וַיֹּאמְר֞וּ אִ֣ישׁ אֶל־אָחִ֗יו אֲבָל֮ אֲשֵׁמִ֣ים ׀ אֲנַחְנוּ֮ עַל־אָחִ֒ינוּ֒ אֲשֶׁ֨ר רָאִ֜ינוּ צָרַ֥ת נַפְשׁ֛וֹ בְּהִתְחַֽנְנ֥וֹ אֵלֵ֖ינוּ וְלֹ֣א שָׁמָ֑עְנוּ עַל־כֵּן֙ בָּ֣אָה אֵלֵ֔ינוּ הַצָּרָ֖ה הַזֹּֽאת׃
And they said one to another, “We are verily guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the distress of his soul, when he besought us, and we would not hear; therefore is this distress come upon us.”
Classical midrash: Bereshit Rabbah 91:8 and parallel discussions of the brothers’ confession.
אֲבָל אֲשֵׁמִים אֲנַחְנוּ. זֶהוּ וִדּוּי גָּמוּר שֶׁל הָאַחִים עַל מְכִירַת יוֹסֵף.
English of Core Text: “We are verily guilty.” This is the brothers’ complete confession regarding the sale of Yosef.
On the daf / in context: The midrash treats this moment as the first open acknowledgment among the brothers that their earlier cruelty is the cause of their present distress; the confession is the beginning of the process of repair.
Type of Learning: Derash on the verse (classic midrash) — not a formal named middah of the 13.
What Is Learned: True admission of guilt (“we are verily guilty”) is the necessary first step toward reconciliation; the brothers finally articulate the connection between their past silence and their present suffering.