Jacob's Ladder and the Angels Going Up and Down

Genesis 28,10. “Yaakov left Beer Sheva, etc.;” ‎‎[I presume the connection to Chanukah the author makes ‎here is based on his having composed this commentary for a ‎Shabbat Chanukah sermon. Ed.]‎‎The reason why the miracle of Chanukah, actually the ‎miracle of the cruse of oil, is popularly known as the “miracle of ‎Chanukah,” is due to the word ‎חנוכה‎, being a derivative of ‎חנוך‎, ‎‎“consecration.”

We find in Exodus 29,33 in connection with the ‎consecration of the priestly garments, that before the priests ‎were allowed to perform their sacred service they had to be ‎provided with suitable vessels to be used, i.e. priestly garments. ‎Wearing these priestly garments was so important that if they ‎performed their duties improperly dressed (even missing one of ‎these garments) this was a cardinal sin. (Maimonides 10,4 ‎‎hilchot kley hamikdash) The container in which certain ‎offerings were presented, were as integral a part of the ritual as ‎the ritual itself.

The garments are the “container” in which the ‎priestly body performs his sacred task. It or they, are viewed like a ‎חנוך‎, educational tool, consecration, that must precede the actual ‎ritual in order for the priest to be truly a priest.‎‎[Possibly, the emphasis on this in connection with the ‎priests especially, is due to the fact that the priest was born to ‎his status, and it would have been most unseemly for him not to ‎undergo preparations before fulfilling his sacred tasks.

Rabbis ‎might not need this, as they were not born to the Rabbinate but ‎had to study and pass exams before being granted their titles, ‎ordination. Ed.]‎Children are trained to perform the commandments before ‎becoming legally of age, i.e. ‎בר מצוה‎ or ‎בת מצוה‎, as the case may ‎be, before being ushered into adulthood and all that this entails.‎‎Our patriarch Yaakov had contemplated the awesome ‎fact of the Unity of G’d from the day he was able to think, and he ‎realized that the foundation of all parts of the universe was the ‎Jewish people, i.e. if there were to be no Jewish people, G’d’s work ‎of creating the universe would have been in vain.‎Zohar I,24 (and elsewhere) states that ‎ישראל עלה במחשבה ‏בראשית‎, “the eventual existence of the Jewish people was the first ‎thought that G’d entertained when contemplating the creation of ‎this universe.”

Numerous scriptural verses are quoted in support ‎of this statement, one of which that concerns us especially being ‎that Israel was also known as ‎אבן‎ as in “foundation stone,” seeing ‎that the entire universe emerged from that origin. The Jewish ‎people therefore are not only the “root” of mankind, but also in ‎no lesser degree the founders of the celestial regions. While still in ‎the stage of being only a thought in G’d’s mind, they were called ‎אבן‎, “rock” in the singular mode, as at that point the true unity ‎of the Jewish people and what they represent could be found.‎Our ancestor Yaakov attempted with all the intellectual and ‎emotional powers at his disposal to unravel the secrets of these ‎concepts in order to convert Israel’s potential into an actual.

As ‎per Genesis 49,24 he wanted ‎משם רועה אבן ישראל‎, “to lay the ‎foundation stone of Israel,” as the shepherd of a nation consisting ‎of 12 tribes that parallel the 12 bisections of the 6 sides of the ‎cube when the universe is portrayed as a cube, dividing it into 12 ‎triangles (compare Sefer Yetzirah, “Book of creation”) by ‎bisecting each side from corner to corner. Each of the tribes of ‎the Jewish people represents one of these “triangles.”

In order for ‎the celestial merkavah, Divine chariot, to be complete it ‎must be comprised of 600000 components, the number of Jewish ‎male adults that were redeemed from bondage in Egypt. ‎According to our sages, the Presence of the Shechinah will ‎not manifest itself as resting above the Jewish people when they ‎number less than these 600000. According to our author, when ‎the Torah in Genesis 28,11 describes how Yaakov took “stones” in ‎order to prepare to spend the night, and he put his head on of ‎the stones to serve as his “pillow,” the Torah merely illustrates ‎the kind of thoughts that preoccupied Yaakov at that time, and ‎how during his “dream” of the ladder he experienced Divine ‎insights that had never been revealed to him.Nonetheless, in view of the sages having said that no verse in ‎the Torah must be explained in a way that departs completely ‎from the written text and its plain meaning, we must pay ‎attention to this also. [I believe that in accordance with the above ‎Yaakov/Yisrael’s role as ‎רועה אבן ישראל‎, “shepherd of the nucleus ‎of the people” of Israel began here.

Ed.]‎‎According to the plain text there is no question that Yaakov ‎placed his head on real stones, as he had no softer pillow at hand. ‎Nonetheless while lying with these rocks as his pillow, he thought ‎of matters far beyond his immediate and pressing terrestrial ‎concerns. Perhaps this very fact qualified him for experiencing ‎the first of his many Divine visions, although this time he was not ‎certain for 34 years that it had indeed been a divine vision. ‎According to our sages, during this night Yaakov’s mind foresaw ‎the ruins of two Temples and the great anger that the Jewish ‎people, his descendants, would provoke in G’d’s mind on ‎numerous occasions.

The words: ‎וילך חרנה‎, according to this ‎method of interpretation allude to the future when G’d would ‎become angry with His people. The words: ‎ויצא יעקב‎, would ‎contrast this with his leaving the domain from which G’d ‎dispenses all His goodness for His creatures, especially the Jewish ‎people. All this caused him great anguish and when the Torah ‎describes his ‎ויפגע במקום וילן שם כי בא השמש‎, “that he met ‎‎hamakom and had to spend the night there as the sun had ‎set,” this is a simile for Yaakov foreseeing how the fortunes of the ‎Jewish people would turn from having enjoyed G’d’s bounty to ‎not only becoming persecuted but also causing G’d to share the ‎pain that He had been forced to inflict upon His people.

The ‎darkness alluded to in this verse describes that his vision became ‎so clouded worrying about how G’d must suffer when His favorite ‎people stray so far from the path of Torah that they must ‎undergo harsh punishments in order to bring them back to the ‎right path.‎When the Torah describes Yaakov as ‎ויקח מאבני המקום‎, “he ‎took from the stones of hamakom,” this describes Yaakov’s ‎sharing G’d’s pain and wishing to be able to compensate G’d for ‎this in same way. (Alluded to by the word ‎ויפגע‎).

The words ‎מאבני ‏המקום וישם מראשותיו‎, “from the stones of hamakom and he ‎placed them under his head,” suggest how Yaakov tried to share ‎G’d’s “pain” at what both He and His people would have to ‎endure in exile. His whole thinking was preoccupied with how he ‎could somehow if not forestall these happenings at least ensure ‎that his descendants would survive these experiences. This is the ‎key to his dream of the ladder that follows.

It portrays that ‎Yaakov had found a means to deal with the physical implications ‎of exile and persecutions because of Whom He saw on the top of ‎the ladder. This helped him console himself that all of these harsh ‎experiences would be confined to Israel’s existence in the “lower” ‎regions of the universe. The words: ‎וראשו מגיע השמימה‎, “the ‎ladder’s top reached into heaven,” reminds Yaakov that exile ‎also touches the celestial spheres, so much so that its impact ‎affects those regions negatively.

Its most direct impact on the ‎celestial regions is that it interferes with the dispensation of G’d’s ‎largesse to mankind, and the forces of nature upon which man ‎depends.The line: ‎והנה מלאכי אלוקים עולים ויורדים בו‎, “and behold ‎G’d’s angels were ascending and descending on that ladder,” ‎is the message that even exile has its positive aspects, as it ‎enables numerous “sparks” that had previously “fallen” from the ‎tree that we perceive as the Shechinah, to find their way ‎back to their holy origin.

At the same time, regretfully, the ‎descent of the Jewish people into exile brings with it a parallel ‎descent of some other “sparks” from the Shechinah into the ‎ritually contaminated part of the universe. In our verse these ‎‎“sparks” are referred to as ‎מלאכי אלוקים‎, “Angels of the Divine.” ‎Presiding over all these happenings is G’d, ‎והנה ה' נצב עליו‎, “and ‎behold the Lord is standing above it;” this line also reassures ‎Yaakov that wherever he may find himself he will not be alone, as ‎G’d Himself accompanies him even in exile.

Moses confirms this in ‎psalms 91,15 when he says (quoting G’d) “I will be with him in ‎distress.” Seeing that the Lord is with us, our real “pain” or ‎sorrow is really G’d’s pain and sorrow.‎‎As soon as G’d saw that Yaakov’s concern was with His pain ‎and sorrow, and how all this would impact on the foundation of ‎the Jewish people and its development, He reassured him that he ‎was the same G’d Who had looked after Avraham and Yitzchok, ‎his respective grandfather and father.

He assured him that this ‎same piece of earth on which he was lying at this time, i.e. that ‎he is so worried about, He, the Lord will give to him and to his ‎descendants and that his descendants will spread out to all the ‎corners of the earth. He continues to reassure Yaakov that during ‎all the vicissitudes of history that his descendants would endure, ‎He would always keep a benevolent eye on them.

They will, in due ‎course, return from exile to a brighter future.‎Genesis 28,16. “Yaakov awakened from his dream, ‎etc;” the word ‎משנתו‎, here is a reference to the mental state ‎of depression under which Yaakov had laboured when ‎contemplating the exile his descendants would experience in the ‎future. When he says: ‎אכן יש ה' במקום הזה ואנכי לא ידעתי‎, “indeed ‎the Lord is even in this place and I did not know it,” is an ‎acknowledgment that he had unnecessarily despaired of the ‎future of his people thinking that G’d would forsake them in ‎exile.

Having realized now that he had been wrong, filled him ‎with such gratitude that he determined to build a Temple on the ‎site where this insight had been revealed to him. The words: ‎בית ‏אלוקים‎, as something already in place, allegorically speaking, ‎refers to his realization that once there is a Jewish people G’d will ‎never again withdraw from the lower regions of the universe as ‎He had done previously when man’s conduct had become too ‎offensive.‎‎[I believe the principal lesson Yaakov learned in this ‎dream (as portrayed by the author) was that even when Moses ‎speaks clearly in the Torah about G’d “hiding His face,” (Deut. ‎‎31,18) this does not refer to His withdrawing from our part of the ‎world; it only means that we will be under the impression that He ‎has done so as we see no evidence of His Presence overtly or ‎covertly.

