17 Dec PARASHAT VAYESHEV: THE PRECIOUS VALUE OF SILENCE

We read in Parashat
Vayeshev of the
hatred that Yosef’s
brothers felt toward
him. The background
to their hatred is the special love shown
to Yosef by their father, Yaakob, who
made him a special garment (“Ketonet
Pasim” – 37:3), as well as Yosef’s
bringing negative reports about them to
their father (37:2).
The Gemara in Masechet Shabbat (10b)
comments that a parent must ensure
not to show favoritism to one child
over the others, noting that “because
of the extra two Sela’im-worth of fine
wool that Yaakob gave to Yosef more
than his other sons, his brothers envied
him, and this resulted in our forefathers
descending to Egypt.” Yakaob’s
favoritism toward Yosef fueled the
brothers’ hatred which ultimately led
them to sell him as a slave to Egypt,
such that the special garment given to
Yosef can be said to have indirectly
caused the Egyptian exile.
A number of commentators raised the

question of why the Gemara emphasizes
that the garment weighed “two
Sela’im.” Why is this detail relevant to
the message being taught, that one must
ensure to avoid showing favoritism to
one of his children?
Some Rabbis offered a deeper
explanation of the Gemara’s comment,
suggesting that the Gemara alludes here
to a hidden message latent within the
garment which Yaakob gave to Yosef.
Elsewhere in the Talmud, in Masechet
Megilla (18a), the Gemara teaches,
“Mila Be’sela, Mashtuka Bi’trein” – “A
word is worth a Sela, silence is worth two
[Sela’im].” Very often, remaining silent
is far more effective, and powerful, than
speaking. Yaakob gave Yosef a garment
made from two Sela’im of wool as an
allusion to the importance of silence,
which is described as having the value
of two Sela’im. As mentioned, Yosef
regularly brought his father negative
reports about what he perceived as his
brothers’ misconduct. Of course, his
intentions were sincere and pure; we
may reasonably assume that Yosef was

well versed in the laws of Lashon Ha’ra,
and knew the conditions that must be
met to allow speaking negatively about
other people, including the condition
of pristinely sincere motives. There is
no doubt that Yosef was not looking
to cause trouble or to earn his place
as Yaakob’s favorite son, but rather
brought this information to Yaakob’s
attention so he could address his sons’
behavior. Nevertheless, under the
circumstances, with brewing tensions,
Yosef should have remained silent. Not
everything that can be said should be
said.
This is why Yosef’s garment is referred
to as “two Sela’im-worth of fine wool.”
Yaakob gave Yosef two Sela’im to
impress upon him the great value of
silence, which is worth “two Sela’im,”
twice as much as a spoken word.
It goes without saying that we should
not be speaking negatively to or about
people out of anger, spite or revenge.
This is clearly forbidden. But the
Gemara here indicates to us that even
when our intentions are noble and

sincere, criticism is not always wise.
Very often, silence is far more prudent,
far more effective, and far preferable.
Even when we see value in saying
something, we need to consider the
possibility that refraining from saying
it will yield a more desirable outcome.
Let us never underestimate the precious
value of silence, and let us always
ensure to think very carefully before
expressing any sort of criticism or
negativity.