bereishit 1/27

Isaac thought that Esau engaged in hunting and the affairs of this world in order to support Jacob, those who study Torah. "And make me delicacies, as I love," etc., "so that my soul may bless you before I die." (Genesis 27:4) At first sight the matter is astonishing: how did Isaac our father err in loving the wicked Esau, to the point that he wished to bless him? And even if Esau deceived him, at any rate he certainly knew that Jacob was far more righteous than he, for he was a wholesome man dwelling in tents, and a priestess should not be treated like an innkeeper. At any rate it was fitting to bless Jacob the righteous one first with the birthright. But in truth Isaac our father certainly knew that Jacob's portion was Torah and prayer and the service of Hashem, and Esau's portion was pursuit of this world, for he was a skilled hunter, a man of the field. But the wicked Esau deceived his father until he thought that he too desired the ultimate purpose and loved those who study Torah and wished to support them. For in truth the wicked Esau, although his portion was this material world and not taking upon himself the yoke of Torah and mitzvos, nevertheless, had he wished, he could have become a vehicle for holiness if he had loved Jacob. For it was fitting for him to support Jacob and toil and work all his days for Jacob his brother, in order to support him so that he could occupy himself with Torah, like Zebulun and Issachar, of whom it is said: "Rejoice, Zebulun," etc. For in truth this is the principal ultimate purpose of the masses, ordinary people who do not occupy themselves with Torah and do occupy themselves with a livelihood, commerce, and the thirty-nine labors: they must strive with all their strength to support worthy Torah scholars, and this is their principal ultimate purpose. For through this action is included in will, for Torah is the aspect of will, and they occupy themselves with action, that is, with conducting commerce and the thirty-nine labors; and through their supporting Torah scholars from their commerce, through this action is included in will, which is the principal ultimate purpose. And the wicked Esau deceived his father with great deceit until he thought that he held to this trait, that he loved Torah scholars and wished to support them. And this is: "And Isaac loved Esau, for game was in his mouth." And its Targum is: "For he would eat from his hunting." And the matter is astonishing, that a righteous man like Isaac our father should love the wicked man because he gives him food to eat. But in truth his principal love was because he thought that the wicked Esau loved the Torah scholar and wished to support him. And therefore he loved him because of the food he gave him, through which he thought that he wished to support the Torah scholar, which would have been Esau's principal ultimate purpose had he truly done this. And this [is the meaning of] his deceiving [his father] and asking him: Father, how does one tithe salt and straw? For the priestly gifts and tithes that are given to a priest are the aspect of charity, a gift of the heart that one gives to the priests in return for their service that they perform in the Tent of Meeting, which is the aspect of charity that one gives to the Torah scholar, who is called a priest, who occupies himself with the service of Hashem, blessed be He, etc. And therefore Esau, who deceived his father until [his father] thought that [Esau] wished to support the Torah scholar, therefore asked him: Father, how does one tithe, etc.? As though he desired to increase charity, priestly gifts and tithes, to the point that he was even uncertain whether to separate tithes from straw and salt. But in truth all this was deceit, for on the contrary, not only did he not wish to support Jacob his righteous brother, but moreover, on the contrary, he was a great hater of Jacob the righteous one. For this reason he wished to bless him with material abundance, so that he could support those who occupy themselves with Torah. And because of this deceit by which he deceived his father, therefore Isaac wished to bless him, that is, he wished to give him an abundance of livelihood in this world, as it is written: "And God shall give you of the dew of heaven and of the fatness of the earth." It was with this blessing that he wished to bless the wicked Esau, for he thought that he wished to occupy himself with the work of the field, with the thirty-nine labors, and support his brother the Torah scholar. Therefore he said that it was good to bless him with this blessing so that he would occupy himself with the work of the field and support his brother the Torah scholar. For Jacob has no need at all of this blessing, for he has no need to occupy himself with any business at all, only with Torah and the service of Hashem, and Esau his brother will support him, as it will truly be in the future, when "And strangers will stand and tend your flocks," etc., will be fulfilled, for their principal ultimate purpose is to support Israel so that they can occupy themselves with Torah and the service of Hashem, blessed be He. And therefore Isaac said: "Bring me game, and I shall eat," etc., for specifically through his bringing him game to eat, to support the Torah scholar, through this he would receive the blessings. For certainly, had Esau truly wished for this, that he would work in the work of the field and support Jacob his brother the Torah scholar, certainly the blessing would have been due to him by Jacob's merit, so that he could support him. But in truth the wicked man, the aspect of Esau, has no desire for this at all; he only wishes to receive the blessings for the desires of his evil heart, so that he can fulfill all his desires; and on the contrary, he wishes to persecute, God forbid, the