Жақып пен Есаудың қайта қосылуы және Рахильдің қасіреті

Eighth portion in the annual Jewish cycle of weekly Torah reading

Vayishlach or Vayishlah (וַיִּשְׁלַח—Hebrew for "and he sent," the first word of the parashah) is the eighth weekly Torah portion (פָּרָשָׁה, parashah) in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading. In the parashah, Jacob reconciles with Esau after wrestling with a "man." The prince Shechem rapes Dinah, whose brothers sack the city of Shechem in revenge. In the family's subsequent flight, Rachel gives birth to Benjamin and dies in childbirth. The parashah constitutes Genesis 32:4–36:43. The parashah has the most verses of any weekly Torah portion in the Book of Genesis (Parashat Miketz has the most letters, Parashat Vayeira has the most words, and Parashat Noach has an equal number of verses as Parashat Vayishlach). It is made up of 7,458 Hebrew letters, 1,976 Hebrew words, 153 verses, and 237 lines in a Torah Scroll (Sefer Torah). Jews read it the eighth Sabbath after Simchat Torah, in November or December.

In traditional Sabbath Torah reading, the parashah is divided into seven readings, or עליות, aliyot. In the Masoretic Text of the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible), Parashat Vayishlach has six "open portion" (פתוחה, petuchah) divisions (roughly equivalent to a paragraph, often abbreviated with the Hebrew letter פ (peh)). The first open portion is further subdivided by two "closed portion" (סתומה, setumah) divisions (abbreviated with the Hebrew letter ס (samekh)). The first open portion spans the first four readings and part of the fifth reading. The two closed portion divisions occur in the fourth reading. The second and third open portion divides the fifth reading and extends into the sixth. The fourth and fifth open portion divides the sixth reading and extends into the seventh. And the fifth and sixth open portion divisions divide the seventh reading.

In the first reading, Jacob sent a message to Esau in Edom that he had stayed with Laban until then, had oxen, donkeys, flocks, and servants, and hoped to find favor in Esau's sight. The messengers returned and greatly frightened Jacob with the report that Esau was coming to meet him with 400 men. Jacob divided his camp in two, reasoning that if Esau destroyed one of the two, then the other camp could escape. Jacob prayed to God, recalling that God had promised to return him whole to his country, noting his unworthiness for God's transformation of him from a poor man with just a staff to the leader of two camps, and prayed God to deliver him from Esau, as God had promised Jacob good and to make his descendants as numerous as the sand of the sea. The first reading ends here.

In the second reading, Jacob assembled a present of hundreds of goats, sheep, camels, cattle, and donkeys to appease Esau, and instructed his servants to deliver them to Esau in successive droves with the message that they were a present from his servant Jacob, who followed behind. As the presents went before him, Jacob took his wives, handmaids, children, and belongings over the Jabbok River, and then remained behind that night alone. Jacob wrestled with a "man" until dawn, and when the "man" saw that he was not prevailing, he touched the hollow of Jacob's thigh and strained it. The man asked Jacob to let him go, for the day was breaking, but Jacob would not let him go without a blessing. The man asked Jacob his name, and when Jacob replied "Jacob," the man told him that his name would no more be Jacob, but Israel, for he had striven with God and with men and prevailed. Jacob asked the "man" his name, but the "man" asked him why, and then blessed him. The second reading ends here.

In the third reading, Jacob named the place Peniel, saying that he had seen God face to face and lived. And at sunrise, Jacob limped from the injury to his thigh. Because of this, the Israelites do not eat the sinew of the vein that is the hollow of the thigh, because the man touched the hollow of Jacob's thigh. When Jacob saw Esau coming with 400 men, he divided his family, putting the handmaids and their children foremost, Leah and her children next, and Rachel and Joseph at the back. Jacob went before them, and bowed to the ground seven times as he approached his brother. Esau ran to meet him, embraced him, and kissed him, and they wept. Esau asked who the women and children were. In 33:4 the word וַיִּשָּׁקֵהוּ is written with dots on top of each letter in a scroll. The third reading ends here.

In the fourth reading, Jacob told Esau that the women and children were his, and they all came to Esau and bowed down. Esau asked what Jacob meant by all the livestock, and Jacob told him that he sought Esau's favor. Esau said that he had enough, but Jacob pressed him to accept his present saying that seeing Esau's face was like seeing the face of God, and Esau took the gifts. Esau suggested that Jacob and he travel together, but Jacob asked that Esau allow Jacob's party to travel more slowly, so as not to tax the young children and the flocks, until they came to Esau in Seir. Esau offered to leave some of his men behind with Jacob, but Jacob declined. So Esau left for Seir, and Jacob left for Sukkot (meaning 'booths'), where he built a house and made booths for his cattle, thus explaining the place's name. A closed portion ends here. In the continuation of the reading, Jacob came to Shechem, where he bought a parcel of ground outside the city from the children of Hamor for a hundred pieces of money. Jacob erected an altar there, and called the place El elohe Israel. The fourth reading and a closed portion end here with the end of chapter 33.

