This coming Shabbos, we will read about the rishe of a new king “who did not know Yosef.” Last week we observed the inauguration of a new mayor in New York. Are there similarities between the two?
The new Pharaoh in Mitzrayim knew very well that Yosef existed and had saved Mitzrayim from famine. To understand what a king “who did not know Yosef” means, we need to look back at Parshas Vayigash and Egyptian history.
Written records and archaeology show that there was a struggle for power in Mitzrayim between the Hyksos, a Semitic people of shepherds who lived in Goshen, and the Hamite native Egyptians. It is in this context that we can better understand why Pharaoh invited Yaakov and his family to Goshen, “for all shepherds are abhorrent to Egyptians.”
During the years of plenty, Yosef stockpiled grain for the years of famine that were ahead.
When the famine hit, Yosef managed the emergency by empowering the state to ensure that the basic needs of the Egyptian people were met. He sold grain, amassing all of Mitzrayim’s money into Pharaoh’s treasury. Next, he gathered all the flocks of sheep, cattle, and donkeys into Pharaoh’s hands. Finally, the people sold their land and themselves to Pharaoh. Yosef moved all of the population to cities to break the connection to their former lands. He distributed grain for people to plant, with one fifth of their produce to be turned over to Pharaoh, the rest remaining in the hands of the farmers.
Desperate times can call for desperate measures. Yosef empowered the state to provide for the everyday needs of the Egyptian people while setting up a future economic system that would allow people to keep most of the fruits of their own labor.
In an era where democracy was unknown, Yosef was what the Greek philosopher Plato described as a “benevolent despot,” a man who amassed great power and used it to benefit the people.
This was appreciated by the Egyptian people, who proclaimed, “You have saved our lives; we are grateful to my lord, and we shall be serfs to Pharaoh.”
By the time Yosef and his brothers died, the native Egyptians were seeking to rally support to defeat the Hyksos. Like many demagogues through the ages, Pharaoh needed a scapegoat to incite the population against. Yosef, as a powerful official of the previous regime and a relative of shepherds living in Goshen, was the perfect target.
Using the very facts described at the end of our parsha, the new Pharaoh painted a revisionist picture of Yosef.
Yosef was the man who took advantage of a crisis to enrich himself and his family. Yosef was the man who gathered all the sources of wealth, making us all wards of the state. Yosef was the man who reduced us all to being serfs and tenant farmers.
Yosef was transformed from the arch-hero to the arch-villain of Egyptian history. From there it was an easy step to make the Yisraelim as a whole the scapegoats for Mitzrayim’s problems.
It is interesting to note that what Pharaoh and his advisors said about the Yidden are the same arguments used by anti-Semites today.
“The Yisraelim are too numerous and too powerful for us.”
The Yidden are too powerful. The Yidden have all the money. The Yidden control the banks and the media. They have amassed power by taking from us.
“In the event of war, they may join our enemies in fighting against us and rise from the ground.”
The Yidden are disloyal. The Yidden side with our enemies.
Pharaoh turned history on its head. He transformed Yosef from a hero to a villain. He used the very success of Yidden to proclaim that the Yidden had gained power by illicit means and should be enslaved for the benefit of the Egyptian population.
Today, our enemies—including many of our one-time friends—are also turning history on its head.
The Yidden who were victims of genocide are portrayed as the perpetrators of genocide.
Yidden, with a connection to Eretz Yisroel going back almost 4,000 years, are portrayed as “colonialist settlers.”
The success of Yidden in all facets of human endeavor is attributed to Yidden being part of the “oppressor class.”
Palestinians who have rejected numerous offers for statehood in order to attempt to annihilate Yisroel are portrayed as victims, while Yisroel is portrayed as an obstacle to peace.
People inspired by anti-Semitism couched in the language of human rights and social justice have committed violence against Yidden. While “progressives” lament the discrimination against numerous other groups, it is Yidden—who make up just 0.2% of the world’s population yet are the victims of the majority of hate crimes in New York City.
Zohran Mamdani rose to power using the terms “Zionists” or “Israelis” rather than Yidden to proclaim these lies. He wasted no time in translating his rhetoric into action. As one of his first acts in office, he ended the city’s acceptance of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of anti-Semitism and allowed companies doing business with the city to boycott Yisroel. His affinity for having bagels and lox for breakfast on Sunday morning is of no comfort.
As Mamdani proved that anti-Semitism masquerading as anti-Zionism can be a successful political program, others have jumped on the bandwagon. This includes dangerous figures on the right like Tucker Carlson.
Sadly, even some of our own people have bought into Mamdani’s poisonous rhetoric. Approximately one third of Jewish New Yorkers voted for him.
As Pharaoh hardened his decrees, many Yidden blamed Moshe for “making us loathsome to Pharaoh and his courtiers, putting a sword into their hands to slay us.” Similarly, today, there are many Yidden who blame Israeli policies for the alarming rise in anti-Semitism. We too have our Doson and Aviram.
Even Moshe himself began to despair, asking Hashem, “Why did You bring harm upon this people? Why did You send me?”
As we look at the situation today, it is easy to become discouraged. Yet we cannot give in to despair. Success is our best revenge. We need to support candidates from both parties who have the courage to stand up to the Mamdanis and the Carlsons. We need to intensify our commitment to Yisroel and the Yiddishe people.
Yet we can take heart from Hashem’s reply: “I will bring you into the land which I swore to give to Avrohom, Yitzchok, and Yaakov, and I will give it to you for a possession—I, Hashem.”
That promise is being fulfilled as we speak. Within the next few years, a majority of Yidden in the world will be living in Yisroel, something that was not achieved in the entire Second Beis HaMikdash era. We are returning to the land where our kings ruled, our nevi’im preached, and our chachamim taught, to write the next page in the story of the Yiddishe people.