Ed.] If this is the lesson of exile, exile itself ‎becomes a truly positive experience.‎At this stage Yaakov reverts to his original intention of taking ‎the “stones” or “stone” i.e. the foundation stone of the Jewish ‎people and converts it from a potential tool into an actual by ‎consecrating it with oil. [The Jewish people no less than ‎the Temple are perceived as “Temples,” the former as a living ‎entity, the latter as an inert structure always on a sacred site. ‎Ed.] [The significance of oil for consecration, and the ‎miracle of Chanukah being the miracle of the cruse of holy oil as ‎having been foreshadowed in Yaakov’s dream signaling the end of ‎desecration of the Holy Temple, has thus been established. ‎Although some of the words are mine, I trust that I have ‎conveyed our author’s meaning.

Ed.]‎ This is the first time in the Torah that “oil” is portrayed as ‎possessing spiritually elevating potential. Normally, we are ‎familiar with this only from when the priests who were anointed ‎with oil, or when a King, first in a dynasty, was consecrated with ‎it. Yaakov understood the mystical properties contained in such ‎oil (holy oil) and used it here for the first time as such.‎‎[One wonders at the fact that although Yaakov appears to ‎have been stripped of all valuables prior to this night, he still had ‎some such oil on his person; this makes the connection the ‎author establishes between Chanukah and Yaakov’s dream of the ‎ladder a great deal more plausible.

Ed.]‎‎ Reshit Chochma, shaar ahavah section 5,39, ‎שמן‎, oil, i.e. the resin found in trees, is a euphemism for wisdom ‎originating in the celestial regions. By means of this wisdom G’d ‎used a combination of this wisdom and sanctity to produce a ‎unique product, the foundation stone of the Jewish people ‎preparing from this an entire building containing many “rooms” ‎one of which was reserved for G’d to manifest Himself therein to ‎His people exclusively.

When speaking of “His people,” we refer ‎to the spiritualized concept of the Jewish people, described by our ‎sages as ‎כנסת ישראל‎, “the collective soul of the Jewish people.” ‎This is what the Torah had in mind when it reports Yaakov as ‎saying: ‎ויקרא את שם המקום ההוא ביתאל‎, “he called the name ‎of this site Betel;” the Torah adds that ‎ואולם לוז שם העיר ‏לראשונה‎, “originally the name of the town had been Looz.” ‎‎(Verse 20) By mentioning this detail, the Torah wishes to inform ‎the reader that even before Yaakov spent a night at this location ‎all the basic ingredients for the site to be elevated to one of ‎sanctity had already existed as a potential.

This was so because ‎the concept of a Jewish nation, as mentioned previously, was not ‎new, in fact it had been in G’ds mind before He even began to ‎create the universe. This concept did not only include the ‎formation of a Jewish nation, but envisaged its history right to ‎the point when the Messiah would redeem this people from its ‎last exile. According to tradition (Bereshit Rabbah 69, ‎discussed at length) the human body contains a bone known as ‎לוז‎, which is indestructible, the angel of death having no power ‎over it, and conversely, it is also the bone from which all other ‎parts of the human body develop. [Not necessarily a ‎‎“bone” as we understand it, but possibly what we call a stem cell ‎in our time.

Ed.] The “stem cell” ‎לוז‎, is for man what the ‎expression ‎היולי‎ is meant to convey when we speak of the origin ‎of the universe, the primordial raw material. Yaakov’s ‎contribution was to make out of a potential Jewish nation one ‎that had materialized.‎ Another way of looking at the verse commencing with ‎ויצא ‏יעקב מבאר שבע‎ is by looking at the numerical value of the ‎letters in Yaakov’s name which total 182, or seven times the ‎corresponding value of G’d’s four-lettered name the tetragram, 26 ‎times 7.

The numerical value of the letters in the name of his ‎father ‎יצחק‎ by comparison totals 8 times (208) the numerical ‎value of the tetragram, suggesting that Yaakov was at a ‎disadvantage compared to his father who had never had to leave ‎the Holy Land.‎ ‎Rashi’s commentary on the opening line of our portion ‎begins with the statement that when a tzaddik leaves his ‎hometown this leaves a void behind that is felt by the people ‎remaining behind.

The implication appears to be that while the ‎‎tzaddik had been in his hometown his peers had not ‎realized how blessed they had been by his presence. He quotes ‎Ruth 1,7 where Naomi and Ruth’s leaving the fields of Moav are ‎described in a similar manner, i.e. their departure leaving behind a ‎void. Rashi claims that otherwise the Torah need only have ‎written ‎וילך יעקב חרנה‎, “Yaakov set out on his way to Charan.” ‎There are numerous instances where the departure of certain ‎individuals from the Holy Land is described as ‎וירד‎, “he ‎descended,” seeing that the land of Israel is considered as being on ‎a higher level than all the countries surrounding it.

This ‎statement does not refer to the physical altitude of the land of ‎Israel, but to the spiritual level of the people inhabiting that land. ‎By not writing ‎וירד יעקב‎, “Yaakov descended,” the Torah wishes ‎the reader to know that he did not leave behind his spiritual ‎assets in the land of Canaan but that he took all his spiritual ‎equipment with him. Rashi himself refers to this when he ‎writes on the words ‎והנה אנכי עמך‎, “and behold I am with you,” ‎‎(28,15) that Mount Moriah was uprooted at that time and ‎accompanied Yaakov on his way to Charan. [Not found in ‎our editions of Rashi on that verse.

Ed.] The ‎sanctity of the Holy Land accompanied Yaakov on his journey ‎into exile. Nonetheless he was greatly troubled by having to leave ‎the Holy Land. If we needed confirmation for Yaakov’s feelings ‎about this, we find it in Genesis 46,3 where at Beer Sheva Yaakov ‎has second thoughts about going to Egypt in order to see his son ‎Joseph once more, and G’d has to reassure him by telling him not ‎only that he should not be ill at ease about this undertaking, but ‎that as a result of his going to Egypt the Jewish people would ‎develop into a numerous nation there.

Rashi there ‎comments that Yaakov’s primary fear was the very fact of his ‎having to leave the Holy Land (his second exile). He was assured ‎by G’d that the Shechinah would accompany him there.‎ An additional comment on the line: ‎ויקח מאבני המקום וישם ‏מראשותיו וישכב במקום ההוא‎, “he took from the stones ‎available at that site and used them as his pillow and lay ‎down there.”‎ According to the Sefer Yetzirah the word ‎המקום‎ in this ‎verse is a reference to the name of G’d, [as we are familiar ‎with from the haggadah shel pessach, ‎ברוך המקום‎.

Ed.] The ‎reason that this word serves as a euphemism for G’d’s name is to ‎remind us that He is ‎מקומו של העולם‎, “the One to Whom all of ‎‎‘Space’ belongs, seeing He has created it.” In keeping with this ‎approach we must translate the words: ‎וישם מראשותיו‎, as related ‎to ‎ראשית‎, “beginning of time,” i.e. the Jewish people featured first ‎in G’d’s thinking, and the word ‎וישכב‎, may be broken up into ‎יש ‏כ'ב‎, the material world i.e. ‎יש‎, is based on the 22 letters of the ‎Hebrew alphabet. [The letter ‎ו‎ at the beginning, is of ‎course, only a grammatical tool for turning the future tense into ‎an immediate past tense.

Ed.]‎ Still another way of looking at this verse is based on a ‎statement in the Talmud Chagigah‎ 14. We are told there about ‎four sages who decided to investigate the mystical aspects of the ‎Torah, commonly known as the pardes, (acronym for the ‎four approaches to valid interpretations, ‎פשט, דרוש, רמז, סוד‎) Of ‎these 4 scholars only one returned unharmed either physically or ‎mentally, i.e. Rabbi Akiva.

After his experience Rabbi Akiva ‎warned anyone who would emulate him that when he would ‎come to ‎אבני שיש טהור‎, “stones made of pure marble,” he should ‎not be misled into considering this ‎מים, מים‎, (mistaking the ‎phenomenon for completely transparent and therefore pure ‎water). Rabbi Akiva quoted a verse from psalms 101,7 ‎דובר שקרים ‏לא יכון נגד עיני‎, “he who speaks deceitfully shall not stand before ‎My eyes.”‎In order to gain an understanding of what Rabbi Akiva alluded ‎to here, we must first of all remember a rule that governs all ‎legitimate exegesis of the Torah.

The rule is that the 288 sparks ‎which descended into the material world from the primordial ‎world of Tohu, i.e. a world in which the Shechinah was ‎the only manifestation of a creative spirit, and attached ‎themselves to one or the other outstanding human being, have ‎one thing in common. The persons so endowed must believe ‎without doubt or reservation that all parts of the universe ‎wherever, are the product of the One and only Creator Who has ‎infused them with “life” (according to their respective functions). ‎Their continued existence is totally dependent on this Creator, ‎and this Creator dispenses of His largesse not only to those who ‎believe in Him but also to those who hate Israel. (and, by ‎extension, hate Him) The difference between the former (the ‎‎tzaddikim) and the latter consists primarily in the ability of ‎the tzaddikim to “pull down” additional largesse from the ‎celestial reservoir thanks to their standing in that hierarchy.

In ‎doing so, they divert some of this largesse away from the infidels, ‎the wicked. The tzaddikim, thanks to their service of the Creator ‎with all their hearts, enable G’d to “clothe Himself” in an ‎attribute reflecting a certain degree of “pride,” i.e. satisfaction ‎that free willed creatures whom He has created have turned to ‎Him, although they had options that appeared to them as an ‎easier way of coping with life on earth. [Some of these ‎words are mine, Ed.]

Once G’d has clothed Himself in that ‎attribute, He looks at the wicked with disdain, withholding His ‎largesse from them. In due course, this process results in the ‎wicked on earth suffering a total defeat and this is what Moses ‎referred to in Exodus 15,1 when he described G’d as ‎אשירה לה' כי ‏גאה גאה סוס ורוכבו רמה בים‎, “let me raise my voice in song to ‎‎Hashem, Who has taken ‘pride’ in triumphing, hurling both ‎horse and its rider into the sea.”

The downfall of the gentiles ‎occurs simply because G’d no longer supervises their fates.‎It follows that it can be said of the tzaddikim that by ‎means of their good deeds they are directly responsible for how, ‎to whom, and in what quantities G’d’s largesse is dispensed. The ‎vessels, i.e. instruments, used by the tzaddikim, are the ‎musical instruments with which the Levites accompany the ‎sacrificial offerings presented by the priests.

