And it came to pass, that when Isaac was old, and his eyes were dim, so that he could not see, he called Esau his elder son, and said to him: "My son"; and he said to him: "Here am I."
verse value 3683
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 70 letters. The shortest word is "his·son" (בְּנ֣וֹ, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·grew·dim" (וַתִּכְהֶ֥יןָ, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 257: and·said, and·said. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "when·was·old" (כִּֽי־זָקֵ֣ן), "and·grew·dim" (וַתִּכְהֶ֥יןָ), "from·seeing" (מֵרְאֹ֑ת). The root בן appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "and·it·was" (root היה, 313x in Genesis); "his·son" (root בן, 248x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·seeing', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 10 words.
Onkelos
And it came to pass, when Isaac had grown old and his eyes had grown too dim to see, that he called Esau his elder son and said to him: My son. And he said to him: Here I am.
Rashi
ותכהין HIS EYES WERE DIM through the smoke raised by these women in offering incense to idols (Midrash Tanchuma, Toldot 8). Another explanation is: When Isaac was bound upon the altar and his father was about to slay him, at that very moment the heavens opened, the ministering angels saw it and wept, and their tears flowed and fell upon Isaac’s eyes which thus became dim (Genesis Rabbah 65:10). Another explanation is: They became dim just in order that Jacob might receive the blessings (Genesis Rabbah 65:8).
Sforno
ותכהינה עיניו, just as what happened to the High Priest Eli who had not protested the wrongs committed by his sons. (Samuel I 3,13) In that instance the expression used is ועיניו קמה ולא יכול לראות, (Samuel I 4,15) Neither Avraham nor Yaakov experienced such problems in their old age at the age at which Yitzchok was struck by this affliction. They were both far older than Eli who died at the age of only 98. In fact, the Torah reports Avraham’s youthfulness in 25,1 when it reports him as taking another wife. Yaakov, with all the troubles he had experienced during his life was still able to see at 147 years of age, though with difficulty, (may be was very shortsighted then) as in Genesis 48,8 he is reported as clearly seeing Joseph’s sons, though they may have resembled each other so that he could not tell apart which one was Efrayim and which one was Menashe, This was in spite of the Torah (48,10) having told us ועיני ישראל כבדו מזוקן, “Yaakov’s eyes were heavy with old age,” (problems keeping the lids open?) At any rate, he could see, though not with clarity.
Or HaChaim
ויהי כי זקן יצחק, It came about when Isaac was old, etc. The reason that the Torah prefaces the paragraph by reporting that Isaac's eyesight failed him was to explain that Jacob took the blessings at a time when he was not afraid that his father would recognise him. The reason the paragraph is introduced with the word ויהי, which always introduces a painful episode, is to remind us that the subterfuge Jacob had to employ had many fateful consequences for the history of the Jewish people. את עשו, Esau. The reason the Torah does not say ויקרא אל עשו, that Isaac called out to Esau, is that the latter was not present. Isaac merely called out Esau's name. בנו הגדול, his older son. The Torah may have given as the reason that Isaac called first on Esau the fact that he was the firstborn; this would presuppose that Isaac did not know about the sale of the birthright. Alternatively, Isaac may have ignored the fact of the sale of the birthright and have based himself on Esau's being the elder, biologically speaking. The reason that Isaac wanted to give the wicked Esau a blessing was that he hoped to effect a change in Esau's character on account of the blessings he would bestow on him. In view of the statement in Bereshit Rabbah 80,1 that Dinah's rape was a punishment for Jacob who had hidden her from Esau's view at the moment of reconciliation, thus preventing Esau from marrying her, we may assume that had Rebeccah and Jacob not interfered with Isaac's intention Esau might indeed have become a penitent as a result of receiving such a blessing.
Chizkuni
ותכהינן עיניו, his eyes had become weak; but not Rivkah’s eyes; this is so because woman was created from man’s bone, as were the wives of Esau, and we have a rule that one bone does not harm another bone. {Tanchuma Toldot 8)[When bone hits bone nothing breaks. When bone hits vessels made of earth(enware) the latter is liable to be shattered. When G-d made Adam, He used earth. Ed.] An alternate exegesis: Rivkah’s eyes, which had been used to the smoke emanating from sacrifices offered to idols, had become immune to that smoke from childhood.
Rabbeinu Bahya
ותכהין עיניו מראות, ”his eyes weakened due to seeing.” According to the plain meaning of the text, a decline in the quality of vision is a normal phenomenon in people who reach a certain age, We find such a phenomenon as occurring to the prophet Achiyah Hashiloni (Kings I 14,4). When the Torah testified that Moses at 120 had not lost any part of his vision or any other bodily functions, (Deut. 34,7) this is reported precisely because it was a miracle. A Midrashic approach: Bereshit Rabbah 65,7 attributes Yitzchak’s failing eyesight to his being bribed with venison by his son Esau. The Torah had taught in Exodus 23,8 that one must not accept bribes and that accepting bribes “blinds the eyes of the seeing.” At that point, the Torah addresses judges and warns them not to accept bribes. Continuing with that subject, Rabbi Yitzchak said: “if someone who accept bribes from someone (such as his son who is obligated to feed him in his old age) is punished for accepting such favours, how much more is this true of someone who accepts such favours from a person who does not owe him anything!” Another approach of an homiletical nature is this: Yitzchak’s eyesight was impaired in order to enable Yaakov to obtain the blessing (Tanchuma Toldot 8). Still another approach: Yitzchak’s failing eyesight was due to the smoke from the incense his daughters-in-law offered to idols. [This leaves open why Rivkah’s eyes were not similarly affected. Maybe because she was so much younger. Ed.] Yet another reason offered in the Midrash: It was to prevent Yitzchak from leaving his house so that when people saw him they should not point to him as the father of the wicked Esau (compare Bereshit Rabbah 65,10). G’d hit on a stratagem to keep him indoors by blinding him. This would be reflected in the verse (Proverbs 28,28) “when the wicked rise up, other men go into hiding;” this prompted our sages to say that if someone raises a son who turns out to be wicked his eyes will become dimmed. They quote what happened to Yitzchak as proof for their contention. The reason that Achiyah Hashiloni lost his eyesight was that Jerobam ben Nevat, the King who placed golden calves on the road to Jerusalem to prevent his subjects from travelling to the Temple, was his star pupil. A totally different approach (Bereshit Rabbah 65,10) ascribes Yitzchak’s failing eyesight not to his age but to the fact that while he was bound on the altar he had beheld a forbidden vision of G’d, something which G’d did not want to punish him for at that stage. However, G’d decreed at that very hour that He would deprive Yitzchak of his eyesight at some time in the future. If G’d had punished Yitzchak immediately, He would have subjected not only Avraham to a test but also Yitzchak; this was not His intention at the time. This is based on the Torah writing מראות, “as a result of seeing something.” Had the Torah simply wanted to inform us that Yitzchak’s failing eyesight was a normal phenomenon it would have written מלראות, i.e. “his eyes became too weak to see.” Bereshit Rabbah 65,10 illustrates this with a parable. A King went for a private stroll behind the gate of his palace. When he raised his eyes he noticed that the son of a dearly beloved friend espied him from his window. Thereupon the King reasoned as follows: “if I kill that son, I will cause anguish to my friend. I will instead decree that the windows all be closed so that the son in question can no longer use it to spy on me.” A similar thing happened during the binding of Yitzchak. If G’d had punished Yitzchak for not closing his eyes and watching something he was not supposed to watch, He would be causing anguish to Avraham at the very moment when He was testing him. This is the meaning of Isaiah 5,23 מצדיקי רשע עקב שוחד וצדקת צדיקים יסירו ממנו, “who vindicate him who is in the wrong in return for a bribe, and withhold vindication from him who is in the right.” The prophet alludes to Yitzchak who, because of the venison he used to provide for his father, enjoyed his father’s favour. The second half of the verse refers to Moses and the fact that his eyesight was not withheld from him even at the age of 120 as he had never accepted any bribe. ויקרא את עשו בנו הגדול, “he called in Esau his elder son.” Both his father and his mother referred to Esau as גדול, “senior.” Rivkah is on record as doing so in verse 15 when the Torah tells us where Esau kept his valuable clothes. G’d, on the other hand, referred to Esau as קטן, “junior.” We know this from Ovadiah 2 הנה קטן נתתיך בגוים, “here I have made you junior amongst the nations.” The meaning of the word גדול is justified according to the popular proverb לקבל תורא טבחא, “one hands over the fully grown ox for slaughter.” Compare Isaiah 34,6: “For the Lord holds a sacrifice in Bozrah, a great slaughter in the land of Edom.” The prophet speaks of retribution being meted out to the descendants of Esau. Ed.] On the other hand, the reason the description “junior” when applied to Yaakov may be appropriate on occasions is that in verse 30 where he is so described by his mother, G’d retaliated in due cause by referring to Israel as ומי גוי גדול בארץ, “who is a great nation on earth such as Israel” (Deut. 4,5).
Kli Yakar
“And it was when Isaac grew old, and his eyes dimmed from seeing.” The text does not use the phrase “advanced in days” [ba bayamim] because the term “advanced in days” implies that one’s intellectual light continues to grow stronger, as is typical of elderly Torah scholars whose intellectual clarity increases especially in their old age, as if they are emerging from nights into days. This is explained above in Parshat Chayei Sarah regarding the verse And Abraham was old, advanced in days (Genesis 24:1). Therefore, regarding Isaac, it states that even in his old age, his intellectual vision was dimmed from seeing through Esau’s schemes, for he erred about him and thought he was righteous, not perceiving his deceptiveness. This is why it doesn’t say “advanced in days,” because on the contrary, he walked in darkness with no light to see the true visions regarding the conduct of his son Esau. And perhaps this is what Rashi explained: His eyes became dim from their smoke. Could it possibly enter one’s mind that Isaac saw them offering incense to idols and did not protest? For Abraham was meticulous about not allowing idolatry in, and surely Isaac was as careful about idolatry as he was. Rather, it must be that Isaac thought they were offering incense to Heaven [to God]. This is why immediately after [the verse] they were a source of spiritual bitterness to Isaac and Rebecca, [the Torah states] And it came to pass when Isaac was old, and his eyes dimmed. For they [Isaac and Rebecca] were not pleased with their [the wives’] actions, because even though they [the wives] claimed they were offering incense to Heaven, nevertheless, they [Isaac and Rebecca] were not content with their actions, suspecting that perhaps they were invalidating the offering through some foreign thought. The phrase spiritual bitterness refers either to the spirit of Isaac and Rebecca, or it refers to the women who were burning incense, for perhaps in their inner spirit they were rebellious, and who knows what was truly in their hearts. Therefore it says his eyes dimmed from seeing, because the eyes of his intellect did not perceive their schemes and the schemes of his son Esau. This is what is meant by “from the smoke of these,” meaning that his intellect was misled by their smoke. According to its simple meaning, one can resolve [the issue] as follows: The reason why it says [his eyes were dim] from seeing, which seems superfluous, is certainly because the Holy One, Blessed be He, deliberately caused his eyes to dim so that he would not see his daughters-in-law burning incense to idols and thereby be distressed by this. This is what is meant by “from the smoke of these [women]” — because of their smoke, so that he would not see this and be distressed. And regarding what Rashi explains as another explanation — that it was so Jacob would receive the blessings — according to this interpretation, the word “rom seeing relates to what follows, meaning that his eyes became dim so that he would not see who was Esau and who was Jacob, and through this circumstance Jacob would receive the blessings. Therefore it says from seeing, so that he would not see and recognize his sons by their distinguishing features.
Tur HaArokh
ויהי כי זקן יצחק, “it happened when Yitzchok aged, noticeably;” According to Nachmanides, Yitzchok at that point had intended to bless Esau seeing that he would inherit the land of Canaan being the firstborn, and as such it would be his duty to uphold the covenant G’d had made with Avraham. Rivkah had never revealed to her husband the prophecy she had received while pregnant with the twins in her womb, according to which the older of the brothers would be subservient to the younger one. Had Rivkah revealed this information to him, Yitzchok would have been violating an express commandment by G’d if he had accorded the blessing of Avraham to his son Esau. The reason Rivkah had not revealed this information to her husband, was her innate modesty. She did not want Yitzchok to feel slighted that G’d had revealed information to her that He had not seen fit to reveal to her husband. Alternately, she thought that Yitzchok, being a saint, had to be aware of anything she knew and more than that, so that revealing to him something that he already knew would appear as if she had underestimated her husband’s close relations to his Creator. At any rate, she feared that due to his open preference for Esau, Yitzchok might not bestow a blessing on Yaakov at all. She was afraid that if she would reveal her prophetic vision to Yitzchok at this time, he would decide not to bestow a blessing on either son, but leave everything to heaven, as his father had done before him. Rabbi Joseph Kimchi does not believe that Yitzchok ever had the intention of bestowing on Esau the blessing of Avraham [which carried with it the power to bless or to curse effectively, Ed.] He did not feel that Yaakov needed a blessing, seeing that he was a righteous individual in his own right. He felt that Esau was in need of a blessing precisely because he was a wicked individual. He hoped that by providing Esau with the opportunity of pleasing his father by bringing him venison to eat, the pleasure he would experience eating it would restore a measure of Holy Spirit to him, something that had been lacking in his life of late. Even the prophet Elisha had suffered from the absence of such Holy Spirit until it had been restored to him as a result of the music played for him, something that relieved his mental depression. [in both cases the mental depression had been brought on by the person’s failure to see his words of benevolent instruction take root in the listener. Ed.] (Kings II 3,15)
And he said: "Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death.
verse value 1972
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 29 letters. The shortest word is "not" (לֹ֥א, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·said" (וַיֹּ֕אמֶר, 5 letters). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "not" (root לא, 127x in Genesis); "day" (root יום, 126x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'I·am·old', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֕אמֶר [and·said] (257) + הִנֵּה־נָ֖א [behold·please] (111) + זָקַ֑נְתִּי [I·am·old] (567) + לֹ֥א [not] (31) + יָדַ֖עְתִּי [I·know] (494) + י֥וֹם [day] (56) + מוֹתִֽי [my·death] (456) = 1972.
Onkelos
And he said: Behold, I have now grown old; I do not know the day of my death.
Rashi
לא ידעתי יום מותי I KNOW NOT THE DAY OF MY DEATH — R. Joshua the son of Korcha said: When a person approaches the age at which his parents died he may well be anxious five years before and five years after. Isaac was then one hundred and twenty three years old and he said, “Perhaps I shall only reach the age of my mother who died at the age of 127 and I am now within five years of her age: therefore, I know not the day of my death —I may only reach the age of my mother or it may be the age of my father” (Genesis Rabbah 65:12).
Ibn Ezra
"Behold now" — this is like "now" [עתה].
Sforno
לא ידעתי יום מותי. Although the blessing will prove more effective the closer the one dispensing is to death, as was the case in the blessings dispensed by Yaakov and Moses, seeing that their souls were already closer to heaven at the time when they dispensed the blessing, Yitzchok was not aware of when he would die so that he could to time his blessing accordingly.
Chizkuni
לא ידעתי יום מותי, I do not know when I shall die;” if I were to die suddenly, you (Esau) will lose all your money and your authority as you have sold your birthright to Yaakov. Therefore I wish to anticipate such an event by giving you my wealth while I am still alive so that Yaakov cannot deprive you of what was yours from birth. Gifts made during one’s lifetime cannot be challenged.
Tur HaArokh
הנה נא זקנתי לא ידעתי יום מותי, “here I have aged and I do not know how soon I will die.” If I were to die now, you would lose your share of the inheritance seeing that Yaakov bought it from you. I therefore decided to divide my estate in accordance with the principle that when a father decides to divide his estate between the sons allotting more to one than to the other, but not disinheriting one of them, this is legally acceptable, (Baba Batra 8,5 compare Bartenurah) even if the firstborn thereby loses his extra share of the inheritance.
Rashbam
הנה נא, I beg of you, due to my old age and the fact that I want to bestow on you the blessing which is within my power to bestow, the blessing of Avraham concerning inheriting this land.
Now therefore take, I pray you, your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field, and take me venison;
verse value 2865
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 38 letters. The shortest word is "to·me" (לִּ֖י, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·your·bow" (וְקַשְׁתֶּ֑ךָ, 5 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "your·gear" (כֵלֶ֔יךָ), "your·quiver" (תֶּלְיְךָ֖), "and·your·bow" (וְקַשְׁתֶּ֑ךָ). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·go·out" (root יצא, 77x in Genesis); "the·field" (root שדה, 48x in Genesis); "take·please" (root נשא, 47x in Genesis). First appearance of the root צוד ("and·hunt") in Genesis. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·your·bow', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 5 words. Full calculation: וְעַתָּה֙ [and·now] (481) + שָׂא־נָ֣א [take·please] (352) + כֵלֶ֔יךָ [your·gear] (80) + תֶּלְיְךָ֖ [your·quiver] (460) + וְקַשְׁתֶּ֑ךָ [and·your·bow] (826) + וְצֵא֙ [and·go·out] (97) + הַשָּׂדֶ֔ה [the·field] (314) + וְצ֥וּדָה [and·hunt] (111) + לִּ֖י [to·me] (40) + צָֽיִד [game] (104) = 2865.
Onkelos
And now, take up your weapons — your sword and your bow — and go out to the field and hunt game for me.
Rashi
שא נא — The word שא means sharpen, similar to what שא read in the Mishna (Beitzah 28a) “One may not sharpen the knife in the usual manner but one may sharpen it by passing it (משיאין) over another”. Isaac said to Esau, “Sharpen your knife and slaughter an animal according to the regulations so that you may not give me to eat נבלה” (i.e. the flesh of animal that is not killed according to the ritual rules) (Genesis Rabbah 65:13). תליך means thy sword which is usually hung (at the side). צודה לי AND HUNT FOR ME [SOME VENISON] of animals that are ownerless, but not of such as are acquired by theft (literally, by robbery).
Ibn Ezra
"Your weapons" — it is possible that this is a general term, the specifics being: your quiver and your bow. And "your quiver" refers to the suspended case in which the arrows are kept; or "your quiver" means a sword. The vav is missing from "your quiver," as in "Adam, Shet, Enosh" (1 Chronicles 1:1), where the connecting vav is likewise absent.
Sforno
שא נא כליך, so that you will not return with your mission unaccomplished.
Chizkuni
תליך, “your quiver,” the bag fastened around one’s midriff containing the supply of arrows;” וצודה לי ציד, “and hunt some game for me.” If you were to question how it is possible for Yitzchok to have been eating the meat of animals that had not died through ritual slaughter even inadvertently, seeing that we have a statement by our sages that G-d protects the righteous from becoming guilty of this, seeing that He even protects their livestock from becoming guilty of this? (Talmud Chulin 7) We have to answer that Yitzchok stopped eating meat slaughtered by Esau after he found out that he was a heretic. He acquired his name as a ציד בפיו, before he had become a heretic. צידה, the letter ה at the end of this word is unnecessary. Our sages explain it as an acronym, warning the ritual slaughterer of 5 possible problems that would invalidate the halachically acceptable slaughter of an animal, i.e, שהייה דריסה, חלדה, הגרמה, עיקור, undue delay in completing the severing of the vital pipes; leaning on the knife performing the cutting; a rusty blade, sliding of the knife from the correct position, tearing loose either of the two pipes.
Rabbeinu Bahya
ועתה שא נא כליך, “and now, please make ready your gear, etc.” Yitzchak referred to Esau’s sword and to his bow. It is customary for the hunter to gird both his sword and to take his quiver and bow with which to hunt fowl. This, at any rate, is the plain meaning of these words. Yitzchak also hinted that the weapons Esau’s offspring would depend on were precisely these lethal instruments. According To Bereshit Rabbah 65,13 the words שא נא כליך are a reference to the Kingdom of Babylon as we read in Daniel 1,2 ואת הכלים הביא בבלה, “and the vessels (Temple utensils) he (Nebuchadnezzar) brought to Babylon.” The word תליך, “your quiver,” refers to the Medes as we read in Esther 7,10 ויתלו את המן, “they hung Haman.” The word וקשתך, “and your bow,” is a reference to the Greek Empire as we read in Zechariah 9,13: כי דרכתי לי יהודה קשת, “for I have drawn Yehudah taut as a bow, etc.;” finally, the words וצא השדה are a reference to the Roman Empire as we read in Genesis 32,2: ארצה שעיר שדה אדום, “to the land of Seir, which will become the field of Edom, Rome.”
Kli Yakar
“And hunt game for me.” Why did Isaac see fit to request hunted game — did he not have in his flock a young goat whose taste was like that of deer, that he needed to send his son to a place of wild animals? The explanation that seems closest to me is based on what our Sages said (Chullin 84a) regarding that which one hunts, whether beast or fowl — the Torah teaches proper conduct, that one should not eat meat except with this preparation [outlook]. The reason for this is so that a person should not become accustomed to eating meat, as it is written When your soul desires to eat meat… as the deer and the hart are eaten, so shall you eat it (Deuteronomy 12:20-22). The intention here is that you should eat regular meat only occasionally, not as a fixed meal, like deer and hart which are not found in the house as they are wild animals, and their main dwelling is not with humans but in deserts and forests. Therefore, one only eats from them sparingly, for it is not every day that a miracle occurs to be saved from wild animals during hunting. Thus, presumably, a person only eats from them periodically. Similarly, you should not accustom yourself to eating regular meat, because it produces cruelty and negative traits in the human body, as all predatory birds eat meat, and likewise the lion hunts and eats. Therefore, it is said regarding the future And the lion, like cattle, shall eat straw (Isaiah 11:7) — for there will be peace in the world among all living creatures. Therefore Isaac said hunt game for me, for he did not want to eat meat except with this preparation [outlook]. Rashi explained “from ownerless property and not from theft.” It seems appropriate to explain why he warned about theft at this time more than at other times, since Isaac had been eating Esau’s hunted food for many years. If he had already warned him about this, the warning was already established, so why did he need to warn him again? It appears that through these delicacies, Isaac thought that the Divine Spirit would rest upon him through joy, and he thought that if something stolen was brought, the Divine Presence would not dwell in a place where stolen goods are present. This is why he especially warned about theft, just as at the beginning of the sacrificial laws where it states When a person brings from you (Leviticus 1:2) — just as Adam did not sacrifice from stolen goods, etc., because sacrifices bring the Divine Presence closer while theft distances it. Similarly, according to the Midrash (Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 32) which says these two young goats — one was made into a Passover sacrifice, etc. And regarding the Passover sacrifice it is written Draw forth and take for yourselves — meaning from your own possessions, excluding stolen goods, as concluded in the Yalkut Parashat Bo and as explained by the Baal HaTurim. Because Esau had decided in his heart to hunt and bring even stolen game, God arranged for Rebecca to overhear and send Jacob in his place, so that Isaac would not stumble with an offering that came from stolen goods. It’s possible that Esau did bring stolen goods, which is why it states And Esau his brother came from his hunting and he too made delicacies — it mentions that he came from his hunting but doesn’t mention that he brought something from his hunting, surely because he didn’t find anything and therefore brought stolen goods. Esau said eat of his son’s game but this wasn’t actually true. Therefore, Isaac trembled greatly — explained as because Gehinnom entered with him. And why did Gehinnom enter with him specifically at this time? Surely because he brought stolen goods, and one who does this falls into that. This is why we don’t find that Isaac ate what Esau brought, because he sensed something was wrong after Gehinnom entered with him. The format of the blessings proves [the difference], for he blessed him [Esau] with By your sword you shall live, because there is no bigger armed robber than one who inherits land by his sword. Furthermore, in Jacob’s blessing it states And may God give you, while in Esau’s blessing the language of “giving” is not mentioned, as it says Behold, of the fat places of the earth shall be your dwelling, because he [Esau] brought something stolen that was not a gift from God. Therefore, he blessed him with matters of banditry, saying that he would inherit the land by his sword and not through God’s giving. But Jacob, who brought from what God had given him, his blessing includes And may God give you. Isaac sensed this from the Garden of Eden’s fragrance that came with him through Esau’s precious garments, which he had coveted from Nimrod, which had originally come to him from Adam who had worn them in the Garden of Eden. Isaac smelled the scent of Adam and sensed that this one’s offering was similar to Adam’s offering — who was alone in the world and could not have brought anything stolen — so too this offering was not stolen. Therefore, he blessed him with the blessing of And may God give you.
Tur HaArokh
תלייך, “your quiver.” According to Rashi this is a reference to Esau’s sword, swords being hung in their scabbard. [based on the root תלה, “he hung” Ed.] According to Ibn Ezra the word means “quiver,” i.e. the container within which the arrows are stored. Yitzchok told Esau to equip himself with his hunting tools, these consisting of a bow and arrows and their container, or the sword and its scabbard. וצודה לי ציד, “and hunt some venison for me.” This reveals that Yitzchok was quite unfamiliar with Esau’s lifestyle, as if he had been familiar with it he would not have eaten anything that had been killed by his son. Still, it is problematic how Yitzchok could have eaten animals that had been killed by an arrow. Some commentators therefore explain that Esau had perfected a technique of luring animals by imitating their voices so that when they came close he could slaughter them. This is what the Torah alluded to when it wrote כי ציד בפיו, “he hunted with his mouth.”
and make me savoury food, such as I love, and bring it to me, that I may eat; that my soul may bless you before I die."
verse value 3760
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 56 letters. The shortest word is "to·me" (לִּ֖י, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·make·me" (וַעֲשֵׂה־לִ֨י, 6 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "loved" (אָהַ֛בְתִּי), "and·bring" (וְהָבִ֥יאָה). 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "as" (root אשר, 313x in Genesis); "and·bring" (root בוא, 213x in Genesis); "and·make·me" (root עשה, 152x in Genesis). First appearance of the root מטעם ("savory·dishes") in Genesis. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·I·may·eat', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 5 words. Full calculation: וַעֲשֵׂה־לִ֨י [and·make·me] (421) + מַטְעַמִּ֜ים [savory·dishes] (209) + כַּאֲשֶׁ֥ר [as] (521) + אָהַ֛בְתִּי [loved] (418) + וְהָבִ֥יאָה [and·bring] (29) + לִּ֖י [to·me] (40) + וְאֹכֵ֑לָה [and·I·may·eat] (62) + בַּעֲב֛וּר [so·that] (280) + תְּבָרֶכְךָ֥ [may·bless·you] (642) + נַפְשִׁ֖י [soul] (440) + בְּטֶ֥רֶם [before] (251) + אָמֽוּת [I·shall·die] (447) = 3760.
