We often think of money, houses, cars... but what about flocks?
Genesis 30:43 tells us that Jacob, the patriarch, "became exceedingly prosperous." Now, "prosperous" is an understatement. Rabbi Shimon bar Abba, in Bereshit Rabbah 73, paints this prosperity as nothing short of a gateway to the World to Come – a tiny taste of the messianic era. He connects it to Micah 2:13, "The one who breaks through ascended before them," hinting at a leader ushering in abundance.
But just how prosperous was Jacob? This is where things get wonderfully, wildly, biblical.
Rabbi Abba bar Kahana, in the same section of Bereshit Rabbah, claims Jacob had one million twenty-seven thousand two hundred flocks. Let that sink in. That’s a LOT of sheep.
And it doesn't stop there! What protects these flocks? Rabbi Levi says Jacob had six hundred thousand dogs. Six. Hundred. Thousand. Imagine the kibble bill!
But wait, there's more! Other Rabbis suggest a staggering one million two hundred thousand dogs. So, which is it? A canine headcount discrepancy of six hundred thousand is no small detail!
The commentators in Bereshit Rabbah offer a beautiful resolution. They aren’t actually disagreeing. The one who said six hundred thousand meant there was one dog per flock. The one who said one million two hundred thousand? Two dogs per flock. Problem solved. A perfectly logical explanation for a situation that is anything but. for a moment. We're not just talking about livestock; we're talking about a scale of wealth that’s almost impossible to comprehend. It’s a picture of abundance so immense it becomes almost mythical.
Why such staggering numbers? Perhaps it's not just about the literal count. Maybe it's about conveying the idea of divine blessing overflowing, exceeding all expectations. It paints a picture of a patriarch whose success was a direct reflection of God’s favor.
This image of Jacob's prosperity – the endless flocks, the legions of loyal dogs – serves as a powerful reminder. What does true prosperity mean? Is it just material wealth, or is there something more? Could it be a reflection of a deeper connection, a divine blessing that manifests in ways we can scarcely imagine? The rabbis seem to suggest it's the latter.