No community start suggestion yet.
Why did Yosef resist Potiphar's wife when she had seemingly valid arguments—an impotent husband living an open marriage? The shiur develops the Ramban (רמב"ן)'s insight that moral decisions require proving an action is right, not merely that it isn't clearly wrong. Yosef exemplified fear of God by refusing to act on desire unless he had certainty the action was permitted.
This shiur explores the fundamental question of how a person arrives at moral decisions, using the episode of Yosef and Potiphar's wife as the paradigmatic case. The parsha presents Yosef resisting the year-long seduction by his master's wife, giving rational reasons: betrayal of trust, violation of his position, and sin against God. Yet Rashi (רש"י) reveals "the rest of the story"—Yosef actually came close to succumbing and only stopped when he saw an image of his father. This raises a puzzle: if Yosef gave such cogent moral reasons, why did the Gemara (גמרא) need to add that he saw his father's image? The complexity deepens when Rashi explains why the Torah (תורה) interrupts the Yosef narrative to insert the story of Yehuda and Tamar. Rashi states that just as Tamar acted "for the sake of heaven" with noble intentions, so too did Potiphar's wife act for the sake of heaven. How can attempted adultery be noble? The answer lies in understanding that Potiphar was emasculated—Rashi in next week's parsha explains he purchased Yosef as a boyfriend, not for his wife, and God made him impotent as punishment. This creates a marriage in name only, an effectively open marriage. From the wife's perspective, she had legitimate arguments: her husband was impotent, interested in men not her, possibly wouldn't object, and she had astrological signs suggesting she should be with Yosef. She genuinely thought her actions were justified.
Looking for the full summary?
Full access is available to members of the TUF Alumni Association or the Yam Hagadol Foundation.
Already a member? Let the admin know!
Dedicate a Shiur in Parsha
L'ilui nishmas a loved one. In honor of a simcha or yahrzeit. As a zechus for a refuah sheleimah. Your dedication helps carry Rabbi Zweig's Torah to learners around the world.
Up Next in this Series
Why does the Torah emphasize Rivka's Aramean ancestry when describing her marriage to Yitzchok? The shiur reveals that Arameans were master manipulators with extraordinary sensitivity to others' psychology. Rivka inherited this keen insight but channeled it into genuine chesed, which requires understanding what recipients actually need rather than what givers want to provide.
Why does the Midrash connect Pharaoh's expulsion of the Jews to the mitzvah of shiluach hakan? The shiur develops a chiddush that Pharaoh's sin wasn't only drowning the children, but the insensitivity of expelling the parents afterward. The deeper analysis reveals that Pharaoh may have valued the Jews greatly and wanted to control them—making his expulsion an act of tremendous cruelty, not liberation.
Why does Moshe respond to the splitting of the sea with shirah rather than praise or thanksgiving? Rashi's use of "al libo" reveals that shirah is an emotional expression—a response of love to love. When Hashem shows personal care, the only adequate response is "I love You too," not mere gratitude or praise, and this principle applies to all relationships.
Vayeishev (Bereishis 39:7-12)
Looking for the full transcript?
Full access is available to members of the TUF Alumni Association or the Yam Hagadol Foundation.
Already a member? Let the admin know!
Why does the Torah separate Avrohom's eulogy for Sarah from his crying for her? The shiur shows that Sarah required a public eulogy focused on the communal loss of a leader, not Avrohom's private grief. This teaches that we must view Jewish tragedies through a national lens first, seeing attacks on Am Yisrael as collective losses that dwarf personal concerns.
