"‘And he kissed
him (Bereishit 33:4)’ has dots atop it, for Esav did not kiss Yaakov with all of his heart.
(Midrash, Sifri Behaalotcha 69)
Have a great day,
Mordechai
Showing posts with label Esav. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Esav. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Was Esav Sincere?
Hi,
"R’ Shimon bar Yochai said: It is established halachah that Esav hates
Yaakov, but his mercies were reversed at that moment, and he kissed Yaakov with
all of his heart."
(Midrash, Sifri Behaalotcha 69)
Have a great day,
Mordechai
(Midrash, Sifri Behaalotcha 69)
Have a great day,
Mordechai
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Isolation
Hi,
Bereishit 33:12-16 says:
And Esav said: Let us travel and go, and I will go alongside you.
And Jacob replied: My master knows that the children are soft and my sheep and cattle are nursing their young; if they would hasten one day, all of the sheep would die. Let my master pass before his servant; I will travel at my slow pace, according to the task before me and according to the needs of the children, until I will meet my master in Se'ir.
And Esav said: I will delegate to you some of the nation who are with me.
And Jacob replied: Why would this find favour in the eyes of my master?
And Esav returned that day to his path, to Se'ir.
To which R' Naftali Tzvi Yehudah Berlin (Netziv) commented:
"Esav understood from this that Yaakov's loving company with him was only due to temporary need, and that the idea of companionship with him and his men in general was not pleasing to him, and that Yaakov's eye was really toward dwelling securely, alone."
(Haamek Davar to Bereishit 33:1)
Have a great day,
Mordechai
Bereishit 33:12-16 says:
And Esav said: Let us travel and go, and I will go alongside you.
And Jacob replied: My master knows that the children are soft and my sheep and cattle are nursing their young; if they would hasten one day, all of the sheep would die. Let my master pass before his servant; I will travel at my slow pace, according to the task before me and according to the needs of the children, until I will meet my master in Se'ir.
And Esav said: I will delegate to you some of the nation who are with me.
And Jacob replied: Why would this find favour in the eyes of my master?
And Esav returned that day to his path, to Se'ir.
To which R' Naftali Tzvi Yehudah Berlin (Netziv) commented:
"Esav understood from this that Yaakov's loving company with him was only due to temporary need, and that the idea of companionship with him and his men in general was not pleasing to him, and that Yaakov's eye was really toward dwelling securely, alone."
(Haamek Davar to Bereishit 33:1)
Have a great day,
Mordechai
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Jewish Unity
Hi,
"Regarding Esav there were six people and they were listed as many "lives", as it is written, "And Esav took his wives, his sons and his daughters, and all of the lives of his house."
"Yaakov had seventy lives and they were listed as one "life", as it is written, "And they were, the whole life, those who emerged from Yaakov."
"Esav worships many gods, and so his people are described as many lives. Yaakov worships the One Gd, and so he is described as one life."
(Midrash, Vayyikra Rabbah 4:6)
Have a great day,
Mordechai
"Regarding Esav there were six people and they were listed as many "lives", as it is written, "And Esav took his wives, his sons and his daughters, and all of the lives of his house."
"Yaakov had seventy lives and they were listed as one "life", as it is written, "And they were, the whole life, those who emerged from Yaakov."
"Esav worships many gods, and so his people are described as many lives. Yaakov worships the One Gd, and so he is described as one life."
(Midrash, Vayyikra Rabbah 4:6)
Have a great day,
Mordechai
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Destroying Chametz, Eliminating Esav
Hi,
"In the merit of our eliminating chametz, Gd will eliminate Esav.
"It is written, 'Only, on the first day you shall eliminate leaven.' But it is not the first, it is the fourteenth [of Nisan]!
"Rather, in the merit of this [elimination of leaven], I will eliminate Esav, regarding whom it is written, 'And the first one, the red one, emerged.'"
