וַיַּ֨עַן יוֹסֵ֧ף אֶת־פַּרְעֹ֛ה לֵאמֹ֖ר בִּלְעָדָ֑י אֱלֹהִ֕ים יַעֲנֶ֖ה אֶת־שְׁל֥וֹם פַּרְעֹֽה׃
And Yosef answered Pharaoh, saying, “It is not in me; God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace.”
Classical midrash and commentators drawing on Chazal: the absolute attribution of the interpretation to God alone.
Sefaria · Bereshit Rabbah (context)
בִּלְעָדָי אֱלֹהִים יַעֲנֶה. יוֹסֵף לֹא תָּלָה הַדָּבָר בְּעַצְמוֹ אֶלָּא בַּקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא.
English of Core Text: “It is not in me; God will answer.” Yosef did not attribute the matter to himself but to the Holy One, blessed be He.
On the daf / in context: The midrashic tradition emphasizes that Yosef’s first words before Pharaoh are a complete disclaimer of personal power, redirecting all credit to Heaven. This stands in deliberate contrast to the Egyptian magicians who claimed interpretive skill.
Type of Learning: Derash on the verse (classic midrash / ethical) — not a formal named middah of the 13.
What Is Learned: True insight into divine communication begins with the acknowledgment that the interpretation does not belong to the human interpreter; it is God’s answer of peace.