Transcript
Okay, good morning, בוקר טוב Boker Tov, welcome back to Parsha Perspectives for today. We have the privilege of learning together פרשת וישלח Parshas Vayishlach, this riveting story of יעקב Yaakov on the run from his brother. A riveting story continues. יעקב Yaakov is running, he's now built a large family, and together they're fleeing, they're going to reconcile, they're going to come together, but first הכרת הטוב Hakaras Hatov. Thank you to Becky and Avi Katz and family who sponsored in loving memory of David Grossman, לעילוי נשמת דוד בן מנחם מנוס l'ilui nishmas David ben Menachem Manos. This morning's shiur is also sponsored in the merit of בנימין משה בן ברכה Binyamin Moshe ben Bracha, should have only good news, בשורות טובות besoros tovos, and good results. Also by Sylvia Prezanski in memory of her beloved father חיים דוב שניידר Chaim Dov Schneider, whose נשמה neshama should have an עלייה aliyah, and lastly, in memory of my dear grandmother, עליה השלום aleha hashalom, Rose Goldberg, רחלה בת שלום דוד Rachla bas Shalom Dovid. May remember I wrote an article a couple weeks ago about my less than five-foot grandmother who charged into that office of the SS guards of the Nazis to demand her husband, and only because of her brazenness are am I here, which I guess means that you are here this Tuesday morning. So, we're grateful to her. Her נשמה neshama should have an עלייה aliyah, we miss her a lot.Page 170 in the Artscroll Stone חומש Chumash, פרשת וישלח Parshas Vayishlach. וישלח יעקב מלאכים לפניו אל עשיו אחיו ארצה שעיר שדה אדום Vayishlach Yaakov malachim l'fanav el Eisav achiv artza Seir s'dei Edom. יעקב Yaakov sends מלאכים malachim. Rashi goes out of his way to point out these מלאכים malachim, these angels are מלאכים ממש malachim mamash, literal, literal guards, little messengers, ambassadors, emissaries. Why does Rashi feel the need to say that? It's an interesting thing when it comes to יעקב Yaakov, we see he engages מלאכים malachim often, but that term מלאכים malachim, but the term מלאכים malachim can mean two things. It can mean angels, celestial beings, extension or energy of God in this world, however you want to define an angel. Or alternatively, a מלאך malach could be a messenger, an ambassador, an agent, someone you send to do your bidding, someone you send to do your work. When does it mean which? We've discussed this in the past, but I'll give you the punchline of it, which is, we are the מלאכים malachim for one another. We are each other's angels, guardian angels, angels. When we step up, when we step in, when we intervene, when we help, when we support, we're acting as an angel for another. וישלח יעקב Vayishlach Yaakov. And then the Torah goes on, ויצום לאמור vayitzavem leimor, and he gives these agents, he gives them instructions, a script. כה תאמרון לאדוני לעשיו Koh somrun l'adoni l'Eisav, this is what you should tell my master Eisav. Now it's interesting because we understand why יעקב Yaakov would call him a master, he would posture, he would want to position Eisav to see him favorably, to save his life. So in his presence, he would call him אדוני adoni. But why here in his absence? He's instructing the agents to go to Eisav and there he's already referring to them as אדוני עשיו Adoni Eisav. כה אמר עבדך יעקב Koh amar avd'cha Yaakov, this is what our your servant יעקב Yaakov says, עם לבן גרתי im Lavan garti ואחר עד עתה v'echar ad ata. So sorry, so sorry, bro, sorry brother, haven't been around, haven't been able to reconcile, reconnect, we haven't had our reunion, it was delayed because I was living with Lavan. I was living with, remember, Uncle Lavan? Remember our relative? I was living with him, and I was working for him, and I was delayed there, ואחר v'echar, I was delayed עד עתה ad ata until now. Rashi tells us famously, עם לבן גרתי im Lavan garti, ו... תרי\"ג מצוות שמרתי v'Taryag mitzvos shamarti. I lived with Lavan and I observed all 613 laws, even though I lived with the most pernicious, evil, wicked Eisav on the planet. Even though I lived in the worst environment, I lived in the most morally depraved society, Lavan, I never compromised an iota. So you need to know, brother, whatever influence you think you're about to have over me, been there, done that. I lived there. Sin city, Lavan. And תרי\"ג מצוות שמרתי Taryag mitzvos shamarti. I observed everything, ולא למדתי v'lo lamadeti, and I didn't learn from his evil, evil ways. Some commentaries point out that יעקב Yaakov was not boasting or showing off or flexing, he was actually being self-critical. I lived with him and I didn't learn from his ways. Why is that self-criticism? Because there's always something to learn from everyone. And Lavan brings a passion and an energy and a relentless pursuit of his evil, I should have learned, of course, applied and channeled it differently, but I should have learned. If you see that relentless drive and passion and pursuit, I should have extracted, extrapolated from there and applied it to a noble, holy pursuit. I should have learned, I should have learned. The פסוק pasuk says מאויבי תחכמני mei'oyvai t'chakmeini, and the צדיקים tzaddikim say we should learn it, we should understand it to mean מאויבי mei'oyvai, from my enemies, תחכמני t'chakmeini, I became wise. If we study and we learn the methodology of our enemies, we can gain wisdom, we gain greater strategy, we adopt, we learn a methodology. And that's true of the יצר הרע yetzer hara. When we understand the methodology of our worst selves, of our evil inclination, of our drive, of our temptation, of our distraction, we can learn from it to be our better and our best selves. יעקב Yaakov was being self-critical. But I didn't learn, ואחר עד עתה v'echar ad ata.So Rashi says, עם לבן גרתי im Lavan garti, I lived with Lavan, לא נעשיתי שר וחשוב lo na'aseisi sar v'chashuv. You should know, brother, Eisav, this is the message he's sending through the מלאך malach, through these agents. Know that lest you think the blessing of טאטי Tati, of אבא Abba, of Dad came true, lest you think I was appointed to some position of distinction, of prominence, I was a גר ger. I was a stranger. I was just passing through. אין כדאי לשנוא אותי על ברכת אביך שברכתני Ein k'dai lisno'i al birkas avicha she'birachtani. Don't hate me that I stole the blessings, not worth it. הוי גביר לאחיך hevei gevir l'achecha, the ברכה bracha that I'll be a גביר gevir, a גביר gevir. Some people that's, you know, they fill out, they meet with the guidance counselor, what do you want to be when you grow up? Today they fill out, I want to be a גביר gevir. I want to be a גביר gevir. הוי גביר לאחיך Hevei gevir l'achecha, I want to be a גביר gevir, I'll be mighty and strong and rich and powerful and influential. Don't worry, לא נתקיימה בי lo niskama bi, it wasn't fulfilled through me. Don't worry, says יעקב Yaakov. So the message ahead to to Eisav is, you're about to see me, got a large family, have a lot of flock, a lot of assets, but don't think this is all the fulfillment of the blessing Dad gave us because I'm just a גר ger. I've been wandering, I'm a nomad, I'm passing through, and I never landed. I never found myself elevated. I never received that position of distinction. Several of the commentaries are bothered. We'll share two of them today. What's יעקב Yaakov doing here? What's יעקב Yaakov doing? Don't think Dad's blessings came true? He's undermining our entire מסורה mesorah, our entire system. In order to position himself, to save himself, to secure himself, he's trying to reject the power and potency of their father's ברכה bracha. Don't worry, don't think Dad's ברכה bracha came true. And I'm a nothing. What do you mean you're nothing? The ברכות brachos were real and they came true, and be grateful, and be proud, and stand strong with it. What are you pretending? What's going on over here? What's going on over here? פירוש הראשון שהביא רש\"י... עם לבן גרתי... ששלח יעקב אבינו להודיע לעשיו שלא נתקיים בו ברכה שברכו אביו והיה גביר לאחיך לא נתקיימה בו... יש פה קושי עצום p'rush harishon shehevi Rashi... im Lavan garti... she'shalach Yaakov Avinu l'hodia l'Eisav shelo