righteous one, his brother. "And Rebecca was listening as Isaac spoke," for Rebecca knew all this well, that Esau was completely wicked and his intention was to do harm; therefore she sent Jacob to receive the blessings from his father by deceit. For Jacob the righteous one cannot receive the blessings, which are the abundance of livelihood in this world, except through this deceit: he is compelled to clothe himself in the aspect of material action, which is the aspect of Esau, so that he can receive a livelihood. And this [is the meaning of] her clothing him in Esau's garments and [Isaac's] not recognizing him, "for his hands were hairy like the hands of Esau his brother, and he blessed him." For in truth Jacob at his root is far from material livelihood, for his portion is only Torah and mitzvos, the aspect of the illumination of will, which is the opposite of material action. And in truth, in the future, when Mashiach comes, speedily in our days, Israel will not occupy themselves with any business, for "And strangers will stand and tend your flocks," etc., will be fulfilled. And therefore, had Jacob entered Isaac's presence without Esau's garments and asked him to bless him, that Hashem, blessed be He, give him abundance and success in the affairs of his livelihood, Isaac would not have consented to this, for he would have said to him: Why should you think about livelihood at all? For you need only occupy yourself with Torah and prayer, and his livelihood will be provided through others, and they must ask for livelihood in order to support you, for this is their principal ultimate purpose. But you must only dwell in the tent, without thinking about any livelihood at all. [This is] as it will truly be in the future, when "And strangers will stand and tend your flocks," etc., will be fulfilled, etc. And Isaac our father wished the world to conduct itself immediately in this aspect, in the aspect of "And strangers will stand and tend your flocks," etc. And therefore he did not consent to bless Jacob with dew and rain for livelihood, for his livelihood would be provided through others, and why should he think at all about the needs for material dew and rain, which are for work of the field, which is not relevant to him at all? Only those who will occupy themselves with his livelihood will receive this blessing by Jacob's merit, so that they can support him, and as above. But in truth, at that time the world had not yet been refined or completely purified of the serpent's impurity that was drawn through the sin of Adam the first man. And at that time the intensity of the serpent's impurity clung to the wicked Esau through his evil deeds, until he became a hater of his righteous brother Jacob, and had no wish to support him at all; on the contrary, he wished to persecute him. And he had no desire to receive the blessing of material livelihood except for himself and his desire, to fulfill the desires of his belly and in order to persecute Jacob still more. And of him it is said: "And he loved a curse, and it came upon him; and he had no desire for blessing, and it drew far from him." For he loved a curse, which is the curses with which one was cursed because of the sin of Adam the first man: thirty-nine curses, which are the aspect of the thirty-nine material labors, the aspect of "In sorrow you shall eat it," "By the sweat of your brow you shall eat bread," etc. And he loved this curse, for he chose this as his portion, for he was a man of the field. And he had no desire for blessing at all, for he had no desire at all to be a vehicle for Jacob, to support him in order to be included in blessing; and through this the blessing truly drew far from him, for Jacob received all the blessings. For as long as the serpent's impurity has not yet been completely rectified and the masses who occupy themselves with labors and commerce do not support Torah scholars, to that extent one must still occupy oneself with labors and commerce. For to the extent that Israel increase charity—and the principal charity is to support Torah scholars—to that extent they repel the serpent's impurity, the aspect of the thirty-nine labors, and the distractions and business affairs diminish. For even for one who occupies himself with commerce and labors, not everything is equal, for sometimes livelihood comes easily, through a slight cause, without much toil, and sometimes great toil is required and the earnings are small. And everything is according to the merit of charity, through which the serpent's impurity, the thirty-nine labors, is repelled, and to that extent business diminishes, until the future, when "Zion will be redeemed through justice, and those who return to her through charity" will be fulfilled; then will will be revealed, and then we will not need to occupy ourselves with any business or labors at all, for "And strangers will stand and tend your flocks," etc., was fulfilled. But now, as long as we do not merit this, Israel too must occupy themselves with some business and commerce in order to draw livelihood, and as above. And this is the aspect of Jacob our father's clothing himself in Esau's garments in order to receive the blessing from his father, which is the blessing of dew and rain for livelihood, for Esau is the aspect of material action, the aspect of the thirty-nine labors, as above. And Jacob is truly far from this, for he is in the aspect of will, as above. But because the world is not rectified and the wicked man does not wish to support the righteous one, therefore worthy Israelites too, who are in the aspect of Jacob, must clothe themselves in Esau's garments, in material activities, which are the affairs of commerce and the thirty-nine labors, in order to draw livelihood. (Likutay Halachos, Halachos of the Guarantor, Halacha 3, item 21)

