On the Trail of Blessings: Mother Knows Best?

[This is the fifth installment in the series. Begin the Trail here.]

When Rivkah hears that her husband intends to give the berachos to Eisav, she orders Yaakov to deceive his father Yitzchok and pull off the greatest heist in history, or better said, a heist of history itself. In retrospect it is easy for us to see that this bold act was a fulfillment of Hashem's will; the very mission of the Chosen Nation hangs on it. Nonetheless, we may ask how Rivkah knew that this was the right thing to do.

When Rivka was suffering through her painful pregnancy, ותלך לדרש את השם, "she went to inquire of Hashem." The response informed her that שני גיים בבטנך, "there are two nations in your womb." The Torah uses an unusual spelling for the word "nations" in this verse, a spelling which indicates "pride." Rashi offers an Midrashic explanation:

This refers to Antoninus and Rebbe [Yehuda HaNasi], whose tables never lacked for radish or lettuce, neither in the summer nor during the rainy season. (Avoda Zara 11)

Rivka is told a prophecy. Within her womb she carries the fathers of two proud nations, nations that will be blessed with leaders of great power and wealth.

As the boys grow up, Rivka sees that the two boys have very different natures. "Eisav was a man who knew how to hunt, a man of the field, and Yaakov was a man of sincerity who sat [studying] in tents" (25:27). Rivka understands that prophecy is not merely for inquiring minds. Prophecy is a mandate and the recipient must act to see it through. It is easy to see that Eisav was gifted with the genes of a leader, he has the skills and talents for power and wealth. Yaakov, on the other hand, lacks these talents and he will need his father's blessings to make his destiny a reality.

The prophecy Rivka received before her sons were born is what gave her the license to direct the blessings of wealth and power to Yaakov. 

This explanation also resolves a different problem. As Rashi tells us repeatedly, he is focused exclusively on פשט, the straightforward meaning of the text. To paraphrase Rashi's own words, if you are interested in reading Midrash, you can find it on the shelf (cf. Rashi to Bereishis 3:8). Why then does Rashi quote this Midrash about Antoninus and Rebbe? The answer is that this interpretation of the prophecy is the only way to explain Rivka's subsequent behavior!  

II

Yaakov does as he is told, but he's clearly not happy about it. Beyond the obvious ethical problems that this scheme raises for the man of truth, there is another issue here of no less import. For, as we have seen, Eisav's mission is bound up with his blessing. It follows that to steal the blessing of the man of the field is to take on the responsibilities of the man of the field - responsibilities that Yaakov, the יושב אהלים, would understandably prefer to avoid. We present here several pieces of evidence:

·  Told of Rivkah's plan that he dress up as Eisav, Yaakov is nervous:

אולי ימשני אבי והייתי בעיניו כמתעתע, "Maybe father will feel me and he'll think I'm an impostor!" 

Yaakov's use of אולי for "maybe" is significant. According to the Vilna Gaon, אולי is used when the speaker hopes that the issue in doubt will come true [if you hope it won't, פן is used](Gaon on Bereishis 24:39, see Kol Eliyahu for examples). Based on this Gaon, Rabbi Yitzchok Dov Bamberger (Wurzburger Rov, 1807-1878) explains that despite his mother's orders, Yaakov secretly hoped the ruse would be foiled by his father (cited in Peninim MiShulchan HaGra).

·  Direct evidence of Yaakov's reluctance can be seen here:

ותקח רבקה את בגדי עשו בנה הגדל החמדת... ותלבש את יעקב בנה הקטן

"And Rivka took Eisav's clothes... and dressed Yaakov...

Rivkah has to dress Yaakov herself to get him to participate! Indeed, the Midrash tells us that Yaakov cried as his fulfilled his mother's orders (B.R. 65:15). 

·  At the beginning of Parshas Vayeitzei, Yaakov takes an oath:

וידר יעקב נדר לאמר אם יהיה אלהים עמדי ושמרני בדרך הזה אשר אנכי הולך ונתן לי לחם לאכול ובגד ללבש, “If God will be with me... and give me bread to eat and clothes to wear...” 

This is the man who just received the blessing of wealth! "God shall give you the dew of heaven and the fat of the earth, much grain and wine..." And he asks for bread?! This can be nothing other than a repudiation of the blessing his mother forced him to steal. Yaakov is interested in God, not wealth.