The Levites would ‎raise or lower their voices on occasion when singing, in ‎accordance with the norms used by musicians. Raising their ‎voices meant that they wished G’d’s largesse to be withheld from ‎the wicked, whereas lowering their voices was an invitation to G’d ‎to dispense His largesse to all His creatures in the lower regions, ‎including the wicked, such largesse being the result of G’d’s ‎mercy and love for His creatures.‎It is a rule, and that is why it is referred to in our sages’ ‎parlance as ‎כלל‎, something inclusive, all-embracing, that while ‎G’d’s largesse is in transit to earth, having commenced in the ‎celestial regions, this largesse does not have a specific colour, i.e. ‎is not addressed to anyone specifically.

It is only when this ‎largesse reaches the creatures on earth that it is directed to ‎specific addresses. ‎When we speak of largesse in general terms, we view this as ‎comprising all the letters in the alphabet, whereas when we speak ‎about specifics, we view this as the respective letters in the ‎alphabet. Different deserving people have different needs, so that ‎if someone is in need of being well received by the prospective ‎employer to whom he applies for a position, he needs to be ‎endowed with ‎חן‎, projecting an outgoing pleasant personality.

It ‎is the task of G’d’s largesse in this case to be converted into the ‎letters that spell ‎חן‎, charm, grace. If another tzaddik is in ‎need of immediate parnassah, livelihood, for himself and his ‎family, the means to purchase food, then G’d’s largesse needs to ‎be translated into the letters of the alphabet appropriate for this. ‎This process of the largesse being translated into immediately ‎usable form is known as ‎רוחב‎, “width;” as it alludes to the ability ‎of G’d’s largesse to adapt to the individual needs of different ‎people.

The word ‎רוחב‎ is especially appropriate in this ‎connection, as width may be extended in either direction, i.e. the ‎‎tzaddikim are free to direct relatively more of G’d’s largesse ‎in the direction of the righteous or the wicked, as they may see ‎fit.‎ The Talmud Yuma 77, relates that there was a fountain ‎of water emanating from the Holy of Holies inside the Temple, (or ‎beneath its floor) which at its source was as thin as the point of a ‎needle, but dramatically increased in width as it progressed.

It ‎describes this dramatic increase in width in its stages so that by ‎the time the water of this fountain left the holy precincts of the ‎Temple compound it had swollen to be like the spout of a small ‎jar. The Talmud illustrates how the largesse emanating from G’d ‎increases dramatically as it reaches regions where it is really ‎needed. Eventually this fountain becomes a river or stream ‎providing from its life giving waters to even the most distant ‎parts of the worlds, our planet.

Our author elaborates somewhat ‎on the intermediate stages described in the Talmud in detail; I ‎believe the point has been made, so I’ll skip this.‎‎ Our author proceeds to analyze each word in the ‎Talmud’s parable. He states further that in his sleep, the ‎‎tzaddik triggers the dispensation of G’d’s largesse, as during ‎his sleep, when his soul is in the celestial regions, he conveys ‎thoughts in those regions that he had been entertaining in his ‎waking hours.

His Creator is especially receptive to his wishes ‎while his soul is close to Him during his sleep. According to the ‎‎Sefer Yetzirah, chapter 4, the letters of the Hebrew alphabet ‎are also known as ‎אבנים‎, “stones,” the author describing them as ‎being used to build the physical universe and engraving ‎themselves on respective parts of it. In light of the description in ‎the Sefer Yetzirah, it is easy for us to understand that when ‎Yaakov lay down after having taken from “the stones of G’d,” i.e. ‎the letters G’d had used in creating His universe, that he prepared ‎during his sleep to beseech G’d to dispense of His largesse to His ‎creatures on earth.‎‎ Our author proceeds to analyze each word in the ‎Talmud’s parable.

He states further that in his sleep, the ‎‎tzaddik triggers the dispensation of G’d’s largesse, as during ‎his sleep, when his soul is in the celestial regions, he conveys ‎thoughts in those regions that he had been entertaining in his ‎waking hours. His Creator is especially receptive to his wishes ‎while his soul is close to Him during his sleep. According to the ‎‎Sefer Yetzirah, chapter 4, the letters of the Hebrew alphabet ‎are also known as ‎אבנים‎, “stones,” the author describing them as ‎being used to build the physical universe and engraving ‎themselves on respective parts of it.

In light of the description in ‎the Sefer Yetzirah, it is easy for us to understand that when ‎Yaakov lay down after having taken from “the stones of G’d,” i.e. ‎the letters G’d had used in creating His universe, that he prepared ‎during his sleep to beseech G’d to dispense of His largesse to His ‎creatures on earth.‎ Pursuing the approach that the letters in the alphabet are ‎building blocks, and we are aware that writing letters reflects ‎what one has thought, what goes on in one’s mind, the author ‎proceeds to understand the words: ‎וישם מראשותיו‎, “he placed ‎them as pillows beneath his head,“ as “he placed them above his ‎head.”

When he lay down he could concentrate his thoughts ‎heavenwards. The fact that he would be asleep and not distracted ‎by what went on around him, enabled him to connect better with ‎celestial concerns. ‎ When we keep this in mind we may be better able to ‎understand a strange statement in Shabbat 118 according ‎to which if the entire Jewish people were to observe just two ‎consecutive Sabbath days properly the messiah would arrive ‎immediately.

The Talmud quotes Isaiah 56,4-7 in support of this; ‎we read thereכה אמר ה' לסריסים אשר ישמרו את שבתותי.....והביאותים ‏אל הר קדשי ושמחתים בבית תפלתי‎, “thus says the Lord, as for the ‎eunuchs who keep My Sabbaths,………I will bring them to My ‎sacred Mountain and let them rejoice in My House of Prayer, etc.” ‎Why did the Talmud choose to interpret Isaiah’s words as ‎applying to the observance of two Sabbaths?

Why would not the ‎collective observance by all the Israelites of a single Sabbath ‎suffice to bring on the redemption?‎We have a rule that there is a spiritual awakening that occurs ‎in the “lower” regions of the universe, just as there is a parallel ‎spiritual awakening originating in the celestial regions. Translated ‎loosely, the difference between these two “awakenings” is their ‎origin. Spiritual awakenings can be the result of good deeds ‎performed by man here on earth, or they can be the result of ‎inspiration from above.‎‎[I have heard that the difference between a psalm ‎commencing with the words ‎לדוד מזמור‎, and one commencing ‎with ‎מזמור לדוד‎, is that in the former the holy spirit had already ‎entered David before he commenced composing, whereas in the ‎latter type he commenced composing, as a result of which he was ‎granted holy spirit.

Ed.]‎Whereas it is easy to understand the merit accruing to us if ‎we by our own efforts decided to observe the Sabbath in deed and ‎thought, the question is why we deserve credit when our Sabbath ‎observance was inspired by G’d and not by our own efforts? We ‎must remember that when G’d favours us with the inspiration to ‎observe the Sabbath, (or some other commandment) He does so ‎because of something good we must have done or our forefathers ‎must have done.

We have pointed out repeatedly that G’d “takes ‎pride” in His creatures having performed the commandments. He ‎does so when they did so without having to be prompted. This is ‎proof that they did so enthusiastically. As a result of such ‎enthusiasm by the person or persons or congregations when they ‎perform G’d’s commandments, G’d is encouraged to provide ‎stimulus for further mitzvah performance. [This is ‎what the sages in Avot 4,2 call ‎שכר מצוה מצוה‎, “the reward ‎for performance of a commandment is the encouragement ‎provided with the help of heaven to perform additional ‎commandments.”

Ed.] G’d’s largesse need not necessarily ‎manifest itself in material benefits but it can take the form of ‎human beings becoming endowed with greater intellectual ‎capacity as a result of which they will desire to observe more ‎commandments and with greater enthusiasm.‎When the Talmud spoke about the observance of two ‎Sabbaths being a requisite for the redemption following ‎immediately on the heels of these two Sabbaths, the Talmud ‎referred to the second such Sabbath being the result of G’d ‎having inspired the people so that they can intensify the Sabbath ‎observance and do so with greater enthusiasm than when they ‎observed the first of these Sabbaths.

When we attain the level of ‎awareness so that we please the Creator by the way in which we ‎observe His commandments, we truly deserve to be redeemed.‎ Another way of understanding the verse:‎ויקח מאבני המקום ‏וישם מראשותיו‎. As mentioned previously, the letters in the ‎Hebrew alphabet are called “stones,” in the Sefer Yetzirah. A ‎‎tzaddik takes hold of these letters, which each possess a ‎holy quality of its own, seeing that ‎המקום‎ alludes to G’d Who is ‎the Creator of every ‎מקום‎.

When men converse, speaking Torah ‎or related subjects, they formulate letters with their mouths, ‎each of which may be viewed as a “stone” with which to build a ‎more perfect universe. The words: ‎וישם מראשותיו‎, then mean ‎that Yaakov’s words were addressed to the ‎ראשית‎ ‎‎[‎מראשותיו‎=emanating from the One Who created the ‎beginning. Ed.] Yaakov appealed to G’d to listen to His ‎own letters, i.e. the words that can be formed by combining these ‎letters in the appropriate manner to form such prayers. ‎According to a number of Kabbalistic texts, Zohar, and Eitz ‎chayim, et al, the prayers uttered by means of these 22 letters ‎are engraved on G’d’s throne as acrostics.

The word ‎ויש-כב‎ at the ‎end of verse 11 symbolizes that the prayers of Yaakov acquired ‎substance, i.e. ‎יש‎, and were henceforth engraved on G’d’s throne.‎ Genesis 29,12. “and he had a dream in ‎which a ladder was featured, etc.;” when a young man begins ‎his career (serving the Lord) he is very enthusiastic and believes ‎that by means of his service he can spiritually elevate not only his ‎immediate surroundings on earth, but even those in the celestial ‎regions.

This enthusiasm helps him to intensify his efforts at ‎serving his Creator. When he feels that his serving the Lord has ‎become a mainstay of his existence, he makes G’d the focus of all ‎his thinking, and G’d in turn derives great satisfaction from him. ‎Eventually, if he continues, he eventually qualifies to become one ‎of the “carriers of the merkavah”, G’d’s chariot.‎The word ‎ויחלום‎, from the same root as ‎ותחלימני והחייני‎ (Isaiah ‎‎38,16) “You have restored me to health and revived me,” means ‎to feel strengthened.

In King Chiskiyah’s prayer recorded in the ‎Book of Isaiah, it means that the King emerged from his sickness ‎strengthened in his capacity as a servant of the Lord. He had ‎needed strength as he had been on the point of dying. Yaakov, at ‎this point in his life is also in need of ‎חיזוק‎, strengthening, so that ‎the word ‎ויחלום‎, means that he became aware of being ‎strengthened seeing he was at the beginning of his career as a ‎servant of the Lord, eventually as a patriarch of the Jewish ‎nation.‎ Genesis 28:13 “and in his dream there was a ladder ‎standing toward the earth;” the vision represented human ‎beings who, though standing on earth, focus on the heavens, i.e. ‎וראשו מגיע השמימה‎.

