From: "Yeshivat Har Etzion's
Israel Koschitzky Virtual Beit Midrash"
To: yhe-intparsha@vbm-torah.org
Subject: INTPARSHA -08: Parashat Vayishlach
YESHIVAT
HAR ETZION
ISRAEL KOSCHITZKY VIRTUAL BEIT MIDRASH (VBM)
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INTRODUCTION TO
PARASHAT HASHAVUA
by
Rav Michael Hattin
PARASHAT
VAYISHLACH
Parashat
VaYishlach
Yaacov's
Nocturnal Battle
By
Michael Hattin
Introduction
Twenty years have elapsed since Yaacov left
home,
fearfully fleeing the wrath of his brother. Arriving
alone and penniless in the house of Lavan his uncle, he
leaves that house with wives, children and great flocks.
God has indeed preserved him and "kept watch over him
wherever he has gone" and now Yaacov is poised to return
to the land of Canaan and to the embrace of his aged
parents. Although two decades have passed, Yaacov is
apprehensive that his brother Esav has never forgiven his
seizing of the birthright and the blessing, and may yet
harbor ill will towards him.
Of course, Esav has since left the ancestral land of
Canaan to establish himself in the land of
Se'ir.
Indigenous peoples known as the Horites earlier inhabited
this region, southeast of the Dead Sea. By employing a
combination of intermarriage and warfare, Esav succeeds
in displacing them and securing the land for his own
descendents.
Yaacov, however, is aware that he cannot reenter the
land of Canaan stealthily, and that sooner or later a
meeting and perhaps a confrontation with his twin brother
is inevitable. Sending messengers ahead to ascertain
Esav's intentions, he is alarmed by their report that
Esav is approaching with a group of four hundred men.
Yaacov responds to the news by dividing his own camp, and
preparing for war. In a poignant prayer he asks of God
to save him from his "brother Esav, lest he come and kill
me, mothers and children!" In a more pragmatic move, he
prepares to deliver a peace overture of substantial gifts
from his flocks.
The Sudden Appearance of the 'Man'
Finally completing the preparations that
continue
late into the night, Yaacov finds himself alone in the
darkness, just as he had been some twenty years earlier
when his journey was only beginning. The gifts have been
sent, his wives and children have been safely ferried
across the brook of Yabok, and Yaacov remains behind, a
solitary figure pondering his fate.
Suddenly a mysterious apparition emerges from
the
gloom and begins to grapple with the Patriarch. The
struggle continues until dawn is about to break, and
Yaacov sustains an injury to his thigh. The phantom
attempts to break loose, but Yaacov maintains his grip:
"Allow me to go, for dawn is breaking!" cries the figure,
but Yaacov demurs, saying "I will not let you go unless
you first bless me." "What is your name?"
asks the
phantom, "it is Yaacov" he responds. "Your name shall no
longer be called Yaacov but rather Yisrael, for you have
striven with 'elohim' and with men and you
have
prevailed!" Yaacov inquires as to the name
of his
opponent but is rebuffed: "why should you ask me
my
name?"
Daybreak approaches, and the
enigmatic figure
vaporizes with the morning mists. Suddenly,
Yaacov
lifts up his eyes from the encounter and sees his brother
approaching. Esav runs towards him and embraces him, the
two exchange kisses and they begin to cry. Finally,
rapprochement is at hand.
What is the significance of Yaacov's struggle with
the specter? Is it a real encounter or the figment of a
troubled and frightened mind? What are we to make of the
strange injury that Yaacov sustains during the course of
the struggle? How are we to understand the changing of
Yaacov's name to Yisrael? And why does this encounter
take place now, in the midst of Yaacov's
feverish
preparations before seeing his brother?
The classical commentaries offer differing views of
the event and its significance. Concerning
certain
details there seems to be concurrence, while with respect
to others wide disagreements exist. We shall see a range
of opinions in our attempt to comprehend the importance
of the struggle.
