The following is a brief summary of some of thoughts said over by R' Frand on the parsha this evening. I have attempted to reproduce these vorts to the best of my ability. Any perceived inconsistency is the result of my efforts to transcribe the shiur and should not be attributed to R' Frand.
The first vort was a quick thought from the Ba'al HaTurim on the word וַיְחִ֤י. He notes that the gematria of וַיְחִ֤י is 34 which equals the number of good years that Ya'akov lived - the 17 years before Yosef is sold down to Egypt and the 17 years after they are reunited.
The next vort related to Ya'akov telling Yosef in Bereishis 48:7 that he had buried Rochel in Bethlehem because she had died while they were traveling on the road back from Lavan. R' Frand quoted the famous Rashi wherein Ya'akov explains why he buried her there, so that she can daven for the Jews when they go into galus.
R' Frand asked - why is this mentioned at this point in the parsha, when Yosef was bringing his children to Ya'akov for a blessing? It would have been more appropriate to mention in the beginning of the parsha when Ya'akov asked to be buried in Chevron and not in Egypt!
In answering the question, R' Frand quoted R' Schwadron who asked another question - why is it Ya'akov tells Reuven in Parshas Vayechi that although he was the bechor, the actual bechora (in the form of a double portion) went to Yosef in that his two sons were recognized as tribes? He answered that it relates to why Reuven lost the bechora - because he acted impetuously by switching the beds. And Yosef was put in the same situation where he could have objected or acted when he saw his mother was being buried in Bethlehem. But Yosef did not do so and instead he stayed quiet.
Now that Ya'akov is giving out the double portion to Yosef it is the proper time to mention the burial of Rochel. In so doing, Ya'akov says to Yosef - you are getting the double portion because you did not act out when I buried Rochel in Bethlehem. And you Reuven lost the bechora because you did act impetiously.
The next vort asks the age old question - why is that when we give our children blessings we invoke Ephraim and Menashe and we repeat the pasuk in Bereishis 48:20 - יְשִֽׂמְךָ֣ אֱלֹהִ֔ים כְּאֶפְרַ֖יִם וְכִמְנַשֶּׁ֑ה ? R' Frand answered that it is because throughout Sefer Bereishis brothers fought with one another. This is the first time that we see achdus - so they are the paradigm for the beracha.
The last vort on the parsha was said in the name of the Avodas Yisrael who noted that Hashem's name of יְהֹוָֽה is mentioned in every parsha in Sefer Bereshis from the beginning until Mikeitz and then it is not used in Mikeitz or Vayigash. Why? Because these parshios are the beginning of galus and this name is a name of Rachamim. But this begs the question - why does it appear in Parshas Vayechi in 49:18 - לִֽישׁוּעָֽתְךָ֖ קִוִּ֥יתִי יְהֹוָֽה? He answers that it specifically appears there as a promise to us that there will be a yeshuah and the Jews will be saved from galus.
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