In the fifth reading, in chapter 34, when Dinah went out to see the daughters of the land, the prince of the land, Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, saw her and lay with her by force. Shechem loved Dinah and asked Hamor to arrange that he might marry her. Jacob heard that Shechem had defiled Dinah while Jacob's sons were in the field, and Jacob held his peace until they returned. When Jacob's sons heard, they came in from the field very angry. Hamor went out to Jacob and told him that Shechem longed for Dinah, and asked Jacob to give her to him for a wife, and to agree that their two people might intermarry and live and trade together. And Shechem offered to give Jacob and his sons whatever they wanted as a bride price. Jacob's sons answered with guile, saying that they could not give their sister to one not circumcised, and said that they would consent only on the condition that every man of the town became circumcised, and then the two people might intermarry and live together; otherwise they would leave. Their words pleased Hamor and Shechem, and Shechem did so without delay, out of delight with Dinah. Hamor and Shechem spoke to the men of the city in the city gate, saying that Jacob's family were peaceable, and advocated letting them dwell in the land, trade, and intermarry. Hamor and Shechem reported that Jacob's people would only do so on the condition that every man of the town was circumcised, and they argued that the men do so, for Jacob's animals and wealth would add to the city's wealth. The men heeded Hamor and Shechem, and every man of the city underwent circumcision. On the third day, when the men of the city were in pain, Jacob's sons Simeon and Levi each took his sword, came upon the city with stealth, and killed all the men, including Hamor and Shechem, and took Dinah out of the city. Jacob's sons looted the city, taking as booty their animals, their wealth, their wives, and their children. Jacob told Simeon and Levi that they had made him odious to the inhabitants of the land, who would gather together against him and destroy their family. Simeon and Levi asked whether they were to allow someone to treat their sister as a prostitute. The first open portion ends here with the end of chapter 34. As the reading continues in chapter 35, God told Jacob to move to Bethel, and make an altar there to God, who had appeared to him there when he first fled from Esau. Jacob told his household to put away their idols, change their garments, and purify themselves for the trip to Bethel, and they gave Jacob all their idols and earrings and Jacob buried them under the terebinth by Shechem. A terror of God fell upon the nearby cities so that the people did not pursue Jacob, and they journeyed to Luz, built an altar, and called the place El beth el. Rebekah's nurse Deborah died, and they buried her below Beth el under an oak they called Allon bacuth. And God appeared to Jacob again and blessed him, saying to him that his name would not be Jacob anymore, but Israel. God told him to be fruitful and multiply, for nations and kings would descend from him. The fifth reading ends here.

In the sixth reading, God told Jacob that God would give Jacob and his descendants the land that God gave to Abraham and Isaac. And Jacob set up a pillar of stone in the place, poured a drink offering and oil on it, and called the place Bethel. They left Bethel, and before they had come to Ephrath, Rachel went into a difficult labor. The midwife told her not to fear, for this child would also be a son for her. And just before Rachel died, she named her son Ben oni, but Jacob called him Benjamin. They buried Rachel on the road to Ephrath at Bethlehem, and Jacob set up a pillar on her grave. And Israel journeyed beyond Migdal eder. While Israel dwelt in that land, Reuben lay with Jacob's concubine Bilhah, and Israel heard of it. Jacob came to Isaac at Hebron, Isaac died aged 180 and Esau and Jacob buried him. The second open portion ends here with the end of chapter 35. As the reading continues in chapter 36, the text recounts Esau's children. Esau took his household, animals, and all his possessions that he had gathered in Canaan and went to a land apart from Jacob, in Edom, for their substance was too great for them to dwell together. The text then recounts Esau's descendants, among whom were Amalek. The sixth reading and the third open portion end here.

In the seventh reading, the text enumerates the descendants of Seir the Horite. The fourth open portion ends here. In the continuation of the reading, the text lists the Kings of Edom. The maftir (מפטיר) reading of Genesis 36:40–43 that concludes the parashah lists the chiefs of Esau. The seventh reading, the fifth open portion, and the parashah end here with the end of chapter 36.

The Pirke De Rabbi Eliezer expounded on "the daughters of the land" whom Genesis 34:1 reports Dinah went out to see. The Pirke De Rabbi Eliezer taught that because Dinah abode in the tents and did not go into the street, Shechem brought dancing girls playing on pipes into the streets to entice Dinah out. When Dinah went to see why the girls were making merry, Shechem seized her. A Tanna taught in Rabbi Jose's name that Shechem was a place predestined for evil, for in Shechem Dinah was raped (as reported in Genesis 34:2), Joseph's brothers sold him (as reported in Genesis 37:17, Dothan being near Shechem), and the united kingdom of Israel and Judah was divided (as reported in 1 Kings 12:1). In Genesis 34:3, the heart is enticed. A midrash catalogued the wide range of additional capabilities of the heart reported in the Hebrew Bible. The heart speaks, sees, walks, falls, stands, rejoices, cries, is comforted, is troubled, becomes hardened, grows faint, grieves, fears, can be broken, becomes proud, rebels, invents, cavils, overflows, devises, desires, goes astray, lusts, is refreshed, can be stolen, is humbled, errs, trembles, is awakened, loves, hates, envies, is searched, is rent, meditates, is like a fire, is like a stone, turns in repentance, becomes hot, dies, melts, takes in words, is susceptible to fear, gives thanks, covets, becomes hard, makes merry, acts deceitfully, speaks from out of itself, loves bribes, writes words, plans, receives commandments, acts with pride, makes arrangements, and aggrandizes itself. A Baraita reported that some said that Job lived in the time of Jacob and married Dinah, finding the connection in the use of the same word with regard to Job's wife in Job 2:10, "You speak as one of the impious women (נְּבָלוֹת, nebalot) speaks," and with regard to Dinah in Genesis 34:7, "Because he had committed a vile deed (נְבָלָה, nebalah) in Israel." The Mishnah deduced from Genesis 34:25 that the wound from a circumcision is still serious enough on the third day that one bathes a circumcised baby on that day even if it is the Sabbath. Reading the words of Genesis 34:30, "And Jacob said to Simeon and Levi: 'You have troubled (עֲכַרְתֶּם, achartem) me,'" the Rabbis paraphrased: "The vat was clear, and you have muddied (עֲכַרְתֶּם, achartem) it." A midrash read Judah's questions in Genesis 44:16, "What shall we speak or how shall we clear ourselves?" to hint to a series of sins. Judah asked, "What shall we say to my lord," with respect to the money that they retained after the first sale, the money that they retained after the second sale, the cup found in Benjamin's belongings, the treatment of Dinah in Genesis 34, the treatment of Bilhah in Genesis 35:22, the treatment of Tamar in Genesis 38, the sale of Joseph, allowing Simeon to remain in custody, and the peril to Benjamin.

