14 Nov PARASHAT TOLEDOT: A CHILD IS ALWAYS A CHILD

The Torah tells in Parashat
Toledot that Yishak Abinu
had special love for Esav
because “Sayid Be’fiv”
(25:28). Rashi gives two
explanations for this phrase: 1) Esav would hunt
animals and then bring meat to Yishak; 2) Esav
“hunted” Yishak with his mouth, by pretending to
be righteous. Specifically, Rashi writes, Esav would
ask his father how to tithe straw and salt – products
which do not require tithing – to make it appear as
though he was pious and meticulous about observing
Misvot.
It is inconceivable that Yishak Abinu, a brilliant and
saintly man, one of our three sacred patriarchs, could
be so easily fooled by Esav. Our Sages depict Esav
as a violent, depraved criminal, who was guilty of the
most grievous sins. We cannot possibly imagine that
Esav could simply deceive Yishak by asking halachic
questions which made him appear righteous.
The Arizal (Rav Yishak Luria of Safed, 1534-1572),
as cited by his famous disciple, Rav Haim Vital
(1543-1620), explained that Yishak loved Esav
because he sensed the spark of holiness within him.
Later in history, descendants of Esav converted to
Judaism and joined the Jewish People, producing
some of the greatest spiritual giants in our nation’s
history. Specifically, Shemaya and Abtalyon – the
teachers of Hillel and Shammai – descended from
converts from among Esav’s offspring, as did
Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Akiba – two of the greatest
Tanna’im. When Esav spoke to his father, Yishak

sensed the sanctity of these great souls who were
already embedded within the soul of Esav. And so he
felt special love for Esav, recognizing the powerful
spark of holiness within him.
We might develop this point further, by noting one
particular position taken by two of Esav’s righteous
descendants – Rabbi Akiba and his student, Rabbi
Meir. The Gemara in Masechet Baba Batra tells
that the Roman nobleman Turnus Rufus once asked
Rabbi Akiva why, in Jewish belief, giving charity
to the poor is an important religious value. After
all, if G-d decreed that a person should suffer from
poverty, what right does anybody have to feed the
pauper against G-d’s decree? Turnus Rufus drew a
comparison to a person whom the king convicted
and had sent to the dungeon. Certainly, no citizen
would dare assist the prisoner, who was in contempt
of the king. Why, then, would Jews believe in
supporting and assisting somebody sentenced by
G-d to poverty?
Rabbi Akiba replied that if a king became angry at
his child, and condemned the child to the dungeon,
he would certainly be pleased by those who bring
his child food and water. No matter how angry a
person is at his son, and even when he punishes his
son severely, he continues loving and caring about
the son, and wants him to be cared for. All Jews are
Hashem’s children, Rabbi Akiba explained, and so
Hashem wants us to care for all our fellow Jews,
even those whom He punishes with poverty.
Elsewhere in the Gemara, in Masechet Kiddushin,

we read that Rabbi Akiba’s student, Rabbi Meir, said
something similar. He asserted that when Moshe
said to Beneh Yisrael, “Banim Atem L’Hashem
Elokechem” – “You are sons of Hashem your G-d,”
this means that even if we do not behave properly,
we are nevertheless Hashem’s children. Even when
we disobey Him and violate the Torah’s laws,
even so – a child is always a child, and so Hashem
continues loving us like His beloved children. (Rabbi
Yehuda, another student of Rabbi Akiba, disagreed,
and maintained that we lose the status of Hashem’s
children if we do not conduct ourselves properly.
It is quite possible, however, that Rabbi Yehuda
and Rabbi Meir debated this question before they
became Rabbi Akiba’s students, and once Rabbi
Yehuda heard Rabbi Akiba’s position, he accepted
this view. Regardless, the Rashba comments that
although Halacha generally follows Rabbi Yehuda’s
positions in his debates against Rabbi Meir, in this
instance, Rabbi Meir’s view is the accepted opinion.)
In light of this notion, we might gain deeper insight
into the Arizal’s understanding of Yishak’s special
love for Esav.
As mentioned, Rashi writes that Esav posed to his
father the question of how to tithe straw and salt. In
one version of the Midrash’s text, Esav’s question
is, “Eich Metakenin” – literally, “how does one fix”
straw and salt. Straw and salt, two especially cheap
commodities, represent those who have fallen to the
lowest depths, who have strayed far from religious
observance. When Esav posed this question, Yishak
heard the voices of his illustrious descendants –

Rabbi Akiba and Rabbi Meir – insisting that even
the lowliest individuals can be “fixed,” that they
are still cherished and beloved children of Hashem,
for whom He cares deeply and whom He wants to
return to him. Yishak heard Rabbi Akiba and Rabbi
Meir proclaiming through Esav’s mouth that a child
is always a child, that Hashem never gives up on any
Jew, and so we mustn’t, either. And for this reason,
Yishak had special love and affection for Esav. He
was well aware of Esav’s misdeeds – but he knew the
concept of “Banim Atem L’Hashem Elokechem,” as
understood by Rabbi Akiba and Rabbi Meir, that we
never give up on any Jew, and that we must love and
cherish every Jew regardless of his religious standing
– because Hashem loves and cherishes every Jew
regardless of his religious standing.
In the particular case of Esav, Yishak was mistaken.
He did not know of the prophecy which Ribka was
told, that Esav was not destined to become part of
Hashem’s special nation. Ribka knew that Esav was
not going to be part of the Jewish People, and this
is why she intervened to ensure that Yaakob would
receive the blessing that Yishak was going to give to
Esav. In principle, however, Yishak was absolutely
correct – a child is always a child. Every Jew is
Hashem’s precious son or daughter, and this is how
we must view and treat all Jews, regardless of their
level of observance.