GENESIS XLIV:18-XLVII:27
YEHUDAH’S LEADERSHIP
When the fourth son was born, she named him Yehuda (Judah) in gratitude, this time, to God. Why did she decide to thank God after the birth of her fourth son? Possibly to teach that to give birth, to beget a child, cannot be taken for granted, it requires God’s intervention. It should not be forgotten that the other three matriarchs had great difficulty conceiving.
Yehuda is the only one of the sons whose name is associated with God in its first two letters. The “yod” and the “heh” are the first letter the Tetragrammaton. Yehuda was destined to assume command among the brothers and their descendants, through his daughter-in-law Tamar, and they will become the kings of Israel, beginning with the dynasty founded by David. Although the Torah grants a double portion of the paternal inheritance to the firstborn, this does not automatically mean that the firstborn is in charge.
The second patriarch, Yitschak (Isaac), and the third patriarch, Ya’acov (Jacob), were not the first to be born. It seems that theTorah emphasizes the fact that the spiritual mantle they assumed was due to their individual merits. History repeats itself in the case of Ya’acov. Re’uven (Ruben) was the firstborn of his sons, but he had shown weakness of character. He committed the enormous fault of having relations with Bilhah, one of his father’s concubines, who was also regarded as a wife.
Bilhah was the mother of Dan and Naphtali, progenitors of the tribes of the same name. When Yosef (Joseph) was seized by the brothers to kill him, Re’uven suggested that they throw him into a well with the intention of pulling him out of the well and returning him to his father’s home. He had committed a fatal fault for a leader: he wanted to deceive his brothers, even though his purpose was noble. The fundamental characteristic of a leader is honesty with those who must follow him.
The firstborn son of Rachel, the woman Ya’acov loved most, was Yosef. Yosef’s personality includes extraordinary managerial skills, which were recognized in the most advanced cultural environment of the time: Egypt. By using his own abilities, Yosef attains the highest position, second only to Pharaoh. Yosefis a great administrator, possessed of extraordinary sensitivity. He is a dreamer and a visionary. However, Ya’acov did not bestow upon him the mantle of leadership. For a reason that must be studied. Maybe because Yosef succeeds only in the Gentile world. His brothers feel humiliated by him. They are jealous and envious of him. They admire him, but, at the same time, hate him.
Yehuda’s story includes several episodes in which he did not act wisely and wisely. The advice he offered for Yosef to be sold into slavery served to get him out of a crossroads, but it was not the ultimate solution a leader should offer. He prevented the brothers from murdering him, but at the same time arranged for Yosef to be sold into slavery, which at the time was a life sentence. His passion for satisfying carnal desire led him to an illicit relationship with his daughter-in-law Tamar, whom he mistook for a prostitute. But, despite certain inadequacies, Yehuda shines in two vital lines to assume leadership. He never deceives those who follow him and takes responsibility for his mistakes. The leader cannot tell half-truths or falter in his pronouncements. At no time does he deviate from the principles he enunciates. People can take his word for it. A promise announced, cannot be altered. Yehuda had taken personal responsibility for Binyamin’s (Benjamin) physical safety, which allowed Ya’acov to consent to his participation in the new journey to Egypt in search of provisions.
Yosef had argued that Binyamin’s presence was indispensable for any future food negotiations. The first verses of our biblical text record the words of Yehuda before Yosef, in which he offers to take the place of Binyamin and personally receive any punishment. Once again, the fundamental characteristic of the leader comes to the fore. The leader takes responsibility for any eventuality.
