Parashat Va'yai'shev, Genesis 37:1 - 41:23

This week’s portion, Va’yai’shev (literally, “and he resided” as in “And Jacob resided in the land where his father has lived”) is a very interesting portion. Much shorter than its predecessor, Va’ye’shev is a succinct, wonderfully-written portion revolving around one person: Joseph, Jacob’s beloved son.  Joseph (or Yoseph) is so dear to Jacob because he is one of only two sons that Rachel, his beloved wife for whom he worked 14 years, gave him.  Joseph is seventeen when the portion begins, and – precisely like his mother – he is described as both “handsome looking” and “a feast for the eyes” (Gen. 39:6; cf. Gen. 29:17 (same exact description of his mother Rachel)).

Not surprisingly, this favorite son feels somewhat superior to his ten older brothers. As the portion begins, he is already painted in a non-complimenting light of a whistle-blower to his brothers, a person who brings reports of their inappropriate behavior as herders to their father (a social faux-pas even in those days). Since every action has a counter-action, it should come at no surprise that the brothers, too, “hated him and did not speak to him.” (Gen. 37:4)  The portion then “bookends” with two sets of double dreams: the first dreamt by Joseph, the other interpreted by Joseph. In between these two sets of dreams we encounter a very interesting story about Judah – Joseph’s big brother – and his extremely able daughter-in-law Tamar.  Unfortunately, I have room this week to discuss only the first of these three fascinating stories. I will be happy to discuss the other two should you ask separately.

I. Joseph’s Dreams

Joseph is well known today as the first “dream solver” – the person who may interpret the meaning of your dreams. Long before Freud’s Interpretation of Dreams (1899) – in which Freud has claimed to “provide proof that there is a psychological technique which allows us to interpret dreams” – the biblical Joseph realized that dreams consists of our subconscious manifestations of desires, fears, and wishes.  But before turning to the dream of others – like any good therapist – he had to deal with his own.

Joseph’s dreams may be considered simple – even simplistic – in comparison with the dreams he later deciphers; they are even understood by his own brothers.  In the first of these dreams, Joseph and his brothers are binding sheaves in the field, when suddenly Jeseph’s sheaf stands tall while all the others’ sheaves are gathered around it and bow.  (Gen. 37:7) Indeed, the dream is simply portrayed, visibly powerful, and clearly understood.  The brothers’ reaction is also quite expected:  “And the brothers have said: Do you intend to rule over us like a king? To govern us like a ruler? And they have continued to despise him both for his dreams and his words.” (Gen. 37:8)

Joseph’s second dream is not much different. But this time he elevates his kingdom from merely an agricultural field to no less than the entire universe. Here, no less than the sun, the moon, and the eleven planets [an astonishing astronomical bit of information, considering the time it was written – but more on that later] are all bowing down to Joseph.  Hearing about this new level of aspirations even Joshep’s own loving father Jacob cannot stand idle: “And his father scolded him and said: what is this dream you dreamt – should myself and your mother and all your brothers bow down to you? And his brothers were jealous of him, and his father kept that in his mind.”  (Gen. 37:9-11).

II. Was Joseph Really That Naïve?

Let us pause for a moment and consider Joseph’s situation. He knew well, even before reporting his first dream that he is far from being his brother’s favorite. He knew all too well by the time the second dream came around that even his father may be upset with him for reporting it. It is no wonder, then, that the traditional account views Joseph a either naïve (at best) or plain stupid (at worst) when he chose to approach his brothers to tell them about both dreams. Yet everything we learn later about Joseph suggests the exact opposite – that he was neither naïve nor stupid; the opposite is true.  This young man, who was immediately liked by everyone who laid eyes on him – men and women, high-officers and prisoners alike – climbed successfully through the social ranks at a very young age to become the first-ever foreign “Vice President” of the only Superpower in the region.  He was smart, sophisticated, polished, and had very sharp political instincts. All that made me think again about the traditional account of the report by Joseph to his brothers.  Let us try and look at those dreams again.   

1. First Dream: In the Field

We begin the account of the first dream when we already know few things about Joseph:  First, of all the brothers, Jacob loves him the most. Second, the brothers hate him for that. Third, the brothers don’t even speak to him anymore.  With these in mind, Joseph approaches them to talk about his dream in what seems like a suicide mission:  He is about to tell them about his “superiority-complex,” as if they didn’t had enough of that already. Now put yourselves for a second in Joseph’s own shoes: Suppose you had a dream putting you in charge of your ten older brothers who hate you; would you go and tell them about it?