Man’s understanding of the celestial regions ‎and what they stand for is based on his service of the Lord.‎ Genesis 28:12 והנה מלאכי אלוקים עולים ויורדים בו‎, “and here angels of ‎G’d were ascending and descending on it.” The vision reflects ‎the fact that man’s actions propel the movement of these ‎‎“angels,” either heavenwards or earthwards. If man, G’d forbid, ‎instead of serving His Creator, does the opposite, he is also having ‎a negative impact on these angels in the celestial spheres, causing ‎them to descend spiritually.

This concept has been spelled out in ‎‎Pessikta Rabbati 21,8 where we are told that ever since the ‎destruction of the Temple, G’d reduced the number of angels ‎constituting His entourage. However, once Yaakov had become ‎firmly established as a servant of G’d, he was granted an additional ‎vision, i.e. ‎והנה ה' נצב עליו‎, “and here the Lord Himself was ‎standing above the ladder.” This vision refers to the ‎‎merkavah of G’d, His chariot.‎ Another meaning of ‎והנה ה' נצב עליו‎, followed by G’d ‎speaking to Yaakov, and introducing Himself as ‎אני ה' אלוקי ‏אברהם אביך ואלוקי יצחק‎, “I am the G’d of your father ‎Avraham and the G’d of Yitzchok.”

Rabbi Yaakov ben Asher in ‎his Baal haturim already asks why the word ‎אביך‎, “your ‎father,” does not appear next to the word Yitzchok, seeing that ‎even Yaakov’s grandfather Avraham has been referred to by G’d ‎as “your father.”‎I believe that the key is that when Avraham descended to ‎Egypt, leaving the Holy Land, he enjoyed the help of G’d ‎immediately as his destiny was, as we pointed out, to proselytize ‎all over the inhabited part of the earth.

Yitzchok who had been ‎expressly forbidden to leave the boundaries of Eretz Yisrael, ‎had not been charged with such a task. When Avraham’s ‎grandson, Yaakov, now walks in the footsteps of his grandfather, ‎leaving the Holy Land, and in the process acquainting the people ‎he will encounter with what a true tzaddik looks like, it is ‎appropriate that the title: ‎אביך‎, “your father,” be accorded to ‎Avraham in this context.‎Another approach to the line: ‎והנה ה' נצב עליו ויאמר וגו'‏‎, ‎‎“and here the Lord was standing above it, saying, etc.” It is ‎well known by now that our patriarch Avraham’s relationship ‎with G’d was based on the attribute of love, i.e. Avraham loved ‎G’d.

Yitzchok related to G’d primarily from a feeling of awe for His ‎greatness. Each of them intended to aggrandize G’d’s image ‎among His creatures through his service of the Lord. Yaakov ‎attempted to achieve the same result by utilizing the attribute ‎תפארת‎, harmony, as we have pointed out. This is why our sages in ‎‎Bereshit Rabbah 76,1 point out that Yaakov was the choicest ‎of the patriarchs as he understood how to meld the two ‎attributes of G’d into a fruitful combination.

Yaakov learned from ‎the manner in which G’d referred to his grandfather and father ‎respectively that it was his task to combine the attributes for ‎which his father and grandfather had become famous, and to ‎weave them into a fabric that enabled them both to be applied ‎simultaneously.‎ Genesis 28,19. “he now added to the name of this place ‎the name Bet El”. We need to remember that all ‎creatures G’d has created have been identified by means of one or ‎more of the letters in the Hebrew alphabet.

Some of these ‎‎“letters” are incomplete without certain further “sub-titles” ‎written in the form of dots, lines, etc. Some of these appear above ‎the actual letter, others below it. These nuances reflect the fact ‎that some creatures, though all mobile, move in certain ways, ‎whereas others move in different ways. Yet other letters have a ‎dot in the middle, neither above nor below. These “dots or lines” ‎alert us to the how, i.e. by which motive the creature’s ‎movements were prompted.

When a creature’s motion is ‎prompted by considerations resident in the celestial spheres, the ‎‎“dot” accompanying the letters is found above the letter. When it ‎originates from earthly considerations, the dot is found under the ‎letter. When it is found in the middle of the letter, it reflects the ‎fact that both lofty and less lofty considerations prompted the ‎motion of the individual described by the respective letter.

Seeing ‎that Yaakov’s movements were prompted by lofty considerations, ‎the word ‎ויחלום‎ has the dot on top of the letter ‎ו‎. These lofty ‎thoughts enabled him to sire a son combining so many fine ‎attributes as did Joseph. The combinations of letters, i.e. ‎attributes, are also reflected in the spelling of the word ‎ביתאל‎ as a ‎single word, instead of, as we find it elsewhere ‎בית אל‎.Yaakov wished to express the thought that in the house of ‎G’d to be built on that site in the future, the combination of the ‎basic attributes required for successful service of the Lord by His ‎creatures on earth be present at all times.‎ ‎ Genesis 28,20.

“If G’d will be with me, etc.;” ‎Nachmanides’ comment that seeing G’d had already promised ‎Yaakov in verse 15 that He would be with him, why did Yaakov ‎question this with the word: ‎אם‎, “if?” is well known. The answer ‎given by Nachmanides is that Yaakov was afraid that G’d’s ‎promise would be invalid if he became guilty of a sin before it ‎could be carried out. (compare Bereshit Rabbah 76,2 that ‎promises made to tzaddikim concerning happenings in this ‎life are never absolute.) [If they were they would tie G’d’s ‎hands if the tzaddik were to become a rasha. ‎Ed.]‎The answers given by the Midrash or quoted as such by ‎the commentators, appear to contradict the specific promise for ‎events in this life made to Yaakov in verse 15.

I quote: ‎‎(translation) “Remember, I am with you; I will protect you ‎wherever you go and will bring you back to this land. I will not ‎leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” Surely, ‎after such a promise, how could Yaakov have had any doubt that ‎what G’d had promised would occur in this lifetime on earth? Part ‎of this promise implies that G’d the good, Who only does good, ‎will assist the recipient of this promise to conduct himself in a ‎manner that will ensure that G’d will feel obliged to honour His ‎promise.‎However, we must remember two points. 1) The Torah had ‎reported G’d’s promise as being part of a dream,” i.e. ‎ויחלום‎.

The ‎Torah did not preface the dream as a vision, i.e. ‎וירא אליו ה'‏‎; ‎Yaakov was not at all sure that what appears here as a solid ‎promise was not a figment of his imagination. 2) We have ‎discussed once before the fact that G’d wishes us to pray to Him ‎for our needs, (that is why Rivkah did not become pregnant till ‎after 20 years of marriage when both her husband and she prayed ‎for this). Seeing that Yaakov is not on record as having actively ‎asked G’d to assist him in what was a pretty desperate situation, ‎G’d, by spelling out this promise, wished to provoke Yaakov into ‎finally praying to Him for His help. (Compare also Bereshit ‎Rabbah 45, Sarah being angry at Avraham for not having ‎including her in his prayer when he said to G’d, (complainingly) ‎‎“here I walk on this earth childless.” (Genesis 15,2) G’d dispenses ‎largesse without waiting to be asked, to those of His creatures ‎whom He has not equipped with a mouth to articulate their ‎requests.

Man, who has been so equipped is expected to use his ‎powers to address his Creator in prayer.‎According to B’rachot 17 the reason why our matriarchs ‎were originally barren is summed up in Isaiah 46,12 ‎שמעו אלי אבירי ‏לב הרחוקים מצדקה‎! “Listen to Me, you who have lost heart, who ‎are far from righteousness.” According to one interpretation of ‎the above verse in the Talmud, some people are granted their ‎livelihood because they use their intelligence to ask G’d for it. ‎Others believe in their own strength, ‎זרוע‎, their ability to work for ‎a living, and secure it through this means.

The people who are ‎devoid of intelligence will be provided for by G’d, as they are too ‎dim witted or physically unable look out for themselves. This is ‎the meaning of ‎שומר פתאים ה'‏‎, “the Lord looks after the fools.” ‎‎(psalms 116,6) Examples of such people are children having to eat ‎at their father’s table. When the father of such children sees that ‎they have become capable of fending for themselves, he no longer ‎supports them.

The same holds true of our Father in heaven, ‎when He sees that we could fend for ourselves but prefer to have ‎Him provide for us. The righteous are supposed to support ‎themselves by using their arms, (to do work) not violence. Those ‎who possess intelligence and do not use it to appeal to their ‎Creator are not supported by G’d’s charity, ‎צדקה‎.‎ ‎ This is what G’d meant when He told Yaakov in his dream: ‎כי ‏לא אעזבך עד אשר עשיתי את אשר דברתי לך‎, “for I will not ‎abandon you until I have done what I have said (I would do) ‎for you.”

What G’d meant was that as soon as Yaakov would ‎return to the land of Israel, he would have to fend for himself, ‎using the intelligence etc., that G’d had endowed him with. He ‎implied that at that time he would have to accompany his ‎activities with the appropriate prayers asking G’d to let his efforts ‎be crowned with success. If he were to neglect to do so, he would ‎not become the founding father of the twelve tribes making up ‎the Jewish people.

Seeing that you had not reached spiritual ‎maturity until that time, I intervened overtly on your behalf ‎during the preceding years.‎When we look at Yaakov’s situation from this angle, it is ‎neither fear nor lack of faith when Yaakov says ‎אם יהיה אלוקים ‏עמדי וגו'‏‎, “if G’d will be with me etc.” It is a declaration by Yaakov ‎that as soon as he will safely return to his homeland he is ‎prepared to do everything humanly possible, including prayer, of ‎course, to ensure his success in the task that G’d has set him.

He ‎indicates by promising to tithe his income he will continue to ‎view his success as an act of charity by G’d. Although he will do ‎what is in his power, he will view success as G’d manifesting His ‎love for him. Tzaddikim, even when earning their livelihood ‎by their own efforts, will continue to view their success as not ‎due to their own intelligence or hard work, but as a gift from G’d. ‎The matriarchs, whose success is not measured in terms of their ‎earning power, but in terms of the fruit of their wombs, therefore ‎were meant to turn to G’d in prayer in order for what other ‎women considered as their natural right, i.e. to produce children, ‎to be granted to them also.‎Perhaps this is how we must understand Bereshit ‎Rabbah 76,2 on Genesis 45,28 according to which any ‎assurance given by G’d to tzaddikim does not refer to events ‎that would occur in this life.

