The majority of the narrative of the book of Bereishit involves family feuds, fratricidal strife and Machiavellian machinations as various characters jostle for membership and seniority within the Patriarchal clan. What exactly are these early Israelites seeking to achieve and why does this inter-generational intrigue dominate the opening the book of the Torah?
What is readily apparent is that the Torah places great significance on the identity and character of the Jewish nation's Founding Fathers (and mothers). There is an oft-quoted aggadic concept, ma'aseh avot siman lebanim, that the actions of ancestors can shape the spiritual destiny of subsequent generations. How exactly are we to relate to this perplexing principle and its apparent ability to effect a chain of causation which spans many generations?
“My Name was not known among My creations and you caused it to become known. I will consider you to be a partner with Me in the creation of the world”. [Bereishit Rabbah 43:7]
This partnership was formalised at the berit bein habetarim, where Avraham was promised that the community he was building would be part of an eternal covenant with God in the land of Israel, and would grow to form God's chosen nation. This relationship may represent the loftiest level to which man can aspire, not merely imitating God’s attributes, but positively partnering Him in his project to bestow goodness upon mankind — the highest form of "vehalachta bidrachav" – walking in God’s ways.
Despite their auspicious ancestry, the formation of a chosen nation from the descendants of the Avot was no simple task. R’ Yehudah Halevi writes that a special "hashgachah" or divine guidance was required in order to prepare these descendants for the special mission bequeathed to them through the merits of their forefathers:
“And God guided the children of Yaakov also when they were in Egypt so that they would increase … He was concerned that they be raised until comparable to their ancestors Avraham, Yitzchak and Ya’akov … at that time the whole Israelite nation became fitting to see the divine light within them and for God’s providence to be revealed within them.” [Kuzari 1:95]
The notion that the Avot merited for special providence to guide the fate on the nation that would be formed from their descendants is also mentioned by Rambam in Moreh Nevuchim (3:51).
The nature and strength of this hashgachah related directly to the extent and nature of Avraham’s merits. Midrashim describe how the nature and strength of this hashgachah was directly commensurate to the extent of the merits of Avraham and the Avot:
“Rava said: In the merit of Avraham stating: “I am but dust and ashes” his descendants merited two commandments: the ash of the red heifer and the dust of Sotah … In the merit of Avraham stating: “From a thread to a shoelace [I shall not take from the plunder]” his descendants merited two commandments: the thread of blue [tzitzit] and the strap of tefillin.”
The second pair of commandments may be of particular significance, as Rambam teaches that tzitzit and tefillin are among mitzvot which attract a high level of hashgachah.
Conversely:
“For what reason was Avraham punished by his descendants being enslaved in Egypt for 210 years? ... Shmuel said it was because he doubted God’s ways [His promise of the land of Israel] as it says “And how will I know that I will inherit it?”
This second source makes it clear that any minor fault or seemingly trivial detail of the Avot's conduct could have major repercussions for the emerging nation's spiritual preparedness and fortunes.
The severe potential consequences of any ancestral misstep can help to shed light on the fraught episodes in the book of Bereishit. In Avraham’s own household we find that Sarah insists on driving away Yishmael, whose conduct in her assessment does not befit his being a ‘building block’ of the chosen people. The matter was “exceedingly evil in the eyes of Avraham”, who may well have assumed that Yishmael and Yitzchak could share the burden and responsibility of continuing his divine covenant.
National hashgachah is also dictated by the conduct of the matriarchs as is indicated by the intricate process of finding a suitable wife for Yitzchak, and further in the vivid midrashic accounts of Rachel’s merit protecting her descendants.
It is in this context that we can understand the intensity of the struggle between Ya'akov and Eisav for control of the foundations of the future nation. If Eisav were to provide the building blocks of the nascent Jewish people, his undesirable conduct would be liable to limit the positive effect of the combined merits of the Avot. This in turn would inhibit the spiritual guidance and development available to the chosen people. It was therefore crucial for Ya’akov to be the sole recipient of his father’s blessings which made their recipient, in the words of Abarbanel “part of the covenant with Avraham, designated for providential guidance”. A similar dynamic dictated the struggle between Yosef and his brothers; Yosef viewing himself as the primary (and perhaps exclusive) recipient of the Abrahamic mission and his brothers seeing his ambitions as illegitimate and requiring a strong response.
First posted on Facebook 20 November 2022, here.
