Vayetze, Vayeitzei, or Vayetzei (—

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

for 'and he left', the first word in the parashah) is the seventh

weekly Torah portion It is a custom among religious Jewish communities for a weekly Torah portion to be read during Jewish prayer services on Monday, Thursday, and Saturday. The full name, ''Parashat HaShavua'' ( he, פָּרָשַׁת הַשָּׁבוּעַ), is po ...

(, ) in the annual

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

cycle of

Torah reading Torah reading (; ') is a Judaism, Jewish religion, religious tradition that involves the public reading of a set of passages from a Sefer Torah, Torah scroll. The term often refers to the entire ceremony of removing the scroll (or scrolls) fro ...

. It constitutes . The parashah tells of

Jacob Jacob (; ; ar, يَعْقُوب, Yaʿqūb; gr, Ἰακώβ, Iakṓb), later given the name Israel, is regarded as a patriarch of the Israelites and is an important figure in Abrahamic religions, such as Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. J ...

's travels to, life in, and return from

Harran Harran (), historically known as Carrhae ( el, Kάρραι, Kárrhai), is a rural town and district of the Şanlıurfa Province in southeastern Turkey, approximately 40 kilometres (25 miles) southeast of Urfa and 20 kilometers from the border cr ...

. The parashah recounts Jacob's dream of a ladder to heaven, Jacob's meeting of

Rachel Rachel () was a Biblical figure, the favorite of Jacob's two wives, and the mother of Joseph and Benjamin, two of the twelve progenitors of the tribes of Israel. Rachel's father was Laban. Her older sister was Leah, Jacob's first wife. Her aun ...

at the well, Jacob's time working for

Laban Laban is a French surname. It may refer to: Places * Laban-e Olya, a village in Iran * Laban-e Sofla, a village in Iran * Laban, Virginia, an unincorporated community in the United States * 8539 Laban, main-belt asteroid People Surname *Ahm ...

and living with Rachel and

Leah Leah ''La'ya;'' from (; ) appears in the Hebrew Bible as one of the two wives of the Biblical patriarch Jacob. Leah was Jacob's first wife, and the older sister of his second (and favored) wife Rachel. She is the mother of Jacob's first son ...

, the birth of Jacob's children, and the departure of Jacob's family from Laban. The parashah is made up of 7,512 Hebrew letters, 2,021 Hebrew words, 148 verses, and 235 lines in a Torah Scroll (, ''

Sefer Torah A ( he, סֵפֶר תּוֹרָה; "Book of Torah"; plural: ) or Torah scroll is a handwritten copy of the Torah, meaning the five books of Moses (the first books of the Hebrew Bible). The Torah scroll is mainly used in the ritual of Tora ...

'').

Jew Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""Th ...

s read it the seventh

Sabbath In Abrahamic religions, the Sabbath () or Shabbat (from Hebrew ) is a day set aside for rest and worship. According to the Book of Exodus, the Sabbath is a day of rest on the seventh day, commanded by God to be kept as a holy day of rest, as G ...

after

Simchat Torah Simchat Torah or Simhat Torah (, lit., "Rejoicing with/of the Torah", Ashkenazi: ''Simchas Torah'') is a Jewish holiday that celebrates and marks the conclusion of the annual cycle of public Torah readings, and the beginning of a new cycle. Simch ...

, generally in November or December. Michael Lukas Leopold Willmann 001

Readings

In traditional Sabbath Torah reading, the parashah is divided into seven readings, or , '' aliyot''. In the

Masoretic Text The Masoretic Text (MT or 𝕸; he, נֻסָּח הַמָּסוֹרָה, Nūssāḥ Hammāsōrā, lit. 'Text of the Tradition') is the authoritative Hebrew and Aramaic text of the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) in Rabbinic Judaism. ...

of the

Tanakh The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
''

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. Hebrew: ''Tān ...

), Parashah Vayetze is unusual in that it is entirely contained in one single "open portion" (, ) (roughly equivalent to a paragraph, often abbreviated with the Hebrew letter (''

peh Peh pronounced "Pe-h" is a village in Ukhrul District, Manipur, India. The village was earlier called 'Paoyi', which is a misconstrued derivative of the original name 'Pehyi' given by outsiders. Peh is approximately 35 kilometers north of ...

'')). And within that single open portion, Parashah Vayetze does not have any "closed portion" (, ) divisions (abbreviated with the Hebrew letter (''

samekh Samekh (Phoenician ''sāmek'' ; Hebrew ''samekh'' , Syriac ''semkaṯ'') is the fifteenth letter of the Semitic abjads, including the Hebrew alphabet. Samekh represents a voiceless alveolar fricative . Unlike most Semitic consonants, the pro ...

'')).

First reading—Genesis 28:10–22

In the first reading, when Jacob left

Beersheba Beersheba or Beer Sheva, officially Be'er-Sheva ( he, בְּאֵר שֶׁבַע, ''Bəʾēr Ševaʿ'', ; ar, بئر السبع, Biʾr as-Sabʿ, Well of the Oath or Well of the Seven), is the largest city in the Negev desert of southern Israel. ...

for Haran, he stopped at a place for the night, using a stone for a pillow. He dreamed that he saw a ladder to heaven on which

God's In monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'', Oxford University Press, 1995. God is typically ...

angel In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...

s ascended and descended. And God stood beside him and promised to give him and his numerous descendants the land on which he lay, said that through his descendants all the earth would be blessed, and promised to stay with him wherever he went and bring him back to the land. Jacob awoke afraid, remarked that surely the place was the house of God, the gate of heaven, and called the place

Bethel Bethel ( he, בֵּית אֵל, translit=Bēṯ 'Ēl, "House of El" or "House of God",Bleeker and Widegren, 1988, p. 257. also transliterated ''Beth El'', ''Beth-El'', ''Beit El''; el, Βαιθήλ; la, Bethel) was an ancient Israelite sanct ...