Rabbi Judan said that Jacob declared that Isaac blessed him with five blessings, and God correspondingly appeared five times to Jacob and blessed him (in Genesis 28:13–15, 31:3, 31:11–13, 35:1, and 35:9–12). And thus, in Genesis 46:1, Jacob "offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac," and not to the God of Abraham and Isaac. Rabbi Judan also said that Jacob wanted to thank God for permitting Jacob to see the fulfillment of those blessings. And the blessing that was fulfilled was that of Genesis 27:29, "Let people serve you, and nations bow down to you," which was fulfilled with regard to Joseph. (And thus Jacob mentioned Isaac then on going down to witness Joseph's greatness.) A midrash taught that wherever there is idolatry, the Divine Presence (Shechinah) will not dwell there. Once, however, people remove idolatry, the Divine Presence can appear. For as soon as Jacob removed all idolatry from his camp, as Genesis 35:2 reports, "Then Jacob said to his household . 'Put away the strange gods that are among you,'" the Divine Presence immediately appeared to him, as Genesis 35:9 states, "God appeared again to Jacob." Rabbi Samuel bar Nahman interpreted the report of Genesis 35:8 that "Deborah, Rebekah's nurse died, and she was buried below Beth el under the oak; and the name of it was called Allon bacuth (אַלּוֹן בָּכוּת)." Rabbi Samuel bar Nahman taught that the name Allon bacuth was Greek, in which allon means 'another' (and thus the phrase could be read, "The name of it was called 'another weeping'"). Rabbi Samuel bar Nahman deduced from this that while Jacob was mourning for Deborah, word reached him that his mother Rebekah had died. And thus Genesis 35:9 reports, "and God appeared to Jacob again . and blessed him." Rabbi Aha taught in Rabbi Jonathan's name that the blessing with which God blessed Jacob in Genesis 35:9 was the mourners' blessing of consolation and comfort. Similarly, the Rabbis taught that when Rebekah died, her bier was not taken out in public because of Esau. When Rebekah died, the people asked who would go out in front of her body, for Abraham had died, Isaac sat at home unable to see, Jacob had gone to Paddan Aram, and if Esau went out in front of her, people would curse her for raising such a person as Esau. So they took her bier out at night. Rabbi Jose bar Hanina taught that because they took her bier out at night, Scripture does not openly describe her death, but only alludes to it in Genesis 35:8. Rabbi Jose bar Hanina read Genesis 35:8 to say, "Deborah, Rebekah's nurse died, . and he called it the Weeping Oak," for they wept twice, for while Jacob was mourning for Deborah, the news of Rebekah's death reached him. And thus Genesis 35:9 reports, "and God appeared to Jacob again . and blessed him," because God blessed Jacob with the mourners' blessing. A midrash interpreted Psalm 112:4, "To the upright He shines as a light in the darkness," to apply to the Patriarchs, "the upright," who saw the Divine Presence (Shechinah) face to face (so to speak). The midrash taught that we know this about Jacob from Genesis 35:9, which says, "God appeared to Jacob . and blessed him." The Tanna Devei Eliyahu taught that when God found Jacob declaring what was true, that God is God, and acknowledging this truth in his own heart, God revealed God's Self to him at once, as Genesis 35:9 reports, "God appeared to Jacob again, when he came from Paddan aram, and blessed him." The Tanna Devei Eliyahu taught that this was an application of Ezekiel 16:8, "behold, your time was the time of love" (that was promised to those who proved their love for God). Reading the beginning of Genesis 35:9, "And God appeared to Jacob again (עוֹד, od)," Rabbi Jose bar Rabbi Hanina taught that again implies that God appeared this time as on the first occasion in Genesis 28:12–15. As on the first occasion, God spoke to Jacob through an angel, so on this occasion, it was through an angel. Alternatively, Rabbi Judan taught that the word again intimated that God would once again reveal God's self to Jacob, at Beersheba, on Jacob's descent into Egypt, in Genesis 46:1–4. Reading Leviticus 9:4, "And an ox and a ram for peace offerings . for today the Lord appears to you," Rabbi Levi taught that God reasoned that if God would appear to and bless a Priest who offered a ram in God's name, how much more should God appear to and bless Jacob, whose features are engraved on God's throne. Thus Genesis 35:9 says, "And God appeared to Jacob again, when he came from Paddan aram, and blessed him." Bar Kappara taught that whoever calls Abraham "Abram" violates a positive command. Rabbi Levi said that such a person violates both a positive and a negative command, as Genesis 17:5 says: "Neither shall your name any more be called Abram"—that is a negative command—and Genesis 17:5 also says: "But your name shall be called Abraham"—that is a positive command. The midrash asked by analogy if one calls Israel "Jacob" does one infringe a positive command? The midrash answered that one does not, for it was taught that it was not intended that the name of Jacob should disappear, but that "Israel" should be his principal name and "Jacob" be his secondary name. Rabbi Zechariah interpreted it in Rabbi Aha's name as follows: In any event (in the words of Genesis 35:10), "Your name is Jacob," except that, "But Israel [too] shall be your name." Thus Jacob would be his principal name and "Israel" was added to it. Reading the words of Genesis 35:10, "but Israel shall be your name," the Tanna Devei Eliyahu taught that one should read not "Israel," but ish ra'ah El, "the man who saw God"; for all his actions were concentrated before him. Resh Lakish taught that the words "I am God Almighty" (אֵל שַׁדַּי, El Shaddai) in Genesis 35:11 mean, "I am He Who said to the world: 'Enough!'" (דַּי, Dai). Resh Lakish taught that when God created the sea, it went on expanding, until God rebuked it and caused it to dry up, as Nahum 1:4 says, "He rebukes the sea and makes it dry, and dries up all the rivers." A midrash taught that of four who made vows, two vowed and profited, and two vowed and lost. The Israelites vowed and profited in Numbers 21:2–3, and Hannah vowed and profited in 1 Samuel 1:11–20. Jephthah vowed and lost in Judges 11:30–40, and Jacob vowed in Genesis 28:20 and lost (some say in the loss of Rachel in Genesis 35:18 and some say in the disgrace of Dinah in Genesis 34:2, for Jacob's vow in Genesis 28:20 was superfluous, as Jacob had already received God's promise, and therefore Jacob lost because of it). The Rabbis of the Talmud disputed whether Reuben sinned in Genesis 35:22. Rabbi Samuel bar Nahman said in Rabbi Jonathan's name that whoever maintains that Reuben sinned errs, for Genesis 35:22 says, "Now the sons of Jacob were twelve," teaching that they were all equal in righteousness. Rabbi Jonathan interpreted the beginning of Genesis 35:22, "and he lay with Bilhah his father's concubine," to teach that Reuben moved his father's bed from Bilhah's tent to Leah's tent, and Scripture imputes blame to him as though he had lain with her. Similarly, it was taught in a Baraita that Rabbi Simeon ben Eleazar said that the righteous Reuben was saved from sin. Rabbi Simeon ben Eleazar asked how Reuben's descendants could possibly have been directed to stand on Mount Ebal and proclaim in Deuteronomy 27:20, "Cursed