05 Jan Parshas Shemos

The Kli Yakar, in this week’s parsha writes, “The brothers tried with all their might to destroy Yosef and to prevent the realization of his dreams, but all their plans failed. Hashem wanted to make Yosef great, and Hashem’s plan always prevails.

“Similarly, Pharoh said pen yirbeh (lest they will increase in number) and he thought of tactics [how to stunt the nation’s rapid growth] but he failed… Every step that Pharoh took… worked against him…”

We must know that Hashem has a plan for the world, and there is nothing people can do to change it. Hashem wanted Yosef to be the ruler, and Hashem wanted that the Yidden should increase and multiply in Mitzrayim, and humans can’t do anything to stop Hashem’s plan from happening.

The Kli Yakar teaches this lesson on the passuk “vayakam melech chadash al Mitzrayim asher lo yada es Yosef — a new king rose over Mitzrayim who didn’t know Yosef” (Shmos 1:8). The Kli Yakar explains that this new Pharoh didn’t know Yosef’s life-story. In his dreams, Yosef saw his brothers bowing down to him. To prevent this from happening, his brothers sold him as a slave to Mitzrayim. They figured that this would certainly prevent the dream from materializing. Ultimately, their attempts only aided the dream to transpire. Yosef became the ruler of Mitzrayim, and when the brothers came down to buy wheat, they bowed down to him. Pharoh didn’t know this story. If he would have known, he would have realized that it is impossible to go against Hashem’s plan.

To prevent the nation’s rapid growth, Pharoh decreed forced-labor on the nation. But this only caused the nation to proliferate more. As Rashi (1:13) writes, “You say pen yirbeh (lest they will increase), and I say kein yirbeh (so shall they increase)….” because it is impossible to go against Hashem’s plan for the world.

The Steipler Gaon zt”l shows how Pharoh’s schemes worked against him at another time. That happened when Pharoh tried to kill the redeemer of Klal Yisrael. Rashi writes, “On the day that Moshe Rabbeinu was born, Pharoh’s astrologists said, ‘Today, the savior of the Jewish people was born…” (1:22). In response Pharoh decreed, “Every male that is born should be cast into the Nile.” Rashi explains, on that day, even the Egyptian new-borns were cast into the Nile. But Pharoh wasn’t able to spoil Hashem’s plan. Moshe was placed in a casket on the Nile. Basyah (Pharoh’s daughter) found him, brought him home, and raised him in Pharoh’s home! So instead of destroying the redeemer of the Jewish nation, Pharoh ended up raising him in his own home, because Hashem’s plan will always prevail.

The Yismach Moshe discusses another miraculous event. When the brothers first came down to Mitzrayim, they were speaking with Yosef but they didn’t recognize him! How could this be? To answer this question, Rashi (Bereishis 42:8) writes that Yosef grew a beard, and they remembered him when he was still seventeen-years-old, without a beard. But it still seems odd that they didn’t consider that maybe he is Yosef. Rashi (on Bereishis 42:12-14) tells us that when the brothers came to Mitzrayim, they entered through ten different gates, because they were searching for Yosef. So why didn’t it dawn on them that the ruler of Mitzrayim is Yosef? The answer is: If Hashem doesn’t want them to recognize Yosef, they won’t. Hashem didn’t want Yosef to be discovered just yet and there is nothing people can do to circumvent Hashem’s will.

The Gemara (Shabbos 119) tells us the story of Yosef Mokir Shabbos. The poor Yosef Mokir Shabbos would borrow money to buy things lekavod Shabbos. Once, a fisherman showed him a large fish and Yosef Mokir Shabbos bought it to honor the Shabbos. When he cut the fish open, he found a diamond inside. The diamond was sold for thirteen pots filled with gold. The primary purpose of this Gemara is to teach us that when one invests in Shabbos, Shabbos will pay him back.

The Gemara, however, tells us many more details of this story: Yosef Mokir Shabbos had a wealthy neighbor. An astrologist told this neighbor that all his wealth is destined to go to Yosef Mokir Shabbos. To protect his wealth, he sold all his assets and bought a precious stone for that value. He then had it sewn into his hat. It happened that this wealthy neighbor was crossing a bridge when his hat fell into the lake below, and was swallowed by a fish. Yosef Mokir Shabbos bought that fish. The Ben Yehoyoda (from the Ben Ish Chai zt”l) asks, why does the Gemara tell us all these details? Wouldn’t it be sufficient to say that Yosef Mokir Shabbos invested in Shabbos and found a diamond in the fish that he bought?

The Ben Ish Chai answers: The Gemara wants to teach us an additional lesson. It is teaching us that one can never evade Hashem’s plan. Hashem wanted the neighbor’s wealth to go to Yosef Mokir Shabbos. The neighbor did whatever he could to protect himself, but he didn’t know that if Hashem plans otherwise, he won’t succeed. In fact, his attempts only facilitated the transfer of all his wealth to Yosef Mokir Shabbos, in a permitted and honorable manner.