Parashat Va'ye'tze (“and he
departed”) starts out with Ya'acov the fugitive making his way from the land of Yisrael
to Cha'ran (Haran
Thus, although the opening verse of the
Parasha seems to indicate that Ya'acov had in mind a set destiny, his path took
him to a less defined and (quite likely) less desired place. We just noted that
"he came upon a place…” and that “he stopped over for the night, because
the sun had set…" (28:11). The circumstances were imposed upon Ya’acov,
and so he stopped at what was a mere "place" (only later, in verse
19, do we find out that there was a town there). As Ya'acov lay down, using a
stone for a pillow, he had the aforementioned dream, during which Elohim
promised to give him the “a’retz” (“ground, land”) that he
was lying upon (v. 13), and to bring him back to this very “adama” (“soil”, v.
15; see Parashot* B’resheet – 2:6, and Toldot – 25:25). But as if to suggest
that there was a greater dimension (a ‘heavenly’ one) attached to this plot of
land, the promise was given in a most awesome manner, with YHVH being described
as standing above a ladder that connected heaven and earth (while, as
mentioned, the angels were ascending and descending). Ya'acov therefore deemed
this place to be the "house of Elohim and the gate of heaven" (28:17).
Yaacov
not only "happened" by this "place," he also used one of
the stones of the "place" for a pillow. He lay down in this
"place" and discovered that YHVH was in the "place," and
that this "place" was truly awesome! Finally, he named the
"place" Bet-El - the "house of Elohim." The Hebrew word for
"place" is “ma'kom,” of the root k.o.m (kof, vav, mem),
meaning to "rise up."
This particular “makom” was indeed the location where Ya'acov's call to rise up
was starting to resound! We cannot leave Yaacov and “makom” without mentioning
“y’kum,” which is translated “all living things,” and is found in B’resheet
(Genesis) 7:4, 23, in
reference to that which YHVH created (but which He had also destroyed).
Needing something tangible to mark his
experience, Ya’acov picked up the stone on which he had rested his head, lifted
it up as a column and poured oil on top of it
(28:18). After naming the place, he made an
oath promising to make YHVH his Elohim (providing his conditions are
met), adding, "This stone… shall become Elohim's house" (v. 22).
Next, we meet the Patriarch-to-be at his desired destination. Upon seeing his
beautiful cousin, he mustered up an inordinate amount of vigor, which enabled
him to roll a large stone off the "mouth of the well," a feat that
ordinarily required several people to accomplish (ref. 29:8-10). Toward the end
of the Parasha (in 31:45-47), the covenant made between Ya'acov and his
father-in-law, Lah'van (Laban), was also marked by a stone, which he again
placed uprightly, as well as by a heap of stones which he named "gal'ed,"
"a witness heap." Apparently during that season in
Ya’acov’s life the "e'vehn" (“stone”) became a marker
(‘milestone’) of significant events and experiences.
Many years later, when the elderly Ya'acov
pronounced blessings upon his sons on his deathbed, he gave his favorite one,
Yosef (Joseph), the longest and most complex of the blessings. In the course of
his pronouncement Ya'acov made mention of the Mighty One of Ya'acov, the Shepherd
and Stone of Israel - E'vehn Yisrael,
all these being titles of YHVH (Gen. 49:24 emphasis and italics added). This is the only time that specific mention
is made of the "Stone of Israel" in the entire Holy Writ, and not
surprisingly it was uttered by the mouth of the one who walked a path made up
of many stepping-stones. Later on in the Word, more stones are being uncovered:
"the stone which the builders rejected, [and which] has become the chief
corner stone" (Ps. 118:22), as well as the "stone to strike and a
rock [tzur] to stumble over" for "the two houses of Israel
Being a member of the family of Be'tu'el
(Bethuel) and Lah'van, Ra’chel's name, not unlike that of her aunt Rivka, is
associated with the family business, as “Ra’chel” means a "ewe."
