In this weeks parsha, parshat vayeishev, in pereck lamid zayin pasuk gimel it says
וְיִשְׂרָאֵל אָהַב אֶת־יֹוסֵף מִכָּל־בָּנָיו כִּי־בֶן־זְקֻנִים הוּא לֹו וְעָשָׂה לֹו כְּתֹנֶת פַּסִּים
Now Yisroel loved Yosef more than any of his other sons, because he was a ben zekunim to him, and he made a richly ornamented robe for him.
I chose to concentrate on the words ben zekunim.
What is the reason that Yaakov loved Yosef more than all his other children?
בן זקונים: שנולד לו לעת זקנתו. ואונקלוס תרגם בר חכים הוא ליה כל מה שלמד משם ועבר מסר לו. דבר אחר שהיה זיו איקונין שלו דומה לו:
Rashi gives three answers:
- Because Yosef was born in Yaakov's old age so he felt a greater affection for him
- Rashi quotes Onkelos saying: Yosef was a wise son to Yaakov, and all that he learned from the beit midrash of shem and ever, he taught to Yosef
- the midrash says that the word זקונים is a contraction of זיו and איקונין meaning facial features, meaning that Yaakov favored Yosef because they resembled each other
what are other explanations of the words ben zekunim? if it means son of his old age, wouldn't it make more sense for his favorite to be Binyamin because he was born later?
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ReplyDeleteIs it possible that the basis for Yaakov’s love for his son Yosef was that he resembled him more than any of his other sons? Yaakov loved Yosef because he understood and perceived his potential to be almost identical to his own – more so than all of his sons combined.
ReplyDeleteThe Toldos Avraham explains that the words, "ben zekunim" are talking about Yosef's character. Yaakov saw that Yosef's actions were the same as an individual who is "old and wise". His actions can be compared to an individual with a "lifetime of wisdom".
ReplyDeleteThe Chinuch Malchusi explains that in addition to Yosef being called this just because he was the youngest, it sends a further message. The baby of the family is usually treated with the most leniency. The older children must endure the father's vision and his desire to raise the ideal child.
ReplyDeleteThe baby is often treated more like a grandchild than a child, as he is overloaded with affection. Reality has set in, expectations are lowered, and age has softened the stringency of the parents. The parents learn how to appreciate the good in the child, a thing that a well seasoned parent no longer takes for granted.
In this environment the child can flourish. His mind is at ease and his emotional needs satisfied. "Do not hit a child too much", says Rabbeinu Gershon (Bava Basra 21a). "No one ever got smarter from being beaten."
Ramban brings a pshat answer and translates it literally. He says that “ben Zekunim” means that Yakkov chose Yosef to ‘serve’ him in his old age. Ramban says it was a common thing back then for a father to choose one of his sons to help and look after him. This child would stay with his father while the other children continued on. “Ben Zekunim” means a son for old age not a son of old age.
ReplyDeleteAnother explanation mentioned in Ben Ish Hai Derashoth, is that if a father is dear and respected in the eyes of his son, the child will absorb all the wisdom and knowledge that his father gathered over many years. As a result, even when a child is young in age, he is considered to be much older, because he has acquired for himself the wisdom that his father obtained over a period of many years. This is the precise opposite of the wicked, whose days are considered to be shortened, because they did not learn anything from anyone.
ReplyDeleteWhen Ribbi El'azar Ben 'Azarya said: "Harei Ani Keben Shib'im Shanah" (behold I am as if I were seventy years old) even though he was just seventeen or eighteen at the time, one explanation is that this takes into account all the knowledge he acquired from his father. So too Yoseph learned everything that his father had learned and, as a result, at the age of seventeen was considered much older.
Ben Ish Hai derashoth gives another explanation of the words בן זקונים.
ReplyDeleteHe says that if a son respect his father, it is the only way a son will be able to fully absorb all the knowledge his father had obtained over the years. Therfore even when a child is young he is considered "בן זקונים״. Because he has the wisdom of an old man, the wisdom of his father.
-Tili Tsour
the Kli Yakar says that ben zekunim is a description of yosefs behavior with respect for yaakov although yosef acted a certain way with his brothers he acted differently when he was with his father and conducted himself in a manner that was appropriate when in the presence of an older person
ReplyDeleteThere are many interpretations of the words ״בן זקונים״, the simplest interpretation is Rashi's who says that it literally means old age and most parents have a "soft spot" for their youngest child.
ReplyDeleteBut this doesn't make sense because Yosef wasn't the youngest... Binyamin was.
So why then does the Torah refer to Yosef as בן זקונים?
Unkelus says that בן זקן means "wise child" because Zaken can mean/be interpreted as wise one-- saying that Yosef was Yaakov'd wisest son.
Rashi says that Yaakov taught Yosef all of the "Torah" that he had learned. Rashi also says that the father and son looked alike and that formed a special bond between them