Commentaire sur La Genèse 49:29

נאסף אל עמי [I AM] TO BE GATHERED UNTO MY PEOPLE — The expression נאסף “gathered” is used here because the souls are taken into a place in heaven where they are to be laid by. אסף in the Hebrew language has sometimes the meaning of “bringing something in to a place where it is to be kept” as e.g., (Judges 19:15) “For there was no man that took them into his house (אסף) [to lodge]”; (Deuteronomy 22:2) “then thou shalt bring it home (ואספתו) into thy house”; (Leviticus 23:39) “when you have taken in (באספכם) the fruit of the land” — which means bringing them in to the barn on account of the rain; (Exodus 23:16) “when thou hast taken in (באספך) thy labours”. So, too, the verb אסף used in connection with death always means “bringing in to the place where the souls are to be laid by”.

BURY ME ‘EL AVOTHAI.’ With my fathers. This is the language of Rashi. However, Rashi did not explain the expression el hame’arah as meaning ‘with’ the cave.²³⁰Ramban’s intent is to point out that the word el in the second expression could not mean “with,” which confronts us with the difficulty of having the same word assume different meanings in the same verse. Ramban will suggest various ways of resolving this difficulty.
It is possible that the expression of this verse is concise [and should be understood as if it said], “Bury me and carry me to my fathers to the cave,” for so Jacob said, And thou shalt carry me out from Egypt,²³¹Above, 47:30. and it further says, And his sons carried him.²³²50:13.
It is possible that the word el serves here to indicate many meanings:²³³Since Ramban cites Scriptural references to justify each usage, he finds no difficulty in the fact that the word is used differently in the same verse. Bury me ‘with’ my fathers, just as in the verse, And thou shalt not take a woman ‘el’ her sister,²³⁴Leviticus 18:18. meaning “with her sister.” El hame’arah means “in the cave,” just as in the verses: ‘Ve’el’ (And in) the ark thou shalt put the testimony that I shall give thee;²³⁵Exodus 25:21. Behold, he hath hidden himself ‘el’ (among) the baggage.²³⁶I Samuel 10:22. Of similar usage is the expression, And after this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife ‘el’ (in) the cave.²³⁷Above, 23:19.
Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra said that the meaning of the expression, Bury me²³⁸Kivru (bury me) is in the plural form. with my fathers, is that the brothers should go with Joseph.
Now Jacob really did not need to do that. However, he now commanded all of them to bury him in the cave, just as he had sworn Joseph, because he feared that Pharaoh might not give Joseph permission to leave the land lest he remain in his land [Canaan].²³⁹Abarbanel comments that the reason Pharaoh sent a group of Egyptians to accompany the burial party was that he feared lest Joseph and his brothers be influenced by the attachment to Canaan demonstrated by their father in both life and death and decide to stay there. Do you not see that it was necessary for Joseph to plead with the house of Pharaoh²⁴⁰Further, 50:4-5. that they should request Pharaoh to let him go, and he answered, Go up, and bury thy father, as he made thee swear,²⁴¹Ibid., Verse 6. as he agreed to it only on account of the oath!

ויצו אותם, He commanded them, etc. Seeing that Jacob had earlier called in Joseph to instruct him concerning where and when he was to be buried, he now made sure that the brothers should not think that all this was exclusively Joseph's duty and not theirs. He did not have to make the brothers take an oath, however, for reasons which I have explained in my commentary on 47,30.

ויצו אותם, after he had completed his blessing, he instructed them that they should bury him in the family plot; even though he had already commanded Joseph concerning this, he also commanded his other sons. He wanted them all to be prompt in carrying out his wishes.

ויצו אותם, “He commanded them;” Ibn Ezra understands this command as being the order to follow Joseph in every respect. Nachmanides writes that there had been no need for Yaakov to command his other sons to be obedient to Joseph, but the “command” Yaakov issued to the brothers was to bury him in the cave of Machpelah, as he had commanded Joseph already on a previous occasion. He remained afraid that perhaps Pharaoh would not give Joseph permission to personally leave the country. Yaakov was proven correct, seeing that Pharaoh consented to Joseph leaving only in order to enable him to honour the oath to his father.

I shall be gathered. When the souls of the righteous are released from their physical bodies they enter the company of other righteous souls to be connected with the source of eternal life. Bring me … to my fathers. Since his soul was to be united with the righteous, it was fitting that his body be buried with them as well, in anticipation of the time of the revival.

אני נאסף וגו׳, die Weisen erläutern: אם זכיתם ונטפלתם בי ואם לאו אני נאסף אל עמי, ob ihr mich begrabet oder nicht und wo ihr mich auch begrabet, mich, mein eigentliches Ich, berührt dies nicht, אני ich werde hinweggehoben zu den Kreisen der Meinigen, mein eigentliches Ich ist dann ja längst hinaufgehoben zu jener Höhe, wohin keine menschliche Hilfe die scheidende Seele zu geleiten hat. Aber ihr, euch wird es Bedürfnis und Verdienst sein, euch auch meiner zurückgelassenen Hülle anzunehmen; traget sie dann zu dem Lande und dem Orte hin, wo die Väter ruhen und leget sie zu ihnen.

ויצו אותם, “He commanded them;” that they should all accompany Joseph in the funeral cortege all the way to the cave of Machpelah.

אל אבתי means with my fathers.

אל אבותי, same as ‘“with” my fathers.’ We find the word אל meaning “with” also in Leviticus 18,17 אשה אל אחותה לא תקח, “you must not marry the wife together with her sister.”

אל אבותי, same as if it had said: עם אבותי, “with my forefathers.”

אל המערה, same as במערה, “in the cave.” We have the same construction in Exodus 25,21 ואל הארון תתן את העדות, “you are to place the tablets inside the ark,” not: “you shall give the tablets to the ark.”