A Tale of Two Coffins

Vayechi THURSDAY, DECEMBER 24 12 TEVET, 5776 ב"ה וַיִּשְׂאוּ אֹתוֹ בָנָיו (בראשית נ, יג) And his sons carried him (Bereishis 50:13) A Tale of Two Coffins All Yaakov's sons carried his coffin from Egypt to Canaan, says Rashi, with the exception of Levi and Yosef, who were represented by Menasheh and Ephraim instead. In Rashi's words, Yaakov instructed them, "Levi shall not carry it because he (i.e., his tribe) is destined to carry the Aron. Yosef shall not carry it because he is a king." We find, however, that whereas the future carrying of the Aron precluded the tribe of Levi from carrying Yaakov's coffin, yet when Bnei Yisrael were leaving Egypt, Moshe, who was of the tribe of Levi, carried Yosef's coffin himself. Evidently, carrying these two coffins from Egypt represented two very different ideas, only one of which conflicted with the tribe of Levi's future as bearer of the Aron. Our Sages tell us that as long as Yaakov lived, his presence in Egypt prevented the enslavement of his family to the Egyptians on any level (see Rashi on Bereishis 47:28). Thus, Yaakov's passing and the transfer of his body from Egypt marked the early beginnings of Bnei Yisrael's slavery in Egypt. Levi and his tribe, however, were never subject to the slave labor (see Rashi on Shemos 5:4). For when Pharaoh originally came to recruit Bnei Yisrael to "join him" in his work effort, the tribe of Levi refused to join, reasoning that it was not appropriate to participate in building Pharaoh's cities when one day they would be the ones to carry the holy Aron. Consequently, when Pharaoh later forced his original workers into slave labor, the tribe of Levi was not affected by that decree (see Baalei Hatosafos, Shemos 1:13). Accordingly, it was unsuitable for Levi, who "transcended" the Egyptian bondage, to take part in carrying Yaakov's coffin, a stage in the slavery's development. Carrying Yosef's coffin from Egypt, however, was a symbol of Bnei Yisrael's redemption. For Yosef's remains in Egypt had been Bnei Yisrael's greatest source of hope that they would be redeemed, as Yosef had assured them, "G-d will surely remember you, and you shall bring up my bones from here with you" (Shemos 13:19). The most suitable to carry Yosef's coffin was therefore Moshe, from the tribe of Levi, who in fact led Bnei Yisrael to their long-anticipated redemption. —Likkutei Sichos, vol. 20, pp. 237-238 Sponsor a Lightpoints email A project of Or Hachassidus ביוזמת ולזכות הרה״ח הרה״ת ר' ישעי' זושא ווילהעלם שליט״א להצלחה רבה לו ולכל משפחתו בגו״ר

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