December 3, 2016

Discussion led by Rabbi Leah Berkowitz

Page 173

25:19 This is the line of Isaac son of Abraham… The subsequent statement “…and Isaac loved Rebecca…” is one of the few mentions of love between husband and wife in the Torah. Note that we don’t have “Jewish” yet and in fact not even “Israelite” This is the first family. “Abiru” is likely the word for foreigner, alien, immigrant. There is a negative connotation to it. There is some controversy about the age of Rebecca at the time of marriage – probably somewhere in her teenage years.

25:22 “If this is so why do I exist?” is the question posed by Rebecca in response to the struggle going on in her belly. One might be tempted to give this question a philosophical or existential import but the question might more realistically be re-phrased to “…why am I in this pain?” or even a question by her as to the role of motherhood.

25:24: “Two people are in your belly…” She gives birth to Esau and Jacob. Jacob is holding Esau’s heel which is clearly a precursor of his efforts to supplant his brother. There are Cabalistic interpretations of the numbers of ages for both Isaac and Rebecca at the time of this birth.

25:27:  The story of Jacob’s effort to obtain his brother’s birthright. Note the use of the word “red” to describe Esau, his hunter’s soup and the kingdom of Edom. See page 997 for the location of Edom. LL Who is the author here? This section about the soup seems to be an insert to justify what happens subsequently. Most of this is J. The justification here seems also to be the prophecy itself. In the last sentence of that passage about Esau eating his food “and he ate” is one word in Hebrew indicating haste and speed. SN This could be a joke between brothers. But note that Jacob makes him swear. Note also that the first born gets a double portion of the land – so this is no small thing.

26:1 There was famine in the land… Here we see Isaac and Rebecca interacting. Abimelech gives them land. Isaac settles in Garar where he passes his wife off as his sister – just as his father did in Egypt. This passage appears to be out of sequential order. Abimelech sees Isaac “fondling” R and challenges Isaacs behavior – which would have been inappropriate if she was in fact his sister.

26:12: In that area Isaac sowed seed…but Abimelech asks them to leave considering Isaac’s deceptive conduct. They return to the lands of Abraham but they then quarrel over the wells with the inhabitants there until they get to Rehoboth. Note the words “became too numerous… which is resonant of the complaint of Pharaoh in Egypt. See map on page 15. How is Isaac feeling about this comparison to his father? To some extent Isaac is overshadowed and never comes into his own. But he successfully establishes coexistence with the Philistines. And had a loving relationship with his wife. He appears to be a man of moderation. Jacob and Esau are so polarized that they are almost two sides of the same person. Some consider the wells to be symbols of Abrahams monotheism –  that the Philistine’s were rejecting.

The analogous Haftarah portion here is Malachi – who lived in the middle of the 5^th C. BCE. This was a time of corruption and instability assessed to the Edomite’s who were descendants of Esau. Malachi’s critique helped bring about reform.