The Narrow Approach
Rashi (11th century, France) and the Radak (R. David
Kimchi, 13th century, Provence) both understand that the
struggle with the mysterious figure actually portends the
confrontation about to ensue with Esav. This man who
appears out of the darkness of night and vanishes at
sunrise, is actually an angelic figure identified with
"Saro shel Esav" or "Esav's guardian angel." Rashi
is
rather terse about the entire incident, but in his short
words makes it clear that the visitation is to afford
Yaacov with the knowledge that he will prevail against
his brother Esav. In the end, he will acquire title to
the birthright and the blessings by legal right, and will
be regarded as a deceiver no more. "Your name shall no
longer be called Yaacov, but rather Yisrael, for you have
striven with 'elohim' and with men and have prevailed!"
'Yaacov' (literally 'one who holds the heel' but from the
root ACaV meaning 'roundabout' or 'twisted') is a name
that Esav associated with deception and ambush, when he
railed against his brother's employment of guile to
secure the blessings from the aging Yitzchak.
Rashi explains that the 'men' in question, against
whom Yaacov will prevail, are none other than Lavan and
Esav, the two antagonistic figures in whose shadow Yaacov
has lived for the past twenty years. In fact, later
events reflect his vindication, for at the moment of
their meeting, Esav stakes no claim to the birthright and
the blessings, thereby acknowledging Yaacov's title to
them and to the land of Canaan as well. Rashi does not
make clear why Yaacov must sustain an injury to his thigh
in the confrontation with the angel, but presumably it is
indicative of the pain associated with the enmity that
has existed between himself and his brother for so long.
Following Rashi's lead (which is itself based on the
much earlier Midrashic sources), the Radak also maintains
that the episode is to strengthen Yaacov's resolve on the
dawn of the much-feared meeting with his brother Esav.
Just as the angelic figure could not prevail against him,
so too his brother will not succeed in harming him. Just
as surely as dawn follows the night, so too the light of
salvation will follow the black pall of his earlier
tribulations. Radak admits the possibility that the
entire episode may only have occurred as a prophetic
vision in Yaacov's mind, so dreamlike and ephemeral is
its quality. In the end, however, he decides that the
angel must have been incarnate and the struggle real, for
after all Yaacov did sustain a unfeigned bodily injury.
For Radak, the injury was to
indicate to the
Patriarch that although he might prevail against Esav,
there would be other painful incidents that would befall
his direct descendants, namely his daughter Dina. For
Radak, the thigh is symbolic of progeny, and is used as a
metaphor for the reproductive organs. Curiously and
additionally, the Radak sees an aspect of
painful
punishment associated with Yaacov's injury, as if the
limping that he suffers reflects Yaacov's own uncertainty
concerning God's promises of deliverance! In biblical
usage, lameness is sometimes associated with an inability
to commit to a single course of action or belief, just as
a lame person seems to veer from side to side and is
unable to maintain a straight course (see for instance
Melakhim/Kings 1:18:21). Yaacov, he maintains, should
not have been afraid of his brother and should not have
sent him such substantial gifts of appeasement, in light
of God's earlier assurances of rescue.
For both of these commentaries, the struggle
with
the angelic figure is a local affair, a pledge to Yaacov
that he need not fear the meeting with his brother and
that he will emerge triumphant. Why a name change should
have been necessary is not entirely clear, nor is the
significance of the prohibition adopted by Yaacov's
descendants concerning the consumption of the sciatic
nerve readily apparent. Both of these items, name change
and commemorative commandment, seem better suited to more
transcendent issues.
The Broad Approach
In contrast to Rashi and the Radak, the Ramban (13th
century, Spain) and the Seforno (15th century, Italy)
explain that the entire episode of the mysterious angel
contains cosmic overtones.