(Rokeiach, Hilchot Pesach 271)
Have a great day,
Mordechai
"In the merit of our eliminating chametz, Gd will eliminate Esav.
"It is written, 'Only, on the first day you shall eliminate leaven.' But it is not the first, it is the fourteenth [of Nisan]!
"Rather, in the merit of this [elimination of leaven], I will eliminate Esav, regarding whom it is written, 'And the first one, the red one, emerged.'"
(Rokeiach, Hilchot Pesach 271)
Have a great day,
Mordechai
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Jealousy among the tribes
Hi,
[Leah named her son ראובן Reuven, which may be parsed as “ראו בן,” “See, a son.”]
“Leah declared, ‘See the difference between my son and the son of my father-in-law. My father-in-law’s son [Esav] sold his birthright with full knowledge… and regarding him it is written, ‘And Esav hated Yaakov’…
“But my son, even though Yosef took my son’s birthright from him against his will… he was not jealous, as it is written, ‘And Reuven heard, and saved [Yosef] from their hands.’”
(Talmud, Berachot 7b)
Have a great day,
Mordechai
[Leah named her son ראובן Reuven, which may be parsed as “ראו בן,” “See, a son.”]
“Leah declared, ‘See the difference between my son and the son of my father-in-law. My father-in-law’s son [Esav] sold his birthright with full knowledge… and regarding him it is written, ‘And Esav hated Yaakov’…
“But my son, even though Yosef took my son’s birthright from him against his will… he was not jealous, as it is written, ‘And Reuven heard, and saved [Yosef] from their hands.’”
(Talmud, Berachot 7b)
Have a great day,
Mordechai
Sunday, September 19, 2010
The First
Hi,
“It is written: ‘And the first one [Esav] emerged.’
"Rabbi Chaggai said in the name of Rabbi Yitzchak: In the merit of ‘And you shall take for yourself on the first day [the mitzvah of the Arba Minim]’:
"I, the First, am revealed to you, as it is written (Yeshayah 44), ‘I am the first and I am the last.’
"I will punish the First [Esav] for you, as it is written, ‘And the first one emerged.’
"I will build the First for you, meaning the Beit haMikdash, as it is written, ‘The throne of honor, elevated from the first.’
"I will bring you the First, meaning Mashiach, as it is written, ‘Behold, here, the first for Zion.’"
(Midrash, Bereishit Rabbah 63:8)
Chag sameach,
Mordechai
“It is written: ‘And the first one [Esav] emerged.’
"Rabbi Chaggai said in the name of Rabbi Yitzchak: In the merit of ‘And you shall take for yourself on the first day [the mitzvah of the Arba Minim]’:
"I, the First, am revealed to you, as it is written (Yeshayah 44), ‘I am the first and I am the last.’
"I will punish the First [Esav] for you, as it is written, ‘And the first one emerged.’
"I will build the First for you, meaning the Beit haMikdash, as it is written, ‘The throne of honor, elevated from the first.’
"I will bring you the First, meaning Mashiach, as it is written, ‘Behold, here, the first for Zion.’"
(Midrash, Bereishit Rabbah 63:8)
Chag sameach,
Mordechai
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Yosef vs. Esav
Hi,
"R’ Pinchas cited R’ Shemuel bar Nachman: The tradition is that Esav will fall into the hands of Rachel’s descendants...
"And therefore Moshe told Yehoshua, who was from Yosef, to pick people to fight Amalek...
"This one was called a ‘youth’ and this one was called ‘small’; this one grew up among two righteous people and did not learn from their deeds and this one grew up among two wicked people and did not learn from their deeds; this one received firstborn status because of his good deeds and this one lost his firstborn status because of his bad deeds; this one fed his brothers and this one tried to kill his brother; this one kept himself from immorality and murder and this one dirtied himself with immorality and murder; this one acknowledged the ultimate resurrection of the dead and this one denied the ultimate resurrection of the dead; this one gave his life for his mother’s honor and this one tried to kill his mother. This one will fall into the hands of that one."
