Beyond its national symbolism, Judah approaching Joseph carries profound meaning in Divine service (avodat HaShem). It symbolizes the need for unification distinct approaches to serving the Creator.
In this week’s partzuf, we will look at some of the main interpretations given to the role of Joseph and Judah and the meaning of their encounter and place them in a unifying model.
Relating to a Tzaddik, Relating to God
Before we begin, let us consider what is probably the most obvious symbolism in Joseph and Judah’s meeting. Joseph is known as Joseph the Tzaddik. Thus, the words, “Judah approached Joseph” can refer to every Jew approaching a tzaddik without any intermediaries or barriers. Just as a true tzaddik is not seen as a barrier between the individual and God, so too, there should be no barrier between the individual and the tzaddik.
In light of this principle of that we first learn from Moses, whose self-nullification ensures that he does not get in the way of an individual’s connection with God, we find Rebbe Nachman of Breslov teaching that, the words Judah spoke to Joseph, he simultaneously addressed heavenward, “Please, my lord, let your servant speak a word in my lord’s ears, and do not let your anger burn against your servant....”
The Chatam Sofer expands on this idea, as does the Izbicer Rebbe. They suggest that when a Jew speaks, regardless of who they are addressing, they should have the intention that, in essence, they are speaking with God. This was the approach taken by all the tzaddikim, the disciples of the Ba’al Shem Tov.
Crown: Pleasure in the Divine and Acceptance of the Yoke
There are a number of different interpretations that correspond to the crown in its complexity. In general, Josheph and Judah represent pleasure and will, the interior and exterior parts of the crown known as Atik Yomin and Arich Anpin. Joseph represents the interior aspect of the crown, the Divine delight or pleasure in serving God referred to as “the Head of Nothingness” (Reisha deAyin). A person who attains this state experiences a (paradoxical) revelation of the true being, and this can even be sensed by the physical body. For example, it is told of the great tzaddik, Rebbe Nachum of Chernobyl, although he lived in extreme poverty and had almost nothing to eat, his body became physically robust and fat from the Divine pleasure he experienced in responding with fervor, “Amen, yehei shemei rabbah mevorach.”
Judah represents the exterior aspect of the crown, Divine will, which manifests as the acceptance of the yoke of Heaven, serving God beyond reason and intellect. So, while Joseph reflects the Divine pleasure that transcends understanding, Judah reflects the unwavering commitment and submission to God’s will, also beyond intellect and comprehension. This means that Judah represents a submission to the Divine will that is not an intense emotional longing but rather the simple will of a faithful servant who exists solely to fulfill the will of their master, without any other considerations. It is not driven by a passionate emotional desire to nullify oneself and be included in God but instead by the straightforward will of a true servant. This servant has nothing in life other than their master, and their entire being is directed toward fulfilling the master’s will. This is undoubtedly a service that transcends reason and understanding—it is inherently Jewish.
Which is higher: acceptance of the yoke or Divine pleasure? This is a deep question explored extensively in Chassidic teachings, particularly in Chabad. Each has a unique advantage over the other. But in truth, they need to work together. Divine pleasure is akin to light, while submission to Divine will serves as its vessel. “Judah approached him” reflects the dynamic in which kabbalat ol pleads and entreats Divine pleasure, the force that actualizes goodness in the world; Divine pleasure is the “king” in this dynamic, and everything flows according to its decree. However, Judah’s submission and acceptance of Joseph’s sovereignty act as the foundation and vessel that makes it possible to capture the pleasure of the Divine allowing it to be revealed and ensuring that God’s beneficence is expressed in all creation.
Crown: Exile and Redemption
Expanding on this idea, it is written that Joseph’s pleasure is akin to the verse in the Song of Songs, “How beautiful and how pleasant is pleasurable love” (הבהאים גנועתב). Joseph, even when he is in prison, enduring suffering in Egypt, remains in a state of inner joy and Divine pleasure. No matter where he finds himself—even in the pit with snakes and scorpions or confined in the prison—he experiences Divine success and pleasure in his path.
In contrast, Judah often willingly places himself in peril. Like Joseph, his life is filled with trials, challenges, and hardships. But unlike Joseph, Judah does not experience Divine pleasure, even though he yearns for it with all his being. In the Song of Songs, Judah’s state is described as, “I am love-sick” (ינה אהבת אלחו). As such, Joseph represents the Jew in times of redemption, such as during the existence of the Temple, when we can experience Divine pleasure. Judah, on the other hand, represents the Jewish people in exile, longing and yearning for divine closeness.
