Digital Maggid
Eyder di Idn zenen aroys fun Mitsrayim hot Moshe-Rabeinu gevolt mekayem zayn di haftokhe fun di Idn az zey veln aroysnemen Yosef’s beyner un zey brengen tsu k’vure in Erets-Yisroel.
Before the Jews left Egypt, Moshe our Teacher wanted to make good on the pledge of the Jews to take Yosef’s bones and bring them to the land of Israel for burial.
Nokh zayendig fartun un tored mitn tsuzamennemen zeyer farmegn, zeyer shof un rinder, iz Moshe arumgegangen in gantsn land Mitsrayim un gezukht dem kastn vos in im iz geven Yosef’s kerper.
After being occupied and busy with gathering their possessions together, their sheep and their cattle, Moshe went around the whole country of Egypt looking for the box in which Yosef’s body was.
Moshe hot nisht gefunen dem aron khotsh er hot fil gezukht. Vos hot er getun?
Moshe could not find the coffin even though he did a lot of searching. What did he do?
Er is gegangen tsu Serakh, di tokhter fun Asher, vos hot zukhe geven tsu arikhas-yomem tsulib dem zukhes fun Yakev’s brakhe ven zi hot im mevaser geven as Yosef lebt, vi Moshe hot ihr gefirt tsum taykh Niles, un zi hot im gezogt: “Tif in dem taykh hobn di Mitsrayem arayngevorfn dem aron in velkher di beyner fun Yosef-hatsadik gefunen zikh, der aron iz zeyer shver vayl er iz tsugebindn tsu shtiker ayzer. S’iz nisht meglikh tsu efenen dem aron, er iz khasme’et mit kishef fun di Mitsrayem k’dey er zol nisht aroyf shvimen un m’zol im keynmol nisht gefunen. Di Mitsrayem hobn dos getun mitn bafel funem kenig vos hot gevust di tsavoe fun Yosef tsu zayne kinder un iz geven zikher az di Idn veln nisht aroys fun Mitsrayim on Yosef’s aron, vayl er hot nisht gevolt az azelkher getreye knekht vi di Idn zoln im farlozn hot er arayngevorfn Yosef’s aron in di tifenish funem taykh, kdey m’zol im nisht gefunen un zey zoln nisht aroys fun zayn land.”
He went to Serakh, the daughter of Asher, who merited longevity on account of Yakev’s blessing when she foretold that Yosef was alive. When Moshe led her to the Nile River, she said to him: “Deep in the river have the Egyptians thrown the coffin in which Yosef the Tsadik’s bones will be found. The coffin is very heavy because it is bound to pieces of iron. It’s impossible to open the coffin. It is sealed with Egyptian magic so that it won’t float and so no one will find it. The Egyptians did this on order of the king who knew about Yosef’s will to his children, and he was sure that the Jews would not leave Egypt without Yosef’s coffin. Because he didn’t want such faithful slaves to leave, he threw Yosef’s coffin into the depths of the river so that they would not find it and they would not leave his land.”
