Yaakov, Jacob, had run away from his brother Esau, who had threatened to kill him. He had spent some thirty years with Lavan, his uncle, and was now returning home with his wives, his children, his flocks and herds. He sent messengers ahead to tell his brother he was coming in peace and was not asking for anything (regardless of…
Parsha Vayishlah
Dinah
When Yaakov and his family arrive in the Land of Israel, his only daughter Dina goes out to look around this new area. Shehem one of the local Hittite princes sees her. He abducts her and rapes her. However, unusually, Shehem falls in love with Dinah and asks Hamor his father to go and negotiate a marriage. When Hamor arrives,…
Was Yaakov over protective?
Yaakov returns from Aram to the Land of Israel with all his family. He makes peace with his brother Esav and he sets about re-claiming his territory. Yaakov’s only daughter Dina goes out to visit the local towns. The expression “to go out” has two meanings. It can be simply to go and see. But it can also mean to…
Brothers!
The Torah is full of stories of sibling rivalry, of brothers fighting brothers. It started with Cain and Abel and it continued on through Ishmael and Isaac, Jacob and Esau and Jacob’s twelve sons. The splits amongst the tribes continued. During the period of the Judges tribes competed with tribes, sometimes killing each other, as in the case of Yiftah…
Frenemies
The dramatic encounter between Yaakov and Esav has come to be regarded as probably the most significant event in the Torah for relations between Jews and non-Jews. Two brothers compete for love and for a heritage. They part company as enemies. They meet again after many years with anxiety and hesitancy. They finally reconcile but go their separate ways. Esav…