וַיִּשָּׂ֣א עֵינָ֗יו וַיַּ֞רְא אֶת־בִּנְיָמִ֣ין אָחִיו֮ בֶּן־אִמּוֹ֒ וַיֹּ֗אמֶר הֲזֶה֙ אֲחִיכֶ֣ם הַקָּטֹ֔ן אֲשֶׁ֥ר אֲמַרְתֶּ֖ם אֵלָ֑י וַיֹּאמַ֕ר אֱלֹהִ֥ים יׇחְנְךָ֖ בְּנִֽי׃
And he lifted up his eyes, and saw Binyamin his brother, his mother’s son, and said, “Is this your youngest brother of whom ye spoke unto me?” And he said, “God be gracious unto thee, my son.”
Classical midrash on the blessing of Binyamin.
אֱלֹהִים יׇחְנְךָ בְּנִי. בִּרְכַּת יוֹסֵף לְבִנְיָמִין הִיא בִּרְכָּה שֶׁל רַחֲמִים.
English of Core Text: “God be gracious unto thee, my son.” Yosef’s blessing of Binyamin is a blessing of compassion.
On the daf / in context: The midrash notes the sudden warmth in Yosef’s address to Binyamin — the only brother who had no part in the sale — and the use of the intimate “my son.”
Type of Learning: Derash on the verse (classic midrash) — not a formal named middah of the 13.
What Is Learned: The first words Yosef speaks to Binyamin are a blessing of grace; the depth of feeling for the full brother breaks through the mask of the Egyptian viceroy.