The mourning period ended, but the story certainly didn't. In fact, it was then that the simmering conflict between the descendants of Jacob and Esau erupted again with full force.
Remember that initial clash at the Cave of Machpelah, when Esau tried to muscle his way into a burial plot while Jacob’s body was still unburied? It was a messy affair. According to Legends of the Jews, as retold by Ginzberg, Esau lost forty of his men then. But that was just the beginning.
The sons of Esau didn't fare much better afterward. They lost eighty more men in subsequent skirmishes, while Jacob’s sons didn't lose a single one. Joseph even managed to capture Zepho, the son of Eliphaz, along with fifty of his men, and hauled them off to Egypt in chains. Can you imagine the humiliation?
The remaining forces of Esau, led by Eliphaz, beat a hasty retreat to Mount Seir, dragging Esau's headless corpse with them for burial. The sons of Jacob pursued, but, showing respect for the dead, they didn’t kill anyone. A brief respite, perhaps? Not quite.
On the third day, a massive army of the inhabitants of Seir and the "children of the East" marched on Egypt, aiming to crush Joseph and his brothers. But in the ensuing battle, Joseph and his warriors decimated them, mowing down a staggering six hundred thousand men. The survivors fled in terror.
Back in their own lands, the sons of Esau and the sons of Seir started pointing fingers. The sons of Seir blamed the sons of Esau for their misfortune and demanded they leave. In desperation, the sons of Esau secretly appealed to Agnias, the king of Africa, for help. He sent them troops.
The sons of Seir, not to be outdone, secured the support of the "children of the East" and the Midianites. Battles raged, with the sons of Esau suffering repeated defeats, partly due to treachery within their own ranks. But finally, in the desert of Paran, the sons of Esau achieved a decisive victory, massacring the sons of Seir and scattering their allies.
Victorious but brutal, they returned to Seir and slaughtered nearly everyone – men, women, and children – sparing only fifty lads and maidens. These survivors were enslaved or taken as wives. The sons of Esau seized all the possessions of the sons of Seir, dividing the land amongst themselves. A grim consolidation of power indeed.
Now needing a leader, but too full of hatred to pick one of their own, the descendants of Esau chose Bela, the son of Beor, a warrior sent by King Agnias. He was crowned king, given a palace, and showered with wealth. For thirty years, he reigned until he met his end in a war against – you guessed it – Joseph and his brethren.
Why this new war? The sons of Esau couldn’t let go of the humiliation Joseph had inflicted upon them. So, with the help of Agnias, the Ishmaelites, and other eastern nations, they launched a second campaign against Egypt, hoping to free Zepho and his followers. Despite their enormous army of eight hundred thousand men, they were crushed at Raamses by Joseph and his tiny band of six hundred. King Bela fell, a quarter of their army lay dead, and the rest fled.
Joseph, returning victorious, tightened the chains on Zepho and his men. The sons of Esau appointed Jobab of Bozrah as their new king. He reigned for ten years, but they didn’t dare to wage war against the sons of Jacob again. Their hatred, however, burned hotter than ever.
Their third king, Husham, ruled for twenty years. During his reign, Zepho finally escaped from Egypt. He found refuge with King Agnias, who made him commander-in-chief of his troops. Zepho relentlessly tried to persuade Agnias to attack Egypt, but Agnias, well aware of the strength of Jacob’s descendants, refused.
Instead, Agnias had other battles to fight. A man from the land of Kittim, named Uzi, who was revered as a god, died, leaving behind a beautiful and clever daughter, Yaniah. Agnias sought her hand in marriage, and the people of Kittim agreed. But as Agnias's messengers were returning with the promise, Turnus, the king of Benevento, arrived with the same request. Rejected, Turnus attacked Lucus, Agnias's brother, in Sardinia.
Agnias rushed to his brother's aid, and a battle ensued in the Valley of Campania. Initially, Turnus was victorious, and the Sardinians lost their general Niblos. But in the second engagement, Turnus's army was routed, and he was killed. Agnias pursued the fleeing army to the crossroads between Rome and Albano.
Niblos's body was placed in a golden statue, and his father erected a high tower over his grave, mirrored by another tower over Turnus's grave, both connected by a marble pavement. Agnias then went to Benevento, but spared the city because it belonged to the land of Kittim. However, under Zepho's command, African soldiers occasionally raided Kittim. Finally, Agnias went to Pozimana, married Yaniah, and returned with her to his capital in Africa.
What does this all mean? It's a cycle of conflict, revenge, and shifting alliances, playing out against a backdrop of ancient kingdoms and simmering resentment. While the sons of Jacob are not directly involved in every one of these conflicts, their initial victory and the subsequent captivity of Zepho set in motion a series of events that reverberate through generations. It serves as a potent reminder that the consequences of our actions, both good and bad, can extend far beyond our own lifetimes. And perhaps, a cautionary tale about the dangers of unchecked hatred and the futility of endless cycles of violence.