Chasidut teaches that there is more of the essence revealed during exile. This is one of the great innovations of the Ba’al Shem Tov: the longing and thirst for God in exile surpass the satisfaction of redemption. The Ba’al Shem Tov explains this with regard to the verse “So, too, I have seen You in the sanctuary”: If only, when I return to the Beit HaMikdash, I could retain the same yearning I felt in the wilderness, in a dry and parched land without water.
In this light, Judah approaching Joseph reflects exile approaching redemption. Both are rooted in the crown. The root of redemption is in Divine pleasure (הבהאים גנועתב), while the root of exile in the will of the crown (ינה אהבת אלחו) whose root is in the highest part of the crown, faith. According to this interpretation, the encounter of Judah and Joseph speaks directly to us in our time known as ikveta deMashicha—the footsteps of the Messiah. It describes the moment when exile reaches out to unite with redemption—Judah approached him.” This is happening in our time, right now.
Unity and Multiplicity
If Judah symbolizes the Jew in exile—a Jew characterized by self-sacrifice, acceptance of the yoke of Heaven, and adherence to mitzvot not for personal gratification but purely out of submission to God’s will—then Judah also reflects the state of “I am asleep,” which relates to exile. Nonetheless, even in this state of sleep in exile, “my heart is awake” which suggests some level of awareness, it is like someone asleep but experiencing a vivid dream—ultimately, they are still asleep.
In contrast, Joseph represents the Jew who is fully awake. Joseph symbolizes the Jew in redemption, one who is spiritually awake and alive, experiencing true delight and joy in Divine service.
Now the difference between them is that a person who is awake perceives all the details of reality, everything they experience around them, as a unified whole. Just as when the body functions, one experiences it as a single cohesive entity without focusing on individual organs. Interestingly, the hallmark of being awake is perceiving the world as unified. What is sleep? A sleeping person experiences every phenomenon in the world as separate and disconnected. They live in a reality of multiplicity. In contrast, the hallmark of being awake is living in a reality of unity and harmony. Thus, if a person truly feels separation in the world they live in, it is a sign they are spiritually asleep.
A person doesn’t always know whether they are awake or asleep. However, according to these teachings, there is a clear sign: if the world appears as one unified whole, you are awake. If you see the world as filled with contradictions, with phenomena that are different and conflicting, it is a sign you are asleep. Indeed, it is written that the essence of a dream is the coexistence of opposites, constant contradictions. And yet, in this state, Judah demonstrates simple acceptance of the yoke of Heaven and performs mitzvot with the mindset of “they were not given for personal enjoyment.”
Joseph, however, operates on an entirely different level. He sees the same reality but perceives it as a unified whole. For Joseph, everything he sees, everything that happens, is one picture reflecting God, the Master of the Universe, in simple clarity.
Judah and Joseph’s perspectives are described in Chasidic thought as representing two states of mind. Joseph’s is termed, “Divinity is a given and the world is a novelty” (תושדחתה תבקות אל). Judah’s experience is the opposite. He lives in a dream state where “the world is a given and Divinity is a novelty” (תומותעול תושדחתה תבקות אלת ויטושפב). In his perception, the world is made up of different things—different people, different opinions, and each distinct from the other. This multiplicity is Judah’s default state. If he occasionally has a spark or flash of divine revelation, it is referred to as “Divinity is a surprise”—a novelty.
Wisdom: First Refinement and Second Refinement
The sefirah of wisdom is associated with both Creation and with its refinement. These are captured in the verse, “You made them all with wisdom” and in the Zohar’s statement, “All are refined through wisdom.” Refinement though is a complex process and Joseph and Judah have different roles in it. Joseph’s role is described in his first dream, “Behold, we were binding sheaves in the field”—meaning, we were engaged in the work of refinement—“and behold, my sheaf arose and stood upright,” indicating that Joseph’s refinement surpasses that of his brothers. Then, his brother’s sheaves bowed down to Joseph’s. Chasidic teachings explain that Judah’s refinement corresponds to the first refinement that occurs in the lower worlds (Beriah, Yetzirah, and Assiyah), while Joseph’s refinement corresponds to the second refinement that takes place in the higher world of Emanation (Atzilut).
The first refinement, performed by the tribes in general and by Judah in particular focuses on the nullification of the ego (לווטישביה). This entails taking one’s ego, one’s sense of self, or the ego of any entity, and causing it to feel nullified, making it submit before the Divine nothingness (ayin) that continuously brings it into existence. Submission of one’s own ego—recognizing the falsehood of one’s self-centered desires and relinquishing them—is not an easy task.
