Rebbe Akiva brings the mashal of the fox trying to get the fish to come out of the water. In the midst of his efforts at persuasion, he says "let me and you live together, just like my fathers lived with your fathers" What does this mean - that the fishs ancestors used to live on teh land, or the fox's ancestors used to live in the water?! Or do we just say that the fox was lying and their ancestors never lived together - that isn't so satisfying, partly because the fish never rejected that part of the argument. Does anyone discuss this line of the foxes or do you hvae any approaches.
Yehonasan Gefen, Ramat Beit Shemesh
See the Maharsha, who explains that the fox in the Mashal refers to the nations of the world (who are often compared to wild animals), whereas the fish refers to Yisrael (the children of Yosef, whom the verse compares to fish). In that context, the Maharsha goes on to explain that the Romans were actually inviting Yisrael to give up Torah and Mitzvos and to share the same lifestyle just as they did in the time of the first Churban (exile) in Bavel.
B'Virchas Kol Tuv,
Eliezer Chrysler