Toldot

Which One of you will be worthy of The Blessings 

Rabbi Ya’akov Abehssera zt”l, in his sefer Pituchei Chotam, notes that Yitzchak Avinu certainly knew that the Torah was destined to be given to his descendants. He must, therefore, have understood that one of his sons was worthy of receiving the Torah. But he was unsure which of his two sons it would be.

Ya’akov was an “Ish tam yoshev ohalim” - a person who dwelt in the Beit haMedrash constantly. This would seem to indicate that he and his descendants were worthy of receiving the Torah. However, Yitzchak thought that there was an argument in favor of Eisav. Yitzchak’s main character trait was “gevura” - inner strength, a trait he would use ceaselessly to subdue “din” - judgement arising from evil. He believed that Eisav could also embody this trait because Eisav had a powerful drive for evil. The Torah describes Eisav as a hunter - “ki tzayid b’phiv” - a warrior, and this does not only mean he would hunt  for food but that his essential trait was a man of war. Perhaps this made him well-equipped to battle the evil inclination and thus most worthy of receiving the Torah.

In short, Yitzchak was unsure. He therefore did not immediately bless Eisav; he asked him to first hunt  and prepare him a meal. This would help him make his decision: If it was Hashem’s will that Eisav’s descendants receive the Torah, He would ensure that Eisav easily find food to prepare for Yitzchak. But if it was not His will, he would cause Eisav to fail. (This is what eventually transpired - Eisav was unable to procure the meat for his father. In fact, in his desperation to receive his father’s bracha, he brought him dog meat instead! Somehow, he was blind to the fact that Yitzchak his father would certainly not bless him over dog meat!) Alternatively, Yitzchak knew that the plan would become known to Ya’akov (either through his mother or by other means) and he would attempt to interfere. If Eisav should fail to find food or if Ya’akov should interfere, Yitzchak would know that, in fact, Eisav was not worthy of receiving the Torah.

This is why Yitzchak only called Eisav and asked him to hunt  for him. He wanted to see if Eisav would do so successfully and would not be impeded by Heaven. If he would be successful - - Yitzchak would bless him.

Rivkah understood that Yitzchak was conducting a test to see if Eisav was worthy. This is why she was not afraid to interfere. When Ya’akov expressed concern that his father would discover his deception Rivkah replied unwaveringly, “the curse will be upon me, my son”. In other words, she explained to Ya’akov that Yitzchak was attempting to see who was truly worthy of the brachot. If Ya’akov would interfere it would prove that Eisav was not worthy, thus, he had nothing to fear from Yitzchak discovering the ruse.

Kibud Av vaEm

The Mefarshim explain that Eisav could not have been entirely evil. After Ya’akov had received the brachot and Eisav arrived soon after, his father Yitzchak “trembled greatly” because he saw that Gehinam was open beneath Eisav. But how could Yitzchak not have already known that Eisav was wicked ? Surely his Ru’ach haKodesh would have informed him of his son’s wicked ways. The answer must be that Eisav was not entirely wicked. He had an important redeeming feature which, in his father’s eyes, made him worthy.

The redeeming feature was his extraordinary devotion to the mitzvah of Kibud Av vaEm. Chazal relate that Rabbi Tarfon attested that his own fulfilment of this mitzvah was not even one hundredth as good as Eisav’s! In fact, some Mefarshim say that the reason the Torah calls Eisav the “ach ha’gadol” was not just because he was older but because he was greater than Ya’akov in the mitzvah of Kibud Av vaEm!

Rivkah Immenu knew better. She realized that Eisav’s power stemmed from his fulfilment of Kibud Av vaEm and did not make him righteous overall. She instructed Ya’akov, “Listen to my voice - that which I instruct you”, in other words, she invested his mission with that same kedusha of the mitzvah of Kibud Av vaEm. In so doing she indicated that she was wise to the effect that Eisav’s kedusha had on Yitzchak.

This episode teaches us that a bracha has a power - it exists! This fact is undeniable. Furthermore, a bracha must be stimulated by a physical entity, in this case the food served to Yitzchak. A tzadik enjoys from the kedusha within the food (not its tastiness) and that is the basis for the bracha that he can then bestow. Yitzchak would detect the kedusha of Kibud Av vaEm that Eisav would invest in the food that he served him; this would give him the oportunity to bless him.

In addition, Chazal indicates that the day Yitzchak sought to give the brachot was Yom Tov. According to the Zohar it was Rosh Hashana, according to the gemara it was Leil haSeder. The fine food he requested was to serve as “Oneg Yom Tov”.  When a physical item is used for spiritual purposes it is invested with great kedusha. This is its “tikun”. However, the kedusha and tikun depend upon the intent of the person using it - his impact will reveal who he really is. Eisav, who would constantly hunt an animal and slaughter it for his father, knew that his shechita would reveal his essence. He therefore would usually ask Ya’akov to perform the shechita instead! He would ask Ya’akov innocently, “Would you slaughter the animal so that I can prepare the food for Abba?” and Ya’akov would naturally comply, investing the shechita with lofty and holy intentions and imbuing the food with kedusha. Yitzchak would thus be not aware as to the essence of his son, Eisav.

