Translated
and adapted by Moshe-Yaakov Wisnefsky, for "The Chumash of the
Lubavitcher Rebbe
"Joseph
then took them both - Ephraim with his right hand, to Israel's left,
and Manasseh with his left hand, to Israel's right - and brought them
close to him. Israel reached out with his right hand and rested it on
the head of Ephraim, even though he was the younger son, and rested
his left hand on the head of Manasseh. He crossed his hands deliberately,
knowing that Manasseh was the firstborn." (Gen.
48:13-14)
"Since
Manasseh was the firstborn, he deserved the primary blessing, which
Jacob would convey through his right arm." (Rashi)
The
name "Manasseh" expresses Joseph's wish that he resist the
enticements of the material world (i.e. not "forget his father's
house"), while the name "Ephraim" expresses Joseph's
wish that he accomplish his mission (i.e. to "be fruitful")
while in exile. Since before we attempt to refine the world we must
take measures to ensure that we are immune to its temptations, Joseph
named his firstborn "Manasseh", and wished to give him precedence
in receiving Jacob's blessing, as well.
In
granting his blessing, however, Jacob focused on the purpose of our
descent into exile: not mere survival, but the ascent that follows our
successful encounter with exile. By transforming the exilic state into
one of redemption, we achieve a greater degree of divine consciousness
than we began with. He therefore wished to give precedence to Ephraim.
Furthermore,
we have to summon deeper spiritual powers to transform exile than we
do merely to survive exile. Thus, both Manasseh and Ephraim were the
more important son in their respective ways, and Joseph and Jacob were
both correct, from different perspectives, in choosing which one to
give the greater blessing to.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Copyright
2001 chabad of california / www.lachumash.org
Rabbi
Moshe Yaakov Wisnefsky is a scholar, writer, editor and anthologist.
Originally from Los Angeles, he moved to Israel in 1977, and currently
lives in Jerusalem. While living in Tsfat, he was one of the three founders
of ASCENT in 1983.
