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And he dreamed, and, look, a
ramp was set against the ground with its top reaching the heavens, and look,
messengers of god were going up and coming down it.
(Bereishit
Bar Kaparah taught: There is no dream that
has no interpretation: "And see, a ramp' - this is the [temple] ramp;
"Set against the ground" - this is the altar (Shemot
(Bereishit
Rabba 68,
The enlightened man cannot understand all
this unless he learned the knowledge of the cycles and knows the movements of
the sun and the moon, and he cannot know the wisdom of the cycles unless he
first attains knowledge of the measurements [geometry] for it is like a ladder
set against the ground and its top reaching the heavens, and when he
understands the cycles and the seasons then will he recognize the creations of
the Revered Name. So said our Sages [Shabbat 75] 'One who does not calculate the cycles and planetary courses, of him
Scripture says (Isaiah
5) "They regard not the
work of the Lord, neither have they considered the operation of his hands".
And furthermore, if he does not know geometry, he will not understand the
geometrical proofs in Eruvin nor the 49 measurements of R' Natan. Nor will the
enlightened man understand the five ways in which the soul of man resembles its
creator unless he first has wisdom of the soul, and he will not understand it
if does not first learn the wisdom of the history of heaven and earth, and this
is very profound. It is also essential that the enlightened man know logic, for
it is the basis of all wisdom, and our ancients cautioned us (Aboth
(Sefer
Yesod Morah by Avraham Ibn
Ezra - First Gate)
Flight and confrontation, three stones, two monuments
– A message for generations
Shlomo Fox
"Yaakov was a simple man, staying among the tents". Really? His behavior implies not simplicity, but guile. His intentional behavior (the purchase of the birthright from Esav for a pot of lentils) and his action at his mother's behest (the taking/stealing of Esav's blessing) caused him to flee!
Rivkah is the one who explains that he must flee, again she 'commands' "And now, my son, listen to me", whereas Yitzchak commands him to travel to take a wife from the daughters of Lavan, brother of his mother. Father Yitzchak does not seem to be aware of what transpired between Yaakov and Esav. Perhaps Yitzchak is interested that his son Yaakov meet his twin - in - behavior; Yaakov must understand the source of his behavior and its ramifications, and only by looking in the mirror will he understand the ramifications. Parashat Toledot concludes with a description - "And Yaakov harkened to his father and his mother and went to Padan-Aram" - a simple son, one who stays among the tents, obeys his parents' command!
Parashat Vayetzeh says repetitiously 'And he left... and he went...', his leaving, together with the dream about the ladder, will teach Yaakov that he must scrutinize his actions. Is he leaving at his father's command, or perhaps he is fleeing at his mother's order. Perhaps his fleeing simply attests to his inability to communicate with his brother Esav?
Yaakov will have to pass a number of stations before he will realize that that he is facing a struggle, that he must retrace his 'heel-steps', that he must reject his deviousness [Trans. note: the root a'k'v' is the basis for both 'heel' and 'deviousness']; he must prepare for confrontation with his twin, for a meeting with himself! For generations!
The stone
- a monument in Bet-El
In his dream, Yaakov sees angels of the Lord ascending and descending, and he senses and sees God poised over him. He awakes from his slumber and understands, "Indeed, there is God in this place", and he proclaims that he "did not know it"! What was his intent in saying that indeed God is present, and so what if this is "the gate of heaven"?
His reaction to the revelation, his taking of the stone, the erection of the monument, and his vowing all indicate that Yaakov understood that he is not alone in the world, but in order to confirm this, he stipulates conditions with the Almighty!
Why does Yaakov not say to himself: "God promised me in my dream ' and behold, I am with you and I will guard over you wherever you go and I will return you to...' - if this be the case, let me return now, I will meet my brother Esav and we will open a new page"? It seems that the future cannot precede the present - Yaakov is not yet ready.
The stone
covering the well
Yaakov lifts his feet and sees a well with a large stone covering its mouth! It may be said that in his sojourning Yaakov carries his "habits" [Trans. note: In Hebrew "habit" and "foot" are etymologically related], but the emerging reality will force him to cope with his habits. After meeting Rachel "from afar", Yaakov rolls the stone, waters the sheep of Laban and only then kisses Rachel, lifting his voice and crying!
The removal of the stone from the mouth of the well would seem to contradict the rationale of the stone. Only when all the shepherds arrive, will they water the sheep equally. It seems that the placement of the stone is intended to prevent unequal distribution. Why, then, does Yaakov act contrary to custom - is it because of his strength? And what do the shepherds think of this, did they say anything?
The stone
- monument in
Yaakov's meeting Rachel will lead to his spending twenty years in
But between Yaakov and Lavan there is no confrontation, no open
discussion. This finds express confirmation in the acts accompanying Yaakov's
departure - "Rachel stole the terafim [perhaps "household gods"]
that belonged to her father... Yaakov stole the wits of Lavan the Aramean... that he was about to flee" (ibid. 3
Lavan catches up with Yaakov, as though Yaakov meets up with the "the Lavan in his heart" [Trans. note: The name 'Lavan" includes "lev", heart].
Lavan explains and asks "you longed for
your father's house" (ibid. 3
We wonder, however, if this was indeed the motive for his departure,
why does the Torah not bother to describe the emotional reunion of Yaakov with
his parents, Yitzchak and Rivkah? The Torah will also inform us that Yaakov
went to Bet-El not immediately, but only after a divine reminder/command (Bereishit, beginning of Chap. 35).
In contrast, The Book of Jubilees (Chaps.