be he who lies with his father's wife," if Reuben had sinned with Bilhah. Rabbi Simeon ben Eleazar interpreted Genesis 35:22, "and he lay with Bilhah his father's concubine," to teach that Reuben resented his mother Leah's humiliation and did not want Rachel's maid Bilhah to join Rachel as a rival to Leah. So Reuben moved her bed. Others told that Reuben moved two beds, one of the Divine Presence (Shechinah) and the other of his father, as Jacob set a couch for the Divine Presence in each of his wives' tents, and he spent the night where the Divine Presence came to rest. According to this view, one should read Genesis 49:4 to say, "Then you defiled my couch on which (the Divine Presence) went up." But the Gemara also reported disputes among the Tannaim on how to interpret the word "unstable (פַּחַז, pachaz)" in Genesis 49:4, where Jacob called Reuben, "unstable (פַּחַז, pachaz) as water." Several Rabbis read the word פַּחַז, pachaz, as an acronym, each letter indicating a word. Rabbi Eliezer interpreted Jacob to tell Reuben: "You were hasty (פ, paztah), you were guilty (ח, habtah), you disgraced (ז, zaltah)." Rabbi Joshua interpreted: "You overstepped (פ, pasatah) the law, you sinned (ח, hatata), you fornicated (ז, zanita)." Rabban Gamaliel interpreted: "You meditated (פ, pillaltah) to be saved from sin, you supplicated (ח, haltah), your prayer shone forth (ז, zarhah)." Rabban Gamaliel also cited the interpretation of Rabbi Eleazar the Modiite, who taught that one should reverse the word and interpret it: "You trembled (ז, zi'az'ata), you recoiled (ח, halita), your sin fled (פ, parhah) from you." Rava (or others say Rabbi Jeremiah bar Abba) interpreted: "You remembered (ז, zakarta) the penalty of the crime, you were grievously sick (ח, halita) through defying lust, you held aloof (פ, pirashta) from sinning." Considering the consequences of Reuben's infidelity with Jacob's concubine Bilhah in Genesis 35:22, Rabbi Eleazar contrasted Reuben's magnanimity with Esau's jealousy. As Genesis 25:33 reports, Esau voluntarily sold his birthright, but as Genesis 27:41 says, "Esau hated Jacob," and as Genesis 27:36 says, "And he said, 'Is not he rightly named Jacob? for he has supplanted me these two times.'" In Reuben's case, Joseph took Reuben's birthright from him against his will, as 1 Chronicles 5:1 reports, "for as much as he defiled his father's couch, his birthright was given to the sons of Joseph." Nonetheless, Reuben was not jealous of Joseph, as Genesis 37:21 reports, "And Reuben heard it, and delivered him out of their hand." A midrash taught that had Reuben not disgraced himself by his conduct with Bilhah in Genesis 35:22, his descendants would have been worthy of assuming the service of the Levites, for ordinary Levites came to replace firstborn Israelites, as Numbers 3:41 says, "And you shall take the Levites for Me, even the Lord, instead of all the firstborn among the children of Israel." The Rabbis taught that Reuben reasoned that Joseph had included Reuben with his brethren in Joseph's dream of the sun and the moon and the eleven stars in Genesis 37:9, when Reuben thought that he had been expelled from the company of his brothers on account of the incident of Genesis 35:22. Because Joseph counted Reuben as a brother, Reuben felt motivated to rescue Joseph. And since Reuben was the first to engage in life saving, God decreed that the Cities of Refuge would be set up first within the borders of the Tribe of Reuben in Deuteronomy 4:43. Rabbi Judah bar Simon taught that Moses later ameliorated the effects of Reuben's sin in Genesis 35:22. Rabbi Judah bar Simon read Deuteronomy 28:6, "Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out," to refer to Moses. Rabbi Judah bar Simon read "when you come in" to refer to Moses, because when he came into the world, he brought nearer to God Batya the daughter of Pharaoh (who by saving Moses from drowning merited life in the World to Come). And "blessed shall you be when you go out" also refers to Moses, for as he was departing the world, he brought Reuben nearer to his estranged father Jacob, when Moses blessed Reuben with the words "Let Reuben live and not die" in Deuteronomy 33:6 (thus gaining for Reuben the life in the World to Come and thus proximity to Jacob that Reuben forfeited when he sinned against his father in Genesis 35:22 and became estranged from him in Genesis 49:4). The Mishnah taught that the story of Reuben's infidelity with Jacob's concubine Bilhah in Genesis 35:22 is read in the synagogue but not translated. Rav and Samuel differed with regard to the Machpelah Cave in which the Patriarchs and Matriarchs were buried. One said that the cave consisted of two rooms, one farther in than the other. And the other said that it consisted of a room and a second story above it. The Gemara granted that the meaning of Machpelah—'double'—was understandable according to the one who said the cave consisted of one room above the other, but questioned how the cave was Machpelah—'double'—according to the one who said it consisted of two rooms, one farther in than the other, as even ordinary houses have two rooms. The Gemara answered that it was called "Machpelah" in the sense that it was doubled with the Patriarchs and Matriarchs, who were buried there in pairs. The Gemara compared this to the homiletic interpretation of the alternative name for Hebron mentioned in Genesis 35:27: “Mamre of Kiryat Ha’Arba, which is Hebron.” Rabbi Isaac taught that the city was called "Kiryat Ha’Arba"—'the city of four'—because it was the city of the four couples buried there: Adam and Eve, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca, and Jacob and Leah. Expanding on Genesis 35:27, the Pirke De Rabbi Eliezer told that Jacob took his sons, grandsons, and wives, and went to Kiryat Arba to be near Isaac. Jacob found Esau and his sons and wives there dwelling in Isaac's tents, so Jacob spread his tent apart from Esau's. Isaac rejoiced at seeing Jacob. Rabbi Levi said that in the hour when Isaac was dying, he left his cattle, possessions, and all that he had to his two sons, and therefore they both loved him, and thus Genesis 35:29 reports, "And Esau and Jacob his sons buried him." The Pirke De Rabbi Eliezer told that after that, Esau told Jacob to divide Isaac's holdings into two portions, and Esau would choose first between the two portions as a right of being the older. Perceiving that Esau had his eye set on riches, Jacob divided the land of Israel and the Cave of Machpelah in one part and all the rest of Isaac's holdings in the other part. Esau went to consult with Ishmael, as reported in Genesis 28:9. Ishmael told Esau that the Amorite and the Canaanite were in the land, so Esau should take the balance of Isaac's holdings, and Jacob would have nothing. So Esau took Isaac's wealth and gave Jacob the land of Israel and the Cave of Machpelah, and they wrote a perpetual deed between them. Jacob then told Esau to leave the land, and Esau took his wives, children, and all that he had, as Genesis 36:6 reports, "And Esau took his wives . and all his possessions which he had gathered in the land of Canaan and went into a land away from his brother Jacob." As a reward, God gave Esau a hundred provinces from Seir to Magdiel, as Genesis 36:43 reports, and Magdiel is Rome. Then Jacob dwelt safely and in peace in the land of Israel.

