ON THE PARSHA Parshas Toldos by Dovid Lipman, Israel Year 2, No. 6 Introduction This parsha, which tells how our father Yitzchak's role as father of our people was fulfilled, has five parts: 1) Rivkah Has Twins [WON] 2) Yaakov Buys the Birthright [DYR] 3) Yitzchak and Avimelech [TWOTS] 4) Yaakov Takes the Blessing [RAUW] 5) Yaakov Flees Eisav's Wrath [FTG] 1. Rivkah Has Twins -- 25:19 [Beg.] to 25:26 Yitzchak's wife Rivkah is barren, and they pray for children. Hashem grants their wish, and Rivkah has a difficult pregnancy. She is told by a prophet that she bears twins, who will be in constant struggle in their future. At the birth, the first is hairy and is called Eisav; the younger, born holding Eisav's heel, is called Yaakov. Yitzchak is 40 years old at this time. Worthy of Note (25:22) "The children 'ran about' inside her". Rashi brings the Midrash that when she passed a Torah place, Yaakov tried to get out, and when she passed a place of idol-worship, Eisav tried to leave. Why was Rivkah spending time near idol worship? Perhaps she followed in her mother-in-law's ways, bringing people close to serving Hashem. 2. Yaakov Buys the Birthright -- 25:27 to 25:34 [end, Chap. 25] Eisav becomes a hunter and Yaakov a more prudent type, and even though Yitzchak prefers Eisav, Rivkah prefers Yaakov. One day, Eisav returns from hunting tired and starving, and Yaakov buys Eisav's birthright as a condition for feeding him. Eisav not only agrees, but talks with disdain about his discarded rights. Do You Remember? -from the files of 'On the Parsha' 1. What kind of field did Yitzchak say Yaakov smelled like? 2. Where do we see Yaakov's great distaste for deceit? 3. Why is Judean beer forbidden on Pesach and Edomite OK? 4. Where is Yizchak's "taste" of the next world hinted? 5. What did Rivkah foretell about her sons' deaths? 3. Yitzchak and Avimelech -- Chap. 26 Yitzchak, at Hashem's instruction, flees as famine to the land of Avimelech instead of Egypt, and he adopts Avraham's "She's my sister" measure. It works for a while, but then Avimelech finds out the truth, and is upset, but he lets Yitzchak stay, until Yitzchak becomes rich, when the citizens get jealous, so he's expelled, and driven from two successful wells he finds, until he finally holds onto a third. The World of the Supernatural (26:10) "The 'one' of the nation..." Rashi explains that Avimelech meant himself. Ba'al HaTurim points out that the phrase is also used referring to King Dovid, and one sees the parallel - both were kings. Perhaps there's something more, though - Dovid was the one who successfully fought the Plishtim, Avimelech's people, when they hurt the Jews, especially when he killed their giant, Golias. How proper for the "special one" of our people to take this revenge! 4. Yaakov Takes the Blessing -- 27:1 to 27:40 Some years after Eisav marries, Yitzchak offers him the Divine blessings of Avraham, and, as preparation, asks him to prepare food for him. He goes to hunt, and Rivkah quickly sends Yaakov in to Yitzchak with a meal to deceive Yitzchak, who is blind. Yitzchak blesses Yaakov, and Eisav, arriving late, is promised servitude to Yaakov while Yaakov's descendants keep the Torah. Rare and Unusual Words (27:40) "Charb'cha". "Cherev", meaning sword, usually in the Torah is an instrument of evil. The Ramban in Shmos on 20:22 says the sword symbolizes separation, even between the world and its Creator. Jews strive for unity, so our tool is not the sword. This difference is so strong that when the Jews kill Bil'am, and the Torah emphasizes their use of the sword, Rashi says they used the "non-Jewish" tool as a parallel to his use of the Jewish tool, speech. 5. Yaakov Flees Eisav's Wrath -- 27:41 to 28:9 [End] Eisav plans murdering Yaakov, so Rivkah convinces Yitzchak to send him to Charan, where he's to marry a girl from the family instead of a local girl like Eisav did. When Yaakov leaves, Eisav understands the reason, and he marries a daughter of Yishmael, but he doesn't divorce his previous wives. From the Gemara (27:41) Berachos 7b - We see how twisted Eisav was from the hatred he bore to Yaakov over the blessing. He KNEW he'd sold the birthright (this was no outward deceit) and yet he even internally refused to acknowledge Yaakov's rights.