Saturday 2nd December 2023 19th Kislev 5784
PARASHAT VAYISHLACH by Rabbi Yitzchak Zweig
Genesis 32:3-36:43; Obadiah 1:1-21; Matthew 2:13-23 (2 Peter 1:1-13)
I am often struck by how current events are usually so very relevant to the Torah portion of he week, and this week’s Torah reading is a prime example of this.
In this week’s reading we find our forefather Jacob preparing for war with his brother Eisav. We must be mindful that Eisav was the ancestor of Amalek – his grandson – and the historical archenemy of the Jewish people.
In addition, he was the progenitor of the nation of Edom – which eventually developed into the nation of Rome. The Romans destroyed the second Holy Temple and sent the Jewish people into exile, one that has lasted to this very day.
Thus, this confrontation between the brothers foreshadows thousands of years of continual conflict. However, our forefather Jacob also showed his children the proper way to prepare for and participate in war.
When Jacob is informed that his brother Eisav is marching toward him with a troop of 400 armed men and murderous intent the Torah states:
“Jacob was very frightened and distressed. He divided the people Accompanying him into two camps […]. If Eisav comes to attack at least the other camp will escape” (Genesis 32:8-9).
The great Biblical commentator Rashi (ad loc) explains that Jacob was frightened because he worried that he (or members of his family) may be killed and it further distressed him that he may come to kill others.
This seems difficult to understand. The Talmud (Brachos 58b) obligates one to launch a pre-emptive strike when one’s life is in danger; “If someone is coming to kill you, anticipate him and kill him first.” The Talmud instructs us that there is an obligation to act pre-emptively. Therefore, Jacob was obligated to kill those who were coming to murder him and his family!
So why would he be bothered that he may have to kill his potential assassins?
In addition, toward the end of his life, Jacob gathered his sons around him to give each one a final message. Some of his sons he blessed and some he criticized rather severely. He reserved some of his harshest criticism for Simon and Levi. This rebuke resulted from an incident also found in this week’s Torah portion.
Jacob’s daughter Dinah was abducted and subsequently raped by Shechem, the son of the chief of the region – a man named Chamor. With some subterfuge, Dinah’s brothers formulated a plan to attack the city and release their sister. Simon and Levi, two of the brothers who were fierce warriors, went to the city and murdered the inhabitants and freed their sister. Maimonides goes to great lengths to explain why the people deserved to be put to death and that it was in accordance with Jewish law.
Still, Jacob severely rebuked Simon and Levi. If they did the right thing, then why did Jacob criticize them so harshly? If we read the verse carefully, we see what spurred Jacob to condemn their actions:
“In their rage they killed [...]” (Genesis 49:5).
Remarkably, Jacob doesn’t criticize his sons for what they did – it was justifiable. Rather, Jacob took issue with their attitude. He was upset with them for the fact that they murdered the entire city out of anger.
While it is true that Simon and Levi acted properly in attacking the city of Shechem, their attitude was all wrong. A Jew must understand that even though sometimes one must take drastic measures, for example putting someone to death, one must still feel remorse for his actions. Murder – even permissible homicide such as a judicial death sentence – cannot be enforced through emotion and, of course, never with anger.
This is why Jacob was distressed at the prospect of killing Eisav or those in his army. One is never supposed to be comfortable with murder, even if the situation warrants it and there is no other option. This has been the Jewish legacy for thousands of years; to this day the Israeli army’s policy is to be hyper-vigilant about protecting ALL civilian lives – including Arabs – as much as possible.
This extraordinary concern for human life is a hallmark of the Jewish people and is prominently displayed by the Israeli army today. They maintain this policy even when it creates an elevated risk to their own soldiers. That is because Jews understand that life – all life – is precious.
May we soon see the release of all the hostages and an end to this war.