בראשית, פרק מ״ג, פסוק י״א

After prolonged resistance, Jacob finally accepts that there is no hope of saving his family from starvation unless he sends Benjamin to Egypt. In this moment of decision, his compassion as a father for all his sons overwhelms him, a shift hinted at by his title as their father Israel [העמק דבר]. Realizing there is no other option, he seeks a practical solution [רש״י, ביאור יש״ר] and returns to a familiar strategy from his past. Just as he once prepared for a tense encounter with his brother Esau, Jacob equips his sons to face the Egyptian ruler with a combination of a gift, prayer, and a readiness for conflict [צרור המור, ברכת אשר על התורה]. His first instruction is to send a tribute to appease the ruler and test his reaction before the brothers even appear before him [ספורנו, רד״ק].

Jacob specifically instructs his sons to take only a small amount of each item. The primary approach among commentators is that presenting a massive gift to a vastly wealthy ruler could easily be misinterpreted as an insult or a crude bribe. Instead, the proper approach is to offer a modest quantity of rare, premium goods that demonstrate respect and submission [ספורנו, מלבי״ם, רש ר הירש]. Alternatively, keeping the quantity small was intended to prevent the brothers from appearing excessively wealthy [הטור הארוך], or it stemmed from a religious restriction against exporting large amounts of essential food out of the land of Israel [צפנת פענח].

The items chosen for this gift are not ordinary harvested crops, but rather the finest, most celebrated produce of Canaan, specifically chosen because they are unavailable in Egypt [חזקוני, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. The Hebrew root of the word used to describe these goods implies that these fruits are of such exceptional quality that anyone who sees them is moved to sing and praise the land where they grew [רש״י, בכור שור, גור אריה].

The tribute consists of luxury products unique to the region. It includes a rare perfume or medicinal resin extract that was historically exported from the land of Israel [רד״ק, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Because bee honey was already abundant in Egypt, commentators explain that the honey sent is actually date honey or a thick syrup produced from cooking grapes [שד״ל, ביאור יש״ר]. The primary approach among commentators is that the next item is wax [רש״י, רד״ק, דברי דוד], accompanied by a fragrant resin, chestnuts, or a cosmetic ointment [רד״ק, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. The gift also contains a specific type of produce that is identified variously as pine nuts [רד״ק], peaches [רש״י], or pistachios [ביאור יש״ר, ביאור שטיינזלץ], along with almonds. Some commentators note that these nuts and almonds might not have been sent as whole fruits, which could spoil on the journey, but rather as high-quality oils extracted from them [רש ר הירש, משכיל לדוד].