VaYeshev Excerpts

וישב

Shabbat Shalom

The wife of Yosef's master, Potiphar, wants to sleep with him. And that is how most of the problems in this congregation started. One person wants something, and nobody else wants the costume casino party, and Fran pushes her way, and then everybody is enslaved and jailed by a costume casino party.

(39:7) Yosef was good looking. Nobody wants to be with an ugly dude. They marry them, but they want the good looking guy. Yosef was 'good looking of form and handsome in his appearance.' He didn't have random protrusions...We have good looking people here, but you are disheveled. Your appearance is off. The children are running around in rags...Walmart hand-me-downs. 

He continues to tell her that the only thing he has not been trusted with in his master's house is her. That would be wrong. She didn't see it that way. Or did she?

(39:9) He tells her that he can't lay with her, and explains 'how can I do this exceedingly bad thing, and sin to Gd?' 

When you sin and wrong another person, H' is there. You are sinning to Gd. We know how little you all respect each other here. We know how much you all curse each other out. I counsel you, so I know how much you really hate each other. You should tell her about the big hat in shul and how it gets in the way...We know how boring costume casino can be, with no alcohol...You have no idea who you are talking to, Bernie. But, if you take into account that you are sinning to Gd, then you might think twice. 

Is it your master's house? Or is it H's?

(39:11-19)

One day, when nobody was around, she caught his clothes and he let his clothes go, and ran out. Which is where we learn that it is illegal to go streaking. 

She told everybody that he tried to sleep with her and she screamed, so he ran away and left his clothes. She then told her husband, Potiphar, and he got mad.

Yosef refused, but he still got caught. (39:20) He was put in jail. Which is where we learn that you should never leave your clothes at the scene of the crime. You hold up a liquor shop, and you make sure you leave with your clothes...They didn't even have DNA back then...I understand that you were doing it, to help out the casino party. You had good intention. We are just lucky that the owner of the liquor shop is a member of the shul...You don't rob the Christmas Tree Shop for Chanukah gifts.

And just like he was in charge of Potphar's house. He is handed the leadership of the jail, and full trust of the prison warden. Yosef was a leader, no matter where he went. It would be good if we had somebody in this congregation that we could say 'that is the gabai.' No leaders here.

We learn that people lie. The people of this congregation have been lying about the number of members it has...Those are associate members, Frank. We are still in need of money for the building fund.

Potiphar's wife lies and doesn't show any guilt. Just like Fran and the Markowstein family.

(39:23) '...whatever he did, H' made successful.' The head of the jail understood that H' was with Yosef. When you notice that H' is with somebody, you don't have to watch over them. You know they will be honest. You know they will be successful. Why does the board constantly question me?...

Is there one person in this congregation that H' is with? One person who is successful, that can donate...One person that can be entrusted with the Gabai-ship?...WAY TO TAKE THAT LEADERSHIP, MARK. YES, YOU WILL!!! Just get a better shirt and tie. A bit better of appearance. Somebody buy him a decent suit for Chanukah this year.