Parshat Vayetzei

57 myths · Page 2 of 2

Jacob's dream of the ladder to heaven, his years working for Laban, his marriages to Rachel and Leah, and the birth of the twelve tribes. Genesis 28:10-32:3.
Parshat Vayetzei 6 min

Gabriel Knots the Broken String in the Days of Awe

Every sin snaps the string tying a man to God, and the wicked read the silence as proof. Gabriel comes down in the Days of Awe to knot it.

GabrielTeshuvahRepentanceDivine JusticeYom KippurAngels
Parshat Vayetzei 5 min

Rachel Demanded Children at the Edge of Death

Leah had four sons. Rachel had none. She told Jacob to give her children or she would die, and his anger flared at being asked to do God's work.

RachelLeahJacobDanNaphtaliBarrennessSamson
Parshat Vayetzei 5 min

Rebekah Blessed Jacob and Warned Him to Flee

Rebekah laid hands on Jacob, dressed him in priestly garments, and sent him from Esau. Her warning became prophecy at Jacob's burial.

RebekahJacobEsauProphecyMatriarchsBlessingTargum Pseudo JonathanGenesisLeahRachelReubenSimeonJosephSarahTamarWomen
Parshat Vayetzei 6 min

Jacob's Oath to Laban Halted David's Army at Edom

David marshaled his army against Edom and Philistia, but a covenant Jacob swore to Laban at a heap of stones held the warrior-king's hands.

King DavidJacob And LabanCovenantEdomPhilistinesOath
Parshat Vayetzei 5 min

Ahithophel Falls When Wisdom Outpaces Piety

David leaned toward a counselor younger than the throne. Bathsheba was that man's granddaughter. The plans arrived already sewn.

AhithophelDavidAbsalomWisdomCounselJudahEmpiresBathsheba
Parshat Vayetzei 5 min

Abraham Asked God for the Temple as Throne

Abraham held the world and still asked for the Temple. Jacob's pillow stones became beams. Solomon's house built itself.

AbrahamTempleJacobSolomonStonesJerusalem
Parshat Vayetzei 6 min

The Patriarchs Are the Chariot and the Sun Runs Its Secret Track

The angels crowded the ladder all night like flies on a sleeping child. Then a light bent over the stone where Jacob lay, and every one of them scattered.

JacobMerkavahPatriarchsSunMidrashPirkei Derabbi EliezerYalkut Shimoni
Parshat Vayetzei 6 min

The Boy Sent to Kill Jacob and the Dead Man Who Saved Him

Robbed of everything by his nephew on the road to Haran, Jacob finds a dead man, a waiting horse, and a promise that never sleeps.

JacobEliphazEsauHaranDivine ProtectionLegends Of The Jews
Parshat Vayetzei 5 min

The Shekhinah Was Named Giving of Torah on the Fiftieth Day

Forty-nine nights they counted, and children asked if today was the day. On the fiftieth morning the air on the mountain grew heavy.

ShavuotShekhinahSinaiTorahTikkunei ZoharMiddle PillarMosesJacobKabbalahMusicRedemption