Mikeitz 2020

1Dreams come in pairs.

2Jacob dreamt two times, once leaving Israel and once when it was time to return. Joseph dreamt of sheaves of wheat and then of celestial bodies. Joseph cell mates each dreamt on the same night. Pharaoh had two dreams one following the other. I believe that in each case the two dreams are meant to compare and contrast one to the other. Joseph‘s interpretation of Pharaoh’s second dream intentionally dismisses this idea. “And Joseph said to Pharaoh ‘it is one single dream…. As for the repetition, It was repeated to demonstrate the correctness and the immediacy of the expected outcome all before G-d.” As an expert in dream interpretation it is unlikely that Joseph missed the subtle differences between the two dreams. Joseph may have understood something from within the second dream that he was unwilling to share. The good news for Joseph was that Pharaoh was ok with the provided interpretation. The two dreams were strikingly different. In the first dream Pharaoh was part of the dream, “In my dream I am standing on the banks of the river”. Pharaoh’s presence was absent from the second dream. In the first dream “And the Skinny cows devoured the fat cows but it wasn’t noticeable in the skinny cows.” In the second dream the dream ended with the swallowing of the fat ears of grain. No result on the condition of the skinny ears was reported. The first dream had cows coming out of the river. In the second dream the ears “Came up” with no mention of source. We don’t know where the ears came from but we can assume it was the earth. Joseph’s interpretation of the years of plenty followed by years of famine certainly fits more closely to the second dream than to the first. The predicted famine was universal and not restricted to the proximity of the Nile River. Pharaoh’s absence matched the presence of another person namely “the person to be appointed” to manage the situation. As a result of the savings the years of famine were hardly noticeable so the result actually was that the skinny ears became fatter and the feeling of famine was obviated. You may argue, and it wouldn’t be wrong, that the second dream was the repair of the first dream. It will certainly help explain why Joseph was forward with his immediate suggestion to appoint a manager. It actually was a part of the “interpretation” that he was asked to provide.

3However, it is altogether possible that the cow dream was totally different and disassociated from the second dream. Many of Pharaoh’s interpreters suggested just that. They told Pharaoh that the skinny cows were an invading foreign nation as Pharaoh suggested “I have never seen such weak and inferior cows as these in the land of Egypt”. The interpreters suggested that they would come and conquer Egypt. It is no surprise that Pharaoh rejected this negative interpretation. Joseph understood this dream completely. He knew that, one day, a nation weakened, inferior in appearance (emphasis in appearance only), would emerge from the Nile (Moses came from the Nile) and would proceed to consume and destroy the fat cows and yet would not become like them. It was no surprise that Pharaoh was disturbed by these dreams as they were premonitions of what was to be his nation’s ultimate and total destruction.

4The Parsha read on or about Channukah every year mirrors the Chashmonaim story exactly.

5Dedicated to the memory of Joel Shulman A’H.