AND THE CHILDREN STRUGGLED WITHIN HER, AND SHE SAID, "IF [IT BE] SO, WHY AM I [LIKE] THIS?" AND SHE WENT TO INQUIRE OF THE LORD. AND THE LORD SAID TO HER, "TWO NATIONS ARE IN YOUR WOMB, AND TWO PEOPLES WILL SEPARATE FROM YOUR INNARDS, AND ONE PEOPLE WILL BECOME MIGHTIER THAN THE OTHER PEOPLE, AND THE ELDER WILL SERVE THE younger.

(Bereishit 25:22-23)

 

Two Nations - Conflict or Reciprocal Enhancement?

Two nations are in your womb - The intent of this is that He informed her that she should not fear, for the reason for the struggle in her womb is that she is pregnant with twins, this being the customary way among women who are pregnant with twins. It is possible that He is also saying that since they are destined to be two peoples, hating and warring with each other, at the very beginning of their creation they initiated a quarrel, thus intimating at the situation which will ultimately exist between them. But He assured her that now they will rest, and she will find rest and quiet for herself.

(RaMBaN Bereishit 25:23, Chavel translation)

 

And God said to her; two nations are in your womb - Rav Yehuda said in the name of Rav: Do not read goyim (nations), but rather gayim (great, proud). This refers to Antoninus and Rabbi, whose tables never lacked lettuce or squash, or radishes, neither in sunny days nor in days of rain.

(Avodah Zara 11a)

 

Antoninus also said to Rabbi, "When is the soul placed in man; as soon as it is decreed [that the sperm shall be male or female, etc.], or when [the embryo] is actually formed?" He replied, "From the moment of formation." He objected: "Can a piece of meat be unsalted for three days without becoming putrid? But it must be from the moment that [God] decrees [its destiny]." Rabbi said: This thing Antoninus taught me, and Scripture supports him, for it is written, And your decree has preserved my spirit [i.e., my soul] (Job 10).

Antoninus also enquired of Rabbi, "From what time does the Evil Tempter hold sway over man; from the formation [of the embryo], or from [its] issuing forth [into the light of the world]?!" - "From the formation," he replied. "If so," he objected, "it would rebel in its mother's womb and go forth. But it is from when it issues." Rabbi said: This thing Antoninus taught me, and Scripture supports him, for it is said, At the door [i.e., where the babe emerges] sin lies in wait (Bereishit 4).

(Sanhedrin 91b, Soncino translation) .

 

 

And the children struggled within her

Chaim Rubinstein

Can two different characters struggle within one person, each grasping the other by the ankle? Aren't internal contradictions found in every personality? Doesn 't everyone feel that two peoples will separate from your innards, each pulling in its own direction? Internal contradictions are part of human existence. The feeling that a struggle takes place in the soul of the individual is a daily occurrence. The experience of the soul containing more than one will, and that these multiple wills are opposed to each other, is not uncommon. Sometimes they are called "the good inclination" and "the evil inclination." Sometimes they are called "the male aspect" and "the female aspect". Each writer chooses his or her own metaphors.

One aspect is that of a man who knows hunting, a man of the field (Bereishit 25:27) and later, in order to emphasize the masculine dimension, Isaac loved Esau (25:28). The other aspect is a mild man, a tent-dweller (25:27) and later Rebecca loved Isaac (25:28). The masculine aspect; the hunter, warrior, adventurer; the hard, demonic, and hairy - the outdoorsman vs. the soft, feminine aspect, the smooth, the intellectual, scholarly, indoorsman. Two essences united in one.

Humanity has two aspects, each finding dominance in different personalities. Some situations require that the warrior be dominant, while others call for the soft, inclusive dimension. Occasionally contradictory behaviors are expressions of momentary victories of one aspect over the other. Some days the internal war is calmed while in others it rages, caries us away and is insatiable. And two peoples will separate from your innards, and one people will become mightier than the other people.

Lustful tendencies are salient in the aspect of Esau: hunting, devouring, swallowing, and eating. Pour into [me] some of this red, red [pottage] (25:30). This is the character which appears in quarrels, in wars, in struggles. It knows how to drive forward towards accomplishments, to ignore pain, to hit and to grapple. While it is at work the muses go silent, one does not listen, concentrating on the aspiration to win. Adrenalin flows and blood-sugar levels rise.

The aspect of Jacob is characterized by creativity, introverted activity, and attentiveness. Now Jacob cooked a pottage (25:29). It is the aspect which writes poetry, prose, and music. It listens and hears. It aids the weak; it supports and helps. It understands. It is the intellectual aspect; it learns and thinks.

Man has two aspects. Each expresses different and conflicting sides of his personality. Non-identical twins. They differ in outward appearance and in their essences they oppose and complete each other. They derive from one source, one following the other. The complete human being is a combination of Esau and Jacob.

