Echoes in Torah
Throughout the Torah we can track a number of "echoes" that appear, stories that seem to almost repeat themselves or somehow reference earlier narratives. This occurs ESPECIALLY amongst the patriarchs and matriarchs as described in Genesis. The Torah is sometimes quite explicit and logistical about tying two or more narratives together by employing similar and rarely used hebrew which the Rabbis utilize in a talmudic practice called "gezera shava" --essentially a word-based wormhole that allows the rabbis to tie together and comment on two seemingly unrelated texts. Other times the Torah is a bit more subtle and literary about the connections.
The rabbis read these moments as intentional and corrective. Each echo in Torah is just a little bit different, each of our Avot does something a little different than his own father.
A few clear literary examples:
Sarah and Rebecca- two mothers who prioritize the blessing and prophecy of their child over another
Cain & Abel and Jacob & Esau, Perez & Zerah- sets of siblings whose rivalry sets the course of the Israelite People
Let's take a closer look.....
The 6th Aliyah opens upon a blind Isaac blessing what he believes to be his first-born son, Esau. Prior to this act, Rebecca during her pregnancy is told by an angel of a prophecy about the twins in her womb, that the younger shall be superior to the older. As the twins grow up and they demonstrate two very distinct personalities each parent takes to favoring one-- Rebecca favors the gentle, agriculturally skilled younger son Jacob, and Isaac prefers the hairy, strong hunter eldest, Esau.
In the first Aliyah of this parsha, Jacob swindles Esau out of his birthright for a bowl of lentils. Just here in the 6th Aliyah, Jacob deceives his father by dressing in furs and preparing a meal of meat to receive his father's blessing meant for the first-born son Esau.
How might we read Jacob & Esau's story as corrective of Cain & Abel?
What other examples of these kinds of echoes in Torah can you think of?
Perhaps these echoes are civilizational? --what might that tell us?
(א) וְהָ֣אָדָ֔ם יָדַ֖ע אֶת־חַוָּ֣ה אִשְׁתּ֑וֹ וַתַּ֙הַר֙ וַתֵּ֣לֶד אֶת־קַ֔יִן וַתֹּ֕אמֶר קָנִ֥יתִי אִ֖ישׁ אֶת־יְהֹוָֽה׃ (ב) וַתֹּ֣סֶף לָלֶ֔דֶת אֶת־אָחִ֖יו אֶת־הָ֑בֶל וַֽיְהִי־הֶ֙בֶל֙ רֹ֣עֵה צֹ֔אן וְקַ֕יִן הָיָ֖ה עֹבֵ֥ד אֲדָמָֽה׃ (ג) וַֽיְהִ֖י מִקֵּ֣ץ יָמִ֑ים וַיָּבֵ֨א קַ֜יִן מִפְּרִ֧י הָֽאֲדָמָ֛ה מִנְחָ֖ה לַֽיהֹוָֽה׃ (ד) וְהֶ֨בֶל הֵבִ֥יא גַם־ה֛וּא מִבְּכֹר֥וֹת צֹאנ֖וֹ וּמֵֽחֶלְבֵהֶ֑ן וַיִּ֣שַׁע יְהֹוָ֔ה אֶל־הֶ֖בֶל וְאֶל־מִנְחָתֽוֹ׃ (ה) וְאֶל־קַ֥יִן וְאֶל־מִנְחָת֖וֹ לֹ֣א שָׁעָ֑ה וַיִּ֤חַר לְקַ֙יִן֙ מְאֹ֔ד וַֽיִּפְּל֖וּ פָּנָֽיו׃
(ח) וַיֹּ֥אמֶר קַ֖יִן אֶל־הֶ֣בֶל אָחִ֑יו וַֽיְהִי֙ בִּהְיוֹתָ֣ם בַּשָּׂדֶ֔ה וַיָּ֥קׇם קַ֛יִן אֶל־הֶ֥בֶל אָחִ֖יו וַיַּהַרְגֵֽהוּ׃ (ט) וַיֹּ֤אמֶר יְהֹוָה֙ אֶל־קַ֔יִן אֵ֖י הֶ֣בֶל אָחִ֑יךָ וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ לֹ֣א יָדַ֔עְתִּי הֲשֹׁמֵ֥ר אָחִ֖י אָנֹֽכִי׃
(1) Now Adam knew his wife Eve, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, “I have gained with the help of יהוה.” (2) She then bore his brother Abel. Abel became a keeper of sheep, and Cain became a tiller of the soil. (3) In the course of time, Cain brought an offering to יהוה from the fruit of the soil; (4) and Abel, for his part, brought the choicest of the firstlings of his flock. יהוה paid heed to Abel and his offering, (5) but to Cain and his offering [God] paid no heed. Cain was much distressed and his face fell.
