Four Weepings

The Torah mentions four times that Yosef cried during the episode of his brothers coming to Egypt. Two of the events were in Parshat Miketz, and two more times in Parshat Vayigash. These are very emotional Parshiot.

The first time Yosef was unable to control himself, was when the brothers expressed remorse for his sale. They said that all of their troubles were because of their callousness. They confessed that they were guilty of not hearing Yosef’s pleas when they threw him into the pit. “He called out to us, and we did not listen.”

Yosef was similarly moved to tears when his younger brother, Binyamin, came down to Egypt. Yosef asked his little brother if he had any children. He was told that he had ten sons and he named each of them in memory of his beloved brother. This was before he realized he was talking to his brother.

The climax of the story was when Yakov was united once again with Yosef. These were tears of joy after not seeing one another for twenty-two years.

The final emotional moment was when Binyamin realized his brother was alive. They both cried on each other’s shoulders as they both saw a prophecy. The Mishkan in Yosef’s territory and the Beit Hamikdash in Binyamin’s territory, would be built and destroyed. Each one felt the other’s pain.

One of the character traits of a Jew is that they are רחמנים, they show pity and mercy. We see from these stories the deep love and caring that existed when our nation began.