Commenting on the figure's inability to
overpower
Jacob, Ramban says: "God's angels, mighty in power and
exact in fulfilling His word! For this reason, the angel
was not able to overpower Yaacov, because he was not
permitted to do so. Rather, he could only injure him on
his thigh." In other words, it is inconceivable that a
human, no matter how strong, could prevail against an
angel of God whose vigor is not bound by
physical
constraints. In fact, the only possible limitation on an
angel's ability is God's will. Thus, the angel could not
defeat Yaacov only because God did not allow him to do
so. God, however, did allow the angel to injure Yaacov on
his thigh.
Like Radak, Ramban understands the
thigh as a
metaphor for descendants. Unlike Radak, however, Ramban
explains that the reference is not to Yaacov's immediate
descendents at all but rather to posterity, to the nation
that would emerge far in the future. The
agonizing
injury sustained by Yaacov on his thigh alludes to the
torment that would be experienced by the Jewish nation at
the hands of 'Esav' and his cohorts. The Jewish nation
might suffer frightfully, but "all will pass, and we will
emerge intact."
For the Ramban, Esav and Yaacov signify not only two
individuals or even two nations, but
rather two
worldviews. Esav the hunter
represents an
anthropocentric (anthropo = human, centric = at center),
material and sensual conception of the world in which
human beings have free reign to exercise their wills and
to achieve their desires without the constraints imposed
by moral compunctions. The slogan of Esav is dominion
and his mission is subjugation, for no higher authority
oversees his conduct. Esav and Nimrod his forebear are
one and the same, because for the tyrant
or the
tyrannical regime, the ideal of human fellowship is
anathema. In the worldview of Esav, human life and the
proceeding of human history have no ultimate purpose or
goal, and therefore only the pursuit of
temporal
pleasures is worthwhile - for Esav is a hunter, after
all. It should be stressed that the 'descendants of
Esav' are not tied to him biologically but
rather
axiologically.
Yaacov, in contrast, represents a theocentric (theo
= God), spiritual, and ethical worldview in which human
beings are subject to a Higher Authority and a higher law
which limits their ability to do as they please. For
Yaacov, the precious gift of human autonomy carries with
it the great task to act responsibly, and to subjugate
personal desire when its achievement is at the expense of
another person. The maxim of Yaacov is unity, for under
his banner all of humanity is allied as the most precious
creation of a beneficent Creator. For Yaacov, human
history is a guided and meaningful process that
is
charged with a spiritual purpose and an ultimate aim.
It is not difficult to see how these two worldviews
must inevitably clash, for they cannot coexist peacefully
for long. The descendants of Yaacov, the Jewish people
who live by these ideals, must become the targets of the
descendants of Esav. And so, Ramban maintains, Yaacov's
nocturnal struggle will be repeated during the long
nights of exile and persecution, until the end of time.
The dawn will rise and the Jewish people will triumph,
but their victory will be achieved only at the cost of
great pain and struggle.
Names and Mitzvot
In this context, the name change of
Yaacov is
entirely appropriate, for a name change in biblical
terminology always indicates a change of destiny. It
will be recalled that Avram became Avraham, and Sarai
became Sarah. With their new names their barrenness was
banished, and they assumed the mantle of founding the
nation. Here, Yaacov assumes the new name Yisrael, which
indicates also the taking on of a national destiny. But
implicit in this dimension of nationhood is confrontation
and struggle, pain and eventual triumph. To emphasize
this point, the angel will not provide his name when so
requested by Yaacov, for an angel has no ultimate mission
or destiny. Or, to quote the Midrashic formulation, "the
angel responded: we have no permanent names! A name
implies a mission, and our missions are
mutable"
(Bereishit Rabba 78:4).
That around this incident a
Torah commandment
develops, namely the prohibition of consuming the sciatic
nerve, is also now clear. The mitzvot are the preserve
of the Jewish people, and constitute an eternal set of
laws and practices that delineate the
relationship
between God and that element of humanity chosen to carry
His name. A mitzva that is commemorative in nature, such
as this one, must speak about eternal truths that will
nurture the Jewish people throughout their long and
checkered history. What could be more significant than a
reminder of the essential aspects of the mission of the
Jewish people, a mission involving hardship, hostility,
but also hope and final success?