Onkelos
And make me dishes as I love, and bring them to me that I may eat, so that my soul may bless you before I die.
Ramban
THAT MY SOUL MAY BLESS THEE. It was Isaac’s intent to bless Esau that he merit the blessing of Abraham to inherit the land and to become the one with whom G-d would make the covenant since he was the firstborn. It would appear that Rebekah never told Isaac of the prophecy which G-d had related to her, i.e., And the elder shall serve the younger, else how would Isaac transgress the commandment of the Eternal, seeing that it shall not prosper. Now at first she did not tell it to him due to ethical modesty, for the verse, And she went to inquire of the Eternal, suggests that she went without Isaac’s permission. [Perhaps she did not tell him because] she said, “I need not relate a prophecy to a prophet for Isaac is greater than the one who told it to me.” Therefore Rebekah said: “There is no reason for me to tell Isaac since he is greater in prophecy than the one who told it to me.” And now she did not want to tell him, “So was it said to me in the name of G-d before I gave birth,” for she reasoned that because of his love for Esau he will not bless Jacob, but he will leave everything in the hands of Heaven. And she further knew that by this arrangement of hers, Jacob will be blessed from Isaac’s mouth by an undivided heart and a willing mind. Perhaps these are causes induced by G-d so that Jacob would be blessed, and Esau as well with the blessing of the sword, And by Him alone actions are weighed.
Sforno
Made it into a tasty dish. Yitzchok knew that Eisov was not worthy of the blessing that he wished to confer upon him. For this reason he instructed him to perform an act of honor towards him to give him merit. By contrast when he blessed Yaakov (28:3) he knew that he needed no additional merit.
Chizkuni
והביאה לי ואוכלה, “and bring it to me so that I may eat it.” Yitzchok said to Esau that he had sold his birthright in order to taste part of a single meal. He would now restore it to him by his acquiring the merit of feeding his father a meal prepared by him. This is what was meant by the words: הוי גביר לאחיך “become senior to your brother.” (27,29) [The reader is reminded that the blessing Yitzchok bestowed on the brother who fed him, Yaakov, had been intended for Esau. Ed.] בעבור תברכני נפשי, “so that my soul can bestow a blessing upon you.” Yitzchok said to Esau: “tonight is the night on which in the future the Israelites will all offer the Passover, and the angels will respond with many songs of praises to the Lord. This will make blessings pronounced today especially acceptable in heaven, as they will become part of the myriads of blessings uttered at this time.” (Based on Pirkey de Rabbi Eliezer chapter 32.)
Rabbeinu Bahya
ועשה לי מטעמים... בעבור תברכך נפשי, “and prepare them for me as a tasty dish... in order that my soul may bless you.” When Yitzchak appeared to emphasize the taste of the food he asked Esau to prepare for him he did not allude to the physical enjoyment he would derive from this as an objective in itself. He meant that the pleasant frame of mind he would be in after eating such a meal would result in his enjoying a degree of holy spirit so that his blessing of his son would become effective. Our sages in Shabbat 30 are on record that the שכינה, the benevolent presence of G’d, does not rest on a person when he is inert, lazy, nor when he is sad, but only when he is in a joyous frame of mind. They base this on Kings II 3,15 (where Elisha could not muster the spirit of prophecy and he instructed that music be played) “as the musician played, the hand of the Lord came upon him, etc.” This is the reason Yitzchak was careful to speak of his נפש, “his soul” enjoying the food; he did not want Esau to think that he wanted his body to enjoy this food. You will notice this repeated emphasis on נפשי, נפשך during this entire episode. The Torah wanted us to know the real reason Yitzchak ordered מטעמים, “delicious food,” to be prepared for him. If you were to ask why he did not simply order music to be played as did the prophets, or for that matter as did King Saul when he wanted to rid himself of a melancholy state of mind, the reason is that the blessing he was about to bestow was not of a spiritual kind but of a mundane nature, commanding earthly, bodily blessings to be granted to Esau by G’d. We see that in verse 19 Yitzchak called down “dew from the sky,” assured Esau (whom he thought he was addressing) the fat parts of the earth, corn and wine to be plentiful, etc.” It is quite understandable then that the frame of mind he was trying to achieve in order to pronounce these blessings with full concentration had to be based on his having enjoyed these very benefits himself recently. Here is an interesting excerpt of how our sages viewed the detail provided by the Torah in this whole paragraph. The Talmud Rosh Hashanah 16 asks: “why did the Torah command the libations of water which had to accompany the Mussaph offerings on the festival of Tabernacles?” Answer: “In order for G’d to bestow on us the blessings of an adequate water supply, Tabernacles being the season when we pray for this, i.e. for the rains to be rains of blessing.” Why did the Torah command the Jewish people to offer the “Omer” offering, (a measure of the first ripe barley of the season)?” Answer: “In order for G’d to extend His blessing for the grain harvest which begins around this time of year.” Why did G’d command the Jewish people to offer two loaves of the new wheat harvest in the Temple on the festival of Shavuot?” Answer: “In order for G’d to bless the fruit of the trees which begin to ripen at that time of year.” These blessings, if and when they materialise, would constitute a reward for the public offerings which the Torah commanded to be brought on those festivals. The Talmud is at pains to demonstrate the מדה כנגד מדה principle, i.e. that G’d always responds to us in the manner in which we have related to Him. We must not think that a good harvest constitutes the true reward for Torah observance, G’d forbid! After all, our sages have told us explicitly in Kidushin 39 that the real reward for Torah observance is not dispensed in this life at all. Whatever blessings we experience in this life are only in the nature of a “dividend” compared to the capital reward which we will receive in the hereafter. Our sages illustrated this with the following example: when someone is especially meticulous about observing the commandment involving ציצית, fringes, he will find that in due course he will have prestigious looking garments. When someone is especially meticulous in the manner he observes the commandment involving מזוזות, (attaching a parchment containing the words of this commandment on his door posts), he will find that in due course he will become the owner of an imposing residence., etc. etc. The idea the sages conveyed is that the “dividend” will correspond in a recognisable manner to the type of commandment observed meticulously; however, the sages only spoke about the “dividend,” not about the real reward which has not been revealed as it is reserved for the hereafter.
Tur HaArokh
ועשה לי מטעמים ואוכלה, “and prepare it for me into a delicacy so that I will eat it.” Seeing you had forfeited your birthright through something that you ate, I will help you to regain it through the food you give me to eat.
And Rebekah heard when Isaac spoke to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to hunt for venison, and to bring it.
verse value 3042
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 48 letters. Verse gematria: 3042 is divisible by 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "his·son" (בְּנ֑וֹ, 3 letters) and the longest is "Rebekah" (וְרִבְקָ֣ה, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 208: when·spoke, Isaac. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "when·spoke" (בְּדַבֵּ֣ר), "to·hunt" (לָצ֥וּד), "to·bring" (לְהָבִֽיא). 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "his·son" (root בן, 248x in Genesis); "to·bring" (root בוא, 213x in Genesis); "when·spoke" (root דבר, 133x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'his·son', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְרִבְקָ֣ה [Rebekah] (313) + שֹׁמַ֔עַת [listening] (810) + בְּדַבֵּ֣ר [when·spoke] (208) + יִצְחָ֔ק [Isaac] (208) + אֶל־עֵשָׂ֖ו [to·Esau] (407) + בְּנ֑וֹ [his·son] (58) + וַיֵּ֤לֶךְ [and·went] (66) + עֵשָׂו֙ [Esau] (376) + הַשָּׂדֶ֔ה [the·field] (314) + לָצ֥וּד [to·hunt] (130) + צַ֖יִד [game] (104) + לְהָבִֽיא [to·bring] (48) = 3042.
Onkelos
And Rebekah heard when Isaac spoke to Esau his son. And Esau went out to the field to hunt game to bring back.
Rashi
לצוד ציד להביא TO HUNT FOR VENISON IN ORDER TO BRING IT —What is the force of to bring it? It means that he intended that if he would find no venison (flesh of a wild, ownerless animal) he would bring home of the flesh of an animal acquired by theft (Genesis Rabbah 65:13).
Ibn Ezra
"And Rebecca was listening" — [the sense is] she had been listening.
Or HaChaim
ורבקה שומעת, and Rebeccah was listening, etc. The Torah tells us that Rebeccah was a prophetess who always listened to Isaac's words even though she did not speak up in his presence. The. Torah alludes to this by saying ורבקב שומעת בדבר יצחק, "Rebeccah was listening whenever Isaac spoke." Normally we would have expected the Torah to write: ותשמע רבקה, "Rebeccah happened to overhear." The present tense employed here by the Torah here is most unusual. Maybe Isaac spoke to Esau in a whisper and that is why he believed that Jacob was really Esau; Isaac thought that Jacob could not have heard of Isaac's instructions to Esau. Although Isaac's eyesight had begun to fail him, he called Esau to help him with something confidentially. Both Isaac's call and Esau's response, "I am ready" may be an allusion to the conspirational nature of the conversation.
And Rebekah spoke to Jacob her son, saying: "Behold, I heard your father speak to Esau your brother, saying:
verse value 3377
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 53 letters. The shortest word is "her·son" (בְּנָ֖הּ, 3 letters) and the longest is "to·Jacob" (אֶל־יַעֲקֹ֥ב, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 271: saying, saying. The root אמר appears 3 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "her·son" (root בן, 248x in Genesis); "your·father" (root אב, 196x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'saying', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 7 words. Full calculation: וְרִבְקָה֙ [Rebekah] (313) + אָֽמְרָ֔ה [said] (246) + אֶל־יַעֲקֹ֥ב [to·Jacob] (213) + בְּנָ֖הּ [her·son] (57) + לֵאמֹ֑ר [saying] (271) + הִנֵּ֤ה [behold] (60) + שָׁמַ֙עְתִּי֙ [I·heard] (820) + אֶת־אָבִ֔יךָ [your·father] (434) + מְדַבֵּ֛ר [speaking] (246) + אֶל־עֵשָׂ֥ו [to·Esau] (407) + אָחִ֖יךָ [your·brother] (39) + לֵאמֹֽר [saying] (271) = 3377.
Onkelos
And Rebekah said to Jacob her son, saying: Behold, I heard your father speaking with Esau your brother, saying:
Or HaChaim
ורבקה אמרה אל יעקב, And Rebeccah said to Jacob, etc. The reason that the Torah introduces the verse with the conjunctive letter ו is to tell us that Rebeccah agreed with the Holy Spirit which had conveyed this conversation between Isaac and Esau to her. לאמר, הנה שמעתי. to say, "here I have heard," etc. She wanted to make sure that Jacob realised that she had only just become aware of what had transpired between Isaac and Esau and that she could not be accused of having allowed too much time to elapse to take countermeasures. Jacob had enough time to carry out his mother's instructions. אחיך לאמר, "your brother, saying." She did not mean that Esau was a true brother of Jacob in character; she used the word "your brother" to indicate that just as Isaac plotted with Esau, she now did the same thing with Jacob. She also used the word לאמר to protect herself since she had not quoted Isaac's words to Jacob verbatim. She meant that she had told Jacob the gist of Isaac's words to Esau.
Targum Yonatan
And Rivekah spake to Jakob her son, saying, Behold, this night those on high praise the Lord of the world, and the treasures of the dew are opened in it; and I have heard thy father speaking with Esau thy brother, saying,.
Bring me venison, and make me savoury food, that I may eat, and bless you before Hashem before my death.
verse value 1935 — יְהֹוָ֖ה = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 50 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֖ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "to·me" (לִּ֥י, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·I·may·bless·you" (וַאֲבָרֶכְכָ֛ה, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 170: before, before. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "bring" (הָבִ֨יאָה), "and·I·may·bless·you" (וַאֲבָרֶכְכָ֛ה). The root פנים appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "bring" (root בוא, 213x in Genesis); "Hashem" (root יהוה, 165x in Genesis); "and·make·me" (root עשה, 152x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·I·may·eat', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 5 words. Full calculation: הָבִ֨יאָה [bring] (23) + לִּ֥י [to·me] (40) + צַ֛יִד [game] (104) + וַעֲשֵׂה־לִ֥י [and·make·me] (421) + מַטְעַמִּ֖ים [savory·dishes] (209) + וְאֹכֵ֑לָה [and·I·may·eat] (62) + וַאֲבָרֶכְכָ֛ה [and·I·may·bless·you] (254) + לִפְנֵ֥י [before] (170) + יְהֹוָ֖ה [Hashem] (26) + לִפְנֵ֥י [before] (170) + מוֹתִֽי [my·death] (456) = 1935.
Onkelos
Bring me game and make me dishes, that I may eat and bless you before Hashem, before my death.
Rashi
'לפני ה BEFORE THE LORD — By his permission: that He should approve of what I do.
Ramban
AND I WILL BLESS THEE BEFORE THE ETERNAL BEFORE MY DEATH. In this entire section, the expression, before the Eternal, is not mentioned except in this place. This is because his mother said to Jacob, “The blessing will be before the Eternal with the Ruach Hakodesh, and if Esau your brother be blessed with it, it will remain with his children forever, and you will have no standing before him.”
Ibn Ezra
"Before my death" — this is like "before I die."
Chizkuni
ואברככה לפני ה, “I shall give you the blessing that is approved by the Lord.” [Seeing that after Avraham’s death the Lord had conferred his power to bless on his son Yitzchok. (Compare 25,11). Ed.] Yitzchok explained that this was why he encouraged Esau now to perform deeds to be worthy of such blessings. The author refers to his commentary on Genesis 10,9, in connection with the expression: 'גבור ציד לפני ה. The last two letters in the word ואברככה are כה.
Tur HaArokh
ואברכה לפני ה', “I will bless you in the presence of G’d.” Although Yitzchok had only said: בעבור תברכך נפשי, “in order that my soul will bless you, without adding the name of the Lord, he was certain that G’d would fulfill such a blessing when pronounced by him. After all, all blessings originate with the Lord.
Rashbam
'לפני ה. “in the name of the Lord.” However, when the same expression לפני ה' occurs in 10,9 describing the prowess of Nimrod as a hunter, the meaning is that his prowess was something of global dimensions, that no other hunter could match him in this respect. Similarly, the expression לאלוקים in Jonah 3,3 describing the vastness of the city of Nineveh, refers to the unique size of that city, none other matching it throughout the world.
Now therefore, my son, heed my voice according to that which I command you.
verse value 2249
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 28 letters. Verse gematria: 2249 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "my·son" (בְנִ֖י, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·now" (וְעַתָּ֥ה, 4 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "commanding" (מְצַוָּ֥ה). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to·what" (root אשר, 313x in Genesis); "my·son" (root בן, 248x in Genesis); "listen" (root שמע, 63x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·my·voice', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְעַתָּ֥ה [and·now] (481) + בְנִ֖י [my·son] (62) + שְׁמַ֣ע [listen] (410) + בְּקֹלִ֑י [to·my·voice] (142) + לַאֲשֶׁ֥ר [to·what] (531) + אֲנִ֖י [I] (61) + מְצַוָּ֥ה [commanding] (141) + אֹתָֽךְ [you] (421) = 2249.
Onkelos
And now, my son, heed me in what I am commanding you.
Or HaChaim
ועתה בני שמע בקולי, "and now my son, listen to me and obey my instructions!" "hasten to bring me two young kids at once." שמע בקולי. "listen to my voice!" Although there is some deception involved in what I will instruct you, you still have to obey me apart from your duty to honour father and mother which is a positive commandment. Rebeccah stressed the fact that she was a prophetess and the Torah commands us to obey the prophets' instructions (Deut. 18,15). We have already explained (in connection with Genesis 16,5) that when a prophet asks you to disobey one of G'd's laws temporarily he is to be obeyed.
Go now to the flock, and fetch me from there two good kids of the goats; and I will make them savoury food for your father, such as he loves;
verse value 3011
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 59 letters. The shortest word is "from·there" (מִשָּׁ֗ם, 3 letters) and the longest is "to·the·flock" (אֶל־הַצֹּ֔אן, 6 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "to·the·flock" (אֶל־הַצֹּ֔אן), "and·fetch·me" (וְקַֽח־לִ֣י), "choice" (טֹבִ֑ים). 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "as" (root אשר, 313x in Genesis); "to·your·father" (root אב, 196x in Genesis); "from·there" (root שם, 180x in Genesis). First appearance of the root גדי ("kids·of") in Genesis. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'choice', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 6 words. Full calculation: לֶךְ־נָא֙ [go·please] (101) + אֶל־הַצֹּ֔אן [to·the·flock] (177) + וְקַֽח־לִ֣י [and·fetch·me] (154) + מִשָּׁ֗ם [from·there] (380) + שְׁנֵ֛י [two] (360) + גְּדָיֵ֥י [kids·of] (27) + עִזִּ֖ים [goats] (127) + טֹבִ֑ים [choice] (61) + וְאֶֽעֱשֶׂ֨ה [and·I·will·make] (382) + אֹתָ֧ם [them] (441) + מַטְעַמִּ֛ים [savory·dishes] (209) + לְאָבִ֖יךָ [to·your·father] (63) + כַּאֲשֶׁ֥ר [as] (521) + אָהֵֽב [likes] (8) = 3011.
Onkelos
Go now to the flock and take for me from there two fine young goats, and I will make them into dishes for your father, as he loves.
Rashi
וקח לי AND TAKE FOR ME — (The words may mean “Take that which belongs to me”) — these are mine and not the proceeds of theft. Isaac had made provision in her marriage contract that she should receive daily two kids of the goats (Genesis Rabbah 65:14). שני גדיי עזים TWO KIDS OF THE GOATS — Did then two kids of the goats form a meal for Isaac? But the explanation is: it being Passover he offered one as his Paschal sacrifice and of the other he prepared the savoury food. So is it stated in Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 32). כאשר אהב SUCH AS HE LOVETH (Genesis 27:5) — For the taste of a kid is similar to the taste of a deer.
Chizkuni
טובים, “tasty.”
Rabbeinu Bahya
שני גדיי עזים טובים, “two choice kids.” Rivkah specifically commanded Yaakov to bring her two choice kids. The question that is almost forced upon one is: “did Yitzchak consume two whole young kids every day?” According to Bereshit Rabbah 65,14 the marriage contract between Rivkah and Yitzchak made her a daily allowance of two young kids (so that she was not encroaching on her husband’s property when slaughtering these animals and selecting the most tasty parts thereof to prepare for him). Rabbi Chelbo, in the same Midrash, concentrates on the word טובים which appears superfluous seeing that Yaakov had no reason to select mediocre or undernourished kids. He says that the word is an allusion to what was going to prove “good,” i.e. beneficial for Yaakov and his descendants. Seeing that these kids would be the instrument of securing the blessings for Yaakov they would prove to be “good” for him. In addition, they would prove to be good for Yaakov’s children as they would be the principal sin-offerings offered on the Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16,5) securing forgiveness for the Jewish people, Yaakov’s descendants. “They are good for you,” i.e. Yaakov’s ascendancy over Esau who is described as an איש שעיר, “a demonic individual,” was due to the scapegoats one of which was offered to the azzazel, the spiritual equivalent of Satan-Esau by the Jewish people as something like a bribe. (compare Bereshit Rabbah 14 that the words ונשא השעיר עליו את כל-עונותם, “he (the scapegoat) will carry (figuratively speaking) upon himself all their sins,” refer to the sins committed when no warning had been received by the perpetrators. The sinners were תם, not rebellious. Seeing that Yaakov has been described as איש תם, it was appropriate that such an animal should serve as the instrument of atonement for his descendants. The delicacies which Rivkah instructed her son Yaakov to enable her to prepare for Yitzchak were not of the type of free-roaming beasts to be found in the field, but they were domesticated animals. This is why she emphasised: “please go to the flocks.” Yaakov, after all, was not a hunter; he was a homebody, a dweller of tents who despised the sword as an instrument to gain one’s livelihood. The Israelites never offered sacrifices from categories of animals which are free-roaming, not domesticated. The prophet Jeremiah characterised the distinction between the Jewish people and the Gentiles when he said (Jeremiah 10,16) “not like these is the portion of Yaakov.” The word חלק means either “portion,” or it can mean “smooth” (with different vowels). The prophet referred to Yaakov as being a smooth-skinned man (according to 27,11). As a result of these considerations, Yaakov’s descendants were never told to offer sacrifices from the free-roaming beasts but only from the domesticated beasts as the Torah said (Leviticus 1,2) אדם כי יקריב מכם קרבן לה' מן הבהמה, “anyone of you who wishes to offer a sacrifice to G’d, from the domesticated beasts, etc.”
and you shall bring it to your father, that he may eat, so that he may bless you before his death."
verse value 2183
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 34 letters. The shortest word is "which" (אֲשֶׁ֥ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·bring" (וְהֵבֵאתָ֥, 5 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "may·bless·you" (יְבָרֶכְךָ֖). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "which" (root אשר, 313x in Genesis); "and·bring" (root בוא, 213x in Genesis); "to·your·father" (root אב, 196x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·he·may·eat', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 5 words. Full calculation: וְהֵבֵאתָ֥ [and·bring] (414) + לְאָבִ֖יךָ [to·your·father] (63) + וְאָכָ֑ל [and·he·may·eat] (57) + בַּעֲבֻ֛ר [in·order·that] (274) + אֲשֶׁ֥ר [which] (501) + יְבָרֶכְךָ֖ [may·bless·you] (252) + לִפְנֵ֥י [before] (170) + מוֹתֽוֹ [his·death] (452) = 2183.
Onkelos
And you shall bring them to your father, and he shall eat, so that he may bless you before his death.
Chizkuni
והבאת לאביך ואוכל, “and bring it to your father so that he may eat it.” She meant that through eating and enjoying its taste he would be in the mood to bestow his blessing. It is a fact that Holy Spirit comes to rest on people only when they are in a good mood. (Shabbat folio 30)
And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother: "Behold, Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man.
verse value 2691
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 43 letters. Verse gematria: 2691 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "behold" (הֵ֣ן, 2 letters) and the longest is "to·Rebekah" (אֶל־רִבְקָ֖ה, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 311: man, man. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "to·Rebekah" (אֶל־רִבְקָ֖ה). The root איש appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "Jacob" (root יעקב, 180x in Genesis); "my·brother" (root אח, 164x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'his·mother', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 8 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֣אמֶר [and·said] (257) + יַעֲקֹ֔ב [Jacob] (182) + אֶל־רִבְקָ֖ה [to·Rebekah] (338) + אִמּ֑וֹ [his·mother] (47) + הֵ֣ן [behold] (55) + עֵשָׂ֤ו [Esau] (376) + אָחִי֙ [my·brother] (19) + אִ֣ישׁ [man] (311) + שָׂעִ֔ר [hairy] (570) + וְאָנֹכִ֖י [and·I] (87) + אִ֥ישׁ [man] (311) + חָלָֽק [smooth] (138) = 2691.
Onkelos
And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother: Behold, Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man.
Rashi
איש שער means A HAIRY MAN.
Ibn Ezra
"Hairy" — one who has much hair; the opposite is smooth. It is possible that he was so called because the smooth man — his parts are uniform.
Chizkuni
איש שעיר, according to the Jerusalem Targum, “a very virile and hairy man.”
Targum Yonatan
And because Jakob was afraid to sin, fearing lest his father might curse him, he said, Behold, Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man.
My father perhaps will feel me, and I shall seem to him as a deceiver; and I shall bring a curse upon me, and not a blessing."
verse value 3022 — אָבִ֔י = 13 (echad/ahavah)
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 50 letters. Notable word values: "my·father" (אָבִ֔י) = 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "my·father" (אָבִ֔י, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·I·shall·be" (וְהָיִ֥יתִי, 6 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "should·feel·me" (יְמֻשֵּׁ֙נִי֙), "as·a·deceiver" (כִּמְתַעְתֵּ֑עַ), "and·I·shall·bring" (וְהֵבֵאתִ֥י). 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·I·shall·be" (root היה, 313x in Genesis); "and·I·shall·bring" (root בוא, 213x in Genesis); "my·father" (root אב, 196x in Genesis). First appearance of the root משש ("should·feel·me") in Genesis. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'as·a·deceiver', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 5 words. Full calculation: אוּלַ֤י [perhaps] (47) + יְמֻשֵּׁ֙נִי֙ [should·feel·me] (410) + אָבִ֔י [my·father] (13) + וְהָיִ֥יתִי [and·I·shall·be] (441) + בְעֵינָ֖יו [in·his·eyes] (148) + כִּמְתַעְתֵּ֑עַ [as·a·deceiver] (1000) + וְהֵבֵאתִ֥י [and·I·shall·bring] (424) + עָלַ֛י [upon·me] (110) + קְלָלָ֖ה [a·curse] (165) + וְלֹ֥א [and·not] (37) + בְרָכָֽה [blessing] (227) = 3022.
