Miller's Musings Parshas Vayeshev: The Butler, The Faker, They're All Mistake Makers

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      ד''בס 

One can only imagine the shock on the face of the ill-fated baker.  Pharaoh’s ex-butler has just had his dream interpreted and received the glad tidings that he is soon to be reinstated in his former position.  But when the pitiable baker requests his turn at an interpretation, the results are entirely different, being told by Yosef that his end is nigh.  Yosef’s predictions transpire to be as foretold and indeed the butler is restored to former glory and the baker meets his untimely end.  But what was the difference between the two?  Why did Pharaoh pardon one and sentence to death the other?

Mistakes are part and parcel of being human and they regrettably often not only impact ourselves but also those around us.  When this occurs the factor that determines whether those affected forgive us, is our general attitude at all other times.  If we have shown that we ordinarily give of our best efforts and care deeply about our task, then we can be excused for our mistakes, based on the assumption that we will strive to ensure they never reoccur.  In the butler’s dream he himself squeezed the grapes to give wine to Pharoah, signifying his commitment to his work. The baker’s dream in which his bread was already in the basket and had been produced without him, reveals his indifference to his post in Pharaoh’s employ and therefore a likelihood of further errors.  This, says Rav Yitzchok Zilberstein, was why one was pardoned and the other condemned.  The butler could be trusted in future undertakings, the baker could not.

Even when our acts are full of sincerity and are well-meaning, there are times when we slip up and stumble.  Whether we can be forgiven by Hashem or not depends on our attitude towards our purpose and responsibilities.  Do we give it all we’ve got or is a half-hearted attempt at success enough for us?  Are errors of judgement a momentary lapse or something indicative of a deeper rooted lack of significance placed on these acts in our minds? If it is the former, we are likely to be excused, for we can be relied upon to try and resolve any issues that led to our failure.  But if we show that we don’t truly care about doing what is right, then why would be absolved, just for this to happen again due to our apathy!  Hashem sees our interest or disinterest and reacts accordingly, and so do those we are close to.  If we want to be forgiven for the mistakes we make we must show how much it really means to us.  Likewise if we want our children to overlook our flaws, they must first see how much effort we expend in trying to do it right the rest of the time.  All can be forgiven, except simply not caring enough.   

 *May we try to make this Shabbos the greatest Shabbos it could be*

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