YESHIVAT HAR ETZION
ISRAEL KOSCHITZKY VIRTUAL BEIT MIDRASH
ALON SHEVUT, GUSH ETZION 90433
Copyright (c) 1999 Yeshivat Har Etzion
All Rights Reserved
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Torah/Commentary: Parashat Vayishlach (Genesis 32:4-36:43)
Commentary on the Weekly Torah Reading for 18 Kislev, 5760 (November
27, 1999)
by Rabbi Shlomo Riskin
Chief Rabbi of Efrat;
EFRAT, ISRAEL, Yom Revii (Fourth Day - "Wednesday"), 15 Kislev, 5760
(November 24, 1999), : Have you ever been disappointed
that observant Jews are prohibited from eating filet mignon, generally
considered the choicest, juiciest and thickest variety of steak
available (cholesterol consideration aside, naturally)? The source
for this prohibition stems from this week's Torah portion and it
certainlyquires an explanation.
The Bible records that after two decades in the diaspora with his
Uncle Laban, Jacob -- together with wives, children and livestock --
returns to his ancestral home, the land of Canaan. However, Esau, his
estranged brother, is lying in wait to destroy him. Jacob attempts to
appease Esau with gifts.
The night before the expected confrontation, a mysterious
vision-struggle occurs between the Patriarch and an anonymous
assailant:
"And Jacob remained alone - and a personage (ish) wrestled with him
until the rising of the morning star. And he saw that he could not
conquer him...so he dislocated the sinew of Jacob's thigh-bone in his
wrestling with him...and he said, 'Not Jacob shall your name be called
anymore, but Yisrael, because you have struggled with G-d (powers) and
men, and have achieved mastery...and Jacob called the name of the
place Peni El, for I have seen G-d face to face and my soul has been
saved. And the sun shone for him when he passed Peni El, and he was
limping because of his thigh. Therefore the children of Yisrael may
not eat the dislocated sinew which is on the flat side of the thigh
until this very day, because he damaged Jacob's thigh bone at the
dislocated sinew." [Genesis 32:25-33]
This account is one of the strangest and most enigmatic of any of the
Biblical incidents. Did a wrestling match actually take place or was
it a nocturnal vision? Who is Jacob's anonymous assailant? Could it
have been G-d Himself? Why does it result in a food prohibition for
all subsequent Jewish generations: the taboo against filet mignon?
After all, the commandments have not yet been given on Mount Sinai!
Until this point, we only have a general command for all humanity to
"be fruitful and multiply" and a specific commandment to the House of
Abraham to be circumcised. This obligation is repeated for the entire
Jewish people much later on in the Book of Leviticus [12:3].
Why should only this mysterious occurrence warrant a prohibition which
binds all future generations of Jacob-Israel's descendants? What
hidden eternal message lies in the sinew of the thigh bone?
One of the major principles of Biblical interpretation is that "the
incidents of the Patriarchs foreshadow and presage the history of
their descendants."
Rav N.Z.Y. Berlin (Neziv), in his Biblical Commentary HaAmek Davar,
makes the point that the place of the mysterious wrestling match is
first called Peni El -- "I have seen G-d" [Genesis 32:31] -- and is
then called Penu El -- "they have seen G-d" [Genesis 32:32], a
fascinating switch from the first person singular to the third person
plural. The message of this grammatical change in person is that what
initially is experienced by Jacob will eventually be experienced by
his future generations.
Jacob, the most clearly drawn of the Patriarchs and the bearer of the
tradition of Ethical Monotheism as a legacy from both his father and
grandfather, faces two life-threatening challenges: internal
assimilation which poses a danger to his soul and mission, and
external destruction which poses a danger to his body and physical
existence. Both stem from Esau.