Onkelos
Perhaps my father will feel me, and I will be in his eyes as one who mocks, and I will bring upon myself curses and not blessings.
Rashi
ימשני HE WILL FEEL ME — The word is of the same root as the verb in (Deuteronomy 28:29) “One groping (ממשש) at noon-day”.
Ramban
PERHAPS MY FATHER WILL FEEL ME. The reason that Isaac will feel him is not for the purpose of recognition. Instead, Jacob said, “Perhaps he will bring me near him to kiss me or to put his hand on my face in the manner of a father demonstrating affection for his son, and in feeling me he will discover that I am smooth.”Now I wonder why Jacob was not afraid of vocal recognition for all people are recognizable by their voice as our Rabbis have said, “How is a blind man permitted to live with his wife? And how are people permitted to live with their wives at nighttime? Only by vocal recognition.” Now if ordinary people have such power of recognition, what of Isaac, who was wise and expert in distinguishing between his sons? He should truly have the power of recognition by voice. Perhaps the brothers had similar voices, and therefore the Sages said that the verse, The voice is the voice of Jacob, refers not to Jacob’s voice but to his words, i.e., that he speaks gentle language and mentions the Name of Heaven. Due to the fact that the voices of the brothers were alike, it was necessary for the Sages to interpret the verse, The voice is the voice of Jacob, as referring to the kind of language Jacob used. It may be that he altered his voice in order to speak as his brother did, for there are people who know how to do this.
Ibn Ezra
"He will feel me" — this is like "will surround me" (Psalms 49:6); it belongs to the class of doubled-root verbs. "As a deceiver" — a doubled form, from the root of "wandering": like a man who leads another astray.
Sforno
ולא ברכה, if perhaps he had intended to bestow a blessing upon me also, if I deceive him, then instead of such a blessing I will receive a curse.
Chizkuni
והבאתי עלי קללה, “I will bring a curse upon myself as I am bound to lie by saying ‘I am Esau;’ if I do not lie, he will not believe me.” Furthermore, all he has to do is to touch me and he will know that I am not Esau. He will curse me for having deceived him.”
Tur HaArokh
אולי ימושני אבי, “perhaps my father will subject me to a “touch-test.” Yaakov did not worry that his father would need such a test to recognise him, but he was concerned that in the process of offering and serving him the meal, Yitzchok would unintentionally touch him, even wanting to kiss him, something which could alert him to the fact that he was not Esau. Actually, it is remarkable that Yaakov did not worry that his voce would betray him for who he was in reality. We know that in the event, Yitzchok became immediately aware that the voice speaking to him sounded like that of Yaakov (Genesis 27,22). It is possible that the brothers, being twins, had very similar sounding voices, and that is why Yaakov was not worried about being recognised by his voice. When the Torah wrote: “the voice sounds like the voice of Yaakov,” this is not a reference to the tone of voice, etc., but to the manner of Yaakov’s speech, which was so totally different from the mode of speech used by his brother. It is also possible that he had tried to fake his voice to sound like that of his brother. The art of impersonating other people’s voices is a well known phenomenon.
And his mother said to him: "Upon me be your curse, my son; only heed my voice, and go fetch me them."
verse value 2259 — לוֹ֙ = 36 (double-Chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 37 letters. Notable word values: "to·him" (לוֹ֙) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "to·him" (לוֹ֙, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·she·said" (וַתֹּ֤אמֶר, 5 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "your·curse" (קִלְלָתְךָ֖). 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·she·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "my·son" (root בן, 248x in Genesis); "fetch·for·me" (root לקח, 142x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'my·son', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 5 words. Full calculation: וַתֹּ֤אמֶר [and·she·said] (647) + לוֹ֙ [to·him] (36) + אִמּ֔וֹ [his·mother] (47) + עָלַ֥י [upon·me] (110) + קִלְלָתְךָ֖ [your·curse] (580) + בְּנִ֑י [my·son] (62) + אַ֛ךְ [only] (21) + שְׁמַ֥ע [hear] (410) + בְּקֹלִ֖י [to·my·voice] (142) + וְלֵ֥ךְ [and·go] (56) + קַֽח־לִֽי [fetch·for·me] (148) = 2259.
Onkelos
And his mother said to him: It has been told to me in prophecy that curses will not come upon you, my son; only heed me and go, take for me.
Ibn Ezra
"Upon me be your curse" — do not fear that he will curse you; and if he does curse, let his curse be upon me and not upon you. This is the manner of women's speech. The Gaon [Saadia] explained it as: it is upon me to remove your curse.
Sforno
עלי קללתך, I will take your curse in your place should you become the subject of a curse. We find in Sanhedrin 48, that Solomon is reported to have accepted for himself any curse which would devolve upon him for carrying out his father’s dying wish not to let Yoav die a peaceful death and David’s curses against Yoav. In the event, Solomon or his descendants were afflicted with these curses. [I presume the author just wished to authenticate that Rivkah’s statement was not spurious, and that one can substitute oneself for the target of curses pronounced on someone else. Ed.]
Or HaChaim
עלי קללתך בני, "may your curse be on me my son!" The reason that she added the word "my son," although she had been talking to him all the time was that she referred only to what Jacob had said last. We have a rule in Makkot 11 that the curse of a Torah scholar, even if uttered only conditionally, is effective. Had Rebeccah not added the word "my son," we would have thought that she referred to Jacob's being cursed by Isaac when he found out he had been tricked. In order to understand Rebeccah's special love for Jacob the following considerations may help. Rebeccah generally was looked upon askance because she had given birth to the wicked Esau. We find in nature that parts of a whole display an affinity for other parts of the same whole. Rebeccah testified that this rule did not apply in her case, that her deeds proved that she had no affinity for Esau. Her womb was indeed blessed, and the good part (Jacob) represented that which was normal, hence her love for Jacob. The Torah teaches us this by repeatedly describing Jacob as Rebeccah's son even in instances where these additional words are otherwise quite superfluous (compare verses 6,8,11,13,15,17,42). All of this is to underline that Jacob's righteousness was a direct outgrowth of his righteous mother. The fact that she had given birth also to an Esau was not a reflection on his mother's personality. Kabbalists, of course, are aware that there are mystical dimensions which account for the emergence of Esau as a potentially wicked person, whereas it was Rebeccah's union with Isaac which was the cause of any pollutant disturbing her holiness. Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai is quoted in the Zohar (Sullam edition Chayey Sarah 251) as explaining that the reason the Torah describes Isaac as loving his wife Rebeccah, something that is natural and does not require special mention, is that the love of the male for the female is rooted in the "left" side of the emanations. in Isaac's case it was the fire of the גבורה, his predominant characteristic which stems from the "left side" of the emanations. If the holiness of the two was tainted in any way this was due more to Isaac than to Rebeccah. Jacob's physical perfection is compared to that of Adam's before the sin, as we know from Baba Metzia 84. He did not therefore inherit any pollutant from his mother. Students of the Kabbalah will understand all this. [I have elaborated on the author's text to make it more intelligible for the non-kabbalist. Ed.] When we wrote earlier (25,20) that the reason that Esau was wicked was because Rebeccah had a wicked brother called Laban, this did not influence Rebeccah's character.
Chizkuni
עלי קללתך בני, “neither you nor I need worry as I am certain that what G-d has told me before the two of you have been born will come true. So I can safely say that I will absorb any curse you might be cursed with.”A different exegesis: Rivkah meant that even if Yitzchok would subject Yaakov to a “touchtest” in order to assure himself that he was Esau, he would never curse him, as he would realise that you would never have tried to deceive him if I had not put you up to this charade. If he would curse anyone, he would curse me.”A third possible exegesis of this line: the curse would backfire on me; why would he curse someone who had brought him such tasty food? Our author uses the line על עמך ברכתך, “Your blessing be upon Your people” in Psalms 3,9 as a comparison. [The curse in that context would befall the people mentioned in the previous verse. Ed.] You would only become cursed if you refused to carry out what I command you. Listen to me and go and get me the goats.”
Tur HaArokh
ותאמר לו אמו עלי קללתך בני, “His mother said to him: “any curse will devolve upon me, my son.” According to Onkelos, Rivkah said what she said in view of the prophecy which had been revealed to her during her pregnancy that her older son would serve the younger one as his master. Another approach suggests that she meant: “he will not curse you but he will curse him or her who made you deceive him.” (in other words, “he will curse me”.) Yet another commentary offered is that the word קללה, loosely translated as “curse,” actually implies that the victimised party will be deprived of something. Rivkah assured Yaakov that if he were to be deprived of his inheritance as a result of this charade, she could make it up to him out of her marriage settlement.
And Rebekah took the choicest garments of Esau her elder son, which were with her in the house, and put them upon Jacob her younger son.
verse value 5036
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 57 letters. The shortest word is "Esau" (עֵשָׂ֜ו, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·garments·of" (אֶת־בִּגְדֵ֨י, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 57: her·son, her·son. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "the·garments·of" (אֶת־בִּגְדֵ֨י), "the·choicest" (הַחֲמֻדֹ֔ת). The root בן appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "which" (root אשר, 313x in Genesis); "her·son" (root בן, 248x in Genesis); "Jacob" (root יעקב, 180x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·the·house', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַתִּקַּ֣ח [and·took] (514) + רִ֠בְקָ֠ה [Rebekah] (307) + אֶת־בִּגְדֵ֨י [the·garments·of] (420) + עֵשָׂ֜ו [Esau] (376) + בְּנָ֤הּ [her·son] (57) + הַגָּדֹל֙ [the·elder] (42) + הַחֲמֻדֹ֔ת [the·choicest] (457) + אֲשֶׁ֥ר [which] (501) + אִתָּ֖הּ [with·her] (406) + בַּבָּ֑יִת [in·the·house] (414) + וַתַּלְבֵּ֥שׁ [and·clothed] (738) + אֶֽת־יַעֲקֹ֖ב [Jacob] (583) + בְּנָ֥הּ [her·son] (57) + הַקָּטָֽן [the·younger] (164) = 5036.
Onkelos
And Rebekah took the clean garments of Esau her elder son, which were with her in the house, and dressed Jacob her younger son in them.
Rashi
החמדות THE COSTLY GARMENTS — the clean ones, as the Targum has it, דכיתא (clean); (cf. Rashbam). Another explanation: They are called חמדות literally, coveted ones, because he had coveted them from Nimrod (who also was a hunter; cf. Genesis 10:9) (Genesis Rabbah 65:16) אשר אתה בבית WHICH WERE WITH HER IN THE HOUSE — But he had several wives and yet he stored them with his mother! But the reason for this was that he was acquainted with their practices and was suspicious of them (Genesis 10:9) (he feared that they might steal his clothes) (Genesis Rabbah 65:16).
Ramban
ESAU HER ELDER SON, JACOB HER YOUNGER SON. The reason why Scripture mentions this is to accentuate the unusual action of the righteous one, for parents customarily give recognition to the firstborn in blessing, honor, and gift, but she, knowing of the righteousness of the younger and the wickedness of the elder, went to all this trouble to transfer the blessing and the honor from the elder to the younger. Similarly, it says further on, And the words of Esau her elder son were told to Rebekah, and she sent and called Jacob her younger son.
Or HaChaim
ותלבש את יעקב בנה הקטן, she dressed Jacob her younger son. This means she adapted these clothes to fit her smaller son though they were tailored to fit the measurements of her bigger son Esau.
Chizkuni
החמודות, “the valuable ones, the new ones with which Esau wants to impress the people with whom he deals. They are the ones which he wears when he performs tasks his father asks him to perform.” And that is why Yitzchok could smell them, for the smell of new clothes is noticeable. A different exegesis: החמודות, the one he wears always when he goes out hunting to kill venison. Your father is familiar with the smell of these garments and will not question the identity of the wearer of them. [This makes little sense to me, as Esau had already left on his errand to hunt game to feed his father. He would not likely have possessed two such sets of garments. Ed.]
Tur HaArokh
את בגדי עשו בנו הגדול, ”the garments of her older son Esau.” The use by the Torah of the terms בנו הגדול and בנו הקטן, instead of the customary בנו הבכור and בנו הצעיר, for the older son (the firstborn) or the younger son, is intended to underline that although, usually, honour is accorded to the firstborn, etc., Rivkah being aware that her firstborn son had forfeited any claim to such honour, thought of her two children in terms of the physically older one and the physically younger one, i.e. הגדול והקטון, respectively. She was now concerned with arranging for the transfer of the undeserved privileges of birth from her undeserving older son to her deserving younger son.
And she put the skins of the kids of the goats upon his hands, and upon the smooth of his neck.
verse value 2675
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 40 letters. The shortest word is "and·on" (וְעַ֖ל, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·the·skins·of" (וְאֵ֗ת עֹרֹת֙, 6 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "and·the·skins·of" (וְאֵ֗ת עֹרֹת֙), "she·clothed" (הִלְבִּ֖ישָׁה), "upon·his·hands" (עַל־יָדָ֑יו). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "upon·his·hands" (root יד, 88x in Genesis). First appearance of the root צואר ("his·neck") in Genesis. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'upon·his·hands', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 3 words. Full calculation: וְאֵ֗ת עֹרֹת֙ [and·the·skins·of] (1077) + גְּדָיֵ֣י [the·kids·of] (27) + הָֽעִזִּ֔ים [the·goats] (132) + הִלְבִּ֖ישָׁה [she·clothed] (352) + עַל־יָדָ֑יו [upon·his·hands] (130) + וְעַ֖ל [and·on] (106) + חֶלְקַ֥ת [the·smooth·part·of] (538) + צַוָּארָֽיו [his·neck] (313) = 2675.
Onkelos
And the skins of the young goats she put over his hands and over the smooth part of his neck.
Chizkuni
.הלבישה על ידיו, “she placed on his hands and arms.” The reason why she took goats’ skins was that these hairs are harder than those of sheep and more closely resemble human hair.
And she gave the savoury food and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob.
verse value 3492
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 37 letters. Verse gematria: 3492 is divisible by 18, the value of chai ('life'). The shortest word is "which" (אֲשֶׁ֣ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·savory·dishes" (אֶת־הַמַּטְעַמִּ֛ים, 9 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "the·savory·dishes" (אֶת־הַמַּטְעַמִּ֛ים), "and·the·bread" (וְאֶת־הַלֶּ֖חֶם), "she·had·prepared" (עָשָׂ֑תָה). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "which" (root אשר, 313x in Genesis); "her·son" (root בן, 248x in Genesis); "Jacob" (root יעקב, 180x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'she·had·prepared', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 3 words. Full calculation: וַתִּתֵּ֧ן [and·gave] (856) + אֶת־הַמַּטְעַמִּ֛ים [the·savory·dishes] (615) + וְאֶת־הַלֶּ֖חֶם [and·the·bread] (490) + אֲשֶׁ֣ר [which] (501) + עָשָׂ֑תָה [she·had·prepared] (775) + בְּיַ֖ד [in·the·hand·of] (16) + יַעֲקֹ֥ב [Jacob] (182) + בְּנָֽהּ [her·son] (57) = 3492.
Onkelos
And she gave the dishes and the bread which she had made into the hand of Jacob her son.
And he came to his father, and said: "My father"; and he said: "Here am I; who are you, my son?"
verse value 1229 — אָבִ֑י = 13 (echad/ahavah)
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 35 letters. Notable word values: "my·father" (אָבִ֑י) = 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "who" (מִ֥י, 2 letters) and the longest is "to·his·father" (אֶל־אָבִ֖יו, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 257: and·said, and·said. The root אב appears 2 times in this verse. 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "my·son" (root בן, 248x in Genesis); "and·came" (root בוא, 213x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'my·father', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 5 words. Full calculation: וַיָּבֹ֥א [and·came] (19) + אֶל־אָבִ֖יו [to·his·father] (50) + וַיֹּ֣אמֶר [and·said] (257) + אָבִ֑י [my·father] (13) + וַיֹּ֣אמֶר [and·said] (257) + הִנֶּ֔נִּי [here·I·am] (115) + מִ֥י [who] (50) + אַתָּ֖ה [you] (406) + בְּנִֽי [my·son] (62) = 1229.
Onkelos
And he came to his father and said: Father. And he said: Here I am. Who are you, my son?
And Jacob said to his father: "I am Esau your first-born; I have done according as you bade me. Arise, I pray you, sit and eat of my venison, that your soul may bless me."
verse value 5278
Insights
Verse structure: 17 words, 75 letters. Verse gematria: 5278 is divisible by 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "Esau" (עֵשָׂ֣ו, 3 letters) and the longest is "to·his·father" (אֶל־אָבִ֗יו, 6 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "arise·please" (קֽוּם־נָ֣א), "of·my·game" (מִצֵּידִ֔י). 16 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "as" (root אשר, 313x in Genesis); "to·me" (root אל, 242x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·me', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 7 words.
Onkelos
And Jacob said to his father: I am Esau your firstborn; I have done as you spoke with me. Arise now, sit up and eat of my game, so that your soul may bless me.
Rashi
אנכי עשו בכרך I AM ESAU THY FIRST-BORN — I am he that brings food to you, and Esau is your first-born. עשיתי I HAVE DONE many things at different times כאשר דברת אלי ACCORDING AS THOU SPAKEST UNTO ME שבה SIT — The word means to sit at the table and therefore it is translated in the Targum by אסתחר (from סחר to “go round” corresponding to the Hebrew סבב from which the term מֵסֵב to recline at, to sit round the table at a meal is derived).
Ibn Ezra
Some say: Far be it that the prophet should lie; rather, this is what he meant: "I am" — that is, whoever I am — "Esau your firstborn." And others said that he pronounced "I am" softly, and raised his voice at the words "Esau your firstborn." But these are words of mere conjecture. For the prophets are divided into two classes: the first class is the messenger [sent] with commandments; the second class is the prophets of the future. If they need to say something that is not entirely proper, it causes no harm — but the messenger [of commandments] cannot be permitted to lie at all. Moreover, consider David, about whom it is written "man of God" (Nehemiah 12:24), and who said "the spirit of Hashem spoke through me" (2 Samuel 23:2) — yet he confused his words when speaking with Ahimelech and said "the vessels of the young men are holy" (1 Samuel 21:6), out of the need of the hour. Similarly, Elisha said to Hazael: "Go, say to him: you shall surely live" (2 Kings 8:10), even though the meaning is, you shall live from this illness, yet Hashem showed me that [the king] would be killed. Likewise, Micaiah uttered a vain prayer — "Go up and succeed" (1 Kings 22:15) — as a rebuke. And so Daniel said: "O that the dream were for your enemies" (Daniel 4:16) — which, as for standing against Hashem, was said in the manner of homiletical interpretation. And so Abraham said: "And indeed she is also" (Genesis 20:12), and "we will worship and return" (Genesis 22:5). — "And eat of my game" — this is like "Remember me, O my God, for good" (Nehemiah 5:19); and the aleph is part of the root.
Or HaChaim
אנכי עשו בכרך. "I am Esau your firstborn." Jacob meant that seeing he had purchased the birthright from Esau, he was now the legal Esau. He added: עשיתי כאשר דברת אלי, "I have done in accordance with what you have said to me," meaning that the reason you told Esau to hunt game, etc., was because you assumed that he was your firstborn.
Chizkuni
אנכי, עשו בכור, “it is I; Esau is your firstborn.” There are some commentators who claim that Yaakov considered the situation as so critical for his future that he permitted himself the kind of lie his grandfather Avraham had used when he referred to his wife by saying that she was his sister. (Ibn Ezra) He had also used a similarly false statement before the binding of Yitzchok, when he told the accompanying lads that both he and Yitzchok would return to them from Mount Moriah, something which at that time was a lie, as he expected to slaughter Yitzchok. (Genesis 20,13) David in Samuel I 21,3 told the High Priest in the town of Nof that he was on a mission from his king, which was not true, as he was in the process of fleeing from him. The prophet Michayu told the king of Israel, Achav, in Kings I 22,15 who had asked him if his planned war to recapture Yavesh Gilad would be successful. He wished the king success, making it appear that his answer was in the affirmative, though he knew that Achav would not return alive from that battle, but would be killed. In Kings II 8,10 the prophet Elisha sent a message to King Ben Haddad of Aram who was ill that he would recover, when he knew full well that this was not so. He had told the messenger whom the king had sent to him the truth, however. An alternate exegesis of Yaakov’s words: “I am taking the place of Esau your firstborn.” He felt entitled to use this formulation as Esau had already sold him the birthright (48 years earlier). בעבור תברכני נפשך, “in order that your soul will bless me.” The question that presents itself here is if Yaakov only fed his father for the sake of receiving a reward? Yaakov spoke words that would help convince his father that he was Esau, as Yitzchok had said to Esau when he had not been present: בעבור תברכך נפשי, “so that my soul will bless you.” (verse 4)
Rabbeinu Bahya
אנכי עשו בכורך, “it is I Esau, your firstborn.” When Yitzchak asked again: אתה זה בני עשו, “are you this son of mine Esau?” and Yaakov answers אני, “that is me,” we also have to understand the words in the same manner as here. There is no question that Yaakov spoke the truth on every occasion. This is what the prophet (Michah 7,20) emphasized when he said תתן אמת ליעקב, “You gave truth to Yaakov.” A further example of Yaakov speaking the truth when it does not appear this way at first glance, is when he said: “of all that You will give me, I will give a tenth to You as a tithe” (Genesis 28,22). He had twelve sons. When you add Ephrayim and Menashe who were Joseph’s sons of whom Yaakov said: “they shall be for me just like Reuven and Shimon,” (Genesis 48,5) this makes a total of fourteen. When you exclude from these the four firstborns (1 from each of his wives) that left ten sons who were Yaakov’s as opposed to being G’d’s. We have a rule that קדש, something already holy from birth or inception, is not subject to tithing. As a result of all this one of the ten sons had to become G’d’s, i.e. reserved for sacred rather than mundane tasks. This tribe was Levi. You observe that Yaakov’s words turned out to be true (though not recognised as true at the time they were uttered). Something similar is evident in our verse. When Yaakov said אנכי עשו, בכורך, he referred to the fact that he had acquired the birthright from Esau; he meant: “I am the one who replaces your firstborn Esau.” He knew that the only reason his father wanted to bestow the blessing on Esau was that Esau was the firstborn. He therefore hinted to his father Yitzchak that Esau had long ago ceased to be the firstborn (48 years ago) when he had sold his birthright to him. Yaakov was therefore entitled to receive the blessing his father wanted to bestow at this time. He considered himself Esau’s representative in the matter, and we know that legally speaking anyone who is the representative of the principal may act on behalf of that principal. If we needed proof of this, the best proof is that angels who are acting on behalf of G’d are accorded G’d’s name even, such as the angel in Exodus 3,1 who referred to himself as אני ה', “I am the Lord.” There are numerous such examples. One of the most pronounced such examples is found in Genesis 31,13 where the angel says to Yaakov: “I am the G’d of Beit El for whom you have anointed a monument (as an altar) where you have vowed to me, etc.” Clearly, the angel was speaking in the name of his Sender. [Surely, he did not mean to imply that Yaakov had built an altar in honour of an angel. Ed.] When Yaakov said אנכי עשו, בכורך, this was equivalent to his saying: “I am Esau,-to the extent that I am your firstborn.” Had he merely said: “I am Esau,” without adding the words “your firstborn,” this would have been a lie. The reason he added the words “your firstborn” was to draw attention to the fact that the blessing about to be dispensed was meant for the firstborn. When in response to Yitzchak’s question: אתה זה בני עשו, “are you indeed my son Esau, meaning “the one I am supposed to bless,” Yaakov answered: אני, this means: “I am the one.” Had he added the word Esau, he would have lied. By saying אני he merely meant that he was the one entitled to the blessing. As to Yaakov saying immediately afterwards עשיתי כאשר דברת אלי, “I have done as you instructed me,” how could this be truthful seeing that Yitzchak had not instructed him to do anything? We need to understand the word אלי as not meaning “to me,” but as “for my benefit.” Had Yitzchak not instructed Esau to bring him venison, Rivkah would not have overheard this and would not have ordered Yaakov to obtain the blessing (albeit by subterfuge). As to Yaakov’s asking his father: (verse 19) ואכלה מצידי, “in order to eat from my venison,” seeing he had not been hunting at all, how do we explain this without making a liar out of Yaakov? The word מצידי, means “from my food, i.e. from the food I have prepared for you.” We have a parallel example in Scripture of the word ציד meaning simply “food,” in Joshua 9,14 (where the Gibeonites tricking the Israelites are described) Samuel reports ויקחו האנשים מצידם, “the men (the leaders of the Israelites) took from their (the Gibeonites’) food supply,” (in order to check if indeed these people had come from afar) etc. קום נא שבה, “rise up please and sit.” Esau by contrast ordered his father to rise by saying: “may my father rise” (verse 32). He did not ask him to be seated. Bereshit Rabbah 65,18, addressing this difference between how the two sons spoke to their father, writes as follows: “seeing that Yaakov had addressed his father with sensitivity and respect G’d returned the compliment in a similar manner when Moses, Yaakov’s descendant used similar language when addressing G’d in Numbers 10,35 and 10,36 with the words קומה ה’ ויפוצו אויביך... שובה ה’ רבבות אלפי ישראל, “Arise Hashem and let Your foes be scattered... Reside tranquilly, Hashem, among the myriad thousands of Israel.” Esau, on the other hand, who had spoken in a gross and haughty manner to his father will be paid back (to his descendants) as we know from Psalms 68,2 יקום אלוקים יפוצו אויביו, “when Elokim arises, His enemies scatter.” [The meaning of this strange sounding comparison seems to be that whereas when G’d deals with the descendants of Esau He employs the attribute of Justice, when He does so at the behest of the Jewish people there will not be a negative fallout for those who implored Him to take vengeance on His enemies, seeing not only the expression קומה is used by Moses, but he referred only to the attribute of Mercy, Hashem, being involved. Ed.]
