The struggles between the brothers Yitzchak and Ishmael continue in this week's parsha with another set of brothers, Jacob and Esau. In fact, it is the continually unfolding story that is playing out on the world stage to this very day.
Already at the Brit Milah of Yitzchak, Ishmael plotted the takeover of the world, saying: "Fools, look how they celebrate the birth of this child, saying, 'Abraham's newborn son will take his place and receive a double portion of his possessions.' But it is I who am the older, and I will inherit the Land." As a young lad, Ishmael would shoot arrows at Yitzchak, pretending that he was shooting birds. Even thousands of years later, his descendants continued their false claims to the Land of Israel, while going before the court of Alexander the Great with their claims to the Land. And so it continues to this day.
Our rabbis warned us of the hash trials of the exile of Ishmael at the end of days.
Rambam writes:
"Know that G-d has unfortunately cast us down among this people Ishmael, who plot great evils against us and hate us. Know that no greater enemy has threatened us and no nation has done more to subjugate and humiliate us." The very name of Ishmael -"G-d should hear"- comes to teach us that, at the end of days, he will subjugate the Jewish people so much that we will cry out to HaShem because of him.
As for the struggles of Jacob and Esau, as portrayed in our parsha, it does not stack up much better. As soon as Esau was born, he tried to prevent Jacob from coming out into the world by destroying his mother's womb. But Jacob firmly held on to Esau's heel and emerged after him. Nevertheless, Esau succeeded in damaging his mother's womb to such an extent that she bled profusely and could not have any more children. Esau said: "Cain killed his brother Abel before his father Adam died. How silly of him, because after Abel was removed, Adam begot yet another son, Seth. I will do better - I will wait until my father's death to kill Jacob and then I will be the only son to inherit the Land."
Rabbi Shimon, the author of the holy Zohar, teaches us that it is a well-known halacha-law that Esau hates Jacob. Why did he use the term "halacha" when teaching us this? In order to bring home the point that just as any of G-d's other laws have their roots in Heaven and are unbreakable, so, too, with this law; the hatred of Esau for Jacob is everlasting.
At the end of our parsha, Jacob is forced to flee from his brother Esau. Only with the birth of his 11th son, Joseph, is Jacob able to confront Esau again. For it is well known that Esau, in the end of days, will fall only before the descendant of Joseph (Mashiach ben Yoseph), as our rabbis teach us: "Esau is like a house of straw and Joseph is fire that will ignite the straw."
Throughout our long exile, the Jewish people have had to confront either the children of Ishmael or the children of Esau in their countries, being unwanted guests in their lands. Today, though, the descendants of the brothers, Ishmael and Esau, join forces in their ultimate plan, which they have never given up hope on, to continue to weaken Jacob in the Land of Israel, over which both of the brothers have never given up their claim, in their attempt to finally "come in for the kill."
Toldot: Brotherly Love (Not!)
by Levi Chazen, Director of the English Division of Yeshivat HaRa'ayon HaYehudi
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