On Deuteronomy 3,23 Rashi ‎comments that although the righteous, if they wanted to, could ‎ascribe any success that they enjoyed in this life as due to merits ‎they had accumulated, they prefer not to do so. When they ask ‎G’d for something, they make a point as describing G’d’s granting ‎their request as a ‎מתנת חנם‎, a “free gift.” These explanations were ‎needed, as seeing that we have a tradition that G’d does not even ‎go back on a conditional promise, how could the Midrash say that ‎no promises of G’d apply in this world.

The meaning of the words: ‎כי לא אעזבך עד וגו'‏‎, therefore must mean that there comes a time ‎in Yaakov’s life when he is expected to no longer have to rely on ‎G’d’s promises.‎ Genesis 28,21. “then Hashem (the attribute of Mercy) ‎will be my G’d,;” (may deal with me on the basis of the ‎attribute of Justice). Many commentators already have dealt ‎with this phrase and the difficulties it presents when one reads it ‎superficially.

Firstly, why would Yaakov feel the need to make a ‎vow when G’d had already promised him all that he is asking. We ‎trust we are correct in answering that Yaakov here asked for a ‎detail that G’d had not included in the promise He had made to ‎him. We have mentioned already that at the beginning of a ‎‎“career” as a servant of G’d, everyone needs an assist from G’d. ‎Yaakov therefore asked for this initial assistance, so that ‎eventually he would be able to stand on his own two feet not only ‎economically but also spiritually.

When he spoke about G’d being ‎with him, he meant “immediately,” not only at some time in the ‎future. He also wished for G’d’s continued assistance even after ‎he would have returned safely to his homeland and the house of ‎his father. G’d’s initial promise had been limited to the time when ‎Yaakov would return to Eretz Yisrael.‎ Genesis 29,2. “he saw that there was a well in the field ‎and that three flocks of sheep were lying around it;” ‎‎…‎והאבן גדולה על פי הבאר‎, “and the rock covering the mouth ‎of the well was very great.”‎‎(The text is quoted until the end of verse 10 after ‎Yaakov single-handedly moved the rock to make the water ‎accessible.)‎It appears best to explain this whole sequence allegorically.

It ‎is a given that G’d on His part is desirous to make available to His ‎creatures an uninterrupted flow of His largesse, especially to His ‎people of Israel. However, from time to time He appears to face ‎interference from the “left” side of the diagram representing the ‎emanations. The only time when G’d does not encounter such ‎interference is when the Jewish people are awakened by feelings ‎of joy, and this joy succeeds in repulsing such interference.

This is ‎the image that opened up before Yaakov’s eyes when he is ‎described as ‎וירא והנה באר ‏‎, “he saw the fountain of G’d’s largesse ‎primed to water the field.” The word ‎שדה‎, commonly translated as ‎‎“field,” is also a simile for ‎חקל תפוחים קדישין‎ a concept described in ‎‎Zohar 1, 152 describing 3 layers of differing degrees of ‎holiness in the celestial spheres that are all perceived as ‎surrounding the ‎באר‎, the well from which G’d’s largesse flows ‎towards its recipients.

On the three pilgrimage festivals, Passover, ‎the festivals of “weeks,” Shavuot, and the festival of huts, ‎these “spigots” of the “well” are especially primed to open as the ‎Jewish people on those festivals are filled with a joy inspired by ‎observing all the commandments associated with these festivals, ‎and the fact that they are on sacred ground in Jerusalem. The ‎three flocks of sheep mentioned in our verse are similes for these ‎festivals.

The “great rock” preventing access to the water from ‎the well described is a simile for the powers of Satan, the left side ‎of the emanations, trying to block access to G’d’s largesse for His ‎people. This “rock” is alluded to in the Talmud Kidushin 30, ‎where the Talmud suggests as a remedy against this phenomenon ‎that persons feeling the evil urge as a form of a heavy stone, ‎should proceed to the Torah academy and immerse themselves in ‎Torah study so that this “stone” will melt.

The “stone” is ‎perceived in practice as the obstacle for G’d providing His ‎largesse. When the three herds and their shepherds are joined by ‎כל העדרים‎, “all the other herds,” i.e. all the Jewish people, their ‎combined spiritual power will enable their leader to remove these ‎obstacles to G’d’s largesse as the joy of serving the Lord is ‎powerful enough to accomplish this. ‎ An alternate approach to the paragraph commencing with: ‎וירא והנה באר בשדה‎, “he looked, and here there was a well ‎in the field, etc.;” The Talmud Pessachim 88 draws ‎attention to Avraham, Yitzchok, and Yaakov each using a ‎different simile when trying to condense their concept of G’d. ‎Avraham saw G’d in terms of a ‎הר‎, “mountain,” i.e. something far ‎above our level towering above man.

Yitzchok perceived him as ‎שדה‎, a field, covering huge expanses of earth, but sharing earth ‎with man. Yaakov perceived Him as ‎בית‎, i.e. an intimate term, ‎viewing G’d as if He were at home with human beings. A major ‎difference between Yaakov’s concept of G’d and that of his ‎forefathers, is that the former did not view G’d as being “at ‎home” permanently on earth, whereas Yaakov did perceive Him ‎as constantly accompanying man, much as a house is the symbol ‎of a permanent presence. [The scriptural verses this is based on ‎are: Genesis 22,14 ‎בהר ה' יראה‎, “on the Mountain of Hashem, ‎He may be seen.”

Genesis 24,63 ‎ויצא יצחק לשוח בשדה‎, “Yitzchok ‎went out into the field to meditate.” In Genesis 28,19 the Torah ‎quotes Yaakov as naming the site ‎ביתאל‎, “house of the Lord”. ‎Yaakov felt that the time had come when G’d could have a ‎permanent home on earth. However, this had been a vision ‎brought about by his dream/prophetic insight. After awakening ‎he realized that down on earth, where greed, envy and jealousy ‎were still prevalent, to wit the huge rock making the water of the ‎well inaccessible accept when all the interested parties were ‎assembled simultaneously, that the time was not yet ripe for G’d ‎to feel at home in such an environment.

By removing the rock, ‎Yaakov wanted to demonstrate to the shepherds that a better ‎future could be in store for mankind. I have reworded the ‎thought expressed by the author somewhat, and have omitted ‎the comparison to the portion of ‎קן צפור‎ in Deut. 22,6. ‎Ed.]‎ Genesis 29,5., “He said: ‘do you know Lavan son of ‎Nachor, etc.?’” If we wish to read an allegorical meaning into ‎Yaakov’s question to the shepherds: “where are you from, my ‎brothers,” and their reply: “we are from Charan,” we must refer ‎to the Zohar I 147, as well as the last Rashi on ‎‎Parshat Noach where Rashi refers to an inverted letter ‎נ‎ at the end of the word ‎חרן‎, [something that at the time ‎of Minchas Shay, (Rabbi Yedidyah Shlomoh Rafael Minortzi of ‎Mantua) was apparently still found in the Torah scrolls, Ed.] ‎‎[The common denominator of both commentaries appears to be ‎that the word ‎חרן‎ is an allusion to the attribute of Justice, ‎suggesting that in that place such concepts as ‎רחמים‎, mercy, ‎something beyond strict justice was unheard of.

Ed.]‎‎Rashi there quotes an opinion according to which G’d ‎related to mankind primarily with the attribute of Justice until ‎the time of Avraham and his benevolent activities on earth. ‎Yaakov enquired from the shepherds (who had demonstrated ‎strict Justice by not trusting anyone not to take more than his ‎fair share of water from the well unless he had been watched over ‎by his colleagues) if they had not heard that there are also other ‎yardsticks by which mankind could be judged, i.e. the attribute of ‎Mercy.

The reply of the shepherds appeared to have been in the ‎negative when they emphasized that their home was ‎חרן‎. Yaakov ‎persisted in asking how it could be possible to live like that. The ‎word (name) ‎לבן‎, is perceived as the opposite of ‎חרן‎, so that ‎Yaakov’s question ‎השלום לו‎, “is he well?” had a double entendre, ‎referring also to his spiritual well being. According to this the ‎shepherds replied: ‎שלום לו‎, “he is physically and spiritually well.” ‎The shepherds used the reference to his daughter Rachel as proof ‎or rather as the cause that he was spiritually at peace, i.e. that his ‎daughter Rachel was a major factor in this.

They may have hinted ‎without being aware of this, at Rachel’s future role near the ‎throne of G’d as an advocate on behalf of her people in exile. ‎‎(According to the Sefer Chassidim, Rachel’s spirit intervenes ‎with G’d whenever the Jewish people face special problems. She ‎possessed this power thanks to her good deeds while alive on ‎earth).‎ Genesis 29,10. “it was when Yaakov saw Rachel, ‎etc.;” [the following has to be understood against ‎the background of Yaakov, until that moment, not having felt ‎capable of removing the stone from the top of the well. ‎Ed.]‎This verse is an allusion to the joy experienced by bride and ‎groom, which is also compared to the joy of the Jewish people ‎making the pilgrimage to Jerusalem on the festivals, as we know ‎from Ezekiel 11,19 where the prophet describes the reaction of ‎the returning exiles being the feeling that a heavy stone has been ‎lifted from their hearts.

The “stone” there describes the weight of ‎the left side of the emanations, the seat of the forces of Satan, the ‎crushing weight of which prevented the Jewish people from ‎experiencing prophetic insights while in exile. Our author cites ‎psalms 90,12 ‎ונביא לבב חכמה‎, “so that we may obtain a wise ‎heart,” as a heart capable of receiving prophetic insights. ‎Yaakov’s being able to remove the rock from the well once he set ‎eyes on Rachel, means that obstacles to serving the Lord were ‎removed by his vision of Rachel.‎ Genesis 29,11.

“Yaakov gave Rachel a kiss, etc;” ‎‎[note that the Torah does not refer to Rachel’s physical ‎appearance until verse 17 after Yaakov had already worked for ‎him for over a month. Ed.]‎Genesis 29,17. “and Rachel was shapely and ‎beautiful.” At first glance it is surprising that the Torah ‎appears to link Yaakov’s falling in love with Rachel in verse 18, ‎ויאהב יעקב את רחל‎, “Yaakov loved Rachel,” to the description ‎of her physical assets in verse 17.

