R’uvein, who was loyal to his mother by bringing her the mandrakes, who stood up for Yosef in the field to save him, and who offers his two sons as collateral for the safe return from Egypt of Bin’yamin (at risk) and Shim’on (held captive), all to no avail.

Shim’on and Leiviy are treated as a pair. Almost always you can see them as two guys scheming together and up to no good. By taking revenge on behalf of their sister Diynah, the entire clan needed to be much more “nomadic” and unsettled in the land.

His fourth son by Leah, Y’hudah, is the one who receives the mantle of leadership. As with all biblical figures, Y’hudah is far from perfect. He offers to sell Yosef to the Yish’m’eliym as a slave. He went off on his own and cohabited with a C’na’aniy woman. This led to a “daytime soap opera” worthy story that resulted in twin boys. What set Y’hudah apart was that he learned from his mistakes and the reproach he received from others. He stepped in by making himself fully responsible for the safe return of Bin’yamin, but beyond that, he pointed out to Yis’rael that if they didn’t act, the whole clan would die of starvation. This is what I believe caught Yis’rael’s attention and caused him to elevate Y’hudah above his brothers.

Rather than continue in birth order, Yis’rael concludes with the last two sons of Leah. They are Z’bulun and Yisaschar, numbers ten and nine respectively. Neither of them is viewed in especially good light, although Yisaschar is clearly viewed as a “go along to get along” type.

Yis’rael now comes to his fifth son, Dan, and the first born of Bil’hah. Dan is viewed as a strong, independent tribe of Yis’rael. Then the torah interjects an outburst from Ya’akov “I await Your deliverance Ha-shem!” You can just visualize how aware he is that life is on the edge.

Again, Yis’rael alters the sequence and jumps to Gad and Asher, his seventh and eighth sons who he had with Zil’pah. Then he returns to his sixth son, Naf’taliy, his other son with Bil’hah. They are dispatched with a mere couplet each. The lack of anything significant to share heightens the effusive words to follow about his son Yosef.

Certainly with no surprise to his brothers, Yis’rael extols Yosef more than anyone else. Yosef (not referred to as Ef’rayim and M’naseh) is described as strong and both protected from enemies and blessed with abundance by God in four manifestations. “By the hands of ‘Aviyr’ (EH: the Mighty One] of Ya’akov … the ‘Ro-eh Even’ [EH: Shepherd, the Rock] of Yis’rael, ‘El’ [EH: the God] of your fathers, … Shaday who blesses you.” In fact, Yis’rael makes the point that Yosef is being blessed more than he himself or his ancestors ever were.

This leaves a brief blessing to Bin’yamiyn that seems inconsistent with his place as the passive baby of the family. Perhaps Yis’rael is still lamenting that his beloved Rachel died in childbirth with Bin’yamiyn.

The torah concludes this segment with the summary that these were the tribes of Yis’rael. Yis’rael then requests that he be buried in the family cave. And then it says in verse 33: “When Ya’akov finished his instructions to his sons, he drew his feet into the bed and, breathing his last, he was gathered to his people.”

So, now that we’ve been through all that torah together, what might we learn from this. It seems clear that Ya’akov never really learned how to overcome his favoritism within his family. But, what are these “instructions” that our third patriarch left us? One possibility is that each of us is a “dual being” in some way. We are the physical creature like all the other creatures created by God, as was Ya’akov, and we are also the unique, spiritual, transcendent being implanted within us by God, as was “Yis’rael. The physical creature will die at some point, while the spiritual being has the possibility to live on. This is dependant on us making wise moral choices and taking appropriate actions. Y’hudah and Yosef are clearly elevated above all the other brothers for their courage and ability to step up and do the right thing. Yis’rael realizes that his descendants are dependant on the leadership of those who learn to be humble in positions of authority and have the courage to take the proper though tougher path when the wrong but easier path is tempting. Yis’rael speaks to us, the spiritual descendants of Y’hudah and Leviy, and tells us to be guided by our transcendent selves, and to walk with God in our physical world. May we always seek ways to follow this advise.

Shabat Shalom.