The verse we're talking about is Genesis 49:12, part of Jacob's blessings to his sons: "His eyes shall be red from wine, and his teeth white from milk.” Now, on the surface, it sounds like a blessing of abundance, of a land flowing with good things. But our sages, oh, they saw so much more.
In Bereshit Rabbah, a classic collection of rabbinic interpretations of Genesis, this verse gets a fascinating workout. Rabbi Azarya, Rabbi Yonatan ben Ḥagai, and Rabbi Yitzḥak ben Rabbi Maryon—some even attribute the idea to Rabbi Yosei bar Ḥanina—suggest that the verse is actually a hint about the tribe of Judah. Specifically, that most members of the Sanhedrin, the ancient Jewish high court, hailed from Judah.
How do they get that? Well, it's all in the interpretation. “His eyes shall be red… and his teeth white from milk.” The Rabbis see this as referring to the intense study habits of Judah's scholars. They would "arrange matters of Torah with their teeth until they express them clearly like milk." Think about it: chewing over a complex idea, wrestling with it, until it becomes clear, digestible, like pure, white milk. They wouldn't just skim the surface; they would constantly review their studies aloud, debating, questioning, until they achieved absolute clarity. It wasn't enough to just know the Torah; they had to internalize it, embody it, and make it their own.
And there’s another layer to this interpretation, another way to understand "His eyes shall be red [ḥakhlili] from wine." This, according to Bereshit Rabbah, refers to the residents of the South. Why the South? Because, we're told, their eyes are bright [keḥulot] and they possess great strength for Torah study. The South, you see, was considered a hotbed of intellectual energy, a place where the pursuit of wisdom burned brightly. The heat of passion, the brilliance of insight – all concentrated in the eyes.
But what about the teeth? "And his teeth white [ulven shinayim] from milk." Here, the Rabbis make an interesting connection. Wine, they say, is better for a person of years [leven shanim] – someone over forty – than milk is for a baby. It’s a commentary on maturity, on the ability to handle something strong and complex. Milk is for the young, for those just starting to learn. Wine is for those who have the experience and wisdom to appreciate its nuances, to savor its depths.
There’s even a little anecdote tucked in here. Someone from the South tells another: "If you drank red wine, it is [good] wine. But if you drank white wine, you have drunk lower-quality wine.” It's a subtle jab, perhaps, a playful way of saying that true wisdom comes from grappling with the rich, complex "red wine" of Torah, not the diluted "white wine" of superficial understanding.
So, what does all of this tell us? It's not just about wine and milk, or even about the tribe of Judah. It's about the dedication, the passion, the sheer intellectual horsepower required to truly understand Torah. It's about the importance of wrestling with ideas, of questioning assumptions, of constantly striving for clarity. It’s about the South, a place of bright eyes and strong minds. And maybe, just maybe, it's a little bit about reminding us to drink the "red wine" of deep learning, rather than settling for the "white wine" of easy answers. What do you think?