(although the

Canaan Canaan (; Phoenician: 𐤊𐤍𐤏𐤍 – ; he, כְּנַעַן – , in pausa – ; grc-bib, Χανααν – ;The current scholarly edition of the Greek Old Testament spells the word without any accents, cf. Septuaginta : id est Vetus T ...

ites had called the city

Luz Luz ( ''Lūz'') is the name of two places in the Bible. Mentioned in Genesis Luz is the ancient name of a royal Canaanite city, connected with Bethel (Genesis 28:19; 35:6). It is debated among scholarsRashi on 28:17 whether Luz and Bethel repres ...

). Jacob took the stone from under his head, set it up as a pillar, and poured oil on it. And Jacob vowed that if God would stay with him, give him bread and clothing, and return him to his father's house in peace, then God would be his god, the stone pillar would be God's house, and he would give God a tenth of what he received. The first reading ends here with the end of chapter . Palma il Vecchio 001

Second reading—Genesis 29:1–17

In the second reading, in chapter , Jacob came to an eastern land where he saw a well with a great stone rolled upon it and three flocks of sheep lying by it. Jacob asked the men where they were from, and they said Haran. Jacob asked them if they knew Laban, and they said that they did. Jacob asked if Laban was well, and they said that he was, and that his daughter Rachel was coming with his sheep. Jacob told the men to water and feed the sheep, but they replied that they could not do so until all the flocks had arrived. When Jacob saw Rachel arrive with her father's sheep, he rolled the stone from the well's mouth, and watered Laban's sheep. Jacob kissed Rachel, wept, and told her that he was her kinsman, and she ran and told her father. When Laban heard of Jacob's arrival, he ran to meet him, embraced and kissed him, and brought him to his house. Jacob told Laban all that had happened, and Laban welcomed Jacob as family. After Jacob had lived with Laban for a month, Laban asked Jacob what wages he wanted for his work. Laban had two daughters: The elder, Leah, had weak eyes, while the younger, Rachel, was beautiful. The second reading ends here. Schnorr von Carolsfeld Bibel in Bildern 1860 034

Schnorr von Carolsfeld Bibel in Bildern 1860 034

Foster Bible Pictures 0044-2 Jacob Talks with Laban

Third reading—Genesis 29:18–30:13

In the third reading, Jacob loved Rachel and, responding to Laban's enquiry in verse 15, offered to serve Laban seven years for Rachel's hand, to which Laban agreed. Jacob served the years, but his love for Rachel made them seem like just a few days. Jacob asked Laban for his wife, and Laban made a feast and invited all the men of the place. In the evening, Laban brought Leah to Jacob, and Jacob slept with her. Laban gave Leah

Zilpah In the Book of Genesis, Zilpah ( he, ''Zīlpā'', meaning uncertain) was Leah's handmaid, presumed slave,In Context whom Leah gave to Jacob like a wife to bear him children (). Zilpah gave birth to two sons, whom Leah claimed as her own and name ...

to be her handmaid. In the morning, Jacob discovered that it was Leah, and he complained to Laban that he had served for Rachel. Laban replied that in that place, they did not give the younger before the firstborn, but if Jacob fulfilled Leah's week, he would give Jacob both daughters in exchange for another seven years of service. Jacob did so, and Laban gave him Rachel to wife, and gave Rachel

Bilhah Bilhah ( "unworried", Standard Hebrew: ''Bīlha'', Tiberian Hebrew: ''Bīlhā'') is a woman mentioned in the Book of Genesis.For the etymology, see describes her as Laban's handmaid, who was given to Rachel to be her handmaid on Rachel's marria ...

to be her handmaid. Jacob loved Rachel more than Leah, so God allowed Leah to

conceive Fertilisation or fertilization (see spelling differences), also known as generative fertilisation, syngamy and impregnation, is the fusion of gametes to give rise to a new individual organism or offspring and initiate its development. Proce ...

, but Rachel was

barren Barren primarily refers to a state of barrenness (infertility) Barren may also refer to: Places * Barren, Missouri *Barren County, Kentucky * Barren Island (Andaman Islands) *Barren Island, Brooklyn *Barren River Lake Other uses * ''Barren Count ...

. Leah bore a son, and called him

Reuben Reuben or Reuven is a Biblical male first name from Hebrew רְאוּבֵן (Re'uven), meaning "behold, a son". In the Bible, Reuben was the firstborn son of Jacob. Variants include Rúben in European Portuguese; Rubens in Brazilian Portugue ...

, saying that God had looked upon her affliction. She bore a second son, and called him

Simeon Simeon () is a given name, from the Hebrew (Biblical ''Šimʿon'', Tiberian ''Šimʿôn''), usually transliterated as Shimon. In Greek it is written Συμεών, hence the Latinized spelling Symeon. Meaning The name is derived from Simeon, son ...

