B"H

Friday, Kislev 15, 5783 (Hakhel Year) / December 9, 2022

This Shabbat we will read Parshat Vayishlach.  In this Parsha the Torah relates the story of how Yaakov (Jacob) returns, together with his family back to the land of Canaan, to his parents, Yitzchak and Rivkah. 

On the way home, Yaakov hears that his brother Eisav (Esau), who is still angry at Yaakov for getting his father’s blessings, is coming toward him to kill him. 

Yaakov sends angels as messengers to tell Esau that he wants peace.  But when they return, they tell Yaakov that Eisav is not ready for peace.  Instead, Eisav is coming with 400 men to fight him. Upon hearing this, Yaakov became frightened.  He then forms a plan to counter Eisav's threat.  Yaakov prays to G-d to save him and his family.  He also sends gifts to his brother in the hope of appeasing him.  In case that doesn’t work, he also prepares for war.

The Torah tells us how, even before meeting Eisav, Yaakov battled with Eisav’s guardian angel and won. Now, Yaakov felt more assured that he will be safe with Eisav too.  When they finally meet, Yaakov bows seven times to Eisav. Yaakov’s wives and sons also bow to Eisav. When Eisav sees Yaakov he hugs and kisses Yaakov.  They then part ways and Yaakov and family continue travelling to his parents.

It took Yaakov 18 months to get back home. On the way he had to contend with more troubling situations. In the city of Shchem, his daughter, Dina, was forcefully violated by the prince of the land. Two of Dina’s brothers were so angered that, without Yaakov’s knowledge, they killed every man in Shchem.  Yaakov was very distressed and strongly reprimanded them for this.

After this Yaakov’s beloved wife Rachel gives birth to their youngest child, Binyam (Benjamin), but Rachel dies. Yaakov buries her in the city of Bethlehem. Rachel’s gravesite in Bethlehem is visited by tens of thousands of Jews to this day. Rachel’s Yartzeit is on the eleventh of Cheshvan.

On his way home, Yaakov is also notified of the passing of his mother, Rivkah. Yaakov finally comes home a year and a half after leaving his father-in-law, Lavan. The next twenty years he spends together with his father, Yitzchak.  At the end of the Parsha we read about Yitzchak’s passing at the age of 180. The Torah doesn’t tell us how many years Rivkah lived. But, we can calculate that she lived to about 120.

Yaakov was away from home for thirty-five years. He was 63 when he left and 98 when he returned. He was single when he left his parents and returned with a family of twelve sons and one daughter. Unfortunately, his mother, Rivkah, didn’t merit to see Yaakov’s children – her grandchildren.

Yaakov and his eleven sons bowed to Eisav. The only one of Yaakov’s children who didn’t bow to Eisav was Binyamin, as he was not born yet at the time of that encounter. He was the only one of Yaakov’s children to be born in Israel. One of the reasons that the Holy Temple (Beth Hamikdash)was built in Jerusalem, on the land of Binyamin (Benjamin), was because he didn’t bow to Eisav!

SHABBAT  SHALOM

Montreal candle lighting time: 3:52 / Shabbat ends: 5:01