The central theme of this portion is Jacob's struggle for his unique path, especially vis-a-vis his brother Esau. This was not just a family feud. The Sages saw in Esau a metaphor for Rome, and in general, a non-Jewish world-view, alien to the Torah's outlook. The parasha concludes by contrasting Esau and Jacob's descendants, listing the kings of Edom who ruled "before any king reigned over the Israelites."
The high point of the narrative unfolds as Jacob battles in the dark with a mysterious stranger, identified by the Sages as Esau's guardian angel:
"Jacob remained alone. A stranger wrestled with him until daybreak. When he saw that he could not defeat him, he touched the upper joint of (Jacob's) thigh. Jacob's hip joint became dislocated as he wrestled with the stranger." (Genesis 32:25-26)
What is the significance of this unusual wrestling match? Why did Esau's angel decide to injure Jacob's thigh, and not some other part of his body?
Many years earlier, Esau chose to reject the birthright, selling it for lentil stew. "I am going to die!" he exclaimed. "What good is a birthright to me?" (Genesis 25:32) Why did Esau sell his birthright? The essence of this birthright was a life dedicated to serving God, an inheritance from his saintly father Isaac. For Esau, holiness was completely separate from normal living. He saw the birthright as a death sentence, threatening the very foundations of his hedonistic way of life.
We meet Esau's viewpoint again, during his reunion with Jacob. "Who are these to you?" he asked. (Genesis 33:5) You, Jacob, who chose the birthright and its otherworldly holiness - what connection do you have to a normal life? How can you have wives and children? Esau was unable to reconcile his image of a holy life of divine service with establishing a family and raising children.
Esau's guardian angel, in his nocturnal struggle with Jacob, embodied Esau's philosophical position. Where did the angel attack Jacob? He went for Jacob's thigh, dislocating it. His message was clear: If you want to dedicate yourself to God, you must divorce yourself from family and all other aspects of a normal life. Your thigh, from where your descendents issue, must be detached from you.
Jacob exemplified, in his personality and life, the unity of nature and holiness. Jacob's Torah was revealed in the natural world. The Midrash says, "The Holy One looked into the Torah and created the universe." (Breishit Rabba 1:1) The universe is a direct result of God's contemplation of Torah. If we delve into the phenomena of nature, we can penetrate the foundations of the Torah. Had Adam not sinned, we would not have needed a written Torah; life itself would be ordered according to the Torah's principles.
The Avot (forefathers) sought to repair Adam's sin. Their fulfillment of the Torah belonged to the era before the Torah needed to be written down. For them, the Torah was naturally revealed in the universe. This is also the Torah of the angels, whose sole function is to accomplish the mission of their Creator in the world. "Bless God, His angels, mighty in strength, who fulfill His word." (Psalms 103:20; see Shabbat 88a)
Who were the messengers that Jacob sent to inform Esau of his arrival? According to the Midrash, he sent angels. (Breishit Rabba 72:4) A messenger 'stands in' for the sender, as if the sender himself accomplished the mission. Thus, the sender and the messenger must be connected on some basic level. (Kiddushin 41b) By using these unusual emissaries, Jacob was sending a powerful message to Esau. You, Esau, claim that holiness and the physical world are fundamentally contradictory. Yet, my Torah is the Torah of the angels. For me, there is no division between holiness and the natural world; God Himself is revealed in creation.
[Based on Shemu'ot Hariya 9, VaYishlach 5630 (1929)]
The high point of the narrative unfolds as Jacob battles in the dark with a mysterious stranger, identified by the Sages as Esau's guardian angel:
"Jacob remained alone. A stranger wrestled with him until daybreak. When he saw that he could not defeat him, he touched the upper joint of (Jacob's) thigh. Jacob's hip joint became dislocated as he wrestled with the stranger." (Genesis 32:25-26)
What is the significance of this unusual wrestling match? Why did Esau's angel decide to injure Jacob's thigh, and not some other part of his body?
Many years earlier, Esau chose to reject the birthright, selling it for lentil stew. "I am going to die!" he exclaimed. "What good is a birthright to me?" (Genesis 25:32) Why did Esau sell his birthright? The essence of this birthright was a life dedicated to serving God, an inheritance from his saintly father Isaac. For Esau, holiness was completely separate from normal living. He saw the birthright as a death sentence, threatening the very foundations of his hedonistic way of life.
We meet Esau's viewpoint again, during his reunion with Jacob. "Who are these to you?" he asked. (Genesis 33:5) You, Jacob, who chose the birthright and its otherworldly holiness - what connection do you have to a normal life? How can you have wives and children? Esau was unable to reconcile his image of a holy life of divine service with establishing a family and raising children.
Esau's guardian angel, in his nocturnal struggle with Jacob, embodied Esau's philosophical position. Where did the angel attack Jacob? He went for Jacob's thigh, dislocating it. His message was clear: If you want to dedicate yourself to God, you must divorce yourself from family and all other aspects of a normal life. Your thigh, from where your descendents issue, must be detached from you.
Jacob exemplified, in his personality and life, the unity of nature and holiness. Jacob's Torah was revealed in the natural world. The Midrash says, "The Holy One looked into the Torah and created the universe." (Breishit Rabba 1:1) The universe is a direct result of God's contemplation of Torah. If we delve into the phenomena of nature, we can penetrate the foundations of the Torah. Had Adam not sinned, we would not have needed a written Torah; life itself would be ordered according to the Torah's principles.
The Avot (forefathers) sought to repair Adam's sin. Their fulfillment of the Torah belonged to the era before the Torah needed to be written down. For them, the Torah was naturally revealed in the universe. This is also the Torah of the angels, whose sole function is to accomplish the mission of their Creator in the world. "Bless God, His angels, mighty in strength, who fulfill His word." (Psalms 103:20; see Shabbat 88a)
Who were the messengers that Jacob sent to inform Esau of his arrival? According to the Midrash, he sent angels. (Breishit Rabba 72:4) A messenger 'stands in' for the sender, as if the sender himself accomplished the mission. Thus, the sender and the messenger must be connected on some basic level. (Kiddushin 41b) By using these unusual emissaries, Jacob was sending a powerful message to Esau. You, Esau, claim that holiness and the physical world are fundamentally contradictory. Yet, my Torah is the Torah of the angels. For me, there is no division between holiness and the natural world; God Himself is revealed in creation.
[Based on Shemu'ot Hariya 9, VaYishlach 5630 (1929)]