Commentary by Michael Schneider,
israel today, Jerusalem:
This week’s Torah portion begins with Jacob returning to the land of his parents after working for his father-in-law Laban. Upon his return, Jacob meets Esau who 20 years earlier sought to kill him.

Even though, Jacob had excess riches he was lacking one thing: peace with his brother. Once again he attempts to create his own way of avoiding conflict with Esau. He heard that 400 men were escorting Esau and “he was scared” (32:8). He divided the camp into two, using a typical military strategy, so that one camp would survive. This tactic is still used by Israel, the sons of Jacobs, today. This happens when we fear because we do not fully trust the Lord.

Jacob reminded God of his promise (32:10-11, 13): “Deliver me, I pray, from the hand of my brother…” he pleads. “But you have said… my descendants will be like sand of the sea…” – so how come that Jacob is standing now before a great danger? Are these not similar situations believers face?

Jacob tried with all his wealth and riches to flatter his brother. He didn’t know God also had blessed Esau and changed his heart. Jacob sent his wives and children to the back of the camp for safety, but he stood up front all alone. It was when he thought everything was ‘under control’ that he had an encounter with the Lord that night. Jacob wrestled with a Man who said. “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking.” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me” (32:26).

Every believer needs to have this experience otherwise he will wrestle and struggle all his life. Man needs to let go of his life and allow the Lord to take control. Jacob needed to come to this point so God could rename him to ‘Isra-El,’ God will strive (for you). “Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel; for you have striven with God and with men and have prevailed (32:28).”

The deceitful and manipulative characteristics of Jacob turned into Fear of God. He was released from the fear of man and was able to meet his brother through trusting God.

The site was called Peniel, because “he saw God face to face” (panim means face and also refers to internal; 32:30). At the meeting with Esau the term ‘VaYera’ (and he feared; 32:7) changed to ‘VaYare’ (and he saw; 33:1).

In chapter 34, we read about Jacob’s daughter Dinah who was “violated” by Shechem, the son of Hamor the Hivite, who then wanted to marry her (34:9, 21). The brothers of Dinah sought revenge, murdering the sons of Hamor after the men of Hamor had submitted to Jacob’s son’s wishes and were pain as they were circumcised.

Chapter 35 speaks about the cleansing of all idols influenced by pagan nations surrounding them in Bethel and of the death of Rachel during the birth of her second child, Benjamin. Isaac, Jacob’s father died at the age of 180 and was also buried by his two sons, Esau and Jacob, at Hebron.

Jacob and Esau, like Abraham and Lot, also had an abundance of flocks and herds, which became so great they needed to go their separate ways. Later we will see that one of Esau’s descendants, Amalek, will become Israel’s biggest enemy (36:12).

Shabbat Shalom

Commentary by Michael Schneider,
israel today, Jerusalem:
Jacob begins his walk with God which was not so easy at the beginning, thus the emphasis is on “And he departed.” He left for a foreign country and place called Haran – far away from his father’s house. It was important that God reassured him of the promise: “…Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go…” (28:13-15). This time it was revealed personally to Jacob through a dream of a ladder connecting heaven and earth and angels of God ascending and descending. It was Jacob’s first personal prayer with the God of his fathers. He said: “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it.”

Jacob called the place “House of God,” in Hebrew Beth-El, from here the gates of Heaven were open. At this place, Jacob made a covenant with God: “If God will be with me and will keep me on this journey…” he will give Him a tenth of his riches. This became the secret of Jacob’s success!

Again we find in chapter 29 the first meeting of a future wife at a well. He fell in love with his cousin, Rachel, the daughter of his uncle Laban, a shepherd just as he was! This time it was one of Abraham’s clan (Jacob) who watered the animals of Laban’s flock, as Rebekah had done for Abraham’s servant before. We read that “Laban ran toward Jacob” (29:13) – was he expecting more gifts like Eliezer did?

The ways of the LORD are indescribably wonderful. What was Laban’s deceit? He gave him his older daughter to marry after he had promised the younger, Rachel. That should have reminded Jacob of how he deceived his half-blind father Isaac. The older sister and his first wife, Leah, had “weak eyes” (29:17). As Jacob, enraged and disappointed, reacted to the deceit, Laban said: “…It is not the practice in our place to marry off the younger before the firstborn.” (29:25-26) Immediately Jacob found himself on the other side of deceit, as he had done to his father, reaping what he sowed! That’s how God work.

