רַבִּי שְׁמוּאֵל בַּר נַחְמָן פָּתַח (ירמיה כט, יא): כִּי אָנֹכִי יָדַעְתִּי אֶת הַמַּחֲשָׁבֹת, שְׁבָטִים הָיוּ עֲסוּקִין בִּמְכִירָתוֹ שֶׁל יוֹסֵף, וְיוֹסֵף הָיָה עָסוּק בְּשַׂקּוֹ וּבְתַעֲנִיתוֹ, רְאוּבֵן הָיָה עָסוּק בְּשַׂקּוֹ וְתַעֲנִיתוֹ, וְיַעֲקֹב הָיָה עָסוּק בְּשַׂקּוֹ וּבְתַעֲנִיתוֹ, וִיהוּדָה הָיָה עָסוּק לִקַּח לוֹ אִשָּׁה, וְהַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא הָיָה עוֹסֵק בּוֹרֵא אוֹרוֹ שֶׁל מֶלֶךְ הַמָּשִׁיחַ
Rabbi Shmuel Bar Nachman explained the verse ‘For I [G-d] know the thoughts’ [as follows], The brothers were occupied with the sale of Joseph, Joseph and Reuben were occupied with sackcloth and fasting, Jacob was mourning Joseph with sackcloth and fasting, and [a disgraced] Judah was engaged in finding a woman for himself. In the meantime, G-d was busy readying the light of the Messiah… – Midrash Rabbah Bereishit 85:1
(ג) וַיֵּבְךְִ אֹתוֹ אָבִיו, מַה כְּתִיב אַחֲרָיו, וְהַמְּדָנִים מָכְרוּ וְגוֹ'. אָמַר לוֹ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא לִיהוּדָה, אֵין לְךָ בָּנִים עַד עַכְשָׁו וְאֵין אַתָּה יוֹדֵעַ צַעַר בָּנִים. אַתָּה טִגַּנְתָּ אֶת אָבִיךָ וְהִטְעֵיתָ אוֹתוֹ בְּטָרֹף טֹרַף יוֹסֵף, חַיֶּיךָ, תִּשָּׂא אִשָּׁה וְתִקְבֹּר אֶת בָּנֶיךָ וְתֵדַע צַעַר בָּנִים. מַה כְּתִיב אַחֲרָיו, וַיְהִי בָּעֵת הַהִוא וַיֵּרֶד יְהוּדָה מֵאֵת אֶחָיו, מְלַמֵּד שֶׁנִּתְנַדָּה מֵאֶחָיו. שֶׁבְּשָׁעָה שֶׁאָמַר לָהֶם לְכוּ וְנִמְכְּרֶנּוּ, אִם אָמַר לָהֶם לְכוּ וְנַחֲזִירֶנּוּ, הָיוּ שׁוֹמְעִין לוֹ. לְפִיכָךְ וַיֵּרֶד יְהוּדָה וְגוֹ', שֶׁהוֹרִידוּהוּ מִגְּדֻלָּתוֹ.
(3) And his father wept for him. After that Scripture states: The Midianites sold him into Egypt (Gen. 37:36). The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Judah: Until now you had no sons, and did not experience the grief caused by sons, but since you tormented your father, and deceived him with the words Joseph is without doubts torn to pieces (ibid., v. 33), by your life, you shall wed, bury your children, and suffer the grief that comes with children.” What is written after this verse? Judah went down from his brethren … and he took her … and bore a son (ibid. 38:1–2). This teaches us that Judah became separated from his brothers. If at the time he had said to them: Come, let us sell him (ibid. 37:27), he had said instead: “Come, let us return him (to father),” they would have listened to him. Therefore, Judah went down. That is, he was deposed from his role as leader.
The patient cannot remember the whole of what is repressed in him, and what he cannot remember may be precisely the essential part of it. .. . He is obliged to repeat the repressed material as a contemporary experience instead of remembering it as something in the past. (p. 18)
Freud, Beyond the Pleasure Principal
Hevrutah Questions:
Read sources 4 and 5.
1. How would you articulate the meaning of the midrashic texts (sources #4 and #5)? How might these meanings be relevant to you? How might they not be relevant to you?
2. How might the quote from Freud relate to the midrashic sources and Tamar and Judah's story? (source #6)