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— Merriam Webster on-line Dictionary
Jacob has not seen Joseph in 22 years, ever since that terrible day his sons brought him Joseph’s blood-drenched cloak. Jacob, who does not know that Joseph has actually been sold into slavery in Egypt, despairs of ever seeing him ever again. So when his sons return from Egypt and tell him that not only is Joseph alive but that he also happens to be the Grand Vizier of Egypt, Jacob is incredulous [Bereishit 45:26]: “His heart went numb, for he did not believe them”. According to many of the medieval commentators, Jacob’s heart actually skipped a beat. But when Jacob sees the large Egyptian entourage that has accompanied his sons back to the Land of Canaan, he realizes that they are telling the truth [Bereishit 45:27]: “The spirit of their father Jacob revived”. Not only did Jacob recover from the shock of hearing that Joseph was still alive, he began to recover the from twenty-two missing years in which he himself was essentially the walking dead[1]. At this moment, Jacob undergoes a catharsis: He “rose alive from the ashes to live another period”.