This Week In The Torah



Parsha Toldos Bereishis/Genesis Ch.25/19 - 28/9

An Esav is Born
by Rabbi Yechezkel Fox

The first one emerged red, all of him was like a hairy mantle; so they called him Esav. Ch.25/25

The name Esav derives from the Hebrew word made. As Rashi says: Everyone called him so, because he was fully made and completed with respect to his hair, like one many years old. This name reflected what would become Esav's outlook on life, that a person is born complete, with nothing to work on to perfect himself. This is the philosophy of you are what you are. The Jewish attitude, on the other hand, is that a person is born with imperfections, and must refine his character through the mitzvos(Torah commandments). This is symbolized by bris mila (circumcision); the newborn is considered imperfect until circumcized.

In light of this, it is very significant that Esav never underwent bris mila. Yitzchak couldn't do it on the eighth day because he was afraid that due to Esav's ruddiness it would endanger Esav's life. But even when Esav grew up and could have done it himself, he did not. It was as if to say I am as I am, and I cannot change!

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A Birthright Menu

Yaakov gave Esav bread and lentil stew, and he ate and drank, got up and left; and Esav belittled the birthright. Ch.25/34

Esav had only asked for the lentil stew. Why did Yaakov add bread to the menu?

The answer is that Yaakov wanted to close the deal for the rights of the firstborn with Esav being required to take an oath. The problem was that because of Esav's extreme hunger, his oath would have been considered "under duress" and therefore invalid according to Jewish law. So, Yaakov first fed Esav bread to take away his raging hunger, so that Esav could take his oath with a clear mind, thus making it binding.

Sources: Rabbi Yehoshua Leib Diskin

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Interpretation of the Blind
by Rabbi Yechezkel Fox

And Yaakov replied...."Perhaps my father will feel me and I shall be a mocker in his eyes; I will thus bring upon myself a curse rather than a blessing." But his mother said to him,"Your curse be on me, my son; only heed my voice and go fetch them for me." Ch.27/12-13.

We can understand that if the plot to receive the blessing from Yitzchak was discovered, Yaakov would no longer get the blessing. But, why did he think that his father would curse him? And why did Rivkah think that she would get the curse instead of Yaakov?

Before we can offer an answer, some background information is needed. Earlier in the Parsha the verse says:
Because Avraham obeyed My voice, and observed My safeguards, My commandments, My decrees, and My Torahs. Ch.26/5.

Rashi tells us here that Avraham kept the whole Torah, even before it was given to the Jewish people at Sinai. Yitzchak and Yaakov followed suit, along with their families.

With this in mind, we can begin to answer our question. There is a verse in Sefer Devarim (Deut.) that says:
Cursed is the one that causes a blind man to wander off the way. And all the people said Amen. Ch.27/18.

Yaakov was about to deliberately cause his blind father to make a mistake. According to the literal interpretation of the verse above, Yaakov felt he would get a curse for deceiving a blind man. So he wasn't afraid of Yitzchak cursing him, but rather of receiving a curse as a punishment from G-d.

Rivkah disagreed with his interpretation of the above-mentioned curse. She held that it wasn't to be taken literally; rather, the blind person is a metaphor for somebody seeking advice, (i.e. blind in knowledge). Rivkah assured Yaakov that if anything went wrong, she would get the curse because of her bad advice.

Sources: Chanukas HaTorah.

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