And Isaac said to his son: "How is it that you have found it so quickly, my son?" And he said: "Because Hashem your God sent me good speed."
verse value 2338 — יְהֹוָ֥ה = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 53 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֥ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "because" (כִּ֥י, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·said" (וַיֹּ֤אמֶר, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 257: and·said, and·said. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "to·his·son" (אֶל־בְּנ֔וֹ), "what·is·this" (מַה־זֶּ֛ה), "you·hastened" (מִהַ֥רְתָּ). The root אמר appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "your·God" (root אלה, 301x in Genesis); "to·his·son" (root בן, 248x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'my·son', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 6 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֤אמֶר [and·said] (257) + יִצְחָק֙ [Isaac] (208) + אֶל־בְּנ֔וֹ [to·his·son] (89) + מַה־זֶּ֛ה [what·is·this] (57) + מִהַ֥רְתָּ [you·hastened] (645) + לִמְצֹ֖א [to·find] (161) + בְּנִ֑י [my·son] (62) + וַיֹּ֕אמֶר [and·said] (257) + כִּ֥י [because] (30) + הִקְרָ֛ה [granted·fortune] (310) + יְהֹוָ֥ה [Hashem] (26) + אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ [your·God] (66) + לְפָנָֽי [before·me] (170) = 2338.
Onkelos
And Isaac said to his son: How is it that you found it so quickly, my son? And he said: Because Hashem your God arranged it before me.
Daat Zkenim
כי הקרה ה' אלוקיך לפני, “because the Lord your G–d has so arranged it for my benefit on this day.” Esau used the same phraseology that Eliezer had used when on his way to find a wife for Yitzchok (Genesis 24,12) The ram which was entangled by its horns in Genesis 22,3 was also something that G–d had made happen just for that occasion, so that Avraham would not feel that he had come all the way without G–d accepting an offering from him. The root קרה occurs only in connection with things which occurred without visible preparation for use at a certain moment. (B’reshit Rabbah, 65,19) According to the Midrash there, the moment the person before him used the tetragram when referring to G–d, Yitzchok knew that that person could not be Esau.
And Isaac said to Jacob: "Come near, I pray you, that I may feel you, my son, whether you be my very son Esau or not."
verse value 2399
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 44 letters. The shortest word is "this" (זֶ֛ה, 2 letters) and the longest is "to·Jacob" (אֶֽל־יַעֲקֹ֔ב, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 62: my·son, my·son. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "that·I·may·feel·you" (וַאֲמֻֽשְׁךָ֖), "whether·you" (הַֽאַתָּ֥ה). The root בן appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "my·son" (root בן, 248x in Genesis); "to·Jacob" (root יעקב, 180x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'my·son', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 5 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֤אמֶר [and·said] (257) + יִצְחָק֙ [Isaac] (208) + אֶֽל־יַעֲקֹ֔ב [to·Jacob] (213) + גְּשָׁה־נָּ֥א [come·close·please] (359) + וַאֲמֻֽשְׁךָ֖ [that·I·may·feel·you] (367) + בְּנִ֑י [my·son] (62) + הַֽאַתָּ֥ה [whether·you] (411) + זֶ֛ה [this] (12) + בְּנִ֥י [my·son] (62) + עֵשָׂ֖ו [Esau] (376) + אִם־לֹֽא [if·not] (72) = 2399.
Onkelos
And Isaac said to Jacob: Draw near now, that I may feel you, my son — whether you are indeed my son Esau or not.
Rashi
גשה נא ואמשך STEP NEAR, I PRAY THEE, THAT I MAY FEEL THEE — Isaac said to himself, “It is not Esau’s way to mention the name of God so readily, and this one says, “Because the Lord thy God caused it thus to happen to me! קול יעקב (Genesis Rabbah 65:19).
Ramban
COME NEAR, I PRAY THEE, THAT I MAY FEEL THEE. Rashi comments: “Isaac said to himself, ‘It is not Esau’s way to have the Name of Heaven so readily in his mouth.’” This interpretation is found in Bereshith Rabbah. Due to the fact that the voices of the brothers were alike, it was necessary for the Sages to interpret the verse, The voice is the voice of Jacob, as referring to the kind of language Jacob used. But I wonder about this for Esau was not wicked in his father’s eyes! In the eyes of his father, this was considered a manifestation of his fear of Heaven. In line with the simple meaning of Scripture, this was because of vocal recognition.
Ibn Ezra
"And I will feel you" — the shin is vocalized lightly [with a reduced vowel], to ease pronunciation.
And Jacob went near to Isaac his father; and he felt him, and said: "The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau."
verse value 2311
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 51 letters. The shortest word is "the·voice" (הַקֹּל֙, 3 letters) and the longest is "to·Isaac" (אֶל־יִצְחָ֥ק, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 182: Jacob, Jacob. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "and·felt·him" (וַיְמֻשֵּׁ֑הוּ), "the·voice" (הַקֹּל֙), "and·the·hands" (וְהַיָּדַ֖יִם). The root יעקב appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "his·father" (root אב, 196x in Genesis); "Jacob" (root יעקב, 180x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·felt·him', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 7 words. Full calculation: וַיִּגַּ֧שׁ [and·approached] (319) + יַעֲקֹ֛ב [Jacob] (182) + אֶל־יִצְחָ֥ק [to·Isaac] (239) + אָבִ֖יו [his·father] (19) + וַיְמֻשֵּׁ֑הוּ [and·felt·him] (367) + וַיֹּ֗אמֶר [and·said] (257) + הַקֹּל֙ [the·voice] (135) + ק֣וֹל [voice] (136) + יַעֲקֹ֔ב [Jacob] (182) + וְהַיָּדַ֖יִם [and·the·hands] (75) + יְדֵ֥י [the·hands·of] (24) + עֵשָֽׂו [Esau] (376) = 2311.
Onkelos
And Jacob drew near to Isaac his father, and he felt him and said: The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau.
Rashi
THE VOICE OF JACOB, because he speaks in an entreating strain —“Arise I pray thee.” Esau, however, spoke in a harsh strain (v. 31) “Let my father arise” (Midrash Tanchuma, Toldot 11).
Sforno
והידים ידי עשו. There can be no question that the skins had been prepared in such a fashion that the hair on them were just like the hair on human skin, for in its natural state the hair on goatskin is considerably different from that on a human skin. What the Torah testifies to then is that Yaakov’s hands now were just as hairy as the hands of Esau. It is quite possible that not only Yitzchok’s eyesight had deteriorated to the point where it did not serve him to identify objects with any degree of certainty, but that also his sense of touch had become weakened as a source of identifying objects he touched. Samuel II 19,36-37 would support this where Barzilai lists a number of his faculties which suffered weakness as a result of old age.
Chizkuni
.הקול קול יעקב, “the voice is distinctly the voice of Yaakov;” Yitzchok was not willing to base his judgment on the voice alone, as people are apt to disguise their voices on many occasions, both voluntarily and involuntarily. However he did not let this disturb him as the evidence of Yaakov’s arms and hands which were hairy were a much better indication that Esau indeed was standing in front of him. This was why he proceeded to give him a blessing that he had intended to give Esau.
Rabbeinu Bahya
הקול קול יעקב, “the voice is the voice of Yaakov.” We are taught in Bereshit Rabbah 65,21 that “Yaakov (the Jewish people) controls (employs as his weapon) only his voice (his weapon is prayer).” The Midrash bases this on our verse here. The Midrash continues that by the same token Esau’s control extends only over his hands (he relies only on the sword), as Yitzchak had added: “and the hands are the hands of Esau.” Similarly, we have a verse in Psalms 20,8 אלה ברכב ואלה בסוסים ואנחנו בשם אלוקינו נזכיר, “They (call) on chariots, they (call) on horses, but we call on the name of the Lord our G’d.” Moses referred to this in Numbers 20,16 when he reminded the king of Edom of the experiences of the Jewish people in Egypt. He said: “We cried out to the Lord and He heard our voice.” Rabbi Abba bar Kahane said that the most prominent Gentile philosophers such as Bileam son of Beor and Avnimus the Ardi were asked how one could overcome the power of the Jewish people. They were told to go to the synagogues and check on whether the young children were busily engaged studying Torah and praising the Lord. If so, they were told, there was no chance in the world to overcome these people, as their principal weapon was their voice appealing to G’d to come to their support.
Kli Yakar
The voice is the voice of Jacob, and the hands are the hands of Esau. He [Isaac] could not say “the voice OF Jacob and the hands OF Esau,” because then it would have implied that he judged definitively from the voice that this was certainly Jacob, and from the hands that this was certainly Esau — and this would be impossible, for if he is Jacob he cannot be Esau, and if he is Esau he cannot be Jacob. Rather, the explanation of the matter is thus: he was saying that the voice resembles the voice of Jacob, and perhaps this person is disguising his voice, and in truth it is Esau, who is disguising himself by speaking in pleading tones to show that he is worthy of receiving the blessings. Or [alternatively], the hands resemble the hands of Esau but it is Jacob, who is disguising himself by making his hands hairy so that I [Isaac] would think this is Esau. And regarding why it says AND the hands with a vav [conjunction], this is similar to the phrase and [one who] strikes his father and mother where the meaning is “or his mother” — similarly here, he is saying “or the hands resemble the hands of Esau.” And if you want to say that the vav [Hebrew letter] in vehayadayim [and the hands] is a conjunctive vav, we can say that Isaac thought perhaps some stranger was disguising himself in both aspects — in voice and hands. But ultimately, Isaac reasoned that the hands were more convincing than the voice, because it is more plausible to believe that Esau was pretending to speak in a pleading tone than to believe that Jacob made his hands hairy or that some stranger did so. For how could Jacob, and certainly how could any other person, make their hands hairy to such a degree that they would be exactly like Esau’s hands, similar to them in every way? This is what is meant by and he did not recognize him because his hands were like the hands of Esau his brother, hairy — similar to them in every aspect. And who could possibly replicate this without making some error in the likeness? For were Esau’s hands in his possession to take their exact form from them? This would be impossible. Our Sages interpreted from this verse (Bereishit Rabbah 65:20) that as long as Jacob’s voice is heard [literally: chirping], the hands of Esau have no power over him. Although the simple meaning suggests that Isaac said this thinking it was Esau, and furthermore, what does this have to do with this blessing? Nevertheless, this is its explanation: Isaac’s intention was to bless Esau with the blessing be a master to your brothers — meaning over Jacob — that Esau’s hands would have power over him. However, he attached a condition to this, saying this would only be if Jacob is not using his voice in synagogues and study halls, but not when his voice is heard, because the voice repels the hands. He hinted at this by mentioning the voice before the hands, for one could ask: didn’t Isaac rely more on the hands than on the voice? If so, he should have mentioned the hands first, since we find everywhere that what comes first pushes away what comes after, as will be explained, God willing, later in Parashat Vayakhel regarding Rashi’s explanation of why Shabbat is mentioned before the Tabernacle — to tell you that the work of the Tabernacle does not override Shabbat (see there, Exodus 35:2). Rather, surely this is why he mentioned Jacob’s voice before Esau’s hands — to tell you that the voice pushes away the hands. And which voice is this? You must say it is Jacob’s voice in the study halls. This resolves what most people ask about this aggadah, as the verse seems to suggest that both [the voice and hands] rule simultaneously, which contradicts the Midrash’s words. Many forced answers have been given to this question, but what I have written is correct and precious. On the level of allusion, [the verse] says “the [‘ha,’ being the definite article] voice” with a hei [the numerical equivalent of which is five], alluding to their voice in the houses of study where they learn the Torah that was given with five voices (Berakhot 6b). And the hands refers to the five hands of Esau, for five times the word “hand [‘yad,’ the numerical equivalent of which is 14]” equals 70, alluding to the hands of all 70 nations that rule over Israel when they [Israel] are not chirping with their voice [in Torah study]. And so they said in the Midrash (see Bereishit Rabbah 63:8), “Esau” contains the letters ayin, shav [70, in vain]: I created 70 nations in vain, and so explained the Baal HaTurim.
Tur HaArokh
הקול קול יעקב, “the voice sounds like the voice of Yaakov, etc.” Rashi writes that Yitzchok meant it was not the habit of Esau to mention the name of the Lord in his conversation, something that made Yitzchok wonder who stood before him. Nachmanides writes that it his hard to imagine that Yitzchok viewed Esau as a wicked person and yet he was about to give him the blessing of Avraham. Possibly, he thought that seeing that Esau was a man of the field, he deliberately refrained from mentioning the name of the Lord, as he might utter it in a location where it would not be appropriate to do so. In other words, Yitzchok considered the very fact that Esau did not usually mention the name of the Lord as a point in his favour. From the point of view of the plain text, we are being told that the voices of the two sons were quite different from one another, and Yitzchok could not fail to notice this.
And he discerned him not, because his hands were hairy, as his brother Esau's hands; so he blessed him.
verse value 2023
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 39 letters. The shortest word is "and·not" (וְלֹ֣א, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·blessed·him" (וַֽיְבָרְכֵֽהוּ, 7 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "he·recognized·him" (הִכִּיר֔וֹ), "for·were" (כִּֽי־הָי֣וּ), "like·the·hands·of" (כִּידֵ֛י). The root יד appears 2 times in this verse. 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "for·were" (root היה, 313x in Genesis); "his·brother" (root אח, 164x in Genesis); "and·not" (root לא, 127x in Genesis). First appearance of the root נכר ("he·recognized·him") in Genesis. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'hairy', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 1 words. Full calculation: וְלֹ֣א [and·not] (37) + הִכִּיר֔וֹ [he·recognized·him] (241) + כִּֽי־הָי֣וּ [for·were] (51) + יָדָ֗יו [his·hands] (30) + כִּידֵ֛י [like·the·hands·of] (44) + עֵשָׂ֥ו [Esau] (376) + אָחִ֖יו [his·brother] (25) + שְׂעִרֹ֑ת [hairy] (970) + וַֽיְבָרְכֵֽהוּ [and·blessed·him] (249) = 2023.
Onkelos
And he did not recognize him, for his hands were like the hands of Esau his brother, hairy; and he blessed him.
Sforno
They were hairy and he blessed him. Until he felt him he suspected he was an imposter and intended to curse him and as the Sages have taught — one who wrongly suspects his colleague is required to bless him.
Or HaChaim
ולא הכירו כי היו ידיו כידי עשו, he did not recognise him since his hands were like those of Esau. Isaac rejected the doubt created by Jacob's voice since a person can change his voice or the listener may mistake a voice for that of someone else, whereas he cannot change the hairs on his hands, a very distinctive mark of identification. ויברכהו, he blessed him. Before Isaac touched Jacob and established that he was Esau nothing had contradicted his impression that it was Jacob's voice he heard and that therefore he was faced by a swindler. Isaac had begun to think along the lines Jacob had been afraid of, i.e. that the swindler deserved to be cursed. Even though Isaac had not yet thought that far, he did begin to hate the person who he thought was trying to swindle him. The Talmud reports in Baba Metzia 84 that when the righteous are looking at someone with displeasure this brings a curse in its wake. [Rabbi Yochanan's displeaure at Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish's remarks resulted in the latter dying. Ed.] The Torah reports Isaac as blessing Jacob as a result of feeling his hands to teach us that he reversed his erstwhile intentions.
And he said: "Are you my very son Esau?" And he said: "I am."
verse value 1431
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 24 letters. The shortest word is "this" (זֶ֖ה, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·said" (וַיֹּ֕אמֶר, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 257: and·said, and·said. The root אמר appears 2 times in this verse. 5 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "my·son" (root בן, 248x in Genesis); "this" (root זה, 76x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Esau', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 2 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֕אמֶר [and·said] (257) + אַתָּ֥ה [you] (406) + זֶ֖ה [this] (12) + בְּנִ֣י [my·son] (62) + עֵשָׂ֑ו [Esau] (376) + וַיֹּ֖אמֶר [and·said] (257) + אָֽנִי [I] (61) = 1431.
Onkelos
And he said: Are you indeed my son Esau? And he said: I am.
Rashi
ויאמר אני AND HE SAID I AM — He did not say, “I am Esau”, but “It is I”.
Or HaChaim
ויאמר אתה זה בני עשו He said: "you are indeed my son Esau" Isaac justified his bestowing the blessing. This verse is not a question. Jacob's reaction was a confirmation that Isaac was correct, of course. There is another meaning to the words אתה זה. Inasmuch as Isaac had thought up to that moment that the voice indicated that Jacob stood before him, he now pointed at the body of the person before him saying: "you are Esau" seeing the hands had convinced him. When he articulated the blessings he concentrated on the person opposite him without regard to that person's name. This actually made Jacob the true recipient of the blessings, even though Isaac had made mention of Esau. At the time of the actual blessing Isaac concentrated exclusively on the person in front of him.
And he said: "Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son's venison, that my soul may bless you." And he brought it near to him, and he did eat; and he brought him wine, and he drank.
verse value 3413 — ל֦וֹ = 36 (double-Chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 60 letters. Notable word values: "to·him" (ל֦וֹ) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "to·me" (לִּי֙, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·served·him" (וַיַּגֶּשׁ־לוֹ֙, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 62: and·let·me·eat, my·son. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "bring·near" (הַגִּ֤שָׁה), "and·served·him" (וַיַּגֶּשׁ־לוֹ֙). The root נגש appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "my·son" (root בן, 248x in Genesis); "brought" (root בוא, 213x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'soul', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 6 words.
Onkelos
And he said: Bring it near to me, that I may eat of my son's game, so that my soul may bless you. And he brought it near to him, and he ate; and he brought him wine, and he drank.
Ibn Ezra
"That I may eat of my son's game" — the aleph is the marker of the first-person speaker, and the quiescent nun that follows it stands in place of the root's aleph; similarly: "I will say to God my rock" (Psalms 42:10). The dagesh in the nun of "tivarcheni" ["bless me"] compensates for the missing added nun, as in "yesovevenu" (Deuteronomy 32:10); and similarly "yeshacharuneni" (Hosea 5:15; Proverbs 1:28).
Chizkuni
ויבא לו יין וישת, “he brought his father wine and Yitzchok drank it.” Wine was apt to confuse a person’s mind at times, so that he would not proceed further with worrying if this was indeed Esau or an impostor.
Tur HaArokh
ויבא לו יין וישת, “he brought him wine, and he (Yizchok) drank it.” Where did Yaakov take the wine from, seeing that his mother had only given him bread to accompany the delicacies she had prepared? According to the Midrash the angel Gavriel brought the wine whose origin was in Gan Eden to Yaakov. Presumably, the words of the Midrash were inspired by the fact that this is the only time in Scripture that the drinking of wine is described as having only positive results. When wine is mentioned as a gift by Malki Tzedek to Avraham, it was a subsidiary to the bread. (Genesis 14,18)
And his father Isaac said to him: "Come near now, and kiss me, my son."
verse value 1403
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 31 letters. The shortest word is "my·son" (בְּנִֽי, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·kiss·me" (וּשְׁקָה־לִּ֖י, 6 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "and·kiss·me" (וּשְׁקָה־לִּ֖י). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "my·son" (root בן, 248x in Genesis); "to·him" (root אל, 242x in Genesis). First appearance of the root נשק ("and·kiss·me") in Genesis. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'his·father', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 3 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֥אמֶר [and·said] (257) + אֵלָ֖יו [to·him] (47) + יִצְחָ֣ק [Isaac] (208) + אָבִ֑יו [his·father] (19) + גְּשָׁה־נָּ֥א [come·close·please] (359) + וּשְׁקָה־לִּ֖י [and·kiss·me] (451) + בְּנִֽי [my·son] (62) = 1403.
Onkelos
And Isaac his father said to him: Draw near now and kiss me, my son.
Ibn Ezra
"A kiss" with the preposition lamed means on the hand, or on the shoulder, or on the neck; without the lamed, it means on the mouth.
Tur HaArokh
גשה נא ושקה לי בני, “come closer please and kiss me, my son.” Yitzchok was confused seeing that on the one hand, the voice of the person serving him sounded like that of Yaakov, whereas his skin felt like that of Esau. By making a third test, the fragrance of his clothing, something that could not be determined unless the person came very close to him, Yitzchok meant to decide who this person was. When he smelled the familiar fragrance of Esau’s clothes, he conferred the blessing having been convinced that Esau was in front of him.
And he came near, and kissed him. And he smelled the smell of his clothing, and blessed him, and said: See, the smell of my son Is as the smell of a field which Hashem has blessed.
verse value 3933 — יְהֹוָֽה = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 63 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָֽה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "see" (רְאֵה֙, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·blessed·him" (וַֽיְבָרְכֵ֑הוּ, 7 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "his·garments" (בְּגָדָ֖יו), "scent" (רֵ֣יחַ), "like·the·scent·of" (כְּרֵ֣יחַ). The root ריח appears 3 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "which" (root אשר, 313x in Genesis); "my·son" (root בן, 248x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·blessed·him', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 9 words.
Onkelos
And he drew near and kissed him. And he smelled the scent of his garments and blessed him, and said: See, the scent of my son is like the scent of a field which Hashem has blessed.
Rashi
’וירח וגו AND HE SMELLED etc.— Surely there is no more offensive smell than that of washed goat-skins! But Scripture implicitly tells us that the perfume of the Garden of Eden entered the room with him (Genesis Rabbah 65:22). כריח שדה אשר ברכו AS THE ODOUR OF A FIELD WHICH THE ETERNAL HATH BLESSED — to which God has given a pleasant perfume: it refers to a field of apple-trees. So have our Rabbis, of blessed memory, explained it (Taanit 29b).
Ibn Ezra
"And he smelled" — the resh is vocalized with a patah, on account of the guttural letter; similarly: "and his heart trembled" (Isaiah 7:2); "and it rested on all the border of Egypt" (Exodus 10:14). All of these belong to the class of verbs with two visible root letters. "See" — this is speech addressed to the heart [i.e., an inner perception]. And the pleasant fragrance in the garments: because Isaac supposed in his heart that this was Esau, come in from the field, he smelled his garments as the scent of the blossoms of trees — for it is possible that this event occurred in the first month [of the year, i.e., Nisan, when trees are in bloom].
Sforno
וירח את ריח בגדיו, in order to expand his good mood by enjoying the fragrance. Our sages have described such an experience in Berachot 42 where they said: “which is something which the soul enjoys while the body does not benefit from it? It is a pleasant fragrance.” ויברכהו, What happened here is similar to what is described in Kings II 3,15, where the prophet Elisha, who had been unable to secure a prophetic vision he had craved, after listening and enjoying music played for him, was able to secure the prophetic insight for which he had been waiting. Yitzchok, who, though desirous of blessing his son Esau, had not felt in the right frame of mind to do so successfully, now was able to proceed with full confidence. ראה ריח בני, “you my son, take note that this is the appropriate fragrance.” כריח שדה, the field does not only provide physical nourishment, its herbs, etc., but in addition it provides enjoyment for the soul which appreciates and is nurtured by the body it inhabits inhaling the fragrance of these herbs. [Yitzchok establishes the connection between ריח and רוח, “fragrance” and “spirit,” something alluded to frequently when the Torah describes G’d’s reaction to man’s sacrifices, especially the incense. Ed.] It is part of G’d’s goodness, 'אשר ברכו ה, to provide phenomena on earth which are apt to lift his spirits.
Or HaChaim
ויברכהו ויאמר ראה He blessed him saying: "re-ey." This word does not mean "see!" as usual, but is connected to the word ראוי, suitable, worthy. Isaac meant that it was fitting that the fragrance of his son should reflect the fragrance of the fields which themselves enjoyed G'd's blessings.
Chizkuni
וירח את ריח בגדיו, “he smelled the aroma of his clothes,” and as they smelled just as he expected them to smell, ויאמר: ראה בני, he said: “see, “ etc; as soon as he had smelled the aroma of the clothes Yaakov wore he no longer had any doubts and began to bestow his blessing: commencing with the words: “see the fragrance emanating from my son is like the fragrance from the field;” he even omitted to say the first word in the line that we would have expected, i.e. “see my son, this fragrance is etc;”a different exegesis: the word ראה can have a number of meanings depending on the context in which it appears. The equivalent word in other languages also has different meanings on different occasions. For instance: Deuteronomy 1,8 ראה נתתי לפניכם את הארץ, “see here I have given to you the land;” כריח שדה, “like the smell of the field;” Yitzchok smelled the field in which Esau made his livelihood reflected in the aroma exuded by the clothes he wore. אשר ברכו ה, “which the Lord has blessed;” some commentators understand these words not as applying to the field, but to Yitzchok’s son, i.e. בני; in other words: “my son whom the Lord has blessed.” The blessing he refers to is the gift of the land of Israel.