Is it possible that Yaakov, the ‎most highly admired of our patriarchs, was attracted by Rachel’s ‎physical features, and that this is why the Torah reports matters ‎in this sequence? Our sages called our attention to Yaakov’s ‎message to his brother Esau in Genesis 32,4 where he told him ‎עם ‏לבן גרתי‎, ”I have remained a stranger while with Lavan, etc.” The ‎numerical value of the letters in the word ‎גרתי‎, equals 613, the ‎number of commandments in the Torah.

Yaakov reminded his ‎brother that during the entire period that he spent in Charan he ‎had observed the Torah, and therefore had little to fear. A man ‎who could make such a statement certainly did not marry Rachel ‎because he was smitten by lust to possess her shapely body. ‎Anyone who observes the 613 commandments is well aware of ‎the statement by Solomon in Proverbs 31,30 that ‎שקר החן והבך ‏היופי‎, that external attributes such as physical beauty or even a ‎graceful walk, etc., are deceptive and offer no clue to the owner’s ‎character.‎We must look further for the reason why the Torah made a ‎point of mentioning Rachel’s physical attributes.

I have heard ‎from my revered teacher the Maggid of Mezeritch Dov Baer, of ‎sainted memory, that we must understand this as follows. We ‎know that the principal attribute used by Yaakov in serving the ‎Lord is the attribute known as ‎תפארת‎, harmony, located in the ‎center of diagrams of the 10 emanations, ‎ספירות‎. Any physical ‎matter on earth, containing a “spark” from this emanation, is ‎spiritually elevated by the presence of this spark, regardless of ‎how secular it is by nature.

Through this spark of the attribute of ‎תפארת‎, its host is brought closer to its roots in the celestial ‎regions, and engages in some degree of service to the Lord.‎We must look further for the reason why the Torah made a ‎point of mentioning Rachel’s physical attributes. I have heard ‎from my revered teacher the Maggid of Mezeritch Dov Baer, of ‎sainted memory, that we must understand this as follows.

We ‎know that the principal attribute used by Yaakov in serving the ‎Lord is the attribute known as ‎תפארת‎, harmony, located in the ‎center of diagrams of the 10 emanations, ‎ספירות‎. Any physical ‎matter on earth, containing a “spark” from this emanation, is ‎spiritually elevated by the presence of this spark, regardless of ‎how secular it is by nature. Through this spark of the attribute of ‎תפארת‎, its host is brought closer to its roots in the celestial ‎regions, and engages in some degree of service to the Lord.‎When the Torah (Genesis 39,13) reports that Joseph ‎וינס ויצא ‏החוצה‎, “fled and went “outside,” to escape the efforts of ‎Potiphar’s wife to seduce him, he did so because he realized that ‎that woman had used her mode of dress to lure him into a sinful ‎relationship (Yuma 35).

She had employed whatever holy ‎spark she possessed in a reverse manner, instead of a means to ‎come closer to her Creator. When Joseph escaped from her ‎presence he took with him this “holy spark” thereby serving his ‎Creator and paving the way for this “spark” that had escaped ‎from the Shechinah to find its way back to its roots.‎It is known that Joseph, though, of course also serving the ‎Lord, did not do so by using principally the attribute of harmony ‎as his father was in the habit of doing.

However, at this critical ‎juncture, in his fateful seclusion with the wife of his master ‎Potiphar, he resorted to the attribute of ‎תפארת‎ as the means to ‎avoid sinning.‎It is also known that every tzaddik who serves the Lord, ‎regardless of which of the attributes in the diagram of the ‎emanations he uses as his primary model, will be granted a vision ‎of the tzaddik who had made that attribute his primary role ‎model in serving the Lord.

When the Talmud Sotah 36 ‎relates that at the critical moment before the seduction, Joseph ‎had a vision of his father, it is a vision of the emanation of ‎תפארת‎ ‎that the Talmud refers to as having been seen by Joseph.‎ Genesis 29,30. “he also had marital relations with ‎Rachel, and he loved her, even more than he loved Leah.” ‎It has been understood that the principal reason that Yaakov ‎stayed at Lavan’s house had been on account of Rachel.

It was for ‎Rachel, after all, that he had agreed to serve Lavan for seven ‎years, originally. Leah would never have become Yaakov’s wife ‎had it not been for his abiding desire to marry Rachel. He had ‎loved Rachel for herself all the time, whereas his love for Leah was ‎a byproduct of his love for Rachel who had been instrumental in ‎his having the ‎זכות‎, good fortune, to also have a pious woman ‎such as Leah for his wife.

This explains why the Torah speaks here ‎of Yaakov “also loving Rachel.” It could obviously not mean that ‎Rachel ranked second in Yaakov’s love, but means that Yaakov ‎had an additional reason for loving Rachel, this being that ‎through her he had merited to become Leah’s husband also.‎ An alternate interpretation of this somewhat obscurely ‎worded verse above. When concentrating on the section ‎ויאהב גם ‏את רחל מלאה‎, “he also loved Rachel better than Leah;” we must ‎examine the meaning of the word: ‎גם‎ in this verse.

We are used to ‎find this word when comparisons are being made to something ‎that preceded it; here, however, there is no question that ‎Yaakov’s love for Rachel had preceded his love for Leah as we ‎know already from Genesis 29,18.‎The wording of our verse throws light on Rashi’s ‎explanation on Genesis 30,22 “G’d remembered Rachel;” ‎according to Rashi, G’d remembered not only that Rachel had ‎given her sister Leah the secret code that was designed to alert ‎Yaakov in the event Lavan were to trick him, but also that Rachel ‎was most unhappy at the prospect that once her sister had ‎become the wife of Yaakov it would now be her lot to become the ‎wife of Esau, a terrible prospect, especially as she feared that ‎Yaakov would divorce her seeing that she had not born any ‎children for him.

Looking at this commentary, it appears that ‎according to Rashi, G’d had two separate reasons for ‎‎“remembering” Rachel at that time. Actually, this is not so; how ‎can one imagine that Yaakov would divorce Rachel because she ‎had no children, when he himself had already been blessed with ‎numerous children both from Leah and from the servant maids?‎According to Bereshit Rabbah 70,16 the reason why the ‎Torah in 29,17 reveals that Leah had “weak” eyes, is to alert us to ‎her having wept excessively at the prospect of her having to ‎become the wife of a wicked person, her cousin Esau.

At least, this ‎is what she had heard about her father’s plans for her, something ‎that was common gossip in Charan. At the time when Rachel had ‎handed Leah the secret code between Yaakov and her, it was not ‎clear yet that Yaakov would also marry Rachel so that she need ‎not have worried. It was therefore an even greater act of self ‎sacrifice on the part of Rachel to have revealed the secret code to ‎her sister at the time, as not only would she most likely lose the ‎chance to become Yaakov’s wife, but would wind up with a ‎husband who was a wicked person.

Rashi meant that G’d ‎now remembered not only that Rachel had acted altruistically at ‎the time when she revealed the code to her sister, but she had in ‎addition had reason to believe that she had thereby condemned ‎herself to becoming the wife of Esau. When Yaakov, after also ‎marrying Rachel, instead of harbouring anger at her for revealing ‎their secret, became aware of her true motives, he also loved her ‎for her piety.

In other words, his original love for Rachel is ‎considered by the Torah as a given; Yaakov in the meantime had ‎found out to what length of self-sacrifice Rachel had gone in ‎order to save her sister Leah embarrassment. He therefore loved ‎her doubly. If we translate the word ‎מלאה‎, “on account of Leah,” ‎instead of as “more than Leah,” the verse does not present any ‎problems at all. ‎ This also helps us understand a verse in psalms 31,20 ‎מה רב ‏טובך אשר צפנת ליראיך פעלת לחוסים בך נגד בני אדם‎, “how abundant is ‎the good that You have in store for those who fear You; You have ‎done so publicly in full view of men, for those who have taken ‎refuge in You.”

Rachel was a perfect example of how one fulfills ‎the exhortation of our sages in Avot 1,3 not to belong to ‎the category of people who observe the Lord’s commandments ‎only for the sake of the reward G’d has promised. She trusted G’d ‎fully, else she would have certainly used the argument that she ‎did not want to become Esau’s wife as justification not to reveal ‎the secret code between Yaakov and her to her sister.

Her action ‎even endangered her afterlife, which due to being a dutiful wife of ‎Esau would have daily put her claim to an afterlife at risk.‎The exhortation of the above quoted Mishnah not to ‎perform the commandments for the sake of the reward promised ‎is very difficult to honour as we know and are constantly aware ‎that G’d keeps His promises to us, and it is almost superhuman ‎not to be influenced by such promises.

When David worded his ‎psalm 31,20 as he did, adding the words ‎נגד בני אדם‎, he meant that ‎at the time when we perform the commandments we must not ‎think of the reward in store for us. G’d does not mind that once ‎we have performed the commandment we think about the ‎reward. He knows how difficult it is not to think of it while ‎performing it; this is why David says of G’d ‎צפנת‎, “You hid,” such ‎thoughts from those who truly revere You at the time when they ‎performed the commandments.‎ We need to address the reason why the twelve sons of Yaakov ‎are sometimes referred to as ‎שבטים‎, “tribes,” and on other ‎occasions as ‎מטות‎, in our classical literature, as well as why both ‎Yehudah and Joseph are referred to as “king” in our sources, and ‎why our matriarchs named their children as representing symbols ‎of our physical world rather than as symbols of the celestial ‎spheres, when it is clear that they themselves were far from ‎viewing our existence on this terrestrial part of the world as our ‎real “life,” the very names the matriarchs gave their children ‎reflect that their entire orientation was focused on spiritual ‎values accompanied by prophetic insights. [If any of you ‎have my translation of the commentary Tzror Hamor by ‎Rabbi Avraham Saba, you will be able to read up on all this in his ‎commentary on Vayetze.

Ed.]‎By naming their children, the matriarchs provide us with a ‎model lesson on how to serve the Lord. Our matriarchs taught us ‎how G’d, the Creator of the universe, in spite of the thousands of ‎concerns that keep Him occupied around the clock, never ‎neglects the problems of an individual creature of His on earth. ‎Leah testifies that this Creator took time out to notice that she ‎was relatively hated by her husband as a result of which He ‎granted her children, in spite of her being barren by nature. ‎‎(Genesis 29,32) The phrase: ‎ויפתח רחמה‎ in that verse makes it ‎clear that she was barren, why else would G’d have had to “open ‎her womb,” seeing that pregnancy is one of the most natural ‎results of marital intercourse?