, saying that God had heard that she was hated. She bore a third son, and called him

Levi Levi (; ) was, according to the Book of Genesis, the third of the six sons of Jacob and Leah (Jacob's third son), and the founder of the Israelite Tribe of Levi (the Levites, including the Kohanim) and the great-grandfather of Aaron, Moses and M ...

, saying that this time her husband would be joined to her. She bore a fourth son, and called him Judah, saying that this time, she would praise God. Rachel envied her sister, and demanded that Jacob give her children, but Jacob grew angry and asked her whether he was in God's stead, who had withheld children from her. Rachel told Jacob to sleep with her maid Bilhah, so that Bilhah might bear children upon Rachel's knees who might be credited to Rachel, and he did. Bilhah bore Jacob a son, and Rachel called him

Dan Dan or DAN may refer to: People * Dan (name), including a list of people with the name ** Dan (king), several kings of Denmark * Dan people, an ethnic group located in West Africa **Dan language, a Mande language spoken primarily in Côte d'Ivoir ...

, saying that God had judged her and also heard her voice. And Bilhah bore Jacob a second son, and Rachel called him

Naphtali According to the Book of Genesis, Naphtali (; ) was the last of the two sons of Jacob and Bilhah (Jacob's sixth son). He was the founder of the Israelite Tribe of Naphtali. Some biblical commentators have suggested that the name ''Naphtali'' ma ...

, saying that she had wrestled with her sister and prevailed. When Leah saw that she had stopped bearing, she gave Jacob her maid Zilpah to wife. Zilpah bore Jacob a son, and Leah called him Gad, saying that fortune had come. And Zilpah bore Jacob a second son, and Leah called him

Asher Asher ( he, אָשֵׁר ''’Āšēr''), in the Book of Genesis The Book of Genesis (from Greek ; Hebrew: בְּרֵאשִׁית ''Bəreʾšīt'', "In hebeginning") is the first book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament. I ...

, saying that she was happy, for the daughters would call her happy. The third reading ends here. NaplesDioscuridesMandrake

Fourth reading—Genesis 30:14–27

In the fourth reading, Reuben found some

mandrakes ''Mandragora officinarum'' is the type species of the plant genus '' Mandragora'' in the nightshade family Solanaceae. It is often known as mandrake, although this name is also used for other plants. , sources differed significantly in the specie ...

and brought them to Leah. Rachel asked Leah for the mandrakes, and when Leah resisted, Rachel agreed that Jacob would sleep with Leah that night in exchange for the mandrakes. When Jacob came home that evening, Leah told him that he had to sleep with her because she had hired him with the mandrakes, and he did. God heeded Leah and she conceived and bore Jacob a fifth son, and called him

Issachar Issachar () was, according to the Book of Genesis, the fifth of the six sons of Jacob and Leah (Jacob's ninth son), and the founder of the Israelite Tribe of Issachar. However, some Biblical scholars view this as an eponymous metaphor providing ...

, saying that God had given her a reward. Leah bore Jacob a sixth son and called him

Zebulun Zebulun (; also ''Zebulon'', ''Zabulon'', or ''Zaboules'') was, according to the Books of Genesis and Numbers,Genesis 46:14 the last of the six sons of Jacob and Leah (Jacob's tenth son), and the founder of the Israelite Tribe of Zebulun. Some ...

, saying that God had endowed her with a good dowry. And afterwards Leah bore a daughter, and called her name

Dinah In the Book of Genesis, Dinah (; ) was the seventh child and only daughter of Leah and Jacob, and one of the matriarchs of the Israelites. The episode of her violation by Shechem, son of a Canaanite or Hivite prince, and the subsequent vengean ...

. God heeded Rachel and she conceived and bore a son and called him

Joseph Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...

, invoking God to add another son. Then Jacob asked Laban to allow him, his wives, and his children to return to his own country. Laban conceded that God had blessed him for Jacob's sake. The fourth reading ends here.

Fifth reading—Genesis 30:28–31:16

In the fifth reading, Laban asked Jacob to name how much he wanted to stay. Jacob recounted how he had served Laban and how Laban had benefited, and asked when he could provide for his own family. Laban pressed him again, so Jacob offered to keep Laban's flock in exchange for the speckled, spotted, and dark sheep and goats, and thus Laban could clearly tell Jacob's flock from his. Laban agreed, but that day he removed the speckled and spotted goats and dark sheep from his flock and gave them to his sons and put three day's distance between Jacob and himself. Jacob peeled white streaks in fresh rods of poplar,

almond The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree native to Iran and surrounding countries, including the Levant. The almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree. Within the genus ...

, and

plane Plane(s) most often refers to: * Aero- or airplane, a powered, fixed-wing aircraft * Plane (geometry), a flat, 2-dimensional surface Plane or planes may also refer to: Biology * Plane (tree) or ''Platanus'', wetland native plant * Planes (gen ...