niskaiem bo bracha she'bircho aviv v'hevei gevir l'achecha lo niskaima bo... yesh po koshi atzum. Says Rav Druck in his לב אליהו Lev Eliyahu, there is an incredibly powerful question. What you're calling Yeshiva a בומב קשיא bomb kashe, a בומב קשיא bomb kashe. יעקב מנסה לשכנע את עשיו שיראה בעצמו כי ברכת יצחק לא נתקיימה בו Yaakov menaseh l'shachnea es Eisav she'yireh b'atzmo ki birkas Yitzchak lo niskaima bo. He's trying to convince his brother Eisav the wicked רשע rasha, is this righteousness, to say that our father's blessing didn't come true? מה סבר mah savar, what's he thinking? וכי לא האמין שברכת אביו תתקיים V'chi lo he'emin she'birkas aviv tiskaiem? עצמי, אם אכן האמין יעקב בברכה ושמר את הדבר בליבו לראות תמידי התקיים, נמצא אם כן ששיקר לעשיו atzmi, im achein he'emin Yaakov b'vracha v'shamar es hadavar b'libo liros im tiskaiem, nimtza im kein she'shiker l'Eisav. He's lying. What's he doing? Give up the lies. יעקב Yaakov, תתן אמת ליעקב titen emes l'Yaakov. יעקב Yaakov, you're a man of truth. You cannot tell a lie. יעקב Yaakov believes in integrity and in honesty and in truth. And now he's going to lie that he never got the ברכות brachos? Says Rav Druck, על כך נאמר ונבאר al kach nomar u'leva'er. Therefore we have to understand בהקדם דברי רש\"י b'hekdem divrei Rashi. Rashi said earlier on פרשת ויצא Parshas Vayeitzei, that when יעקב Yaakov encounters רחל Rochel, he kisses her and he raises his voice and he cries. And why does he cry? So Rashi told us he cries because he sees he's not going to ultimately be buried with her. He won't be buried with her. But there's a second פשט pshat. Why did he cry? Because he came empty-handed. He came empty-handed. When יצחק Yitzchak married רבקה Rifka, when his father married his mother, ooh, the ring and the bracelet and the earrings and the מחזור machzor set and with the name and the יחוד yichud room and the gifts and all the things that the unwritten rules someone in a back room made up, יצחק Yitzchak came with all of it and gave it, and you have to, in advance, and you need to know, and it's got to be worth this, and these diamonds and these carrots, and all the and all the things, and יעקב Yaakov shows up and his hands are empty. Why was he empty-handed? What happened to him? Eisav has a son, Eliphaz. We spoke about this a couple weeks ago. And Eisav sends Eliphaz and he says, go kill Uncle יעקב Yaakov. Take him out. Kill him. Eliphaz shows up to Uncle יעקב Yaakov and he says, what do I do? Uncle יעקב Yaakov, פטר יעקב Fetter Yaakov. He called him פטר fetter. He says, I love you, you taught me so much. I grew up with זיידע zeide, with יצחק Yitzchak, and murder you? Kill you in cold blood? How could I do it? I have a dilemma, I have a conundrum. I learned from my father, the one thing he excels at is כיבוד אב ואם kibud av v'em. My father said to kill you, but I don't think that's the right thing to do here. It doesn't seem to me to be righteous. What do I do? יעקב Yaakov has a plan. Our rabbi say, אני חשוב כמת ani chashuv k'meis. Someone indigent, impoverished, someone who can't pay bills, doesn't have a roof over their head and food to eat, someone who's dirt poor is is dead even while they're alive. What are they living for? What is the quality of their life? And we bless everyone who's struggling, they should break through, nobody should be in this category. So יעקב Yaakov says, take all my money. Here, Eliphaz, nephew, take everything I've got. You will leave me empty-handed with nothing, you'll be able to tell your father that you killed me. So, I don't understand. When Eliphaz comes home, the Torah and the Midrash, our rabbis never fill us in on what that conversation was like. Eliphaz comes home and Eisav says, 'Nu?' 'Did you do? You did the deed? You did the bidding? Took him out?' Eliphaz says, 'Done. Done and done.' He says, 'But why am I getting a message that יעקב Yaakov wants to meet, reunite? He's still alive.' 'How can you tell me you killed him? He's still alive.' So it must be that Eliphaz told didn't told him, 'I didn't kill him physically. אני חשוב כמת ani chashuv k'meis, I took all of his money.' And Eisav seemingly was satisfied with that. How could he have been satisfied with that?So Rav Druck quotes his father, Rav Mordechai Druck, the דרש מרדכי Drash Mordechai. And his father said the following: You see, a person can live in one of two planes. You can live in the here and now, you can live on this earth, you can live in the physical and the mundane, or you can live the spirit, the soul, you could live in the heavens even while we're here on Earth. You could see the bigger picture. Eisav was the here and now. Eisav was עשוי asui, he was complete, he was a finished product. He was a hunter, all he cared about was right now and the pleasure of his hands. And when Eliphaz comes home and says, I stripped Uncle יעקב Yaakov of everything, he's got nothing, he's poor, he's impoverished, he's indigent, he has nothing. For Eisav, יעקב Yaakov was dead. Because if you live in the here and now, if you live in this world, if you define life and the purpose of life and to be alive as pleasure and things, then טאקע takeh his brother was dead. He was satisfied. It was enough. It was enough. That was good. We see this with Lavan as well, he says. So therefore, we can now understand. Now we can understand. נוכל לבאר היטב את דברי יעקב עם לבן גרתי... לא נעשיתי שר וחשוב, לא נתקיימו בי הברכות... בוודאי האמין יעקב בכל ליבו שברכות יצחק יתקיימו בו. Nuchal l'va'er heitev es divrei Yaakov im Lavan garti... lo na'aseisi sar v'chashuv, lo niskaimu bi habrachos... b'vadai he'emin Yaakov b'chol libo she'birkos Yitzchak yiskaiamu bo. You see, יעקב Yaakov is not lying, and יעקב Yaakov is not being unappreciative for the blessings. He knows they did come true and he's grateful for them. So how could he turn to his brother? How could he send these agents and tell them, don't worry, I never became גביר לאחיך gevir l'achecha, don't worry, I never became שר וחשוב sar v'chashuv, I'm not prominent, I'm not distinguished, I'm not an officer, I'm not important, I'm just a גר ger, I'm wondering. What יעקב Yaakov is telling him is, according to your definition, according to your glossary, according to your purpose of life, those ברכות brachos, you saw the ברכות brachos as our father promising me physical wealth, I don't care about physical wealth. You saw those blessings as our father promising me distinction, power, fame, that never meant anything to me. Spiritual wealth, family, experiences, connection, closeness with God, a mission, purpose-driven life, those blessings came true every one of them. But that's not how you define blessing. So according to your definition, your aspiration, your ambition, what you live for, Eliphaz killed me. I'm dead even while I'm alive and I appear before you, according to your definition. Even though true according to my definition, what I know to be true, I'm very much alive and those blessings very much, very much came true. The Gerrer Rebbe of Shalom Alter has a similar insight, has a similar insight. He raises similar questions to what we just saw. And he says the following. And he says the following. And he says the following.And he says the following. There's no message? Yeah, I don't know how that's possible. Says it's on. Says it's on. We'll post the recording of it. First יעקב Yaakov's message seems to convey a lack of faith in Yitzchak's ברכות brachos. No, no, it's good, it's good. In Yitzchak's ברכות brachos. Second, why would this calm Eisav down? Let's say the agent told him, don't worry, the ברכות brachos didn't come true. Why would that make Eisav happy? The bottom line is, the ברכות brachos were still stolen. And finally, Rashi's wording is uncharacteristically lengthy, and what is he trying to prove? So the Gerrer Rebbe quotes Rashai Bik in his מיני תרגימא Minei Targima, who explains Rashi's choice of an expression. You need not hate me for taking the ברכות brachos, הוי גביר לאחיך hevei gevir l'achecha, it was not fulfilled בי bi, in me. It was not fulfilled, לא נתקיימו בי lo niskaimu bi. It was not fulfilled בי bi, in