Rising From the Pit

ויריצוהו מן הבור בזוה"ק בבירא נחית וישליכו אותו הבורה.

“And they rushed him out of the pit. In the Zohar: into the pit he descended, and they cast him into the pit.”

The Sefat Emet begins by tying Yosef’s descent into the pit to the Zohar’s teaching that a soul descends into constriction before elevation.

בבירא סליק לבתר כו'.

“From the pit he afterward ascended.”

The descent is not the end but the necessary prelude to ascent.

דכתיב שתה מים מבורך.

As it is written: “Drink water from your cistern.”

This verse becomes a metaphor for spiritual restoration through divine wisdom.

כי לכל איש ישראל יש הסתר הבא מסט"א ע"י יצה"ר השורה בו ונק' בור.

“For every Jew has concealment that comes from the Other Side through the evil inclination dwelling within him, and this is called a ‘pit.’”

The ‘pit’ represents inner blockage created by the yetzer hara.

אך ע"י התורה שנקראת מים יכולין לעלות מבור הזה.

“But through Torah, called ‘water,’ one can rise out of this pit.”

Torah as spiritual water dissolves the obstruction.

ויש לו עוד תוספות כח ע"י התגברות נגד היצה"ר.

“And he has added strength through overcoming the evil inclination.”

Human effort itself generates new spiritual capacity.

והוא עבודת האדם.

“And this is the work of a person.”

Spiritual growth is tied to disciplined inner struggle.

והוא ענין התורה יורדת למקום נמוך ומתקיימת בכלי חרס כו'.

“And this is the matter of Torah descending to a low place and being sustained in earthen vessels.”

The soul, like Torah, is preserved within the humble vessel of the human body.

כן נק' שמירת המים בורך כנ"ל.

“Thus the guarding of the waters is called ‘your cistern,’ as above.”

The pit becomes transformative when it ‘guards’ the waters of Torah.

ונוזלים מתוך בארך הוא שורש נשמת האדם הבא מלמעלה והוא קדוש וטהור שע"י העבודה זוכין להמשיך כח נשמת חיים.

“And ‘streams from your well’ is the root of a person’s soul coming from above, holy and pure, and through one’s service one draws the power of the living soul.”

The ‘well’ symbolizes the supernal soul awakened by human effort.

והוא ענין השבת יומא דנשמתין ויש בו נשמה יתירה.

“And this is the matter of Shabbat, the day of souls, which possesses an extra soul.”

Shabbat reveals the higher soul beyond weekday effort.

ביאור הענין עפ"י פשוטו שבימי עבודה זוכין לנשמה כפי עבודת הגוף.

“The explanation in its plain sense is that during the days of labor one merits the soul in accordance with the body’s work.”

Weekday spiritual gain is proportionate to bodily effort.

כמ"ש בזוה"ק ע"פ אשר תמצא ידך לעשות בכחך כו' לתקן הגוף כדי להמשיך בו כח הנשמה.

“As the Zohar says: ‘Whatever your hand finds to do, do with your strength,’ to refine the body in order to draw into it the soul’s power.”

Bodily refinement becomes a vessel for divine vitality.

וכמ"ש בזוה"ק ע"פ יוצר רוח אדם בקרבו הכל בפרשה זו ע"ש.

“And as the Zohar says on the verse ‘He forms the spirit of man within him,’ all in this section.”

The formation of the human spirit is a dynamic process tied to action.

אך בשבת קודש באה כח הנשמה לאדם אף שאינו זוכה בתיקון מעשיו.

“But on holy Shabbat the power of the soul comes to a person even if he has not merited through perfected deeds.”

Shabbat grants a soul‑level otherwise unreachable.

לכן נקראת נשמה יתירה.

“Therefore it is called an extra soul.”

The gift is gratuitous, beyond earned measure.

אך עכ"פ צריך להיות כלי מוכן לקבל הארת הנשמה והוא ענין הכנה שנאמר בשבת.

“Yet still, one must be a prepared vessel to receive the soul’s light; this is the matter of preparation taught regarding Shabbat.”

One must create inner readiness for the influx.

והנה זאת היתה בחי' יוסף עם השבטים שיוסף הוא ענין שבת בארך שאין לו ענין עבודת הגוף כלל כמ"ש נזיר אחיו.

“And this was Yosef’s quality among the tribes: Yosef corresponds to Shabbat, to the well, having no aspect of bodily labor, as it is said, ‘a nazir among his brothers.’”

Yosef embodies pure spiritual reception rather than toil.

והם היו ענין ימי עבודה פי' שזוכין לבחי' בארך מתוך בורך כנ"ל.

“And they were the aspect of the days of labor—attaining the quality of the well from within the cistern, as above.”

The tribes achieve holiness through struggle; Yosef through transcendence.

ולכן כאשר השליכו אותו הבורה הי' קשה לפניו כמ"ש רק אין בו מים כי לא הורגל בעבודה זו.

“Therefore when they cast him into the pit it was difficult for him, as it says ‘but there was no water in it,’ for he was not accustomed to this kind of labor.”

Yosef was unaligned with the path of struggle symbolized by the pit.

[ויוכל להיות כי לא רצו השבטים יותר רק שיסתלק ג"כ ע"י הבור וידע ענין עבודתם ויוכל לסבול אותם כאשר אח"כ נעשה להם אוהב.

“And it may be that the tribes only wished that he too withdraw through the pit and understand their labor, so he could bear them, as later he became their beloved.”

The pit served as a forced initiation into their path.

ומקודם לא הי' יכול לסבול אותם כמ"ש בפרשה הקודמת]

“For previously he could not tolerate them, as stated in the previous portion.”

Their paths were spiritually incompatible until this moment.

ועזר לו השי"ת וסליק מבירא.

“And God helped him, and he ascended from the pit.”

The ascent reflects divine intervention harmonizing the two modes.

לכן איתא במדרש כשבאו השבטים. טבוח טבח והכן זה שבת כו'.

“Therefore the Midrash says: when the tribes came, ‘Slaughter, prepare,’ meaning Shabbat.”

Their reunion is framed in Shabbat imagery.

פי' שיוסף הוא בחי' השבת.

“Meaning Yosef is the aspect of Shabbat.”

His identity is tied to the upper rest.

ובספרים כתבו רמז חנוכה בפ' טבח והכן.

“And the books write that there is a hint to Chanukah in the phrase ‘slaughter, prepare.’”

Chanukah and Shabbat join in this narrative moment.

ועם דברינו א"ש כי הי' אז התחברות חנוכה ושבת כי חנוכה הוא התיקון ע"י הבור כמ"ש ויעלני מבור שאון מטיט היון והוא ענין השבטים והי' התחברות ב' הבחי' כנ"ל.

“And according to our words this is clear: there was then a joining of Chanukah and Shabbat, for Chanukah is the rectification through the pit, as it says ‘He raised me from the roaring pit, from the muddy mire,’ this is the tribes; and the two qualities were joined together.”

Chanukah represents ascent from struggle; Shabbat pure transcendence. Their union mirrors Yosef and his brothers.

Summary: The Sefat Emet interprets Yosef’s descent and ascent from the pit as symbolic of the human soul’s struggle and elevation. The pit represents the yetzer hara and concealment; Torah is the water that lifts a person out. The tribes embody weekday struggle, while Yosef represents Shabbat’s effortless divine influx. Their clash and eventual reunion reflect the union of these two modes of spiritual life, mirrored in the convergence of Chanukah and Shabbat.