ציטירנדיקער פּירוש אויף משלי 10:18

And Joseph brought their evil report to their father. Throughout the entire Scripture, we do not find the term “bringing” [hava’ah] used with an evil report [dibbah], but rather the term “bringing forth/spreading” [hotzaah]. Although the commentators have explained that the term “bringing forth” is appropriate for a false evil report, as it is written He who spreads an evil report is a fool (Proverbs 10:18), and similarly They brought forth an evil report of the land (Numbers 13:32), while the term “bringing” is appropriate for something that is true, nevertheless the language here is not precise. For when it says their evil report [dibatam], this implies that the gossip belonged to the brothers, as if the brothers were the owners of the evil report. Furthermore, it is difficult [to understand why it says] to their father — it should have said “to his father.” Additionally, it is difficult that later it states and he lay with Bilhah, his father’s concubine (Genesis 35:22), referring to her as a concubine, while here it states and he was a lad with the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives, where the verse calls them actual wives.

ויבא יוסף, “Joseph conveyed, etc.” Whenever we encounter the expression מביא דבה, “conveying information reflecting negatively on someone,” the Bible speaks about factual information not about slander. It means that he who conveyed the information backed it up with proof. When the Bible uses the expression הוציא דבה, however, this indicates that the information conveyed was slanderous, was untrue. A classic example of this is found when the Torah speaks of the information conveyed by the spies whom Moses had sent to the land of Canaan (Numbers 13,32. The Torah writes ויוציאו דבת הארץ. “They brought forth an (evil) report of the land.” We have a similar example in Proverbs 10,18 מוציא דבה הוא כסיל, “if someone spreads slander he is a fool.” It is clear that Solomon means untruths. We also have a verse in Job 8,10 ומלבם יוציאו מילים, “and they invent words (of a character-assassinating nature) which originate only in their hearts.”

ויבא יוסף, “Joseph conveyed, etc.” Whenever we encounter the expression מביא דבה, “conveying information reflecting negatively on someone,” the Bible speaks about factual information not about slander. It means that he who conveyed the information backed it up with proof. When the Bible uses the expression הוציא דבה, however, this indicates that the information conveyed was slanderous, was untrue. A classic example of this is found when the Torah speaks of the information conveyed by the spies whom Moses had sent to the land of Canaan (Numbers 13,32. The Torah writes ויוציאו דבת הארץ. “They brought forth an (evil) report of the land.” We have a similar example in Proverbs 10,18 מוציא דבה הוא כסיל, “if someone spreads slander he is a fool.” It is clear that Solomon means untruths. We also have a verse in Job 8,10 ומלבם יוציאו מילים, “and they invent words (of a character-assassinating nature) which originate only in their hearts.”