me. There's nothing Rashi says that's a coincidence. So what does he mean לא נתקיימו בי lo niskaimu bi, it was not fulfilled in me? Take the word גביר gevir and remove the letters בי bi, ב י beis yud, what are you left with? גר Ger. The גר ger. יעקב Yaakov was saying, instead of becoming גביר gevir, לא נתקיימו בי lo niskaimu bi, I remained only a גר ger. What's a גר ger? A wanderer, someone who's traveling, someone who's sojourning, somebody who's moving all around. The Ramban explains that Eisav spurned the ברכה bracha because to him, all that mattered was the here and now. And the ברכה bracha was a matter not of the here and now, but the future. יעקב Yaakov's, יצחק Yitzchak's promise to יעקב Yaakov was all about the future. The מפרשים mefarshim explain that Eisav was given that name. Eisav was born עשוי asui. He was complete, he was a finished product. All there was was the here and now. There was no future, there was no growth, there was no building towards something. This is the essence of Eisav. What is made, whatever exists in the present, that's all that counts. There is no future, there's nothing to live for. And that's not the way of יעקב Yaakov. The very mission of the Jewish people is to live for, is to look towards the future. Eisav is in עולם הזה Olam Hazeh. We live for an עולם הבא Olam Haba. Eisav is this world, we're living in this world in order to achieve, in order to gain, in order to have entrance, in order to have the best place where? In the world to come. In the world to come. And that's what יעקב Yaakov was telling him. He says, גר ger. גר ger. Not גביר gevir, לא נתקיימו בי lo niskaimu bi in me, גר ger. I'm a wanderer. I'm a wanderer. I'm not a תושב toshav. I never unpacked in this world. I'm not here permanently. I don't live for the here and now. I understand that we're here temporarily, and we're just passing through. I understand what matters, and I understand how to define real wealth. Real wealth is not what you have, real wealth is what you've given away. Real wealth is what you've invested in repairing and redeeming and improving the world. Real wealth is the influence and the legacy and the change and the impact that you've left, that you've left. I do a lot of funerals, I spend too much time in cemeteries, and I've never, I've seen all kinds of things on tombstones. It's actually one of my bizarre habits is to tour tombstones. I've seen decks of cards, people love their poker, their bridge. I've seen golf clubs on tombstones. I've seen all kinds of things on tombstones. You know what I've never seen? A person's net worth. I've never seen somebody, I've never seen a tombstone that listed where you appeared on the Forbes 400, what your net worth, how many properties a person had. I've never seen it. You know why? Because you can't take any of it with you. You can't take it with you. A person's worth is not what they have at the end when they leave this world. A person's worth is what they've given away. The influence, the impact, the difference they've made, the difference they've made in this world.So that's what יעקב Yaakov is telling him through this מלאך malach, through this agent. When you see my brother, tell him don't worry. He's going to notice I have lots of things, but those things don't define me. That's not my life, that's not what I live for. It's not, there's nothing wrong with enjoying nice things. Enjoy them, be גוזונט gezunt. But what we really live for, and the real definition of success and of life is not what we have, but what we've given away. It's not what we hold on to, it's not what we take, but it's the impact, it's the influence, it's the mission, it's the purpose to be a גר ger. Why? Why should we give it away? The answer is, because we're just passing through here. We're here temporarily. We're just stopping. Everyone knows the famous story of the חפץ חיים Chofetz Chaim. When the חפץ חיים Chofetz Chaim, when he lived in a very, very, very modest, very modest, small, tiny apartment with very modest things, and was asked why. And he said, let me ask you, when you go to a hotel, when you go to the hotel, do you bring your furniture from home? Do you bring your entire wardrobe? Do you decorate the room? A person said, no, of course not. He said, why not? He said, because I'm only there for a few days. I'm just passing through there. I'm only at the hotel temporarily. Why would I transform it to make it like my own? He said, exactly. That's the mentality of living in this world. We're here temporarily, we're passing through, we're a גר ger, not a תושב toshav. עם לבן גרתי, לא ישבתי Im Lavan garti, lo yashavti. I never unpacked. I lived with Lavan many years, I never fully unpacked. And I don't mean the boxes that sit in the corner of the room. I don't mean the suitcases that the last articles of clothing are still in. He meant spiritually, I never unpacked. This was never my definition, my identity. I never made this my home. לא ישבתי Lo yashavti. I wasn't a full resident and citizen of this world. Yeah, my feet, they're planted on the same world as you. מוצב ארצה mutzav artza. We're on this world. Physically, we're maneuvering, we're journeying through this world, but my head, מגיע השמימה magia hashamayma, says יעקב Yaakov. I'm in the, I'm in the next world already. I'm looking down at this world from the next world. I'm interacting with people. I'm performing mitzvos. I'm connecting to Hashem. I'm already living my legacy. I'm already thinking about what will be said at my funeral. I'm reverse engineering my life. And if we reverse engineer our lives, then we're not fixated and focused on, how can I accumulate and amass the most things? How can I die while I have more than anyone else? If you reverse engineer your life, and you're thinking about your funeral or what will be said on your tombstone, it will not be your net worth. It will be the influence, the impact, the difference that you made, what you empowered in a community, in institutions, in children, in adults, for Israel, for soldiers, and for more. עם לבן גרתי Im Lavan garti, I was a גר ger, I just passed through. לא ישבתי Lo yashavti, I never unpacked. I was never here. So the ברכה bracha, the way you perceive the ברכה bracha Eisav, the ברכה bracha you think I stole, the ברכה bracha you wanted, I never took. It was never fulfilled. I don't have. The ברכה bracha that I wanted, I live every day. I'm the most, I've won the lottery. I've lived the most blessed life each and every day.פרק ל\"ב פסוק י\"ח Perek Lamed Beis, Pasuk Yud Ches. Turn the page right away. So יעקב Yaakov is preparing for this reconciliation. He does so in three ways. We've studied in the past that throughout our history, great leaders have studied פרשת וישלח Parshas Vayishlach when we're ready to go out to war. We've had a 15-month war, and it continues to open on fronts we never anticipated. Who would believe what's going on in Syria? If October 6th, a little over a year ago, I would have told you, Hamas decimated, Hezbollah all but gone, Assad overthrown, Israel taking the חרמון Chermon in Syria and a buffer zone, and that over the last two days, it destroyed the entire air force and weapons of Assad and of Syria so that the rebels who take over are starting from scratch. If October 6th I would have told you this, you would have said, you're out of your mind. There is no way in this natural world any of those things will happen. Hamas is formidable. Hezbollah has 150,000 rockets facing us. And Syria, Assad has chemical weapons. He's gassed his own people and he's threatened to do it to Israel. You're out of your mind. And Iran is on the ascent. You would have said, you're out of your mind. Fast forward and Hashem is unbelievable. We've paid way too high a price, paid way too high a price that breaks our hearts, that breaks our hearts, but one would never believe where we are at. And this is the methodology that the Torah prescribes for us, already beginning here. And this is what Rebbe, רבי יהודה הנשיא Rebbi Yehuda HaNasi, would read פרשת וישלח Parshas Vayishlach before he would have to go meet with his counterpart, the government. And we continuously read, Menachem Begin read פרשת וישלח Parshas Vayishlach before he came to famous meetings in America when he was dealing with peace treaties, making peace, because we follow the footsteps of יעקב Yaakov. And יעקב Yaakov had a methodology of three things, three things. He sent gifts to Eisav, which represents diplomacy. He prayed and he prepared for war. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst. He did all three, and we continue to do all three. And יעקב Yaakov says, I don't know who I'm going to meet. הצילני נא מיד אחי מיד עשיו Hatzileini na miyad achi miyad Eisav, save me from my brother, from Eisav. כי ירא אנוכי אותו פן יבוא והכני אם על בנים ki yarei anochi oso pen yavo v'hikani eim al banim, because I'm afraid and he may come and kill me and the mothers of my children, it could be all over. I don't know who I'm going to meet. And based on Rashi, we classically, we classically understand it to mean, I don't know who I'm going to meet, מיד אחי מיד עשיו miyad achi miyad Eisav, will I meet, will I meet אחי achi? Will I meet עשיו Eisav? Who am I going to meet? I don't know who I'm going to meet. He could be two-faced. I need to be prepared for both. That interpretation we've always shared and we've always heard. But I want to share another one with you. Listen to this interpretation. This blew me away. I never saw this before. The רקיח Rokeach. Rav Druck quotes a רקיח Rokeach. The רקיח Rokeach quotes a מדרש אגדה Midrash Aggadah. כשברח יעקב מפני עשיו הרשע לחורן, נולד לו לעשיו בן K'she'barach Yaakov mipnei Eisav harasha l'Charan, nolad lo l'Eisav ben. Esav had a child. And what did he name his child? קראו בשם אחי Karu b'shem Achi. He named his son, my brother. Why? כדי שלא ישכח מה שעשה לו יעקב אחיו בנטלו ממנו את הברכות k'dei shelo yishkach mah she'asa lo Yaakov achiv b'notlo mimenu es habrachos. He never wanted to forget what his brother did to him, so that he would relive that trauma every day. He named his son brother. And every time he called his son, whose name was brother, he remembered what he, and he relived what his brother did to him, so that he would remain, he would remain furious, angry, ready to kill him. לפי זה נמצינו למדים פירוש חדש בתפילתו של יעקב L'fi zeh nimtzeinu lamdim perush chadash b'tfilaso shel Yaakov. Says Rav Druck, based on this רקיח Rokeach, now we have a new understanding of this תפילה tfila that יעקב Yaakov prayed, שאמר הצילני נא מיד אחי מיד עשיו כוונתו היתה לשני דברים שונים. אכן היו אלה שני אנשים שונים. she'amar hatzileini na miyad achi miyad Eisav, kavanaso haysa lishnei devarim shonim. Acheim hayu eileh shnei anashim shonim. What was יעקב Yaakov worried about? Two separate people. Not the classic interpretation, 'I don't know which one I'm going to get. Will I get my brother, will I get Eisav?' But there were two people. Will I get Eisav or will I get my nephew, אחי Achi? Eisav had a son named אחי Achi. I don't know. It's amazing. It's amazing. No matter how old you are, you open and learn the same Parsha and you discover and you come upon new things. Who here ever heard that before? That Eisav had a son named אחי Achi. And that's who יעקב Yaakov was afraid to meet. Would it be his brother Eisav or his nephew אחי Achi? But I'll tell you why I'm sharing this with you this morning. What I find fascinating about it, those who are taking the IFS course, those who are taking the IFS course that we've offered, internal family systems, that we're made up of parts, and we have a true self, and the parts that we have, the managers and firefighters, they come from the traumas of our life, capital T and small letter t, the big traumas, the small traumas, the things from our childhood, from our upbringing, from our influences, from our authority figures, they embed themselves within us, and then we have parts that act as managers and firefighters. And there are no bad parts. But those traumas embed themselves. And it seems to me that that's what this רקיח Rokeach is saying, is that Eisav went through a trauma. He felt his brother stole something that was rightfully his. And we, when we have a trauma, we give birth to a child and we name it that trauma. And then it continues to ring in our ear. It continues to reverberate in our lives. It continues to haunt us and inform us and not necessarily bring out the best in us. And maybe that's another way of interpreting and understanding that Eisav had a son, and he named his son 'my trauma'. He named his son 'abuser'. He named his son 'bully'. He named his son 'underachieving'. He named his son, whatever the trauma was in his life because we name, we give birth to that child, that part in us, and that part in us continues to influence and impact us until we reconcile, until we learn how to unburden, until we learn how to unbind our parts. For that, see more Shira Frachter IFS seminar.פרק ל\"ב פסוק י\"ח Perek Lamed Beis, Pasuk Yud Ches. ויצו את הראשון לאמור Vayitzav es harishon leimor, and he tells the first one, כי יפגשך עשיו אחי ושאלך לאמר למי אתה ואנה תלך ולמי אלה לפניך Ki yifgash'cha Eisav achi v'she'elcha leimor, l'mi ata v'ana seilech u'l'mi eileh l'fanecha. So he's sending them advanced team, and he says, you, the advanced team, when you get there, when you get there, you're going to meet Eisav. The first one who gets there, Eisav's going to ask you, he's going to say, 'Who are you? Where are you going? And who is, who is everyone? What's with the whole חברה chevra here? What's going on?' Says Rav Soloveitchik, listen to the Rav. Says Rav Soloveitchik, my brother Eisav, יעקב Yaakov told his agents, will ask you three questions. Three questions. Everything in the Torah is talking right to us and these are the three questions that we are asked. What are the three questions? To whom do you belong? This is how Rav Soloveitchik understands it. To whom do you belong? Means, to whom do you as a metaphorical metaphysical being, as a soul, as a spiritual being belong? Where are you going? To whom is your historical destiny committed? To whom have you consecrated your future? What is your ultimate goal? Your final objective? Who is your God and what is your way of life? These inquiries are related to your identity as members of a covenantal community. But יעקב Yaakov continued, my brother Eisav will also ask a third question, 'And for whom are all these before you?' 'Are you ready to contribute your talents, your capabilities, your efforts towards the material and cultural welfare of the general society? Are you willing to pay taxes to develop and industrialize the country?' This third inquiry is focused on the temporal aspects of life. יעקב Yaakov told his agents to answer the third question in the positive: 'It is a gift sent to my master.' We feel obligated to enrich society with our creative talents, to be constructive and useful citizens. Yet, in regard to the first two questions, he commanded his representatives to reply in the negative, clearly and precisely, boldly and courageously. He commanded them to tell Eisav their soul, their personality, their metaphysical destiny, their spiritual future and sacred commitments belong exclusively to God and his servant יעקב Yaakov. So the first two questions, 'To whom do you belong?' and 'Where are you going?' 'I belong to יעקב Yaakov, I belong to God, and that's where I'm going.' 'For whom are these before you? What's all this stuff for?' 