trees and set the rods where the flocks would see them when they mated, and the flocks brought forth streaked, speckled, and spotted young. Jacob laid the rods before the eyes of the stronger sheep, but not before the feeble, so the feebler sheep became Laban's and the stronger Jacob's. Jacob's flocks and wealth thus increased. Jacob heard that Laban's sons thought that he had become wealthy at Laban's expense, and Jacob saw that Laban did not regard him as before. God told Jacob to return to the land of his fathers, and that God would be with him. Jacob called Rachel and Leah to the field and told them that Laban had changed his opinion of Jacob, but Jacob had served Laban wholeheartedly and God had remained with Jacob. Jacob noted that Laban had mocked him and changed his wages ten times, but God would not allow him to harm Jacob, but had rewarded Jacob, giving Laban's animals to Jacob. Jacob said that in a dream God told him to return to the land of his birth. Rachel and Leah answered that they no longer had any portion in Laban's house and all the riches that God had taken from Laban were theirs and their children's, so Jacob should do whatever God had told him to do. The fifth reading ends here. Figures Jacob Flees Laban

Sixth reading—Genesis 31:17–42

In the sixth reading, Jacob set his sons and his wives on camels and headed out toward Isaac and Canaan with all the animals and wealth that he had collected in

Padan-aram Paddan Aram or Padan-aram ( he, , ''Padan ʾĂrām'') was a region referring to the northern plain of the former kingdom Aram-Naharaim. Paddan Aram in Aramaic means ''the field of Aram'', a name that distinguishes the flatland from the mountainou ...

. Jacob tricked Laban by fleeing secretly while Laban was out shearing his sheep, and Rachel stole her father's idols. On the third day, Laban heard that Jacob had fled and he and his kin pursued after Jacob seven days, overtaking him in the mountain of

Gilead Gilead or Gilad (; he, גִּלְעָד ''Gīləʿāḏ'', ar, جلعاد, Ǧalʻād, Jalaad) is the ancient, historic, biblical name of the mountainous northern part of the region of Transjordan.''Easton's Bible Dictionary'Galeed''/ref> Th ...

. God came to Laban in a dream and told him not to speak to Jacob either good or bad. But when Laban caught up with Jacob, he asked Jacob what he meant by carrying away his daughters secretly, like captives, without letting him kiss his daughters and grandchildren goodbye. Laban said that while he had the power to harm Jacob, God had told him the previous night not to speak to Jacob either good or bad, and now Laban wanted to know why Jacob had stolen his gods. Jacob answered that he fled secretly out of fear that Laban might take his daughters by force, and not knowing Rachel stole the gods, he told Laban that whoever had his gods would die. Laban searched Jacob's tent, Leah's tent, and the two maid-servants' tent, finding nothing, and then he entered Rachel's tent. Rachel had hidden the idols in the camel's saddle and sat upon them, apologizing to her father for not rising, as she was having her period.. Laban searched and felt about the tent, but did not find the idols. Angered, Jacob questioned Laban what he had done to deserve this hot pursuit and this searching. Jacob protested that he had worked for Laban for twenty years, through drought and frost, bearing the loss of animals torn by predators, and not eating Laban's rams, only to have his wages changed ten times. Had not the God of Isaac been on Jacob's side, surely Laban would have sent Jacob away empty, Jacob said, and God had seen his affliction and awarded him what he deserved. The sixth reading ends here. Holman The heap of witnesses

Seventh reading—Genesis 31:43–32:3

In the seventh reading, Laban answered Jacob that they were his daughters, his children, and his flocks, but asked what he could do about it now. Instead, Laban proposed that they make a covenant, and Jacob set up a stone pillar and with his kin heaped stones, and they ate a meal by the heap. Laban called it Jegar-sahadutha, but Jacob called it Galeed. Laban called the heap as a witness between him and Jacob, and invoked God to watch, when they were apart, if Jacob would afflict Laban's daughters and take other wives. And Laban designated the heap and the pillar as a boundary between him and Jacob; Laban would not pass over it to Jacob, and Jacob would not pass over it to Laban, to do harm. Laban invoked the God of

Abraham Abraham, ; ar, , , name=, group= (originally Abram) is the common Hebrew patriarch of the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Judaism, he is the founding father of the special relationship between the Jew ...

, the God of Nahor, and the God of

Terah Terah or Terach ( he, תֶּרַח ''Teraḥ'') is a biblical figure in the Book of Genesis. He is listed as the son of Nahor and father of the patriarch Abraham. As such, he is a descendant of Shem's son Arpachshad. Terah is mentioned in Gene ...

, and Jacob swore by the Fear of Isaac and offered a

sacrifice Sacrifice is the offering of material possessions or the lives of animals or humans to a deity as an act of propitiation or worship. Evidence of ritual animal sacrifice has been seen at least since ancient Hebrews and Greeks, and possibly exi ...

. In the ''

maftir Maftir ( he, מפטיר, , concluder) is the last person called up to the Torah on Shabbat and holiday mornings: this person also reads (or at least recites the blessings overs) the ''haftarah'' portion from a related section of the Nevi'im (pro ...

'' () reading of that concludes the parashah, early in the morning, Laban kissed his sons and his daughters, blessed them, and departed for his home. And when Jacob went on his way, the angels of God met him, and Jacob told them that this was God's camp, and he called the place

Mahanaim Mahanaim ( he, מַחֲנַיִם ''Maḥănayīm'', "camps") is a place mentioned a number of times by the Bible said to be near Jabbok, in the same general area as Jabesh-gilead, beyond the Jordan River. Although two possible sites have been ...

. The seventh reading, the single open portion, and the parashah end here.

