The life of Yaacov was a contradiction as is indicated by his two names. At birth he was called Yaacov (Jacob). There is no indication in the text who gave him that name. In Rabbinic tradition two ideas were advanced. It was either God or his father, Yitzchak (Isaac), who named him. This is significant because it is hardly a flattering name. It comes from the word EKEV which means heel. It could very well be a descriptive account as is stated in the text that at his birth Yaacov was grasping the heel of Esav (Esau). If so, however, why would God be interested in such an insignificant gesture.
The name Yaacov could have a disparaging connotation. That was stated by Esav who accused Yaacov of deception and treachery (Vayakveini) in tricking him out of his birthright and the blessing of his father. This was clearly recognized by Christian writers who tried to associate Jews with treachery. In Martin Luther’s major work, The Bondage of the Will, his hatred of the Jews was mired in his hatred of Yaacov. He left it as a mystery why God chose as his favorite the allegedly evil and treacherous Yaacov over the supposedly good and ethical Esav. He concluded that this was the greatest example of gratuitous grace and that man cannot fathom the mind of God.
Yaacov’s other name expresses the exact opposite, which described who Yaacov really was. That name was Israel; a name that was given to Yaacov directly by God. That name expresses strength, majesty uprightness, triumph and a deep association with God. It is the irony of Yaacov’s life that both names were attached to him until the day he died. It was a description of how Yaacov would lead his life in order to survive in this world. Great majesty and belief would be associated with cunning.
Early in his life Yaacov had to flee from his parents’ home. That flight is ostensibly determined by his father’s wish that Yaacov acquire a proper, non-Canaanite wife. The real catalyst for the move was his mother’s fear for her son’s life at the hands of Esav.
Upon reaching the border of Israel God appears to Yaacov in a vision associated with a ladder and promises him protection during his journey. One could ask if God was committed to protect Yaacov outside the land of Israel why could he not do so in the land itself? It seems that the Divine Will was not only accommodated to Yaacov’s leaving Israel but was actually desirous of it.
Yaacov spent the next twenty years mostly in misery in the house of his Uncle Laban. The one bright spot was his marriage to Laban’s youngest daughter, Rachel, whom Yaacov truly loved.
During those years Yaacov, who is always accused of treachery both by Eisav and Laban, was continuously tricked and cheated. In order to survive he had to understand the nature of treachery and be resolved in his own cunning. In short he truly had to be Yaacov.
At last God’s angel appears to him and instructs him to return home. It is fortunate that the revelation occurred when Yaacov recognized that Laban and his sons were about to destroy him and rob his wealth. Again Yaacov understood that the angel offered God’s protection. This was vindicated when Laban pursued and caught up to him. He openly told Yaacov that had it not been for the warning he received from Yaacov’s God he would have destroyed him.
It is difficult to understand that despite these assurances Yaacov was almost paralyzed with fear at the prospect of an encounter with his brother, Esav. The rabbis are troubled by his need to contact his brother. They use a well-known aphorism, “it is better to let sleeping dogs lie rather than awaken them.”
Yaacov’s fear caused him to offer a series of bribes, be extremely obsequious in his language towards Esav, he also begged God for salvation and was willing to forfeit half of his camp and possessions.
It is at this moment, in the midst of extreme terror that Israel is born. Yaacov is forced to fight for his life with an unknown man who in Rabbinic tradition was the guardian angel of Esav. Yaacov was victorious and was told by this “man” that he was no longer to be called Yaacov, but Israel for he successfully triumphed with both God and men i.e. Esav and Laban. When Yaacov returned to Beit El, the point of his departure from the land of Israel, he established a monument to God and God confirmed his new name Israel and that he would no longer be called Yaacov.
We know, however, that this is not correct. For to the end of his life Yaacov was called interchangeably both Yaacov and Israel by the Torah and even by God. God did not intend to erase the name Yaacov, but rather have it become a subsidiary name to Israel. Both names are valid and viable. One is left wondering: why was it required of Yaacov to keep his original name when it was not necessary of Abraham or Sarah to keep their original names?
The necessity for Yaacov to maintain his name Yaacov, was that despite his triumph and resolution with Esav, deception was still part of Yaacov’s life upon his return to the land of Israel. This is demonstrated by the incident with Dina (in which revenge was taken by Yaacov’s sons Shimon and Levi against the city of Shechem by way of deception and trickery), the death of Rachel (because she lied to her father about taking his idols), the betrayal of Yaacov’s first born, Reuben (when he put the bed of his mother in his father’s tent) and the incident of Judah and Tamar (Where Judah attempted to deceive Tamar (about marrying off his youngest son to her), but was in fact deceived by her).
The greatest deception of all, however, was the agony that Yaacov experienced for seventeen years at the loss of Joseph through the deception of his children. Yaacov openly recognized and admitted the suffering of his life when he first encounters Pharaoh. He tells Pharaoh that his life was short and hard and did not equal the goodness experienced by his ancestors. It is difficult to understand why Yaacov would state this to Pharaoh. Does this not diminish the God of Yaacov to a powerful non-Hebrew adversary?
The Rabbis were also troubled by this confession. We know that both Abraham and Isaac had difficult lives. They, however, never complained so bitterly about them. Yaacov, after all, was the father of Israel for all time. The Jewish people would be known as the Children of Israel.
Rashi offers a midrashic statement in an attempt to deal with this issue. Yaacov finally wished to live in peace. The tragedy associated with Joseph, thus, befell him. All the righteous wish to live in peace, but God intervenes and says, is it not enough what is awaiting the righteous in the world to come that they also wish to live in peace in this world?
This, however, does not explain the uniqueness of Yaacov. Abraham and Isaac seem not to have undergone the same level or length of suffering. They did not view their lives with such a level of depression and they did not openly complain about the misfortune they experienced.
There is something unique about Yaacov which is indicated and symbolized by the continued use of his two contradictory names, Israel and Yaacov. His life became the prototype of the lives of his children, the children of Israel or the Jewish people. Just like Jacob, the Jewish people have had to live with great challenges in this world and have been required to use great cunning to survive. No matter how great the challenge, however, their trust and recognition of God’s goodness never faded and they always saw themselves as Israel, hoping to live in peace.