(8) Cain said to his brother Abel …“Come, let us go out into the field.” and when they were in the field, Cain set upon his brother Abel and killed him. (9) יהוה said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” And he said, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?”
(כח) וְיִֽתֶּן־לְךָ֙ הָאֱלֹהִ֔ים מִטַּל֙ הַשָּׁמַ֔יִם וּמִשְׁמַנֵּ֖י הָאָ֑רֶץ וְרֹ֥ב דָּגָ֖ן וְתִירֹֽשׁ׃
(ל) וַיְהִ֗י כַּאֲשֶׁ֨ר כִּלָּ֣ה יִצְחָק֮ לְבָרֵ֣ךְ אֶֽת־יַעֲקֹב֒ וַיְהִ֗י אַ֣ךְ יָצֹ֤א יָצָא֙ יַעֲקֹ֔ב מֵאֵ֥ת פְּנֵ֖י יִצְחָ֣ק אָבִ֑יו וְעֵשָׂ֣ו אָחִ֔יו בָּ֖א מִצֵּידֽוֹ׃ (לא) וַיַּ֤עַשׂ גַּם־הוּא֙ מַטְעַמִּ֔ים וַיָּבֵ֖א לְאָבִ֑יו וַיֹּ֣אמֶר לְאָבִ֗יו יָקֻ֤ם אָבִי֙ וְיֹאכַל֙ מִצֵּ֣יד בְּנ֔וֹ בַּעֲבֻ֖ר תְּבָרְכַ֥נִּי נַפְשֶֽׁךָ׃ (לב) וַיֹּ֥אמֶר ל֛וֹ יִצְחָ֥ק אָבִ֖יו מִי־אָ֑תָּה וַיֹּ֕אמֶר אֲנִ֛י בִּנְךָ֥ בְכֹֽרְךָ֖ עֵשָֽׂו׃ (לג) וַיֶּחֱרַ֨ד יִצְחָ֣ק חֲרָדָה֮ גְּדֹלָ֣ה עַד־מְאֹד֒ וַיֹּ֡אמֶר מִֽי־אֵפ֡וֹא ה֣וּא הַצָּֽד־צַ֩יִד֩ וַיָּ֨בֵא לִ֜י וָאֹכַ֥ל מִכֹּ֛ל בְּטֶ֥רֶם תָּב֖וֹא וָאֲבָרְכֵ֑הוּ גַּם־בָּר֖וּךְ יִהְיֶֽה׃ (לד) כִּשְׁמֹ֤עַ עֵשָׂו֙ אֶת־דִּבְרֵ֣י אָבִ֔יו וַיִּצְעַ֣ק צְעָקָ֔ה גְּדֹלָ֥ה וּמָרָ֖ה עַד־מְאֹ֑ד וַיֹּ֣אמֶר לְאָבִ֔יו בָּרְכֵ֥נִי גַם־אָ֖נִי אָבִֽי׃ (לה) וַיֹּ֕אמֶר בָּ֥א אָחִ֖יךָ בְּמִרְמָ֑ה וַיִּקַּ֖ח בִּרְכָתֶֽךָ׃ (לו) וַיֹּ֡אמֶר הֲכִי֩ קָרָ֨א שְׁמ֜וֹ יַעֲקֹ֗ב וַֽיַּעְקְבֵ֙נִי֙ זֶ֣ה פַעֲמַ֔יִם אֶת־בְּכֹרָתִ֣י לָקָ֔ח וְהִנֵּ֥ה עַתָּ֖ה לָקַ֣ח בִּרְכָתִ֑י וַיֹּאמַ֕ר הֲלֹא־אָצַ֥לְתָּ לִּ֖י בְּרָכָֽה׃
(28) “May God give you of the dew of heaven and the fat of the earth........