Note also that the first dream is a bit more subtle than the second: Here, the brothers’ sheaves bow to Joseph’s sheaf; but they themselves do not bow to him.  It is only in the second dream where the sun, moon, and eleven planets actually bow directly to Joseph – to him, not to his planet. Is that important? Can those dreams be interpreted differently?

2. Second Dream: The Sun, Moon, and Eleven Planets

Of all the biblical dreams, Joseph’s second dream is my favorite.  Perhaps because it was depicted by Walt Disney in his magnificent adaptation of Paul Dukas’ “The Sorcerer's Apprentice” in Fantasia (the only piece, by the way, to be presented in both the original and the 2000 version of the film.)  While the original story, authored by Goethe, says nothing about Joseph’s dream (see http://german.about.com/library/blgzauberl.htm), the animated depiction by Disney has Mickey Mouse dreaming about himself as standing on a very tall cliff, surrounded by gushing waters, and ordering the sun, moon, and planets around him to obey all his commands (conveyed by the magic stick). Mickey’s “dream” is based on Joseph’s.

Another reason why I like this dream so much is because of the profound cosmological knowledge it contains. Recall the period in which the dream is being reported – very little astronomical data is said to be known at the time. Yet the number 11 for planets – until recently, the exact number depicted by NASA to describe the same phenomenon (see http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/index.cfm) – in addition to the moon and the sun, strikes me as an amazing coincidence.

III. So What Were These Dreams About, After All?

I think that Joseph reported the dreams “as is” to his brothers not because he was naïve, but rather because he considered them to be divine interventions.  Indeed, every time Joseph is asked later about dreams and their interpretation, he always invokes God. (see, e.g., Gen. 40:8; 41:16; 41:25). And dreams – and God – also played a major role in the life of his father Jacob. I venture to guess that the story of Jacob’s most famous dream – “Jacob’s Ladder,” which was shortly reviewed in a previous post – was told over and over to the “chosen son.” Thus, when Joseph begins to have dreams of his own he clearly senses that God has finally come to him as well. That is the reason he told the dreams’ content – without omitting any of the details – to both his brothers and his father. This is the reason he even dared to challenge the very authority of his beloved father; he truly felt that this was God’s calling. Perhaps he was right. Recall that when asked to “solve” one of the dreams later in his life, Josephs does not hesitate to tell a (former) senior official at Pharaoh’s court that he is about to be hung; this, too, could not have been a smart political move were Joseph to conduct a simple cost-benefit political analysis. But he preferred to tell the truth as God ordered him to. 

I think this is one of the Portion’s most important, and often overlooked, lessons: Joseph was neither Naïve nor stupid, neither arrogant nor too shy; he simply took dreams as a serious manifestation of divine intervention. Seen in that light, I think we may all reevaluate Joseph’s actions.     

Shabat Shalom,

Doron

Parashat Va'yish'lach, Gen. 32:4-36:42

The eighth portion of the week, Va’yish’lach – literally, “and he sent,” as in “Jacob has sent agents to his brother Esau – continues to reveal the fascinating story of our third Father, Jacob (soon to be named Israel).  Indeed, last week we reviewed Jacob’s twenty years of service with Laban – a period summarized by Jacob in a very moving monologue at the end of the portion.  Now we enter a new era, the one in which Jacob prepares for a meeting he dreaded (and escaped from) for twenty years – the reunion with his brother Esau.  The portion also includes the famous story known as the Rape of Dina, Jacob’s daughter. I will make a short comment on each of those subjects.

I. “And Jacob remained on his own…”

Careful and meticulous – that is how the text describes Jacob’s preparation for his first meeting with twin brother Esau in twenty years.  To recall:  This is the same brother who said, even before their father Isaac passed, “Let the mourning period of my father end, and I will kill my brother Jacob.” (Gen. 27:41)   This is the brother from whom Jacob escaped to the other end of the Middle East.  This is the same brother from whom Jacob bought (or stole, if you ask Esau) the precious right of the elder son, or birthright, and then received their father’s blessings for it (or stole it yet again, according to the same version).   