Readings according to the triennial cycle

Jews who read the Torah according to the

triennial cycle The Triennial cycle of Torah reading may refer to either * The historical practice in ancient Israel by which the entire Torah was read in serial fashion over a three-year period, or * The practice adopted by many Reform, Conservative, Reconstruct ...

of Torah reading read the parashah according to the following schedule:

In inner-biblical interpretation

The parashah has parallels or is discussed in these Biblical sources:

Genesis chapter 28

In , Jacob received three blessings: (1) by Isaac when Jacob was disguised as Esau in , (2) by Isaac when Jacob was departing for Haran in , and (3) by God in Jacob's dream at Bethel in . Whereas the first blessing was one of material wellbeing and dominance, only the second and third blessings conveyed fertility and the

Land of Israel The Land of Israel () is the traditional Jewish name for an area of the Southern Levant. Related biblical, religious and historical English terms include the Land of Canaan, the Promised Land, the Holy Land, and Palestine (see also Isra ...

. The first and the third blessings explicitly designated Jacob as the conveyor of blessing, although arguably the second blessing did that as well by giving Jacob "the blessing of Abraham" in . Only the third blessing vouchsafed God's Presence with Jacob. God's blessing to Jacob in that "All the families of the earth shall bless themselves by you and your descendants," parallels God's blessing to Abraham in that "all the families of the earth shall bless themselves by you," and God's blessing to Abraham in that "All the nations of the earth shall bless themselves by your descendants," and is fulfilled by

Balaam Balaam (; , Standard ''Bīlʿam'' Tiberian ''Bīlʿām'') is a diviner in the Torah (Pentateuch) whose story begins in Chapter 22 of the Book of Numbers (). Ancient references to Balaam consider him a non-Israelite, a prophet, and the son of Beo ...

’s request in to share Israel’s fate. In , Jacob took the stone on which he had slept, set it up as a

pillar A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression (physical), compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column i ...

(, ) and poured oil on the top of it. would later direct the Israelites to break the Canaanites' pillars into pieces (, ). would direct the Israelites not to rear up a pillar (, ). And would prohibit them to set up a pillar (, ) "which the Lord your God hates".

Hosea In the Hebrew Bible, Hosea ( or ; he, הוֹשֵׁעַ – ''Hōšēaʿ'', 'Salvation'; gr, Ὡσηέ – ''Hōsēé''), son of Beeri, was an 8th-century BCE prophet in Israel and the nominal primary author of the Book of Hosea. He is the ...

recounted that at Bethel, Jacob met and communed with God.

Genesis chapter 29

Jacob's meeting of Rachel at the well in is the Torah's second of several meetings at watering holes that lead to marriage. Also of the same

type scene A type scene is a literary convention employed by a narrator across a set of scenes, or related to scenes (place, action) already familiar to the audience. The similarities with, and differences from, the established type are used to illuminate deve ...

are Abraham's servant's meeting (on behalf of Isaac) of Rebekah at the well in and

Moses Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu (Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pro ...

' meeting of

Zipporah Zipporah, or Tzipora (; he, צִפּוֹרָה, ''Ṣīppōrā'', "bird"),, ''Sepphōra''; ar, صفورة, ''Ṣaffūrah'' is mentioned in the Book of Exodus as the wife of Moses, and the daughter of Reuel/Jethro, the priest and prince of Midi ...

at the well in . Each involves (1) a trip to a distant land, (2) a stop at a well, (3) a young woman coming to the well to draw water, (4) a heroic drawing of water, (5) the young woman going home to report to her family, (6) the visiting man brought to the family, and (7) a subsequent marriage.

Genesis chapter 30

In , God "remembered" Rachel to deliver her from childlessness. Similarly, God remembered

Noah Noah ''Nukh''; am, ኖህ, ''Noḥ''; ar, نُوح '; grc, Νῶε ''Nôe'' () is the tenth and last of the pre-Flood patriarchs in the traditions of Abrahamic religions. His story appears in the Hebrew Bible (Book of Genesis, chapters 5– ...

to deliver him from the flood in ; God promised to remember God's covenant not to destroy the Earth again by flood in ; God remembered Abraham to deliver

Lot Lot or LOT or The Lot or ''similar'' may refer to: Common meanings Areas * Land lot, an area of land * Parking lot, for automobiles *Backlot, in movie production Sets of items *Lot number, in batch production *Lot, a set of goods for sale togethe ...

from the destruction of

Sodom and Gomorrah Sodom and Gomorrah () were two legendary biblical cities destroyed by God for their wickedness. Their story parallels the Genesis flood narrative in its theme of God's anger provoked by man's sin (see Genesis 19:1–28). They are mentioned frequ ...

in ; God remembered God's covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to deliver the Israelites from

Egyptian Egyptian describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of years of ...

bondage in and ; Moses called on God to remember God's covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to deliver the Israelites from God's wrath after the incident of the Golden Calf in and ; God promised to "remember" God's covenant with Jacob, Isaac, and Abraham to deliver the Israelites and the Land of Israel in ; the Israelites were to blow upon their trumpets to be remembered and delivered from their enemies in ;

Samson Samson (; , '' he, Šīmšōn, label= none'', "man of the sun") was the last of the judges of the ancient Israelites mentioned in the Book of Judges (chapters 13 to 16) and one of the last leaders who "judged" Israel before the institution o ...

called on God to deliver him from the

Philistines The Philistines ( he, פְּלִשְׁתִּים, Pəlīštīm; Koine Greek (LXX): Φυλιστιείμ, romanized: ''Phulistieím'') were an ancient people who lived on the south coast of Canaan from the 12th century BC until 604 BC, when ...

