The Torah tells us the broad strokes, but some of the details… well, they’re just fascinating. Let's pick up the thread as the story continues its winding path toward Egypt.
The brothers, remember, had sold Joseph to a group of Ishmaelites heading to Egypt. But, as Ginzberg recounts in Legends of the Jews, the story takes a slight detour. It wasn’t just Ishmaelites involved. The caravan actually meets up with four descendants of Medan, another of Abraham’s sons. And it's to these Medanites that Joseph is initially sold for a measly five shekels.
Talk about a game of hot potato!
Both groups, the Ishmaelites and the Medanites, arrive in Egypt on the very same day. Serendipity? Divine Providence? You be the judge. The Medanites, quick to sniff out a good deal, hear that Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and captain of the guard, is in the market for a quality slave. They rush to Potiphar, eager to unload Joseph.
Now, Potiphar is willing to pay a hefty sum – four hundred pieces of silver! That's a king's ransom for a slave. But he’s also shrewd. He tells the Medanites, "I'll pay your price, but you need to bring me the person who sold him to you. Something about this youth… he doesn't seem like an ordinary slave. I suspect he's of noble birth, and I need to be sure he wasn't stolen."
Potiphar, it seems, had a good eye. He recognized something special in Joseph. He wasn't just buying a body; he was trying to understand the neshama, the soul, behind those eyes.
So, the Medanites, cornered, bring the Ishmaelites to Potiphar. The Ishmaelites, without batting an eye, swear that Joseph was their slave, that they had owned him and sold him to the Medanites.
Potiphar, seemingly satisfied with their story, pays the price, and the Ishmaelites and Medanites disappear, presumably counting their silver. Joseph, now in Potiphar's household, is about to embark on the next chapter of his incredible journey.
But doesn't it make you wonder? Did Potiphar really believe the Ishmaelites? Or did he choose to believe them because he wanted Joseph in his service, no matter the cost? And what does it say about the nature of truth, deception, and the twists of fate that shape our lives?