And Jacob knows – what proves to be right – that his homecoming ceremony cannot be kept secret. Somehow, despite the lack of internet in those times, everyone seems to know that Jacob – with his property, two wives, two midwives, and eleven sons – is coming back home. So Jacob prepares, and he prepares well.  He is hoping for the best, and planning for the worst.  He begins by what every good general would do: gathering intelligence.  So he sends a group of reconnaissance warriors to find out about Esau’s intentions and actions. ((A side note: these warriors are described in the Hebrew original as “angels” (“Mal’a’chim”; Gen. 32:4), which is interesting as the only apparent real “angel” in this portion is actually described by the text as a “man” (“Ish”; Gen. 32:26)). Jacob then asks these men to deliver a message to his brother – basically that he has been living with Laban (a relative of both brothers, recall – their uncle), and that now he, Jacob, would like to appease Esau. But when these messengers return to Jacob they mention nothing about a message delivered; rather, their report is somewhat bleak: “We arrived at your brother, at Esau, and there he was – marching towards you and [a small army of] four hundred men with him.” (Gen. 32:7, my translation).  

Jacob, realizing the gravity of the situation, begins to prepare accordingly. He first divides his property, theorizing that if Esau would arrive at the first camp he would at least have the other to save.  He then prays to God and asks for salvation – something he hasn’t done, perhaps, in twenty years.  But our Third Father also realizes (and internalizes) the very important notion according to which God only helps those who help themselves.  He thus prepares a major gift for his brother – hundreds of sheep, ewes, rams, camels, cows, and bulls – and then divides it into separate groups.  He instructs his slaves to keep a safe distance between them and the property, such that every time Esau would run into one of them he – Esau – would hear the exact same text: “this is a gift from your servant Jacob.” (Gen. 32:19) He then takes his two wives, two midwives, and eleven sons and crosses the Jordan into Israel.  So far for Jacob’s meticulous preparation. [Consider, in that respect, Jacob’s previous encounters with his brother and how well prepared was he for those as well – as in buying the Birthright for a well-cooked stew, and receiving the blessings from father Isaac by wearing sheep’s skin on his arms, etc.]

And after all that preparation, after taking care of his family, his property, his men, and  his brother – after all that, Jacob remains on his own. 

And then he wrestles all night with an apparent Angel (the issue of the Angel’s true nature is far from self-evident, but I cannot enter that discussion here). After Jacob insists on receiving a blessing, the Angel blesses him and changes his name to Israel, as he could be present – “sari’ta” – with both God and Men.  (Gen. 32:25-33) And so the name of our people was created – “Am Israel,” the nation of Israel. We are not the nation of Abraham, nor of Isaac, but of Jacob’s – now called Israel.

The text does not explain why or how Jacob, who was accompanied by a huge entourage of a few hundred men and women, was “left alone” in the middle of the night to fight with the Angel.  But perhaps I may venture to guess.

After all the careful considerations, after all the meticulous planning, after all the cost-benefit analyses, game-theory considerations, and damage-control scenarios – Jacob is left alone.  It is he – and no one else – who has to wrestle with the consequences of his actions. It is he who has to fight his inner demons.  It is he who cannot sleep the night before the big event, wrestling with his God all night.

And this, I am afraid, is true for every one of us as well.  Indeed, at the end of all ends, “the buck stops here” for each and every one of us – not only for the president.  We can plan all we want, persuade ourselves that we externalize all the risk in the world, hide behind the most cutting-edge theories out there; but at the end of the day, it is us – each and every one of us – who has to account for our actions, alone.  It is us who need to wrestle with our inner Gods all night.  And only if we are still standing in the morning, we can be truly feel “Israel” – like someone who stood with both men and gods and was not defeated.

And, in case you are wondering:  The meeting with Esau went just fine. Esau ran toward his brother, hugged him, kissed him, and made peace (Gen. 33:4). All’s well between the brothers now.  [To be sure, things are a bit more complicated than that; but let’s leave it at that for now.]

II. The Rape of Dina

Dina’s rape is one of the most complicated stories in Jacob’s history.  According to the text, Dina – one of Leah’s (big sister) daughters – went for a walk, when suddenly a young prince, the son of a local king, saw her.  He took her to himself, slept with her, and tortured her.  The story quickly spreads – “an outrage has been done: someone slept with Jacob’s daughter” and her brothers are called to action.  But then a sudden twist:  The rapist falls in love with Dina, which apparently was not part of the plan. And so the prince’s father, the local king, asks Dina’s father (Jacob) for permission to his son to marry her.  Jacob, not a young lad, delegates the treatment of this delicate political issue to his sons.  They plot a revenge, whereby they would ask the men to circumcise in order to marry Dina, and then kill them while in pain. The plan carries out flawlessly, and Shimon and Levi executes it to its last gruesome detail. They save their sister, and everyone’s happy. 

