“Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years; the days of Jacob, the years of his life, were one hundred and forty-seven years” (Genesis 47:28). “Jacob lived in the land of Egypt” – why is this portion more closed than any of the Torah portions?1Typically between Torah portions there is a nine-letter long space in the Torah scroll. Leading into the Torah portion of Vayḥi, which begins with this verse, there is merely a one letter space.
It is because once our patriarch Jacob died, the enslavement in Egypt began.2As a result, the children of Israel were trapped in a state of suffering. Another matter, why is it closed [setuma]? It is because Jacob our patriarch sought to reveal the End of Days, and it was prevented [nistam] from him. Another matter, why is it closed?
Because [God] shielded him from all the troubles of the world.3Jacob had suffered greatly over the course of his life, but during these seventeen years, he was shielded from troubles.