'What's all this stuff for is for the world around me, to make the world a better place.' And that's exactly what we were just saying. That's how יעקב Yaakov lives. Unlike Eisav who lives for the here and now, in this world and his pleasure, יעקב Yaakov lives to improve the world around him, to repair and redeem the world, to be on a mission to make the world a better place. It's the biggest נבך nebach in the world. I meet people who've never, who've never ever had the joy or the experience or the positivity of giving, of doing. They're clenching with two fists so tight. They hold it all for themselves. They don't understand the greatest joy is to improve the world, to impact the world, to give, to give. יעקב Yaakov understands that, Eisav doesn't. Who are we? children of. וַיָּקָם בַּלַּיְלָה הוּא Vayakam balailah hu, פרק ל\"ב, פסוק כ\"ג perek lamed beis, pasuk kaf gimmel. וַיָּקָם בַּלַּיְלָה הוּא Vayakam balailah hu, בַּלַּיְלָה הוּא balailah hu, וַיִּקַּח אֶת שְׁתֵּי נָשָׁיו וְאֶת שְׁתֵּי שִׁפְחֹתָיו וְאֶת אַחַד עָשָׂר יְלָדָיו וַיַּעֲבֹר אֶת מַעֲבַר יַבֹּק vayikach es shtei nashav es shtei shifchoso v'es achad asar yeladav, vayaavor es maavar Yabok. יעקב Yaakov got up that night. He took his two wives, his two handmaids, his eleven sons. He crossed the יבוק Yabok, and he crossed the יבוק Yabok. Says the תפארת שמואל Tiferes Shmuel. Says Rav Shmuel Berenbaum, the תפארת שמואל Tiferes Shmuel. וַיָּקָם בַּלַּיְלָה הוּא Vayakam balailah hu. Says רש\"י Rashi. דינה היכן היתה Dinah heichan haysa? The Torah explicitly here references יעקב Yaakov had 11 sons. Who is the Torah not including? Who are we not counting? The daughter, דינה Dina. יעקב Yaakov had a daughter named דינה Dina. Where is דינה Dina? היכן היתה Heichan haysa? נתנה בתיבה ונעל בפניה שלא יתן בה עשו עינו Nasna b'teiva v'naal b'faneha shelo yiten bah Eisav einav. He put her in a box. He secured her away. We choose to see it not as some punishment or some uncomfortable position, but it means he hid her. And why did he hide דינה Dina? Because he was worried my evil, wicked brother עשו Eisav might even put eyes on his own niece and want her and take her and hope he has a future with her. ולכן נענש יעקב שמנעה מאחיו שמא תחזירנו למוטב ונפלה ביד שכם V'lachein ne'enash Yaakov she'mna'ah mei'achiv shema tachzirenu l'mutav v'naflah b'yad Shechem. The truth is it was a mistake of יעקב Yaakov, a miscalculation. Why? Because maybe דינה Dina, if she would have developed a relationship with Uncle עשו Eisav, according to the תורה Torah an uncle and a niece can marry. We have famous cases. The נציב Netziv married his niece. We have famous cases of people who married their own niece. דינה Dina could have married her uncle עשו Eisav, and say חז\"ל Chazal, says רש\"י Rashi, maybe she would have had a positive influence, a positive impact. She could have turned him around. Instead of עשו Eisav being the progenitor of a people who've haunted us and tried to exterminate us and kill us until now, Uncle עשו Eisav could have been turned around from an adversary and an enemy who seeks to exterminate into a friend and into an ally. Points out the תפארת שמואל Tiferes Shmuel of Shmuel Berenbaum, something fascinating. יש ללמוד Yesh lilmod. יש ללמוד מכאן Yesh lilmod mikan. גודל כח אשתו של אדם godel koach ishto shel adam, בהשפעה עליו לטובה b'hashpa'ah alav l'tova. שראה לעשו היה הרבה השפעות טובות She're'eh l'Eisav hayah harbeh hashpa'os tovos. You see the power of influence, because עשו Eisav had, עשו Eisav had many great influences over his life. עשו Eisav had great influences over his life. Who are the influences over עשו Eisav's life? Who are the influences over עשו Eisav's life? It's not a trick question. Who are the influences over his life? סבא וסבתא Saba v'Savta. His grandmother and his grandfather. He had many great influences. אברהם Avraham and שרה Sarah. האבא והאמא, יצחק ורבקה Ha'aba v'ha'ima, Yitzchak v'Rivka. His parents, his grandparents, and he had a brother יעקב Yaakov. ועם כל זה עדיין הוא עומד ברישעו V'im kol zeh adayin hu omeid b'rish'o, and despite that, despite his twin brother, amazing parents, extraordinary grandparents, despite that, he was a terrible רשע rasha, an evil person. וכן מבואר שמה נושאת דינה עדיין תקווה שתחזירנו למוטב V'kan mevoar she'im hayah nosei es Dinah, adayin tikvah she'tachzirenu l'mutav. And with that, our rabbis nevertheless remained hopeful that if he would have married דינה Dina, she could have turned him around. What do you see from here? When no other influence might work, when no other sources of influence might work, who is the last hope? Who still has the greatest influence? Who can turn something around? A wife. A wife. The power of a spouse, the power of a wife, a trusted confidant, an other half, a better half, an עזר כנגדו ezer k'negdo. The גמרא Gemara says in ברכות Brachos, נשים במאי זכיין nashim b'mai zachyan? Women, why do they merit? באקרויי בנייהו לבי כנישתא ובאתנויי גברייהו בי רבנן ונטרי לגברייהו עד דאתו מבי רבנן B'akruyei b'naihu l'bei knishta, u'v'asnuyei gavraihu bei rabanan, v'natri l'gavraihu ad d'asu mei bei rabanan. The זכות zechus that women have is in encouraging and empowering and supporting and helping their sons go to ישיבה yeshiva, their husbands go to שול shul to learn, their own learning of course, all the wonderful righteous women who are here this morning and who come tomorrow morning and who learn all the time. We're not at all diminishing or taking away from the learning women do for themselves. But that עקרת הבית akeres habayis, when the husband turns over and says, \"I'll start דף יומי Daf Yomi next week.\" When the son says, \"I don't feel like going to ישיבה yeshiva today,\" and the wife and the mother say, \"Get up, get out of bed, get going.\" Not on my watch. תורה Torah is sacred, תורה Torah is too important. It is going to build our home. Get up, get to שול shul. Get up, I'm driving you to ישיבה yeshiva. That's the זכות zechus of the נשים צדקניות nashim tzidkaniyos. A wife, the power, the positive influence of a spouse in both directions, but let's be honest, of a wife, of a wife. That's why even when all else seemed hopeless and helpless, what was holding on? If דינה Dina would have married Uncle עשו Eisav, maybe, maybe just maybe, there was still a possibility, still a possibility. Interesting insight. פרק ל\"ב, פסוק כ\"ה Perek lamed beis, pasuk chaf hei. So what happens? יעקב Yaakov goes back, they cross the river, יעקב Yaakov goes back, he forgot something. ויוותר יעקב לבדו Vayivaser Yaakov levado. He encountered the שר של עשו sar shel Eisav, his alter ego. He wrestles the whole night. ויאבק איש עמו עד עלות השחר Vaye'avek ish imo ad alos hashachar, and he wrestles the entire night long. He wrestles the entire night long. Says the תפארת שמואל Tiferes Shmuel. Says Rav Shmuel Berenbaum. He wakes up and he's wrestling the entire night long. למה דוקא אצל יעקב שהמלאך נלחם עמו ולא מצינו דבר כזה אצל אברהם אבינו Lama davka eitzel Yaakov shehamalach nilcham imo v'lo matzinu davar kazeh eitzel Avraham Avinu? יעקב Yaakov goes back, he's all alone, he encounters this שטן satan, this alter ego, however you want to define it. He wrestles all night long, he's injured, he limps away, he perseveres, his name is changed. Why only יעקב Yaakov? Why didn't his father יצחק Yitzchak encounter this שטן satan, this Satan, this evil alter ego? Why didn't אברהם Avraham? Why first with יעקב Yaakov? He's saying in the name of the חפץ חיים Chofetz Chaim. אברהם Avraham represented the pillar of חסד chesed. יצחק Yitzchak was the pillar of עבודה avodah. יעקב Yaakov was the pillar of תורה Torah, of תורה Torah. חסד Chesed, the world stands on three things: תורה, עבודה, וגמילות חסדים Torah, avodah, u'gemilus chasadim. אברהם Avraham's חסד chesed, יצחק Yitzchak is עבודה avodah, יעקב Yaakov is תורה Torah. יצר הרע והשר של עשו יכולים לסבול מה שאנשים מתקנים חסד או עובדים עבודה במקדש ומתפללים Yetzer hara v'hasar shel Eisav yecholim lisbol ma she'anashim miskanim chesed, o ovdim avodah b'mikdash u'mispallelim. The יצר הרע yetzer hara can hold on, the יצר הרע yetzer hara can deal with when a person is doing חסד chesed. It's noble, it's nice they're doing חסד chesed, they're not threatened, the יצר הרע yetzer hara. The יצר הרע yetzer hara can deal with when someone is דאווענען davening. Ah, דאווענען davening, let him שאַקלען shuckle, let him דאווען daven, let him say תהלים Tehillim. אבל אינו יכול לסבול מה שכלל ישראל עומדים תורה Aval eino yachol lisbol ma she'Klal Yisrael omdim Torah. What the יצר הרע yetzer hara can't tolerate, what the יצר הרע yetzer hara can't deal with, is when the Jewish people are delving and diving into תורה Torah. When we study, when we learn, when we live, when we apply, then the יצר הרע yetzer hara says, \"Uh oh, now I'm threatened. Now I'm undermined. Now I won't be successful. Now I can't succeed.