Yosef’s Bones

Shavua Tov. One of the minor details of today’s Parsha is the fact that Moshe himself, dealt with the bones of Yosef.

Rabbi Soloveitchik points out that this was more than an act of Chesed. It was an effort by Moshe to even the score and make things right. Moshe was from the tribe of Levi, and it was Levi together with Shimon, who gave Yosef the most grief that ended with Yosef’s sale to Egypt.

There is an important lesson to be learned here. When someone wrongs somebody else, the pain does not simply go away. Even if many years have passed, it is never too late to try to make amends. It takes a lot for someone to swallow his pride and apologize for his wrongdoings. But in the eyes of G-d, it is important to clean the slate.

Moshe did this with his act of Chesed to Yosef.