- Torah Portion and Tanach
- Bereshit
- Vayechi
129
So it comes as no wonder that the final years of his life are called the years that he actually "lived." He is reunited with his beloved son Yosef, the family is bound together and at peace with one another and is protected, secure and prosperous in their new home in the land of Goshen. Yet Yaakov is aware that this rosy picture of Jewish life in Egypt is a temporary mirage, an illusion that will soon fade and that the years of hardship and bondage are already on the horizon. The Lord had revealed that future to Yaakov’s grandfather Avraham generations earlier and that bill was now coming due. God has promised Yaakov that these future troubles will not be seen by him in his lifetime. Nevertheless, there is no doubt that Yaakov is troubled by the darkened future of his people, a future that he is completely aware of. Yet, we hear no note of pessimism in his final words to the Jewish people and rather both he and Yosef reassure the generations to come that the Lord is somehow with them and will redeem them from all of their troubles and fashion them into the most eternal and influential people on the face of the globe. It is this faith in the future, the belief that good will somehow prevail that is the most important legacy that our father Yaakov has left to us. It is this belief and attitude that is the unique hallmark of the people of Israel and guarantees to us our continuity and ultimate triumph and success.

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