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Documente Cultură
21 Issue #10
Parashas Toldos
3 Kislev 5777
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and loved him because of it. When the passuk says that
Yitzchak loved Eisav, it didnt mean that he loved the
meat Eisav brought him, it meant that he loved Eisav.
Take a look at the following Ramban:
Ramban writes that Yitzchak constantly ate the
meat Eisav brought him and never ate anything else.
Was Yitzchak a glutton? Of course not! Instead,
Yitchak was constantly craving the strong relationship
he had with his son. He wanted to make even eating
meaningful by using it as an opportunity to connect
with him.
Rivkah, on the other hand, did not return
Eisavs love. The Ohr HaChaim writes that this is
because of one of several possible reasons, one of
which was that she was from a wealthy family where
she was used to luxuries like fresh game, so Eisavs
meals didnt mean much to her. Another possibility is
that cooking for Mom is nothing compared to what she
has to put up with. Still, why couldnt Rivkah accept
Eisavs expression of love for her, despite her own
standards?
One thing that must be understood about the
nature of love is that most people only like receiving it
in certain forms. For example, a child will really enjoy
getting a gift from his parents, but will usually be
indifferent when his mother does his laundry for him.
Conversely, a mother may appreciate it more if her
child does the dishes than if he buys her flowers for
Shabbas.
So, for whatever reason, Rivkah just didnt
appreciate Eisavs meals. It just wasnt her preferred
form of love. This teaches us an important lesson:
Typically, people give what they want to get. If Eisavs
demonstration of love was steak, then he probably
liked steak. But one must find out how others express
their love, and, when relating to that person, apply
that persons preferred expression instead of their
own and, considering how Eisav turned out in the
end, this understanding can go a long way.`
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have been led to sin in all three ways. She may have
followed the ways of her
father out of fear of him.
Similarly,
since
sibling
relationships are to a great
extent based on love, she may
have followed her brother
Lavan. Finally, she may simply
have acted in accordance with
local tendencies and been led
to act in an evil way.
By writing all three
descriptions in the passuk, the
Torah is teaching us three
separate and distinct levels of
Rivkahs righteousness.