Tur HaArokh
ראה ריח בני כריח שדה, “indeed the fragrance of my son is like the fragrance of the field.” The meaning of the word ראה here is that the expression does not reflect something Yitzchok saw with his eyes, but that this is what he observed internally, when thinking about what his son Esau’s presence projected. He felt that there could not be any doubt that of his two sons it was Esau who represented the fragrance of blossoming flowers and all the blessings associated with nature when it unfolds. This is why he determined to accord him the blessing. Other commentators see in this statement about the fragrance simply a reference to the perfume with which Esau sprayed his garments, something which matched what could be found in the field.
Cross-references: Song of Songs 4:11; Genesis 25:27
So God give you of the dew of heaven, And of the fat places of the earth, And plenty of corn and wine.
verse value 3004
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 41 letters. The shortest word is "of·the·dew·of" (מִטַּל֙, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·may·give·to·you" (וְיִֽתֶּן־לְךָ֙, 6 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "of·the·dew·of" (מִטַּל֙), "and·of·the·fat·of" (וּמִשְׁמַנֵּ֖י), "grain" (דָּגָ֖ן). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "the·earth" (root ארץ, 305x in Genesis); "the·God" (root אלה, 301x in Genesis); "and·may·give·to·you" (root נתן, 150x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·earth', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 3 words. Full calculation: וְיִֽתֶּן־לְךָ֙ [and·may·give·to·you] (516) + הָאֱלֹהִ֔ים [the·God] (91) + מִטַּל֙ [of·the·dew·of] (79) + הַשָּׁמַ֔יִם [the·heavens] (395) + וּמִשְׁמַנֵּ֖י [and·of·the·fat·of] (446) + הָאָ֑רֶץ [the·earth] (296) + וְרֹ֥ב [and·abundance·of] (208) + דָּגָ֖ן [grain] (57) + וְתִירֹֽשׁ [and·wine] (916) = 3004.
Onkelos
And may Hashem give you of the dew of heaven and of the goodness of the earth, and abundance of grain and wine.
Rashi
ויתן לך THEREFORE GOD GIVE THEE — May he give thee and give thee repeatedly (Genesis Rabbah 66:3). However, according to its real meaning it must be connected with the preceding statement — viz., with the words, “See, the smell of my son, which the Holy One, blessed be He, has given him is like the smell of the field etc.“ And may He also give thee of the dew of heaven מטל השמים OF THE DEW OF HEAVEN — Take it in the ordinary sense of the words; but there are Midrashic explanations giving many different meanings האלהים GOD [GIVE THEE]—What denotes the use here of the Divine Name אלהים which signifies God in His attribute of Justice? May He act in justice! If you are worthy of it may He give it to you, and if not, let Him not give it to you. But to Esau he said, (Genesis 27:39) “The fat places of the earth shall be thy dwelling” —whether you be righteous or wicked He will give you this. From him (Isaac) did Solomon learn when he built the Temple how to compose his prayer (having in mind a similar idea): An Israelite who is a man of faith and acknowledges that God’s judgment is just will not reproach You;—therefore (1 Kings 8:39) “Render unto every man (Israelite; 1 Kings 8:38) according to his ways whose heart thou knowest”. A stranger, however, is lacking in faith; therefore Solomon said, (1 Kings 8:43) “Hear thou in heaven … and do according to all that the stranger calleth to thee for — whether he be worthy or unworthy grant him his request in order that he may not reproach You. This explanation of האלהים is found in an old and correct text of Rashi.
Ramban
OF THE DEW OF HEAVEN. The blessing is not that G-d give him of the dew of heaven for the dew descends in all places. Now had he said that G-d give him an abundance of dew, or that it come in its season, even as it says, Then I will give your rains in their season, that would have constituted a blessing. Instead, its meaning is as follows: Since above he mentioned G-d’s blessing, As the odor of a field which the Eternal hath blessed, here. meaning “which G-d had blessed for my son” ” Isaac thus continues his blessing by saying, “Just as He has blessed the field for you, my son, may He also give you another blessing, namely, of the dew of the heavens.” — that is, since G-d blessed him in the field by giving him success there in his hunt and by guarding him from death or any mishap — he now says, So G-d give thee, [as an additional blessing], of the dew of heaven, and of the fat places of the earth. It is thus a blessing of addition and abundance. It may be that the expression, And plenty (‘verov’) of corn and wine, is written in the Torah with an extra vav, [which should not affect the meaning], with the sense of the verse being: “So G-d give thee of the dew of heaven and of the places of the earth, i.e., plenty of corn and wine.”In my opinion the correct interpretation is that G-d’s gift is steady and there is never any interruption in it. Therefore he says, “So G-d give thee for the extent of your days upon your land of the dew of heaven, and give thee of the fat places of the earth,” meaning the fattest of all lands, even as it is written, The beauty of all lands. Now Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra says that the prefix mem in the word mital, (of the dew) applies to itself and yet to another word, [namely, mishmanei (the fat places of the earth), which is then to be understood as] umimishmanei ha’aretz and from the fat places of the earth. To Esau, on the other hand, he gave a blessing which mentions neither through a gift of G-d nor with abundance. Rather he said, “For you too I have reserved a blessing after him: of the fat places of the earth and of the dew of heaven shall your dwelling be.” That is “as long as you will dwell there,” thereby alluding that he will ultimately be destroyed and lost, for only as long as he will live will his lot be good.
Ibn Ezra
The mem of "from the dew" draws itself and what follows along with it [i.e., it governs the next phrase as well]; similarly: "Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression?" (Micah 6:7).
Sforno
And abundance of grain. Sufficient that he would be able to support others.
Or HaChaim
ויתן לך אלוקים מטל השמים, "May the Lord give you of the dew of the heavens, etc." The resason this verse commences with the conjunctive letter ו is because it continues the theme begun in verse 27, i.e. ויברכהו, "He blessed him." Those blessings had not been detailed because the Torah merely told us that just as the key to blessings had first been entrusted to Abraham and subsequently by Abraham to Isaac, Isaac now handed this key to Jacob. (based on Bereshit Rabbah 39,11). Accordingly the word ויברכהו means that Isaac transferred this key to blessings to Jacob. It is also possible that Isaac divided the blessings into both spiritual and material ones. The spiritual blessings are referred to by the word ויברכהו, whereas the material blessings are introduced by verse 28. The letter ו then introduces the material blessings as something additional to the spiritual blessings Isaac had already bestowed upon Jacob. Aternately, the mention of the word האלוקים, the attribute of Justice, is to show that whereas up to then Isaac had invoked only the attribute of Mercy, he now also invoked the attribute of Justice, asking it to agree to the blessing he bestowed on his son.
Kli Yakar
And may God give to you: The letter vav [prefix “and”] in vayiten [and he will give] is superfluous, and our Sages interpreted (Bereishit Rabbah 66:3) that it means “He will give and give again.” The explanation of this matter is as follows: It is known that in all the commandments that a person performs, there isn’t sufficient repayment for the benefits that the Holy One, blessed be He, has already done for him from the day of his birth, according to their deeds, accordingly He will repay (Isaiah 59:18). Everything that a person does in terms of commandments, he does as a form of repayment, and in all the goodness that we receive from Him, blessed be He, His kindness overwhelms us. The Holy One, blessed be He, precedes with His goodness in every giving, as it is written My God in His kindness will precede me (Psalms 59:11) and it is written For You precede him with blessings of goodness (Psalms 21:4) and it is written Who has preceded Me that I should repay him? (Job 41:3). According to this principle, if a person has an evil thought saying, “The past is gone, and what profit is there in serving God if I will always be indebted to Him?” You should respond and say to him: Go and see how people conduct business. It is the practice of merchants who give credit that when the buyer pays his old debt, the merchant then gives him credit again, and so it continues forever. However, if one doesn’t pay the old debt, the merchant won’t give him more merchandise. Similarly, the Great Creditor, blessed be He and blessed be His name, when a person pays back through his commandments the first credit, the Holy One, blessed be He, gives him credit again, and this is the meaning of “He will give and give again.” Another explanation: Since the fragrance of the Garden of Eden entered with him [Jacob], from this Isaac judged that the one who entered would receive a great reward in the spiritual world of the Garden of Eden, because there God commanded the blessing of eternal life. Therefore, he said And may He give with the conjunctive vav [the Hebrew letter “vav” that means “and”], to say that in addition to the spiritual success stored for you in the World to Come, may He also give you in this world from the dew of heaven, etc. so that you may merit two tables [both this world and the World to Come]. Some say that the [letter] vav in and may He give [veyiten] indicates that a person should not rely on miracles, but rather should do their part to the best of their ability, and whatever nature lacks, the miracle will complete — as our Sages said (Sifrei Re’eh 15:18), “One might think [this applies] even if one sits idle? That is why Scripture states in all that you do.” Therefore it says and may He give, meaning: after you have already done everything within your power to do, then God will also give to you from His good treasury, as it is written (Psalms 85:12): Truth will spring up from the earth, and righteousness will look down from heaven; Also the Lord will give what is good, etc. For initially you must perform your action, specifically with truth, because God will not send His help to one who acts with human schemes that are neither righteous nor truthful and just. However, to one who engages in truth and faith, God will complete His holy assistance. And when human actions first spring forth from the earth, then by way of kindness, God looks down from His heights — and with what does He look down? Also the Lord will also give what is good, and our land will yield its produce. With the word also [gam], the entire matter is sealed, and it is self-evident.
Tur HaArokh
ויתן לך האלוקים, “and may G’d grant you, etc.” Rashi emphasizes that Yitzchok deliberately chose the attribute of Justice to be the origin of Esau’s blessing, i.e. אלוקים, instead of Hashem, as this implied that the blessing would be fulfilled only if Esau remained worthy of it in the eyes of the attribute of Justice. [note that when Yaakov made his vow after the dream of the ladder, he too conditioned fulfillment on the promise that he would be worthy of what he asked for in the eyes of the attribute of Justice. (Genesis 28,21) Ed.] Later on, when Yitzchok knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that it was Esau who had stood before him, he promised him material blessings without conditioning this on his worthiness. (Genesis 27,39-40) This is remarkable, as by then Yitzchok had been made aware of Esau’s true character and he had confirmed the blessing he had given to Yaakov. ויתן לך האלוקים מטל השמים, “and G’d will give you from the dew of the heaven, etc.” According to Nachmanides this is not a formula appropriate for use in blessings. Dew descends on the earth all over the earth, and does not require a special blessing to make it happen. If Yitzchok had implored G’d to give Esau an additional amount of dew, this would be different, but all he did was to assure him that he would participate on an equal basis in the blessing of dew, something that every farmer enjoys. Yitzchok’s blessing meant that Esau should enjoy the blessing of dew and the other blessings G’d bestows on the earth, and through it on His creatures, without any interruption through famine of drought, etc. Alternately, the letter ו at the beginning of the word ורב דגן ותירוש means that the ordinary amount of dew, etc., should result in his crops being especially abundant. [I have difficulty with this kind of blessing, seeing Esau was a hunter, not farmer. Maybe Yitzchok suggested obliquely that Esau should stop hunting and become a farmer instead. Ed.] Possibly, what is introduced as a consolation prize for Esau, the blessing in verse 40 that he would survive by means of his sword, was in fact a denial of the blessings he had given Yaakov while he thought that Yaakov was Esau.
Let peoples serve you, And nations bow down to you. Be lord over your brothers, And let your mother's sons bow down to you. Cursed be every one that curses you, And blessed be every one that blesses you.
verse value 3752
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 71 letters. The shortest word is "to·you" (לְךָ֙, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·let·them·bow" (וְיִֽשְׁתַּחֲו֤וּ, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 736: and·let·them·bow, and·let·them·bow. 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "may·they·serve·you" (יַֽעַבְד֣וּךָ), "be" (הֱוֵ֤ה), "those·who·curse·you" (אֹרְרֶ֣יךָ). The root שחה appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "sons·of" (root בן, 248x in Genesis); "over·your·brothers" (root אח, 164x in Genesis); "be" (root הוא, 133x in Genesis). First appearance of the root שחה ("and·let·them·bow") in Genesis. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'your·mother', dividing the verse into phrases of 12 and 4 words.
Onkelos
Peoples shall serve you and kingdoms shall be subject to you; be a ruler over your brothers, and your mother's sons shall bow down to you. Those who curse you shall be cursed, and those who bless you shall be blessed.
Rashi
בני אמך THY MOTHER’S SONS — Jacob, however, said to Judah (49:8) “Thy father’s sons (shall bow down to thee]”, because he had sons by several wives, but here, because he (Isaac) had but one wife he said “thy mother’s sons” (Genesis Rabbah 66:4). ארריך ארור ומברכיך ברוך THEY THAT CURSE THEE SHALL BE CURSED AND THEY THAT BLESS THEE SHALL BE BLESSED — But in the case of Balaam Scripture says (Numbers 24:9) “Blessed be everyone that blesseth thee and cursed be every one that curseth thee”. The explanation is: the righteous have sufferings first and happiness afterwards, so that in point of time those who curse and afflict them (cause them suffering) come before those who bless them (cause them happiness) — therefore Isaac, a righteous man, invokes a curse upon those who themselves curse before he invokes a blessing upon those who bless. The wicked however have happiness first and suffering afterwards; therefore Balaam, a wicked man, invokes the blessing before the curse (Genesis Rabbah 66:4).
Ramban
CURSED BE EVERY ONE THAT CURSETH THEE, AND BLESSED BE EVERY ONE THAT BLESSETH THEE. But in the case of Balaam it says, Blessed be every one that blesseth thee, and cursed be every one that curseth thee. The question thus arises: Why did Isaac mention first the curse and then the blessing while Balaam did the opposite? [The reason for this change in order is that] the righteous begin with affliction and ultimately attain tranquility, so that those who curse them precede those who bless them. The opposite is true in the case of Balaam. But the wicked experience tranquility first and their end is affliction. Hence Balaam mentioned the blessing before the curse. This is Rashi’s language quoting Bereshith Rabbah. But if this be so, why did the Holy One, blessed be He, say to Abraham, And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee? Now here in the case of the righteous, it still mentions the blessing first! This however is no difficulty since He concludes there, And in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. Thus there is a blessing at the beginning and at the end. It may be, as we have explained it there, that He speaks in terms of both an individual and many, suggesting that Abraham will be universally blessed, and the single person who will curse him will be cursed.
Ibn Ezra
"Your brothers" — the sons of the concubines; "your mother's sons" — Esau and his descendants. "Cursed be those who curse you" — [means] each one of those who curse you; similarly: "the righteous is as confident as a young lion" (Proverbs 28:1), and many [other verses follow] this pattern; and similarly "those who bless you" [is to be understood the same way].
Sforno
וישתחוו לך לאומים, for even the kingdoms which will not serve you directly will be in a state of dependence on you seeing that you will be the superpower. הוה גביר לאחיך, seeing that Yitzchok was under the impression that he was speaking to Esau, he thought that it would be in Yaakov’s interest to endure some degree dependence upon Esau while at the same time holding on to the Land of Israel as its Abrahamitic heritage. Such a political dependence would ensure that Yaakov’s descendants would turn their attention to matters other than geo-politics, conquest, etc. The fact is, that at some time in the future the Jewish state did display expansionary tendencies, only to suffer setbacks as a result. The prophet Amos 6,8 already warned his people against such tendencies when he quotes G’d’s loathing for power politics practiced by the Kingdom of the ten tribes under the kings of Samaria. Moreover, Yitzchok thought that if Yaakov had to be subjected to foreign domination, it would be better for it to be subjected to the rule by his brother than by other nations which would treat it more cruelly. Our sages (Gittin 17) phrased this as או בטולך או בטולך דבר עשו, “it is better to be under the protection of You (G’d), or the protection of the descendants of Esau than to have to live under the rule of the Persians.” The way Yitzchok phrased his blessing was based on his knowledge that the Land of Israel would be Yaakov’s descendants exclusively, that Esau’s descendants would not have a share in it. This is why he made no mention at all of the blessing G’d gave to Avraham, nor did he make any mention of the Land of Israel. אוויך ארור, the word אורריך is in the plural mode seeing that there would be numerous nations or individuals who would curse the kings and ministers of Esau when they would not be granted their rightful aspirations. The Torah therefore warned the Jewish people not to curse the political leadership or the judiciary as such curses might backfire (Exodus 22,27)
Or HaChaim
יעבדוך עמים וגו׳. "Nations will serve you, etc." This might mean that the king would not impose on the people the taxes due him. We find that even when the second Jewish commonwealth was still a satellite of the Persians, their leaders, i.e. their Torah scholars were exempt from taxes as we know from Ezra, 7,24. When verse 40 continues "and you will serve your brother," this refers to a descendant of Esau when the latter had become king. הוה גביר לאחיך. "Be your brother's superior;" This refers to Esau personally, i.e. that Esau himself will never become Jacob's servant, as opposed to some of his descendants to whom the words וישתחוו לך בני אמך, "your mother's sons will bow down to you" will apply. Another meaning contained in the blessing may be that as long as Jacob will exercise his dominion over Esau by serving the Lord in holiness, the blessing would remain in effect; were he not to do so, one brother could never become a servant to another brother. Should Jacob (or his descendants) fail to serve the Lord, Esau would assume dominion over him. This is why we find that even a relatively mild dereliction of duty towards G'd by the kingdom of Yehudah led to Edom recovering politically (Kings II 8,22). אררך ארור ומברכיך ברוך. "Those who curse you will be cursed and those who bless you will be blessed." Those who plan to curse you in the future will already be cursed now so as to make their curse ineffective, whereas those who plan to bless you will already be blessed now so as to make their blessing effective. The reason the Torah employs the plural when referring to those who will bless, whereas the word "will be blessed" is in the singular, (and similarly when referring to the cursers and the cursed) is to tell us that not all those who curse will be cursed, such as in the case of Achiyah Hashiloni and people like him (Kings I 11,29). The same applies in reverse to people such as Bileam who blessed the Jewish people. He was not blessed as a result because his intention was not honourable. The reason the Torah adds the conjunctive letter ו before the word ומברכיך is to allude to the type of person who curses and is yet within the category of people deserving blessings since he uses the wording of a curse in order to bestow a blessing. We find an example of this in Moed Katan 9 where the Rabbis couched their blessing for Rabbi Eleazar, son of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, in words which sounded like a curse. We are therefore able to read the verse as if the three words ארריך ארור ומברכיך belonged together.
Kli Yakar
“Those who curse you shall be cursed, and those who bless you shall be blessed.” However, Balaam said the opposite of this, and similarly it was said to Abraham I will bless those who bless you, and those who curse you I will curse (Genesis 12:3). It appears that there are two types of those who curse and two types of those who bless. The first type is one who actually curses or actually blesses. The pattern for the righteous is always that their beginning is filled with hardships and their end is peaceful. Now, anyone who blesses presumably does so when blessing is needed, meaning during times of hardship. This excludes times of peace when blessings are not needed, as God said to Balaam when he said “If so, I will bless them” — God responded that they don’t need His blessing because they are already blessed. And anyone who curses presumably does so during times of peace, for during times of hardship, why would they add a curse? It is regarding this type that it was first said to Abraham I will bless those who bless you (Genesis 12:3), because in the beginning there will be hardships and then you will need those who bless you, and I will bless all who bless you. And afterwards, during times of peace, many will be jealous of you and consider cursing you, and I will curse them. It is of this type that Balaam said Those who bless you are blessed, and those who curse you are cursed. [Regarding] “but those who curse you [orerecha]” that is mentioned here, it is not speaking at all about those who curse, with the expression “kelalah,” but rather about those who cause pain, as Rashi explained. This [painful behavior] is especially common during times of suffering, as per [the Talmudic saying] (Shabbat 32a) “When the ox falls, sharpen the knife.” For in addition to the suffering, they come to pain you when they should have been comforting you — because during times of peace, how would they cause pain? Similarly, those who bless you refers to those who bring you joy, and this is especially common during times of tranquility when many will rejoice with you. From here Rashi learned to interpret orerecha as “those who cause them pain.” With this interpretation, all the questions and difficulties raised by the Re’em and Ramban are resolved — check their works. However, according to Rashi’s [other] interpretation, all this would not be settled, but I have only come to explain the verses. Know that this is so, for Balaam said may my end be like theirs, so how could He then say cursed be those who curse you at the end and predict that their end would be suffering? Rather, it must be that those who curse you speaks about the time of tranquility that will be in their later days, and about this He said may my end be like theirs. But for the wicked, He predicted the opposite and said Amalek was the first among nations, but its end will be eternal destruction. And the Holy One, blessed be He, also promised Abraham that his beginning would be in pain and he would need those who bless him, but his end would grow greatly and those who curse would come against him but would not prevail over him.
Tur HaArokh
יעבדוך עמים וישתחוו לך לאומים, “nations will serve you, and states will pay homage to you.” This promise/blessing was fulfilled at the threshing grounds of Atad, (Genesis 50,11) when the various Canaanite kings, and representatives all paid homage to Yaakov’s coffin as it was on the way to burial in the cave of Machpelah. According to tradition, these kings saluted Yaakov by placing their crowns on the fence of that threshing ground. הוי גביר לאחיך, “be your brother’s superior, etc.” Seeing that at this point Yitzchok thought that Esau stood in front of him, we cannot escape the conclusion that Rivkah had never told him of the prophecy that the younger son would be the superior one, otherwise Yitzchok would have now rebelled against the prophecy. אורריך ארור ומברכיך ברוך, “the ones who will curse you will themselves become cursed, and those who will bless you will themselves become blessed.” In Bileam’s blessings, the order is reversed; he said מברכיך ברוך ואורריך ארור, “those who bless you will themselves be blessed, and those that curse you will find themselves cursed.” The righteous will endure problems before finding themselves rewarded and blessed, whereas the wicked may start out as if enjoying blessings, whereas in reality they will wind up being accursed. Still, when G’d spoke to Avraham in chapter 12,2-3 He phrased it thus: ונברכו בך כל משפחות האדמה, “all the families of the earth will enjoy blessing, thanks to you.” Seeing G’d wanted to conclude with this blessing, He commenced also with a blessing.
And it came to pass, as soon as Isaac had made an end of blessing Jacob, and Jacob was yet scarce gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunting.
verse value 3454
Insights
Verse structure: 19 words, 70 letters. The shortest word is "only" (אַ֣ךְ, 2 letters) and the longest is "Jacob" (אֶֽת־יַעֲקֹב֒, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 208: Isaac, Isaac. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "to·bless" (לְבָרֵ֣ךְ), "from·his·hunt" (מִצֵּידֽוֹ). The root היה appears 2 times in this verse. 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·it·was" (root היה, 313x in Genesis); "as" (root אשר, 313x in Genesis); "came" (root בוא, 213x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'his·father', dividing the verse into phrases of 15 and 4 words.
Onkelos
And it came to pass, when Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, and Jacob had barely gone out from before Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunt.
Rashi
יצא יצא [JACOB] WAS YET SCARCE GONE OUT — this means, as one went out the other came in (Midrash Tanchuma, Toldot 11).
Or HaChaim
ויהי כאשר כלה, As soon as he had finished, etc. The reason for the apparently superfluous word ויהי which always introduces something of a painful nature, is that the Torah testifies that Isaac completed his blessing prematurely; instead of giving Jacob the entire blessing he was capable of bestowing as he did for Esau afterwards, he did not do so now. Had Isaac truly completed giving Jacob all the blessings he was capable of bestowing, Esau would have gone out empty-handed. ויהי אך יצא יצא יעקב, Jacob had barely left his father's presence, etc. The extra words: ויהי, אך, יצא are all meant to draw our attention to the fact that Jacob would not have left yet except that he noticed that Esau was arriving (as pointed out at the end of the verse). This caused Jacob to make a hasty exit. The Torah hints at the embarassment Jacob felt at leaving the presence of his father as if he were a thief beating a hasty retreat. Our sages in Midrash Rabbah pursue a different approach.
Tur HaArokh
ויהי אך יצא יצא, “and as soon as Yaakov had left the presence of his father,” The reason why the Torah speaks of 2 exits, i.e. יצא, יצא, indicates that as soon as Yaakov saw Esau approach he quickly hid himself, and when the way was clear he emerged from his hiding place and left the house of his father.
Rashbam
ויהי אך יצא יצא, this detail has been recorded to illustrate the miracles which were performed in order to enable Yaakov to obtain this blessing. If Esau had returned just one minute sooner, Yaakov would not have secured this blessing.
Daat Zkenim
ויהי אך יצא יצא יעקב, “and it happened when Yaakov only just left, etc.”, Yaakov had actually seen Esau come in by the opposite door as it was lit up when opening it, whereas Esau, standing in the light, could not see Yaakov who stood in relative darkness across from him at the other door. (B’reshit Rabbah 66,5)
And he also made savoury food, and brought it to his father; and he said to his father: "Let my father arise, and eat of his son's venison, that your soul may bless me."
verse value 2862 — אָבִי֙ = 13 (echad/ahavah)
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 66 letters. Notable word values: "my·father" (אָבִי֙) = 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). Verse gematria: 2862 is divisible by 18, the value of chai ('life'). The shortest word is "let·him·arise" (יָקֻ֤ם, 3 letters) and the longest is "a·savory·dish" (מַטְעַמִּ֔ים, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 49: to·his·father, to·his·father. The root אב appears 3 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "his·son" (root בן, 248x in Genesis); "and·brought" (root בוא, 213x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·his·father', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 10 words.
Onkelos
And he too made dishes and brought them to his father, and said to his father: Let my father arise and eat of his son's game, so that your soul may bless me.
Chizkuni
יקום אבי, “arise my father!” Esau awakened his father who had taken a nap after having eaten.