(30) No sooner had Jacob left the presence of his father Isaac—after Isaac had finished blessing Jacob—than his brother Esau came back from his hunt. (31) He too prepared a dish and brought it to his father. And he said to his father, “Let my father sit up and eat of his son’s game, so that you may give me your innermost blessing.” (32) His father Isaac said to him, “Who are you?” And he said, “I am your son, Esau, your first-born!” (33) Isaac was seized with very violent trembling. “Who was it then,” he demanded, “that hunted game and brought it to me? Moreover, I ate of it before you came, and I blessed him; now he must remain blessed!” (34) When Esau heard his father’s words, he burst into wild and bitter sobbing, and said to his father, “Bless me too, Father!” (35) But he answered, “Your brother came with guile and took away your blessing.” (36) [Esau] said, “Was he, then, named Jacob that he might supplant me these two times? First he took away my birthright and now he has taken away my blessing!” And he added, “Have you not reserved a blessing for me?”
(37) Isaac answered, saying to Esau, “But I have made him master over you: I have given him all his brothers for servants, and sustained him with grain and wine. What, then, can I still do for you, my son?” (38) And Esau said to his father, “Have you but one blessing, Father? Bless me too, Father!” And Esau wept aloud. (39) And his father Isaac answered, saying to him,
“See, your abode shall enjoy the fat of the earth and the dew of heaven above.
Now Esau harbored a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing which his father had given him, and Esau said to himself, “Let but the mourning period of my father come, and I will kill my brother Jacob.”
What does it mean for us as Jews that we have these particularly MESSY echoes? How about what it means that Torah does not hide but rather leans into seriously flawed MAJOR figures....
Sarah acts out of envy.
Abraham almost sacrifices another human, and his own son at that.
Jacob benefits and fulfills the prophecy of his birth by deceit with the help of his mother, Rebecca.
Parents play favorites, time and time again.
Even our beloved Moses smashes the Tablets and is not permitted into the Promised land.
Why include not just a few flaws, but DEEPLY flawed characters?
Yaakov, as we know, is a morally flawed character. Indeed, the rabbis are wont to remind us that ours is a tradition that prides itself on our ability to sit with the tensions and complexity inherent in the fact that our ancestors are portrayed in all the realness and messiness that it is to be human.
Yaakov faces a great deal of trickery and deception in his own life and must pay a steep price for that. He is first tricked into marrying Leah, Rachel’s older sister and later still, tricked into believing that his beloved son, Yosef, has died. And it is only at the very end of his life, as he, too, is losing his eyesight, that he learns his son is indeed alive, though a far cry from who he was a boy. Yaakov works fourteen years for Rachel, his beloved, and his marriage to Leah is a less than happy one, Leah always having to live with the knowledge that she is unloved. What a profound tragedy that is all its own. Had Yaakov not deceived his own father, would any of this have happened? Though we cannot answer that question with any degree of certainty, there is a significant lesson for all of us in this, and I believe this is what God is showing us. Our moral and interpersonal actions have consequences. God knows the secrets of our hearts. God knows when we are not living the way God calls us to live. Yaakov’s two experiences of personal deception allow him to viscerally access the pain he has caused, to understand the multiple emotional layers, the vulnerability, the fear, the anger. Hopefully, those experiences caused him to do tshuvah and a cheshbon hanefesh. Hopefully, he grew from those experiences.
In the story of Toldot we learn of the tragedy of deception between brothers that results from the narrow belief in the scarcity of blessing. Our family is torn apart because of the conviction that only one of Isaac’s sons can receive his blessing.
This system of limiting blessing and creating hierarchy is born of the belief that love and blessing are finite, that there are winners and losers. This idea is drawn from the well of contention.. [...]