Ya’acov mentioned Lah'van's ewes and female goats in 31:38, when he lodged his
complaint about the life style and conditions that were imposed on him by his
father-in-law during their twenty-year association. Ewes as “ra'chel” (plural
“r'che'lim”) are mentioned rather rarely in the Tanach, one of those few
instances being Yishayahu 53:7, where the Messiah is described as "an ewe
- 'ra'chel' - before its shearers".
Whereas Ya’acov’s mother Rivka watered the
entourage of Avraham’s servants and livestock, in the present episode by the
well, her son is the one watering the flocks of his uncle (ref. 29:10). Next Ya’acov
proceeds to kiss his cousin. In Hebrew these two actions are described thus: “va’yashk
et hatzon” (and he watered the flocks); “va’yishak… le’Rachel” (“and
he kissed… Rachel”). Noticed the alliteration employed here, hinting at
what will soon transpire in Ya’acov’s life – “watering” (work) in exchange for
“kissing” (marrying the one he loved).
Eleven of Ya'acov's twelve sons
were born in Cha'ran. Leh'ah gave birth to the first four, whose names express
her attempts at appeasing her husband. The firstborn was therefore named - Re’u’ven
- meaning, "behold, a son." Next is Shim'on,
whose name stems from the verb "to hear" (indicating that her
plea for another son has been heard). Following him is Leh'vi, of the
root "to accompany," (being sure now that upon his birth her
husband will ‘accompany’ her). Leh'ah's fourth son was Yehuda, whose
name is related to "giving thanks" or to "praise."
Ra’chel's maid, Bil’ha, whom the former gave to her husband so that she could
be (literally) built through her, is next in line. Rachel used the same words as Sarah did in
relationship to Hagar (ref. Gen. 16:2. As we saw there in “being built” –
ebaneh – are also imbedded the letters for “ben,” son). Her anguish about being
barren came to the fore in the names that she gave the sons that her maid bore
to Ya’acov. The meaning of the name of the first, Dan, is "judgment,"
or "dispensing justice/vindication." Bilha's second son
was Naphtali, meaning "writhing" or "twisting,"
and by implication "struggle" (denoting Ra’chel's struggle
with her sister). However, Leh'ah was not going to stand by and allow her
sister to be "built up" through her maid (30:3). Thus she too gave
her maid, Zilpah, to her husband, hoping to have more sons through her. Zilpah
birthed Gad, meaning "fortune" (as in "luck").
However, the pronouncement made there by Leah – “ba-gad” – as she named this one, may also mean “he
betrayed” (perhaps in reference to Ya’acov’s relationship with her). Zilpa’s
next pregnancy yielded Asher, whose name is of the root "happiness."
Leh'ah's words, "I am blessed [or happy], for the daughters shall call me
blessed" (30:13), recall the words of Miriam (Mary), Yeshua's mother, upon
the birth of her Son (ref. Luke 1:48). Leh’ah herself birthed the next
one, and named him Yisas'char, from the root to "hire,"
since she became pregnant with him upon "hiring" Ya'acov from Ra’chel
for a 'fee,' in the form of a mandrake plant that was picked by Re'uven. But
once the baby was born, Leh'ah recalled the other meaning of the name, which is
"wages," saying: "Elohim has given me my wages, because I
gave my maid to my husband" (30:18). Leh'ah's sixth son was Z'vulun,
whose name stems from the rare “zeved,” which means "endowment
or gift.” But Leh'ah did not stop there, she said, “now will my
husband dwell with me” (30:20). “Dwell” here is “yizbeleni,” which can
also mean “honor me.” Thus this
son’s name, as is the case with some of his siblings’ names, has a twofold
meaning, in spite of the root of the words not being identical. Thus, grammatical accuracy is not always prominent, as is evident in this
narrative. Instead these are more associative connections, being prevalent in the Biblical text
(and the Hebraic mindset).
After Leh’ah gave birth to Dinah (whose
name, like Dan’s, means "judgment" or "justice"), Ra’chel's
desire was granted her and she too bore a son. "Elohim has taken away
(a'saf) my reproach, [and] she named him Yosef, saying, 'may YHVH
add (yosef) to me another son'" (v. 23, 24 emphasis added).