Kli Yakar
Let my father arise and eat from his son’s hunt. Jacob spoke with pleading language [saying] Please rise and sit — the word “na” [please] is only used as a request. Furthermore, he told him to sit and eat, speaking to him directly [in second person]. But Esau did not tell him to rise from the place where he was standing to sit in the place prepared for eating, and did not mention the language of “please” [na], and spoke in third person due to his overwhelming arrogance.
Targum Yonatan
And the Word of the Lord had impeded him from taking clean venison; but he had found a certain dog, and killed him, and made food of him, and brought to his father, and said to his father, Arise, my father, and eat of my venison, that thy soul may bless me.
And Isaac his father said to him: "Who are you?" And he said: "I am your son, your first-born, Esau."
verse value 1984 — ל֛וֹ = 36 (double-Chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 38 letters. Notable word values: "to·him" (ל֛וֹ) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "to·him" (ל֛וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·said" (וַיֹּ֥אמֶר, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 257: and·said, and·said. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "who·are·you" (מִי־אָ֑תָּה). The root אמר appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "your·son" (root בן, 248x in Genesis); "his·father" (root אב, 196x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'who·are·you', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 5 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֥אמֶר [and·said] (257) + ל֛וֹ [to·him] (36) + יִצְחָ֥ק [Isaac] (208) + אָבִ֖יו [his·father] (19) + מִי־אָ֑תָּה [who·are·you] (456) + וַיֹּ֕אמֶר [and·said] (257) + אֲנִ֛י [I] (61) + בִּנְךָ֥ [your·son] (72) + בְכֹֽרְךָ֖ [your·first-born] (242) + עֵשָֽׂו [Esau] (376) = 1984.
Onkelos
And Isaac his father said to him: Who are you? And he said: I am your son, your firstborn, Esau.
Ramban
WHO ART THOU? When Esau said to him, Let my father arise, here. Isaac thought that it was Jacob, i.e., that because Jacob knew that he had eaten of Esau’s venison and blessed Esau, he too prepared savory meats so that he should bless him also. Therefore he asked, Who art thou?, in order to know the truth. ” However, since Ramban explains that Isaac thought him to be Jacob, the question is understandable.
Tur HaArokh
מי אתה?, “Who are you?” He thought that he was addressing Yaakov who when he had heard that his father had eaten of Esau’s venison, had also prepared a dish for him in order to secure a blessing for himself. He therefore asked: “who are you?” in order to ascertain the true facts.
And Isaac trembled very exceedingly, and said: "Who then is he that has taken venison, and brought it me, and I have eaten of all before you came, and have blessed him? yea, and he shall be blessed."
verse value 2831
Insights
Verse structure: 18 words, 80 letters. The shortest word is "to·me" (לִ֜י, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·I·blessed·him" (וָאֲבָרְכֵ֑הוּ, 7 letters). 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "and·trembled" (וַיֶּחֱרַ֨ד), "a·trembling" (חֲרָדָה֮), "who·then" (מִֽי־אֵפ֡וֹא). The root בוא appears 2 times in this verse. 17 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "shall·be" (root היה, 313x in Genesis); "and·brought" (root בוא, 213x in Genesis). First appearance of the root אפו ("who·then") in Genesis. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·I·blessed·him', dividing the verse into phrases of 16 and 2 words.
Onkelos
And Isaac trembled with very great trembling and said: Who then is he who hunted game and brought it to me, and I ate of it all before you came, and I blessed him? Indeed, blessed he shall remain.
Rashi
ויחרד [AND ISAAC] TREMBLED — Explain it as the Targum renders it ותוה, which means he was perplexed. The Midrashic explanation (Midrash Tanchuma, Toldot 11) is that he saw Gehinnom opening beneath him (Esau). מי אפוא WHO THEN IS HE — The word אפוא is an independent particle having no etymological connection with any other Hebrew word and is used with many different shades of meaning Another explanation of אפוא is that it is the same as איה פה where here, — so that מי אפוא means “Who is he and where is he here that hath hunted venison”?) ואכל מכל AND I HAVE EATEN OF ALL — all tastes that I desired to find in it I indeed found therein (Genesis Rabbah 67:2). גם ברוך יהיה YEA, AND HE SHALL BE BLESSED — In order that you may not say “If Jacob had not deceived his father he would never have received the blessing”, he, therefore, confirmed it, blessing him now of his own free will (Genesis Rabbah 67:2).
Ramban
AND ISAAC TREMBLED VERY EXCEEDINGLY, AND SAID, WHO THEN IS HE THAT HATH TAKEN VENISON AND BROUGHT IT TO ME, AND I HAVE EATEN OF ALL BEFORE THOU COMEST AND HAVE BLESSED HIM? YEA, AND HE SHALL BE BLESSED. It is not natural for a person who just trembled violently and complained, “Who was it that subtly made me bless him?” to conclude his complaint by immediately saying, Yea, and he shall be blessed! Rather, it would have been proper that he curse him! Moreover, Esau would then complain to his father, saying, “But why do you bless him now, my father?” And how would Esau believe his father that it was originally done through subtlety here. when he saw that he was now blessing him willingly! The correct interpretation appears to me to be that it is in the present tense. Isaac is saying, “Who then is he that hath hunted venison, who could have beguiled me so that I should bless him and that he should remain blessed under all circumstances for I knew that he is a blessed one?” Or it may be that the expression, Yea, and he shall be blessed, means “against my will, since it is impossible for me to transfer the blessing from him.” From the moment he blessed him, Isaac knew by Ruach Hakodesh that his blessings indeed rested upon Jacob. This then is the reason for his violent trembling for he knew that his beloved son Esau had lost his blessing forever. This also is the explanation for his saying, Thy brother came with subtlety, here. meaning that after he said, Who then is he etc. he realized that Jacob had been the one who came before him to receive the blessing for it would have been impossible for the blessing to rest on any but his offspring, [and, as mentioned above, Isaac knew by Ruach Hakodesh that the blessing had taken effect. Hence he was sure that it was Jacob who had come before him.]
Ibn Ezra
"Who then" — who is he and where is he? Two separate words. The vav of "and I blessed him" is vocalized with a kamatz, because it is a past-tense verb; had it been with a full patah [gadol], it would indicate the future tense.
Sforno
?מי איפוא הוא, if it is indeed true that you are Esau, who was the one who served me venison? When the word איפוא appears with the letter א at the end, the word is an alternative for the two words אם כן, “if so.” When the same word (phonetically speaking) is spelled with the letter ה at the end, as for instance, in Genesis 37,16 איפה הם רועים?, the word means the same as איה, “where?” גם ברוך יהיה, the appropriate translation of the whole verse would be: “if this is so that you are indeed Esau, who is the one who brought me the venison and still achieved that he will remain blessed?!” Yitzchok had felt instinctively at the time he had bestowed the blessing that it would become fulfilled for the person whom he was blessing at the time. This confirms something told us by Rabbi Chanina in Berachot 34 that whenever he prayed for the recovery of a sick person he could feel while praying for him if his prayer would be effective.
Or HaChaim
ויחרד יצחק. Isaac trembled. Isaac experienced contradictory feelings; he trembled because he had been tricked. At the same time he was aware that he had blessed Jacob by saying that anyone cursing him should himself be cursed. When he understood that the person upon whom he had bestowed the blessing was his son Jacob he blessed him because he realised that the fragrance that emanated from Jacob's clothing indicated his moral superiority over Esau. This prompted Isaac to confirm his blessing. He may also have been afraid to bring a curse upon himself if he were to revoke the blessing.
Chizkuni
ויחרד יצחק, “Yitzchok became frightened;” according to Rashi, he had a vision of gehinom opening up beneath him. He had this vision as soon as he wanted to curse Yaakov for having deceived him. Some commentators understand the expression as Yitzchok now realising that if he could not even have known the difference between his two sons he could no longer be surprised why he had been struck with blindness as a punishment. Nonetheless, there was one thing he was not frightened of. Seeing that nothing is concealed from G-d, how could He have allowed the birthright to be transferred from the older son to the younger son? גם ברוך יהיה “he shall also remain blessed.” Yitzchok reasoned that seeing that he had intended to bless his firstborn son, [and Yaakov had bought the birthright already a long time ago,] he had actually blessed the son to whom this blessing belonged legally. Another exegesis: seeing that I already said to Yaakov that anyone who would curse him shall himself become cursed, if I cursed him now I would bring a curse upon myself. If you, [the reader] were to ask me, if so at least Yitzchok should not have given Yaakov an additional blessing? The answer is that I also said that anyone who would bless him should be blessed. Therefore it is in my own interest to bestow another blessing upon him. Another interpretation for the words: “he shall also retain the blessing;” Yitzchok asked G-d to confirm the blessing that he had bestowed upon Yaakov.
Rabbeinu Bahya
גם ברוך יהיה “he shall also remain blessed.” Yitzchak meant that Yaakov should remain blessed by all the emanations. He said these words to teach us that if someone received a blessing from the patriarchs [who had been specifically endowed by G’d with the power to bestow blessings, Ed.] he is as if he had been blessed by G’d directly. The expression chosen by our author is מפי אלוקי אמן. [This is an expression borrowed from Isaiah 65,16 meaning that the blessing —even though its fulfillment may have been delayed — stems from the G’d who can be trusted to fulfill His promises Ed.] Tanchuma Toldot 13 concentrates on the word ויחרד יצחק חרדה גדולה, “Yitzchak experienced a great trembling,” explaining that the Torah repeats the word חרד to show that this was already the second time Yitzchak had trembled. The first time was on the altar on Mount Moriah. The reason why the Torah added the words עד מאד in this instance was to tell us that this trembling was of a more far reaching nature than the one he experienced when he thought he was going to be a sacrifice. Bereshit Rabbah 67,2 asks why a man whose one son left the room to make room for his other son should be seized by such violent tremors. The answer given is that when Esau entered Gehinom entered with him. Rabbi Nathan, quoting Rabbi Acha said that the walls of his house started shaking. This is alluded to by the words מי אפוא in our verse and meant: “who in the future was going to ‘be baked?’” [Yitzchak had a vision of someone being burned by the fires of Gehinom and considered that it might be himself for having misjudged the character of his children so tragically. Ed.] G’d answered him that neither he nor Yaakov was going to be burned by those fires but the one הצד ציד, who had constantly been “hunting,” i.e. misleading him, Esau.
Kli Yakar
“He too shall be blessed.” What is this coming to teach us? Was Esau in doubt about his blessing? Therefore, we must say that when [Isaac] said those who curse you [shall be] cursed, he meant that if you curse others, I will agree with you in such a way that whoever you curse will be cursed. Similarly, with those who bless you whoever you bless, I will agree with your blessing that they shall be blessed. For he had placed the power of blessings in his hands to bless whomever he wished. Regarding this, Isaac said he too shall be blessed — not only have I already blessed him, but I even said to him and be a blessing and placed in his hands the power to bless whomever he wishes. Now that I have handed over the blessings to him, how can I take back what I have already given him? And what good would it do if I bless you if he does not agree with me? According to this interpretation, he too shall be blessed is related to the phrase and be a blessing. And don’t challenge me regarding the letter vav in baruch [blessed], which implies that he will be blessed [passively] — we find a similar example where our Sages taught (Sotah 38b) that we only give the cup of blessing to one who has a generous eye, as it is said One who has a generous eye shall be blessed (Proverbs 22:9) — don’t read it as shall be blessed [yevorach] but as “shall bless” [yevarech]. Another explanation: This is why he said he shall also be blessed — so that Esau would not say “Surely Jacob’s blessing is not eternal,” and you [Isaac] could interpret your words to mean that Jacob’s blessing would only be effective for a fixed time, and when that time expires, Esau’s blessings would begin. Regarding this, he said he shall also be blessed — not only will I bless him in the present, but he shall also be blessed, meaning it will be so forever. Therefore, there is no room for your blessings to take effect, neither in the present nor in the future. And Esau said, “Have you not reserved a similar blessing for me?” meaning, “Is it not possible for both blessings to take effect simultaneously?” And he [Isaac] answered him, Indeed, I have made him your master, and whatever a slave acquires belongs to his master, so what can be given to him? But because of his persistent pleading, he gave room for his blessing to take effect by saying And it shall come to pass when you shall break free…
Tur HaArokh
גם ברוך יהיה,”he shall also retain his blessing.” Since when is the reaction to someone who complains that he has been tricked out of a blessing, that one tells him that the party who received the blessing in his place is to keep it? Surely, the normal reaction would be to curse the swindler who came by the blessing by devious means! Moreover, seeing that Yitzchok repeated the blessing he had given to Yaakov a second time, this clearly indicates that Yaakov did not obtain the blessing by deceitful means in the first place! Why else would he now bless Yaakov willingly and knowingly? This is why Nachmanides explains the entire verse commencing with the words: מי איפוא הצד ציד ויבא לי ואכל מכל as referring to Esau, i.e. “who is the person who has fed me a line which I swallowed hook line and sinker all these years so that I was befuddled enough to bestow the blessing on him?” Alternately, what Yitzchok meant was that once he had uttered the blessing it was too late for him to recall it and to invalidate it, even if it had been obtained under a false premises. Yitzchok had realized as soon as he had finished blessing Yaakov, that he had indeed blessed the son who deserved the blessing. It was this belated inspiration supplied by the Holy Spirit, which made him tremble in the sudden realization that he had lost his beloved son permanently.
When Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with an exceeding great and bitter cry, and said to his father: "Bless me, even me also, O my father."
verse value 3100 — אָבִֽי = 13 (echad/ahavah)
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 62 letters. Notable word values: "my·father" (אָבִֽי) = 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). Verse gematria: 3100 is divisible by 50, the years to the Jubilee (yovel). The shortest word is "Esau" (עֵשָׂו֙, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·words·of" (אֶת־דִּבְרֵ֣י, 6 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "cry" (צְעָקָ֔ה), "and·bitter" (וּמָרָ֖ה). The root אב appears 3 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "his·father" (root אב, 196x in Genesis); "the·words·of" (root דבר, 133x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'very·much', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 5 words. Full calculation: כִּשְׁמֹ֤עַ [when·heard] (430) + עֵשָׂו֙ [Esau] (376) + אֶת־דִּבְרֵ֣י [the·words·of] (617) + אָבִ֔יו [his·father] (19) + וַיִּצְעַ֣ק [and·cried] (276) + צְעָקָ֔ה [cry] (265) + גְּדֹלָ֥ה [great] (42) + וּמָרָ֖ה [and·bitter] (251) + עַד־מְאֹ֑ד [very·much] (119) + וַיֹּ֣אמֶר [and·said] (257) + לְאָבִ֔יו [to·his·father] (49) + בָּרְכֵ֥נִי [bless·me] (282) + גַם־אָ֖נִי [also·I] (104) + אָבִֽי [my·father] (13) = 3100.
Onkelos
When Esau heard the words of his father, he cried out with a very great and bitter cry, and said to his father: Bless me — me also, father.
And he said: "Your brother came with guile, and has taken away your blessing."
verse value 1352
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 25 letters. Verse gematria: 1352 is divisible by 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "came" (בָּ֥א, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·said" (וַיֹּ֕אמֶר, 5 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "your·blessing" (בִּרְכָתֶֽךָ). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "came" (root בוא, 213x in Genesis); "your·brother" (root אח, 164x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'with·guile', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 2 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֕אמֶר [and·said] (257) + בָּ֥א [came] (3) + אָחִ֖יךָ [your·brother] (39) + בְּמִרְמָ֑ה [with·guile] (287) + וַיִּקַּ֖ח [and·took] (124) + בִּרְכָתֶֽךָ [your·blessing] (642) = 1352.
Onkelos
And he said: Your brother came with wisdom and received your blessing.
Rashi
במרמה WITH SUBTLETY — with cleverness (cf. Onkelos).
Ibn Ezra
"With deceit" — that is, he did not speak the truth.
Sforno
ויקח ברכתך, the blessing that would have been appropriate as suitable and effective for you. The blessing which Yaakov had been given (mistakenly), concerned matters of importance in our material life on this earthy both while in our own land or in the Diaspora. The reason Yitzchok had phrased it thus was because the blessing G’d had given Avraham and which was to be given to one of Yitzchok’s children was not appropriate for Esau. [the latter blessing was given to Yaakov in 28,4 so that Yaakov indeed had secured both blessings. Ed.]
Chizkuni
ויקח ברכתך, “he has taken the blessing that I meant to bestow upon you.” [Yitzchok meant that the reason that he had wanted to bestow this blessing on Esau originally, was only because biologically speaking,] for he had been the firstborn.
Tur HaArokh
בא אחיך במרמה, “your brother came using trickery.” Even though initially, Yitzchok had asked: ”who then is the one who came, etc.”, having had the revelation from the Holy Spirit, now he knew for certain that it had been Yaakov who had come and snatched the blessing from his father.
And he said: "Is not he rightly named Jacob? for he has supplanted me these two times: he took away my birthright; and, behold, now he has taken away my blessing." And he said: "Have you not reserved a blessing for me?"
verse value 5184
Insights
Verse structure: 18 words, 75 letters. Verse gematria: 5184 = 72². The shortest word is "this" (זֶ֣ה, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·supplanted·me" (וַֽיַּעְקְבֵ֙נִי֙, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 257: and·said, and·said. 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "is·it·because" (הֲכִי֩), "and·supplanted·me" (וַֽיַּעְקְבֵ֙נִי֙), "my·birthright" (אֶת־בְּכֹרָתִ֣י). The root אמר appears 2 times in this verse. 16 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "his·name" (root שם, 180x in Genesis); "Jacob" (root יעקב, 180x in Genesis). First appearance of the root אצל ("have·you·not·reserved") in Genesis. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'my·blessing', dividing the verse into phrases of 14 and 4 words.
Onkelos
And he said: Rightly was his name called Jacob — for he has laid in wait for me these two times: my birthright he took, and behold, now he has received my blessing. And he said: Have you not reserved a blessing for me?
Rashi
הכי קרא שמו IS IT BECAUSE HE HAS BEEN CALLED [JACOB]—This is a question, like (29:15) “Is it because (הכי) thou art my brother?” Perhaps that is why they have given him the name Jacob — in reference to what was to happen in the future — that he would some time or other supplant me (יעקבני)? (Tanchuma). Why did Isaac tremble? He thought: Perhaps I have sinned in blessing the younger before the elder, thus changing the order of relationship between them. But when Esau began to cry out, “for he hath supplanted me these two times”, his father asked him, “What did he do to you?” He replied, “He took away my birth-right”. Isaac thereupon said, “It was on account of this that I was grieved and trembled: perhaps I had overstepped the line of strict justice. Now, however, I have really blessed the first-born — ‘And he shall indeed be blessed’”. ויעקבני THAT HE HATH SUPPLANTED ME — Explain it as the Targum renders it, וחכמני, which means “and he lay in wait for me.” The word (Deuteronomy 19:11) וארב “and he lies in wait” is rendered by the Targum וכמי. There are some who read in the Targum not וכמני but וחכמני which means “he showed himself clever against me” (outwitted me). אצלת HAST THOU NOT RESERVED — the word means “separating ״, “setting aside ״, like (Numbers 11:25) “And he separated.
Ibn Ezra
"Is it because" — this is like "truly"; similarly: "Is it because you are my brother?" (Genesis 29:15). "He called his name Jacob" — the one who called him Jacob. "And he deceived me" — this is like "deceit"; similarly "with cunning" (2 Kings 10:19). It may also derive from the root of "the heart is deceitful" (Jeremiah 17:9). The crooked [עקוב] is the opposite of the straight [המישור]. "Set aside for me" — left with you for me. It is derived from the root of "and I will take [va-atzalti] from the spirit" (Numbers 11:17).
Sforno
הכי קרא שמו יעקב ויעקבני, did all this happen to me because at the time Yaakov was born he was named Yaakov so that he could now trick me? He was wondering if whoever had named Yaakov had predetermined some of his future character traits. הלא אצלת לי ברכה, seeing that you thought at the time you dispensed the blessing that it was I who stood before you, and you surely did not have in mind to bestow upon me the spiritual blessing, the supreme blessing, you must have reserved this blessing for my brother. You surely had not intended that I, Esau, would be the sole beneficiary of all your blessings?
Or HaChaim
ויאמר הכי קרא שמו יעקב, He said: "Was he not named Jacob (the crooked one)?" Esau was amazed having believed that Jacob's name referred to only a single act of subterfuge whereas he now found himself fooled by Jacob for a second time. Had Jacob's name been עקבות or something similar, Esau would not have been so surprised. Esau may also have meant that the name יעקב alluded to frequent use of subterfuge. So far he considered himself as having become Jacob's victim twice.
Chizkuni
את בכורתי לקח, “he had purchased my birthright;” with these words he tripped himself up by revealing that Yaakov was legally entitled to this blessing.
Kli Yakar
“He took my blessing, etc.” Why did [Esau] say that [Jacob] took the birthright through deception and trickery, when in fact [Esau] sold it willingly? And if Esau despised the birthright with contempt, what was Jacob’s transgression in this? The explanation that seems closest to me is that Esau was saying that one thing depended on the other. For when Isaac asked him Who are you? and [Jacob] replied I am Esau your firstborn, how could he utter falsehood from his mouth — isn’t it true that the remnant of Israel does not speak lies? Rather, certainly he meant to say “I am in place of Esau your firstborn,” since he had purchased the birthright from him, and thus “I am in his place.” Had he not purchased the birthright, he would not have been able to reply I am Esau your firstborn, and would not have been able to receive the blessings. And surely, says Esau, at the time he purchased the birthright, his intention was to deceive me in this way, knowing that such things would befall me. And the reason [Esau] blames him for taking the birthright is because he’s saying “Now I know that this was a mistaken transaction. For initially, I thought the birthright had no advantage except for receiving a double portion after father’s death, and I thought perhaps my father would not leave anything behind, therefore I sold it for a small thing. But now I see that the birthright is worth much more because the blessings depend on it. For why did Jacob say ‘I am Esau your firstborn’? Why did he need to mention the birthright? Rather, certainly it’s because through the birthright one is worthy of greater elevation and strength.” And in this way he deceived me [ya’akveni], for I didn’t know that receiving the blessings depended on the birthright. A hint to this matter is that the letters of “bekhor” [firstborn] are the same as “berekh” [blessing]. Therefore he said he has deceived me these two times, but the loss is really only one.
And Isaac answered and said to Esau: "Behold, I have made him your lord, and all his brothers have I given to him for servants; and with corn and wine have I sustained him; and what then shall I do for you, my son?"
verse value 5764 — לוֹ֙ = 36 (double-Chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 20 words, 83 letters. Notable word values: "to·him" (לוֹ֙) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "behold" (הֵ֣ן, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·all·his·brothers" (וְאֶת־כׇּל־אֶחָ֗יו, 9 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "I·have·made·him" (שַׂמְתִּ֥יו), "and·all·his·brothers" (וְאֶת־כׇּל־אֶחָ֗יו), "and·with·grain" (וְדָגָ֥ן). 20 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "my·son" (root בן, 248x in Genesis); "and·all·his·brothers" (root אח, 164x in Genesis). First appearance of the root ילך ("and·for·you") in Genesis. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'I·have·sustained·him', dividing the verse into phrases of 15 and 5 words.
Onkelos
And Isaac answered and said to Esau: Behold, I have set him as a ruler over you, and all his brothers I have given him as servants, and with grain and wine I have sustained him. And for you — what can I do now, my son?
Rashi
הן גביר AND BEHOLD I HAVE MADE HIM THY MASTER — This blessing is the seventh in the series of blessings which Isaac gave to Jacob (cf. w. 28. 29) and yet he (Isaac) singles it out as though it were the chief blessing? But the explanation is, he said to him (Esau): “What benefit will a blessing be to you? If you acquire property, it will belong to him, for “Behold, I have made him thy master ״, and whatever a servant acquires becomes the property of his master (Genesis Rabbah 67:5). ולכה אפוא מה אעשה בני AND WHAT SHALL I DO NOW UNTO THEE [MY SON?] — Where here (איפה) shall I look for something that I can do for you?
Ramban
AND ALL HIS BRETHREN HAVE I GIVEN HIM AS SERVANTS. This is not the blessing, Be lord over thy brethren, here. for Isaac had already said, Behold, I have made him thy lord. However, it is possible that Jacob be the lord and they not be his servants, just as the verse says, For Judah ‘gavar’ above his brethren. There the word gavar does not indicate a master and servant relationship. Similarly, the word gvir (lord) does not indicate such a relationship. But the source for his saying, I have given to him as servants, comes from his expression, And let thy mother’s sons bow down to thee, here. for this refers to the bowing of the servant to his masters, just as he says, Let people serve thee, here. and then repeats, And nations bow down to thee. here. The meaning of the expression, And all his brothers, Why then does Isaac use the plural form, “his brothers?” is the same as that of thy brothers and thy mother’s sons. here. These he mentions in the plural in order to allude to all of Esau’s offspring. And Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra says that it refers to the children of Abraham’s concubines.
Ibn Ezra
"Behold, I have made him master over you" — through my blessing; I have also given it to him, through speech. Some say that "eifoh" [אֵיפוֹ] written with an aleph at the end is a single word, meaning "now."
Sforno
ואת כל אחיו נתתי לו לעבדים, a reference to the sons of Ishmael, and the sons of Keturah, as well as the kings of other nations. As he had said in verse 29. יעבדוך עמים, “nations will serve you.” ולך איפוא מה אעשה?, in view of this what can I do now for you? What kind of blessing is left which will be of use to you?
