In our recent learning from the Zohar on Parshat Pinchas (Zohar III:213, Resha Gimmel), we uncover a powerful mystical teaching about Yosef HaTzaddik, temptation, language, and the secret connection between Yosef and Pinchas.The Zohar opens with Rabbi Chiya patach—"Rabbi Chiya opened"—with the verse from Tehillim (Psalms 81:6), “Edut b’Yosef Samo”—“He established it as a testimony for Yosef when he went out over the land of Egypt.” This verse, the Zohar teaches, is not just historical commentary but a gateway into understanding Yosef’s deep spiritual test and transformation.Yosef was granted the knowledge of all seventy languages, equal to Pharaoh, who was regarded as the most intellectually powerful man in Egypt. But the Zohar emphasizes something more: Yosef knew one language beyond them all—the Lashon HaKodesh, the holy tongue, Hebrew. This extra language was not merely linguistic but spiritual; it symbolized Yosef’s connection to the Divine.The Zohar then shifts to the well-known story of Yosef and the wife of Potiphar. It explains that when she attempted to seduce him, Yosef pretended not to understand her words. Although he already knew Egyptian, he acted as if he was confused by her language—avoiding engagement with her advances day after day. Only when she physically seized his cloak did he become visibly confronted by the test. At that moment, the Ruach HaKodesh, the Holy Spirit, cried out within him, invoking the verse from Mishlei (Proverbs), “To guard you from the foreign woman, from the stranger who uses seductive words.”This moment of inner strength and restraint, says the Zohar, became Yosef’s greatest testimony. The Adut—testimony—mentioned in the verse refers to his embodiment of the Sefirah of Yesod, the Divine attribute of foundation, which is deeply connected to sexual integrity and moral restraint.Because of Yosef’s merit, he was granted an additional letter in his name: the letter "Hey", becoming Yehosef. In Kabbalah, the letter Hey symbolizes the Shechinah, the Divine Presence. It was now integrated into Yosef’s very being, testifying that he had become a vessel for holiness.And then the Zohar draws a profound parallel: just as Yosef merited the Hey, Pinchas merited the letter Yud added to his name. Both letters—Hey and Yud—are facets of the Shechinah, representing different expressions of Divine energy. Yosef faced inner seduction and resisted. Pinchas faced societal collapse and acted. Both withstood immense spiritual pressure and aligned themselves with Divine will.Through this, the Zohar reveals a deeper mystery: Pinchas is rooted in the soul of Yosef. Both were alone in their moment of testing. Both chose righteousness. And both merited transformation—Pinchas ultimately becoming Eliyahu HaNavi, the eternal prophet.

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Zohar: The Language of Holiness: Yosef, Pinchas

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