Parshas Vayeshev 5776

Who Was the Man that Joseph Met in the Field?

The Torah writes (Genesis 37:15-17):

And a certain man found him, and, behold, he was wandering in the field. And the man asked him, saying: ‘What seekest thou?’ And he said: ‘I seek my brethren. Tell me, I pray thee, where they are feeding the flock.’ And the man said: ‘They are departed hence; for I heard them say: Let us go to Dothan.’ And Joseph went after his brethren, and found them in Dothan.

Rashi (ibid) based on Midrash Tanchuma says this was angel Gabriel:

This was the angel Gabriel as it says: "And the man, Gabriel" (Daniel 9:21)

Tosfos haShalem (ibid) says this was the angel Raphael:

"And a certain man found him" - I have heard that "Raphael" is the numerical value of "man"

Midrash Rabbah (Bereishis Rabbah 84:14) says there were three angels:

Rabbi Yanai says: three angels were summoned for him as it says "and a man found him", "and a man asked him", "and the man said".

(Similar explanation can be found in Rashi earlier [16:9], regarding multiple angels talking to Hagar)

Ibn Ezra (ibid) learns this was a regular person:

Simplest explanation that this was one of the travellers on the road

Who Was Tamar?

The Torah writes (Genesis 38:6):

And Judah took a wife for Er his first-born, and her name was Tamar

Ha-emek Davar (ibid) explains:

She so important that her name was mentioned [by the Torah]

Rashi (Genesis 38:24) explains that she was the daughter of Shem (based on Genesis Rabbah 85:10):

She was the daugther of Shem, who was a priest, therefore they judged her to be burned

(see also the Ramban [ibid] who asks that a daughter of a priest that violates Yibum does not get judged for death, and that Judah was similar to a king and his family was judged differently because of potential embarrassment)

Sefer haYashar learns that she was the grand-daughter of Shem:

And Yehuda went to the house of Shem, and took Tamar, the daughter of Elam son of Shem, for Er, his firstborn, as a wife

Midrash Bereishis Rabbasi (here and here) learns she was originally from Aram Naharaim:

She was the daugther of Shem. And our Rabbis says that she was from daughters of Aram Naharyim, and Yehuda took her, her father, mother and three brothers with her and would not let them come back to Aram Naharyim. Instead, he gave them a city for them to live in.

[Published at parshapeople.blogspot.com / Comments welcome to parsha-people@publishyoursefer.com]