he tension which has been building up in the text in the past fewParshio t finally reaches its crescendo. Yosef can no longer contain himself, and with a few words he startles and frightens his brothers.

Then Yosef could not restrain himself before all those who stood by him; and he cried, 'Remove every man from before me.' And there stood no man with him, while Yosef made himself known to his brothers. And he wept aloud; and the Egyptians and the house of Paroh heard. And Yosef said to his brothers, 'I am Yosef; does my father still live?' And his brothers could not answer him; for they were panic-stricken by his presence. (45:1-3)

And Yosef said to his brothers, 'Come near me, I beg you.' And they came near. And he said, 'I am Yosef your brother, whom you sold into Egypt. Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that you sold me here; for G-d sent me before you to preserve life. For these two years has the famine been in the land, and there will be yet another five years without plowing or harvest. And G-d sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So now it was not you who sent me here, but G-d; and he has made me an advisor (literally, father) to Paroh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt. Hurry back to my father, and say to him, "Thus said your son Yosef, G-d has made me lord of all Egypt; come down to me, delay not. And you shall live in the land of Goshen, and you shall be near me, you, and your children, and your grandchildren, and your flocks, and your herds, and all that you have. And I will sustain you there, for there are another five years of famine; lest you, and your household, and all that you have come to poverty." And, behold, your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Binyamin, that it is my mouth that speaks to you. And you shall tell my father of all my glory in Egypt, and of all that you have seen; and you shall hurry and bring down my father here.(45:4-13)

While the initial burst of speech - the incredible disclosure - seems to be an explosion of emotion1, the second part of Yosef's talk sounds more measured, perhaps rehearsed. Here Yosef speaks, not merely in practical, human or personal terms2. Yosef speaks again using the words of the visionary that he is. Yosef shares his theological perspective of recent history with his brothers.

Yosef speaks twice without response. It sounds as if the two times the verse says "And Yosef said" indicates a change in tone. Similarly in Bereishit 20:9,10 Avimelech speaks, and speaks again. The shift there, may be attributed to a change in tone, from cynicism to curiosity.

For these two years has the famine been in the land; and there will be yet another five years without plowing or harvest. And G-d sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So now it was not you who sent me here, but G-d; and he has made me an advisor to Paroh, and lord of his entire house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt. Hurry back to my father, and say to him, "Thus said your son Yosef, G-d has made me lord of all Egypt; come down to me, delay not\u2026" (ibid)

Yosef's words are peppered with references to G-d. While his first words inform his brothers that he, Yosef, still lives, the second message conveyed is that Yosef is still spiritually intact. This is part of the brothers' shock: Perhaps Yosef, with great resilience and ingenuity, could have remained alive. But he could not possibly survive the depravity of his sojourn in Egypt. Part of the brothers' problem vis a vis Yosef was their constant and continued underestimation of him. They never thought they would bow down to him, nor did they think that anyone else would prostrate themselves before Yosef. Yosef as lord of Egypt was an idea beyond their wildest dreams. But if there was a more bizarre suggestion, it was that Yosef would survive spiritually. The path toward the highest echelon in any society is fraught with spiritual landmines, all the more so in ancient Egypt. If Yosef survived, and indeed flourished, then the brothers surmised that his soul would have been bought and sold numerous times, retaining no sanctity. Yosef would surely be a corrupt shell of his former self, whom the brothers did not particularly respect in the first place.

Now we understand Yosef's numerous references to G-d. He speaks in theological terms, indicating that he has, indeed, survived. The brothers need not fear: Yosef continues to speak the language of his youth. The boy who sat on Yitzchak's knee, the boy who was closest to their saintly father Ya'akov, yet lives. It is Yosef who lives, not some Egyptian despot. From Yosef's words we see that not only has he survived, Yosef has thrived.

And Yosef dreamed a dream, and he told it to his brothers; and they hated him even more. And he said to them, 'Hear, I beg you, this dream which I have dreamed; For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood around, and made obeisance to my sheaf.' And his brothers said to him, 'Shall you indeed reign over us, or shall you indeed have dominion over us?' And they hated him even more for his dreams, and for his words. And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it to his brothers, and said, 'Behold, I have again dreamed a dream; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me.' (Bereishit 37, 5-9)

what is with me in the house, and he has committed all that he has to my hand. There is none greater in this house than I, nor has he kept back any thing from me but you, because you are his wife; how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against G-d? (Bereishit 39, 7-9)

And they said to him, 'We have dreamed a dream, and there is no interpreter of it.' And Yosef said to them, 'Do interpretations not belong to G-d? Tell them to me, I beg you.' And the chief butler told his dream to Yosef, and said to him, 'In my dream, behold, a vine was before me\u2026'And Yosef said to him, 'This is the interpretation of it: The three branches are three days\u2026But think of me when it shall be well with you, and show kindness, I beg you, to me, and make mention of me to Paroh, and bring me out of this house; For indeed I was stolen away from the land of the Hebrews; and here also have I done nothing that they should put me in the pit\u2026' Yet the chief butler did not remember Yosef, and forgot him. (40:8-23)

Another interpretation: \u2018Happy is the man that has made the Lord his trust\u2019 alludes to Yosef. \u2018And hath not turned unto the arrogant nor unto such as fall away treacherously\u2019: because he said to the chief butler, 'But think of me... and make mention of me' (Bereishit 40, 14). Two years were added to his sufferings. (Midrash Rabbah - Bereishit 89:3)

And there was there with us a young man, a Hebrew, servant to the captain of the guard; and we told him, and he interpreted to us our dreams; to each man according to his dream he did interpret. And it came to pass, as he interpreted to us, so it was; me he restored to my office, and him he hanged. (41:12,13)

Over the next few years we discern a change in Yosef. The ideas which he spoke of earlier become solidified. When Paroh approaches it is no longer either a personal G-d, nor a passing reference. Now Yosef succeeds in affecting others with his belief.