Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ramban · Torah
Ramban on Genesis 42:7/רמב"ן על בראשית מ״ב:ז׳
אוַיַּרְא יוֹסֵף אֶת אֶחָיו וַיַּכִּרֵם מִיָּד שֶׁרָאָה אוֹתָם הִכִּירָם וּפָחַד אוּלַי יַכִּירוּהוּ, "וַיִּתְנַכֵּר אֲלֵיהֶם", שֶׁשָּׂם הַמִּצְנֶפֶת עַל מִצְחוֹ וּקְצָת הַפָּנִים וְשִׁנָּה עַצְמוֹ, כְּמוֹ שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר בְּאֵשֶׁת יָרָבְעָם (מלכים א יד ב) "קוּמִי נָא וְהִשְׁתַּנִּית וְלֹא יֵדְעוּ כִּי אַתְּ אֵשֶׁת יָרָבְעָם", וּכְתִיב (שם פסוק ה) "וִיהִי כְבֹאָהּ וְהִיא מִתְנַכֵּרָה". אוֹ יִהְיֶה "וַיִּתְנַכֵּר" בְּכָאן שֶׁהִתְנַכֵּר לָהֶם בִּדְבָרָיו, שֶׁדִּבֵּר לָהֶם קָשׁוֹת וְאָמַר לָהֶם בְּכַעַס, כְּאִלּוּ לֹא יָבֹא אָדָם לְפָנָיו לִשְׁבֹּר, מֵאַיִן בָּאתֶם לְפָנַי, וַיֹּאמְרוּ מֵאֶרֶץ כְּנַעַן לִשְׁבָּר אֹכֶל, וְכַאֲשֶׁר הִזְכִּירוּ לוֹ זֶה אָז נִתְבָּרֵר לוֹ שֶׁהֵם אֶחָיו בֶּאֱמֶת, וְזֶה טַעַם "וַיַּכֵּר יוֹסֵף" פַּעַם שֵׁנִית, כִּי נִתּוֹסַף לוֹ בָּהֶם הֶכֵּר וִידִיעַת אֱמֶת. וְרַשִׁ"י כָּתַב (רש"י על בראשית מ"ב:ז') נַעֲשָׂה לָהֶם כְּנָכְרִי בִּדְבָרִים לְדַבֵּר אִתָּם קָשׁוֹת. וְעַל דַּעְתּוֹ יִהְיֶה "וַיִּתְנַכֵּר" לוֹמַר שֶׁדִּבֵּר כְּאִישׁ נָכְרִי. וְאֵינֶנּוּ נָכוֹן:
1AND JOSEPH SAW HIS BRETHREN, AND HE RECOGNIZED THEM. Immediately as he saw them he recognized them, and he feared lest they recognize him. And he made himself strange (‘vayithnakeir’) unto them by putting a mitre upon his forehead and part of the face, thus disguising himself, just as it is said concerning the wife of Jeroboam, Arise, I pray thee, and disguise thyself, that thou be not known to be the wife of Jeroboam,123 in a physical sense. Joseph disguised himself by placing his mitre over his face. Further on, Ramban mentions a second interpretation. See Note 126. and it further says, For it will be, when she cometh in, that she ‘mithnakeirah’ (will pretend to be another woman).124, Verse 6. It may be that the word vayithnakeir here means that he made himself strange by his words, speaking to them harshly and asking them in anger — as if it were not customary to come before him to purchase food — “From where do you come to appear before me?” And they said, From the land of Canaan to buy food. When they mentioned this to him, it then became clear to him that they were indeed his brothers. This is the meaning of the expression, And Joseph recognized his brethren,125 which is mentioned a second time to indicate an additional sense of recognition and knowledge of the truth with respect to them.Now Rashi wrote in explanation of the word vayithnakeir: “He made himself like a nochri (stranger) in conversation by speaking harshly to them.” According to Rashi’s opinion, the word vayithnakeir signifies that he spoke to them as a man who is a nochri (stranger). But this is not correct.126 having the same root as heker (recognition), except that the word here changes its meaning so as to indicate its opposite. See Rashi on Exodus 27:3, where he says that there are many such words in the Hebrew language. In the case before us, the word vayithnakeir would thus mean that Joseph made himself unrecognizable by speaking harshly to them. See my Hebrew commentary, p. 232.