The complete human strikes the required balance between extremes. Neither is a masquerading Jacob nor a frustrated Esau. The complete person is the solution to the conflict. He knows how to fight when necessary but also establishes attentive listening as a way of life. He wanders amongst the parts of his soul, accenting different parts as become necessary. Esau is emotional, and the complete person cools him down with "Jacobness." Esau 's assertiveness must be added to Jacob the mild man and tent-dweller in order to sharpen study, to strive harder for truth, to disagree. Thanks to Esau 's spice, the tent and the house of study become intellectual battlefields.

In a complete person, Jacob complements Esau. Jacob does not flee from Esau and Jacob fools no one. Esau is not frustrated. They are Ying and Yang, the two Cherubs, Yakhin and Boaz, the Urim and the Tummim. And behold, there were twins in her womb (25:24). Twins, one following the other, each constantly accompanying the other... Will two walk together unless they agreed (Amos 3:3)?

Humans are characterized by the formation of couples rather than singularity. The couple-relation points out the multidimensionality of existence. Forces from left and right must be exercised in order to remain in the straight furrow. The sum of vectors is in the middle. A force pushing only from one side may run off track along the way. A constant minor deviation causes us to miss our destination by journey 's end. Two, each balancing the other, can correct errors. The existence which survived the Flood was composed of couples, two by two. So it is in human life, so it is in human inwardness.

Two are better than one, since they have good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his friend, but woe to the one who falls and has no second one to lift him up. Moreover, if two lie down, they will have warmth, but how will one have warmth? And if a man prevails against the one, the two will stand against him, and a three- stranded cord will not quickly be broken.

Chaim Rubinstein, a soul divided.

 

The Third Temple will be Built Only in Peace

And they did not quarrel over the third well, for the Third Temple will be built by the king Messiah of whom it is said (Isaiah 9:6): for the increase of the realm and for peace without end, for there will be only peace and truth in his time. Thus was it called Rehovot, for then the Lord will expand (yarhiv) their borders. When there is strife or two Hebrews fighting, even in a city as large as Antioch, there is not enough room for them both even in a very great area; the lack of space oppresses them, as is the case even today, due to our sins. The opposite is the case when there is peace among Israel. Even though we multiply and the Land's inhabitants are numerous, nevertheless it is expansive for them and there is no oppressor... that when peace is found we shall be fruitful in the land for we will not need to leave it.

(Kli Yakar Bereishit 26:19)

 

Jacob 's Moral Conflict

And he went and took it and brought it to his mother [va 'yelekh, va 'yikah, va 'yavi] (Bereishit 27:14) - coerced, subordinate, and crying.

(Bereishit Rabba 65)

 

This may be a derasha on va 'yelekh, va 'yikah, va 'yavi - "vay" [woe] because of these three.

(RaDaL on Bereishit Rabba)

 

The voice is the voice of Jacob - No prayer is ever effective without the participation of Jacob's offspring.

Yet the hands are the hands of Esau - No war is ever won without the participation of Esau's offspring in it.

(Gittin 57b)

 

Did Esau disguise himself as Jacob or vice versa? The mistake is possible in both directions.

The voice is the voice of Jacob and the hands are the hands of Esau: he could not have said, the voice is Jacob's and the hands are Esau's, for then he would have sworn that he had judged according to the voice, and that he was certainly Jacob, and according to the hands, that he was certainly Esau, which is impossible. For if he is Jacob he is not Esau, and if he is Esau, he is not Jacob. But here is the explanation of the matter: he meant that the voice was similar to Jacob's voice, and perhaps he is falsifying his voice, and the truth is that he was Esau, and that he is falsifying himself and speaking in pleas, saying that he was worthy of receiving the blessings. Or else the hands are similar to the hands of Esau, and he is Jacob, who is falsifying himself to make his hands hairy, so that I will think that it is Esau. And why is there an "and" in and the hands? It comes from the verse, and he strikes his father and his mother, meaning or his mother. Thus he meant, or the hands are similar to the hands of Esau.

(Keli Yakar, Bereishit 27:22)

 

Rebecca is the Mother of Jacob and Esau

Why did the Torah see fit to remind us once more - after Rebecca sent/smuggled Jacob away from Esau's vicinity, keeping Esau from venting his rage - why did the Torah remind us that she was mother to both Jacob and Esau?

The words of the super commentary Tzeida La-Derekh on Rashi ring true: This comes to tell us that she did not act only as Jacob's mother when she smuggled out Jacob, saving him from death. Rather, she was also acting as Esau's mother, saving him from murdering his brother. Although throughout the chapter she had been viewed as acting solely for the sake of Jacob, her younger son (27:42), at the moment of greatest danger her actions are explained by her role as mother of Jacob and Esau (28:5); she did not want to be bereft of them both in the same day.

(Prof. Nehama Leibowitz, z"l, Iyyunim be-Sefer Bereishit, pg. 202)

 

The Many Faces of Esau

His name is Esau [Eisav] for he is formed [asuy] and completed. Eisav, whose numerical value is shalom, for if he had not been named "peace," he would have destroyed the world. Another idea: Eisav is [the letter] "ayin [= 70, followed by the word,] shav." This shav [pointless one] completed the number of 70 nations that I created in my world.

(Baal ha-Turim, Bereishit 25:25).

