10. "And it came to pass at the end of two years." Rabbi Chiya opened the discussion with the verse, "The king by justice establishes the land, but he who exacts gifts overthrows it" (Mishlei 29:4). Come and behold, When the Holy One, blessed be He, created the Upper World, BINAH, He made everything properly and created bright lights that shone in all directions. THESE REPRESENT THE THREE COLUMNS, and all is united into one. He created heaven above, WHICH IS ZEIR ANPIN, and the earth below, WHICH IS THE NUKVA, to combine as one - BINAH, ZEIR ANPIN, AND NUKVA - to benefit the lower beings.
11. Come and behold, In the verse, "The king by justice establishes the land," who is the king? He is the Holy One, blessed be He - BINAH. The words "by justice" refer to Jacob, THAT IS, ZEIR ANPIN, who forms the foundation of the land. Therefore the letter Vav IN THE NAME YUD HEI VAV HEI, WHICH IS ZEIR ANPIN, is sustained by the upper Hei IN THE NAME YUD HEI VAV HEI, WHICH IS BINAH. The lower Hei IN THE NAME YUD HEI VAV HEI, WHICH IS THE NUKVA, is sustained by the Vav, WHICH IS ZEIR ANPIN, because "justice establishes the land" with all its needs, and nourishes it.
12. Another explanation of "the king" is that it refers to the Holy One, blessed be He, while justice refers to Joseph, "who established the land" as it is written, "And all countries (lit. 'and all the land') came to Egypt to Joseph to buy provisions" (Beresheet 41:57). Because the Holy One, blessed be He, favored Jacob, He made him governor of all the land.
13. Rabbi Yosi said, "The king" is Joseph and "by justice" is Jacob, because as long as Jacob did not come to Egypt, the land was beset by famine. After Jacob came to Egypt by his merit, the famine was gone and the land was established.
14. Another explanation is that "The king by justice establishes the land" refers to King David, as it is written, "And David reigned over all Yisrael; and David executed judgment and righteousness to all his people" (II Shmuel 8:15). He established the land DURING HIS LIFETIME, and by his merit, it stood AFTER HIS DEMISE. THE PHRASE, "but he who exacts gifts overthrows it" refers to Rechav'am.
15. Come and behold, For the sake of the righteous, the Holy One, blessed be He, did not impose punishment that had been decreed on the world, so it will not have sway over the world. All the days of King David, the land was established for his sake. After he died, it continued because of his merit, as it is written, "And I will defend this city for my own sake, and for my servant David's sake" (II Melachim 20:6). Similarly, no punishment was inflicted on the world during all the days of Jacob and all the days of Joseph, AS THE FAMINE CEASED FOR THEIR SAKES AND THE ENSLAVING BY EGYPT WAS DELAYED.
16. Come and behold, The verse, "The king by justice establishes the land" refers to Joseph, "but he who exacts gifts overthrows it" refers to Pharaoh. Because Pharaoh hardened his heart against the Holy One, blessed be He, the land of Egypt was destroyed. Before that, the land was thriving through Joseph, in accordance with Pharaoh's dream, as it is written, "And it came to pass at the end of two years..."
17. Rabbi Elazar opened the discussion with the verse, "Hashem lives; and blessed is my Rock; and let the Elohim (Heb. Elohai) of my salvation be exalted" (Tehilim 18:47). "Elohai" is spelled with a Vav. This verse requires careful study. The phrase, "Hashem lives" refers to the Righteous, the foundation of the world, NAMELY, YESOD OF ZEIR ANPIN, who is referred to as the life of the worlds. The phrase "and blessed is my Rock" is the meaning of "Blessed be Hashem my Rock" (Tehilim 144:1). The world, THAT IS, THE NUKVA, is sustained by the generosity of the Righteous, WHICH IS YESOD OF ZEIR ANPIN. IN THE VERSE, "Let the Elohim of my salvation be exalted:" "exalted" refers to the upper world, NAMELY BINAH, and "Elohai" with a Vav is heaven, NAMELY ZEIR ANPIN, as it is written, "The heavens are the heavens of Hashem" (Tehilim 115:16).
18. Come and behold, "Blessed be Adonai who day by day bears our burden" (Tehilim 68:20). The name Adonai is spelled Aleph-Dalet-Nun-Yud, WHICH ALLUDES TO THE NUKVA. This verse contains the mystery of wisdom. "Day by day" is the secret of "two years (lit. 'two years' days')," WHICH ARE THE TWO GRADES BINAH AND ZEIR ANPIN, FOR THE NUKVA IS BLESSED ONLY BY THEM. This is as it is written, "And it came to pass at the end of two years that Pharaoh dreamed, and behold, he stood by the river." We have already learned this secret; it means Joseph, because the words, "a river" refer to Joseph the Righteous.
19. The verse, "And, behold, there came up out of the river seven cows, well favored, and fat of flesh, and they fed in the reed grass" reads "out of the river" because from this river, WHICH IS YESOD, all the grades below are blessed, because the river that flows from Eden, WHICH IS BINAH, waters and sustains everything. And Joseph, WHO IS YESOD, is a river, and the whole land of Egypt is blessed for his sake.