(Midrash Tanchuma (Warsaw), Parshat Ki Tetze 10)
Have a great day,
Mordechai
"R’ Pinchas cited R’ Shemuel bar Nachman: The tradition is that Esav will fall into the hands of Rachel’s descendants...
"And therefore Moshe told Yehoshua, who was from Yosef, to pick people to fight Amalek...
"This one was called a ‘youth’ and this one was called ‘small’; this one grew up among two righteous people and did not learn from their deeds and this one grew up among two wicked people and did not learn from their deeds; this one received firstborn status because of his good deeds and this one lost his firstborn status because of his bad deeds; this one fed his brothers and this one tried to kill his brother; this one kept himself from immorality and murder and this one dirtied himself with immorality and murder; this one acknowledged the ultimate resurrection of the dead and this one denied the ultimate resurrection of the dead; this one gave his life for his mother’s honor and this one tried to kill his mother. This one will fall into the hands of that one."
(Midrash Tanchuma (Warsaw), Parshat Ki Tetze 10)
Have a great day,
Mordechai
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Esav kisses Yaakov
Hi,
"‘And he kissed him’ has dots atop it, for he did not kiss Yaakov with all of his heart.
"R’ Shimon bar Yochai said: It is known halachah that Esav hates Yaakov, but his mercies were reversed at that moment, and he kissed Yaakov with all of his heart."
(Sifri, Behaalotcha 69)
Have a great day,
Mordechai
"‘And he kissed him’ has dots atop it, for he did not kiss Yaakov with all of his heart.
"R’ Shimon bar Yochai said: It is known halachah that Esav hates Yaakov, but his mercies were reversed at that moment, and he kissed Yaakov with all of his heart."
(Sifri, Behaalotcha 69)
Have a great day,
Mordechai
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Family merit
Hi,
A thought-provoking assertion:
"A father cannot acquire merit for his son, as it is written, ‘None may save from My hand’ – Avraham cannot save Yishmael, Yitzchak cannot save Esav."
(Talmud, Sanhedrin 104a)
Have a great day,
Mordechai
A thought-provoking assertion:
"A father cannot acquire merit for his son, as it is written, ‘None may save from My hand’ – Avraham cannot save Yishmael, Yitzchak cannot save Esav."
(Talmud, Sanhedrin 104a)
Have a great day,
Mordechai
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Enemies and Enemies, Lavan and Esav
Good moed,
In the Haggadah we read at the Passover Seder, we talked about the desire of Lavan to destroy the Jewish people, as he pursued Yaakov. It is odd that we singled out Lavan, and never even mentioned Yaakov's brother, Esav, who also tried to kill him!
The Maharal of Prague explained that we mention Lavan on Pesach night because his brand of hatred represents the unique enmity faced by Jews through the generations. Esav tried to kill Yaakov because Yaakov received the blessings, but Lavan hated without cause - Yaakov had only helped him grow in wealth, and now Lavan wanted to kill him. Thus we mention Lavan's hatred at the Seder, reminding ourselves of the hatred we have faced, and the fact that Gd has saved us time and time again, even from such irrationally implacable enemies.
Have a great day,
Mordechai
In the Haggadah we read at the Passover Seder, we talked about the desire of Lavan to destroy the Jewish people, as he pursued Yaakov. It is odd that we singled out Lavan, and never even mentioned Yaakov's brother, Esav, who also tried to kill him!
The Maharal of Prague explained that we mention Lavan on Pesach night because his brand of hatred represents the unique enmity faced by Jews through the generations. Esav tried to kill Yaakov because Yaakov received the blessings, but Lavan hated without cause - Yaakov had only helped him grow in wealth, and now Lavan wanted to kill him. Thus we mention Lavan's hatred at the Seder, reminding ourselves of the hatred we have faced, and the fact that Gd has saved us time and time again, even from such irrationally implacable enemies.
Have a great day,
Mordechai
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