From a A Gut Vort for the Shabbos Table Vol. 1 Beraishis and Shemos Paperback – 2002
by
Yehuda: your brothers shall praise you. Your hand shall be on your enemies' necks. Your father's sons shall bow to you (Bereishis 49:8)
Chazal say that Yehuda merited this bracha for two - reasons. The first was the praiseworthy adrnission of his deed with Tamar, thereby saving her life and the lives of her two children. He also took Yosef out of the pit into which his brothers had flung him
Reb Leib Chasman, in his Sefer Ohr Yehal, says that the greatness of Yehuda' s deeds can be measured by the vastness of his rewards. In the case of Tamar, though, he was admitting something for which he was completely at fault. In fact by withholding the truth, he would have caused their deaths!? Why was he worthy of reward for saving their lives?
There is a great lesson to be learned from Yehuda' s seemingly simple admission. When most people err, they try to convince themselves that they did not really make a mistake. Even a great ירא שמים may attempt to correct his mistake in such manner to hide it from the public. After all, he may rationalize, the confession of such a sin might constitute a חילול ה desecration of Hashem's Name
On the contrary, an awareness of one's shortcommings is a sign of greatness. Admission of guilt is a glorification of Hashem' s Name, for we realize the limitations of man
Perhaps Yehuda could have found other ways to save Tamar's life. He could have obscured his mistake with the premise that as one of the Gedolai Hador, admitting this error might create a Chilul Hashem. Yet Yehuda was above this line of thinking. Despite all possible ramifications of such an acknowledgement, he admitted the truth and shouldered the responsibility.
I cite in http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/18108#.VnklspuIrIU
ReplyDelete Genesis Rabbah 95:
“Consider the
text, (Eccl. 9:14). There was a little city, with few men in it; and to it came
a great king, who invested it and built mighty siege works against it. “There
was a little city” etc. alludes to Egypt; “with few men in it” to the ten
tribal ancestors. “and to it came a great king, who invested it” to Joseph. “and
built mighty siege works against it” -this alludes to the three decrees which
he enacted, viz. that no slave should enter therein, no man should enter with
two asses, and that no man might enter without recording the names of his
father and grandfather. “Present in the city was a poor wise man…” (Ibid. 15)
alludes to Judah. “who might have saved it with his wisdom” -by proposing, Now
therefore, let thy servant, I pray thee, abide instead of the lad a bondman to
my lord “Therefore,
please let your servant remain as a slave to my lord instead of the boy, and
let the boy go back with his brothers” (Genesis 44:33).
“but nobody thought of that poor man” (Eccl. 9:15): [God said:] Ye indeed would
not remember him, but I will remember him; hence, “He had sent Judah ahead of
him…” (Gen. 46:28). “As iron sharpens iron So a man sharpens the wit [face] of
his friend” (Proverbs 27:17). This alludes to Judah and Joseph. “As face
answers to face in water, So does one man’s heart to another” (Ibid. 19) -implies
that the Shechinah attached itself peculiarly to him: hence, “He had sent Judah
ahead of him to Joseph, to point the way before him to Goshen” (Genesis 46:28)…
The land where the fruits are swift [to ripen] and large in size.”
In this midrash, (Eccl. 9:14-16): “There
was a little city, with few men in it; and to it came a great king, who
invested it and built mighty siege works against it. Present in the city was a
poor wise man who might have saved it with his wisdom, but nobody thought of
that poor man. So I observed: Wisdom is better than valor; but A poor man’s
wisdom is scorned, And his words are not heeded.”
Egypt is the little city that needs
saving. Why? Oh, the ten tribal
ancestors will destroy the city totally if Joseph doesn’t release Benjamin. Joseph is the great king who made mighty
siege against Egypt, that could lead to Egypt’s destruction. Judah is the poor wise man who might save Egypt
from destruction. Oh, nobody thinks of
the poor wise man, Judah who saved Egypt from destruction with his proposal to
be a substitute for Benjamin.
Wrong! G—d thinks of him and
rewarded him with Goshen where the fruits are swift [to ripen] and large in
size.
Inappropriate mashal. Yehuda was not a member of the Moetzes Gedolim
ReplyDeleteNah. Just the RY. Yosef was the acknowledged godol haDor.
ReplyDelete