The Gemara taught that the use of the pronoun he (הוּא, hu) in an introduction, as in the words "this is (הוּא, hu) Esau" in Genesis 36:43, signifies that he was the same in his wickedness from the beginning to the end. Similar uses appear in Numbers 26:9 to teach Dathan and Abiram's enduring wickedness, in 2 Chronicles 28:22 to teach Ahaz's enduring wickedness, in Esther 1:1 to teach Ahasuerus's enduring wickedness, in 1 Chronicles 1:27 to teach Abraham's enduring righteousness, in Exodus 6:26 to teach Moses and Aaron's enduring righteousness, and in 1 Samuel 17:14 to teach David's enduring humility. Notwithstanding Esau's conflicts with Jacob in Genesis 25–33, a Baraita taught that the descendants of Esau's descendant Haman studied Torah in Benai Berak.

Notwithstanding Esau's conflicts with Jacob in Genesis 25–33, the Baal HaTurim, reading the Priestly Blessing of Numbers 6:24–26, noted that the numerical value (gematria) of the Hebrew word for peace (שָׁלוֹם, shalom) equals the numerical value of the word Esau (עֵשָׂו, Eisav). The Baal HaTurim concluded that this hints at the Mishnaic dictum that one should always reach out to be the first to greet any person, even an adversary. Baḥya ibn Paquda taught that whenever God singles out a person for special favor, that person is under an obligation of increased service as an expression of gratitude for that favor. Baḥya reasoned that because of this, when some good fortune happened to the righteous of ancient times, they were troubled for two reasons: First, that they should not fall short in the fulfillment of the service and gratitude that they owed for this good fortune and that it should not turn into misfortune for them, as Jacob said in Genesis 32:11, "I have diminished from all the mercies, and truth which You have shown to Your servant." And secondly, that this should not be God's reward for their service, at the expense of their reward in the World To Come, as the Sages explained Deuteronomy 7:10, "And repays them that hate Him to their face (during this life) to destroy them (in the hereafter)." Maimonides taught that when Scripture reports an angel's appearance or speech, it reports a vision or dream, whether Scripture expressly states this or not. This, Maimonides held, was the case when Genesis 32:25 reports regarding Jacob, "And a man wrestled with him." Maimonides concluded that this took place in a prophetic vision, as Genesis 32:31 states that the "man" was an angel. Maimonides noted that the circumstances in Genesis 32 are exactly the same as those in the vision of Abraham in Genesis 18, where Scripture starts with the general statement of Genesis 18:1, "And the Lord appeared to him . ," and follows with a detailed description. Similarly, Maimonides taught, the account of Jacob's vision begins in Genesis 32:2, "And the angels of God met him." Scripture then follows with a detailed description of how it came to pass that they met him. Maimonides argued that the "man" of Genesis 32:25 was one of the angels mentioned in Genesis 32:2, "And angels of God met him." Maimonides concluded that the wrestling and speaking occurred entirely in Jacob's prophetic vision. Rashi read Jacob's words in Genesis 32:27, "unless you have blessed me," to ask the angel to concede to Jacob the blessings with which Isaac blessed Jacob, and to which Esau objected. Rashi interpreted the angel's words in Genesis 32:29, "No longer . Jacob," to mean that it shall no longer be said that Isaac's blessings came to Jacob through trickery (עָקְבָה, akevah) and deceit, but with nobility and openness, and ultimately, God would reveal God's Self to Jacob at Bethel and change Jacob's name, and there God would bless Jacob, and the angel would be there, too. The angel then acknowledged Isaac's blessings as being Jacob's. Rashi taught that this is the meaning of Hosea 12:5, "He strove with an angel and prevailed over him; he wept and supplicated him," meaning that the angel wept and supplicated Jacob. Rashi taught that the angel supplicated Jacob by telling him, as Hosea 12:5 says: "In Bethel, he will find Him, and there He will speak with us." The angel asked Jacob to wait for him until God would speak with them there. Jacob, however, did not agree to release the angel, and, against the angel's will, the angel acknowledged the blessings as being Jacob's. Rashi read Genesis 32:30, "And he blessed him there," to indicate that the angel entreated Jacob to wait, but Jacob did not wish to do so. Reading Genesis 32:30, "And he said: 'Why is it that you ask after my name?'" Nachmanides wrote that the angel told Jacob that there was no advantage to Jacob in knowing the angel's name, for no one possessed the power and the capability other than God alone. Isaac ben Moses Arama read the angel's request in Genesis 32:30 for Jacob to let him go as simply another way of asking Jacob why he was wasting his time detaining the angel, when he should have been busy preparing gifts for Esau. Isaac ben Moses Arama taught that Jacob's request to know the angel's name meant that Jacob wanted to know who had the power to inflict such damage on his hip joint. The angel told Jacob that it was not the angel's name that mattered, since the ability to inflict damage was not rooted in the identity of the angel, but rather, the mission of the angel was the important thing.

