Chapter 32
Jacob is going to man up, and take responsibility for deceiving Esau, and
finally face him. Though, to be clear, he did not do that on his own bat, but was obeying G-d's instructions to "return to his home, the land of his fathers". Ignoring the question of where that was, we assume that it was in the region where of his father Isaac was residing. For, no doubt, he was terribly afraid of his brother's vengeance, and possibly would not have gathered enough courage to face him without G-d's protection.
v4] Sends angels.
Note:
- He (Jacob) can control angels?
- He (Esau) can communicate with angels?
Note: Why angels? Why not simply messengers? It was "decided" by Rashi, that is speaking of angels. Yet, later he wrestles with the man—who is taken as an angel - though he does say that he is Divine.
It is said that Jacob sent the actuality of the angels to Esau, but kept their spiritual essence with himself (Dov Baer).
Note: "Find favour in your eyes". He does this with material (not spiritual) gifts. It is for us to work in the mundane realm, and for the angels to work the spiritual realm, except for our very own inner, spiritual space—that is ours to cultivate.
v7] Angels return with message: "He is heading towards you with 400 men".
n7] Esau intends to attack Jacob
Note: Can only mean trouble. His intention is not peaceful, else why the 400? However, 400 is ת, the last letter of the alphabet. Which is an end in itself, and is also indicative of the future. However, the real question here is what caused his sudden change of heart, in that he embraces Jacob and weeps when they do meet? Perhaps Jacob's fear stemmed from his own guilt?
Note: This is why it is a human story. For it is told from a human point of view. G-d tells Jacob to return to his home. Jacob sets out, but as he get close to Esau, he is scared. He had not planned his approach. He just "obeyed" G-d, knowing that He would protect him. But, now that he is facing the challenge, he realises that he is in a bit of a situation. So he prays to G-d.
This shows that though G-d is in charge of the destiny of each of us, the details of how the event is handled is almost completely up to us. So Jacob has to strategise to deal with the human interaction.
He first splits his camp—at least one will survive.
It is night. Jacob sends a tribute, explicitly accounted for, to Esau. He sends it bit by bit—one dove, one man and a specific message—hoping to placate Esau.
n9] Jacob prepared in 3 ways: He sent gifts, he prayed and he prepared for conflict (Rashi).
n11] I am unworthy.
Be humble before the kindness of G-d when His "right hand embraces me", actually bringing me closer to Him, that should only increase humility, for I that stands before Him am but naught. This is the opposite of the behaviour of the כליפה, kelipah, who only becomes more arrogant the more G-d's kindness descends upon him (Shneur Zalman).
v23] He is alone.
Note: Then he separates for his wives and possesions.
He wrestles "all night" with a man (specifically NOT an angel. Why? Especially in relation to v4.)
n23] Locks up Dinah.
To keep him away from Esau, for which he was punished.
v25-30] Prevails
The man could not overcome him, so he struck/dislocated his hip socket.
"Let me go", pleads the man.
"Not until you blessed me", responds Jacob.
He then says his name will be Israel because he "strived with G-d and man, and overcame."
כּי שַׁרִִתה עִם־אלוהִים ועם אנשׁים ותוּכל
"Tell me your name", Jacob demands.
Instead, he blessed him (Jacob).
v31] Penniel
כּי־ראיתִי אלוהים פנים־אל־פנים
ותִנָצֶל נפשׁי
Note: Calls the place Penniel, because "I have seen G-d face-to-face, and survived."
v33] Sinew
To this day, we do not eat the displaced sinew of the kosher animal.
Chapter 33 - Encounter
v1] Esau arrives
Note: Does not his arrival seem rather sudden?
Jacob prepares to meet him with his family. Note the order, Rachel and Joseph last to protect them.
v3] Bows to Esau.
Then the rest of the family bow to Esau.
Esau run up to him and embraces him.
This is the strange change of heart. However, if it was Jacob's fear, then perhaps the lesson is that it is better to approach someone whom you have wronged humbly, then arrogantly as if you had done nothing wrong.
v13-18] Jacob avoids Esau.
v14] Jacob says he will meet Esau in Seir. {Note: Is he lying again?}
v16] Esau returns to Seir, but Jacob continues to Succoth (which he names), and builds a house there and shelter for his livestock. So, he was settling there for a bit.
v18] Then he continues from there to Shechem.
v20] And made an altar: אל אלוהִם ישׂראל
Chapter 34 - Shechem
v6] Lying with daughter of Israel
Require from them to circumcise, then kill men, take the women and children and possesions. Even though they wanted to join with the Bnei Israel, but probably would not have accepted their religion - which was at that stage, monotheistic - something which they probably had not heard of.
Chapter 35 - G-d says
v1] Go to בת־אל. Build Me an altar there.
v2] Discard your alien gods, cleanse yourselves, put on clean clothes.
v3] He built an altar to G-d who answered me in my time of need.
v4] Terebinth? [1]
Deborah dies.
v9-13] G-d appears. Blesses Him with land and children - not really spiritual blessings, though we could look at children as being the spiritual blessing and land as the material.
v14] He builds a pillar at בת־אל (is this another Beit-El or is it the same one?)
v16] Rachel dies on the road
v21] Journey on. Reuben lies with Bilhah.
v23] 12 sons of Jacob
v27] Isaac dies, 180 years old at Kiryat-Abba,
Chapter 36
v1] Descendants of Esau (beautiful names).
v31] Names of the Kings of Edom
v40] Names of the Chiefs of Edom.
Footnotes
The terebinth—Pistacia terebinthus (Natural Order, Anacardiaceae), Arabic Butm—is a tree allied to the P. vera, which produces the pistachio nut, and to the familiar "pepper tree" (Schinus molle) so extensively cultivated in modern Palestine. Like the latter the terebinth has red berries, like small immature grapes. The leaves are pinnate, four to six pairs, and they change color and fall in autumn, leaving the trunk bare (compare Isaiah 1:30). The terebinth is liable to be infected by many showy galls, some varieties looking like pieces of red coral. In Palestine, this tree assumes noble proportions, especially in situations when, from its association with some sacred tomb, it is allowed to flourish undisturbed. It is in such situations not infrequently as much as 40 ft. high and spreads its branches, with their thick, dark-green foliage, over a wide area (compare 2 Samuel 18:9,14; Ecclesiasticus 24:16). Dwarfed trees occur among the brushwood all over the land.
From this tree a kind of turpentine is obtained, hence, the alternative name "turpentine tree" (Ecclesiasticus 24:16 the King James Version, the Revised Version (British and American) "terebinth").
— E. W. G. Masterman ↩︎