From the well of spaciousness comes the wisdom that our fates are bound up with one another. Your loss, your suffering is also mine, and true blessing is shared. At the well of spaciousness I slake my thirst with the knowledge that the source of blessing knows no bounds, and that we are capable of accessing that blessing directly.
What's Really Going on here? Who knew what?
Does Isaac believe he is blessing Esau or is he perhaps in on the deceit all along? After all, just before this Aliyah, Isaac tells Esau he is going to give him his blessing of the first born but FIRST he should go out and hunt. We could read this as Isaac sending Esau away so he won't intervene, couldn't we?
Dr.Rabbi David J. Zucker suggests that Isaac and Rebecca’s relationship appears close and loving, except when Rebecca directs Jacob to deceive Isaac and steal the blessing meant for Esau. The sages suggest that Isaac knew all along that the man before him was Jacob, disguised as Esau. Is it possible that Isaac and Rebecca were both in on the plan from the start?
Let's look at both perspective. What might it look like if Isaac genuinely believes he is blessing Esau, and what might it look like if he KNOWS he is not?
The Midrash even implies GOD might have been in on it too....
(ב) כָּךְ שִׁעֵר אֶת הַשָּׁעוֹת שֶׁלֹּא יָבֹא עֵשָׂו וְיִטּוֹל אֶת הַבְּרָכוֹת. אֶלָּא כֵּיוָן שֶׁיָּצָא עֵשָׂו לָצוּד, שָׁלַח הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא עָלָיו שָׂטָן וְלֹא הִנִּיחוֹ לָצוּד, עַד שֶׁיָּבֹא יַעֲקֹב וְיִטּוֹל אֶת הַבְּרָכוֹת. וְעַל עֵשָׂו נֶאֱמַר, הַפְקֵד עָלָיו רָשָׁע וְשָׂטָן יַעֲמֹד עַל יְמִינוֹ (תהלים קט, ו).
(2) How did Jacob know when to go in to his father so that Esau would not precede him and receive the blessing? As soon as Esau went out to hunt, the Holy One, blessed be He, sent Satan after him to keep him from catching anything until Jacob had received the blessing, as it is said concerning Esau: Set thou a wicked man over him, and let an adversary stand at his right hand (Ps. 109:6).
A midrash in Genesis Rabbah (c. 5th–6th century C.E.) goes further, suggesting that Isaac is not fooled by Jacob’s ruse and blesses his younger son knowingly. When Jacob, disguised as Esau, brings the meal Isaac requested, Isaac challenges him regarding how he returned so quickly from the hunt. Jacob responds: כִּי הִקְרָה יְ־הוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ לְפָנָי, “Because YHWH your God granted me good fortune” (Gen 27:20), and this choice of words gives him away:
(יט) וַיֹּאמֶר יִצְחָק אֶל בְּנוֹ מַה זֶּה מִהַרְתָּ לִמְצֹא בְּנִי (בראשית כז, כ), מִהַרְתָּ לִמְצֹא אֶת הַבְּרָכָה בְּנִי, אָבִיךָ נִתְבָּרֵךְ בֶּן שִׁבְעִים וְחָמֵשׁ שָׁנִים, וְאַתָּה בֶּן שִׁשִּׁים וְשָׁלשׁ שָׁנִים, (בראשית כז, כ):
רַבִּי יוֹחָנָן אָמַר לְעוֹרְבָא דְּאַיְתֵי נוּרָא עַל קִנֵּיהּ, בְּשָׁעָה שֶׁאָמַר כִּי הִקְרָה ה' אֱלֹהֶיךָ לְפָנָי, אָמַר יִצְחָק יוֹדֵעַ אֲנִי שֶׁאֵין עֵשָׂו מַזְכִּיר שְׁמוֹ שֶׁל הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא, זֶה מַזְכִּיר, אֵין זֶה עֵשָׂו אֶלָּא יַעֲקֹב, כֵּיוָן שֶׁאָמַר יִצְחָק לְיַעֲקֹב (בראשית כז, כא): גְּשָׁה נָּא וַאֲמֻשְׁךָ בְּנִי, נִשְׁפְּכוּ מַיִם עַל שׁוֹקָיו וְהָיָה לִבּוֹ רָפֶה כַּשַּׁעֲוָה, וְזִמֵּן לוֹ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא שְׁנֵי מַלְאָכִים אֶחָד מִימִינוֹ וְאֶחָד מִשְּׂמֹאלוֹ, וְהָיוּ אוֹחֲזִין אוֹתוֹ בְּמַרְפֵּקוֹ כְּדֵי שֶׁלֹא יִפֹּל, הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב (ישעיה מא, י): אַל תִּשְׁתָּע כִּי אֲנִי אֱלֹהֶיךָ, אַל תִּשְׁוָע.
