Yaakov's Blessing of Yosef/2

Yaakov's Blessing of Yosef

Exegetical Approaches

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Individual Blessing for the Present

Yaakov's blessing was aimed at Yosef the individual and related to events that transpired in his lifetime.  The sources disagree regarding which incidents are alluded to and form the focus of the blessing:

Conflict with the Brothers

Yaakov told Yosef that despite his brothers' enmity, he had prevailed and managed to rise above them.

Sources:Ibn EzraBereshit 49:22-26About R. Avraham ibn Ezra

"בֵּן פֹּרָת יוֹסֵף בֵּן פֹּרָת עֲלֵי עָיִן" – Ibn Ezra understands "בֵּן פֹּרָת" to mean a "fruitful branch", with "פֹּרָת" being a poetic form of the word "פורה".‎¹  The doubling is simply Tanakh's way to express continuity or permanence.²  Perhaps Yaakov opened with this blessing of progeny to highlight how the brothers' wish that Yosef perish and disappear without a trace, was not fulfilled.

"בָּנוֹת צָעֲדָה עֲלֵי שׁוּר" – This phrase expands on the first blessing for descendants, and means that Yosef's branches will make others which will climb like a vine over the walls.³  The word "שׁוּר" might be related to the Aramaic "שורא" (wall).⁴

"...וַיְמָרְרֻהוּ וָרֹבּו" – This verse describes the brothers plot to sell Yosef.   The siblings are described metaphorically as archers who set Yosef's gallbladder (מְרֵרָה) as a target to shoot (רבה) at.⁵

"וַתֵּשֶׁב בְּאֵיתָן קַשְׁתּוֹ וַיָּפֹזּוּ זְרֹעֵי יָדָיו" – Yosef proved too strong for the brothers who could not prevail over him.  Yaakov expresses this by describing Yosef's bow as sitting in a place of strength and his arms as being mighty (וַיָּפֹזּוּ)‎.⁶

"מִידֵי אֲבִיר יַעֲקֹב מִשָּׁם רֹעֶה אֶבֶן יִשְׂרָאֵל" – Yaakov points out that Yosef's strength emanated from Hashem, the might of Israel (אֲבִיר יַעֲקֹב), and it was from Him that Yosef was able to rise and become the "shepherd" who provided food for his family in Egypt.

"נְזִיר אֶחָיו" – According to Ibn Ezra this phrase sets up Yosef as the "crown of the brothers".  It is not clear if he is referring to the fact that Yosef became king over them in Egypt or if this is just Yaakov's metaphoric way of saying that Yosef was the crowning glory of the brothers.

Purpose of Yaakov's blessings as a whole – Ibn Ezra views Yaakov's other statements to the brothers as being prophecies regarding the future of the tribes.⁷  He understands "אַחֲרִית הַיָּמִים" to refer not to the distant future and times of the Mashiach but the close future

Parallels to Moshe's blessing – The second half of Yaakov's blessing to Yosef (vs. 25-26) contains several parallels to the blessing later given by Moshe to the tribe of Yosef.  Ibn Ezra might suggest that Yosef paved the way for his progeny and the individual blessings that he merited were passed on to his later tribe.

Mrs. Potiphar's Attempted Seduction

Yaakov spoke of Yosef's triumphant rise to power despite the slandering of Mrs. Potiphar.

Sources:RashbamBereshit 49:1Bereshit 49:22-26About R. Shemuel b. Meir

בֵּן פֹּרָת יוֹסֵף בֵּן פֹּרָת עֲלֵי עָיִן – According to Rashbam the verse speaks of the beauty of Yosef, "a flourishing son" whose tall stature⁸ and good looks caught the eyes (עֲלֵי עָיִן) of those around him.  He understands the doubling to be a common literary phenomenon in Biblical poetry in which a phrase introduces a subject, and is then repeated with some sort of conclusion.⁹

"בָּנוֹת צָעֲדָה עֲלֵי שׁוּר" – This phrase is parallel to the first half of the verse, and speaks of the daughters of Egypt who went to peek (עֲלֵי שׁוּר) at Yosef's beauty.  Rashbam understand the word "שׁוּר" to mean see, as in the verbal from "" in Bemidbar 23:9.

Multiple Events

Sources:Targum Pseudo-JonathanBereshit 49:22-26About Targum Pseudo-Jonathan, RashiBereshit 49:1Bereshit 49:22-26About R. Shelomo Yitzchaki,

Tribal Blessing for the Future

Sources:Targum OnkelosBereshit 49:22-26About Targum Onkelos, RalbagBereshit Beur HaMilot 49:22-26About R. Levi b. Gershom, Hoil MosheBereshit 49:28About R. Moshe Yitzchak Ashkenazi

Combination

Sources:R. Yosef Bekhor ShorBereshit 49:22-26About R. Yosef Bekhor Shor, RadakBereshit 49:22-26About R. David Kimchi, R. Avraham b. HaRambamBereshit 49:22-26About R. Avraham Maimonides, AbarbanelBereshit 49:22-26About R. Yitzchak Abarbanel, SefornoBereshit 49:22-26About R. Ovadyah Seforno

¹ Ibn Ezra points to Tehillim 80:16 as evidence that "בֵּן" can refer to some sort of flora. In all the many other instances of the word, however, it refers to either a son, member of a group, or an age.
Ibn Ezra deos not expalin the words "עֲלֵי עָיִן" but presumably explains them to refer to a spring of water.

² It thus suggests that Yosef will continuously bear fruit.

³ He offers two explanations for the switch between the plural "בנות"  and the singular form of "צעדה".  Either the verse means that each and every branch will climb on the walls, or this is just one example of others in which a singular subject takes a plural form of the verb.  As an example, he points to Kohelet 10:1.

⁴ See Ezra 4:12-16.  In Biblical Hebrew the word might take this meaning in Shemuel II 22:30 (and the equivalent Tehillim 18:30), Yirmeyahu 5:10, and Iyyov 24:11.

⁵ For similar usage see Iyyov 16:12-13.

⁶ The root פזז also appears in Shemuel II 6:14-16, where Michal sees David "מְפַזֵּז וּמְכַרְכֵּר" before the ark.  Two verses earlier there is a similar description, "וְדָוִד מְכַרְכֵּר בְּכׇל עֹז".  Ibn Ezra learns from the parallel that פזז relates to strength.

⁷ He also points out that the word "blessing" might be  a misnomer and that Yaakov did not aim to bless his children in these statements but simply to relay certain infomartioon.  Only afterwards (verse 28) did the brothers receive his blessing (the content of which is not mentioned).

⁸ Rashbam paints Yosef in the image of other kingly figures such as Shaul who was "מִשִּׁכְמוֹ וָמַעְלָה גָּבֹהַּ מִכׇּל הָעָם."  Like Ibn Ezra, he reads the word "פֹּרָת" to be equivalent to "פורה", but understands it to refer to a growth in height rather than abundance.

⁹ Other examples can be found in Shemot 15:6, Tehillim 92:10, Tehillim 93:3, and Tehillim 94:1-3.