Esau’s Cunning Plan

Esau says to Jacob that he will accompany him and walk with him along the way, “And he said, ‘let us travel and go, and I will walk alongside (against) you.”

(Bereshith 33:12)

 

Rashi explains “alongside (against) you” as being of equal stature.

It says in Ben Ish Hai Derashoth that originally Esau came to kill Jacob, so how do we explain that now, all of a sudden, he seems to be seeking the company of Jacob like a true brother? He quotes the Yata”l, that this is not so surprising, but is something we see frequently today.

The nations of the world give freedom to the Jewish people. They are free to buy house, fields, land. They often have important positions, including position in government. On account of this, the more lightheaded people of the Jewish nation are drawn in and tempted to become like them and learn from their ways. They change their speech, their mode of dress, and so on. Hakham Yoseph Hayyim, a”h, says that this explanation (which was actually in connection with “peh rakh,” concerning how the Egyptians tricked the Jewish people into slavery, by speaking softly to them), is even more applicable here.

He says that this was exactly Esau’s intention. His original plan was to kill Jacob by the sword, but then he did an about-turn. This is how the seed of Edom strategized to annihilate the Jewish people. It used to be that they came openly, brandishing their swords, giving us an ultimatum to change our religion. Later, they changed their tactics, and approached them with peh rakh, speaking and treating them nicely, giving them equality, important positions, and the like. But their original intentions of having them leave the Torah and Mitzvot did not change.

This explains why Esau abandoned his original plan of the sword and said, “Let us travel and go”–in other words, “let us be equal.” All this that he said, which might appear to be said out of love was, in fact, quite the opposite–it was said out of hatred.

Jacob’s reaction demonstrated that he realized that this suggestion of Esau’s was very harmful. His reply was very significant. He said:

My master knows that the children are young, and the nursing flock and cattle are my responsibility. If they should be overdriven one day, the entire flock will die.

He sees that Esau’s whole intention to overcome his descendants and rule over them by having them learn from his wicked ways. The accusers will catch them one day and the entire flock will die. The “one day” refers to Yom Kippur, on which the not even the Satan has any control over them; nevertheless, it will not be able to save them, because of the intensity of their wrongdoings.

It says in the Gemara of Haghigha (5b), that Rabbi Yehoshua ben Hanania was very capable in disputing with the wise men of the nations of the world. When he was about to depart from this world, the other hakhamim asked him: “What will become of us at the hands of the unbelievers?” One of his answers was, in accordance with the comment of Esau: “Let us travel and go, and I will walk alongside (against) you.”

We see from this that whenever there are those who go against us–whether from the nations of the world, or the kofrim, those who deny our religion–G-d will always send us someone who will be able to stand alongside them, against them, of equal stature, to counteract them.

The somewhat perplexing recounting in the Torah also provides insight into the importance of not allowing Esau to win us over with his guile. It says in the Torah:

And Jacob remained alone, and a man wrestled a man with him until the daybreak.

When he saw that he could not overcome him, he touched the hollow of his thigh, and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him.

On account of this, the Children of Israel may not eat the gid hanasheh (sinew of the vein), which is in the hollow of the thigh, till today, because he touched the hollow of Jacob’s thigh in the sinew of the vein.

It asks in Dibrei Mordekhai, why, if the angel touched Jacob there, shouldn’t we be able to eat the gid hanasheh? He answers that the sar (Angel) of Esau wished to take Jacob away from the path of the Torah so that the “yadayim” (hands) could be the yadayim of ‘Esau, which would put him in control of the Jewish people, Heaven forbid. However, seeing that he was unable to do so, he touched Jacob’s, as an indication that he wished to have the generations of Jacob become affected by Esau’s impure ways. And this is what hurt Jacob the most.

We may not eat the gid hanasheh as a reminder to us of this fact. In fact, we should take it as a reminder that we must look closely at the evil inclination and see if it is taking us away from the ways of our illustrious patriarch, Jacob, and must ensure that it does not do so.

Let us ensure that the voice will be that of Jacob at all times so that the hand of Esau can have no dominion upon us whatsoever, and may we merit to see the coming of the geulah (redemption), speedily in our days, amen.

Rabbi Ya’aqob Menashe is a renowned author and lecturer, whose Shiurim continue to inspire thousands around the world. Many can be seen at www.NonstopTorah.com. His daily Torah Minutes are eagerly anticipated by thousands every morning. They can be seen at www.ATorahMinute.com. Rabbi Menashe is the spiritual leader of Midrash BEN ISH HAI. More information is available at the Midrash website,
www. Midrash.org.