\" התורה הוא עיקר כלי מלחמה כנגד היצר הרע HaTorah hu ikar kli milchama k'neged hayetzer hara. תורה Torah is the chief instrument, the chief weapon we have to fight that יצר הרע yetzer hara. When that evil inclination says, \"Look at that, say that, go there, do that thing, cut that corner, pursue your ego, hold on to all your things because you think that wealth is the most important.\" When that יצר הרע yetzer hara is fighting, the way to defeat it is תורה Torah study. Come, we learn, we open up our minds, we nourish our soul, we fill our heart, and we're able to overcome that יצר הרע yetzer hara. בראתי יצר הרע barasi yetzer hara, say חז\"ל Chazal in the גמרא Gemara in קידושין Kiddushin. God says, \"I created the evil inclination, the יצר הרע yetzer hara, בראתי תורה תבלין barasi Torah tavlin.\" What is the, what is the elixir? What is the medicine? What is the spice that can offset that יצר הרע yetzer hara? תורה Torah is the תבלין tavlin. תורה Torah is the תבלין tavlin. תנא דבי אליהו Tanna d'vei Eliyahu, בני אם פגע בך מנוול זה משכהו לבית מדרש b'ni im paga b'cha menvul zeh, mashcheihu l'beis medrash. If you encounter this יצר הרע yetzer hara, שלעפּ אים shlep im, drag it where? To the בית מדרש beis medrash. To the בית מדרש beis medrash. And if the יצר הרע yetzer hara is like an אבן even, נימוח nimuach. אם ברזל מתפוצץ im barzel mispotzeitz. If it's like a rock, it'll melt. If it's like iron, it'll burst, it'll explode, it'll spark. יצר הרע Yetzer hara can't defeat תלמוד תורה Talmud Torah. שלעפּ Shlep yourself to a שיעור shiur, turn on a class, read an article, open a ספר sefer, a book. When the יצר הרע yetzer hara is burning bright inside you, when you've got such juicy gossip you just want to share, when you want to do that mistake, when you want to violate or have that poor judgment or indulge that instinct or that drive, תורה Torah. תורה Torah. And that's why אברהם Avraham, חסד chesed, the יצר הרע yetzer hara said, \"Okay, go do your חסד chesed.\" יצחק Yitzchak, עבודה avodah, דאווענען davening, eh, go do your דאווענען davening. יעקב Yaakov, you're studying תורה Torah, uh oh, I've got to wrestle with you. I've got to strike. I've got to go to war, because if you study תורה Torah, I'm defeated, I'm done. We see the power of תורה Torah study, the importance and the power of תורה Torah study in defeating the, in fighting and defeating the יצר הרע yetzer hara. In fighting and defeating the יצר הרע yetzer hara. רב ירוחם Rav Yeruchem has another comment. It's an amazing מדרש Midrash. It says that ויוותר יעקב לבדו vayivaser Yaakov levado. יעקב Yaakov went back that night and he was all alone. And he wrestled with his alter ego. He was injured, he limped away, his name was changed, and we are called בני ישראל Bnei Yisrael, the children of Israel, not בני יעקב Bnei Yaakov, not the children of יעקב Yaakov. Says the מדרש Midrash something amazing: ישראל סבא מה הקדוש ברוך הוא כתיב ביה ונשגב ה' לבדו, אף יעקב ויוותר יעקב לבדו Yisrael Saba, ma haKadosh Baruch Hu k'tiv bei v'nisgav Hashem levado, af Yaakov vayivaser Yaakov levado. God is exalted alone, singular, unique, and יעקב Yaakov also ויוותר יעקב לבדו vayivaser Yaakov levado. And רב ירוחם Rav Yeruchem, רב ירוחם Rav Yeruchem of the מיר Mir, tells us the חז\"ל Chazal were telling us we imitate God in this way. God is לבדו levado, unique and distinct and singular. And we too are at our best when we understand what is unique and distinct and singular in us. לבדו Levado. We were not meant to live alone. We're supposed to connect with community, אחדות achdus. We're supposed to care about others. We're supposed to get married. על כן יעזוב איש את אביו ואת אמו ודבק באשתו Al kein yaazov ish es aviv v'es imo v'davak b'ishto. Get married, connect, meet another half, your better half. Nevertheless, man was created by ourselves. אדם נברא יחידי Adam nivra yechidi, לבדו levado. Why were we created first alone, by ourselves? To be able to be comfortable in our own skin, to be able to be in conversation with ourselves, to know ourselves, to learn ourselves, to love ourselves, to live ourselves, and to recognize that we don't need to compete or compare or keep up, and we shouldn't live someone else's life. Be yourself because everyone else is taken. I think that was Ralph Waldo Emerson. Be yourself because everyone else is taken. לבדו ויוותר יעקב לבדו Levado, vayivaser Yaakov levado. One of the ways we imitate the Almighty is a willingness to be in our own skin. So many people are poor imitations of others. They're trying to compete and compare and keep up. They're trying to conform. But יעקב Yaakov, how does יעקב Yaakov break through? When does he have this major breakthrough? Not coincidentally, when he is לבדו levado, when he's by himself. We live in a world and at a time that nobody wants to be by themselves. We always need to have noise surrounding us. We have AirPods in, we're listening to a podcast, we're listening to music, we're in conversation. The thought, the thought of being stuck by ourselves is torture. It's torture. Someone I'm close with, someone I know and love, recently had an MRI. I asked how it went. She said, \"You know what it's like? You're in that machine for a long time. You're all by yourself. You're not watching, you're not entertained, you're not listening to, you're not in conversation. There's no music, it's just you. Just you.\" Worse than the sound of the MRI and worse than the pain of why you're going through the MRI, for some, more painful is the experience of having to be alone. But it's in that aloneness, not loneliness, it's in the aloneness that we break through, that we wrestle with ourselves, that we have these thoughts. I've shared before, when do you have the best ideas? When do you break through when you're stuck on a conundrum or a dilemma? I know that I have my best thoughts in one of two places: while I'm דאווענען davening or in the shower. What's the common denominator of both? You're by yourself. So your mind wanders and you're thinking and you're wrestling and you're struggling, and you break through, you break barriers. You break through whatever it is that's holding you back and that's making you stuck. Says רב ירוחם Rav Yeruchem, he understands this מדרש Midrash. ונשגב ה' לבדו V'nisgav Hashem levado, ויוותר יעקב לבדו vayivaser Yaakov levado. That this notion of being alone, not loneliness, but aloneness. It's the basis of of the notion of our ability to designate time every day for being alone, being in conversation with ה' Hashem, being in conversation with ה' Hashem. To be alone, go for a walk every day, put your phone on airplane mode, listen to your own inner voice, listen to that conversation that we're having with ה' Hashem. יעקב Yaakov's name is changed as a result of this wrestling match. ויגע בכף ירכו ותקע כף ירך יעקב Vayiga b'chaf yerecho vateka kaf yerech Yaakov. פסוק כ\"ט Pasuk chaf tes. The whole conversation. ויאמר אליו מה שמך ויאמר יעקב Vayomer eilav ma shmecha? Vayomer Yaakov. What's your name? He says my name is יעקב Yaakov. לא יעקב יאמר עוד שמך כי אם ישראל Lo Yaakov yei'amer od shimcha ki im Yisrael. Your name is not יעקב Yaakov, כי אם ישראל ki im Yisrael, your name will be ישראל Yisrael. שרית עם אלקים ועם אנשים ותוכל Sarisa im Elokim v'im anashim vatuchal. You wrestled with God and with man and you emerged, and you overcame, and you were victorious. It's a bizarre, he's wrestling with his alter ego, and this conversation, what's your name, this is my name, that won't be your name anymore. It seems bizarre. What's going on here in this, what's going on here in this conversation, in this conversation. And this is the name that we have two names of. It's the only one. The גמרא Gemara in ברכות י\"ג Brachos yud gimmel פוסק'ן paskins, that once אברם Avram's name was changed to אברהם Avraham, we are forbidden to referring to him as אברם Avram. He's אברהם Avraham. He's אברהם Avraham. And in contrast, יעקב Yaakov, even after his name is changed, שרי Sarai is now שרה Sarah. We don't call her שרי Sarai. But in contrast, יעקב Yaakov becomes ישראל Yisrael, but he's still sometimes יעקב Yaakov and sometimes