The story of Jacob and Esau, from the book of Genesis and elaborated on in texts like Ginzberg's Legends of the Jews, is a classic example. As young children, it was difficult to tell them apart, their true characters hidden. Imagine, as the Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) suggests, that they were like a myrtle and a thorn-bush. In their early stages, they seem alike, but as they mature, the myrtle reveals its sweet fragrance, and the thorn-bush, its sharp thorns.
The brothers both went to school, but when they turned thirteen, a pivotal age in Jewish tradition marking adulthood, their paths diverged sharply. Jacob dedicated himself to studying in the Bet ha Midrash (house of study) of Shem and Eber, immersing himself in learning and spiritual growth. Esau, on the other hand, embraced idolatry and a life of immorality.
Both brothers became "hunters of men," but with drastically different aims. Esau sought to lead people away from God, while Jacob worked to bring them closer. It's a fascinating contrast, isn't it?
Despite his wickedness, Esau managed to manipulate his father, Isaac, into believing he was pious. He would ask Isaac seemingly religious questions, like, "Father, what is the tithe on straw and salt?" This made him appear God-fearing because, ironically, those items are exempt from tithing! Isaac was also unaware that Esau was feeding him forbidden food, passing off dog meat as goat.
Rebekah, however, saw through Esau's deception. She knew her sons for who they truly were, and this deepened her love for Jacob. The more she heard Jacob's voice, the stronger her affection grew. According to Legends of the Jews, Abraham shared Rebekah's sentiment. He recognized that Jacob was the one through whom his name and lineage would continue. He even entrusted Rebekah to watch over Jacob, declaring that Jacob would be his successor on Earth, a blessing to humanity, and a glory to the descendants of Shem.
Before his death, Abraham blessed Jacob in Rebekah's presence. It’s a powerful scene. He prayed that God would bestow upon Jacob the blessings given to Adam, Enoch, Noah, and Shem. He asked that the spirit of Mastema, a figure sometimes seen as an adversary, would not lead Jacob astray. And Abraham declared that God would be a father to Jacob, and Jacob would be God's firstborn son. According to Legends of the Jews, Abraham had a special reason to love Jacob: he believed that Jacob's merits had saved him from the fiery furnace in his youth.
Knowing of Abraham's love for Jacob, Isaac and Rebekah sent Jacob to deliver a meal to Abraham during the last Feast of Pentecost that Abraham would celebrate. Abraham ate, blessed God, and then gave Jacob one final instruction: to walk in God's ways and to avoid marrying a Canaanite woman.
Preparing for his passing, Abraham had Jacob place two fingers on his eyes to close them. Jacob stayed by his side that night. The next morning, the boy called out, "Father, father," but received no response. He didn't realize his grandfather had passed away in his sleep.
This story leaves us with so much to consider. The complexities of family, the deceptive nature of appearances, and the enduring power of blessings. And perhaps, most profoundly, it reminds us that even within the same family, individuals can choose vastly different paths, and that our choices have lasting consequences.
While Esau and Jacob were little, their characters could not be judged properly. They were like the myrtle and the thorn-bush, which look alike in the early stages of their growth. After they have attained full size, the myrtle is known by its fragrance, and the thorn-bush by its thorns. In their childhood, both brothers went to school, but when they reached their thirteenth year, and were of age, their ways parted. Jacob continued his studies in the Bet ha Midrash of Shem and Eber, and Esau abandoned himself to idolatry and an immoral life. Both were hunters of men, Esau tried to capture them in order to turn them away from God, and Jacob, to turn them toward God. In spite of his impious deeds, Esau possessed the art of winning his father's love. His hypocritical conduct made Isaac believe that his first-born son was extremely pious. "Father," he would ask Isaac, "what is the tithe on straw and salt?" The question made him appear God-fearing in the eyes of his father, because these two products are the very ones that are exempt from tithing. Isaac failed to notice, too, that his older son gave him forbidden food to eat. What he took for the flesh of young goats was dog's meat. Rebekah was more clear-sighted. She knew her sons as they really were, and therefore her love for Jacob was exceeding great. The oftener she heard his voice, the deeper grew her affection for him. Abraham agreed with her. He also loved his grandson Jacob, for he knew that in him his name and his seed would be called. And he said unto Rebekah, "My daughter, watch over my son Jacob, for he shall be in my stead on the earth and for a blessing in the midst of the children of men, and for the glory of the whole seed of Shem." Having admonished Rebekah thus to keep guard over Jacob, who was destined to be the bearer of the blessing given to Abraham by God, he called for his grandson, and in the presence of Rebekah he blessed him, and said: "Jacob, my beloved son, whom my soul loveth, may God bless thee from above the firmament, and may He give thee all the blessing wherewith He blessed Adam, and Enoch, and Noah, and Shem, and all the things of which He told me, and all the things which He promised to give me may He cause to cleave to thee and to thy seed forever, according to the days of the heavens above the earth. And the spirit of Mastema shall not rule over thee or over thy seed, to turn thee from the Lord, who is thy God from henceforth and forever. And may the Lord God be a father to thee, and mayest thou be His first-born son, and may He be a father to thy people always. Go in peace, my son." And Abraham had good reason to be particularly fond of Jacob, for it was due to the merits of his grandson that he had been rescued from the fiery furnace. Isaac and Rebekah, knowing of Abraham's love for their young son, sent their father a meal by Jacob on the last Feast of Pentecost which Abraham was permitted to celebrate on earth, that he might eat and bless the Creator of all things before he died. Abraham knew that his end was approaching, and he thanked the Lord for all the good He had granted him during the days of his life, and blessed Jacob and bade him walk in the ways of the Lord, and especially he was not to marry a daughter of the Canaanites. Then Abraham prepared for death. He placed two of Jacob's fingers upon his eyes, and thus holding them closed he fell into his eternal sleep, while Jacob lay beside him on the bed. The lad did not know of his grandfather's death, until he called him, on awakening next morning, "Father, father," and received no answer.