(19) “Isaac said to his son: How is it that you were so quick to find it, my son? And he said: Because the Lord your God coordinated it before me” (Genesis 27:20).
“Isaac said to Jacob: Please approach, that I may feel you, my son, are you my son Esau or not?” (Genesis 27:21).
“Isaac said to his son: How is it that you were so quick to find it, my son?” – you were so quick to find the blessing, my son?
“And he said: Because the Lord your God coordinated it before me” – Rabbi Yoḥanan said: This is analogous to a raven that brought fire to its nest. When he said: “Because the Lord your God coordinated it before me,” Isaac said: ‘I know that Esau would not mention the name of the Holy One blessed be He; this one mentions. This is not Esau, but Jacob.’
IF Isaac knew, then this blessing was meant for Jacob all along..... but if he didn't know.... and he really believed he was blessing Esau, that's something entirely different......
For Isaac to believe this is really Esau it means not only has Jacob deceived him but so has his wife Rebecca...
Of the dew of heaven and the fat of the earth,
Abundance of new grain and wine.
(29) Let peoples serve you,
And nations bow to you;
Be master over your brothers,
And let your mother’s sons bow to you.
Cursed be they who curse you,
Blessed they who bless you.”
No One Mourns the WICKED: Esav HaRasha
Is Esau wicked? Does the actual text imply he is? What is the significance of reading wickedness on to Esau?
Isn't it nice to know
That good will conquer evil?
The truth we all believe'll by and by
Outlive a lie....
No one mourns the Wicked
No one cries "They won't return!"
No one lays a lily on their grave
The good man scorns the Wicked!
Through their lives, our children learn
What we miss, when we misbehave:
And Goodness knows
The Wicked's lives are lonely
Goodness knows
The Wicked die alone
It just shows when you're Wicked
You're left only
On your own
Are people born Wicked? Or do they have
Wickedness thrust upon them? After all, she had
a father. She had a mother, as so many do:
And of course, from the moment she was born,
she was - well - different
Our Rabbis often view Esav as a bad guy who loves idolatry, and Yaakov as a good guy who loves Torah. According to this midrash, the twins had their personalities even before they were born
והנה תומם. חָסֵר, וּבְתָמָר תְּאוֹמִים מָלֵא, לְפִי שֶׁשְּׁנֵיהֶם צַדִּיקִים; אֲבָל כָּאן אֶחָד צַדִּיק וְאֶחָד רָשָׁע:
Behold there were twins — The word for twins is written defective whilst in the case of Tamar it is written תאומים; because in the latter case both children proved righteous whilst here one was righteous and the other wicked.
(א) ויגדלו … ויהי עשו. כָּל זְמַן שֶׁהָיוּ קְטַנִּים, לֹא הָיוּ נִכָּרִים בְּמַעֲשֵׂיהֶם, וְאֵין אָדָם מְדַקְדֵּק בָּהֶם מַה טִּיבָם; כֵּיוָן שֶׁנַּעֲשׂוּ בְנֵי שְׁלשׁ עֶשְׂרֵה שָׁנָה, זֶה פֵּרֵשׁ לְבָתֵּי מִדְרָשׁוֹת וְזֶה פֵּרֵשׁ לַעֲ"זָ:
ידע ציד. לָצוּד וּלְרַמּוֹת אֶת אָבִיו בְּפִיו וְשׁוֹאֲלוֹ אַבָּא, הַאֵיךְ מְעַשְּׂרִין אֶת הַמֶּלַח וְאֶת הַתֶּבֶן? כַּסָּבוּר אָבִיו שֶׁהוּא מְדַקְדֵּק בְּמִצְוֹת (תנחומא):
And they grew up and Esav was — So long as they were young they could not be distinguished by what they did and no one paid much attention to their characters, but when they reached the age of thirteen, one went his way to the houses of learning and the other went his way to the idolatrous temples.