ישראל Yisrael. And that's one of the fun things to go through חומש Chumash and see when, when does the חומש Chumash refer to him as יעקב Yaakov, when does the חומש Chumash refer to him as ישראל Yisrael? Sometimes this, and sometimes that. Why the difference? Why was אברם Avram's name changed permanently? And why here is יעקב Yaakov's name changed, it's not really changed, he's given another name, an additional name, and he's sometimes referred to as this name, and sometimes as that. Several years ago we had the privilege of hosting ארי סאכער Ari Sacher for a שבת Shabbos. This is his mother here, she comes to the פרשה parsha class sometimes. He was here for a שבת Shabbos. ארי Ari is literally a rocket scientist. You know a lot of Jewish parents want to raise their child to be a rocket scientist. He's literally a rocket scientist. He directed the team at רפאל Rafael Defense Systems that created the Iron Dome. Now, launching a missile at a rocket in the sky and making it explode is something that rocket scientists in America and around the world tried and said could never happen, particularly to blow up the primitive rockets that were being launched from Gaza where you can't really accurately predict the trajectory and the velocity and to launch your own rocket that'll make it explode in the sky. Everybody else gave up, said it was impossible, it wasn't going to happen. And now Israel has a laser that can blow rockets up in the sky. It hasn't deployed it yet, but not only does it have Iron Dome, which is incredibly expensive, and we're amazingly grateful to American elected officials who have supplied the Iron Dome that is protecting our brothers and sisters in Israel. But when ארי Ari was here for that שבת Shabbos, it goes back several years, Iron Dome was the cutting technology, cutting-edge technology, and a tremendous point of pride for Israeli scientists and the whole pro-Israel community. I remember his visit was פרשת וישלח Parshas Vayishlach, and he got up and he said the following: a brilliant rocket scientist, also a תלמיד חכם talmid chacham, of course he learns in כרם ביבנה Kerem B'Yavneh, who learns each and every day, and he said the following amazing דרשה drasha. He says, a person's name is more than just what he's called. A person's name identifies their mission on Earth. It's a description. When parents give a name, we know they are endowed with certain divine assistance, prophecy, to reveal the mission. אברם Avram was born אברם Avram, a contraction of the words אב av and ארם Aram, the father of ארם Aram. He was born in ארם Aram in modern day Iraq. His innovation regarding monotheism was revolutionary, and he became a local superstar in ארם Aram. But eventually אברהם Avraham outgrew his first mission. His message had become too important to be relegated to just one local city, to one part of the world. He had a new mission. He's not just אברם Avram of ארם Aram, he becomes אברהם Avraham, אב המון גוים av hamon goyim. The whole internet, biggest influencer, biggest podcast, most followers, the whole world. אברם Avram becomes a global phenomenon, and his new name reflects his new mission. So he goes from אברם Avram, an influencer in ארם Aram, to אברהם Avraham, an influencer אב המון גוים av hamon goyim of the whole world. When יעקב Yaakov was born, we're told that his hand is holding on to עשו Eisav's heel, his עקב akeiv. And after עשו Eisav discovers that יעקב Yaakov has stolen the blessing, he comments ruefully, \"Isn't it fitting that my brother is יעקב Yaakov? He was deceived, וַיַּעְקְבֵנִי vaya'akveini, he deceived me now twice. He took my birthright and he stole my blessing.\" You see, יעקב Yaakov is the name of a person who takes what he needs, but doing it by less than ideal means. יעקב Yaakov takes what he needs, but less than ideal by lying, by cheating, and by stealing. ישראל Yisrael on the other hand, is different. יעקב Yaakov's unknown assailant calls him by his new name, and tells him your new name is why? כי שרית Ki sarisa, you wrestled, you wrestled and you prevailed. The ספורנו Sforno comments the word שרית sarisa comes from שר sar. What's a שר sar? The ספורנו Sforno says a שר sar is an officer, a king. You're now worthy to sit with kings. The name ישראל Yisrael comes from the word שררה s'rara. The word שררה s'rara means mastery. ישראל Yisrael is the name of a person who rightfully receives all that he deserves with dignity, with honor, with nobility, with kings, as royal, as opposed to אברם Avram who had his mission redrawn, יעקב Yaakov has an additional mission which is given. At certain times יעקב Yaakov comes to the fore, and at other times it's ישראל Yisrael who takes the stage. When יעקב Yaakov is about to die, signaling the onset of the Egyptian exile, the תורה Torah tells us, \"יעקב Yaakov lived in מצרים Mitzrayim for 17 years.\" And then the very next פסוק pasuk continues, \"the time drew near for ישראל Yisrael to die.\" Why does it say יעקב Yaakov lived in Egypt 17 years, and then the time drew near for ישראל Yisrael to die? It's like the תורה Torah is testifying about two different people, but we know it's the same person. The answer is because it was יעקב Yaakov who was living in מצרים Mitzrayim, not ישראל Yisrael. In the Egyptian exile, there is no Jewish mastery and royalty. Pharaoh would make certain that ישראל Yisrael remained suppressed, dead and buried for the duration of his stay. When does ישראל Yisrael emerge? When יעקב Yaakov's children are redeemed, when they're liberated, we're on the path of greatness, we see a ישראל Yisrael emerge. So אברם Avram becomes אברהם Avraham replacing his previous mission, יעקב Yaakov is added on a ישראל Yisrael. Sometimes we'll still be יעקב Yaakov, עקב akeiv, the heel, when we're doing what's right and what we need to, but through less than an ideal means, then that is, then that is a יעקב Yaakov. ישראל Yisrael, ישראל Yisrael is our ideal state. On the eve of confronting his brother עשו Eisav, יעקב Yaakov first expresses his יעקב Yaakov identity. He presents himself defensively and apologetically. He sends gifts, and he submits, and he refers to his brother עשו Eisav as my master, no less than, if you look at the beginning of our פרשה parsha, no less than eight times. Some of חז\"ל Chazal were critical of יעקב Yaakov for doing, \"What are you doing calling him your master?\" According to the רשב\"ם Rashbam, יעקב Yaakov spent his whole life avoiding confrontation, running away from conflict, and even now tried to escape and bow out, which is why he was alone that night. The רשב\"ם Rashbam is critical of יעקב Yaakov. How does he find himself alone? There's a lot of interpretations we've studied in the past. Maybe it's criticism of his sons. Why did they let the טאטע Tatte go out alone at night? But the רשב\"ם Rashbam understands it that יעקב Yaakov was a little cowardly. His whole family is en route to go meet the brother, and יעקב Yaakov retreats, he's ויוותר יעקב לבדו vayivaser Yaakov levado, he's all alone because he was afraid. But instead ה' Hashem sent an angel to wrestle with him and to teach him, \"You can't run and you can't hide. Take your enemies head on, defeat them and triumph over them. If you kowtow to them, avoid them, negotiate with them, they will continuously come back to haunt you.\" So this angel forces יעקב Yaakov to dig deep, to stand up for himself, to take pride in his mission, to not run away, but to confront, to wrestle, to persevere. And when he does, he's now ישראל Yisrael, שררה s'rara, nobility, the noble one. ישראל Yisrael would never have debased himself before עשו Eisav to call him my master. ישראל Yisrael would have told עשו Eisav, \"I'm back, live with me or live against me, the choice is yours, I'm not going anywhere. I am here and I'm here to stay.\" So ארי Ari, that rocket scientist, shared this תורה Torah insight that morning. And very unexpectedly, it was an AIPAC שבת Shabbos, and I thought he was going to talk all about the Iron Dome and it's amazing and we should be so proud and we're the envy of the whole world. But instead, he said, rather than show off or celebrate the Iron Dome that he was part of inventing, he said, \"The Iron Dome is utterly pathetic.