It turns out, even our greatest heroes struggled with this.

We find ourselves in Bereshit Rabbah 76, a section of the ancient rabbinic commentary on the Book of Genesis. The scene is set: Jacob, on his way to meet his estranged brother Esau, is understandably anxious. Genesis 32:8 tells us, “Jacob was very frightened and distressed. He divided the people who were with him, and the flocks, and the cattle, and the camels, into two camps.”

But the rabbis see something deeper here. Rabbi Pinḥas, quoting Rabbi Reuven, offers a striking insight: Even those to whom God made promises—specifically, Jacob and Moses—experienced fear. Think about that!

The Midrash (rabbinic commentary) points out that Jacob, the very patriarch whom God chose (“For the Lord has chosen Jacob for Himself,” Psalms 135:4), and to whom God said, “Behold, I am with you” (Genesis 28:15), was still "frightened." Despite the divine assurance, the human experience of fear remained.

And it’s not just Jacob. Moses, the chosen prophet (“Were it not for Moses, His chosen,” Psalms 106:23), was told, “For I will be with you” (Exodus 3:12). Yet, later, God has to tell him, "Do not fear him" (Numbers 21:34). As the text subtly notes, "He says, 'Do not fear' only to one who is afraid." Even with God's promise ringing in his ears, Moses felt the grip of fear.

Why does this matter? Rabbi Berekhya and Rabbi Ḥelbo, citing Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥman in the name of Rabbi Natan, offer a powerful connection to a later episode in Jewish history: the story of Haman and the threat of annihilation in the Book of Esther. The Midrash suggests that the Israelites in Haman's time shouldn't have been so terrified, because they, too, had been given a divine promise of survival. But, the rabbis argue, they were acting in the tradition of their ancestor Jacob!

If even Jacob, who received God's direct promise, felt fear, then how could they be blamed for feeling it too? "If our patriarch Jacob, to whom the Holy One blessed be He promised and said: 'Behold, I am with you,' was afraid, we, all the more so."

The prophet Isaiah criticizes this very tendency: “You forgot the Lord your Maker, who spread the heavens and laid the foundation of the earth” (Isaiah 51:13). The message? You've forgotten God's power and faithfulness. You’ve forgotten the very foundations of creation!

The text continues, referencing Jeremiah 31:36: “So said the Lord: If the heavens above can be measured [and the foundations of the earth below probed, I too will spurn all the descendants of Israel because of everything that they did] – if you see the heavens fall and the earth collapse." In other words, God's promise is as unshakeable as the cosmos itself. As long as the heavens remain in place and the earth stands firm, God's covenant with Israel endures. You should have learned from the spread of the heavens and the earth! Instead, "you feared continuously all day.”

So, what are we to make of this? The Bereshit Rabbah isn't condemning fear itself. It's acknowledging its very real presence, even in the lives of the most righteous. It’s about what we do with that fear. Do we let it paralyze us and make us forget the promises we've received? Or do we acknowledge it, and then choose to act with faith, remembering the steadfastness of the Divine?

Perhaps the message is this: Fear is human. Forgetting God’s promises doesn’t have to be. The next time you feel fear creeping in, remember Jacob, remember Moses, and remember the promise that underpins it all.