Reading the identification of God in Genesis 33:20 as "the God of Israel," Baḥya ibn Paquda explained that Scripture used this description because people cannot understand anything about God except for God's Name and that God exists. Thus, Scripture identifies God through the way that Jews gained knowledge of God—the traditions of their ancestors from whom they inherited it, as Genesis 18:19 states, "For I (God) have known him (Abraham), to the end that he may command his children and his household after him, that they may keep the way of the Lord, to do righteousness and justice." Baḥya suggested that it might also be possible that Scripture so identifies God because those ancestors alone in their generations served God when all around them worshipped other "gods" (like idols, the sun, the moon, or money).

Rashi explained Genesis 35:10, "Your name shall no longer be called Jacob (יַעֲקֹב)," to intimate a change from an expression of a man who comes with stealth and guile (עָקְבָה, akvah) to Israel (יִשְׂרָאֵל), a term denoting a prince (שַׂר, sar) and a chief. Maimonides taught that the encounter where Genesis 35:10 reports, "God said to him: 'Your name is Jacob," is an instance of where a prophet reports the words of an angel without mentioning that they were perceived in a dream or vision, assuming that it is well known that prophecy can only originate in one of those two ways.

John Kselman noted that Jacob's prayer in Genesis 32:10–13 contained the essential features of (1) the address to God in Genesis 32:10, (2) the petition in Genesis 32:12, and (3) the motivation for God to grant the petition in Genesis 32:13. Kselman noted that Jacob's dividing his gifts to Esau into droves in Genesis 32:14–22 served both to appease Esau and to act as a buffer between Esau and Jacob. Karen Armstrong wrote that Fox's translation preserved the "insistent diction" of the Hebrew, directing the reader to Jacob's imminent wrestling match, when Jacob would see God "face to face" (in the words of Genesis 32:31), and implying that the "faces" of God, Jacob, and Esau were all the same. Armstrong argued that by facing his brother, Jacob confronted the "face" of God, but also confronted himself. Jacob came to terms not only with his wronged brother, but with Jacob's inner Esau, the alter ego that Jacob hated and had tried to discard. Armstrong concluded that only by confronting the subconscious aspects of his personality that filled his waking self with fear and disgust could Jacob heal his internal conflict and experience God's healing power. Kselman cited the identification of the adversary as Divine as the chief difficulty with the story of Jacob wrestling with a mysterious adversary in Genesis 32:25–33. Kselman suggested that at an earlier level of the story, the opponent may have been some Canaanite god attempting to keep Jacob from entering the land. But Israel's monotheism did away with the possibility of supernatural adversaries to God. So the resulting text enigmatically has God both originate the quest of returning to Canaan in Genesis 31:3 and 13 and oppose the quest in Genesis 32:25–33. Everett Fox argued that the wrestling scene in Genesis 32:25–33 both symbolized and resolved beforehand Jacob's meeting with Esau in Genesis 33, much as William Shakespeare's prebattle dream scenes did in his plays Julius Caesar, Richard III, and Macbeth. The struggle motif, introduced in Genesis 25, returned in Genesis 32, but Fox argued that Jacob's whole life and personality were at stake, as despite his recent material successes, they were still under the pall of Esau's curse in Genesis 27:36. Fox concluded that the name change in Genesis 32:29 was central, suggesting both victory in the struggle and the emergence of a new power. Ephraim Speiser read the eerie encounter at Penuel in Genesis 32:25–33 to teach that no one may grasp God's complete design, which remains reasonable and just no matter who the chosen agent may be at any given point.

Tamar Elad Appelbaum read the words of Genesis 33:14, "As for me, I will travel slowly," to teach that the proper way to live consists of self restraint and deliberation.

Noting the similarity between the actions of Simeon and Levi in Genesis 34:25–29, on the one hand, and the instructions in Deuteronomy 20:13–14 for killing the men but taking the women and livestock captive, on the other hand, James Kugel observed that it is almost as if Simeon and Levi were obeying the Deteronomic law before it was given. Kugel reported that some modern interpreters deduced that the editor responsible for inserting the Dinah story in Genesis was particularly connected with Deuteronomy or at least familiar with its laws. These interpreters concluded that the Dinah story was a late addition, inserted to account for Jacob's otherwise referentless allusion to the violent tempers of Simeon and Levi in Genesis 49:5–7 by importing and only slightly modified an originally unrelated tale, probably situated during the time of the Judges.