in ; Hannah prayed for God to remember her and deliver her from childlessness in

1 Samuel The Book of Samuel (, ''Sefer Shmuel'') is a book in the Hebrew Bible, found as two books (1–2 Samuel) in the Old Testament. The book is part of the narrative history of Ancient Israel called the Deuteronomistic history, a series of books (Josh ...

and God remembered Hannah's prayer to deliver her from childlessness in ;

Hezekiah Hezekiah (; hbo, , Ḥīzqīyyahū), or Ezekias); grc, Ἐζεκίας 'Ezekías; la, Ezechias; also transliterated as or ; meaning "Yahweh, Yah shall strengthen" (born , sole ruler ), was the son of Ahaz and the 13th king of Kingdom of Jud ...

called on God to remember Hezekiah's faithfulness to deliver him from sickness in

2 Kings The Book of Kings (, '' Sēfer Məlāḵīm'') is a book in the Hebrew Bible, found as two books (1–2 Kings) in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. It concludes the Deuteronomistic history, a history of Israel also including the books ...

and ;

Jeremiah Jeremiah, Modern: , Tiberian: ; el, Ἰερεμίας, Ieremíās; meaning " Yah shall raise" (c. 650 – c. 570 BC), also called Jeremias or the "weeping prophet", was one of the major prophets of the Hebrew Bible. According to Jewish ...

called on God to remember God's covenant with the Israelites to not condemn them in ; Jeremiah called on God to remember him and think of him, and avenge him of his persecutors in ; God promises to remember God's covenant with the Israelites and establish an everlasting covenant in ; God remembers the cry of the humble in

Zion Zion ( he, צִיּוֹן ''Ṣīyyōn'', LXX , also variously transliterated ''Sion'', ''Tzion'', ''Tsion'', ''Tsiyyon'') is a placename in the Hebrew Bible used as a synonym for Jerusalem as well as for the Land of Israel as a whole (see Names ...

to avenge them in

Psalm The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived ...

;

David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

called upon God to remember God's compassion and mercy in ; Asaph called on God to remember God's congregation to deliver them from their enemies in ; God remembered that the Israelites were only human in ;

Ethan the Ezrahite Ethan () the Ezrahite, is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. Ethan was a singer at King David's court well known for his wisdom. He authored : this Psalm is entitled "a ''maschil'' or contemplation of Ethan the Ezrahite". Baptist preacher Charles Spu ...

called on God to remember how short Ethan's life was in ; God remembers that humans are but dust in ; God remembers God's covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in ; God remembers God's word to Abraham to deliver the Israelites to the Land of Israel in ; the Psalmist calls on God to remember him to favor God's people, to think of him at God's salvation, that he might behold the prosperity of God's people in ; God remembered God's covenant and repented according to God's mercy to deliver the Israelites in the wake of their rebellion and iniquity in ; the Psalmist calls on God to remember God's word to God's servant to give him hope in ; God remembered us in our low estate to deliver us from our adversaries in ;

Job Work or labor (or labour in British English) is intentional activity people perform to support the needs and wants of themselves, others, or a wider community. In the context of economics, work can be viewed as the human activity that contr ...

called on God to remember him to deliver him from God's wrath in ;

Nehemiah Nehemiah is the central figure of the Book of Nehemiah, which describes his work in rebuilding Jerusalem during the Second Temple period. He was governor of Persian Judea under Artaxerxes I of Persia (465–424 BC). The name is pronounced ...

prayed to God to remember God's promise to Moses to deliver the Israelites from exile in ; and Nehemiah prayed to God to remember him to deliver him for good in .

In classical rabbinic interpretation

The parashah is discussed in these

rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...

nic sources from the era of the

Mishnah The Mishnah or the Mishna (; he, מִשְׁנָה, "study by repetition", from the verb ''shanah'' , or "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first major written collection of the Jewish oral traditions which is known as the Oral Torah ...

and the

Talmud The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cente ...

Genesis chapter 28

Rabbi Judan taught in Rabbi Aibu's name that the words, "the righteous comes out of trouble," in allude to Jacob, as reports, "And Jacob went out from Beer-sheba" (and away from Esau, who sought to kill him). A

Midrash ''Midrash'' (;"midrash"
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. he, מִדְרָשׁ; ...

noted that reports that Abraham sent Eliezer to woo Rebekah with ten camels and "having all goodly things of his master's in his hand," but Jacob traveled to Haran without a single ring or bracelet. Rabbi

Haninah Hanina(h) ben Ahi Rabbi Joshua ( he, חנינא בן אחי רבי יהושע), or Hananiah ben Ahi Rabbi Joshua ( he, חנניה בן אחי רבי יהושע), meaning 'Haninah/Hananiah son of the brother of Rabbi Yehoshua' was a Jewish Tanna s ...

taught that Isaac sent Jacob away empty-handed.

Rabbi Joshua Joshua ben Hananiah ( ''Yəhōšuaʿ ben Ḥánanyāh''; d. 131 CE), also known as Rabbi Yehoshua, was a leading tanna of the first half-century following the destruction of the Second Temple. He is the seventh-most-frequently mentioned sage i ...

