[Avodah] A few Notes on Parshas Vayishlach

[SBA]

>From the Ksav Sofer on "Im Lavan garti..vayhi li shor vechamor eved
veshifcha - ve'eshlecha lehagid le'adoni limtzo chein be'einecho".

He asks how did Yaakov expect to 'find favour in Esav's eyes' by informing
him about his new found fortune ?

He explains - that the derech of amei haaretz is to calim that Talmidei
Chachomim who sit and learn - are simply lazy parasites, using the excuse of
study to get out of doing honest work. But in reality they are actually
crooks and charlatans (ramoim) etc.  

Esav too said this about Yaakov that he acts as if he is a yerei shomayim,
sitting in the BHMD all day - using this as an excuse for his laziness
('veyaakveni zeh paamayim') - while I, Esav slave away hunting and shlepping
etc etc.

So Yaakov sent him a message. "You should know that I have changed my ways.
I have left the BHMD and become an industrious member of society - just like
you. And surely this change of my lifestyle - will find favour in your
eyes..."

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32:8/9 - 'Vayachatz es ha'am'...'vehoyo hamachneh hanishor lifleita'.
Yaakov split up his camp into 2 (and according to the Midrash - a day's
travel apart from each other).

Presumably Yaakov's main concern here in doing this 'yachatz' wasn't to save
his cattle or his servants - but rather his wives and children.

But what do we see further on 33:1/2 ? 
"Vayachatz es hayeladim" (BTW, there's that word again), but he had all the
wives and children together welcoming Esav !

So what then was the purpose of the 'shney machnos'?

Additionally Rashi tells us that Yosef fronted up to Esav before his mother
- so she shouldn't catch his eye. Also Dina was hidden in a box for similar
reasons. Why weren't they simply made part of the 2nd group - and thus out
of Esav's sight?

I have yet to see any of the meforshim discuss this.

OTOH, maybe Yaakov was trying to save some of his fortune. (For who??).
The Midrash 76:3 - uses the "Vayachatz es ha'am" as proof that a person
should not have all his money in one location.

=====

32:14 "Min habo beyodoy mincha' - Rabbenu Bechayeh writes that this refers
to a falcon - hunting bird - which Yaakov gave as a gift to his hunter
brother.

====

32:28 - "Vayomer elav mah shemecho?"
Q. The Malach comes down to earth and fights with him all night - but he
doesn't know who he was trying to beat up?

(The Or Hachaim hakodosh 30 says that he asked because he wanted to change
the name to Yisroel. But couldn't he do it without asking?)

Rashi 32:30 dh Lamah zeh Tishal - The malach told Yaakov that we don't have
a permanent name as they change according to the shlichus we are sent to do.

However, according to Rashi here the malach was Saroy shel Esav (which is
usually known as the Samech Mem) and according to the Midrash and mentioned
last week by the Baal Haturim - the malach was actually Michoel.

It would be surprising that those 2 also would have changing names.
In fact the sefer Shaarei Aharon quotes 'Breshis Zuta' that Gavriel and
Michoel never change their names.

And bichlal isn't all this name business a bit strange, first the malach
asks Yaakov "Ma shemecho?" and 2 psukim later Yaakov asks the malach "Hagido
na shemecho"...

Maybe someone should have been there to make the introductions.

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33:4 - Yaakov and Esav cried when they met each other. Bishloma Yaakov cried
that he had to go through all this bother and expense (see Rashi 32:22), but
why was Esav crying?

The answer is that Yaakov had sent him his gifts of cattle etc with shlichim

And Esav was convinced that as per the usual custom, they took a 70% cut...
(Heard from a Meshulach)

=====

In the parsha of Dina and Shechem, do we know what was the view of the
brothers outside of Shimon and Levi?

Did they indeed agree to Chamor's offer of having a bris and then becoming
Yaakov's mechutan? Or did they secretly know of Shimon and Levi's plans? 

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34:1 Rashi dh "bas Leah" - some girso'os have "ve'aleho moshlu hamoshol
ke'imo kebito' ["Like mother like daughter"]. I didn't realize that this was
a Jewish saying. But then looking at the Midrash Tanchuma it quotes
Yechezkel 16:44 'ke'ima bito' - so the saying goes back even further...

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BTW, the Shaarei Ahron writes beshem Pane'ach Raza and Moshav Zekein
leBaalei Tosfos - that the reason Shimon and Levi captured the wives and
children of Shechem was to later use them as a bargaining  chip with the
neighbouring people - many who were 'mechutonim' with the Shechemites - and
would have taken revenge on Yaakov. So they made a deal and returned them -
in return for peace.

(However see 35:5 - "Vayhi chitas Elokim...velo ridfu achrei bnei Yaakov" as
well as Rashi Vaychi, 48:22 dh Becharbi uBekashti. From both these sources
it seems that there were repercussions. But possibly these were not
'mechutonim' - who could be paid off with the return of the captives.)

====
I posted this 2 weeks ago
Daas Zekenim 25:25 cites a Midrash that Esav did not have a bris.
For the first 2 years of his life, Yitzchok was concerned about the 'Admoni"
aspect - think he had some blood problems. At age 2, Yitzchok decided to
wait until he was 13 - just as Yishmael.
But at 13 Esav refused to have a bris.

However I see the Midrash 76:9 says that the Dinah/Shechem affair was a
punishment for Yaakov because he refused to let Dinah marry Esav - who was
circumcised.

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35:29 "Vayigva Yitzchok vayomos vayeosef el amov" (Similarly in Chayei Sarah
(25:8) "Vayigva vayomos Avrohom beseiva tova ...vayeosef el amov".

What actually do these 3 separate words for death indicate?


A few Baal HaTurim's of interest: 
32:5  dh 'Vo'eichar ad otoh' - a remez for all the galuyos.
32:6 dh 'Vayhi li shor vechamor' #2 - "Vay li" .

SBA
sba at sba2.com