Or are they? Even Jacob himself start having second thoughts when he hears on the price this local tribe had to pay for sleeping with his daughter; their men are all dead, their property stolen, and their wives and children taken prisoners. Isn’t that too much, even taking into account the horrific thing done by one of them?  (Gen. 34:30) The brothers answer with one sentence ending all conversation, which until today is used all too often by angry brothers (and husbands) who wish to avenge their loved one’s rape: “Should our sister be treated like a whore?”  You decide.

Shabbat Shalom.

Doron 

Parashat Va'yai'tzai, Gen.28:10-32:3

Seven is a significant number, both in Judaism in general and in Genesis in particular. It is a holly number, and it carries many a connotation. The seventh portion of the week – Va’yai’tzai (literally, “when he left” as in “When Jacob left Be’er She’va in order to go ….”) – proves to be both unique and holly, as its number suggests. Today I will continue to comment on our third – and most thoroughly “reported” – father, Jacob (or Israel).

I. A Quick Note on Jacob’s Ladder

The portion begins with a brief, though dramatic and very powerful return of the image of God - the same God that was at the center, if not constituted the center, of the first several portions and then withered away – through the wonderful story of Jacob's Ladder.  This magical dream, where a ladder stands on the ground "and its head reaches the heavens, and there the Angels of God climb up and down on it" (Gen. 28:12), is one of the most multi-faceted apparitions in all of Genesis – a book where dreams play major role.  Indeed, generations of interpreters found hidden meanings in that story, and the Kaballah itself – much harder to understand than most people think – adopted  its text and symbolism as one of its earliest tenets.  Indeed, you are more than invited to research some of these interpretations, which attempted to decipher the meaning of the “Angels of God” who appear in the dream, as well as that of the image of God himself who is positioned atop of the ladder – first merely visible to Jacob (recall what is the punishment for seeing God in other places in the bible), and then actually talking to him. Another interesting point of reference is Jacob’s first comment once he has awakened from his dream: “Indeed God exists in this place, and I did not know.” (Gen. 28:16).  Is it possible that our own Jacob was not aware of God’s omnipresence?

Much like the story of the Akeda (sacrifice of Itzhak), the story of Jacob’s ladder could not be properly examined in this short framework. In any event, the seventh portion is not only unique in describing celestial dreams; it is also – and perhaps more — unique in that it demonstrates, in astonishing detail, the next twenty years in the life of Jacob (or Israel), the Third Father of our nation who gave birth to the twelve sons (and one daughter) who later became the twelve tribes of Israel.  

II.  Jabob’s Journey

A quick reminder regarding where we are in the text:  After being blessed (erroneously) by his aging father Isaac, Jacob hears word that his brother Esau is somewhat dissatisfied.  Or, as the text puts the unequivocal words in Esau’s mouth – and I only somewhat paraphrase here – “as soon as the mourning period over my father is over, I shall kill my brother.” (Gen. 27:41).  This murder plan is astonishing, in particular considering the fact that Isaac (the father) is not even dead yet.  But Esau can’t be bothered with niceties:  He is so furious about the act of stealing his Birthright that he already plans ahead, beyond his father’s death. (A brownie point here to readers who identify themes from the first murder of a younger brother by his elder, several portions back.)  Hearing of his plan, Rivkah, the wise mother who always supported Jacob over his brother, comes up with an ingenious solutions: Jacob would go to her brother, Laban (whom we met earlier, in the story of Isaac’s slave who came to select her as a wife), who lives far enough to escape Esau’s ire.  Yet, like every smart woman, she wants to present the plan to Isaac in a way that he, Isaac, would think that it was his idea.  And thus we find the following amusing and over-dramatized dialogue in the seventh portion of the week: (Gen. 27:46-28:2)

“And Rebecca said to Isaac:  I have no more use of my life, all due to the daughters of Chat – if Jacob were to take a wife from the daughters of Chat, like the other daughters of this country, what point does my life have anymore?  And Isaac called Jacob and blessed him and ordered him and said: You shall not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan; get up and go …. [away] and take a wife from the daughters of Laban, your mother’s brother.”