Another lesson we learn from the matriarchs is that the word, ‎i.e. request, by a tzaddik, makes an impression in the ‎celestial spheres and that he or she can draw down additional ‎largesse from the Creator to these “lower” regions of the ‎universe. We have explained that this is the reason that the ‎אותיות‎, letters in the Hebrew alphabet, [when used as the ‎Holy Tongue, Ed.] are called ‎אבנים‎, “stones,” in the sense ‎of “building blocks,” as the words formulated by the tzaddik ‎in prayer enhance and improve the structure known as the ‎תחתונים‎, “the lower regions” of the universe.

These prayers, as we ‎have demonstrated at the beginning of the last portion, are the ‎real ‎תולדות‎, enduring achievements by the righteous on earth. ‎‎[Compare pages 139 and 140 on how a true ‎תולדה‎ is a son ‎in his father’s image, i.e. Yitzchok being a continuation of the ‎spiritual values represented by his father. Ed.]‎The names given by their mothers to the founding tribes of ‎the Jewish people retained their significance throughout our ‎history, and this is why both Yaakov and Moses at the respective ‎end of their lives confirmed this in their blessings.‎When Leah explained why she called her firstborn son ‎Reuven, she said: ‎ראה ה' בעניי‎, “for the Lord has seen my ‎affliction,” adding a prayer ‎כי עתה יאהבני אישי‎, “for from now on ‎my husband will love me.”

This was an appeal for G’d’s largesse to ‎be drawn down to her for her benefit. When the letters, words of ‎a tzaddik are translated into “building blocks,” ‎אבנים‎, they ‎become transformed into ‎אבנים‎, which translated into Aramaic is ‎equivalent to ‎‏ אבהן‎, “fathers, founding fathers,” as in ‎רועה אבן ‏ישראל‎, (Genesis 49,24) When these letters ascend heavenwards, -‎mature- they become not only corner stones, but, as is ‎customary with sons, eventually they themselves become ‎‎“fathers,” ‎אבהן‎. [The concept of letters being “stones” ‎dates back to the Sefer Yetzirah chapter 6.

Ed.] In ‎Hebrew, the Holy Tongue, the word ‎אבנים‎ is a combination of ‎אב‎, ‎‎“father,” and ‎בנים‎, “sons.” The progression in Leah’s insights is ‎demonstrated when at the birth of her fourth son, ‎יהודה‎, she no ‎longer prays for her husband’s love, but is full of gratitude, ‎הפעם ‏אודה את ה'‏‎, “this time I thank the Lord, etc.” (Genesis 29,35). ‎‎[The author continues to demonstrate that Rachel also ‎was on the same wavelength as her older sister when naming her ‎children.

I have omitted the details. Ed.]‎‎ Genesis 29,31. “When G’d saw that Leah was hated, He ‎opened her womb.” There is a somewhat enigmatic ‎comment on this verse in Aggadat Bereshit 48 according to ‎which some of Leah’s descendants would be enemies of G’d, and ‎that this is why she is called here ‎שנואה‎, in reference to the ‎wicked deeds of some of her offspring. (The angels protested ‎Leah’s having children as they foresaw that on account of Zimri ‎from the tribe of Shimon 24000 Israelites would lose their lives ‎and not enter the land of Israel) Our verse would explain that just ‎as Yishmael at the time (Genesis 21,17) was not allowed to die ‎from thirst as at the time he was free from sin, so Leah, who had ‎prayed not to become the wife of the wicked Esau, could not be ‎denied children now on account of something over which she ‎could have no control.

She had demonstrated that she hated ‎wickedness so what more could she have done? [I have ‎rephrased this a little, as the whole idea of when G’d interferes ‎with natural developments in order to forestall wicked deeds and ‎when not is exceedingly complex. Ed.] Our verse makes ‎clear that other considerations notwithstanding, Leah’s prayer to ‎bear children was answered positively.‎ Genesis 30,14.

“Reuven went and found mandrakes in ‎the field, etc.;” ‎ותאמר אלי תבא כי שכר שכרתיך בדודאי בני‎, ‎‎“Leah said to her husband come to me for I have hired you in ‎exchange for my son’s mandrakes.” After reporting this ‎strange sounding incident, the Torah continues with: ‎וישמע ‏אלוקים אל לאה‎, “G’d listened to Leah’s prayer” (and gave her ‎another son) as a result of which Leah exclaimed: ‎נתן אלוקים ‏שכרי אשר נתתי שפחתי לאישי ותקרא שמו יששכר‎, “G’d has given ‎me a reward for having given my maid-servant to my ‎husband; she called her son Issachar.”‎It is somewhat puzzling why Leah called this son of hers ‎Issachar, if she saw it as a reward not for having slept with ‎Yaakov as a reward for allowing Reuven to give Rachel the ‎mandrakes, but for having given her maid-servant to Yaakov ‎‎(previously).‎When we look at Rashi’s comment on this verse, (17) he ‎attributes G’d’s listening to Leah’s prayer as reward for her having ‎demonstrated by giving her maid-servant to Yaakov that she ‎wanted him to father more founding fathers of the Jewish people, ‎even if she was not going to be the mother of them.

She had ‎proven thereby that when she “hired” Yaakov in exchange for ‎the mandrakes, she had not been motivated by the desire to ‎satisfy her libido.‎Our author wonders how we can be sure of this as even ‎assuming that Leah, who at any rate had to share her husband ‎with other women, something that no doubt caused her much ‎heartache, would have been fully justified in wanting more of her ‎husband’s company than she appeared to enjoy.

Our author ‎answers that while it is true that ordinary women whose ‎husbands also have another wife do suffer such heartache and ‎jealousy, so that the name for such a wife who has to share her ‎husband is always called ‎צרה‎, “rival wife,” if Leah had entertained ‎the type of motivation common to other “rival wives,” she most ‎certainly would not have seen in her bearing Issachar a “reward” ‎from G’d, but as fulfillment of her personal desire.

This is why ‎Rashi draws our attention to this psychological insight which ‎many a reader might have overlooked otherwise. We now can also ‎understand the Mishnah in Makkot, 23, where Rabbi ‎Chananyah ben Akashyah attributes the many commandments ‎G’d gave us, the Torah and the commandments, to His desire to ‎provide us with many merits due to the frequent opportunities ‎we have to perform His commandments.

We need to analyse what ‎the Rabbi meant when he appears to have distinguished between ‎תורה‎ and ‎מצות‎? Generally we use the terms interchangeably!Apparently, we must differentiate between Torah and ‎commandments. The latter may be understood on two levels. ‎There are commandments performance of which does not ‎interfere with a person’s natural physical urges. It does not ‎interfere with a person’s natural urges whether he wears a prayer ‎shawl, ‎טלית‎, or whether he observes the commandment to put on ‎phylacteries every morning, or whether he does neither. ‎Performing these commandments are acts strictly between him ‎and His Creator, there being no interference due to other ‎demands on the wearer by his body.‎There are commandments such as eating a number of meals ‎on the Sabbath, having conjugal relations with his wife on Friday ‎nights, concerning the performance of which the demands of ‎one’s body may present obstacles.

Whereas when a Jew wears a ‎prayer shawl or puts on phylacteries, it is clear that he does so ‎only because the Torah has commanded it, eating good meals on ‎the Sabbath or enjoying conjugal relations, while a ‎commandment, would most likely have been carried out also if ‎there had not been such a commandment; so who is to say that ‎performing these commandments are proof of one’s piety, or ‎one’s desire to please one’s Creator?‎It would have required almost superhuman discipline to ‎observe these latter commandments exclusively because G’d had ‎legislated them.

Rabbi Chanayah ben Akashyah reminds us that ‎G’d legislated many commandments that while we perform them ‎also correspond to our physical desires. By according the ‎performance of actions that originate in our bodily desires the ‎title ‎מצוה‎, G’d has multiplied the opportunities when we can ‎accumulate spiritual credits, ‎זכויות‎. G’d helps us sublimate our ‎physical desires to the level of making religiously important acts ‎out of them, provided that we do remember to have this in mind ‎also when we carry out these activities.‎Not only the body derives satisfaction, joy, from the ‎performance of the last mentioned commandments, but also the ‎soul, so that on account of the soul deriving satisfaction, the ‎personality of the person involved in these activities emerges as ‎being more refined.

This will be reflected in the quality of the ‎visions granted to the souls of such people when they will move ‎to the celestial regions after shedding their bodies.‎Not only the body derives satisfaction, joy, from the ‎performance of the last mentioned commandments, but also the ‎soul, so that on account of the soul deriving satisfaction, the ‎personality of the person involved in these activities emerges as ‎being more refined.

This will be reflected in the quality of the ‎visions granted to the souls of such people when they will move ‎to the celestial regions after shedding their bodies.‎ ‎ Genesis 31,13. “I am the G’d of Betel to Whom you have ‎vowed, etc.” The spelling of the word ‎ביתאל‎ both here and in ‎‎35,1 suggests that a house may serve more than one function. It ‎may serve a person to dwell in, just as clothing serves the body as ‎a “house” to surround him with a feeling of security and ‎familiarity.

When you see the clothes a person wears, this serves ‎as a preparation to making the acquaintance of the personality ‎behind these clothes. When you see the house a person lives in, ‎you get an initial impression of what kind of a person lives in ‎such a house.‎When a person prepares to “meet” his Creator, in prayer, etc., ‎he also has to prepare himself for what to expect, by performing ‎certain commandments that serve his soul, much as his clothing ‎serves his body.

One of the most appropriate “introductions” ‎prior to addressing G’d is to do so in a house designated for this ‎purpose, i.e. a synagogue. The type of “preparations” used, ‎depend on the importance of the “interview” one expects to have ‎with one’s Creator. Issues involving life and death, obviously ‎deserve a more careful preparation.‎In psalms 84,2 and 84,3 respectively, the authors (sons of ‎Korach) describe their yearning for entering either the dwellings ‎of G’d on earth, or at least to be allowed to enter the courtyards ‎of these dwellings.

They speak of both their body (flesh) and their ‎‎“heart,” (spirit) yearning for this. They hope that admission to ‎these sites will enable them to shout for joy to the living G’d. ‎Their yearnings reflect the fact that they are in exile, and they ‎pray that they not be treated worse than birds that always can ‎return to their nest. They are aware that in order to really come ‎close to G’d, they must first make the appropriate preparations, ‎i.e. build a Temple with the courtyards surrounding it.

The ‎psalmist clearly suggests, at the end of verse 3, that only after ‎these preparations have been made can his heart and body rejoice ‎having come closer to His Creator. He can then approach G’d ‎being certain that he, on his part, has made the appropriate ‎preparations.‎Our author sees in the word ‎נכספה‎ at the beginning of verse 3 ‎an additional spiritual plus of the psalmist, as he made plain that ‎he had made the necessary preparations that would entitle him to ‎have the desired “interview” with Hashem, but he ‎emphasizes, that contrary to performing such a commandment ‎as putting on phylacteries, an act that does not involve ‎pleasurable sensations of his body, what he did when building a ‎courtyard and temple for G’d involved him emotionally on the ‎highest level.