Jacob is understandably jealous of his elder sibling, whose hedonistic
appetites, external aggressiveness and mellifluousness of tongue
("entrapment was in his mouth") seems to have won him his father's
love and approbation! Jacob not only acquiesces in his mother's plan
by assuming the garb and appearance of Esau in the presence of his
father. He becomes an Esau-like personality during his twenty years
with Laban, when he seems to have forsaken his dream of Divinely sent
angels connecting heaven and earth for a dream of speckled, striped
and spotted sheep [Genesis 31:11, 12].
Esau has vowed to murder Jacob for having received the birthright from
Father Isaac, which includes the Land of Israel as well as the Keys to
ultimate world redemption.
"The incidents of the Patriarchs foreshadow and presage the history of
their descendants."
Jacob's life-and-death struggle with Esau is to characterize all of
subsequent Jewish history. The night will be long and the battle will
be intense. At stake is supremacy in both worlds, comprising Jewish
sovereignty over the Land-State of Israel as well as the truest path
to eternal life. The angels seeking to link to worlds, to establish
the proper ladder between heaven and earth, are ascending and
descending.
The climb is not to be a steady ascent, Jacob's mastery over Esau will
not begin by his disadvantaged grasping at Esau's heel and from then
on his advancing excelsior, ever upwards. Much to the contrary, the
angels will fall in descent as well as rise in ascent, the graph will
slide as well as soar, Jacob will grope in the darkness of the night
before he senses victory and salvation when the yellow-orange-red of
the sun-rays begin to push back the darkness and the clouds.
The struggle on earth between Jacob and Esau reflects a Divine battle
as well, a life-and-death contest for the soul of humanity and the
ultimate destiny of the Universe. Will humankind opt for the specious
materialism of Marx and Stalin, for the gods of power and genetic
purity of Hitler and Goebbels, for the conquest of the sword of
fundamentalist Islam - or for the Ethical Monotheism of a G-d of
loving-kindness and tolerance preached by Moses?
Jacob will falter in the midst of his wrestling match. He will fall
prey to the blandishments of assimilation, the Uncle Labans of the
diaspora summoning him to enjoy Esau's mess of pottage and forsake his
mission of purity. He will have mourn twice his loss of sovereignty
over Jerusalem and Israel, and even the road to ultimate return will
have many potholes and land-mines along the way. The sinew of his
thigh-bone will become dislocated!
The thigh is the Biblical symbol of and euphemism for the place of the
organ of propagation, the source of future generations and subsequent
history. Many Jewish children will be lost to Judaism through
acculturation and intermarriage. Many of our best and brightest will
be murdered in pogroms and killed in wars of defense fought over our
right to the State of Israel.
Jacob will limp, will be maimed and diminished as a result of these
losses and setbacks.
We are enjoined to eternally remember the struggle with the unnamed,
powerful forces, on earth and even reaching to the very heavens,
against whom Jacob battled during the Biblically recorded night of
nights. We must remember and never despair. The sinew of Jacob's
thigh bone is dislocated but the morning star of redemption does rise
and Jacob does achieve mastery.
Jacob's ultimate victory is reflected in his new name, our new name,
Yisrael - which has 3 possible meanings: a) he has conquered the
divine-like forces, b) he has struggled with people and with G-d and
has won, and c) G-d Himself, the G-d of tolerance and justice, has
emerged victorious.
Jacob's message to his descendants never to despair is reflected in
the prohibition against their eating the sinew of the thigh bone
"until this very day". We may be diminished, but we will never be
destroyed. We may lose many battles, but we will eventually win the
war.
Whenever you participate in an especially robust and 'filled minyan'
(a healthy number and strongly spirited quorum of Jews at prayer),
remember that it is due, at least in part, to their rejection of filet
mignon.
Shabbat Shalom from Efrat,
Rabbi Shlomo Riskin
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