 And so we finally come to the beginning of our portion, where Jacob begins his journey in the opposite direction of his grandfather’s – who came all the way from Aram  Na’ha’rayim (roughly Iraq) to Israel – in order to find a wife.  Recall that Abraham did not directly send his son there to find a wife, but rather used a slave to “import” Rivkah.  Jacob is not that lucky, however, and he’s going there by foot, all by himself, and without any property.

Think for a moment of this “tent-dweller,” an ancient-world chef who focused until now on cooking and talking with the women in the tent.  He is probably not equipped with man navigation skills. More importantly, he probably does not have many hours of hiking and hunting for food under his belt. Yet he’s now bound to walk, by foot, hundreds of miles across the early Middle-Eastern deserts to find the right woman (and escape his brother revenge).

The text tells us very little about the journey, other than the dream relating to the  Ladder; the next time we encounter Jacob is when he meets his future wife, Rachel.  And what a meeting that is.  [Thanks to Meir Shalev for introducing this idea.]  just imagine the scenery, if you will:  A number of lazy (male) goat-herders are awaiting in the sun by the big well in the field.  They are not providing any water to their herds – they can’t, as the stone covering the well is too large; only when all the goat herders assemble can they move the stone together. [An economic analysis of this arrangement led to new thinking about collective bargaining and the “tragedy of the commons”; but that’s for another time.]  Jacob, meanwhile, is trying to gather information only to find out that Rachel, the daughter of Laban (his uncle from his mother’s side), is about to appear at any moment; she, too, is a goat herder, and she’s coming to water her sheep with everyone else.  Jacob is puzzled:  why are you people just sitting there doing nothing? The day is far from over, and you can go and herd your sheep.  [Perhaps he wanted the place for himself, once he heard the Rachel is approaching].  But the lazy herders have no intentions to leave: “No,  we cannot (leave) up until all the herds would gather here and have moved the stone from the face of the well and we shall water our sheep.” (Gen. 29: 1-8)

III. The Arrival of Rachel

After setting the backgound, and “while he is still talking to them” (Gen. 28:9) Rachel arrives at the scene. And what an entrance that is.  Recall that the biblical text loves to praise the beauty of our mothers – Sarah was so beautiful that of all the women in Egypt the King wanted her to himself; Rivkah was so beautiful that Isaac, just like his father, preferred to lie about her identity than to be killed by another king who wanted her (Avimelech).  But Rachel is (apparently) at another league altogether: She was so beautiful that the text gushes: “And Rachel was both beautiful (Yefat Toar) and a feast to the eyes (Yefat Mareh).” (Gen. 29:17)

So Rachel, and her sheep, moves slowly into the field.  Instead of introducing himself, Jacob then performs a series of four amazing deeds, each intends to impress his future wife in a different way:  (1) First, on his own, this “tent-dweller” who just finished a very difficult single traverse of the ancient Middle-East, lifts the huge stone over the well without any help from the other herders – a physical feat of epic proportions in that area; he then (2) waters only Rachel’s herd, lest there can be any doubt as for whom did he perform this Herculean task; he then (3) kisses Rachel, no doubt to her great amazement – he still didn’t utter a word, mind you, while she is still shocked by the single-handed feat she just witnessed (I doubt if anyone has ever even tried that before; the stone probably looked like no one should try to lift it on his own); and then, yet another twist: (4) Jacob begins crying and sobbing (yes; he just broke the world-record of Strong-Man, and now he’s weeping like a baby). Only then, finally, Jacob tells Rachel:  I’m actually your relative, your cousin, the son of Rivkah, your father’s sister. (Gen. 29: 9-13) Could she not fall in love with this man-of-all-seasons? [Think for a minute of your entrance during your first date with your current spouse – was it anything like that?]

