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Isolation or Integration?
The decision to settle in Goshen seems to indicate a desire for an isolationist approach.
When Yosef describes his family as אנשי מקנה does it mean shepherds or people who are strong...or is he deliberately ambiguous? Is Pharaoh asking the brothers to be royal shepherds or generals in the army? Why would Pharaoh need strong people to guard the sheep?
Does Yosef himself every really integrate into Egyptian society? Why does Yosef accuse his brothers of being spies, is he trying to silence them so they don't reveal who he is? When they dined (in Miketz), why does Yosef sit alone, not with the brothers or the Egyptians?
Delivered at the OU Israel Center, December 13th, 2018 (5 Tevet 5779)