כֻּלָּ֕נוּ בְּנֵ֥י אִישׁ־אֶחָ֖ד נָ֑חְנוּ כֵּנִ֣ים אֲנַ֔חְנוּ לֹא־הָי֥וּ עֲבָדֶ֖יךָ מְרַגְּלִֽים׃
We are all one man’s sons; we are true men, thy servants are no spies.
Classical midrash on the brothers’ self-description.
כֻּלָּנוּ בְּנֵי אִישׁ אֶחָד נָחְנוּ. הָאַחִים מַדְגִּישִׁים אֶת אַחְדוּת הַמִּשְׁפָּחָה מוּל הָאֲשָׁמָה.
English of Core Text: “We are all one man’s sons.” The brothers emphasize family unity in the face of the accusation.
On the daf / in context: The midrash notes the irony that the same brothers who once fractured the family now present themselves as an indivisible unit of “one man’s sons.”
Type of Learning: Derash on the verse (classic midrash) — not a formal named middah of the 13.
What Is Learned: Under pressure the brothers claim the very unity they had previously destroyed; the statement becomes both a defense and an unconscious step toward the repair that is still required.