God Almighty Grant You Mercy and Jacob's Prayer Read into Exile

"And God Almighty grant you mercy" (Genesis 43:14). "Happy is the man whom You chastise, O LORD" (Psalms 94:12). It is not written here "whom the LORD chastises," but "whom Yah chastises," like one who is judged before the judge and cries out "Yah! [Enough!]" So our father Jacob said: may He who is destined to say to the sufferings "Enough" say to my troubles "Enough," and "may God Almighty (El Shaddai) grant you mercy." [The name Shaddai is read as she-dai, "who says enough."] "For this let every pious one pray to You at a time of finding" (Psalms 32:6); "at the time of finding" means at the time of the squeezing-out of the reckoning. When our father Jacob saw that he was squeezed dry in the reckoning, he began to pour out supplications: "and may God Almighty grant you mercy." Rabbi Yehoshua opened the verse with reference to the exile: "and may God Almighty grant you mercy," as it says, "and He granted them to mercy" (Psalms 106:46). "Before the man" (Genesis 43:14), this is the Holy One, blessed be He, as it says, "the LORD is a man of war" (Exodus 15:3). "And he will send away to you your other brother," these are the ten tribes; "other," beside the tribe of Judah and Benjamin. "And as for me, just as I have been bereaved" in the first destruction, "I have been bereaved" in the second destruction; "I shall not be bereaved again." Another interpretation: "and may God Almighty grant you mercy before the man," this is the ruler. "And he will send away to you your other brother," this is Joseph; "other," this is Simeon; "and Benjamin" according to its plain sense. "And as for me, just as I have been bereaved" of Joseph, "I have been bereaved" of Simeon, "and I shall not be bereaved again." "And the men took the gift" (Genesis 43:15-16). "And prepare" refers to nothing other than the Sabbath, as it says, "and it shall be on the sixth day that they shall prepare what they bring in" (Exodus 16:5). This teaches that Joseph kept the Sabbath even before it was given. "And they spoke to him at the entrance of the house" (Genesis 43:17-19); this teaches that he was pushing them in before himself and they were pushing him outside. "And they said: please, my lord, we came down indeed" (Genesis 43:20), it is a coming-down for us: in our own land we used to provide for others, and now we are dependent on your provision. "And he said: peace be to you, do not fear" (Genesis 43:23), whether by your own merit or by the merit of your fathers; in any case your silver came to me. "And he brought out Simeon to them," he behaved toward him like this jug [pouring out kindness].