While Ra’chel was contemplating how her shame and disgrace were being removed
by giving birth, she was also expressing hope that this one, who opened up her
womb, will serve as a signal for more sons to follow. The two words, “asaf”
(a.s.f., alef, samech, fey), here "take away" while literally
"to gather," and “yasaf” (y.s.f., yod, samech, fey) "to
add" and "to repeat," are related both in sound and meaning. When
looking down the road of history these two words become prophetically
significant. Yosef certainly was "added to" by his brother Binyamin
(Benjamin), and also by receiving a double portion among the tribes of Yisrael
when each of his sons became a tribe in his own right. Prophecy predicts the
ingathering of the House of Yosef (and "his companions") at a future
day, thus fulfilling the second meaning of his name.
The two 'camps' of Ya'acov's descendants are
alluded to at the end of the Parasha. In 32:1-2 Ya'acov, as we pointed out before,
meets the angels or messengers of YHVH, upon whose sight he exclaims:
"This is the camp [or encampment] of Elohim,’ and he named the place
Ma'cha'na'yim." “Ma'cha'na'yim” is a plural form of “ma'cha'neh,”
meaning “camp.” The particular ending, as attached here to the noun,
renders the camp a "multiple" one, or a "double camp." What did Ya'acov see when he looked at this
‘band of angels’? What was it about them that caused him to refer to a
"camp" or to an "encampment," and why a double, or a multiple,
one?
In next week's Parasha we will see how, for
strategic reasons, Ya'acov will divide up his family into two companies
(literally “camps”), before going to meet his brother Esav. Was the idea
already brewing in his mind when he saw the angels/messengers, and thus he
projected duality to their "camp"? Or was it the messengers
from YHVH who advised him to so divide up his family before the crucial
meeting? Perhaps through something they said or did he learned that in the
future his family would divide up into two camps. Is there a direct connection
between the angels who were ascending and descending the ladder, when he first
departed from the land
of Yisrael
We cannot leave our Parasha without
examining the verb “to steal” – which recurs eight times in chapter 31, and is
used (in Hebrew) in a number of ways. In verse 19 we learn that Ra’chel stole
the household idols, and immediately following that it says: “and Jacob stole
away,” literally “stole the heart” (of Laban). The latter accused his nephew of
“stealing away,” with once again the literal rendering being “stealing my
heart,” then of “stealing away” – literally “stealing me,” and what’s more, of
“stealing the household idols” (vs. 26, 27, 30). In Ya’acov’s retort against
those accusations, he said, among other things: “These twenty years I have been
with you; your ewes and your female goats have not miscarried their young, and
I have not eaten the rams of your flock.
That which was torn by beasts I did not bring to you; I bore the loss of
it. You required it from my hand, whether stolen by day or stolen by night”
(vs. 38-39 italics added). However, the Hebrew rendering of the last expression
is: “I was stolen by day and stolen by night” – “ganov gunavti”
(g.n.v, gimmel, noon, bet/vet), describing Ya’acov’s state of vulnerability
while with his employer. Many years later, his favorite son, Yosef, will repeat
these very words while in the Egyptian jail: "For indeed I was stolen away
– ganov gunavti - from the land of the Hebrews” (Gen. 40:15).
*Parashot, plural of “Parasha”
Hebrew Tools for
Everyday Use
In this week’s
Parasha we encounter some very basic and ‘earthy’ terms (although not without
being reminded that the earth is connected to the heavens via a…. ladder). Let us
learn how to use some of these words:
I am rising up from the place (masculine)
Ani kam min ha’makom
Ani kam min ha’makom
I am rising from the place (feminine)
Anikama min ha’makom
Ani
Ya’acov kam min ha’makom
The stone is on the ground
Ya’acove kissed Rachel
Ya’acov nishek et
Rachel
No Stealing!
Lo lignov!