His conversation with Lavan forces Yaakov to confront himself. He must clarify for himself why he fled, what is that fear which accompanies all his actions. Lavan tells Yaakov that the Lord appeared to him in a night vision warning him not to harm Yaakov, and that he, Lavan, is aware that God is on the side of Yaakov, but despite this Lavan asks - "Why did you steal my gods?"
Their quarrel lead to a covenant; the content is per Lavan's suggestion, whereas the act, the taking of the stone and raising it as a monument and the building of the mound of rocks is done by Yaakov and his brothers (sons), - is Yaakov in full accord with the covenant?
Lavan details and clarifies the full import of the covenant, Yaakov swears "by the Terror of his father Yitzchak" and erects an altar. They eat bread and part with a blessing - "Lavan returns to his place and Yaakov goes on his way..."
What
message does this description of Yaakov carry for future generations?
The parasha began with the erection of a monument composed of stones which unite into a single stone; it concludes with a monument of stone and a mound of stones. In the middle is "the well" and upon it is rolled the stone.
In Bet-el, Yaakov "wakes up" and understands that upon arriving at the place "he did not know" about the presence of the Lord; the meeting connects the stones with the stone, a kind of inner unity.
At the meeting by the well, Yaakov realizes that he must take action, and rolls off the stone.
Until this point the pace is quick; from here on it is obvious that Yaakov is pulled along by the realities of life. Twenty years will pass before he understands (through a revelation of the Lord) that he must act. His actions will prove to him that God is indeed with him. He seems to discover that he is capable of coping with Lavan. Did he obligate himself to ask himself how it was that in his innocence he knew how to handle Lavan? Did he discover the Lavan in himself? Did he deliberate internally whether this was his pattern of behavior? Was it also thus with his brother, his twin Esav? Was it this insight that enabled him to come properly prepared for the meeting with Esav?
The cutting of the covenant with Lavan at Lavan's initiative will bring to the fore the question - why was no such covenant ever made (or never will be made) between himself and Esav?
Was the covenant with Lavan a temporary arrangement, or was it forever?
The midrash will argue that the covenant with
Lavan was valid for then and continues to commit - the midrash
will bring 'proofs' via the descendents of
For the leader; on shushan eduth. A michtam of David (to be taught). When he fought with
Aram-Naharaim and Aram-Zobah, and Joab returned and
defeated
...written "For the leader; on shushan eduth.
A michtam of David" (Psalm 60:
"When
David sent Joab to Aram-Naharaim and to Aram-Zobah, he met the Edomites; they requested
that he attach them to him, showing their proofs " Long enough you have
swung around this high country" (Devarim
The "Mound of Witness" established by Lavan and Yaakov will accompany the masters of the midrash from the days of David down to their own times!
Scripture and midrash obligate us, as it were, to ask which of the patriarchs' actions were significant for their times and which have import for all generations!
"All
which glitters was created for its time, but only the authentic will never be
lost" (Goethe, Faustus)
Shlomo Fox teaches in the
God Cares
for the Weak
And God saw that Leah was hated.
(Bereishit
Concerning
that which is written: The Lord supports all who stumble (Psalms
(Agadat Bereishit, 49)
And the
first-born son is of the hated wife - scripture here speaks with factual
certainty, as it said and the Lord saw that Leah was hated - for God looks at
the broken hearted to support them.
(Or HaHayyim, Devarim
Fairness in Labor Relations is Required Equally
of Both Employer as well as Employee
In the same way that the home owner is warned not
to rob the poor-man's wage or delay its payment, so too the poor-man is warned
not to rob the employer of work by repeatedly taking breaks from work so that
he spends the day dishonestly. Rather he is required to be strict with his own
time. See how they said he should not recite the fourth blessing of the grace
after meals [so that he would get back to work quickly], and so he is required
to work with all his strength, for the saintly Jacob said I have served your
father with all my might. That is why he took his reward even in this world,
for it says so the man became exceedingly prosperous.
(RaMBaM Mishneh Torah, Hilkhot Sekhirut
"And this stone, which I have set up as
a pillar, shall be God's abode" - What Is God's Abode?
As a memorial of the hour, when I stood as a destitute pauper at the crossroads, and I looked out at my blessed future - this stone will be a house of God, in which life will be sanctified unto God, and His divinity will be present. Only when God is our Lord, only then can man's house also be a house of God. A crooked, perverse generation, which glorifies in the temples of its gods, will also warp this truth; it will - as in the words of the prophet "When they placed their threshold next to My threshold and their doorposts next to My doorposts with only a wall between Me and then, they would defile My holy name by the abominations that they committed, and I consumed them in My anger" (Ezekiel 43:8) - build its house alongside My house; everything is in his [man's] domain, even God will have a house, but let not our house be His house! We will visit God in His house, but let Him not visit in our house - His Presence and His demands will only make life difficult for us!
But this is not what is said about the cornerstone
of the first "House of God"! The holiness of the home is the
condition for the holiness of the house of God; it is called "Mikdash" -a holy place - not because the
place has been set aside for holiness - but because it is the center from which
holiness will penetrate the realm of humanity and social relations.
(Rabbi Shimshon Rafael Hirsch, Bereishit
Holiness
is the area which cannot be approached and controlled directly; therefore,
'holiness of a site' implies the prohibition against transforming the
place into a tool for human exploitation. The sanctity of a synagogue is
expressed also through the prohibition against using the synagogue space as a
shortcut, in the words of the Mishna: "One may
not enter the
(From an
article by Prof. Moshe Halbertal, published in Haaretz
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