Jacob subdued the brazenness of the Other Side and attained holy boldness. "Go, please, to the flock, and take for me from there two good kids of the goats," etc. (27:9) These two traits, boldness and shame, are two opposites, but both are very necessary for holiness. Yet one must be very careful to use each and every trait in its proper place, but not reverse them, Heaven forbid. And whoever damages them and reverses the order, using boldness in a place where shame is needed, or being ashamed in a place where boldness is needed, causes great damage thereby. And this is the aspect of the entire matter that occurred between Jacob and Esau concerning receiving the blessings: his mother Rebecca's advice was specifically, "And take for me from there two kids of the goats, etc.," for all the blessings are drawn down through holy boldness, the aspect of "Hashem will give strength to His people; Hashem will bless His people," etc.—the aspect of the mighty powers of rain. And therefore his mother Rebecca commanded him to prepare two kids of the goats, and rectify and refine them, so that he would strengthen himself to subdue the brazenness of the Other Side, which is the serpent's filth, the aspect of Esau, a hairy man; and to attain holy boldness. And through this he would receive the blessings that are drawn down from there, as above. (Halachos of Meat with Milk, Halacha 4, item 9)

Isaac knew that the blessings would be Jacob's, but thought that first they would be Esau's and he would give them to Jacob. "How is it that you hurried to find it, my son?" etc. "For Hashem your God brought it before me." (27:20) Because of the magnitude of the accusation and the provocation of Esau, who is the aspect of a scorpion lying in wait for Israel continually—particularly at the time when they want to receive the blessings, which are the aspect of a good find, for then he lies in wait and accuses all the more—it was therefore necessary that he go with guile. And [he] caused Hashem, blessed be He, [to bring it about] that Isaac should send Esau to hunt game, etc.; and in the meantime it was specifically Jacob who received the blessings, as is brought in the holy Zohar and in the writings of the Ari, of blessed memory, concerning this. And this is what Isaac said to Jacob: "How is it that you hurried to find it, my son?"—specifically, "you hurried." For Isaac saw and understood then, from a distance, that this was Jacob, as is understood in the Torah portion, when he said, "Come near, please, and let me feel you," etc. Therefore he said to him: How is it that you hurried to find such a good find, to feed me and receive the blessings through this? That is, he said: For I know that, in the end, in the very end, all the blessings will reach you, Jacob; but I had thought that at first the blessings must be given to Esau, for he needs to rule first. And as Jacob himself said, 'Let my lord please pass before his servant,' as is brought. Therefore I wished to bless him first, and therefore: How is it that you hurried—specifically, 'you hurried'—'to find it, my son'? For in my view the blessings, which are the aspect of good finds, are not yet yours. And he answered, “For Hashem your God brought it before me.” And it is stated in the Midrash: Rabbi Yochanan and Raish Lakish—one said: If the Holy One, blessed be He, provided for you for your sacrifice, as it is said, “And Abraham lifted his eyes and saw, and behold, a ram,” etc., then for your food, how much more so. And one said: If He provided for you for your match, as it is written, “Bring it before me, please, today”; and it is written, “And he saw, and behold, camels were coming”—then for your food, how much more so. And this is seemingly astonishing, for at first glance it is a refutable inference from the lesser to the greater: for certainly saving Isaac from the judgment of slaughter at the Binding, and likewise providing him with his match, is a greater deliverance than providing him with his food for the moment. But according to the foregoing, the Midrash will be well understood, and will come together as one coherent whole, and will be very pleasing to the soul, with the help of Hashem, blessed be He. For specifically the merit of the Binding and finding his match were what he mentioned then, when he wanted to receive the blessings. For he said: Was it not for