Home (Netzarim Logo)

Pâ•râsh•at mi-Qeitz 5th Eve

Bᵊn•ei-Yi•sᵊrâ•eil, Including Bin•yâ•min, Caravan to Ankh-Tawi

Deputy-Par•oh Tzâ•phᵊn•at-Pa•nᵊeiakh
Sets Table For His Brothers In His Home

Deputy-Par•oh Tzâ•phᵊn•at-Pa•nᵊeiakh Eats Separately At Head Table,
Egyptian Staff At Another Separate Table
ca. B.C.E. 1760

So, in the pre-dawn darkness, the brothers packed all of the mi•nᵊkh•âh on donkeys, stuffed double the coins in their pockets—and Bin•yâ•min—and began their donkey caravan, yet again, to Ankh-Tawi to purchase more distribution supplies of grain. Once again, they stood in the line to purchase grain from the Deputy-Par•oh Tzâ•phᵊn•at-Pa•nᵊeiakh.

When the Deputy-Par•oh (their eschewed and estranged brother, Yo•seiph) saw Bin•yâ•min with them, he instructed his chief aide, "Bring those men to my wing of the Palace for a luncheon. Slaughter generously from the tzon and prepare a banquet. So the chief aide did as Deputy-Par•oh Tzâ•phᵊn•at-Pa•nᵊeiakh had instructed, and brought the brothers toward Beit Yo•seiph.

When the brothers saw that they were being brought to the home of the Deputy-Par•oh of Mi•tzᵊrayim, they became terrified, saying among themselves, "It's about the coins that we found in our sacks. He's bringing us to his headquarters where he can roll over on us, fall on us and take us and our donkeys for slaves."

Then they approached the chief aide who was over the Palace of Deputy-Par•oh Tzâ•phᵊn•at-Pa•nᵊeiakh, pleading with him at the gate to the Palace, "It's on me, a•don•i, one said. "We simply came down the first time to purchase some of the grain distribution." He went on to explain to the chief aide what happened, adding, "We've brought more coins to purchase some more grain. We don't know who put our coins back in our sacks."

"Shâ•lom to you," the chief aide replied. "Don't be terrified. Your ël•oh•im and the ël•oh•im of your father, gave you the treasure in your sacks. I received your coins." Then he brought Shi•mᵊōn out of the jail to them and took all of the brothers to the Palace of Deputy-Par•oh Tzâ•phᵊn•at-Pa•nᵊeiakh, giving them water to rinse their feet and fed their donkeys with provender. Meanwhile, the brothers, who were expecting the Deputy-Par•oh to arrive at noon, carefully arranged the mi•nᵊkh•âh that they had brought for him, to make the best presentation. They'd been told that they would attend a dinner-banquet there.

When the Deputy-Par•oh came home, the brothers presented him with the mi•nᵊkh•âh they had brought, bowing before him with their faces down – fulfilling one of his dreams (except for his father, who was not there). So he inquired into their shâ•lom and asked, "And the shâ•lom of your aged father whom you mentioned; is he still alive?"

"The shâ•lom of your worker, our father, is that he's still alive," they replied nodding and bowing.

komer: earth-pit oven
ëÌÈîÇø – ‎1. to stew-roast meat in a subsurface earth-pit containment-oven while coals are hot; or 2. to gently cook fruit in a subsurface earth-pit containment-oven in which coals have cooled to warming temperature. 3. to cast a net as a subsurface containment trapping fish.

As a noun, ëÌÒîÆø, an earth-pit oven, cast-net or agent of netting and containing in the subsurface (netherworld) earth-pit oven fires, evolved into the Hebrew term for any non-Tor•âh cleric.

Looking around at his brothers, he spotted his little brother, Bin•yâ•min, the son of his mother, Râ•kheil. "Is this your youngest brother whom you mentioned?" he asked them, adding "May Ël•oh•im be gracious to you, Bëni." Without pausing, Yo•seiph left them, going into another room, because his compassion for his little brother was stewing in him like a ëÌÒîÆø. So he excused himself, went into a private room and cried.

When he had regained his composure, he splashed water on his face and returned. Keeping his composure, he instructed, "Serve the lëkhëm."

First, the waiters served the Deputy-Par•oh, seated alone at the head table. Then they seated the brothers at their own separate table. Finally, they seated the Egyptians who were attending the dinner at their own separate table (because it would be a to•eiv•âh for the Egyptians to eat with Hebrews – who were eating their sacred, holy cows). The brothers marveled how the waiters discerned to seat them in chronological order of their ages: from senior, the brother born first, to junior, the youngest brother.

When the Deputy-Par•oh had been amply served all that he would want, then remaining portions were distributed to the other dinner guests – and they served five times as much to Bin•yâ•min as to any of the others.

Then they all drank beer or wine and got tipsy with him.

Optional parental preparation:

  1. åÌèÀáÉçÇ èÆáÇç – a doublet, which connotes an amplification of the verb; in the case of this verb in its context: slaughter generously, slaughter for a generous banquetReturn to text

  2. Lit. "they would eat bread." To Hebrews, bread with a meal implied hand-washing (concluded by a bᵊrâkh•âh) followed by the bᵊrâkh•âh over bread, signaling a full dinner banquet (usually including meat and wine) in contrast to a light repast or snack.Return to text

  3. How does an earth-pit oven work?

Questions you might anticipate that your child might raise and be prepared to discuss:

  1. What is provender?

  2. What is step-brother?

  3. What is the head table at a banquet?

  4. What is a sacred cow, a holy cow? (E.g., Hindus in India)

  5. What does discern mean?

  6. What does tipsy mean? (Hebrew: ùÑÈëÇø)Return to text

Rainbow Rule © 1996-present by Paqid Yirmeyahu Ben-David,

Int'l flags


Go Top Home (Netzarim Logo) Go Back

Nᵊtzâr•im… Authentic