257. Come and behold the verse, "And the chief butler told his dream to Joseph" (Beresheet 40:9). Rabbi Elazar opened with the verse, "And it came to pass, when they had gone over, that Elijah said to Elisha, 'Ask what I shall do for you, before I am taken away from you.' And Elisha said, 'I pray you, let a double portion of your spirit be upon me'" (II Melachim 2:9). We must study this verse, for the words are surprising. "Elijah said to Elisha, 'Ask what I shall do for you.'" It was not for him, but for the Holy One, blessed be He, to grant wishes. Moreover, Elisha also knew HE COULD NOT GRANT HIS REQUEST, ONLY THE HOLY ONE, BLESSED BE HE, COULD. Why did he ask, "I pray you, let a double portion of your spirit be upon me?"
258. HE ANSWERS THAT He who held heaven and earth and the whole world in His grip could perform this wish. It is a certainty that the Holy One, blessed be He, always fulfills the wishes of Elijah and the other righteous ones, as it is written, "He will fulfill the desire of those who fear him" (Tehilim 145:19). This is all the more true of he upon whom the Holy Spirit dwells, who bequeaths it to Elisha the righteous. For Elisha was his servant AND WAS WORTHY OF BEING HIS HEIR, as was expressly said by the Holy One, blessed be He, "And Elisha the son of Shafat of Avel-mecholah shall you anoint to be prophet in your place" (I Melachim 19:16). Elisha was then his heir apparent.
259. " ...Double portion of your spirit be upon me" (II Melachim 2:9). HE ASKS, What does this mean? Could it possibly mean that he asks two for one, THAT IS, THAT HIS SPIRIT WILL BE DOUBLE ELIJAH'S SPIRIT? How could he have asked of him for something that he did not possess, AS NO ONE CAN GIVE WHAT HE DOES NOT HAVE? HE REPLIES THAT he did not ask for two spirits for the one he had; he asked that the one spirit he had perform twice as many miracles AS ELIJAH PERFORMED.
260. It is written, "And he said, 'You have asked a hard thing: nevertheless, if you see me when I am taken from you, it shall be so for you; but if not, it shall not be so'" (II Melachim 2:10). WHY DID HE MAKE HIS REQUEST CONDITIONAL? HE ANSWERS THAT he said to him: 'If you could understand the essence of the spirit that I leave you when I am taken from you, it shall be yours.' For the essence of the spirit that he discerns while looking at Elijah is something he should well cleave to.
261. Come and behold, he who looks into what he learned from his Rabbi and sees in him the wisdom HE LEARNED FROM HIM could receive an additional portion of spirit. Come and behold, in whatever he did, Joseph would see the spirit of wisdom in his father's image. He therefore succeeded in what he did, and another spirit of a superior illumination was added to him.
262. When that wicked man said to him, "Behold, a vine was before me" (Beresheet 40:9), Joseph trembled because he did not know what it meant. But when he added, "And on the vine were three tendrils" (Ibid. 10), his spirit rose and received additional illumination. He looked at his father's image and his spirit shone because he understood its meaning.
263. It is written, "And on the vine were three tendrils." Joseph said, 'This is assuredly an altogether good tiding,' for the vine indicated the Congregation of Yisrael, THE NUKVA. Joseph was informed THAT HER TIME CAME TO RULE, "and on the vine were three tendrils" that allude to the three supernal grades that came out of the vine, the priests, Levites, and Yisrael - CHESED, GVURAH, AND TIFERET OF ZEIR ANPIN, WHICH SHINE WITHIN THE NUKVA WHEN SHE IS WHOLE.
264. "...and it was as though it budded, and its blossoms shot forth" (Beresheet 40:10). For their sake, the Congregation of Yisrael mounts TO ZEIR ANPIN and is blessed by the Supernal King, ZEIR ANPIN; "and its clusters brought forth ripe grapes," refers to the righteous men in the world, who are likened to ripened grapes. Another explanation of the verse, "and its clusters brought forth ripe grapes," is that it refers to the wine preserved in its grapes since the six days of Creation.
265. Thus far was Joseph informed by this dream OF THE CHIEF BUTLER. The rest of the dream OF THE CHIEF BUTLER is his. Some dreams are for the dreamer as well as for others; THAT IS, PART OF THEM REVEALS FUTURE EVENTS FOR THE DREAMER, AND ANOTHER PART FUTURE EVENTS FOR OTHERS. " ...And I took the grapes ..." refers to himself - NOT TO JOSEPH.
266. We have learned that whoever sees white grapes in his dream sees a good sign for himself. Black grapes are not A GOOD SIGN. What is the reason for this? There are two grades, black and white. One is good and the other is not, FOR WHITE INDICATES MERCY AND BLACK INDICATES JUDGMENT. All grapes, BOTH WHITE AND BLACK, depend on the secret of the faith, THE NUKVA. According to wisdom, their meanings are explained as either good or evil. The BLACK ONES indicate the need for Mercy, and THE WHITE indicates the providential care of Mercy.