הֵ֣ן כֶּ֗סֶף אֲשֶׁ֤ר מָצָ֙אנוּ֙ בְּפִ֣י אַמְתְּחֹתֵ֔ינוּ הֱשִׁיבֹ֥נוּ אֵלֶ֖יךָ מֵאֶ֣רֶץ כְּנָ֑עַן וְאֵ֗יךְ נִגְנֹב֙ מִבֵּ֣ית אֲדֹנֶ֔יךָ כֶּ֖סֶף א֥וֹ זָהָֽב׃
Behold, the money which we found in our sacks’ mouths we brought again unto thee out of the land of Canaan; how then should we steal out of thy lord’s house silver or gold?
Classical midrash on the logic of the brothers’ defense.
Sefaria · Bereshit Rabbah (context)
הֵן כֶּסֶף אֲשֶׁר מָצָאנוּ... הֱשִׁיבֹנוּ. הָאַחִים בּוֹנִים קַל וָחֹמֶר מִן הַכֶּסֶף שֶׁהֵשִׁיבוּ.
English of Core Text: “Behold, the money which we found… we brought again.” The brothers construct a qal va-chomer from the silver they had already returned.
On the daf / in context: The midrash appreciates the logical force of the argument: if they returned money they could have kept, how much more would they refrain from deliberate theft.
Type of Learning: Derash on the verse (classic midrash / qal va-chomer) — one of the middot of interpretation applied to narrative reasoning.
What Is Learned: The brothers’ defense is formally strong; their earlier honesty with the returned silver becomes the premise of a qal va-chomer against the present accusation.