the sake of the sacrifice of the Binding, which is to sweeten your mighty powers, that Hashem brought the ram? And likewise, in order to provide your match, Rebecca, who is the aspect of prayer that sweetens the aspect of judgment and might of Isaac, Hashem, blessed be He, helped in a wondrous way. Although it was very difficult to find your match because of the immensity of your mighty powers, as above, nevertheless Hashem had compassion and provided her for you. And all of it was for my sake, for Israel to descend from me. And now, for your food, which I wish to feed you in order to receive the blessings, so that Israel will be able to endure in the world and sustain themselves through all the severity and length of the bitterness of their exile—how much more so will Hashem, blessed be He, provide before me. It follows that this Midrash is connected very beautifully: for specifically through the sweetening of the Binding, and through his match, Rebecca, the aspect of prayer, as above, through this he received the blessings, as above. And this is what is written (in Sefer HaAlef-Bais, item 7): that the eating of the tzaddikim is greater than sacrifices and than their marital union, etc. And understand well. And therefore Isaac said then, “The voice is Jacob’s voice,” etc. For he understood then the immensity of Jacob’s power: he had attained the aspect of “we will do” and “we will hear” in completeness, to the combined whole of judgment and charity together, which are the aspect of Torah and prayer; through this one attains boldness, the aspect of voices, the aspect of “Behold, He will give forth with His voice a mighty voice,” as is explained there. Therefore Isaac said then: Now I know that “the voice is Jacob’s voice” is very strong, so that through this he will prevail over “the hands are Esau’s hands,” as our Rabbis of blessed memory expounded. For I see and understand that his voice is growing very strong, since he has merited to sweeten judgment through charity, to the point that he found [a way] to feed me and to receive the blessings. This is drawn down from the inclusion of Torah and prayer; through this one attains holy boldness, the aspect of voices, the aspect of “the voice is Jacob’s voice,” as above. And this is the aspect of “the voice,” “voice”—two voices: the aspect of the voice of Torah and the voice of prayer, which are included together. Through this comes the principal strengthening of holy boldness against the brazenness of the Other Side, to prevail over “the hands are Esau’s hands,” who draws nourishment from the aspect of judgment when it is not included in completeness in the aspect of charity. But through “the voice is Jacob’s voice,” the aspect of two voices drawn down from Torah and prayer that are included together, through this he prevails over “the hands are Esau’s hands,” and they nullify them, as above. (Halachos of Gifts, Halacha 5, item 44)

84. Said concerning a young woman who was raped, in the portion “When you go out” (22:27).

85. See below, in the parshah of Acharay Mos, at the verse “And live by them,” the words of Rabbainu, of blessed memory, on this at length.

86. Brought at the preceding verse, “And Yaakov was a wholesome man, dwelling in tents.”

87. In Chayay Moharan (item 240): I heard that once a man from among our companions complained very much before him about his lack of livelihood. Our master, of blessed memory, said to him: I do not know how you have a heart like this, to disturb me with the vanities of this world. Surely I am like someone who walks day and night in a wilderness, striving and seeking to turn a wilderness into a settled place; for in the heart of each of you there is a desolate wilderness without inhabitant, and there is no dwelling there for the Divine Presence. And I strive and seek at every moment to make some rectification and a place in your hearts where there will be a dwelling for the Divine Presence. Surely how much toil is needed to take a thick barren tree called "damb" and make from it beautiful utensils fit for human use. How much toil is needed for this, until one hews it, saws it, and shapes it with an adze and with the other tools needed for this. Just so, with such toil I must exert myself with each one of you to make some rectification with him. And you disturb me with such vanities. End of quotation.