However, on this occasion Rivkah had occupied Ya’akov with something else; Eisav was unable to ask him to perform the shechita. Eisav was under pressure because he knew that the brachot were on the line. In his haste he decided that he had no choice - he would have to perform the shechita himself, for better or for worse.

But the results were catastrophic for him. Yitzchak “smeld” the essence of Eisav that hovered over the food and was “greatly frightened”. “Who was the one who caught the animal?” he asked, “Who is the person who previously slaughtered the animal and invested the food with so much kedusha? Why does the food today have no trace of that kedusha? It must have been Ya’akov who would always slaughter for me! He shall also be blessed.”

A Fighter

Returning to the premise of the Pituchei Chotam that Yitzchak sought to conduct a test to see which of his sons was worthy of receiving the brachot, receiving the Torah, continuing his path, and fathering Am Yisrael. Yitzchak had the following considerations:

Ya’akov was an “Ish tam” - he was innocent and not worldly. Perhaps he was not savvy or sharp enough to shoulder the responsibility of bearing a nation that would need to fight against evil and against its evil inclination. Eisav, by contrast, was a fighter - a hunter. Perhaps his temperament was better suited to fighting the good fight.

Yitzchak , then requested from Eisav to go hunt and prepare food for him. Hunting  is symbolic of the need to fight and hunt down evil, to constantly fight back the evil inclination who stands at the door waiting to pounce - “la’petach chatat rovetz”. Ever since the sin of Adam haRishon the evil inclination has resided within the heart of every human being; only the most battle-hardened can overcome it. Perhaps those who chiefly focus on the positive aspects of life and spirituality are not well suited to fighting the negative side.

Bracha

In light of the above we can gain a greater appreciation of the nature of a bracha and of what we seek when we go to a tzadik to receive one.

The word bracha means “increase”. When we recite the words “Baruch atah Hashem” we mean: “Hashem - You are the source of blessing. We ask you that you bring about increase and proliferation. This will lead to an increase in Kiddush Hashem in the world.” We then “flavor” the bracha with our closing statement, “she’haKol nihyah bi’devaro”, “borei peri ha’etz” etc.

In fact, the word “bracha” alludes to this concept. It comprises three root letters: Beit, Resh, and Chaf, each of which have twice the gematria (numerical value) of the letters that precede them (2, 20, and 200). This hints at an increase of doubling the entity that is blessed.

When Yitzchak sought to bless one of his sons his intent was to cause an increase - to “double” - the inherent strength of the one chosen. He had to determine whose character traits were worthy of blessing and increasing; was it Ya’akov ?- the innocent one who closed himself in “tents” and learnt Torah, or Eisav - the fighter and hunter.

Rivkah’s Wisdom

Rivkah Immenu understood that Eisav’s fighting qualities were superficial; they did not define him as one who would fight for the cause of good over evil. He would use them to deceive his father, not to overcome his evil inclination. The gemara compares Eisav to the pig which has split hooves but does not chew his cud, which appears to be kosher but is not. Eisav, likewise, gave the appearance of one who would fight for what was right, but underneath he was somebody else entirely. Ya’akov by contrast, was true to his inner self - his outer appearance reflected his inner reality.

By sending Ya’akov to receive the brachots, Rivkah was conveying the following message to Yitzchak: “Do not be deceived by ‘Eisav the warrior’. Do not think that he has the potential to use his fighting qualities to do battle with evil. Look deeply at his essence and you will see that he is entirely superficial.”

Rivkah knew that Yitzchak’s bracha would determine the future of Am Yisrael. She therefore acted swiftly to ensure that Ya’akov would be the one to receive it. Though he was innocent and unworldly, she knew that he had the ability to overcome evil and to repair the sin of Adam haRishon. While he would need guidance he would nevertheless succeed in this critical mission. The Torah he would constantly learn would give him the tools to succeed in this mission, after all, “Hashem said: ‘I created the evil inclination but I created the Torah as an antidote.”

To prepare him for this mission Rivkah sent Ya’akov to Lavan, where he would learn to battle evil - Lavan’s very essence. And so it transpired. Ya’akov waged an endless battle with Lavan who attempted to deceive him at every turn, as the pasuk relates, “and you changed my wage tens of times”. Eventually, he succeeded - he became battle hardened and capable of fighting the wicked on their own terms.

In so doing Ya’akov became a match with Eisav, as he himself later related: “If he is my brother, I will be his brother. If he will be deceptive, I will be his brother in deception.”

This also gave Ya’akov the perfect blend of character. During the first part of his life he was occupied in the positive elements of character building; chessed and innocence. In the second part he was occupied in gevura - strength to overcome the overtures of evil. This blend is known as “tiferet” and this is the essence of what Torah represents .

This would appear to be the intent of the Pituchei Chotam in explaining this passage.

The lesson for us is twofold. First, that physical items, such as food, are the basis for bracha, and not merely gashmiyut. Second, that each of us have enormous potential; our mission must be to uncover it, and cause it to increase and proliferate.

Shabbat Shalom

Rabbi Gad Bouskila