"Then Judah approached him, and said: On me, my Lord, let your servant speak in the ears of my Lord, and let not your anger burn against your servant, for you are even as Pharaoh." (Bereshit 44.18)
On what basis did Judah expect that Joseph would even consider freeing Benjamin, or alternatively, that he would take Judah prisoner in Benjamin's place? Ultimately, in fact, Judah did succeed, for immediately following his plea to Joseph, we read (45.1): "And Joseph could no longer restrain himself... and he cried."
The Kli Yakar explains that the basis of Judah's plea was his acceptance of full responsibility for what had been done to Joseph. On the verse (38.1), "... and Judah went down from his brethren, " Rashi explains: "To teach that his brothers removed him from his rank, saying, 'You told us to sell him. Had you told us to return him, we would have done so.'" Even though the brothers admitted: "We are guilty of what happened to our brother," Judah takes overall personal responsibility, saying, "On me, my lord." The very sin that brought about all that has transpired rests "On me" more than on anyone else.
With that admission setting the record straight, he musters the courage to approach Joseph and plead his case for Benjamin.
Thus, Judah felt a personal obligation to plead on Benjamin's behalf. He stands before Joseph owning up to his responsibility, and willing to pay the price himself. Even though he had no direct responsibility for Benjamin's arrest, he does not hide his role. He offers himself as a prisoner instead of the innocent Benjamin. For his role in selling Joseph into slavery, eh is prepared to give up his own freedom. He is a strong figure who is not willing to tolerate that anyone else, be it Benjamin or Jacob should suffer for his actions.
According to the Malbim, Judah presented three legal arguments in his plea for leniency for Benjamin. The first argument was that the accused was too weak to withstand the sentence given him. Benjamin was a naive youth who had never left his father's protective home. The second was that an innocent person, namely the old and frail Jacob, would unfairly suffer from such a harsh sentence. The third argument Judah presented was his own open admission of guilt and plea for royal clemency: "... for you are even as Pharaoh." The sincerity with which Judah approached Joseph, out of concern for the accused and for the innocent, as well as out of an acceptance of responsibility and authority, was the premise for his appeal. He had no other basis for arguing for Benjamin's release, nor did he attempt in any way to cloud the issues. To such an appeal, the only possible outcome was: "And Joseph could no longer restrain himself... and he cried."
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owning up to his responsibility, and willing to pay the price himself. Even though he had no direct responsibility for Benjamin's arrest, he does not hide his role. He offers himself as a prisoner instead of the innocent Benjamin. For his role in selling Joseph into slavery, eh is prepared to give up his own freedom. He is a strong figure who is not willing to tolerate that anyone else, be it Benjamin or Jacob should suffer for his actions.