, however, taught that Isaac sent Jacob well provided, but Esau arose and stripped him of all he had. The Midrash taught that Jacob then thought to himself that he would not lose confidence in God, for as teaches, his help would come from God. As teaches, God would not suffer his foot to be moved (, ) and the Midrash taught that this meant that God would not allow Jacob to die (). As teaches, God would keep him from all evil, and thus from the evil Esau and Laban. And teaches, God would guard his going out, and thus as reports, "Jacob went out from Beer-sheba." Hezekiah taught that Jacob was 63 years old when Isaac blessed him (as a

Baraita ''Baraita'' (Aramaic: "external" or "outside"; pl. ''Barayata'' or ''Baraitot''; also Baraitha, Beraita; Ashkenazi: Beraisa) designates a tradition in the Jewish oral law not incorporated in the Mishnah. ''Baraita'' thus refers to teachings "ou ...

taught), and Jacob spent another 14 years secluded in the Land of Israel studying under

Eber Eber ( he, , ʿĒḇer; grc-x-biblical, Ἔβερ, Éber; ar, عٰابِر, ʿĀbir) is an ancestor of the Ishmaelites and the Israelites according to the "Table of Nations" in the Book of Genesis () and the Books of Chronicles (). Lineage ...

and a further seven years working for the Matriarchs. Thus, he married at the age of 84, whereas Esau married at the age of 40 (as reports). Thus we learn that God hastens the happiness of the wicked and delays that of the righteous. Rabbi Hoshaya noted that already stated, "And Jacob hearkened to his father and his mother, and was gone to Paddan-aram," and thus Rabbi Hoshaya asked why says, "and Jacob went out from Beer-sheba." Rabbi Hoshaya taught that Jacob reasoned that when his father desired to emigrate from the Land of Israel, he first sought permission at Beer-sheba, so Jacob too went to Beer-sheba to seek God's permission. Book of Genesis Chapter 28-2 (Bible Illustrations by Sweet Media)

Book of Genesis Chapter 28-2 (Bible Illustrations by Sweet Media)

Rabbi Judan and

Rav Huna Rav Huna (Hebrew: רב הונא) was a Jewish Talmud, Talmudist and Exilarch who lived in Babylonia, known as an Amoraim, amora of the second generation and head of the Talmudic Academies in Babylonia, Academy of Sura; he was born about 216 (212 ...

commented on why says, "and Jacob went out from Beer-sheba." Rabbi Judan taught that it means that Jacob sought to leave "out of the well of the oath." (, , means 'well'. And Rabbi Judan connected , , with , , which means 'oath', as in the oath that reports Abraham and

Abimelech Abimelech (also spelled Abimelek or Avimelech; ) was the generic name given to all Philistine kings in the Hebrew Bible from the time of Abraham through King David. In the Book of Judges, Abimelech, son of Gideon, of the Tribe of Manasseh, is ...

swore to each other.) Rabbi Judan taught that Jacob reasoned that he did not want Abimelech to demand that Jacob swear to Abimelech (a commitment of nonaggression) as Jacob's grandfather Abraham swore to him, and so delay Jacob's descendants from entering the Land of Israel for seven generations. (As a result of Abraham's oath to Abimelech, seven generations—from Abraham to Joshua—passed before the Israelites entered the Land of Israel. Thus to avoid another seven generations of delay, Jacob went "out of the well of the oath" to evade a further commitment of nonaggression.) Rav Huna taught that the words of mean "out of the well of the birthright." Rav Huna taught that Jacob reasoned that he did not wish to allow Esau to rise up against him and assert that Jacob had cheated him by taking his birthright, and thus lose the advantage of Esau's oath (when Esau conveyed his birthright in ).

Rabbi Berekiah R. Berekiah (or R. Berekhyah; he, רבי ברכיה, read as ''Rabbi Berekhyah'') was an '' Amora'' of the Land of Israel, of the fourth generation of the Amora era. He is known for his work on the Aggadah Aggadah ( he, ''ʾAggāḏā'' or ' ...

taught that the words of mean "out of the well of the blessings." Rabbi Berekiah taught that Jacob reasoned that he did not want Esau to rise up against him and assert that Jacob had cheated Jacob by taking Esau's blessings, and so frustrate his mother Rebekah's labors on his behalf. El sueño de Jacob, por José de Ribera

Our Rabbis taught that Jacob reached Haran on that same day as reports that he "went toward Haran." Rabbi Berekiah said in Rabbi Isaac's name, however, that merely speaks as people do colloquially when they say, "So-and-so has gone to Caesarea," when in fact So-and-so has not actually arrived in Caesarea. (Similarly, here does not mean that Jacob reached Haran on the same day that he set out.) Once in the meat market of

Emmaus Emmaus (; Greek: Ἐμμαούς, ''Emmaous''; la, Emmaus; , ''Emmaom''; ar, عمواس, ''ʻImwas'') is a town mentioned in the Gospel of Luke of the New Testament. Luke reports that Jesus appeared, after his death and resurrection, before tw ...

