TT · Parashas Mikeitz · Passuk 42:38
וַיֹּ֕אמֶר לֹֽא־יֵרֵ֥ד בְּנִ֖י עִמָּכֶ֑ם כִּֽי־אָחִ֨יו מֵ֜ת וְה֧וּא לְבַדּ֣וֹ נִשְׁאָ֗ר וּקְרָאָ֤הוּ אָסוֹן֙ בַּדֶּ֙רֶךְ֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר תֵּֽלְכוּ־בָ֔הּ וְהוֹרַדְתֶּ֧ם אֶת־שֵׂיבָתִ֛י בְּיָג֖וֹן שְׁאֽוֹלָה׃
But he said, “My son must not go down with you, for his brother is dead and he alone is left. If he meets with disaster on the journey you are taking, you will send my white head down to Sheol in grief.”
Torah Temimah points to Yerushalmi Shabbos 2:6.
וקראהו אסון בדרך. בדרך אין בעת לא, מכאן שאין השטן מקטרג אלא בשעת הסכנה.
English of Core Text: “And harm befall him by the way…” “By the way” — yes; “at home” — no. From here [we learn] that the Accuser prosecutes only at a time of danger.
On the daf / in context: The Yerushalmi derives from Yaakov’s specific fear of an “accident on the road” that the power of the Accuser is limited to moments of actual danger.
Type of Learning: Derash on the verse (Yerushalmi) — not a formal named middah of the 13.
What Is Learned: The Accuser is empowered to prosecute only in situations of genuine danger (such as travel), not in ordinary circumstances of safety.