Nachalat Yaacov (Yaacov's Inheritance)

Parasha Vayishlach begins with Ya'acov finally returning home after twenty years in exile. En route, he sends messengers of peace ahead to his brother Esav. The messengers return to report that his brother Esav was on his way towards him with four hundred, presumably armed men. Ya'acov went into panic! Immediately he went about devising a strategy so as to protect his family from possible annihilation. Ya'acov knew that his brother had it in for him. Yet even though Ya'acov had out-manoeuvered his brother in acquiring the birthright, he also knew that his brother was now occupying the property he rightfully owned and that his brother was enjoying the inheritance he should be enjoying G-d gave it to him. Although Ya'acov was the rightful heir, Esav was the one who was enjoying the inheritance. He had become rich and powerful in his own right on land that was not his, after all Ya'acov left but Esav remained! Now here is what I find very interesting because I believe the Torah is giving us a hint of something very important.

Let us face it: Esav was Ya'acov's enemy! Why? Because HaShem had told Ya'acov that the land and the inheritance which Esav was enjoying belonged to him. Esav was a squatter; therefore one day, one way or another these two had to clash: It was inevitable, and it was not that Ya'acov did not know it. How do we know this? Because even in his panic to preserve his family Ya'acov reminded HaShem of His promise:

Bereshit {32:9} Ya'akov said, "G-D of my 'ab (father) Avraham, and G-D of my 'ab Yitzak, HaSHEM, who said to me, 'Return to your country, and to your relatives, and I will do you good.' {32:10} I am not worthy of the least of all the lovingkindnesses, and of all the truth, which you have shown to your servant; for with just my staff I passed over this Yarden (Jordan); and now I have become two companies. {32:11} Please deliver me from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esav: for I fear him, lest he come and strike me, and the 'em (mothers) with the children. {32:12} You said, 'I will surely do you good, and make your seed as the sand of the sea, which can't be numbered because there are so many.'"

So there is no doubt that Ya'acov was aware that the G-d of the universe was backing up his claim to the land and the inheritance his brother Esav had been enjoying for the past twenty years. Therefore I believe that Ya'acov should not have negotiated, he should have fought; in fact I believe HaShem wanted him to fight! How many people have ever fought with G-d and prevailed? Ya'acov did! So what I see in this divine encounter and in the fact that Ya'acov prevailed, is that HaShem was showing him that the odds were stacked in his favour, because even with a dislocated hip Ya'acov still prevailed! However Ya'acov 'whimpped' out and he chose to negotiate with the enemy instead. Did he solve the problem? Of course not! History tells us that Ya'acov and Esav are still at odds with each other unto this very day. You see, Ya'acov thought that he was too weak, too few in numbers to prevail against his brother Esav coming at him with four hundred men, but HaShem shows us further down in the Parsha that he was not!

Parasha Vayishlach contains the very important story about Dinah, Ya'acov's daughter. First because it shows us how two of the brothers--Shimon (Simeon) and Levi--were demoted allowing Yehuda (Judah) to move up in the ranks also because we read about a whole city of men being wiped out by just two boys. Now I know that the men of the city were in pain over their circumcisions but even in their pain do you not think that a whole city of men could have overpowered two young brothers? I do! Plus when Ya'acov is told about what happened once again he whimps out!

Bereshit {34:30} Ya'akov said to Shimon and Levi, "You have troubled me, to make me odious to the inhabitants of the land, among the Cana'anites and the Perizzites. I am few in number. They will gather themselves together against me and strike me, and I will be destroyed, I and my house."

This is sad! HaShem promised Ya'acov that he would be with him, protect him, give him an inheritance for future generations and here he is worried about his reputation!

What confirms my idea that HaShem wanted Ya'acov to fight Esav and not negotiate is found in this passage:

Bereshit {35:5} They journeyed: and a terror of G-D was on the cities that were round about them, and they didn't pursue the sons of Ya'akov.

The results Ya'acov received were the exact opposite of what he expected in {34:30}, no one pursued him, no one attacked him, in fact HaShem used the event to spread terror over His enemies and they all left him alone!

My final proof that HaShem wanted Ya'acov to fight Esav instead of negotiate is given to us in the closing passages of Parsha Vayishlach. First of all HaShem uses the entire second half of this Parsha to give us the genealogy of Esav (he would have never had one if Ya'acov would have done what HaShem wanted him to do), and then no less than three times in the space of just a few paragraphs HaShem tells us, no, reminds us:

Bereshit {36:8} Esav lived in the hill country of Seir. Esav is Edom.

Bereshit {36:19} These are the sons of Esav, and these are their chiefs. The same is Edom.

Bereshit {36:43} chief Magdiel, and chief Iram. These are the chiefs of Edom, according to their habitations in the land of their possession. This is Esav, the 'ab (father) of the Edomites.

Esav was allowed to survive and became Edom, the arch enemy of Ya'acov's descendants. Even to this day Israel the descendants of Ya'acov are fighting Edom the descendants of Esav. Parsha Vayishlach is a prophetic glimpse into the future. Ya'acov failed to deal with Esav when HaShem wanted him to, so now his descendants are still fighting with him today.

Another point I would like to make. Just as Ya'acov disguised himself as someone he was not, so as to get what he wanted from Esav, the modern day Esav is disguising himself as someone he is not, that is a peacemaker, in order to get what he wants today. Israel should not negotiate any longer! Ya'acov has prolonged the inevitable long enough, it's time to fight; it's time to expel Esav from the land HaShem gave Ya'acov as an inheritance! Yet once again Israel is worried about world opinion. Just like Ya'acov was, so are they, worried about their reputation. Remember however that the result of the sacking of the city of Shechem was the exact opposite of what Ya'acov expected and I believe the same would happen today; the terror of G-d would fall upon the world, because HaShem will instil it in them! G-d's promises are irrevocable, the land and the inheritance still belongs to Ya'acov and his descendants! Read Yechezkel / Ezekiel chapter 35.

Rabbi Jack "Yaacov" Farber is the spiritual leader of Congregation Melech Yisrael in Toronto, Canada.

Copyright 2004