·  As we have learned, Eisav's blessings including the blessing of Leah, who was destined to marry Yitzchok's firstborn son. Yaakov presumably knew this; nonetheless, he wanted to marry Rachel, not Leah. 

·  When Yaakov needs to make some money in order to move back to Israel, he cuts a deal with Lavan (cf. 30:31-33). According to the laws of nature, Yaakov is not going to make very much money and Lavan knows it (31:34). The fact that Yaakov struck it big was due less to his genetic engineering (30:37-41) than to divine intervention (31:9-12). Again, it appears that Yaakov is only trying to provide for his family's needs, no more. The Rashba brings further evidence to Yaakov’s preference for the tent of Torah over financial success: ובכל מאדך – למאוס כל ממונו אם יצטרך לכך לקיים עבודתו ית', כיעקב אבינו ע"ה שמאס בעושר בית אביו ובחר לו להיות יושב אהלים. ואמר כל אשר תתן לי עשר אעשרנו לך (Teshuvos HaRashba 5:55).

·  On Yaakov's return to Israel he attempts to appease Eisav's wrath by returning to him the blessing of wealth which he stole, sending Eisav jewels (Rashi 32:14), goats, sheep, cattle, camels and donkeys (see, however, Rashi to 32:5). When they finally meet, Yaakov says it explicitly:

קח נא את ברכתי, "Take my blessing!"

Admittedly, Yaakov's statements to Eisav prove little - Yaakov would obviously say anything to save his life - nor is it within Yaakov abilities to transfer the blessing back to his brother - nonetheless, I believe it is unlikely that Yaakov would attempt this tactic if he wasn't sincere.

We must note that Yaakov forces the angel of Eisav to recognize his right to the berachos (Rashi to 32:27) and demands that he do so immediately (Rashi to 32:29). In the end, Eisav himself explicitly cedes the berachos to his brother! (Rashi 33:9) 

[Continue the Trail here.]

On the Trail of Blessings: Having It All

[This is the first installment of a series on the development of the Berachos in Sefer Bereishis. I encourage you to follow it through to the end - it is one extended בנין. Before you begin, read this post which explores the multiple delivery systems of divine blessings.]

Hashem loves the Avos and He blesses them, promising them the world. Avraham is the first recipient of these extraordinary divine gifts, but it is obviously the nature of blessings of nationhood and legacy that they are to be inherited by succeeding generations. Indeed, although the language does evolve and new elements are added, we can easily trace the Berachos as they pass from Avraham to Yitzchok and then from Yitzchok to Yaakov. But when Yitzchok grabbed the horns of destiny and attempted to bless Eisav, things get complicated. Are the blessings a package deal? Or can they divide in two when they hit a fork in the road? Let's pick up the trail from the beginning.

In Parshas Lech Lecha, Avraham receives two very different Berachos. In the beginning of the Parsha, Hashem promises him this:

ואעשך לגוי גדול ואברכך ואגדלה שמך והיה ברכה: ואברכה מברכיך ומקללך אאר ונברכו בך כל משפחת האדמה. יב:ב

In other words, Hashem blessed Avraham with power, wealth, fame and influence. Later in the Parsha, by the Bris bein HaBesarim, Hashem is even more explicit: טו:יד) ואחרי כן יצאו ברכוש גדול). "Great wealth" is promised to Avraham's progeny.

The part about becoming a nation obviously cannot happen during Avraham's lifetime, but wealth, power and success certainly can, and does:

ויהי לו צאן ובקר וחמורים ועבדים ושפחת ואתנת וגמלים... ואברם כבד מאד במקנה בכסף ובזהב. יב:טז, יג:ב

נשיא אלהים אתה בתוכנו. כג:ו

וה' ברך את אברהם בכל. כד:א

באורך ימים ועושר וכבוד ובנים, וזו כל חמדת האדם - אבן עזרא

Avraham has it "all;" a long life, wealth, honor and children. As the Ibn Ezra says, it's everything a man could ever want. But is it, really? Compare this Beracha from the end of the Parshas Lech Lecha:

ויהי אברם בן תשעים שנה ותשע שנים וירא יקוק אל אברם ויאמר אליו אני אל שדי התהלך לפני והיה תמים: ואתנה בריתי ביני ובינך וארבה אותך במאד מאד: ויפל אברם על פניו וידבר אתו אלהים לאמר: אני הנה בריתי אתך והיית לאב המון גוים: ולא יקרא עוד את שמך אברם והיה שמך אברהם כי אב המון גוים נתתיך: והפרתי אתך במאד מאד ונתתיך לגוים ומלכים ממך יצאו: והקמתי את בריתי ביני ובינך ובין זרעך אחריך לדרתם לברית עולם להיות לך לאלהים ולזרעך אחריך: ונתתי לך ולזרעך אחריך את ארץ מגריך את כל ארץ כנען לאחזת עולם והייתי להם לאלהים: יז:א-ח

