Joseph's Secret Smile: Jewish Wisdom on Faith Through Life’s Trials

At a fancy restaurant, everything sparkles. Even the food is dazzling to the eye, a delight to the palate. The finest pleasures of this world are on display.

A gentile takes a seat, sinking into the menu, mouth watering. He orders an elegant dish and waits eagerly for it to arrive. Suddenly, his appetite vanishes.

Why? He notices a Jew sitting at the next table, smiling. This man is an antisemite, a Jew-hater. How can he possibly enjoy eating and drinking when the face of a Jew is lit with joy?

If he could, he would have sunk his teeth into him and bitten like a wild animal, but that’s not “elegant”. Instead, he gets clever. He calls the waiter: 

“Bring dessert — ice cream for everyone in the restaurant, on me!”
“Wow, that’s fifty dollars per serving — times thirty-five!”
“No, only times thirty-four — skip the Jew!”

The waiter does as asked, but the Jew keeps smiling. The man had expected him to turn red with shame, pack up, and leave, but nothing of the sort happens.

“Waiter! Bring thirty-four bottles of fine wine for the guests!”
“That’s a hundred dollars a bottle!”
“Never mind, as long as you skip the Jew.”

They skip him, but his smile only grows wider. Truly, a stiff-necked people…

“Waiter! Bring thirty-four main courses!”
“That’s a hundred and seventy-five dollars each!”
“No matter — so long as you leave out the Jew.”

The Jew beams with joy, positively glowing. The antisemite is ready to burst.

Finally, unable to stand it, he goes over to the Jew and asks:
“Tell me, why are you so happy? They insulted you with dessert, shamed you with the wine, degraded you with the main course — and you just keep smiling?”

“The restaurant is mine,” replies the Jew, and he continues to smile.

Rabbi Chizkiyahu Mishkovsky, spiritual director of the Orchos Torah Yeshiva, tells the story in his unique way and explains its meaning: “Yosef HaTzaddik was pursued, and he smiled. Stripped of his striped coat, and he smiled. Thrown into the pit, and he smiled. Sold to the Ishmaelites, and he smiled. Sold to the Midianites, and he smiled. Sold into Egypt, and he smiled. Cast into prison, and he smiled.

“How did he not break? What gave him strength?” cries Rav Mishkovsky. He answers: “It was his pure faith that everything is for the best! His trust that every blow was only bringing forth a greater salvation! His certainty in knowing: the restaurant is mine.

He held on until he was appointed viceroy of Egypt. Then everyone could finally see and understand that every stage of suffering and trial had been another step on the ladder that lifted him to the throne.”