This Shabbat we study the Parshah Vayeshev, meaning “And he dwelt” (Genesis 37:1). Jacob settles in Hebron with his twelve

sons. His favorite is seventeen-year-old Joseph, whose brothers are jealous of the preferential treatment he receives from his

father. Simeon and Levi plot to kill him, but Reuben suggests they throw him into a pit instead, intending to come back later

and save him. While Joseph is in the pit, Judah sells him to a band of passing Ishmaelites, leading Jacob to believe that his most

beloved son was devoured by a wild beast. Joseph is taken to Egypt and sold to Potiphar, the minister in charge of Pharoah’s

slaughterhouse. Potiphar’s wife tries to seduce Joseph. He rejects her advances; she tells her husband that he tried to force

himself on her, and has him thrown into prison. Joseph gains the trust and admiration of his jailers. He correctly interprets the

dreams of the Pharoah’s chief butler and chief baker, who were also incarcerated. The butler, when released from prison,

forgets all about Joseph and does nothing for him.

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This week's haftorah contains an allusion to the sale of Joseph by his brothers, an incident discussed in this week's Torah reading.

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Amos opens with a rebuke to the Jewish People. G-d had been patient with them notwithstanding their transgression of the three cardinal sins — sexual impropriety, idolatry and murder. Their fourth sin, however, crossed the line — the mistreatment of the innocent, widows, orphans and the poor.

G-d reminds the Jewish people how He lovingly took them out of Egypt and led them through the desert for forty years and settled them in the Holy Land. There, He bestowed the gift of prophecy on some and inspired others to become Nazirites. Yet the Jewish people did not respond appropriately, giving wine to the Nazirites and instructing the prophets not to prophesy. Amos then goes on to describe G-d's punishment for the errant behavior: "And the stout-hearted among the mighty shall flee naked on that day, says the L-rd."

The haftorah ends with an admonition from G-d, one that also recalls His eternal love for His people: "Hearken to this word which the Lord spoke about you, O children of Israel, concerning the entire nation that I brought up from the land of Egypt. 'Only you did I love above all the families of the earth; therefore, I will visit upon you all your iniquities…'" As opposed to other nations to whom G-d does not pay close attention, G-d's love for His nation causes Him to punish them for their misdeeds, to cleanse them and prod them back onto the path of the just.

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Cages are made for breaking. There are times Gd will put a soul in prison—often a very lofty soul, such as Joseph. It is like beingheld in a vise. Squeezed with the ultimate of futility, the deepest powers of the soul break through.Rabbi Tzvi Freeman

The Messianic Redemption will be ushered in by a person, a human leader, a descendant of Kings David and Solomon, who willreinstate the Davidic royal dynasty. He will be wiser than Solomon, and a prophet around the level of Moses. Moshiach is notidentified by his ability to perform earth-shattering miracles. He isn't required to perform any miracles at all (although theperformance of miracles doesn't disqualify him either). The following are the criteria for identifying the Moshiach, as writtenby Maimonides: If we see a Jewish leader who (a) toils in the study of Torah and is meticulous about the observance ofthe mitzvot, (b) influences the Jews to follow the ways of the Torah and (c) wages the "battles of G-d”—such a person is the"presumptive Moshiach." If the person succeeded in all these endeavors, and then rebuilds the Holy Temple in Jerusalem andfacilitated the ingathering of the Jews to the Land of Israel—then we are certain that he is the Moshiach.Chabad.org

The story is told of a fellow who dreamt that there was a treasure to be found under a bridge in a distant city. He woke up andtraveled to that far away bridge but when he arrived and started to dig he was immediately challenged by a police officer.When he told of his dream the officer broke out in raucous laughter. You trust these dreams? he asked incredulously. Why, justlast night I dreamt that there is a treasure awaiting me under the floorboards of a home in the following city. To our friend'sastonishment, the police office proceeded to provide his own home address! How ironic that he traveled such a great distancein pursuit of a treasure that all along was waiting for him in his own home.We, too, expend so much energy traveling the world, exploring its secrets and studying its nature, all in a quest for meaning andbeauty. To our surprise we discover that true beauty has all along been lurking within. For in every human being lurks a piece ofheaven.The human being is an amalgam of body and soul. A force of gravity weighs us down and lulls us into a false sense of comfort.We are naturally responsive to the material pleasures of earth; its beauty tempts us, its delights seduce us. However, despite itsendless attraction we are often left unsatisfied. This is because earth's beauty is only a glimpse of the beauty above. Meaningon the earthly plane is only a shadow of true meaning above. When we plug into earthly beauty we inherently sense that weare only teasing ourselves for there is yet so much more beauty to behold.Why then do we not immediately opt for the truest form of beauty? Plugging into beauty above is laborious, a constantchallenge. We each have a latent, Gd given ability to bring heaven’s beauty down to earth but making that choice is difficult.In our Parshah we read that Joseph had two dreams. In one dream he and his brothers were gathering sheaves of wheat in thefield when the brothers' sheaves suddenly bowed to Joseph’s sheaf. In the second dream eleven stars, the sun and the moonbowed to Joseph's star.3These dreams were identical in content but not in context. The first dream occurred on earth thesecond dream occurred in heaven. Pharaoh also had two dreams; in one dream seven emaciated cows consumed seven healthycows and in the second dream seven healthy stalks absorbed seven dried out stalks.4 Both of Pharaoh’s dreams occurred onearth. Why is it that Joseph’s dreams ascended from earth to heaven but Pharaoh’s dreams remained on earth?In Joseph’s first dream everyone engaged in the laborious task. Bundling sheaves in the field under the hot sun is difficult work.But one who is prepared to work hard is capable of climbing the ladder to heaven. One who chooses not to take on thishardship remains, like Pharaoh, forever on earth.Not for us is the facile and effortless. Gd did not bring us to this world so that we can live the easy life. We are here to make thedifficult choices, to make the arduous climb, to bring heaven down to earth. That is what makes us special, that is what makesus human, that is what makes us the chosen people.From an article by Rabbi Lazer Gurkow