I was once asked by an illustrious rabbi, "Who is the most unsung hero in Parshas Vayeishev?" After reflecting, I answered Reuven, for the Torah testifies on his behalf that he had the best of motives to save Yosef from his brothers, though he tragically never carried out those intentions. The correct answer the Rabbi gave me, however, was nothing short of astonishing: the fly.
He proceeded to explain the precise, split-second timing of that fly. Had the fly plunged into Pharaoh's cup one second earlier, while it was still in the butler's hand, Yosef would have remained in prison, as the butler would simply have removed the insect. Had the fly appeared a second after the butler handed the cup to Pharaoh, Yosef would likewise still be imprisoned, for all present would have seen that it was Pharaoh's fate, not the butler's error, that caused the mishap. Instead, the fly arrived at the exact moment the butler presented the cup to Pharaoh. The timing was so razor-thin that the "umpires" could not agree on whether the butler was guilty. Pharaoh himself was unsure and decided, perhaps, a short prison term was warranted. And the rest is history. While this hero might be the most unexpected, its "nomination" teaches a profound lesson: Hashem runs the world.
This theme continues in next week's parsha. When Pharaoh dreamed and none of the proposed interpretations satisfied him, the butler suddenly remembered: "The Hebrew youth, the slave of the chamberlain of the butchers, was with us in jail and interpreted our dreams." And again - the rest is history. The Torah tells us (Breishis 41:14), "So Pharaoh sent and summoned Yosef, and they rushed him from the dungeon." Every word in the Torah is exact. Why emphasize that Yosef was rushed? The Seforno explains that the Torah is teaching not only a historical detail but a timeless principle: Divine salvation always comes hastily and unexpectedly.
So it was in Egypt, as the passuk says (Shemos 12:39), "Because they were thrust out of Egypt," and as we recite in the Haggadah: their dough had no time to rise, for the King of Kings revealed Himself and redeemed them. And so it will be in the future redemption, as Malachi (3:1) teaches, "And the Lord Whom you seek will suddenly come to His Temple." Mashiach will come unexpectedly - "in the blink of an eye."
History is filled with such examples of Hashem orchestrating events with split-second precision.
At the beginning of the sixth chapter of Megillas Esther we read, "That night, sleep eluded the king." Does it matter which night Achashveirosh had insomnia? Yes, because we again see yeshuas Hashem keheref ayin, the salvation of Hashem comes faster than the blink of an eye. Rashi explains that this was the night after Esther invited the king and Haman to her banquet. The paranoid Achashveirosh feared Esther and Haman were plotting against him. Meanwhile, Esther, while walking to the throne room, prayed, "My G-d, my G-d, why have You forsaken me?" Hashem did not merely respond quickly; He responded immediately.
Similarly, why does the Torah (Shemos 14:21) note, "And Hashem moved the sea with a strong east wind all night"? Who cares about the weather? Because skeptics might claim that the wind alone split the sea. Yet the Torah highlights the wind's perfect timing: it blew just long enough for over two million Israelites to cross. Only once the last Jew stepped onto dry land did the wind cease, causing the waters to drown the Egyptians. Timing is everything.
In Parshas Toldos, the Torah states (27:30), "And it was that when Yitzchak finished blessing Yaakov, and Yaakov had scarcely left his father's presence, Eisav his brother came from his hunt." Rashi notes that as one left, the other entered—another example of divine orchestration down to the second.
Likewise, in this week's parsha, the Torah describes the cargo of the caravan transporting Yosef to Egypt (37:25), "Their camels bearing spices, balsam, and lotus." Does this really matter? Rashi, citing Bereishis Rabbah, teaches that Hashem intervened for Yosef's comfort; Ishmaelite caravans typically carried foul-smelling goods such as tar and naphtha. Hashem arranged that this caravan be an exception. Perfect timing.
This background helps us better appreciate Chanukah. Each night, we recite the blessing "She'asah nissim la'avoseinu” - that Hashem performed miracles for our ancestors. The plural “nissim” refers both to the miraculous military victory and to the miracle of the oil. But why was the second miracle necessary? Was it not enough that the assimilationist decrees of the Greeks were overturned, that Hashem delivered the many into the hands of the few, the impure into the hands of the pure, the wicked into the hands of the righteous, and the wanton into the hands of the Torah-faithful?
The Maharal (Chiddushei Aggados, Shabbos 31b) explains that one might mistakenly attribute the military victory to natural causes, such as familiarity with the terrain, strategy, or luck. Therefore, Hashem provided an unmistakably supernatural miracle - the oil burning eight days - to demonstrate that the victory, too, was entirely supernatural. And the timing is no coincidence - the war ended on the twenty fifth of Kislev, and the miracle of the oil began that very night. A Divine wink.
Finally, returning to the second Chanukah blessing: we thank Hashem for the miracles He performed "bayamim hahem," in those ancient days, "bazman hazeh," at this time. "At this time" refers not only to the season - the darkest nights of the year when we light the menorah - but also to His extraordinary timing throughout history. It reinforces our belief in the twelfth of Rambam's Thirteen Principles: "I believe with perfect faith in the coming of Mashiach, and though he may tarry, I await his arrival every day." As Malachi promised: Mashiach will come - suddenly.
More divrei Torah and shiurim from Rabbi Yudin