Tuesday, December 18, 2012

In the End It's All OK

"And now, you did not send me here, rather it was Hashem." The Bais Yaakov of Ishbitz offers a very powerful understanding of Yosef's message to his brothers. After all, weren't the brothers aware that Hashem directs the footsteps of man, and nothing happens that is beyond His will? What was he telling them that they were unaware of already?

He explains that Yosef was telling his brothers that what they did was exactly what Hashem wanted to happen. They facilitated the will of Hashem being fulfilled. At the end of days Hashem will show all people that all of their actions, including the ones they thought were sinful, were actually His will. It is not the act itself which is the sin, rather it is the attitude that one is sinning. Feeling and believing that one can act outside of Hashem's will, that is the true sin.

An example of this can be found in the union of Yehudah and Tamar. Superficially it appeared to be sinful. However the Talmud explains that when Tamar was being judged a voice came out from heaven and declared "This secretive behavior was My doing." There are times when Hashem cannot bring about a union in the usual manner and has to resort to subterfuge to bring it about. The same was true with Yosef's forced descent to Egypt.

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