Parshat Vayeishev
By: Rabbi Moshe Goodman, Kollel Ohr Shlomo, Hebron
בס"ד
לשכנו תדרשו
Seeking for the Holy Presence in Our Holy Land
"וישלחהו מעמק חברון"
"Atone for Your people Israel, whom You have redeemed, HaShem, and lay not [the guilt of] innocent blood among your people Israel." These words comprise the prayer of the elders of a city adjacent to the site of a murder whose culprit is unknown, otherwise known as the instance of "egla arufa".
Our Sages teach that before Joseph was sold by his brothers he had been learning this Torah topic with his father Yaakov, as our Patriarchs were fully knowledgeable of the Torah even before it was given at Mount Sinai.[1] What meaning can we gather from the connection and parallels between the sale of Joseph and the instance of "egla arufa"?
The source of Joseph's sale by his brothers stemmed from their hatred towards Joseph and their will to murder him. Similarly, "egla arufa" is brought as atonement for the merest connection to murder. Joseph is sent out by his father to search for his brothers in fields of pasture, and, according to his elder father's interpretation, is killed there by a wild beast. Similarly, in "egla arufa" the corpse is found "outside in the field" and is examined by the elders of the city to determine who should take responsibility.
In regard to Joseph, both Yakov and Reuven, who held leadership roles, felt responsible for the 'death' of Joseph. [2]Similarly, in "egla arufa" the leaders are meant to feel responsible for a murder in their vicinity, to an extent that they must seek atonement and proclaim that they "did not spill this blood". Ultimately, the sale of Joseph was the beginning of the Exile from the Holy Land to Egypt.
"Egla Arufa" applies only in the Land of Israel,[3] a matter that highlights the unique high sensitivity of the Holy Land, and the Holy Presence therein, to bloodshed. In fact, the only reason for court/human-induced exile in Torah (to a refuge city) is due to bloodshed, and Exile from the Land is also linked to bloodshed in Pirkei Avos.[4]
Now we can find more meaning in the Torah's description of Yaakov sending Joseph specifically from "the depths of Hebron" as showing how "HaShem provided the cure before the blow". Our Sages teach[5] that Joseph's descent to Egypt, beginning with his departure from Hebron, was pre-destined in the "deep" prophecy of Abraham of "Hebron", who was told that his offspring will be in exile in a "land that is not theirs", afterwards to "leave with great possession".
Based on what we have just studied, the "depths of Hebron" are even deeper - Hebron, as the very source of our People's connection to the Holy Land, which allows for the atonement for connection to murder in the form of "egla arufa", and as a City of Refuge for negligent murderers, provides the cure and atonement for the near-murder by the brothers. Hebron, City of our Unifying Roots, rectifies these sources of hatred by love, stemming from being the children of the same fathers, still very much alive today - "Od Avinu Hai!"
Real Stories from the Holy Land #45: A few decades ago there were numerous attempts to settle the settlement in Elon Moreh next to Shechem, but without success. One time we decided to leave from Kiryat Arba next to Yeshivat Nir, as the Torah says that Joseph left the "depths of Hebron and arrived at Shechem". Indeed, this time we succeeded."
[1]Midrash AgadahBreshit Vayigash 45, 27
[2]Reuven's confession is explicit in the verses, and Yaakov's feeling is posed by Alshich Breshit 37, 34
[3]Rambam Rotzeah uShemirat Nefesh 10, 1
[4]Chapter 5, 9. See also Shabbat 33a for the reason.
[5]Sotah 11a