The second refinement, associated with Joseph, is nullification of being (לווטיתיאוצמב) itself. In this state, the Divine nothingness is no longer something external that flows into oneself—it becomes one’s very essence. The individual no longer feels separate from the Divine; rather, he truly becomes one with the Ayin.
For Judah to approach Joseph reflects Judah’s agreement and submission to Joseph’s vision as expressed in his dream. He accepts Joseph’s role in bringing all their sheaves to a state of nullification of being, within the World of Emanation.
Binah: Joseph – Light; Judah – Vessel
One of the most basic concepts in Kabbalah and Chasidut is that there are lights and vessels that contain them. Without a vessel, a light cannot express itself properly. The state in which a light is contained in a vessel is known as tikkun. While in wisdom we spoke of refinement (יםררוֵב), in binah we speak of tikkun (ןוקית), or enclothement of lights in vessels. It is in the World of Creation (היארב) that we find the initial revelation of vessels into which the light needs enclothe and the World of Creation corresponds to the sefirah of understanding (Binah). Thus, interpretations of Joseph as light and Judah as vessel correspond to the sefirah of understanding in our partzuf.
While the root, or Divine source of the vessels is considered higher than that of the lights, the vessel must still receive from the light, and the light must be willing to dwell within the vessel. “Judah approached him” thus symbolizes the state in which the vessel ascends to meet the light. A proper enclothement or tikkun of light in a vessel requires that the light and the vessel be balanced. One way of thinking of this is that since the vessel is ascending, the light needs to be willing to descend. If the amount of ascent exhibited by the vessel is not balanced with the amount of descent exhibited by the light, tikkun will not be achieved. The sense of balance in Hebrew (ןוזיא) is derived from the word for “ear” (ןזא)—in humans, this is also true anatomically—and the ear and hearing are also associated with the sefirah of understanding.
One of the best parables used to illustrate the relationship between the light and the vessel is between spouses, a topic we have addressed in length in our works on marriage. Another image that can be used is that of the relationship between the spiritual and the material. If they cannot be balanced then the material realm is left soulless, like the Torah’s description of the earth as “chaotic and void,” the Biblical source for the notion of the World of Chaos that shattered and fell. There are a number of possible distinct scenarios of chaos that are beyond our scope here.
Another important relationship that captures the need for tikkun between the light and the vessel is the way in which prayer and Torah need to be integrated. Prayer, the toil of the heart is the vessel represented by Judah while the Torah in it, the intent one has—the toil of the mind—is the light that needs to be integrated and is represented by Joseph.
Knowledge: Joseph as Knowledge and Judah as Faith
Rebbe Nachman interprets Judah as faith and Joseph as knowledge. We place this interpretation in the sefirah of knowledge (תעד). In short, the idea is that there are two types of questions about Divinity in this world: Questions that have answers and questions without answers. To find answers to the first type, one must exert great effort to study, investigate, and understand—this is the toil of the mind, or Joseph. Not doing so can lead to inner heresy, creating internal conflict between the heart and the mind. But one must acknowledge that there are questions for which, in this world, no answer exists. In such cases, one must strengthen themselves with simple faith—this is the toil of the heart, or Judah. As simple faith becomes more tangible, it transforms into a known reality, it becomes revealed and evident to me. Again, the proper relationship between knowing and faith needs to be struck in life.
In the future, all faith will become included within knowledge, within Joseph, which is why “Judah approached him”—faith aspires and yearns to be integrated into knowledge.
Loving-Kindness: Joseph as Shabbat Service and Judah as Weekday Service
Here we turn to the Noam Elimelech and the Sefat Emet. The Sefat Emet teaches that Judah represents weekday service, while Joseph represents Shabbat service. Joseph embodies the pleasure of Shabbat (Oneg Shabbat), whereas Judah represents service through toil and effort, the labor of the weekdays. Loving-kindness is just below wisdom, and the work of the weekdays represents the first or initial refinement (Judah) we reviewed in connection with wisdom, while the spiritual work we do on Shabbat represents a second, higher refinement (Joseph). The first day of the week—Judah’s toil and effort—is associated with the sefirah of loving-kindness.
To complete our placement of this interpretation in the sefirah of loving-kindness, we add the insight of the Noam Elimelech that the difference between the weekdays and Shabbat is that Shabbat is Divine service entirely driven by love. He further explains that the essence of weekday awe (if Shabbat is love then the weekdays are awe) should emerge from love. This is the deeper meaning of “Judah approached him.” Judah’s toil during the weekdays, rooted in awe, is elevated and transformed when infused with love, creating a unified Divine service.
