A vort of the Rebbe on this week's parshah, Parshat Vayechi. In the beginning of the parshah we learn that Yaakov asked Yosef that after he passes away he should take his body out of Mitzrayim and bury it in Eretz Yisrael. And Yosef promised, Yosef said, \"אנכי אעשה כדבריך, I'll do as you said.\" And then the pasuk says ויאמר, יעקב said to Yosef, \"השבעה לי, swear to me that you'll do it.\" וישבע לו, he swore. So the mefarshim like the Ramban, the Sforno, Kli Yakar, Ohr HaChaim, other mefarshim ask why did he ask him to swear? He didn't believe him when he promised him that he would do it? He thought that he wouldn't keep his promise? For sure he knew he would keep his promise. So why did he ask him davka to swear? So bifshitut you could answer that the reason he made him swear because the difference between something that you do under oath and something that you do just by promising, if you promise to do something, it means you're going to do everything you can to make it happen, but sometimes there will be such obstacles that you just can't do it, and you won't do it. But if you swear, you know that there's no two ways about it, you will do it no matter what. And since Yaakov knew that Yosef might have hardships in doing it, so he made him swear to make sure that he will not nothing will stop him from doing it. But the answer is not such a good answer, because Yosef himself knew that he will have hardships, and when he promised that he'll do it, obviously he meant that in spite of all the hardships he will do it anyway. So what would the shevuah help when he promised that against all hardships he will do it? Some mefarshim say another reason: because Pharaoh would have told Yosef, \"Don't listen to your father. You promised your father, but I'm telling you don't do it.\" But if Yosef swore, Pharaoh couldn't say it, because Yosef made a shevuah to Pharaoh that he will not tell anybody that Pharaoh doesn't know Lashon HaKodesh, doesn't know Hebrew. And the law was that the king has to know all seventy languages, including Lashon HaKodesh. So if Pharaoh would tell Yosef, \"Go against the shevuah you swore to your father,\" Yosef will answer him, \"In that case, if you're able to go against the shevuah, I'll go against the shevuah I promised you, I swore to you.\" And therefore Pharaoh couldn't say that. So that's the reason why Yaakov made Yosef swear so he should be able to answer this to Pharaoh later on. But from Rashi is mashma that that's not the reason, because Rashi does bring this idea, but later on, when it says that Paroh said, \"Listen, do as you told your father, as your father asked you, as you swore.\" So Rashi says why did Paroh add the words \"as you swore\"? Because if he wouldn't have sworn, Paroh would have told him go against the shvuah, but now that he swore, Paroh couldn't say it. So Rashi brings it over there is mashma that that is a pshat in the words כאשר, as you swore. But Rashi doesn't say it here is mashma that here why he made him swear is another reason.

So the Rebbe gives the reason על פי חסידות: We find a difference between Yaakov and Yosef. Yaakov did not want to be buried in Mitzrayim, and Yosef was buried in Mitzrayim. The question is, why didn't Yosef ask his brothers that when he dies, they should take him out of Mitzrayim and bury him in Eretz Yisrael? Now the simple pshat Rashi says in Parashat Beshalach because Yosef knew that the brothers would not be able to do it. When Yaakov asked Yosef to do it, Yosef was the king, the משנה למלך, so he had an ability to do it. His brother wouldn't be able to do it, and therefore he didn't ask it. But על פי חסידות, the pshat is different. Yosef did not want to leave Mitzrayim. He wanted to stay even after he passes away, his body should be in Mitzrayim, because if the Yidden are in Mitzrayim, they need a zechut to overcome the hardships of galut, in gashmiyut and in ruchniyut, not to be part of the philosophy of Mitzrayim. So by Yosef being in Mitzrayim, being buried in Mitzrayim, staying in Mitzrayim his body, that gave the Yidden the koach that they should be able to overcome the galut. And therefore Yaakov thought to himself that Yosef's philosophy is that it's kedai to stay in Mitzrayim. So therefore he said, \"Swear to me,\" because if he wouldn't swear and he would promise, Yaakov was still afraid that his ruchniyus'dike philosophy that Yosef had would overcome that and he would not take him out, thinking that this is for the benefit of the Yidden to stay in Mitzrayim. So therefore he said to him, \"No matter what you're going to feel, I'm telling you I want you to swear that you will take me out, that that for me it's not a good idea.\" So Yosef takeh stayed in Mitzrayim for this reason, but Yaakov didn't want. But the question is, why didn't he want? Sounds like it's a good idea. Why isn't it good that Yaakov should stay in Mitzrayim, buried in Mitzrayim, and that'll give even more zechuyot to the Yidden not to get shlepp, so to speak, into the galut and overcome the hardships of the galut?

And the answer is, we need one person like Yosef to be buried in Mitzrayim in order to give the koach of the Yidden in Mitzrayim, but then Then we have a klal. Chazal say: אין חבוש מתיר עצמו בבית האסורים. A person himself who's a prisoner in jail cannot get himself out of jail. You have to have somebody who's outside of the jail could take him out. Same thing here. On one hand you need Yosef in Mitzrayim to give koach to the Yidden in Mitzrayim to overcome the galut. But still to get out of Mitzrayim, you have to have somebody who is completely beyond the גלות מצרים, outside of Mitzrayim, who would be able to give the koach to schlep the Yidden out of Mitzrayim. And that's why Yaakov felt that he should be buried outside of of Mitzrayim, in Eretz Yisrael. So he will be the one from outside who will give the koach to be able to schlep them out. So now we have both things. We have Yosef buried in Mitzrayim who gives the koach while he's in Mitzrayim that Yidden should overcome, and Yaakov outside of Mitzrayim gave the koach and the zechut that the Yidden should be go out of Mitzrayim.