וַיְחַפֵּ֕שׂ בַּגָּד֣וֹל הֵחֵ֔ל וּבַקָּטֹ֖ן כִּלָּ֑ה וַיִּמָּצֵא֙ הַגָּבִ֔יעַ בְּאַמְתַּ֖חַת בִּנְיָמִֽן׃
And he searched, and began at the eldest, and left off at the youngest; and the goblet was found in Binyamin’s sack.
Bereshit Rabbah 92:8, as cited by Rashi on Bereishis 44:12.
Sefaria · Bereshit Rabbah 92:8
וַיְחַפֵּשׂ בַּגָּדוֹל הֵחֵל וּבַקָּטֹן כִּלָּה. וּלְמָה עֲבַד כֵּן, שֶׁלֹּא יֹאמְרוּ יוֹדֵעַ הָיָה הֵיכָן הוּא מֻנָּח.
English: “He searched, he began with the eldest and with the youngest he concluded.” Why did he do so? So that they would not say that he knew where the cup had been placed.
On the daf / in context: The midrash explains the order of the search as part of Yosef’s concealment: beginning with the eldest makes the eventual discovery in Binyamin’s sack look unanticipated.
Type of Learning: Derash on the verse (classic midrash) — not a formal named middah of the 13.
What Is Learned: The staged search is designed to conceal Yosef’s prior knowledge of the cup’s location.