Respect as the Foundation of Love: Lessons from Yaakov, Yosef, and the Wife of Potiphar

Rabbi Zweig addresses a profound contradiction in Rashi (רש"י) on Parshas Vayeishev. When Yaakov sees Yosef's bloodied tunic, he cries out that a "chaya ra'ah" (wild, evil animal) devoured him. Rashi identifies this as ruach hakodesh referring to Potiphar's wife, who would later attempt to seduce Yosef. Yet later, Rashi explicitly states that just as Tamar acted l'shem Shamayim (for the sake of Heaven), so too did Potiphar's wife act l'shem Shamayim—she saw in astrological signs that she and Yosef would share children, not realizing it would be through her daughter marrying Yosef, not through her own relations with him. The question is stark: How can someone act for the sake of Heaven and simultaneously be characterized as a wild, devouring animal? Rabbi Zweig extends this question to Penina, who tormented the barren Chana. Chazal say Penina acted l'shem Shamayim, hoping to provoke Chana to pray harder. Yet all of Penina's children died as punishment. The Kotzker Rebbe offers a piercing insight: How do we know Penina meant it for the sake of Heaven? Because no decent person could be so cruel unless they convinced themselves they were acting righteously. The most terrible behaviors are often cloaked in the mantle of Heaven. But if Penina truly acted l'shem Shamayim, why was she punished? And if she was merely deluding herself, why do Chazal grant her the respect of saying she acted l'shem Shamayim?