Despite the Glory

After Yosef experienced the traumas of Parshat Vayeishev—being nearly killed and then sold by (or because of) his brothers into slavery, falsely accused of rape, and imprisoned—his fortunes change dramatically in Miketz. He interprets Pharaoh’s dreams and rises to the second-highest position in the land. He marries into a distinguished family and fathers two children.

It is precisely at this moment, when everything seems to be going well, that Yosef names his children. His second son he names Ephraim:

וְאֵ֛ת שֵׁ֥ם הַשֵּׁנִ֖י קָרָ֣א אֶפְרָ֑יִם כִּֽי־הִפְרַ֥נִי אֱלֹהִ֖ים בְּאֶ֥רֶץ עׇנְיִֽי

“And the second he named Ephraim because ‘Hashem has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.’ (Bereishit 41:52)

Why does Yosef emphasize that Egypt is the land of his affliction, specifically at the height of his success?

One possibility is that Yosef is reflecting on his past, acknowledging how profoundly God has transformed his fortunes. This is the position taken by Radak:

שהיתה לי מתחלה ארץ עניי ועתה הפרני האל בה בבנים ובעושר וכבוד.

[The land] that was originally the land of my affliction, but now God has made me fruitful in it with children, wealth, and honor.

Ralbag similarly explains that the spiritual lesson here is the obligation to thank God for all He does.

R. N. H. Wessely captures the element of radical surprise embedded in Yosef’s experience:

ואת שם השני קרא אפרים – אחר שהודה לאל על נשואיו ולדת הבן שגרמו לו נשית עמלו ובית אביו, הודה בלדת הבן השני לאחים, כי הפרה אותו בארץ עָנְיוֹ, כלומר בארץ שנמכר שם לעבד וגם ברזל באה נפשו. ומי יאמין כי בגיא צלמות כזה יראה טוב? כאשר עשה עמו אלהים חסד גדול להעמיד ממנו גם זרע. וְיֵרָאֶה שעל כן קראו ״אפרים״ בלשון רבים לכלול בו הודאתו גם על הבן הראשון שהפרהו השם פַּעֲמַיִם.

And he called the name of the second Ephraim—for after he had thanked God for his marriage and for the birth of the son that caused him to forget his toil and his father’s house, he gave thanks, at the birth of the second son, for the brothers as well: that God had made him fruitful in the land of his affliction, that is, in the land where he was sold as a slave and where iron entered his soul. And who would believe that in such a valley of the shadow of death one could see good? Yet God showed him great kindness, establishing from him offspring as well. It therefore appears that he called him “Ephraim” in the plural, to include in it his thanksgiving also for the first son, for God had made him fruitful twice.

Rabbi Yitzchak Abarbanel, however, understands Yosef’s words differently. Yosef refers to Egypt as the land of his affliction not in retrospect, but in the present:

והבן השני קרא אפרים כי הפרני אלהים בארץ עניי שהיה קורא מצרים עם כל מעלתו שמה ארץ עניו להיותו נפרד מאביו ומהארץ הקדושה ולזה נזכר כאן הספור הזה אחרי ספור התבואה להגיד שלא נשכח מבית אביו ומארץ מולדתו עם כל הגדולה והגבורה והתפארת שהיה לו ועושר התבואה אשר בידו.

“And he called the second son Ephraim, for ‘God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.’ He would refer to Egypt, with all its greatness, as a land of affliction, because he was separated from his father and from the Holy Land. For this reason, this narrative is mentioned here after the account of the produce, to indicate that he was not forgetful of his father’s house or of the land of his birth, despite all the greatness, power, and splendor that he possessed, and despite the abundance of produce that was in his hand.”

Abarbanel highlights two intertwined losses that Yosef continues to feel: separation from his father and separation from the spiritual benefits of the Land of Israel. Glory and power could not compensate for what mattered most to Yosef—his family, particularly his father and the values he represented, and his spiritual identity. Without those, Yosef still felt lacking.

This idea resonates deeply with Chanukah as well. Greek culture offered much, and many Jews embraced it. Yet those who rebelled did so because of the spiritual limitations imposed upon them. The allure of full participation in Hellenistic culture could not justify abandoning the values of the Torah.

We celebrate the rededication of the Beit HaMikdash specifically by lighting candles in—or adjacent to—our homes. The central unit of Chanukah observance is ner ish u’veito, a candle for each household. Even as we publicize the miracle to the outside world, we do so from within the family unit.

Chanukah thus highlights our recommitment to the values of family and Torah. We do not reject the world, but we recognize that in order to engage it meaningfully, rather than be absorbed by it, to assimilate it rather than be assimilated by it, we must remain rooted in our core values.