How did King Pharaoh of Egypt know Yosef was giving him the correct interpretations of his dreams?
At the beginning of Parshat Mikeitz, the Torah tells us all the details of the two dreams of the king. Then we’re told how Yosef was suddenly elevated to stand in the presence of the king. The Torah could have easily just said Pharaoh then told Yosef all about the content of the dreams. But no, we find that Pharaoh goes into all the details, and we hear about the dreams a second time.
Intriguingly, however, there are some small differences in terms of how Pharaoh explained his dreams as opposed to what really happened in the dreams. For example, in the original dreams, we’re told Pharaoh was standing on the river, and then Pharaoh says to Yosef, “I was standing on the banks of the river.
The Midrash Tanchuma tells us that on every occasion on which Pharaoh deviated slightly from what he had originally seen, Yosef corrected him and said, “No, it’s not on the river; it’s on the banks of the river.” At one point, Pharaoh cried out to Yosef, “Were you eavesdropping on my dreams?”
It was this that convinced Pharaoh that Yosef was not only somebody who knew the interpretation, but someone who knew the dreams. And this extraordinary fact convinced him that what Yosef was saying was the word of Hashem.
Now, I believe that there is such an important message for us all, which goes well beyond Pharaoh, Yosef, and Egypt at the time, and anything to do with dreams. It’s all about interpreting a situation and problem-solving.
If you want to know how to understand a situation in order to provide a solution for it, if some of your facts are wrong, then your capacity to provide a solution will be impeded.
For example, right now, we continue tragically to witness an ongoing war in the Middle East, and we’re finding continuously that there are people right around the world who have all the solutions.
They are pronouncing, “This is what must be done in order to guarantee ongoing peace and security.” Sadly, however, a lot of the information they have is simply not correct. And sometimes, they are basing their own interpretations on the feelings that they have, because of the images they have seen.
From Yosef, we learn that if you want to provide a solution, the facts need to be correct.
No wonder, therefore, that our tradition tells us: Knowing the question properly is half the answer.
So let us take this opportunity to thank Hashem with all our hearts for the great miracle we have witnessed - the release and safe return of the living hostages. With hearts full of thanks, we acknowledge His endless kindness and mercy, and we pray that those who have returned home find healing, strength, and peace after all they have endured.
We also continue to pray for the release of the one remaining hostage body and Divine Protection over our courageous IDF soldiers, police officers, medical teams, firefighters, ZAKA members, security forces, and every individual who stands in defense of our people - in Israel and throughout the world.
May all who are in need, be blessed with healing, yeshuot, shidduchim, children, and parnassah tova, and may we be blessed to have just continuous joy and to only go from one simcha through to the next, the most awesome, gorgeous, beautiful, peaceful, happy, healthy, amazing, relaxed, spiritual, sweet Shabbat and Happy Chanukah.