Jacob worked another seven years for Rachel. We read: “…and they (the years) seemed to him but a few days because of his love for her.” (29:20) Now Jacob had two wives and he loved one and hated the other. That’s why the New Testament later recommends, like in 1 Tim. 3:2, to take one wife. God saw the discrimination of man and decided to close Rachel’s womb, the loved one, and open the womb of Leah, the hated one. It was the same with the two wives of Elkanah in 1 Samuel. God is just and merciful.

With her first three sons, Leah tried to win Jacob’s heart (29:32). Rachel adopted the solution of Sarah, Abraham’s wife who gave her handmaid Hagar to her husband. She gave her maid to Jacob so that “she may bear on her knees” (30:3). Eventually “God remembered Rachel, and God gave heed to her and opened her womb.” Yes, God remembers, hear and act! After the birth of Joseph, Jacob wanted to return to “his place.” And Laban realized “that the LORD has blessed him on Jacob’s account.” (30:27) May it be a clue for gentiles toward the Jews!

Shabbat Shalom

Abstract of the Commentary by
Michael Schneider, israel today, Jerusalem:
In this week’s Torah Portion we meet another childless couple: Isaac and Rebekah (25:21). We can read of several Man of God that shared the same fate like Abraham and later the parents of Joseph, Samuel and also Samson…

After 20 years of prayer, when Isaac was 60 years old, the LORD in his sovereign grace allowed Rebekah to bear twins, Jacob and Esau. Verse 22 tells us the twins “struggled within her.” God told her “two nations are in your womb … and the older shall serve the younger.” This was one promise Rebekah kept to herself until later.

We find parallels between Abraham’s life story to Isaac’s, such as the times of famine and both men lying to authorities, claiming that their wives were their sisters. Isaac did so, lying to the Philistine king in Genesis 26:7. So the lesson was not learned!

A Jewish commentary says, why was Jacob cooking lentils? It was during the Shiva (the seven-day mourning to eat lentils during the mourning period. And how old was Jacob and Esau when Abraham their grandpa passed away? They were 15 years old. Thus, the three patriarchs, Abraham, Yitzhak (Isaac) and Jacob, lived during the same period for 15 years.

But Isaac and Rebekah’s younger received the covenant blessing of promise also in following generations. Jacob even favoured Joseph’s younger sons in blessings over the older ones, so with Ephraim. While this seems unfair to man, God looks at the heart (I Samuel 16:7).
To the question ‘Why Jacob and not Esau?’ we find answer in our prophet portion in Maleachi 1…

Now, why did God hate Esau? Esau didn’t value God’s blessing and was ready to sell it for bread and lentil soup. Genesis 25:34 says, “So Esau despised his birthright…”

Jacob, in Hebrew is related to the word “akev” meaning “heel” (25:26). “Akov,” also related, means ‘deceitful’, like the heart of man (Jeremiah 17:9). Yes, Jacob – even if it meant receiving the blessing from God – was a deceiver (27:35) – we would even call it today a tricky manipulator. He attempted to do all in his own strength until he wrestled with God “face to face” at Peniel. From this time on, Jacob was called Isra-el, or God strives (for you).

The same will happen to the “Sons of Jacob” as a nation, Israel will meet His Saviour and not needing anymore to “put on clothes of someone he is not”!
Esau, today, would be identified as a “real man,” the type of son who makes his father proud as a skilled hunter. Jacob, on the other hand, would be called a “mama’s boy” as a quiet guy who hung around at home.

Nevertheless, Esau was disobedient to his father taking foreign wives while Jacob obeyed his father (28:6-7). But Jacob listens to the will of his father.
Jacob received the blessing by deceiving his father with the help of his mother, but it came at a price. Although Rebekah took the curse on her (27:13), Jacob had to leave his parents’ tents to flee the wrath of his brother. There Jacob met an even greater deceiver – his future father-in-law, Laban.
That’s how the LORD works sometimes in order to humble the prideful heart/man.
“If you will not hear, and if you will not take it to heart,
To give glory to My name,” says the LORD of hosts,
“ I will send a curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings.
Yes, I have cursed them already, because you do not take it to heart.” (Malachi 2:2; from our Haftara)

Shabbat Shalom