Here Hashem introduces Himself with a new name, "אל שדי" and changes Avram's name to "Avraham." He then promises Avraham that he will be fruitful and multiply "וארבה אותך... והפרתי אתך", ultimately leading to a monarchy "מלכים ממך יצאו" blessed with both an eternal relationship with Hashem "ברית עולם" and the Land of Israel "אחוזת עולם". This blessing speaks of Avraham's descendants' destiny as God's chosen nation in the Holy Land. No mention here of money or fame. It seems there is more to life than having it "all."

The beracha to be fruitful and multiply stands out for two reasons. First, it happens to be the very first thing God said to Adam (Bereishis 1:28). Second, does it really belong in the context of spiritual blessings? The answer is self-evident. These two points resolve each other: Hashem is telling Avraham that he is the new Adam: Be fruitful and multiply, for we are starting over with you. You, Avraham, are the father of a new species of man: "homo religiosus." Maybe this is why, along with Avram's new name, Hashem Himself gets a new name: אל שדי - A God Who says, "Enough!" Adam failed his test, as did Noach. But now we have Avraham. דיינו!

The Birchas HaAvos thus consist of two very different elements. At the beginning of Lech Lecha, Hashem blesses Avraham's material future, promising him wealth, success and fame. And at the end of the Parsha, Hashem gifts him with a rich spiritual destiny - he is to be the father of the Nation of God. This explains why the mitzva of ברית מילה arrives packaged together with this second Beracha at the end of the Parsha (cf. 17:9-14). More powerfully than any other mitzva, circumcision demands transcendence of our physicality (the act speaks for itself, but we can also point to the symbolism of the number eight). The vision of a spiritual Chosen Nation described in the second set of blessings is thus anchored in the private mitzva of מילה, in contradistinction to the public act of לך לך which defined the physical dimension of the nation found at the beginning of the Parsha.

While the blessings promise a great future for Avraham's descendants, one wonders if God is actually talking about a single nation. Are all these material and spiritual blessings to be received by a single nation? Or maybe there are multiple nations here, making Avraham a true אב המון גוים? This seemingly bizarre line of questioning turns out to be the key to understanding Parshas Toldos.

In Parshas Toldos, Yaakov purchases the birthright from his brother Eisav for a bowl of soup. What exactly did he buy? According to Rashi, the birthright is the privilege of performing the service in the Temple; according to the Chizkuni, the birthright is the right to the Land of Israel (both views are found in the Midrash). Either way, the birthright has nothing in common with the material blessings found the beginning of Lech Lecha. (This explains why Eisav was happy to sell it for soup, cf. Ibn Ezra.) It is the blessing of spiritual riches found at the end of Lech Lecha that is the privilege of the firstborn. And this is the blessing that Yaakov wants.

At the end of Parshas Toldos, Yitzchok attempts to give a Beracha to Eisav, but Yaakov, following his mother's orders, "steals" it. In contrast to his readiness to sell the religious responsibilities of the birthright, Eisav is devastated when he realizes that he has lost his father's blessing. What exactly did he lose? Here's the text:

ויתן לך האלהים מטל השמים ומשמני הארץ ורב דגן ותירש: יעבדוך עמים וישתחו לך לאמים הוה גביר לאחיך וישתחוו לך בני אמך ארריך ארור ומברכיך ברוך: כז:כח-כט

Wealth and power, but no mention of ברית or Israel. This blessing is clearly an elaboration of the blessing given to Avraham at the beginning of Lech Lecha, as evidenced by the reappearance of the promise to "bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you." Yitzchok only intended to give this blessing to Eisav; he was saving the spiritual blessings for Yaakov (Seforno to 27:29; see however Ramban to 27:4). Indeed, when Yitzchok sends Yaakov away at the end of the Parsha, he grants him this blessing:

ויקרא יצחק אל יעקב ויברך אתו ויצוהו ויאמר לו לא תקח אשה מבנות כנען: קום לך פדנה ארם ביתה בתואל אבי אמך וקח לך משם אשה מבנות לבן אחי אמך: ואל שדי יברך אתך ויפרך וירבך והיית לקהל עמים: ויתן לך את ברכת אברהם לך ולזרעך אתך לרשתך את ארץ מגריך אשר נתן אלהים לאברהם: כח:א-ד

This is exactly the same Beracha that Hashem gave Avraham at the end of Lech Lecha! The same אל שדי, the same ויפרך וירבך, the same ארץ מגריך. This is the spiritual ברכת אברהם. And, if we are correct, this is what Yaakov purchased from Eisav for a bowl of soup. There's no money in it, just an eternal covenant with God.