Understanding hunting — understanding how to entrap and deceive his father with his mouth. He would ask him, “Father how should salt and straw be tithed”? Consequently his father believed him to be very punctilious in observing the divine ordinances.
A Civilizational Perspective .....
Why does Esau in Jewish tradition come to be known as עשו הרשע “Esau the Wicked”? The answer has to do with the history of Judea’s relationship with Esau’s eponymous descendants, the Edomites, and the connection Jews made between them, Rome, and Christianity. The negative view of Esau is expressed nowhere more forcefully than in Rashi’s commentary. -Dr. Barry Dov Walfish
https://www.thetorah.com/article/the-denigration-of-esau
Rabbinic literature uses the epithet הרשע (ha-rashaʿ) for a select few bad actors, among them:
- Pharaoh (b. Sotah 12a), enslaver of the Israelites, murderer of their baby boys;
- Balaam (m. Abot 5:19), who wished Israel evil, and managed to seduce them into idolatry;
- Nebuchadnezzar (b. Berakhot 57b), destroyer of the First Temple;
- Haman (b. Megillah 10b), who hatched a plot to destroy the Jews and convinced King Ahasuerus to enable it;
- Titus (b. Gittin 56b), destroyer of the Second Temple;
- Tineus Rufus/Turnusrufus (b. Taanit 29a), consular legate of Judea at the time of the Bar Kokhba revolt, responsible for quelling the uprising.[1]
Yet another character who receives this epithet, Jacob’s brother Esau (b. Megillah 6a), stands out, since in the Bible he is not described as a bad person. In fact, he is generally painted as the wronged party in the rivalry between the two.
Esav despised —Scripture testifies to his wickedness: that he despised the Service of Hashem!
הַקּוֹל קוֹל יַעֲקֹב וְהַיָּדַיִם יְדֵי עֵשָׂו הַקּוֹל זֶה אַדְרִיָּינוּס קֵיסָר שֶׁהָרַג בַּאֲלֶכְּסַנְדְּרִיָּא שֶׁל מִצְרַיִם שִׁשִּׁים רִבּוֹא עַל שִׁשִּׁים רִבּוֹא כִּפְלַיִם כְּיוֹצְאֵי מִצְרַיִם קוֹל יַעֲקֹב זֶה אַסְפַּסְיָינוּס קֵיסָר שֶׁהָרַג בִּכְרַךְ בֵּיתֵּר אַרְבַּע מֵאוֹת רִבּוֹא וְאָמְרִי לַהּ אַרְבַּעַת אֲלָפִים רִבּוֹא וְהַיָּדַיִם יְדֵי עֵשָׂו זוֹ מַלְכוּת הָרְשָׁעָה שֶׁהֶחְרִיבָה אֶת בָּתֵּינוּ וְשָׂרְפָה אֶת הֵיכָלֵנוּ וְהִגְלִיתָנוּ מֵאַרְצֵנוּ
“The voice is the voice of Yaakov, but the hands are the hands of Esav”
“The voice”; this is the emperor Hadrian, who caused the Jewish people to cry out when he killed six hundred thousand on six hundred thousand in Alexandria of Egypt, twice the number of men who left Egypt. “The voice of Yaakov”; this is the cry aroused by the emperor Vespasian, who killed four million people in the city of Beitar. And some say: He killed forty million people. “And the hands are the hands of Esav”; this is the wicked kingdom of Rome that destroyed our Temple, burned our Sanctuary, and exiled us from our land.