Rachel, of course, could not resist; she falls in love with her cousin, and he falls in love with her.  He then works seven years for her, during which he is not allowed to touch her.  [Again, with today’s mores, think about that for a moment:  Not for a month, not for a year, not even for five years – Seven whole years and they never materialized their love. Isn’t that amazing?]  Yet Jacobs utters one of the most romantic statements of love of all times when he summarizes this period in the following way:  And those days were “in his eyes as several days passed in his love for her.” (Gen. 29:20)

Laban, the sneaky Uncle, does everything is his powers to deny Jacob of his prized love. Even after the seven years are up he cheats Jabob into marrying Leah, Rachel’s elder sister.  (“This shall not be done in our place,” he explains to his shocked nephew, “taking the younger sister prior to her elder.” (Gen. 29:26)).  And he makes Jacob work seven additional years for Rachel, and six more for some of the property he took care of so beautifully.  But love concurs all, and Jacob leaves Laban pretty much the opposite of how he came to him:  not alone – but married to two women and having many children; not penniless – but rich and famous; not a young man – but a grown person in his full powers; and not a tent-dweller attached to his mother, but a property owner with many practical and professional skills.   

IV. Jacob’s Monologue

Laban, who envies the man who came to him barefoot and alone twenty years earlier, can’t bear the thought he’s leaving him with both his daughters and so much property (despite the fact he worked for all of those for over twenty years).  He chases Jaboc and accuses him of stealing his medicines (an interesting story that would repeat later with Tamar and Judah; I will not discuss that here).  Then, in an astonishing turn, Jabob – who was silent all these years, never complained, never argued with his deceitful uncle – finally opens up and delivers one of the most moving monologues in all of Genesis.  Opening a narrow window into what he went through all those years, he says: (Gen. 31:38-42)

“For twenty years I have dwelled with you . . . not once have I eaten from your herd; not once have I violated your property; I myself made good on any loss to your herd – whether stolen by day or stolen by night [an interesting comment on the different laws, perhaps, that applied to theft in different times of the day].  Often scorching heat ravaged me by day, and icy-freezing temperatures by night bearing sleep impossible.  I have spent twenty years at your home, working all the while:  Fourteen years working for your two daughters, and six years for your sheep, and you have earned my salary scores time over.”               

Laban tries to argue: “the daughters are mine, and the sheep are mine, and everything you see here is mine”; but moves back to offer an agreement.  Jacob agrees and they part ways amicably.  So comes to an end one of the most fascinating chapters in our history.  Loves concurs all, and Jacob’s back on his way to Israel.  Now he realizes that fraudulent Laban was merely a warm-up: His vengeful brother awaits him in Israel. 

To be continued.  

Shabat Shalom.

Doron

  

Parashat Toldot, Gen. 25:19-27:9

The sixth portion of the week – Toldot (loosely translated “the history of…”) – introduces us to the third and most influential Father of our nation, Jacob (later to be called Israel).  Unlike Abraham and Isaac before him, the biblical text tells us much about Jacob for the very day in which he was born (and even before that), until his very last day.  Thus, we receive a full and very comprehensive picture of this multifaceted twin, who grew up from being a “mother’s boy” and “tent dweller” to become one of the most influential leaders of all times. 

Today I would like to make two related comments about Jacob’s character that derive from two of the portion’s most prominent stories:  The selling of the Birthright, and the act of receiving the Paternal Blessings.  The two stories are related; however reading the first closely may shed some new light on the second.

I. The Selling of the Birthright

Rivkah, Isaac’s wife who was brought to him by the slave in the wonderful story told in the last portion, is barren.  This is a pattern among our Mothers.  Isaac “petitions” God (and this exact word – “va’ya’a’tor” – is used until today in Hebrew to describe a motion made to the Israeli Supreme Court), and God provides him and Rivkah with twins:  The first-ever known red-head (Esau), and his twin brother, holding his heel (A’kev in Hebrew) – Ya’akov, roughly “he who followed his brother (out of the womb).” (Gen. 25:19-26)

While the text does not write much about the Right of the First Born (Birthright), we already know plenty of it.  We have enough indications to believe it was of great importance, and carried social and economic consequences. For example, whenever the Genesis text pauses the sequence of the story in order to tell us about the following lineage (see Chapters 5-6), the text focuses only on the first-born male, while all the other offspring are simply related to as “other boys and girls who were born to X.”  Thus, only the first born is mentioned by his name, and only he is mentioned as having his own wife, with whom he had another first born who is mentioned by name, and so on and so forth.  That goes to show that only the first born was considered the family safe-keeper, the one who continued the legacy, the one who received all the fame, fortune, and glory.

