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
In
the opening verse of the Parasha, we meet Ya'acov at the point of departure,
having in mind a set destiny. But just then, his path takes him to a less
defined and (quite likely) less desired place. We read that "he came upon
a place, and he stopped over for the night, because the sun had set…" (v.
11). External circumstances are being imposed upon him, and so he stops at what
is a mere "place" (only later, in verse 19, do we find out that there
was a town there). As Ya'acov lies down, using a stone for a pillow, he has the
aforementioned dream, during which Elohim promises to give him the “a’retz”
(“ground, land”) that he is lying upon (v. 13), and to bring him
back to this very “adama” (“soil”, v. 15; see Parashot* B’resheet and Toldot).
But as if to suggest that there is a greater dimension (a ‘heavenly’ one)
attached to this 'piece of real estate,' the promise is given in a most awesome
manner, with YHVH being described as standing above a ladder that connected
heaven and earth (while the angels were ascending and descending, as mentioned,
ref. ve.12, 13). Ya'acov therefore deems this place to be the "house of Elohim
and the gate of heaven" (v. 17).
Yaacov does not only "happen" by
this "place," he also uses one of the stones of the "place"
for a pillow. He lies down in this "place" and discovers that YHVH is
in the "place," and that this "place" is truly awesome!
Finally, he names the "place" Bet-El - the "house of Elohim."
The Hebrew word for the much-mentioned "place" here is “ma'kom,”
of the root k.o.m (kof, vav, mem), meaning to "rise up."
This particular “makom” is indeed a location where Ya'acov's call to rise up is
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 and 23, in
reference to that which YHVH has created (but which He also destroyed).
Needing
something tangible to mark his experience, Ya’acov picks up the stone he had
rested his head on, stands it up as a column and pours oil on top of it (v.
18). After naming the place, he makes an oath promising to make YHVH his Elohim
(providing his conditions are met), and adds, "this stone… shall
become Elohim's house" (v. 22). Next, the Patriarch-to-be reaches his
desired destination. Upon seeing his beautiful cousin, he musters up an
inordinate amount of vigor, which enables 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), is also
marked by a stone, which he again places uprightly, as well as by a heap of
stones which he names "gal'ed," "a witness heap."
Apparently at that time of Ya’acov’s life the "e'vehn" (“stone”)
became a marker (‘milestone’) of significant events in his life.
Many
years later, when the elderly Ya'acov pronounces on his deathbed blessings upon
his sons, he gives his favorite one, Yosef (Joseph), the longest and most
complex of the blessings. In the course of his pronouncement, Ya'acov makes
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). This is the only time that
specific mention is made of the "Stone of Israel" in the entire Holy
Writ, not surprisingly, as 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 to stumble over" for "both 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 mentions Lah'van's ewes and female
goats in 31:38, when he lodges his complaint about the life style and
conditions that were imposed upon 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 to water the flocks of his uncle (ref. 29:10). Ya’acov then 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 loves).
Eleven of Ya'acov's twelve sons are born in
Cha'ran. Leh'ah gives birth to the first four, whose names express her attempts
at appeasing her husband. The firstborn's name - Re’u’ven - means,
appropriately, "behold, a son." Next is Shim'on,
whose name stems from the verb "to hear." Following him is Leh'vi,
of the root "to accompany." Leh'ah's fourth son is Yehuda,
whose name is related to "giving thanks" or to "praise."
Next to give birth is Ra’chel's maid, Bil’ha, whom the former gave to her
husband, so that she could be (literally) built through her. She uses
the same words that Sarah did in relationship to Hagar (ref. Gen. 16;2). Ra’chel’s
anguish about being barren comes to the fore in the names she gives to the sons
that her maid bears to Ya’acov. This time Dan is born, whose name means
"judgment," or "dispensing justice/vindication." Bilha's second son is Naphtali, which
is "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 gives her maid,
Zilpah, to her husband, hoping to have more sons through her. Zilpah gives
birth to Gad, meaning "fortune" (as in
"luck"). However, the pronouncement made there by Leah – “ba-gad” – as she names this one, may also mean “he
betrayed” (perhaps in reference to Ya’acov’s relationship with her). Zilpa’s next pregnancy yields 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 births the next one, and names 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 is born, Leh'ah recalls the
other meaning of the name, which is "wages," and says… "Elohim has given me my wages, because I
gave my maid to my husband" (30:18). Leh'ah's sixth son is Z'vulun,
from the rare “zeved,” which means "endowment or gift.” But Leah does not stop there, she says, “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 other siblings’ names, has a dual
meaning.
After
Dina's birth (whose name, like Dan’s, means "judgment" or
"justice"), Ra’chel's desire is granted her, and she too has 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 is contemplating how her
shame and disgrace are being removed by giving birth, she is 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 also 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
future two 'camps' of Ya'acov's descendants are alluded to at the end of the
Parasha. In 32:1, 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 divides 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 onto their
"camp"? Or are the messengers from YHVH the ones who advised him to
so divide up his family before the crucial meeting? Perhaps, through something
they said or did, he learned about the two camps that his family was destined
to be divided into sometime in the future. 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 Rachel stole the household idols, and
immediately after we read, “and Jacob stole away,” literally “stole the heart” (of
Laban). The latter accuses his nephew of “stealing away,” with once again the
literal rendering being “stealing my heart,” of “stealing away” – literally
“stealing me,” and what’s more of “stealing the household idols” (vv. 26, 27,
30). In Ya’acov’s retort against those accusations, he says 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” (vv. 38-39 italics added). 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”
