Tanach · Acharonim on Tanach · Or HaChaim · Torah

Or HaChaim on Genesis 37:7/אור החיים על בראשית ל״ז:ז׳

אוְהִנֵּה אֲנַחְנוּ וְגוֹ׳. אָמַר שָׁלֹשׁ פְּעָמִים וְהִנֵּה. דַּע כִּי הַחֲלוֹם אֲשֶׁר יִהְיֶה מַרְאֵה הַנְּבוּאָה וְהוֹדָעָה מֵהַמּוֹדִיעִים שֶׁלִּפְנֵי ה׳, הָאוֹת וְהַמּוֹפֵת הוּא אִם יִהְיֶה הַחֲלוֹם לַחוֹלֵם בָּהִיר וְצָהִיר כַּיּוֹם יָאִיר, שֶׁיִּהְיֶה הַדָּבָר בְּעֵינָיו כְּאִלּוּ הוּא בְּהָקִיץ מַמָּשׁ, בָּא הָאוֹת וְהַמּוֹפֵת לְהוֹדִיעַ כִּי מַחֲזֵה שַׁדַּי יֶחֱזֶה. כִּי הַחֲלוֹמוֹת אֲשֶׁר צְעִירִים יְשַׁחֲקוּ בוֹ יִהְיֶה בִּלְבּוּל הָרַעְיוֹן וְהַגְזָמַת הַנִּדְמֶה. עַל כֵּן סִפֵּר יוֹסֵף וְאָמַר ״וְהִנֵּה״ בְּכָל פְּרָט, שֶׁכָּל דָּבָר שֶׁהֶרְאוּהוּ הָיָה בָּרוּר בְּעֵינֵי שִׂכְלוֹ כְּאִלּוּ הָיָה רוֹאֵהוּ עַתָּה שֶׁהוּא בְּהָקִיץ בְּהַשְׁלָמַת דַּעְתּוֹ, וְאֵין זֶה אֶלָּא חֲלוֹם צוֹדֵק.
1 והנה אנחנו מאלמים אלומים, "Here we were tying sheaves, etc." Why is the word והנה repeated three times in this verse? You should appreciate that if a dream is to be perceived as a prophetic vision, it is essential that it be as clear and distinct as bright daylight. The person dreaming it should have the feeling that he actually experiences what he sees in the dream as if it were reality. When these conditions are met, he may consider the dream as a prophetic revelation. Dreams that young people dream are often blurred or contain unlikely and exaggerated occurrences. When Joseph told his dream to the brothers he repeated the word והנה three times to demonstrate that each part of the dream had been crystal clear, and that at the time he had thought that the events shown him in the dream were actually happening. This is why he thought that the dream foretold the future in some way.
בוְהִנֵּה אֲנַחְנוּ וְגוֹ׳. הֶרְאוּהוּ בַּחֲלוֹם הָאֲלוּמּוֹת, הֵם חֲבִילוֹת חֲבִילוֹת שֶׁל מִצְווֹת שֶׁעוֹשִׂים כֻּלָּם יַחַד, וְהֶרְאוּהוּ שֶׁחֲבִילָתוֹ יוֹתֵר מִתְקוֹמֶמֶת מִכֻּלָּן בְּמַעֲשֶׂה שֶׁעָבַר עָלָיו עִם אֵשֶׁת פּוֹטִיפַר, וְגַם נִצָּבָה שֶׁהָיָה שַׁלִּיט וְנִצָּב עַל כָּל אֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם, וְעוֹד שֶׁכָּל הָאֲלוּמּוֹת שֶׁל הָאַחִים מֻכְנָעִים וּמֻשְׁפָּלִים לִפְנֵי זְכוּתוֹ שֶׁל יוֹסֵף כִּי הוּא דָּבָר הַמַּעֲמִיד לְכֻלָּן, וְזָן וּפִרְנֵס אוֹתָם, וְנִתְכַּוֵּן לְהוֹדִיעָם זֶה אוּלַי יָסִירוּ שִׂנְאָתָם בְּיָדְעָם הַדְּבָרִים.
2In the dream G'd showed him the bundles. These bundles represented bundles of מצות which all of the brothers would perform jointly; his own bundle stood more upright than the others as an allusion to his experience with the wife of Potiphar whose advances he had to resist. The fact that his bundle remained standing upright indicated that he would become a ruler in Egypt. All the bundles of the brothers would be relatively downgraded before the merit of Joseph because in the final analysis he provided for all of them and kept them alive during the famine. Joseph hoped that by foretelling them about this their attitude towards him would change for the better.