Now we deal, for the first time, with twins.  Though very different in nature – one is an outdoors person, a hunter, while his twin is a “tent-dweller” and a “mother’s boy”– they are both of the same age.  Yet only one of them would enjoy the very substantial right of being the first-born.  Although the text does not mention it, I am sure that Jacob, while sitting for hours and hours in his tent with his beloved mom, used to dwell on the injustice that was caused to him: Why would my twin brother (Esau) receive all the glory? After all, we are of the exact same age!

And so Jacob begins to plot his revolutionary – no less – idea. He would buy back his Birthright.  The readers must understand how subversive, original, and brilliant – all attributes we meet again later with Jacob – this idea is.  Birthright is acquired through biology.  Just like Royalty in England, this was the Law of the Land for years, and there was nothing that could be done to challenge it.  While today we mock and reject such arrangements explicitly (see the U.S. Const. Art. I § 9: “No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States”), it is still worthy to consider the simplicity and economy of such a rule for ancient societies:  “The first-born (male) gets it all. No argument.”  While arbitrary in nature, this rule is fair in that it applies equally to all families; it prevents many intra-family feuds as to who deserve to receive most of the inheritance; and it simplifies the otherwise very complex laws of inheritance.  

But what is the law of twins? Jacob, who lives at a time when the Supreme Court is not yet functioning (notice his complete disregard of God as a source of restoring justice in this case), decides to take matters into his own hands.

While Esau returns from one of his many days-long (and perhaps weeks) journeys, possibly without any game – as many hunters would tell you – tired, frustrated, and very hungry (recall that McDonalds and other fast-food joints were not in existence yet), Jacob makes sure he would smell his delicious stew.  Now note that it is Esau who asks Jacob – and not the other way – to taste from this heavenly gourmet dish: “Fill me up with this red, oh so red thing, as I am tired now.” (Gen. 26:30; note that red in Hebrew is Adom, and the text explains that the Adomites, an important people who are descendants of Esau, are called that way because of this Adom.)  Jacob agrees, but not before he asks Esau for something huge in return: “Sell me today your Birthright.” Esau, exhausted, hungry, and frustrated, agrees: “Here I am, about to die – why would I need my Birthright any longer? And Esau swore to him, and he sold his Birthright to Jacob. And Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew.” (Gen. 26: 32-34)

What’s shocking to me is not the act of the sale itself, but the audacity and originality of its originator. Before that, the sale of intangible rights in not even mentioned anywhere in the text – Jacob had to come up with the idea all by himself.  There were no institutions (like courts) that could enforce such a sale, and – as far as we know – the act had no witnesses.  Still, Jacob decides to correct what he sees as prolonged injustice and to get his Birthright though sale. (When we look at the current crisis in the banking system, and can’t believe what these people bought and sold – fractions of insolvent mortgages – we may look back to Genesis and see where it all began.)

II. The Blessing From Father Isaac

The story of Jacob cheating his father to receive the blessing of the first-born is well known in Halacha. In fact, the text itself tells us – from Isaac’s mouth – that “[Jacob] came to me with trickery and took your blessing.” (Gen. 27:35).  Until today, when well-read Israelis want to say that something doesn’t feel right, they quote Father Isaac’s suspicious call:  “The voice is the voice of Jacob, yet the hands are the hands of Esau.” (Gen. 27:22; I highly recommend you read the entire text, there.)

But did Jacob really trick his Father?  Wasn’t there something much deeper going on?  To me, all that happened here is the Jacob, many years after buying the Birthright – a declaratory gesture, without much meaning during the father’s lifetime – comes now to cash the check and receive the actual blessings (and all of its consequences).  He feels he deserves that.  He feels that the blessing directly derives from his purchase act of many years earlier.  Therefore, the “big and loud cry, bitter and wild” that Esau made when he realized the trick, complaining that Jacob tricked him twice: “he took my Birthright and now my blessings” (it’s much better in Hebrew) – is not convincing.  The two are one – you get the blessing because you have the Birthright, and vice-versa.  Now that Jacob earned his birthright fair and square, in a purchase, he can enjoy all the accompanied rights. 

Note that Isaac, the father, who learns about the trick, doesn’t even consider to “un-do” his blessing, to cancel it due to the fact it was made by fraud.  Today this is probably what a court of law would have done (if it were of the opinion that the blessing was obtained through trickery or misrepresentation).  But back then, what’s done is done, and there’s no turning back.  That was the case with the sale of the Birthright, and that was the case with the blessing – both belong now to Jacob.

Shabat Shalom,

Doron