\" It is, its existence is pathetic. See, Israel invented technology that would let others shoot rockets at us and then just blow them up over the heads of our children. \"That's,\" said ארי Ari, \"Iron Dome is a remarkable invention, but it's the product of a יעקב Yaakov mentality. A יעקב Yaakov mentality does what you have to, but less than ideal means. So we're going to let you have your rocket launchers, we're going to let you hide them in schools and in mosques and in hospitals. We're going to let you launch them indiscriminately at our hospitals and schools.\" And a יעקב Yaakov says, \"We'll invent a technology and have to grovel and beg others to pay for it that will let us blow it up over our heads.\" But that's not what a ישראל Yisrael would do, he said. What a ישראל Yisrael would do is go eliminate the rocket launchers and go eliminate the people who are launching those rockets. That's what a ישראל Yisrael would do. And so he stood there that שבת Shabbos morning and he said, \"We can be proud and we should be proud, but on the other hand, it's pathetic, it's the product of a יעקב Yaakov. We are ישראל Yisrael. We are an עם ישראל Am Yisrael. We are a people of ישראל Yisrael. We can't be יעקב Yaakovs in this moment.\" And that's what we've seen in the last 15 months. We who thought we were יעקב Yaakov. October 6th, we were יעקב Yaakov. All this worry, what will the world think, what will the world say, we can't go into Gaza and we can't preemptively strike in Lebanon. We were a יעקב Yaakov mentality. And October 7th woke up a ישראל Yisrael. On October 7th, we wrestled with our enemies. שרית ותוכל Sarisa vatuchal. And what emerged was a ישראל Yisrael, an עם הנצח Am HaNetzach, a fearless, roaring lion, lion. I have a picture in my office of a bomb shelter outside of Gaza in a community right outside Gaza that is decorated with the logo of Behind the Bima because not this war, several years ago, because we've been living this way, we, we, the heroes on the Gaza envelope and border have been living this way for way too long. And through one episode on one Behind the Bima, we raised the money to dedicate a bomb shelter and an artist decorated it beautifully and I went to see it actually a couple times in that community. And I have it in frame. And I looked at it the other day and I thought to myself, these bomb shelters, please God, they're obsolete. We should not paint them over, we should take them apart and dismantle them. Because communities shouldn't even have to see the eyesore of bomb shelters to remember that they once lived with sirens blaring and with rockets launched and having to rely on the יעקב Yaakov Iron Dome to hopefully blow it up overhead. We should dismantle those who make the rockets, those who launch them, wherever they are, and please God have successfully done so. It's a message of our פרשה parsha. Will we be the children of ישראל Yisrael or the children of יעקב Yaakov? We've tasted, we've emerged for this last year plus to be עם ישראל Am Yisrael, עם הנצח Am HaNetzach, בני ישראל Bnei Yisrael, not just בני יעקב Bnei Yaakov, but will it continue? Will we have the courage and the strength and the support to continue to go where we need to go and do what we need to do? The pager, the pager, I don't even know what to call it, operation. That's an operation of a ישראל Yisrael. That's a ישראל Yisrael operation. No more. We can't go back to being יעקב Yaakov, defenseless and powerless and relying and begging and groveling for the approval and the funding of others. עם ישראל Am Yisrael, עם הנצח Am HaNetzach has to only continue. פרק ל\"ב פסוק ל' Perek lamed beis pasuk lamed. Here in this conversation, in this conversation, וישאל יעקב ויאמר הגידה נא שמך Vayishal Yaakov vayomer hagida na shmecha. יעקב Yaakov turns to the angel and says, \"Okay, you asked my name, you changed my name, what's your name?\" ויאמר למה זה תשאל לשמי Vayomer lama zeh tishal lishmi. And the angel answers, \"Why are you asking my name? Why you want my name?\" So there's a beautiful רב חיים סולובייצ'יק Rav Chaim Soloveitchik. We've studied in the past that למה זה תשאל לשמי lama zeh tishal lishmi is not in fact the angel saying, \"Why are you asking my name?\" The angel is answering יעקב Yaakov, \"My name is why are you asking my name?\" רב חיים סולובייצ'יק Rav Chaim Soloveitchik has a whole interpretation we've shared in the past. Listen to what רב סולובייצ'יק Rav Soloveitchik says. Unfortunately, so insightful. רב סולובייצ'יק Rav Soloveitchik says the following: יעקב Yaakov was attacked for no apparent reason. רב סולובייצ'יק Rav Soloveitchik points out if you look in the text, this wrestle is wrestling with יעקב Yaakov, he has this breakthrough, he perseveres, he gets a new name. What were they wrestling over the whole night? What were they fighting about? The תורה Torah text never tells us. There's a lesson, says the רב Rav, because it's not important what we're wrestling about, what's important is to be wrestling, to be wrestling with ourselves. Don't be complacent, don't feel you've arrived, don't be an עשו Eisav who's עשוי asui and think that you're finished. No matter what age, no matter what stage, you're just getting started. You're just getting started. Your best is yet to come. Wrestle, wrestle with ourselves to improve, to be better, and to grow. יעקב Yaakov is attacked for no apparent reason. When יעקב Yaakov asks his attacker for his name, he said, \"I cannot expose my identity.\" The refusal of the anonymous attacker to identify himself represents one of the most horrible characteristics of our destiny, that the Jew never knows who will attack him. At the turn of the century, socialist literature claimed that antisemitism was a result of capitalism, and if capitalism were to be abolished, the same would hold true for antisemitism. Yet when the socialists rose to power, they almost immediately became the most virulent antisemites in modern times. The anonymity and the unpredictability are the worst aspects of antisemitism. A second ominous characteristic of this confrontation was that upon defeat, the anonymous antagonist did not promise יעקב Yaakov peace. His silence gave the impression that they would meet again at a future date and at a time he would be victorious. These two characteristics, anonymity and permanence, constitute the fundamental nature of antisemitism. This is why וישלח Vayishlach is considered the book of the destiny of the Jew. Wow, what an insight. Antisemitism is the world's oldest hatred. It is a a virus Rabbi Lord Sacks describes, a virus that mutates. And that's the anonymity of it that the רב Rav is alluding to. למה זה תשאל לשמי Lama zeh tishal lishmi, why are you asking for my name? Asking for what? You're trying to name antisemitism? They hated us when we lived separate and apart. They hate us when we try to integrate and assimilate. They hate us when we're wealthy and on top of the world. They hate us when we're poor and at the bottom of the world. They hate us no matter what. למה זה תשאל לשמי Lama zeh tishal lishmi. Why are you trying to name antisemitism and antisemites? You cannot name them. They don't have a name and there is no reason and there is no cause. And that's what this angel, this nemesis, this שר של עשו sar shel Eisav is answering. למה זה תשאל לשמי Lama zeh tishal lishmi, why are you asking for my name? You'll never get my name because I don't have a name. To have a name is to limit me and to think you can eliminate me, but you can't do either. I'm anonymous and I'm permanent. I will keep rearing my ugly head and I will keep coming back again and again and again says the רב Rav. That's what's going on in this conversation. and this is what is portending the future, the destiny of the destiny of the Jew. Our destiny is that we're out of time. Okay. We'll stop here. There was a lot more of the parsha to do. Please remain to complete all of ספר תהילים sefer Tehillim. If you stay for just a few minutes, we can finish all of ספר תהילים sefer Tehillim together. May we hear