 

Shalom: Its numerical value is [the same as] Eisav, for one should be first to greet every person, even a gentile.

(Baal ha-Turim Bamidbar 6:26)

 

...the Baal ha-Turim's second explanation is much deeper, when he says "Shalom: Its numerical value is [the same as] Eisav"... and as has been stated, this is talking about the priestly blessing, meaning - the blessing of peace to Israel is not complete as long as there is no peace for Esau as well. It may be said that in Toldot, the numerical value of Eisav is shalom in order to restrain Esau, while in the priestly blessing, the numerical value of Eisav is shalom in order to inform the People Israel how strongly they are commanded to make peace, and that there will be no peace for Israel as long as there is no peace between Jacob and Esau.

(Prof. Y. Leibowitz, z"l, Sheva Shanim Shel Sihot al Parashat ha-Shavua, pg. 110).

 

By your sword you shall live: Blessing, Curse, or Necessity?

By your sword you shall live: In reward for your having taken your sword and bow by my command. And you shall serve your brother: Esau said –"Since you have made him my master, he will humiliate me." His father said: "By your sword you shall live - you will serve by way of the sword, and that is not humiliating." Esau said: "Even so, serving with the sword will be too much trouble for me." He told him: "And you shall serve your brother" - in this manner of service and he will have compassion upon you.

(Hizkuni Bereishit 27:40)

 

The meaning of ve 'al harbekha [literally on your sword] is as if it were written, beharbekha [by your sword]. A similar case is the verse, For man does not live al halehem [on bread] alone (Devarim 8:3), which means belehem [by bread]. Now the blessing is not that he live on the booty he takes from his enemies by the sword, for he has already given him the fat places of the earth and the dew of heaven by which he shall live. Instead, the purport of the blessing is that he survive his battles and be victorious, and not fall by the sword of an enemy. It is for this reason that immediately following this he said, And you shall serve your brother, meaning, "but you will not prevail over him. Instead, he will prevail over you."

(RaMBaN Bereishit 27:40, Chavel translation)

 

Who is Esau? Who is Edom? -Caution is Required when we try to Understand the Present on the Basis of the Past

...and there are those who have not awakened from their foolish slumber who think that we are still in the exile of Edom. But this is not so - Edom was under Judah's control, and so it is written, Thus Edom fell away from Judah's control (II Kings 8:22). Yoav also killed off every male in Edom (I Kings 11:16). Since it [Edom] was under Judah's control, they rejoiced on the day of our catastrophe [the destruction of the first Temple], and told the Babylonians, Strip her, strip her, to her very foundations (Psalms 137:7). It was especially humiliating for Israel that Edom would humiliate them in their evil times. ["The humiliation .that the Edomites humiliated Israel on the day Jerusalem was captured and the Temple burned by the Kasdim was more difficult for Israel than was their actual trouble" - Ibn Ezra on Psalms 116:7]. This is the rationale for [the verse] be joyous and happy, daughter of Edom (Lamentations 4:21), and also for [the verse], you should not have rejoiced about the children of Judah (Ovadiah 1:12). However, in the days of Hyrcanus the Elder he set them up to guard Jerusalem and entered them into the covenant of circumcision. Also in the days of Agrippa, when Jerusalem was under siege the Edomite forces came to Judah's aid. The people [in another, apparently original version: "and Rome"], which exiled us was derived from the Kittim, and so the translator rendered Ships came from the quarter of Kittim (Bamidbar 24:24) [Onkelos writes: "and their help came from Rome"] as referring to Rome], that is the Greek Kingdom, as I explained in my commentary on the Book of Daniel "there were but a few people" who believed in the new faith [Christianity]. Many came to believe in it in the days of Constantine, who had renewed the religion entirely, and there had been [until that time] no one in the world who observed the religion [Christianity], besides the Edomites [and so, Roman Christendom is referred to as "Edom"]. [Similarly], today the people of Egypt and Ethiopia and Elam are referred to as Ishmaelites, but there but a few real descendents of the Ishmaelites among them.

(Ibn Ezra on Bereishit 27:40)

 

What was the reason for Esau 's anger? The loss of the blessing to Jacob? Or the content of his own blessing?

And Esau hated Jacob over the blessing - some understand that over the blessing refers not to the blessing which Jacob received, but rather to the blessing with which his father blessed him by your sword you shall live - and he was sure of it. Say it thusly: "And Esau hated Jacob because he was sure of the blessing by your sword you shall live, etc."

(Hizkuni Bereishit 27:41)

 

The Sages do not Hesitate to Criticize the Patriarchs' Deeds in Order to Derive a Moral Lesson

When evening came... (Bereishit 29:23) - He made love to her all night, thinking she was Rachel. When he rose up in the morning, there was Leah (29:25). He said to her: "Cheater's daughter, why did you cheat me?"

She told him: "And did you not cheat your father when he asked you Is that you, Esau, my first-born? And you answered, "I am Esau, your first-born" (Bereishit 27:19), and you ask why I cheated you?! Did your father not say, "Your brother came deceitfully and took your blessing" (27:35)?

(Midrash Agadat Bereishit 49)

 

 

 

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