Or HaChaim
ויען יצחק, Isaac replied. Actually Isaac still had the chance to bless Esau. Having realised in the meantime that Esau deserved a curse rather than a blessing, that he was in fact an enemy of his brother Jacob, Isaac was afraid to bless Esau because he would thereby neutralise the blessing to Jacob that those who curse him would themselves be cursed. The Torah therefore mentions the expression ויען יצחק twice to tell us that he did not tell Esau the true reason why he could not bless him outright.
Chizkuni
ואת כל אחיו, “and all his brothers, etc.;” Yitzchok refers to Yishmael and his extended family and the children of Keturah. ולכה, “and as far as you personally are concerned;” the unusual spelling with the letters כה at the end is not a scribe’s error, but is deliberate. איפה מה אעשה בני, “what can I do then my son?” Yitzchok explains that seeing that his descendants had been promised by G-d only the land of Canaan, and he had already “given” the whole of it to Yaakov’s descendants, there was no other inheritance he could pass on.
Rabbeinu Bahya
ולכה אפוא מה אעשה בני, “and as to you, where, what can I do my son? This verse teaches that Yaakov had been blessed with the blessing ויתן לך אלוקים, an all encompassing blessing, a blessing which extended both to his body and to his soul. Although, from a strictly textural point of view, such things as “corn, wine, dew, and fatness of the earth appear to be something totally physical, material, these words also contained allusions to the soul. The words ולכה אפוא מה אעשה, cannot mean that Yitzchak did not bless Esau that he should enjoy the dew of the heaven, etc. Surely he had no reason to deny him such a blessing. By assigning the dew of heaven to one person surely that does not exclude another person from enjoying a similar blessing! We must look for some exclusive factor in the blessing Yitzchak had bestowed on Yaakov while he thought that Esau stood before him! The answer therefore must be that Yitzchak bestowed a double blessing aimed at both body and soul. This being so, it left no room for Esau to receive a blessing also. The letter ה at the end of the word ולכה, which really should have been ולך, was an allusion to the five sons Esau would father, i.e. Eliphaz, Reuel, Yeush, Yaalem and Korach. Yitzchak referred to these when he said: “what can I do for you?” He meant that they had already been made servants to Yaakov. This part of the blessing did not allow him to second-guess himself.
Tur HaArokh
ואת כל אחיו נתתי לו לעבדים, “and I have designated that all his bothers be his servants.” These words are not a reference to the line הוי גביר לאחיך in verse 29. It is possible that someone is senior to his brothers without the brothers therefore considering themselves as subservient to that brother. The best example in Scripture is that of Yehudah, who was the leader of his brothers without his brothers ever considering themselves as servants of Yehudah. ואת כל אחיו, “and all his brothers, etc.” Even though he had only one brother, Yitzchok speaks of him in the plural, as he meant to include all of Esau’s future descendants in his remarks. Other commentators feel that the plural extends to Ishmael, as well as Ishmael’s descendants as well as the sons of Keturah.
And Esau said to his father: "Have you but one blessing, my father? bless me, even me also, O my father." And Esau lifted up his voice, and wept.
verse value 2665 — אָבִ֔י = 13 (echad/ahavah)
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 57 letters. Notable word values: "my·father" (אָבִ֔י) = 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). Verse gematria: 2665 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "Esau" (עֵשָׂ֜ו, 3 letters) and the longest is "to·his·father" (אֶל־אָבִ֗יו, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 376: Esau, Esau. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "is·the·blessing" (הַֽבְרָכָ֨ה), "his·voice" (קֹל֖וֹ). The root אב appears 3 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "to·his·father" (root אב, 196x in Genesis); "bless·me" (root ברך, 71x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'my·father', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֨אמֶר [and·said] (257) + עֵשָׂ֜ו [Esau] (376) + אֶל־אָבִ֗יו [to·his·father] (50) + הַֽבְרָכָ֨ה [is·the·blessing] (232) + אַחַ֤ת [one] (409) + הִֽוא־לְךָ֙ [it·to·you] (62) + אָבִ֔י [my·father] (13) + בָּרְכֵ֥נִי [bless·me] (282) + גַם־אָ֖נִי [also·I] (104) + אָבִ֑י [my·father] (13) + וַיִּשָּׂ֥א [and·lifted] (317) + עֵשָׂ֛ו [Esau] (376) + קֹל֖וֹ [his·voice] (136) + וַיֵּֽבְךְּ [and·wept] (38) = 2665.
Onkelos
And Esau said to his father: Have you but one blessing, father? Bless me — me also, father. And Esau lifted his voice and wept.
Rashi
הברכה אחת HAST THOU BUT ONE BLESSING? The ה in הברכה is the interrogative prefix, as in (Num. XIII. 19, 20) “whether in camps (הבמחנים)”, “whether it is fat (השמנה)", and (2 Sam. III. 33) “Should Abner die (הכמות) as a churl dieth”?
And Isaac his father answered and said to him: Behold, of the fat places of the earth shall be your dwelling, And of the dew of heaven from above;
verse value 2481
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 54 letters. The shortest word is "behold" (הִנֵּ֞ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·said" (וַיֹּ֣אמֶר, 5 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "of·the·fat·of" (מִשְׁמַנֵּ֤י), "your·dwelling" (מֽוֹשָׁבֶ֔ךָ), "and·of·the·dew·of" (וּמִטַּ֥ל). 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "shall·be" (root היה, 313x in Genesis); "the·earth" (root ארץ, 305x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·him', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 8 words. Full calculation: וַיַּ֛עַן [and·answered] (136) + יִצְחָ֥ק [Isaac] (208) + אָבִ֖יו [his·father] (19) + וַיֹּ֣אמֶר [and·said] (257) + אֵלָ֑יו [to·him] (47) + הִנֵּ֞ה [behold] (60) + מִשְׁמַנֵּ֤י [of·the·fat·of] (440) + הָאָ֙רֶץ֙ [the·earth] (296) + יִהְיֶ֣ה [shall·be] (30) + מֽוֹשָׁבֶ֔ךָ [your·dwelling] (368) + וּמִטַּ֥ל [and·of·the·dew·of] (85) + הַשָּׁמַ֖יִם [the·heavens] (395) + מֵעָֽל [above] (140) = 2481.
Onkelos
And Isaac his father answered and said to him: Behold, from the goodness of the earth shall be your dwelling, and from the dew of heaven above.
Rashi
משמני הארץ וגו THE FATNESS OF THE EARTH etc. — This refers to the Greek portions of Italy (Graeca Magna) (Genesis Rabbah 67:6).
Ramban
BEHOLD (‘HINEI’), OF THE FAT PLACES OF THE EARTH SHALL BE THY DWELLING. The intent of the word hinei (behold) is: “Now I could give you of the fat places of the earth and of the dew of heaven, for of these there is sufficient [abundance] for both of you to have of the fat places of the earth and of the dew of heaven, but in the matter of lordship, that will be his, and you shall serve him.” Isaac also did not give him plenty of corn and wine as he gave to his brother since he wanted to honor the one who had been blessed first above him. Later he said to Jacob, And G-d Almighty give thee the blessing of Abraham… that thou mayest inherit the land of thy sojournings, meaning that he should have the plentifulness of the corn and wine in the land of Canaan, which was Abraham’s gift, while Esau would have the dew and the fat places of the earth in another land.
Sforno
הנה משמני הארץ יהיה מושבך, I am able to bless you, assuring you that you and your descendants will reside in fruitful areas of the earth, even if they will be marginally subservient to your brother. ומטל השמים מעל, ועל חאבך תחיה, you will be able to live on the blessings provided by the dew without needing rainfall or having to toil the earth; you will live by your sword in times of war. even though at the same time you may be in a state of subservience to your brother and even engage in war as a mercenary on behalf of your brother or someone else. From this it follows that if you were to complain about unreasonable harshness of your brother’s yoke, כאשר תריד, and would want to ופרקת עלו מעל צוארך, “shake off his yoke from around your neck.,” i.e. revert to a different lifestyle, such as engaging in agriculture, know that then you will never become free from subservience to your brother or to someone else.
Or HaChaim
ויען יצחק אביו. Isaac his father replied. The words "his father" explain why Isaac decided to give Esau a blessing after all. In the final analysis his fatherly feelings were stirred by Esau's outburst.
Chizkuni
הנה משמני הארץ, “from the best parts of the land of Canaan will be your personal home;” a reign of the Holy Land is as the best parts and sweets of the Land [Yitzchok referred to the region known as har seir, which adjoins the ancestral region settled by the tribe of Yehudah, a very fruitful region and irrigated from the heavenly dews no less than the Holy Land itself. How did Yitzchok know that G-d approved of the blessing he just pronounced? The reader is referred to Joshua 24,4]. ואתן לעשו את הר שעיר, “I gave to Esau the region of Mount Seir.” which is close to Eretz Yisrael near the territory of the tribe of Judah. This is a fertile land which is watered by dew just like Erez Yisrael. And how do we know that G-d permitted Yitzchok to give to Esau Mount seir? By the formulation of יהיה מושבך, “is going to be your legal residence,” This is supposed to mean that regardless of whether you or your descendants merit it, it is assured to you. If the matter were to depend on individual or collective merit, the promise would never be fulfilled. The problem with the promise to the Jewish people is that it was made by the Attribute of Justice, hence it is subject to the Israelites deserving it.
Rabbeinu Bahya
הנה משמני הארץ, “here from the fat part of the earth, etc.” You do not find mention of the name of G’d in the blessing Esau received, whereas the name of G’d has been mentioned in the blessings given to Yaakov when Yitzchak had said: “and may the Lord give you from the dew of the heaven, etc.” This teaches that Yitzchak did not invoke a direct bounty from G’d when he promised Esau that he would enjoy the bounty of nature, i.e.משמני הארץ יהיה מושבך, “you will reside in a part of the earth which is of the best, the most fertile.” Yitzchak left Esau’s fortunes to the vagaries of the stars, to astrological influences only. This is what he meant by מטל השמים מעל, “from the dew originating in the sky above.” The words ומשמני הארץ יהיה מושבך, are a thinly veiled hint that Yitzchak was concerned only with Esau’s life on earth; he did not foresee an afterlife for him. We have a parallel expression in Numbers 24,21 when Bileam prophesied about the future of the various nations surrounding the people of Moav and Israel and said of the Kenite איתן מושבך, “your dwelling is strong.” There too the implication is that all this will come to an end with the physical death of the person who receives the blessing. The mention of the word הנה is equivalent to an invitation, i.e. Yitzchak inviting these blessings of nature to be available to his son Esau. We find G’d Himself using the same expression when He answered Avraham’s prayer concerning the well-being of his son Ishmael in Genesis 17,2 when he said הנה ברכתי אותו, “I have prepared a blessing for a him.” Blessings introduced with the word הנה are applicable only in this terrestrial world, and in the case of Esau only at times when the Jewish people fail to carry out G’d’s will. These blessings were all subject to certain conditions. When a blessing commenced with the letter ו, i.e. ו-יתן לך האלוקים, “and the Lord may give you, etc.,” this implied “if you have met the prerequisites for this blessing to become effective.” It is clear from verse 40 in our chapter that when the prerequisites of Yitzchak’s blessing have not been met the blessing was not to materialise. This is the meaning of the words והיה כאשר תריד ופרקת עולו מעל צוארך, “and whenever you are aggrieved you will cast off his yoke from your neck.” In other words, the blessings for Esau even in this world are applicable only when Israel is not deserving of its own blessings.
Kli Yakar
Behold, of the fat places of the earth shall be your dwelling. Since Jacob’s eyes were lifted toward heaven, more than he would set his eyes upon naturally fertile land, therefore for Jacob [Isaac] preceded the dew of heaven before the fat places of the earth. This is because Jacob’s primary trust was in the Holy One, Blessed be He, Who holds the keys of rain. However, the fatness of the earth which is in man’s power to fertilize and enrich — this trust was secondary and less important to him. But with Esau it was the opposite — he placed his trust more in his own strength and might through which he could enrich the earth, rather than lifting his eyes to heaven that it should send down beneficial dew. And because he was of little faith, therefore he would choose for his dwelling a naturally fertile land. This is why [Isaac] used the language Behold, of the fat places of the earth shall be your dwelling — he did not mention God’s giving in this blessing. And he mentioned your dwelling because it speaks to how he [Esau] would choose for himself a rich and fertile place to settle there. But Jacob, who placed his trust in God, therefore was not particular about which land he would settle in, because even if it was naturally lean, his heart was secure in God that He would enrich it. This is why regarding him it says And may God give you. And there are those who say that [God] mentioned the dew first regarding Jacob because miraculously his land would be enriched by the dew — even if it fell on lean soil, the dew would enrich it miraculously. However, Esau needs to first seek fertile land and only then will the dew be beneficial, but on lean soil it will not help. Therefore, he needs to seek to inherit land by his sword, which is why [Isaac] immediately followed this with the blessing and by your sword you shall live.
Tur HaArokh
הנה משמני הארץ יהיה מושבך, “here you are assured that the region in which you will dwell will belong to the most productive ones on earth.” According to Nachmanides, the expression הנה here introduces the limitation of any blessing Yitzchok can bestow now. He says, that although I can assure you of a materially brilliant future, riches based on what the earth you dwell on will produce, but the political power, ממשלה, will belong to your brother. Yitzchok did not bless Esau with the parallel blessing of רוב דגן ותירוש, “an overabundance of grain and wine, either, as he had done when he blessed Yaakov thinking that he was Esau. (verse 28) Both of them, Esau and Ishmael, are sufficiently blessed with the wish that they will dwell on the fertile parts of the earth. Yitzchok was concerned that the one whom he had blessed first would enjoy a clear advantage even in the wording of the blessing he had obtained. This is also why, before sending Yaakov to look for a wife, he added specifically; ויתן לך את ברכת אברהם וגו', “and may G’d grant you the blessing conferred upon Avraham, etc.” The fulfillment of the blessing of “overabundance of grain and wine,” was thus deferred to the period after the land of the Canaanites had been conquered by Yaakov’s descendants. (28,4) The dew of the heaven and the fatness of the land promised to Esau applied to some country other than the land of Israel. There was a distinct difference in the qualities of the blessings extended before Yaakov was dispatched to look for a wife, and the blessings resulting from Yitzchok’s eating the venison. In the first and last blessing the name of G’d as the source of the blessing does appear, whereas in the blessing to Esau, the “consolation prize,” Yitzchok does not even mention the name of G’d. The reason was that Esau had not mentioned the name of G’d either. It is of significance that when blessing Esau as Esau, Yitzchok mentions the fatness of the earth before mentioning the dew of the heavens, whereas when speaking of the same phenomena to Yaakov, Yitzchok reversed the order by mentioning the heavenly part, the dew before mentioning the earth’s contribution to man’s success as a farmer. The reason is that when blessing Yaakov, Yitzchok had already blessed him specifically by invoking the name of G’d.
And by your sword shall you live, And you shall serve your brother; And it shall come to pass when you shall break loose, That you shall shake his yoke from off your neck.
verse value 4191 — וְהָיָה֙ = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 50 letters. Notable word values: "and·it·shall·be" (וְהָיָה֙) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "his·yoke" (עֻלּ֖וֹ, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·by·your·sword" (וְעַל־חַרְבְּךָ֣, 7 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "and·by·your·sword" (וְעַל־חַרְבְּךָ֣), "shall·live" (תִֽחְיֶ֔ה), "grow·restive" (תָּרִ֔יד). The root על appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 313x in Genesis); "as" (root אשר, 313x in Genesis); "and·your·brother" (root אח, 164x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'shall·serve', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 7 words. Full calculation: וְעַל־חַרְבְּךָ֣ [and·by·your·sword] (336) + תִֽחְיֶ֔ה [shall·live] (423) + וְאֶת־אָחִ֖יךָ [and·your·brother] (446) + תַּעֲבֹ֑ד [shall·serve] (476) + וְהָיָה֙ [and·it·shall·be] (26) + כַּאֲשֶׁ֣ר [as] (521) + תָּרִ֔יד [grow·restive] (614) + וּפָרַקְתָּ֥ [and·you·shall·break] (786) + עֻלּ֖וֹ [his·yoke] (106) + מֵעַ֥ל [from·upon] (140) + צַוָּארֶֽךָ [your·neck] (317) = 4191.
Onkelos
And by your sword you shall live, and your brother you shall serve. And it shall be, when his sons transgress the words of the Torah, that you will shake his yoke from your neck.
Rashi
ועל חרבך—The phrase is equivalent to בחרבך BY THY SWORD. The word על is sometimes used instead of the prefix ב, as (Ezekiel 33:26) “Ye stand by your sword (על חרבכם)”, which is the same as בחרבכם; (Exodus 6:26) “by their hosts (על צבאותם), which is the same as בצבאותם. AND והיה כאשר תריד AND IT SHALL CAME TO PASS THAT WHEN THOU ROVEST ABOUT — The word תריד signifies grief, pain, as (Psalms 40:3) “I am distraught (אריד) in my complaint”. It means: when Israel will transgress the Torah and you will have reason to feel aggrieved with regard to the Blessings, ופרקת עלו וגו THEN THOU SHALT PULL HIS YOKE FROM OFF THY NECK (Genesis Rabbah 67:7).
Ramban
AND ON THY SWORD (‘VE’AL CHARBECHA’) YOU SHALL LIVE. The meaning of ve’al charbecha is as if it were written, becharbecha (by thy sword). A similar case is the verse, For man does not live ‘al halechem’ (on bread) alone, which means belechem (by bread). Now the blessing is not that he live on the booty he takes from his enemies by the sword, for he has already given him of the fat places of the earth and of the dew of heaven by which he shall live. Instead, the purport of the blessing is that he survive his battles and be victorious, and not fall by the sword of an enemy. It is for this reason that immediately following this he said, And thou shall serve thy brother, meaning, “but you will not prevail over him. Instead, he will prevail over you.” AND IT SHALL COME TO PASS WHEN THOU SHALL BREAK LOOSE in thy suffering on account of Jacob’s transgression, THEN THOU SHALT SHAKE HIS YOKE FROM OFF THY NECK. This is an indication to Israel that they should not contend with the children of Esau too much in order to do them evil. This is what Scripture commanded: Take ye good heed, contend not with them, etc. referring to the children of Esau in the land of Se’ir. And so did our Rabbis say: “For Joab and all Israel remained there six months, until he had cut off every male in Edom. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to David, ‘I said, Contend not with them, and you did contend. By your life, these six months will not accrue to you and your reign.’ We know this was fulfilled since it is written, And the days that David reigned over Israel were forty years, but in truth he reigned six more months, as it is written, In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months.” And in Jerusalem he reigned thirty and three years for a total of forty years and six months. Yet he is credited with only forty years. The Rabbis also said, “The Holy One, blessed be He, said to David, ‘Thy hands are sharp and pointed, and I seek to rule my world with them, etc’” ’” (Deuteronomy 2:3).
Ibn Ezra
Also in the days of Hyrcanus the Elder, he appointed them [the Idumeans] as guards of Jerusalem and brought them into the covenant of circumcision.
Or HaChaim
ואת אחיך…והיה כאשר תריד ופרקת עלו. "And your brother…but when you will grieve, you will be able to shake off his yoke." There are many explanations on this verse. It is possible to say that all the blessings of Esau are applicable only as long as Esau is content to serve his brother but not when Esau would try and shake off the yoke of serving his brother. The word תריד may also be derived from the root רדה. It would then mean that once Esau was persecuted and subjugated by Jacob he would begin to shake off Jacob's yoke; at a still later stage the prophecy of "the house of Jacob becoming fire and the house of Esau turning to straw" would be fulfilled (compare Ovadiah 1,18). The reason that the word והיה which signifies a happy occurrence is used may lend support to this interpretation. Esau's destruction would cause joy both in heaven and on earth. Alternately, the meaning could be that even when Esau dominates the rest of the world, his dominion will not extend over Jacob (the Jewish people) except inasmuch as he will not be dominated by Jacob. He himself will not dominate Jacob. There would be a stand-off between Israel and Edom.
Chizkuni
ועל חרבך תחיה, “you will live by grace of your sword.” Yitzchok promises Esau that as a reward for having hunted deer in order to bring him delectable food, he will also henceforth be able to survive by his sword in his dangerous vocation. [The word “sword” here is used by Yitzchok as a general term for instruments used to kill, seeing that Esau had hunted for him with bow and arrow. Ed.] ואת אחיך תעבוד, “but you will be subservient to your brother.” Esau had first complained that this is a put down for him. Yitzchok explains to him that prevailing in military confrontations is never a “put down,” but on the contrary, the victors are held in high esteem and are feared. Esau complained that having to live by constant confrontation with others is a very demanding task; Yitzchok answers that he has the option to be peaceful and subservient to his brother. If so, his brother will surely display mercy and tolerance for him. כאשר תריד, an unusual expression, similar to Psalms 55,3: אריד בשמחי, “I am complaining;” Yitzchok assures him that if in the future the descendants of his brother will oppress those of Esau so that they will complain to Him, they will be able to shake off the yoke of the Israelites, i.e. ופרקת עולו. It is best for him to find himself another land in which to live so that he will never be exposed to subjugation by Yaakov’s descendants. [Esau chose to do so from his own free will, as we know from Genesis 36,68. Ed.] An alternative exegesis for the words: כאשר תריד. The root is ירד to descend, (compare Numbers 24,19, Bileam’s blessings) וירד מיעקב, “when you rule then you will shake off his yoke.” We find that history proved Bileam correct when we read in Kings II 8,20, that during the rule of Yoram, son of Achav, the Edomites rebelled against his rule. They proceeded to set up a state of their own by crowning a king.
Rabbeinu Bahya
ועל חרבך תחיה, “and you will live (survive) by means of your sword.” This blessing was an acceptance by Yitzchak of Esau’s vocation as a hunter, a person who spends most of his time in wildernesses, uncivilised countries where danger always lurks. It was appropriate then that Yitzchak assured his son of protection against these dangers, blessing his sword as an instrument of his survival, so to speak. Esau’s patron was the planet Mars, the planet associated with warfare, bloodshed, with the sword. This is why the descendants of Esau also excelled in military conquest. Basically, Esau’s patron in the celestial spheres indulges in killing and represents the power of the sword in this world. In order to contrast Yaakov’s (Jewish) philosophy with that of Esau, the Torah legislated that the altar or Sanctuary of the Jewish people must be built without any metal instruments being used as these instruments symbolise war and bloodshed. In connection with the construction of the Tabernacle, the Torah writes in Exodus 25,3 where the materials to be donated for that structure are listed, that gold, silver and copper are to be contributed. Iron was not solicited as a contribution at all. In Kings I 6,7 we are told ומקבות והגרזן כל כלי ברזל לא נשמע בבית בהבנותו, “and hammers and axes and any other iron instruments were not heard in connection with the Temple’s being built.” The reason was that iron symbolised war and the sword which brings destruction to the world. The function of the Temple, on the other hand, is to ensure hat the world endures. ואת אחיך תעבוד, “and you will serve your brother.” Provided Yaakov deserves his blessing. והיה כאשר תריד, “and when you are aggrieved, etc.,” when Yaakov is not in a state when he deserves his blessing. ופרקת עולו מעל צוארך, “you will cast off his yoke from your neck.” This is in line with the opinion of Onkelos who translates this verse as: “when they violate the commandments of the Torah.”
Kli Yakar
“And it shall be when you will rule [tarid], you shall break his yoke, etc.” The word tarid is unusual in Scripture and doesn’t fit well with Rashi’s interpretation, as the nature of the suffering is not explained in the text. Some interpret it as relating to dominion and rule, interpreting it as they have. But I say this is its interpretation: Isaac knew through divine inspiration that the blessing the elder shall serve the younger would only be fulfilled when Israel is meritorious. Perhaps he understood this from what was told to him two nations will separate from your innards — one to his wickedness and one to his innocence — and then the elder shall serve the younger, for the righteous one rules over the wicked one through fear of God. However, if he is not meritorious, why should he rule over him? One might think that when Israel is not meritorious, not only would the elder not serve the younger, but the elder would actually rule over the younger. Therefore, he said this is not so — rather, when the younger is meritorious and maintains his innocence, you shall serve your brother. But when you shall rule — meaning when the time comes that you will have dominion and rule over the whole world, which happens when Israel is not meritorious [for when one falls, the other rises] — then it will be enough for you to break his yoke from your neck, but nevertheless, you too will not be able to dominate him. This is why it says in Obadiah, For the violence against your brother Jacob, shame shall cover you (Obadiah 1:10), and it is written, And saviors shall ascend Mount Zion to judge the mountain of Esau (Obadiah 1:21). From all this, it implies that Esau will ultimately be held accountable for having dominated Israel, as he was only given permission to break the yoke from his neck, not to dominate over Israel.