Gunkel noted that Genesis 36:31–39 enumerates the kings of Edom down to the time of David, and cited this as evidence of a great interval of time between the period of the patriarchs and that of the narrators of Genesis.

The section from the Book of Hosea mentions the deeds of Jacob, including his wrestling with an angel. The Book of Obadiah deals with God's wrath against the kingdom of Edom, who are descended from Esau. At times Esau's name is used as a synonym for the nation.

Genesis 1:28 (be fruitful and multiply); 9:1, 7; (be fruitful and multiply); 48:7 (Rachel's death). Deuteronomy 2:4–5. Jeremiah 31:15 (site of Rachel's death).

Wisdom of Solomon 10:9–12. Alexandria, circa 26 CE. In, e. g., David Winston. The Wisdom of Solomon: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary, The Anchor Bible, volume 43, pages 210–11, 217. Garden City, New York: Doubleday & Company, 1979. Josephus. Antiquities of the Jews 1:20:1–2:1:2. Circa 93–94. In, e. g., The Works of Josephus: Complete and Unabridged, New Updated Edition. Translated by William Whiston, pages 51–53. Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, 1987.

Mishnah: Shabbat 9:3, 19:3; Megillah 4:10; Chullin 7:1–6. Land of Israel, circa 200 CE. In, e. g., The Mishnah: A New Translation. Translated by Jacob Neusner, pages 190, 202, 323–24, 778–80. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1988. Tosefta: Berakhot 1:10, 4:16; Bikkurim 2:2; Megillah 3:35; Avodah Zarah 3:4; Chullin 7:1–8. Land of Israel, circa 300 CE. In, e. g., The Tosefta: Translated from the Hebrew, with a New Introduction. Translated by Jacob Neusner, volume 1, pages 6, 26, 348, 652; volume 2, pages 1269, 1393–95. Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, 2002. Jerusalem Talmud: Berakhot 17b, 83a, 84b; Sheviit 72a; Orlah 34a; Shabbat 72b, 73b, 107a; Eruvin 33a; Pesachim 13a; Taanit 30b; Yevamot 7a; Ketubot 21b, 38b; Sotah 28b; Sanhedrin 18a, 61b; Avodah Zarah 2b, 8a, 14b, 30b; Horayot 5a. Tiberias, Land of Israel, circa 400 CE. In, e. g., Talmud Yerushalmi. Edited by Chaim Malinowitz, Yisroel Simcha Schorr, and Mordechai Marcus, volumes 1–2, 6b, 12, 14–15, 17–18, 25, 29, 31, 36, 44–45, 47–49. Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 2005–2020. And in, e. g., The Jerusalem Talmud: A Translation and Commentary. Edited by Jacob Neusner and translated by Jacob Neusner, Tzvee Zahavy, B. Barry Levy, and Edward Goldman. Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, 2009. Genesis Rabbah 8:13; 11:7; 18:2; 19:12; 34:13; 37:3; 43:8; 45:5; 46:8; 47:6; 42:4; 75:1–83:5; 84:2, 4–5. Land of Israel, 5th Century. In, e. g., Midrash Rabbah: Genesis. Translated by Harry Freedman and Maurice Simon, volume 1, pages 63, 85, 142, 157, 279, 296, 358, 383–84, 394, 403, 505; volume 2, pages 536, 557, 568, 589, 615, 623, 631, 668, 673, 679, 682, 688–772, 781, 783, 789, 829–30, 855, 872, 904, 919, 943–44, 949, 968, 979ff. London: Soncino Press, 1939. Babylonian Talmud: Berakhot 4a, 7b 7b, 12b; Shabbat 32a, 33b, 55b, 85a, 86a, 134b; Eruvin 53a; Pesachim 7b, 22a, 47b, 54a, 83b, 118b, 119b; Yoma 77b; Sukkah 5b, 39a; Beitzah 12a; Rosh Hashanah 26a; Taanit 20b, 27b; Megillah 11a, 17a, 18a, 21b, 25a–b; Chagigah 5b, 12a; Yevamot 65b; Nedarim 31b; Nazir 23a; Sotah 22b, 36b, 41b; Kiddushin 21b, 55a; Bava Kamma 41a, 92a; Bava Metzia 86b; Bava Batra 15b, 74b, 115b–16a, 123b; Sanhedrin 39b, 56a, 59a, 82b, 94a, 98b, 99b, 102a; Makkot 7b, 11a–b, 21b; Avodah Zarah 8b, 11b, 25b; Horayot 10b, 12a; Chullin 7b, 69a, 89b–103b, 134b, 137b; Keritot 21a; Niddah 63a. Sasanian Empire, 6th Century. In, e. g., Talmud Bavli. Edited by Yisroel Simcha Schorr, Chaim Malinowitz, and Mordechai Marcus, 72 volumes. Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 2006.

Solomon ibn Gabirol. A Crown for the King, 36:488–89. Spain, 11th Century. Translated by David R. Slavitt, pages 66–67. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998. Rashi. Commentary. Genesis 32–36. Troyes, France, late 11th Century. In, e. g., Rashi. The Torah: With Rashi's Commentary Translated, Annotated, and Elucidated. Translated and annotated by Yisrael Isser Zvi Herczeg, volume 1, pages 359–407. Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 1995. Rashbam. Commentary on the Torah. Troyes, early 12th century. In, e. g., Rabbi Samuel Ben Meir's Commentary on Genesis: An Annotated Translation. Translated by Martin I. Lockshin, pages 197–238. Lewiston, New York: The Edwin Mellen Press, 1989. Abraham ibn Ezra. Commentary on the Torah. Mid 12th century. In, e. g., Ibn Ezra's Commentary on the Pentateuch: Genesis (Bereshit). Translated and annotated by H. Norman Strickman and Arthur M. Silver, pages 310–44. New York: Menorah Publishing Company, 1988. Hezekiah ben Manoah. Hizkuni. France, circa 1240. In, e. g., Chizkiyahu ben Manoach. Chizkuni: Torah Commentary. Translated and annotated by Eliyahu Munk, volume 1, pages 242–68. Jerusalem: Ktav Publishers, 2013. Nachmanides. Commentary on the Torah. Jerusalem, circa 1270. In, e. g., Ramban (Nachmanides): Commentary on the Torah: Genesis. Translated by Charles B. Chavel, volume 1, pages 394–445. New York: Shilo Publishing House, 1971. Zohar 1:165b–79a. Spain, late 13th Century. In, e. g., The Zohar. Translated by Harry Sperling and Maurice Simon. 5 volumes. London: Soncino Press, 1934. Joshua ibn Shueib. "Sermon on Wa Yishlah." Aragon, First half of 14th century. In Marc Saperstein. Jewish Preaching, 1200–1800: An Anthology, pages 137–55. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1989. Isaac ben Moses Arama. Akedat Yizhak (The Binding of Isaac). Late 15th century. In, e. g., Yitzchak Arama. Akeydat Yitzchak: Commentary of Rabbi Yitzchak Arama on the Torah. Translated and condensed by Eliyahu Munk, volume 1, pages 209–29. New York, Lambda Publishers, 2001.