The Abrahamic legacy consisted of two blessings. Eisav knew this, but Eisav also knew that his father wasn't planning on giving him everything.

Eisav himself had never expected that Yitzchak would confer upon him the whole blessing. He immediately askes his father: הלא אצלת לי ברכה, "Have you not reserved a blessing for me?" (v. 36). That is to say, had you given me the blessing, you surely would have reserved a blessing for Yaakov; that blessing - give to me!

Rabbi S.R. Hirsch

Eisav knows good and well that his father has another blessing in his pocket - "!?הברכה אחת היא לך אבי" - but even when he begs his father for a blessing, any blessing, Yitzchok refuses to put the Holy Land into the hands of Eisav. This infuriates Eisav even more than his brother's treachery: וישטם עשו את יעקב על הברכה אשר ברכו אביו, "Eisav hated Yaakov for the Beracha that his father blessed him" (27:41) - Eisav's hatred for Yaakov has its source not in Yaakov's theft per se, but in Yitzchok's refusal to give him Israel! All Eisav got was a vague, watered-down blessing that places Yaakov as a yoke around his neck.

This much is clear: Yitzchok wanted to divide up the Berachos between his sons. This is not a violation of the family legacy; on the contrary, the Berachos in their original form do seem to speak of two different nations. After fathering twin boys and seeing the younger grasping the heel of the elder, it was only natural for Yitzchok to assume that Hashem's two blessings referred to the symbiotic nations of Yaakov and Eisav.

Yitzchok knew his sons and he envisioned a bi-national partnership; a joint venture where Yaakov, the יושב אהלים, could dwell in the tents, devoting himself entirely to divine service, while Eisav, the איש שדה, went out into the world to claim the blessings of wealth - לך לך - in order to support his brother's holy work (cf. Malbim; however, see Teshuvos HaRashba 1:134).

It is important to recognize that Yitzchok held the איש שדה in the highest regard. Unlike his father, Yitzchok engaged in agriculture. "Yitzchok planted in that land and [even though there was a drought - Rashi] in that year it gave out one hundred measures [more than expected - Rashi]" (26:12). For Yitzchok, the שדה is the place where one can witness Hashem's miraculous blessings firsthand. 

The centrality of a שדה in the mind of Yitzchok can further be seen in his choice of words when he kisses Yaakov: 

He smelled the smell of his clothes and he blessed him and said, "See! The aroma of my son is like the aroma of a שדה which Hashem has blessed." (27:27)  

When Yitzchok prays, he goes to the שדה: "Yitzchok went out to pray in the field" (24:63). The Talmud (Berachos 26b) derives the afternoon prayer from this verse, stating that Yitzchok was the originator of Mincha. Mincha poses a particular challenge for the איש שדה, as it is offered in the middle of day, requiring the working man to stop what he is doing and turn to Hashem. This takes גבורה, the attribute of our father Yitzchok, the human קרבן.

It is therefore Yitzchok's intention to bless his firstborn son Eisav with the role of the איש שדה. This is particularly appropriate, as the firstborn also has the role of כהן, with the responsibilities of עבודה.   

(Yitzchok is blissfully unaware of the fact that Eisav is a wicked criminal, unworthy of any sacred task. His wife Rivkah bears some of the blame for this situation, for from the beginning she protected Yitzchok from the truth. Note her apparent failure to share with him the prophecy she received which explicitly states that the elder son will serve the younger (cf. 25:23). More clear is her dramatic plea that Yaakov must leave Israel to find a wife (27:46), as Rivkah refuses to inform Yitzchok about Eisav's intentions to murder Yaakov.)

Yitzchok loves Eisav and intends to designate him as the holy איש שדה. Such was Yitzchok's vision, but it is not to be. Yaakov takes all.

[Continue the trail with part-two here.]