Tur HaArokh
ועל חרבך תחיה. “and by means of your sword you will survive.” The expression על חרבך is equivalent to בחרבך,”through your sword.” Yitzchok meant that the hands of the one who had pleased him by feeding him venison will be saved through the successful use of the sword that these hands make. Yitzchok most certainly did not wish Esau to become a conqueror and to survive by consuming the loot he had acquired from the enemies he had slain. Having blessed Esau with success in agriculture in the previous verse, there certainly was no call for wishing him success as warrior. He did, however, assure him that in his war against adversaries he would not become the victim of the swords of his enemies. Some commentators hold that the words ועל חרבך תחיה are a consolation to Esau, seeing his father had blessed his brother by appointing him Esau’s superior. Yitzchok now hedged his blessing by assuring Esau that he would not become the victim of any abuse of his stronger brother’s power. Esau’s service to his brother would consist of being employed as his brother’s mercenary, using his sword to what are essentially Yaakov’s battles. Rabbeinu Saadyah Gaon, questions why Yitzchok chose such an unusual wording for his blessing to Esau, instead of saying: “may the Lord give you from the fatness of the earth and the dew of the heaven.” The reason is, according to Rabbeinu Saadyah, that in fact Yitzchok did not bless Esau at all; he merely stated that seeing he had already said to Yaakov that those that curse him would be cursed, if he were to accord something to Esau at the expense of Yaakov, He would make Himself liable to a curse by having diminished what had been promised to Yaakov. However, he consoled Esau by assuring him that his fate already included the fact that bounty of nature would always be at his disposal in the shape of the fatness of the land and the dew of the heaven that would ensure bountiful harvests. והיה כאשר תריד, “it will come to pass when you have reason to grieve, etc.” when Yaakov will abuse this power of superiority by giving you justifiable reason to complain especially since at a time when Yaakov’s descendants do not live up to the terms of their covenant with G’d, you will be able to shake off his yoke. Yaakov then will not regain his superiority, as Bileam already stated in Numbers 24,19 וירד מיעקב והאביד שריד מעיר, [the root of the word תריד is not ירד “to descend,” but רדה, “to rule, exercise authority.”] “The one who ruled obtaining his power from Yaakov, will lose it, retaining only a city.” This is a reference to the time when the Romans would rule over the entire region of Mesopotamia. Bileam describes the period in the distant future at the time of the redemption when Yaakov/Israel will regain its position of dominance. After that Esau will never again experience a rise in stature. והיה כאשר תריד, the word תריד is used in a sense similar to Psalms 55,3 “if the Israelites oppress you more than is justified, turn to G’d in prayerful complaint and He will throw off his yoke from you.” Yitzchok hints to Esau that Yaakov will not be at liberty to use his power over him injudiciously. Another explanation sees in the word תריד a variant of רדוי, being vanquished, captive, as if Yitzchok were saying to Esau: “when you do not wish to endure Yaakov’s dominance, conquer his land and shake off his yoke.”
And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father blessed him. And Esau said in his heart: "Let the days of mourning for my father be at hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob."
verse value 4323 — אָבִ֔י = 13 (echad/ahavah)
Insights
Verse structure: 17 words, 73 letters. Notable word values: "my·father" (אָבִ֔י) = 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "Esau" (עֵשָׂו֙, 3 letters) and the longest is "because·of·the·blessing" (עַ֨ל־הַבְּרָכָ֔ה, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 583: Jacob, Jacob. 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "and·harbored·a·grudge" (וַיִּשְׂטֹ֤ם), "because·of·the·blessing" (עַ֨ל־הַבְּרָכָ֔ה), "approach" (יִקְרְבוּ֙). The root יעקב appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "which" (root אשר, 313x in Genesis); "his·father" (root אב, 196x in Genesis). First appearance of the root שטם ("and·harbored·a·grudge") in Genesis. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'his·father', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 10 words.
Onkelos
And Esau bore hatred toward Jacob on account of the blessing with which his father had blessed him. And Esau said in his heart: The days of mourning for my father will draw near, and then I will kill Jacob my brother.
Rashi
יקרבו ימי אבל אבי THE DAYS OF MOURNING FOR MY FATHER APPROACH — Explain it according to the evident meaning of the words — (I will wait to kill him until my father is dead), that I may not cause grief to my father. There are Midrashic explanations of various kinds.
Ramban
AND ESAU SAID IN HIS HEART. Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra said, “It is possible that he revealed his secret to one of his friends.” But this is not necessarily so for any decision which a person reaches after deliberation is referred to in Hebrew as “speaking with the heart,” even when it also includes speech with the lips. A similar case is found in the verse, And with a double heart do they speak, for the will is synonymous with the heart. And all Israel were of one heart to make David king, meaning that they had all arrived at the same decision and were talking of it. Similarly, And Jeroboam said in his heart. Further on it says, And the king took counsel, (Verse 28). Here also there was speech which Scripture had referred to as being said in his heart. Similarly did Eliezer say, And before I had finished speaking in my heart, whereas the prayer there was with his lips, as Scripture states, And he said, O Eternal G-d of my lord Abraham. However it is possible that the expression, before I had finished speaking in my heart, means “before I had concluded the thought in my mind.”Now here the verse states that when the great hatred of Jacob permeated Esau’s soul because of the blessing, he conceived the idea of murdering his brother, and with this he comforted himself from his depressed state. This explains the verse, And the words of Esau were told to Rebekah. here. As Ramban explained, a decision in one’s heart, even though coupled with speech, is still referred to in Hebrew as “the speech of heart.” Therefore, the verse means that Esau decided upon a course of action, and he himself informed his mother of his decision. This is why she said to Jacob, Thy brother Esau comforts himself to slay thee. here. Now Rashi comments, “She was told, through Ruach Hakodesh, what Esau was thinking in his heart.” And so it is found in Bereshith Rabbah. If so, Esau’s words and thoughts were only in his heart, just as in the verse, I spoke with my own heart. The reason that Esau said, Let the days of mourning for my father be at hand then will I slay my brother is because he would not bring grief to his father during his lifetime. Perhaps it was due to his fear lest his father curse him, and his blessing would then turn into a curse. Rebekah, [who nevertheless advised Jacob to flee], feared that perhaps the elderly one would die suddenly, and Esau would then kill Jacob, or perhaps he might find occasion to kill him even during Isaac’s lifetime.
Ibn Ezra
"And he harbored hatred" — he held a grudge; similarly: "and they were hostile to him" (Genesis 49:23). "And Esau said in his heart" — it is possible that he revealed his secret to one of his friends. Some say it was by way of prophecy [that the Torah knows this]. The first explanation is the more probable.
Or HaChaim
יקרבו ימי אבל אבי, "the days of mourning for my father are not far off." Esau referred to the time after his father's funeral when the days of mourning commence. He was afraid to murder Jacob before his father would be buried since the dead are reputed to be aware of what goes on as long as the grave or coffin has not been sealed (Shabbat 152).
Chizkuni
וישטום עשו את יעקב על הברכה, “Esau hated Yaakov on account of the blessing;” there are some commentators who do not consider the words: על הברכה in our verse as referring to the blessing that Yaakov had “robbed” Esau of, but they consider these words as Esau’s complaint about the blessing that he did receive from his father, i.e. that he would always have to fight for his survival, על חרבך תחיה, “you will live (only) by the sword.” He placed a great deal of trust in that blessing. We would then have to understand our verse as follows: “Esau hated Yaakov, as from now on he had an assurance that by means of the sword he would always survive.” יקרבו ימי אבל אבי, Esau was sure that his father would not live long enough to sire another son who could avenge Yaakov when he would murder him. ואהרגה, “when I shall kill, etc.” The letter ו is vocalised with the semi vowel sheva, and the letter aleph with a patach.
Rabbeinu Bahya
ויאמר עשו בלבו, “Esau said to himself, etc.” Our sages in Bereshit Rabbah 67,8 used this phrase to remind us that the wicked are always “prisoners” of the dictates of their hearts, whereas the righteous are in full control of their hearts. We have a number of verses speaking of wicked people in which the Bible uses the same expression. Examples are: Psalms 14,1: “Naval said in his heart,” (to himself), Jerobam said to himself (Kings I 12,26) et al. The word בלבו must be contrasted with the expression אל לבו, “to his heart,” as distinct from “in his heart.” When you speak “to your heart,” you are the boss. When a voice speaks “in your heart,” the heart is the boss. This why we find in Samuel I 1,13 where Chanah is praying that the wording used to describe this is וחנה היא מדברת אל לבה, “and Chanah, she was speaking to her heart.” When G’d is reported as speaking to Himself in Genesis 5,21 the wording used is also ויאמר ה’ אל לבו. יקרבו ימי אבל אבי, “may the days of mourning for my father approach, etc.” He did not want to kill Yaakov while Yitzchak was alive as he was afraid of being cursed by his father and that the blessing he had received would turn into a curse. Seeing that Yaakov had gone into hiding and left town, Rivkah had to send a message to him [ותשלח in verse 42] to warn him of Esau’s plan.
Kli Yakar
“Let the days of mourning for my father draw near.” [Esau] connected his plan to the days of mourning because a mourner is forbidden to study Torah, which is described as the precepts of God are upright, rejoicing the heart. And [previously] Isaac had said when you cast off — meaning at a time when they [Jacob’s descendants] do not engage in Torah study — you shall break his yoke. Therefore, during the mourning period [Jacob] would certainly not engage in Torah study and would have nothing to protect him, and then I will kill my brother. For this reason, our Sages taught (Berachot 44b) that a mourner requires protection because he lacks the Torah that normally protects him, as it is said When you walk, it shall guide you; when you lie down, it shall guard you (Proverbs 6:22).
Tur HaArokh
ויאמר עשו בלבו, “Esau said to himself: etc.” According to Ibn Ezra, Esau may have revealed his intention to one of his intimate friends. Nachmanides feels that there is no need to resort to such an explanation, [which distorts the meaning of the text, Ed.] seeing that something that a person resolves in his heart is often described by Scripture as אמירה, “something that has been said.” Esau’s resolve to eventually murder Yaakov was as good as if he had actually said so with his lips. The fact that he had made such a resolution consoled him over the present situation. יקרבו ימי אבל אבי, “the days of mourning for my father’s death are approaching;” according to the plain meaning, Esau looked forward to his father’s death as he would not have wanted to cause his father such a painful experience as losing a son. Not only that, his father might curse him for what he had done. Other commentators believe that the words do not mean that Esau looked forward to his father’s death, but that he said: ”I will bring my father’s mourning Yaakov’s death closer by murdering Yaakov.”
And the words of Esau her elder son were told to Rebekah; and she sent and called Jacob her younger son, and said to him: "Behold, your brother Esau, as touching you, does comfort himself, purposing to kill you.
verse value 5351
Insights
Verse structure: 19 words, 78 letters. The shortest word is "to·you" (לְךָ֖, 2 letters) and the longest is "the·words·of" (אֶת־דִּבְרֵ֥י, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 376: Esau, Esau. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "and·sent" (וַתִּשְׁלַ֞ח), "is·consoling·himself" (מִתְנַחֵ֥ם), "to·kill·you" (לְהׇרְגֶֽךָ). The root בן appears 2 times in this verse. 16 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·she·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "her·son" (root בן, 248x in Genesis); "to·him" (root אל, 242x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'great', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 13 words.
Onkelos
And the words of Esau her elder son were revealed to Rebekah, and she sent and called Jacob her younger son and said to him: Behold, Esau your brother is lying in wait to kill you.
Rashi
ויגד לרבקה WERE TOLD TO REBEKAH — It was told her by the Holy Spirit what Esau was thinking in his heart (Genesis Rabbah 67:9). מתנחם לך DOTH COMFORT HIMSELF CONCERNING THEE — He regrets the brotherly relationship existing between you, harbouring thoughts other than those of brotherhood, to estrange himself from you and to kill you. The Midrashic explanation (Genesis Rabbah 67:9) is: In his eyes you are already regarded as dead and he has drunk for you (i. e. because he regards you as dead) the cup of consolation (which it was customary for near relatives of the deceased to drink). But according to the real meaning the word signifies “comforting” — he will comfort himself for the loss of the blessings by killing you.
Ramban
AND SHE SENT AND CALLED JACOB. The meaning thereof is that Jacob was in another place, not in the tent of his father and mother, since he was hiding from his brother Esau who was complaining about him, and he was ashamed or afraid of him. HE DOTH COMFORT HIMSELF (‘LECHA’) TO SLAY THEE. “He comforts himself for the loss of the blessings by killing you.” Thus the language of Rashi. But the simple interpretation is that “he comforts himself with you.” Thus the verse states that “his comfort for the loss he suffered is to slay thee.” But according to Ramban the comfort is for his own personal sake, and the meaning of the word lecha (to you) is as if it were written becha (with you), and the thought of the verse is that “his comfort with you is to kill you.” Similar cases [of the letter lamed having the meaning of a beth] are found in the verses, Thou hast chosen the son of Jesse, The Hebrew: l’ben Yishai (to the son of Jesse). The verse thus means that “your choice lies with the son of Jesse.” And he took hold of him, The Hebrew vehechezik lo here means vehechezik bo. and many similar cases. Perhaps the interpretation is that “he is comforting himself concerning you,” just as in the verses: And the men of the place asked him of his wife; The Hebrew word le’ishto in this verse does not mean “to his wife,” but “concerning his wife.” And he fell on his face; The Hebrew word le’apav in this verse does not mean “to his face,” but “on his face.” For the king had so commanded concerning him. The word lo (to him) here means alav (concerning him). Onkelos, however, translates it as kemin lecha, meaning, “he lies in wait for you.” It would appear from his opinion that the meaning of the Hebrew expression, mithnachem lecha, is that “Esau effects the appearance of having been consoled about the matter of the blessings as if he no longer cares for them, but in truth he lies in wait for you and acts this way so that you should not be on guard.” Now Onkelos translated according to the intent of the verse but not according to the language.
Ibn Ezra
"Is consoling himself" — from the root of "consolation"; the meaning is: this was his consolation — that he would be able to kill you. The Gaon said it is from the root of the Arabic verb wa-ada ["to threaten"].
Or HaChaim
עשו בנו הגדול, her elder son Esau. The reason she used the word הגדול "the bigger one," instead of הבכיר, "the older one", was because she was describing Esau's relative prowess compared to the physically smaller Jacob. מתנחם לך, consoles himself concerning you. The thought of killing you acts as consolation for him regarding what you have done to him. By killing you he means to restore to himself both the birthright and the blessing.
Chizkuni
ויגד לרבקה את דברי עשו בנה, “Rivkah was informed of the words of her son Esau;” he was saying quite openly what was in his heart, i.e. that as soon as his father would die, he would murder his twin brother. Someone who had heard him say this told his mother.
Tur HaArokh
ותשלח ותקרא ליעקב, “she sent a message to Yaakov calling him to come and see her.” She had to send him a message as he was not at his usual place, being in hiding, either in fear of Esau’s revenge or because he was too embarrassed to face his brother, being ashamed of what he had done, and Esau having loudly complained about him to all who would listen. מתנחם לך להרגך, “he is consoling himself with the plan to kill you.” According to Rashi this either means that he consoles himself over the loss of the blessings by killing you, or that he had already prepared the cup of wine given to a mourner to allow him to comfort himself over the loss of a dear relative.
Now therefore, my son, heed my voice; and arise, flee to Laban my brother to Haran;
verse value 1902
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 35 letters. The shortest word is "my·son" (בְנִ֖י, 3 letters) and the longest is "flee" (בְּרַח־לְךָ֛, 5 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "and·arise" (וְק֧וּם), "flee" (בְּרַח־לְךָ֛). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "my·son" (root בן, 248x in Genesis); "my·brother" (root אח, 164x in Genesis); "listen" (root שמע, 63x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·my·voice', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 5 words. Full calculation: וְעַתָּ֥ה [and·now] (481) + בְנִ֖י [my·son] (62) + שְׁמַ֣ע [listen] (410) + בְּקֹלִ֑י [to·my·voice] (142) + וְק֧וּם [and·arise] (152) + בְּרַח־לְךָ֛ [flee] (260) + אֶל־לָבָ֥ן [to·Laban] (113) + אָחִ֖י [my·brother] (19) + חָרָֽנָה [to·Haran] (263) = 1902.
Onkelos
And now, my son, heed me: arise and go to Laban my brother, to Haran.
Or HaChaim
ועתה בני, "and now my son, etc." This has to be understood in the same vein as the statement by our sages that one should be a penitent a day before one's death (Avot 2,10). Rebeccah reminded Jacob that no one is assured of his life for even a single day. As a result one must always be penitent. This is why she chose the expression "now." קום ברח, "arise and flee!" She urged Jacob to flee at once although Esau had indicated he would not murder Jacob until after his father's death. Rebeccah was afraid that Isaac might die at any time, thus enabling Esau to try and carry out his evil intention. ברח לך אל לבן. "Flee to Laban." Laban would stand up against Esau if the latter were to pursue Jacob in order to kill him.
and tarry with him a few days, until your brother's fury turns away;
verse value 2767
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 33 letters. The shortest word is "until" (עַ֥ד, 2 letters) and the longest is "which·returns" (אֲשֶׁר־תָּשׁ֖וּב, 7 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "which·returns" (אֲשֶׁר־תָּשׁ֖וּב), "the·fury·of" (חֲמַ֥ת). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "your·brother" (root אח, 164x in Genesis); "with·him" (root עם, 87x in Genesis); "and·stay" (root ישב, 72x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'a·few', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְיָשַׁבְתָּ֥ [and·stay] (718) + עִמּ֖וֹ [with·him] (116) + יָמִ֣ים [days] (100) + אֲחָדִ֑ים [a·few] (63) + עַ֥ד [until] (74) + אֲשֶׁר־תָּשׁ֖וּב [which·returns] (1209) + חֲמַ֥ת [the·fury·of] (448) + אָחִֽיךָ [your·brother] (39) = 2767.
Onkelos
And stay with him for some days, until your brother's anger subsides.
Rashi
אחדים means A FEW.
Ibn Ezra
"Some days" — this is like "its redemption period shall be" (Leviticus 25:29), meaning a few years. And "a few" [achadim] means fewer than ten.
Or HaChaim
עד אשר תשוב חמת אחיך. "until such time as your brother's anger subsides." Anger has a habit of cooling with the passage of time. The reason that Rebeccah continued to belabour the same point in verse 45 was that she knew that the mere passage of time would not be enough to bring about the desired cooling off of Esau's anger. Until such time as Esau would not become furious when others mentioned what had happened there was no knowing if it would be safe for Jacob to return home. ושלחתי ולקחתיך, "I will send and fetch you." She did not want Jacob to risk returning under any circumstances until she would send for him.
Chizkuni
ימים אחדים, “one year.”
Rabbeinu Bahya
עד אשר תשוב חמת אחיך, “until the anger of your brother abates.” This was the anger at having sold the birthright.
until your brother's anger turns away from you, and he forgets that which you have done to him; then I will send, and fetch you from there; why should I be bereaved of you both in one day?"
verse value 5320 — לּ֔וֹ = 36 (double-Chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 65 letters. Notable word values: "to·him" (לּ֔וֹ) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "to·him" (לּ֔וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "what·you·have·done" (אֵ֣ת אֲשֶׁר־עָשִׂ֣יתָ, 9 letters). 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "until·returning" (עַד־שׁ֨וּב), "anger·of·your·brother" (אַף־אָחִ֜יךָ), "and·forgets" (וְשָׁכַח֙). 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "from·there" (root שם, 180x in Genesis); "what·you·have·done" (root עשה, 152x in Genesis); "and·I·will·fetch·you" (root לקח, 142x in Genesis). First appearance of the root שכח ("and·forgets") in Genesis. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·there', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 5 words. Full calculation: עַד־שׁ֨וּב [until·returning] (382) + אַף־אָחִ֜יךָ [anger·of·your·brother] (120) + מִמְּךָ֗ [from·you] (100) + וְשָׁכַח֙ [and·forgets] (334) + אֵ֣ת אֲשֶׁר־עָשִׂ֣יתָ [what·you·have·done] (1682) + לּ֔וֹ [to·him] (36) + וְשָׁלַחְתִּ֖י [and·I·will·send] (754) + וּלְקַחְתִּ֣יךָ [and·I·will·fetch·you] (574) + מִשָּׁ֑ם [from·there] (380) + לָמָ֥ה [why] (75) + אֶשְׁכַּ֛ל [be·bereaved] (351) + גַּם־שְׁנֵיכֶ֖ם [both·of·you] (463) + י֥וֹם [day] (56) + אֶחָֽד [one] (13) = 5320.
Onkelos
Until your brother's anger turns away from you and he forgets what you did to him. Then I will send and fetch you from there. Why should I be bereaved of both of you on the same day?
Rashi
למה אשכל means WHY SHOULD I BE BEREAVED משניכם OF BOTH OF YOU? — The one who buries his children is termed שכול bereaved: so we find in the case of Jacob (43:14), “If I am to be bereaved (שכלתי) let me be bereaved”. גם שניכם OF YOU BOTH — If he attacks you and you kill him his children will rise and kill you. The Holy Spirit poured itself forth upon her and she prophesied (had a presage) that they would both die on one day just as it is stated in the Chapter המקנה לאשתו (Sotah 13a).
Ibn Ezra
"Why should I be bereaved" — she feared that perhaps they would kill each other, or that he [Esau] would be put to death if he killed you [Jacob]. And there is a midrashic interpretation that both of them died on the same day.
Or HaChaim
גם שניכם יום אחד. "both of you on the same day." Rebeccah said to Jacob: "even assuming that Esau would die in an act of self defense by you or an act of revenge by a relative of yours this would not give me any satisfaction at all." Rebeccah's concern was only for the life of Jacob; she did not care about Esau at all.
Chizkuni
למה אשכל גם שניכם יום אחד, “why should your father and I be bereft of both of you on a single day? Rivkah referred to her becoming widowed on the day Yitzchok would die, and immediately thereafter would also be bereft of Yaakov when Esau would carry out his threat. (verse 41) The principal commentary on this line is that of Rashi, who understands Rivkah as saying to Yaakov that even if he were to kill Esau first, his sons would avenge him by killing him. The word: גם, “also,” in this verse refers to herself, who meant that if she were to lose both her sons she would consider herself as dead. יום אחד, even though they might not both die on the same day, they would be buried on the same day. (Based on the Talmud in Sotah 13)
Rabbeinu Bahya
עד שוב אף אחיך, “until your brother’s wrath subsides.” This was a reference to the blessing Yaakov had stolen from him. This is the reason the Torah speaks of two different types of anger Esau was filled with.
Tur HaArokh
למה אשכול שניכם יום אחד?, “why should I be bereaved of both of you on the same day?” According to the plain meaning of the text she referred to the death of both Yaakov and Esau. Some commentators believe she was referring to the death of Yaakov and Yitzchok, as Esau had said he would kill Yaakov as soon as Yitzchok would die.
And Rebekah said to Isaac: "I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth. If Jacob takes a wife of the daughters of Heth, such as these, of the daughters of the land, what good shall my life do me?"
verse value 5475
Insights
Verse structure: 18 words, 74 letters. The shortest word is "Heth" (חֵ֑ת, 2 letters) and the longest is "from·the·daughters·of·Heth" (מִבְּנֽוֹת־חֵ֤ת, 7 letters). 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Genesis. Unique to this verse in Genesis (hapax): "I·am·disgusted" (קַ֣צְתִּי), "in·my·life" (בְחַיַּ֔י), "Heth" (חֵ֑ת). The root בת appears 3 times in this verse. 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·she·said" (root אמר, 604x in Genesis); "the·land" (root ארץ, 305x in Genesis); "like·these" (root אלה, 301x in Genesis). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Heth', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 10 words.
Onkelos
And Rebekah said to Isaac: I am disgusted with my life because of the daughters of the Hittites. If Jacob takes a wife from the daughters of the Hittites, like these, from the daughters of the land, what good is life to me?
Rashi
קצתי בחיי means I AM DISGUSTED WITH MY LIFE.
Ibn Ezra
"I am disgusted with my life" — like the inverted form [of the same root]; similarly: "let us go up against Judah and vex it" (Isaiah 7:6); and likewise Scripture says: "that you dread" (Isaiah 7:16).
Or HaChaim
קצתי בחיי. "I am fed up with my life." She did not want to reveal the true reason for her state of mind because it is forbidden to tell tales. This is why she gave Isaac a different reason for wanting Jacob sent away. When she had revealed Esau's intention to Jacob this was not tale-bearing but was fulfilment of the commandment in the second half of the verse dealing with tale bearing, "do not stand idly by when the blood of your fellow man is being shed" (Leviticus 19,16).
Chizkuni
אם לוקח יעקב אשה מבנות חת, “if Yaakov were to take a wife from amongst the Hittites;” She said this only in order to insure that Yaakov would be physically out of reach to Esau. [She could not imagine that Yaakov actually would do such a thing. Ed.] She wanted Yitzchok to specifically warn Yaakov not to marry a Hittite woman. She was afraid that unless specifically instructed, he would not want to leave his home and appear like a fugitive. He might instead marry someone from a powerful family and take his chances that they would protect him against his brother.
Rabbeinu Bahya
קצתי בחיי מפני בנות חת, “I am fed up with my life on account of the Hittite women” (Esau’s wives). You notice that the letter ק at the beginning of the word קצתי is written is smaller script. The reason was that Rivkah foresaw with her holy spirit that the Holy Temple which measured 100 (ק) cubits in length would one day be destroyed due to he sin of intermarriage between the Israelites with local Gentile women. We find a similar occurrence of the letter ק being written in larger than usual script in Psalms 84, 4 (גם צפור מצאה בית ודרור קן לה, “even a sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself”). The Psalmist in this instance refers to the silver and gold David had amassed in preparation for the building of the Holy Temple which his son Solomon would complete. In other words, when you look forward to establishing a Temple 100 cubits long, the letter ק is written larger, whereas when one envisages the destruction of this Temple the same latter ק is written in smaller script. David had complete details of the precise measurements of the Temple which would be built by Solomon as we know from Chronicles I 28,19 “All this that the Lord made me understand by His hand on me, I give you in writing—the plan of all the works.”
Onkelos
Rashi
Sforno
Or HaChaim
Chizkuni
Rabbeinu Bahya
Kli Yakar
Tur HaArokh