Parasha: Vayechi · Aliyah: Third (Tiferet)

ויאמר יוסף..לא כן אבי, Joseph said to his father: "not so my father, etc." We need to understand why Joseph did not simply say: "this one is the firstborn," instead of the preamble "not so my father."

Joseph entertained two possible doubts. 1) Inasmuch as Joseph and his sons were facing Jacob, and it was customary for Joseph to have his firstborn on his right and the younger one on his left, they would appear in the reverse position when viewed from Jacob's vantage point. Jacob may therefore have reasoned that in order to place his right hand on the older one of the two he had to cross his hands. 2) On the other hand, Joseph reasoned that it was possible that his father crossed his hands in order to place his right hand on the head of Ephrayim, deliberately, thus giving him preference over Menashe. In view of this Joseph first told his father that if he had assumed that Joseph had placed the boys as he usually did, i.e. Menashe on his right, לא כן אבי, i.e. he did not do so this time. If, on the other hand, Jacob had deliberately placed his right hand on the head of Ephrayim, Joseph registered his protest by saying: "place your right hand on him for he is the firstborn." He wanted to know why his father denied his firstborn what he thought he was entitled to.

וימאן אביו ויאמר, His father refused, saying, etc. The reason the Torah uses the word "he refused," is to indicate that Joseph had taken hold of his father's hand to try and place it on Menashe's head.

The reason Jacob repeated: "I know my son, I know, etc." is that Jacob wanted to answer both of Joseph's doubts as we have already explained. To Joseph's remark "not so my father," Jacob replied that he was well aware that Joseph had already placed the children in such a position that he, Jacob, did not have to cross his hands in order to put his right hand on the head of Menashe. By adding the word בני, my son, Jacob hinted that he had given Joseph credit for placing the boys in the position which he considered as appropriate. Concerning Joseph's specific concern that the firstborn be accorded the privileges due him, Jacob also said: "I know;" he assured Joseph that Menashe too would attain greatness. Joseph should not think that Jacob considered his firstborn as unworthy or inferior. If he had nonetheless decided to place his right hand on the head of Ephrayim this was in view of Ephrayim's descendants outranking Menashe's descendants at some time in the future. Ephrayim was destined to become מלא הגוים, meaning that at that time he would occupy a higher position though at the moment Menashe fulfilled his role of the firstborn perfectly. Tanchuma elaborates that Joshua would be descended from Ephrayim whereas Gideon would be descended from Menashe, both leaders of the Jewish people during their respective lifetimes. Both had already been destined for their respective roles in life; Jacob only gave recognition to this by the manner in which he placed his hands when blessing both these children.

Alternatively, Jacob meant that he was thoroughly familiar with Joseph's arguments; when Joseph had hinted that the birthright should determine on whose hand Jacob was to place his right hand, Joseph was wrong, it was not the order of birth which determined matters like this. By adding the word בני, Jacob hinted that Joseph himself had foreseen future developments in his dreams. Similarly, Jacob could not now act in defiance of G'd who had shown him in a vision that the younger son would outshine his older brother.

ויברכם ביום ההוא לאמור, He blessed them on that day, saying, etc. The Torah means that Jacob gave the boys such a full measure of blessings that everybody said that the simplest way to bestow blessings on Jewish children in the future would be to mention that they should be as blessed as Ephrayim and Menashe were blessed by Jacob.

וישם את אפרים לפני מנשה, He placed Ephrayim ahead of Menashe. This is not to be understood literally. The Torah means that by mentioning Ephrayim ahead of Menashe Jacob had in effect given Ephrayim a measure of precedence over Menashe. What true Jewish father would reverse the formula that Jacob had used when he blessed his grandchildren? We still mention Ephrayim the younger of the two ahead of Menashe the firstborn when we bless our children.

ויאמר ישראל אל יוסף הנה אנכי מת, Israel said to Joseph: "I am about to die, etc." When Israel said: "I am about to die," he meant that only he was going to depart, the שכינה was not going to depart from them. Jacob added that G'd would lead the Jewish people back to the land of their ancestors. Jacob underlined that the land had been given by G'd to the patriarchs and not to the generation who would leave Egypt at the time of the Exodus. This being so, he was within his rights when he assigned Shechem to Joseph's descendants since he was the owner. When Jacob said: "and I have given to you one (extra) share, etc.," this is a valid explanation. Even according to the view of Rabbi Nechemyah in Bereshit Rabbah 97,6 that Jacob referred to the city of Shechem conquered by Shimon and Levi, Jacob implied that had it not been for the fact that G'd had given the land to the patriarchs they would not have succeeded.