Reuven heard, and he rescued him from their hand…And Reuven said, "Shed no blood! Throw him into this pit in the wilderness (Bereishit 37:21–22).
The above passages don't seem at all logical. Yosef (Joseph) was at the mercy of his brothers – they might have killed him, and yet might not have. Reuven, as the oldest brother, didn't want to take a chance, so he "rescued" Yosef from their hand. Instead of rescuing Yosef, however, Reuven threw his brother into a pit full of snakes and scorpions. Halachically speaking, a pit full of snakes and scorpions is considered certain death, even worse than being thrown into a den of lions (see Shulchan Oruch, Even HaEzer 17:29). How can the Torah call this a rescue?
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