Isaac Abravanel. Commentary on the Torah. Italy, between 1492 and 1509. In, e. g., Abarbanel: Selected Commentaries on the Torah: Volume 1: Bereishis/Genesis. Translated and annotated by Israel Lazar, pages 210–32. Brooklyn: CreateSpace, 2015. Obadiah ben Jacob Sforno. Commentary on the Torah. Venice, 1567. In, e. g., Sforno: Commentary on the Torah. Translation and explanatory notes by Raphael Pelcovitz, pages 174–97. Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 1997. Moshe Alshich. Commentary on the Torah. Safed, circa 1593. In, e. g., Moshe Alshich. Midrash of Rabbi Moshe Alshich on the Torah. Translated and annotated by Eliyahu Munk, volume 1, pages 207–32. New York, Lambda Publishers, 2000. Avraham Yehoshua Heschel. Commentaries on the Torah. Cracow, Poland, mid 17th century. Compiled as Chanukat HaTorah. Edited by Chanoch Henoch Erzohn. Piotrkow, Poland, 1900. In Avraham Yehoshua Heschel. Chanukas HaTorah: Mystical Insights of Rav Avraham Yehoshua Heschel on Chumash. Translated by Avraham Peretz Friedman, pages 81–88. Southfield, Michigan: Targum Press/Feldheim Publishers, 2004. Chaim ibn Attar. Ohr ha Chaim. Venice, 1742. In Chayim ben Attar. Or Hachayim: Commentary on the Torah. Translated by Eliyahu Munk, volume 1, pages 273–96. Brooklyn: Lambda Publishers, 1999. Rumpelstiltskin. In Jacob Grimm & Wilhelm Grimm. Children's and Household Tales. Germany, 1812. In, e. g., The Complete Brothers Grimm Fairy Tales. Edited by Lily Owens, pages 203–06. New York: Gramercy Books, 2006. (power of a true name). Emily Dickinson. Poem 59 (A little East of Jordan,). Circa 1859. In The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson. Edited by Thomas H. Johnson, page 31. New York: Little, Brown & Co., 1960. Samuel David Luzzatto (Shadal). Commentary on the Torah. Padua, 1871. In, e. g., Samuel David Luzzatto. Torah Commentary. Translated and annotated by Eliyahu Munk, volume 2, pages 310–54. New York: Lambda Publishers, 2012. Yehudah Aryeh Leib Alter. Sefat Emet. 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Woods, pages 51–53, 64–65, 69–73, 77, 84–85, 100–03, 112–51, 155–56, 239, 294, 303–14, 326, 335, 399–400, 402–04, 426–27, 429, 432, 438, 446, 454, 491, 500–01, 507, 515, 563, 805, 917, 978–79. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2005. Originally published as Joseph und seine Brüder. Stockholm: Bermann Fischer Verlag, 1943. Walter Orenstein and Hertz Frankel. Torah and Tradition: A Bible Textbook for Jewish Youth: Volume I: Bereishis, pages 83–93. New York: Hebrew Publishing Company, 1964. John R. Bartlett. "The Edomite King list of Genesis XXXVI. 31–39 and I Chron. I. 43–50." The Journal of Theological Studies, volume 16 (1965): pages 301–14. Martin Kessler. "Genesis 34—An Interpretation." Reformed Review, volume 19 (1965): pages 3–8. Frederick Buechner. The Magnificent Defeat, pages 10–18. Seabury Press, 1966. Reprinted San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1985. Delmore Schwartz. Jacob. In Selected Poems: Summer Knowledge, pages 233–35. New York: New Directions, 1967. Bernhard W. Anderson. "An Exposition of Genesis 32:22–32: The Traveller Unknown." Australian Biblical Review, volume 17 (1969): pages 21–26. Robert Coote. "The Meaning of the Name Israel." Harvard Theological Review, volume 65 (1972): pages 137–46. Joe O. Lewis. "Gen 32:23–33, Seeing a Hidden God." Society of Biblical Literature Abstracts and Seminar Papers, volume 1 (1972): pages 449–57. Laurel Trivelpiece. "Jacob at Peniel." Prairie Schooner, volume 47 (number 2) (Summer 1973): page 141. Roland Barthes. "The Struggle with the Angel: Textual Analysis of Genesis 32:23–33." In Structural Analysis and Biblical Exegesis: Interpretational Essays. Translated by Alfred M. Johnson Jr., pages 21–33. Pittsburgh: Pickwick, 1974. Godfrey R. Driver. "Gen. Xxxvi 24: Mules or Fishes." Vetus Testamentum, volume 25 (1975): pages 109–10. Frank C. Fensham. "Gen XXXIV and Mari." Journal of Northwest Semitic Languages, volume 4 (1975): pages 15–38. Stanley Gevirtz. 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