Parasha Thoughts
By Rabbi Shemuel Akhamzadeh
×”Ö·×¦Ö¼Ö´×™×œÖµ× Ö´×™ × Ö¸× ×žÖ´×™Ö¼Ö·×“ ×ָחִי, מִיַּד עֵשָׂו
“Please save me from from my brother from Esav”
Sefer Bet Halevi answers the obvious question raised by many on this verse: “What was Yaakov’s intention in using repetitive language to point out the enemy?†The Author points out that Yaakov understood that there were two possible outcomes from his encounter with Esav. Either there would be war, or Esav would come in peace and expect Yaakov to live in his vicinity and have a close relationship as brothers.
Yaakov was afraid of both scenarios. He was not interested in killing or being killed for obvious reasons, neither was he interested in having a close relationship with his twin brother, as he understood well this interaction would harm him spirituality (he knew Esav well and how he acted). Just as any human is effected by his surroundings, Yaakov was afraid Esav’s bad behaviors would affect him and his children negatively. He felt so strongly about this point that he prayed for it first in the verse, as the word “brother” is referring to an eventuality of brotherhood, a situation that he was not interested in.
Over the last two millennia we have been exiled in different countries and at times we haven’t been able to avoid interacting with people that at best are not the gold standard of behavior and whose behaviors may have a negative effect on us. For this exact reason our sages have enacted certain decrees to help us avoid becoming too close with them and being affected by them. A few examples are laws of Bishul Yisrael, Pat Yisrael and many others. May our adherence to these laws help us reach spiritual heights.