Might: Judah as the Plower and Joseph as the Harvester
Here we place the interpretation offered by the Sochatchov rebbes, the Shem MiShmuel and his father, the Avnei Nezer. In understanding, we identified Judah and Joseph as the heart and the mind. By approaching Joseph, Judah—the heart—expresses a yearning to ascend. Now, in the sefirah of might, which is directly under understanding, the Shem Mishmuel writes that Judah represents a broken heart. This broken heart is the ultimate vessel (Judah, again) as declared by the verse, “A broken and contrite heart, O’ God, You will not despise.”
Now, the Midrash connects our verse “Judah approached him” with a prophecy from Amos: “The plowman shall meet the harvester, and the treader of grapes he who sows seed.” The plowman (שֵרֹחו) represents Judah. The harvester (רֵצֹקו) represents Joseph. This is a Messianic prophecy, akin to “She conceived and gives birth together,” – the future state where investment and profit will occur simultaneously. However, the Shem Mishmuel recounts that his father explained the term plowman as referring to Judah, symbolizing one who breaks their heart by plowing their inner self. This is the work of cultivating a broken heart. Just as plowing “softens the earth,” so plowing one’s inner self turns a heart of stone into a heart of flesh—i.e., a broken heart.
Elsewhere, the Avnei Nezer, in his commentary on the laws of reaping, explains that the essence of reaping or harvesting is separating the crop from the earth. The Shem Mishmuel expands on this by drawing from the Maharal of Prague: harvesting represents the ability to sever the intellect from its attachment to corporeality. As long as the mind cannot conceive of abstract ideas in their pure form, it remains bound to materiality and lacks the quality of a truly “detached intellect” (לּדבל נכֵׂש), as it was referred to by philosophers. A detached intellect can fully grasp spiritual concepts, free of the distortions of material imagination based on the illusory world.
Beauty: The Concealed Tzaddik and the Revealed Tzaddik
In beauty (tiferet) we place an interpretation from Rebbe Naftali of Ropshitz. One of the defining characteristics of the sefirah of beauty is that it has one concealed third (its Chabad) and two revealed thirds (its Chagat and Nehi). The idea here is that there are two types of tzadikim: a concealed tzaddik who has a desire to be revealed (this is the “eighth of an eighth of pride” within him) and revealed tzaddikim. While living in Egypt, Joseph, sitting on the royal throne shows no outward sign whatsoever of being a Jew. He appears to be an Egyptian, yet his attachment to God surpasses, by an immeasurable degree, that of his brothers. Joseph represents the tzaddik whose Divine service of God is entirely concealed, whereas Judah represents the tzaddik whose service is entirely revealed to all.
Joseph serves God exclusively in concealment, through the cleaving of his thoughts, while his adherence to mitzvot is completely imperceptible to someone who is not aware of who he is. He might appear to be a simple water-drawer.
With respect to the sefirah of beauty, Torah corresponds to its middle third (Chagat) and the mitzvot and prayers correspond to its lower third (Nehi). The imperceptible Divine service of the concealed tzaddik corresponds to its upper third (Chabad).
At the beginning of Keter Shem Tov, it is written that the Divine service of beauty is to bring God a sense of satisfaction, as it were, nachas that His will was done, “Israel with whom I beautify Myself” (ראּפְת אּךְּר בּשֲל אֵּאּרְׂשִי); if your intention is for God to take pride in you, that is the service of Tiferet. There are those for whom this manifests without any outward sign, to the extent that others might think, like in Joseph’s case, that he was an Egyptian. This is why there are many stories of Eliyahu HaNavi appearing as a non-Jew.
Judah thus recognizes the existence of the extraordinary concealed tzaddik and draws near to him. This concept applies to our own Divine service as well. Torah and mitzvot are essential, but there is also a hidden dimension of service, a major principle embodied by the true concealed tzaddik, who should also exist within each of us. If we do not yearn for it, we become self-important, coarse, and disconnected.
Victory and Acknowledgment: Pleading for the Power to Reveal Godliness in Nature
Here we place another explanation from Rebbe Nachman who speaks about humanity’s fundamental error: perceiving only reality’s revealed aspect (laws of nature) and missing its concealed Godliness. Because we see the world as governed solely by nature, we focus on intermediaries, such as medicine and doctors (for health) or business and a career (for livelihood), and elevate them to primary importance, forgetting the Creator. Judah approaching Joseph here takes us back to the idea that Judah is actually speaking to...
