זוהר בראשית — דף קעו ע”ב

The Zohar recalls that Reuben was punished by the transfer of his birthright to Joseph, and teaches that every human act is recorded before the Holy One, blessed be He, like Jacob’s thought that night, directed toward Rachel. Rabbi Hizkiah finds Rabbi Yose as a piece of meat falls into the fire; the column of smoke reminds him of the smoke of the offering. Rabbi Yose opens with “Who is this coming up from the wilderness like columns of smoke?”: the Divine Presence went before Israel in a pillar of cloud, and the fire kindled by Abraham and Isaac clung to it; the word “perfumed” joins Abraham’s cloud to Isaac’s; “the merchant’s powders” refers to Jacob, or to Joseph the righteous, bound to guarding the covenant. In the time of the offerings, the smoke rose straight and the lamps were kindled.