"And the time drew near...and he called his son Joseph"

25. "And the time drew near for Israel to die" (Beresheet 47:29). Rabbi Chizkiyah said, He saw this trouble of exile upon his children, and his soul drew near death. He did not remain alive when he descended his grades because of the sins of Yisrael. YISRAEL, ZEIR ANPIN, did not go into exile with them, LIKE THE SHECHINAH, WHO WENT INTO EXILE WITH THEM. HE ASKS, Happy is the portion OF YISRAEL, for if He, ZEIR ANPIN, would not have gone down with them into exile, they would have remained among the nations WITHOUT BEING ABLE TO ESCAPE. Why then does it say, "Why, when I came, was there no man, and, when I called, was there none to answer?" (Yeshayah 50:2). "Was there none to answer" alludes to Yisrael, NAMELY ZEIR ANPIN; "when I came, was there no man:" This is the Shechinah. "Is my hand shortened at all, that it cannot redeem, or have I no power to deliver? Behold, at my rebuke I dry up the sea, I make the rivers a wilderness." SO DID ZEIR ANPIN COME DOWN ALSO WITH THEM INTO EXILE? HE ANSWERS, The Holy One, blessed be He, gave a portion to Yisrael, so that no other minister would rule over them; THUS HE IS WITH THEM IN EXILE. ALSO when they went into exile, the Shechinah was with them, but ZEIR ANPIN was far away from the Shechinah.

26. "And he called his son Joseph, and said to him, If now I have found favor in your sight" (Beresheet 47:29). He examined all his sons and said to them, I see many evil troubles come upon your children, and ONE SHOULD find supernal Mercy.

27. If you wish to be delivered from all these troubles, swear before me, and we shall have the Master of the Universe AS WITNESS between us, that you will conduct yourself according to truth and justice, and behave like your fathers. You shall teach it to every generation that will come after you. If you do so, you shall escape all the troubles that will come upon you.

28. Rabbi Shimon said, TO EXPLAIN AWAY THE DIFFICULTY THAT HE CALLED ONLY JOSEPH HIS SON AND NOT ALL THE TRIBES, THE WORDS OF RABBI SHIMON ARE BROUGHT HERE. "And establish justice in the gate, it may be that Hashem Elohim of Tzeva'ot will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph" (Amos 5:15), for all the children of Yisrael are called Joseph.

29. THE ZOHAR RETURNS TO THE WORDS OF JACOB: 'If you shall do so, you shall bury not one of my children in Egypt, but return safely with me to your land.'

30. It is written, "Put, I pray you, your hand under my thigh" (Beresheet 47:29). HE ASKS, What is "your hand?" He opened the discussion saying, "Gird your sword upon your thigh, O mighty warrior: your glory and your majesty" (Tehilim 45:4). ALSO "YOUR HAND UNDER MY THIGH" ALLUDES TO A SWORD, WHICH IS a sword of Grace and Truth, the two Sfirot which do not separate from each other; NAMELY YESOD WHICH CONTAINS THE LIGHT OF CHASSADIM AND THE LIGHT OF CHOCHMAH, CALLED TRUTH AND BRIGHTNESS OF COUNTENANCE. Therefore it says, "Love and Truth shall go before you" (Tehilim 89:15), "The anger of Hashem divided them" (Eichah 4:16). And if His children were good and did what they accepted upon them, not one of the children would have died in Egypt, for each kindness that the Holy One blessed be He decrees upon men is on the condition they will be good. As David said, "That Hashem may continue His word which He spoke concerning me, saying, 'If your children take heed to their way, to walk before Me in Truth'" (I Melachim 2:4). But if not, He shall not.

31. Come and behold, better is the spirit of the father than the spirit of the son, for the spirit of the father is that of the son, spirit drawn from spirit. THUS WE FIND THE FATHER'S SPIRIT IN RELATION TO HIM IS THAT OF THE ROOT IN RELATION TO ITS BRANCH. But if another air OF THE OTHER SIDE contributes to the spirit of the son, he is not born whole, but rendered defective by that air OF THE OTHER SIDE; NAMELY "a wild donkey used to the wilderness, that snuffs up the wind in her desire" (Yirmeyah 2:24).

32. We learned that Rabbi Hamnuna Saba (the elder) once went to Cappadocia. Going towards him was Rabbi Yisa Saba. [According to Rav Ashlag, this paragraph is a later interpolation, which in other versions starts with Rabbi Aba.]

33. "And he said, 'Swear to me'" (Beresheet 47:31). Rabbi Chizkiyah opened the discussion saying, "Hashem has sworn by His right hand, and by the arm of His strength" (Yeshayah 62:8), WHICH MEANS Hashem swore He would deliver Yisrael from their exile. This is what He swore to them BY THE VERSE, "AND HE SWORE TO HIM" (BERESHEET 47:31), WHICH ALSO REFERS TO THE HOLY ONE, BLESSED BE HE. He swore to them He would not abandon them in the land of their enemies.

34. "And he said, 'Let me go, for the day breaks.' And he said, 'I will not let you go, unless you bless me'" (Beresheet 32:27). What does "bless me" mean? IN OTHER WORDS, WHAT WAS THE BLESSING HE CONFERRED UPON HIM? HE ANSWERS, he assigned them to exile and swore to them He would deliver them from it.

35. We learned that the Holy One, blessed be He, would ARRANGE for all His children of Yisrael, to dwell under His throne, and surpass the high ANGELS. Therefore, one finds a long Vav IN THE TORAH, LIKE IN "WHATEVER GOES ON ITS BELLY (HEB. GACHON)" (VAYIKRA 11:42), which is an allusion that the Holy One, blessed be He, swore upon the perfection of the Vav (= 6) generations, THE SECRET OF ABRAHAM, ISAAC, JACOB, MOSES, AARON AND JOSEPH, THE SECRET OF THE SIX SFIROT: CHESED, GVURAH, TIFERET, NETZACH, HOD AND YESOD. Because of these six, IT IS WRITTEN, "And Israel bowed himself upon the bed's head" (Beresheet 47:31), YISRAEL BEING THE SECRET OF ZEIR ANPIN, WHICH INCLUDES, CHESED, GVURAH, TIFERET, NETZACH, HOD AND YESOD. The bowing of Israel ALLUDES TO the coming of the Messiah at the end of this time; MEANING, AFTER SIX THOUSAND YEARS, ALLUDING TO THE SIX COMPLETE SFIROT, CHESED, GVURAH, TIFERET, NETZACH, HOD AND YESOD, CLOTHED BY SUPERNAL ABA AND IMA, WHICH SFIROT ARE EACH OF A THOUSAND YEARS. And the Shechinah will dwell among them.