He was literally yearning for the spiritual ‎experience no less than the body on occasion yearns for satiating ‎physical urges.‎On folio 40 in Kidushin 40, where the Talmud deals with ‎the relative moral/ethical value of appropriate intentions when ‎compared to performance, but not necessarily with appropriate ‎intentions, we are told that if someone planned sincerely to ‎perform a certain commandment but was prevented from ‎carrying out his intention by forces beyond his control, he is ‎credited with having performed the commandment.

In ‎emphasizing the value of a constructive attitude, the Talmud ‎adds that planning to commit a transgression, and carrying it ‎out, brings in its wake a penalty only for the execution, not for ‎the planning that preceded carrying out the foul deed. ‎‎[The planning of idolatry is the only exception to this ‎rule. ibid. Ed.]‎This is also the meaning of Deuteronomy 6,6: ‎והיו הדברים האלה ‏אשר אני מצוך היום על לבבך‎, “these matters that I command you this ‎day shall be on your heart.”

Even commandments that are not ‎capable of being fulfilled in exile should remain part of our ‎constant consciousness through discussion between father and ‎son, pupil and teacher, so that we are not deprived of receiving a ‎reward for them as if we had actually performed them. The desire ‎to be able to perform the respective commandments in reality is ‎the principal criterion used by G’d to judge our mitzvah ‎performance.

Even King David in Chronicles I 22,14 already ‎referred to this when he said (concerning his desire to build a ‎Temple) ‎והנה בעניי הכינותי לבית ה' זהב ככרים מאה אלף כסף וגו'‏‎, “and ‎here through denying myself, I have set aside for the house of the ‎Lord one hundred thousands talents of gold, and one million ‎talents of silver, etc;” what David meant was that the ‎commandment of charity cannot only be fulfilled by the actual ‎handing out of sums of money, but can also be carried out by ‎preparing such monies to be ready when the need arises.

David ‎adds that even while he was not able to hand out sums that were ‎needed because he was temporarily short of even bare essentials ‎for himself, i.e. ‎בעניי‎, his sincere desire to be of help would be ‎accounted for him as if he had actually carried out his desire, as ‎we know from psalms 119,106 ‎נשבעתי ואקימה לשמור משפטי צדקך‎, “I ‎have sworn to keep Your just rules.” [As soon as the ‎opportunity will arise.

Ed.] Yaakov had similar thoughts ‎when he vowed that if G’d would be with him and grant him even ‎minimal comforts he would turn what is now merely a stone into ‎a building designed to serve G’d. G’d reminds him (31,13) of this ‎vow by describing Himself as ‎אנכי הא-ל ביתאל‎, saying that His ‎presence will not only be with him in his heart, but that he can ‎now carry out his desire to convert the stone he had anointed ‎into a house of G’d.‎ An alternate approach to ‎אנכי הא-ל ביתאל‎; when we say in ‎our daily shmoneh esreh, three times daily:‎הא-ל הגדול הגבור ‏והנורא א-ל עליון‎, we refer to how G’d manifests Himself to us in our ‎present state when we are in exile.

At the same time we look ‎forward with profound longing to the kind of manifestations of ‎G’d’s greatness which the prophet has described as ‎עין לא ראתה ‏אלוקים זולתך‎, “which thus far no human eye has beheld, only G’d ‎Himself;” (B’rachot 34 based on Isaiah 64,3) Using the ‎parlance of our sages, these as yet unrevealed manifestations of ‎G’d’s loving kindness will serve as garments that the pious will ‎wear in the future after our souls have left our bodies.

In our ‎verse above, G’d assures Yaakov that there are dimensions to His ‎attribute of loving kindness that have not yet been revealed to ‎man. The parts revealed to man thus far in this world are merely ‎to serve as an introduction to additional dimensions reserved for ‎being revealed to our souls in the afterlife. [G’d chose the ‎first opportunity after He had assisted Yaakov to acquire material ‎wealth in spite of his uncle’s constant efforts to thwart him, to ‎acquaint Yaakov with this insight.

Ed.] This is the reason ‎why the sages added the attribute ‎א-ל עליון‎, “the G’d in the ‎highest regions,” to our daily prayer, to remind us that there is ‎such an as yet unexplored dimension to G’d’s attributes.‎ Genesis 31,18. “he guided all his livestock and all his ‎portable possessions, the ones he had acquired while in ‎Padan Aram, and in order to go back to his father ‎Yitzchok”. The last few words about Yaakov returning to his ‎father appear superfluous; the moral/ethical lesson that the ‎Torah teaches by describing Yaakov’s motivation in returning to ‎the land of Israel as being to become reunited with his father, is ‎that although G’d had promised Yaakov that he would become a ‎founder of a great nation, would expand in all directions of the ‎globe, none of these promises weighed on his decision to return ‎forthwith to the land of Israel.

His concern was the opportunity ‎to once more be able to fulfill the commandment of honouring ‎his father (his mother having died during his absence).‎ Genesis 31,19. “Rachel stole her father’s household ‎idols.” [In the following paragraph our author ‎departs so radically from the plain meaning of the text, without ‎even following up the matter of Lavan’s searching for his idols, ‎that I have decided to omit it.

Ed.]‎ Genesis 31,27. “Why did you flee in secrecy and ‎mislead me and not tell me? I would have sent you off with ‎festive music, with timbrel and lyre.” [The ‎author’s approach is dictated by his unwillingness to believe that ‎Yaakov deliberately mislead Lavan, instead of merely allowing him ‎to draw erroneous conclusions. Ed.]‎It is a fact that although on the surface the relations between ‎Yaakov and Lavan were civil, Yaakov appearing to be at peace ‎with him, the fact is that Yaakov concealed his activities as much ‎as possible, engaging in conversation only vis a vis G’d. ‎Lavan was under the impression that words spoken to his face by ‎Yaakov were addressed to him, whereas in reality they were ‎addressed to G’d.

Lavan was under the impression therefore that ‎Yaakov’s attitude toward him had not undergone a change in ‎spite of his cheating him constantly. The basic facts of life are ‎that the wicked hates the just even while aware that he is the ‎beneficiary of the just residing in his house. Lavan having been ‎told by G’d that Yaakov was just and that he must not therefore ‎dare harm him, asks Yaakov that if this was so he should have ‎been up front about what he thought, and he, Lavan would have ‎given him a farewell that reflected his esteem of him.

Being wicked himself, Lavan cannot get out of his skin, ‎revealing that he preferred to do without the “good” Yaakov’s G’d ‎had bestowed upon him to being in debt to Yaakov’s G’d. Lavan ‎tries to twist Yaakov’s uprightness to his advantage by ‎challenging him when he said he was afraid of Lavan stealing his ‎wives and children, since if he, Yaakov, was so certain of his ‎honesty, how could he doubt that G’d would protect him against ‎Lavan’s tricks?

Yaakov replies that the very fact that he was ‎afraid of Lavan had convinced him that his uprightness was not ‎absolute, otherwise he would not have felt these pangs of fear. ‎‎ Genesis 31,42. “but G’d saw my plight and the toil of ‎my hands, etc.;” Yaakov told Lavan that G’d had supervised ‎the fate of His creatures, including his own, and His existence was ‎proven by His appearance to Lavan in his dream warning him, ‎just as His ownership and supervision of the universe is proven ‎daily by His preventing water and fire, nature’s most deadly ‎enemies, to annihilate each other.

The continued existence of the ‎‎“lower” universe, embodying so many elements that oppose each ‎other, is explained only by the Creator’s exercising His control ‎over them. Yaakov’s use of the word ‎אמש‎, generally translated as ‎‎“last evening,” is not accidental, as the letters in that word are ‎the first letters of the word ‎אש‎, ‎מים‎, ‎שמים‎, “fire, water, heaven,” ‎i.e. if the first two would not be restrained by celestial forces, G’d, ‎this universe would implode immediately....

Genesis 31,48. “whereas Yaakov named it Galed.” ‎This verse contains an allusion to the thirty third day of the ‎counting of the Omer, [significant to us only since ‎the time of Rabbi Akiva, Ed.] The subject is elaborated on ‎in Pessikta rabbati, chapter 21. The letters in the word ‎גל‎, ‎numerical value 33, symbolizes the first 33 days after the Exodus ‎during which G’d is supposed to have appeared to the Jewish ‎people as if a young man, a mighty warrior, whereas at the giving ‎of the Torah He is supposed to have appeared to them in the ‎guise of an aged scholar.

The parable is meant to describe a young ‎child whose father takes him by the hand when he brings him to ‎school and his father trains him to like school by presenting ‎school as an image of something he knows the child longs for. As ‎the child learns more Torah his spiritual horizon expands so that ‎when in his early youth the image of a young man had the ‎greatest appeal for him, gradually he aspires to become like a ‎revered elderly scholar. [The Midrash endeavours to ‎explain the expression ‎פנים בפנים דבר ה' עמכם‎, “G’d spoke to you ‎once with one face and once with another face.” (Deut. 5,4.) ‎Ed.]‎The 33rd day of counting the Omer represents the point at ‎which the Jewish people after having experienced G’d performing ‎a string of supernatural miracles began to experience a longing ‎for the Holy Torah, after receipt of which they could serve the ‎Lord with all their hearts having gained more insight into His ‎thinking after they would study His Torah.

As of then their ‎service would be whole-hearted. By naming the pile of stones ‎גל ‏עד‎, “the thirty third would serve as witness,” Yaakov alluded to ‎an event in the future, just as he did many more times, especially ‎when he blessed his children before his death. The word ‎עד‎ also is ‎derived from ‎עדי‎, ‎עדיים‎, as in Ezekiel 16,7 where it signifies ‎puberty, adolescence, or as in Exodus 33,4 ‎עדיו‎, “its jewelry,” ‎where the phylacteries are described as the Jewish people’s ‎jewelry, and having sinned grievously against the Torah they ‎were not allowed to display that jewelry which symbolized Torah. ‎In other words, until the 33rd day after the Exodus the people ‎were still primarily under the influence of the events ‎accompanying the redemption, whereas from that time on, ‎‎[probably including the partial Torah legislation at Marah, ‎Ed.] they were under the impending revelation of G’d’s ‎Torah at Mount Sinai. This stage is hinted at in the letters ‎עד‎ of ‎the word ‎גלעד‎.‎