Page 99 - 24107

Orchard of Delights Toldot

truthfully and honestly. In this case Jacob proposed a mechanism by God commanded Abraham to leave his land, his father’s house,
which he would finally receive just payment for the years of Herculean and his birthplace for this very reason. Only in a new land and
efforts he had dedicated to Laban. Laban not only accepted Jacob’s environment would he be free of all those deeply rooted influences
conditions but was overjoyed because he thought he had again gotten preventing him from culminating the unique spiritual work he had
the better of Jacob. begun. Accordingly, only after coming to Israel do we see Abraham
busying himself digging wells.
Parenthetically, we should note that Laban also means “white,”
an allusion teaching us that evil individuals sometimes claim to be Just as the Philistines stopped up the wells, we too can choose to
the epitome of purity. Only those who are able to penetrate these ignore the treasures given us. Indeed, in some cases certain wells have
individuals’ façades of righteous indignation can see their rotten cores. already been tainted by alien influences and are best left stopped up,
Bob Dylan, the Jewish songwriter and performer, wrote an entire song so that the influences holding us back from spiritual advancement
about this entitled, “Sometimes Satan Comes as a Man of Peace.” remain buried. However, in most cases, just as Abraham was told
to leave his land, his father’s house, and his birthplace and go to a
The Hebrew word for the second tree, “luz,” is pregnant with
meeting. Firstly, Jacob had his ladder dream in a place called Luz. new land to achieve a new level of consciousness, so too are we all
This strengthens our suspicion that Jacob’s clever breeding program commanded to dig our wells in a “new land.”
resulted from his ability to translate that dream into reality. At times in our youth, we do in fact dig new wells, only to abandon
Secondly, luz is also the name of the bone situated at the top of the them or relinquish our proprietary rights out of laziness, boredom, or
spinal cord, from which, according to tradition, the body will be doubt. Knowing which wells we are better off preserving and which
resurrected in the Messianic era. This association suggests that the we are better off abandoning is one of life’s crucial skills, one which
word represents indestructible energy. Jacob harnessed this energy greatly influences our lives.
in order to continually overcome his enemies. Thirdly, this word also The Amidah, Judaism’s quintessential prayer, begins with the
alludes to God’s promise in the dream that he would accompany words: “Blessed are you God, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac
Jacob throughout all his struggles, for Jacob builds an altar in Luz and the God of Jacob.” Many commentators ask why the words “the
upon his return to the Land of Israel. He builds this altar only after God of” are repeated three times, when the phrase could have simply
extricating himself from Laban’s clutches, defeating the angel in been rewritten as “the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” One
the wrestling match, and successfully confronting Esau once more. answer given is that it was not enough for Isaac to unquestioningly
Jacob takes the luz tree and with it transforms the physical, infusing accept his father’s concept of God as his own; rather, he had to
it with spiritual import.
contemplate and come to terms with God as “his” God. The same
The Hebrew name for the last of the trees Jacob used was “armon,” applies to Jacob and all their descendants
which shares the same root as the Hebrew words for “naked” or Indeed, as we read in this Torah portion, Isaac not only re-dug
“cunning.” These latter two words appear in the Garden of Eden Abraham’s wells, but also excavated new ones. Some wells he gave
story: “They [Adam and Eve] were both naked, the man and his the same names his father had, while others he gave new names.
wife, and they were not ashamed. And the snake was cunning, more Significantly, the last of the wells he named Beer Sheva, choosing
so than any beast of the field” (Genesis 2:25-3:1). Jacob was at heart the same name as Abraham, but for his own reasons. Isaac’s digging
“a sincere man, a dweller in [the] tents [of Torah]”; he was naked of new wells was in a sense the clearest indication that he had chosen to
ulterior motives and unashamed. Yet God purposely places him time follow in his father’s footsteps, for Abraham was the classic model of
after time in situations where he must face cunning enemies and foes
an innovator and path forger.

126 # 24107-EYAL - 24107-EYAL | 4 - B | 18-01-28 | 12:12:04 | SR:-- | Magenta 24107-EYAL - 24107-EYAL | 4 - B | 18-01-28 | 12:12:04 | SR:-- | Cyan 24107-EYAL - 24107-EYAL | 4 - B | 18-01-28 | 12:12:04 | SR:-- | Black #24107-EYAL - 24107-EYAL | 4 - B | 18-01-28 | 12:12:04 | SR:-- | Yellow 9

# 24107-EYAL - 24107-EYAL | 4 - B | 18-01-28 | 12:12:04 | SR:-- | Magenta #24107-EYAL - 24107-EYAL | 4 - B | 18-01-28 | 12:12:04 | SR:-- | Yellow 24107-EYAL - 24107-EYAL | 4 - B | 18-01-28 | 12:12:04 | SR:-- | Black 24107-EYAL - 24107-EYAL | 4 - B | 18-01-28 | 12:12:04 | SR:-- | Cyan