Rabbi Akiva Akiva ben Yosef (Mishnaic Hebrew: ''ʿĂqīvāʾ ben Yōsēf''; – 28 September 135 CE), also known as Rabbi Akiva (), was a leading Jewish scholar and sage, a '' tanna'' of the latter part of the first century and the beginning of the second c ...

asked Rabban Gamaliel and Rabbi Joshua about the words of , "And the sun rose on him," inquiring whether the sun rose on only him and not on everyone. Rabbi Isaac said that it meant that the sun which had set early for his sake now rose early for him. Rabbi Isaac noted that reports that Jacob left Beersheba in the south of the Land of Israel and went toward Haran north of the Land, and reports that "he lighted upon the place" identified (in ) as Bethel in the center of the Land. Rabbi Isaac explained that when he reached Haran, he asked himself how he could have passed through the place where his fathers had prayed and not have prayed there too. So Rabbi Isaac deduced that he immediately resolved to turn back, and as soon he did, the earth contracted and he immediately "lighted upon the place." After he prayed, he sought to return to Haran, but God chose to give this righteous man a night's rest and immediately (as reports) "the sun was set."Babylonian Talmud Chullin 91b
in, e.g., ''Talmud Bavli: Tractate Chullin: Volume 3'', elucidated by Eliezer Herzka and Mendy Wachsman, edited by Yisroel Simcha Schorr and Chaim Malinowitz (Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 2003), volume 63, page 91b. Jacobs Dream James Tissot

Reading the words, "And he lighted upon the place," in to mean, "And he met the Divine Presence (

Shechinah Shekhinah, also spelled Shechinah ( Hebrew: שְׁכִינָה ''Šəḵīnā'', Tiberian: ''Šăḵīnā'') is the English transliteration of a Hebrew word meaning "dwelling" or "settling" and denotes the presence of God, as it were, in a plac ...

)" Rav Huna asked in

Rabbi Ammi Rabbi Ammi, Aimi, Immi (Hebrew: רבי אמי) is the name of several Jewish Talmudists, known as amoraim, who lived in the Land of Israel and Babylonia. In the Babylonian Talmud the first form only is used; in the Jerusalem Talmud all three forms ...

's name why assigns to God the name "the Place." Rav Huna explained that it is because God is the Place of the world (the world is contained in God, and not God in the world). Rabbi

Jose ben Halafta Jose ben Halafta or Yose ben Halafta (or Yose ben Halpetha) (Hebrew: רבי יוסי בן חלפתא; IPA: /ʁa'bi 'josi ben xa'lafta/) was a tanna of the fourth generation (2nd century CE). He is the fifth-most-frequently mentioned sage in the M ...

taught that we do not know whether God is the place of God's world or whether God's world is God's place, but from , which says, "Behold, there is a place with Me," it follows that God is the place of God's world, but God's world is not God's place. Rabbi Isaac taught that reading , "The eternal God is a dwelling place," one cannot know whether God is the dwelling-place of God's world or whether God's world is God's dwelling-place. But reading , "Lord, You have been our dwelling-place," it follows that God is the dwelling-place of God's world, but God's world is not God's dwelling-place. And Rabbi Abba ben Judan taught that God is like a warrior riding a horse with the warrior's robes flowing over on both sides of the horse. The horse is subsidiary to the rider, but the rider is not subsidiary to the horse. Thus says, "You ride upon Your horses, upon Your chariots of victory." Book of Genesis Chapter 28-3 (Bible Illustrations by Sweet Media)

Book of Genesis Chapter 28-3 (Bible Illustrations by Sweet Media)

The

Gemara The Gemara (also transliterated Gemarah, or in Yiddish Gemo(r)re; from Aramaic , from the Semitic root ג-מ-ר ''gamar'', to finish or complete) is the component of the Talmud comprising rabbinical analysis of and commentary on the Mishnah w ...

noted that reports that "he took of the stones of the place" (in the plural) but reports that "he took the stone" (in the singular). Rabbi Isaac deduced that all the stones gathered themselves together into the same place so as to be the stone upon which this righteous man would rest his head, and as a Tanna taught in a Baraita, all the stones merged into one. Rabbi Levi taught that on the night described in , God showed Jacob all the signs. God showed Jacob a ladder standing from the earth to the heaven, as says, "And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven." And Rabbi Levi taught that the ministering angels were ascending and descending on the ladder, and they saw the face of Jacob, and they said that Jacob's was the face like the face of one of the

living creatures In biology, an organism () is any living system that functions as an individual entity. All organisms are composed of cells (cell theory). Organisms are classified by taxonomy into groups such as multicellular animals, plants, and fungi; ...

(, ) that

Ezekiel Ezekiel (; he, יְחֶזְקֵאל ''Yəḥezqēʾl'' ; in the Septuagint written in grc-koi, Ἰεζεκιήλ ) is the central protagonist of the Book of Ezekiel in the Hebrew Bible. In Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, Ezekiel is acknow ...

saw in on the Throne of Glory. The angels who had been on earth ascended to see Jacob's face. Some angels ascended and some descended, as says, "And behold the angels of God were ascending and descending on it." Rabbi Levi taught that God showed Jacob the four kingdoms, their rule and their destruction. God showed Jacob the prince of the kingdom of Babylon ascending 70 rungs, and descending. God showed Jaocb the prince of the kingdom of Media ascending 52 rungs and descending. God showed Jacob the prince of the kingdom of Greece ascending 180 rungs and descending. And God showed Jacob the prince of the kingdom of Edom (Rome) ascending, and he was not descending, but was saying (in the words of ), "I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the Most High." Jacob replied to him (in the words of ): "Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, to the uttermost parts of the pit." God affirmed that this would be so, even (in the words of ), "though you should make your nest as high as the eagle." Figures Jacobs Ladder

Rabbi

Joshua ben Levi Joshua ben Levi (Yehoshua ben Levi) was an Amoraim, amora, a scholar of the Talmud, who lived in the Land of Israel in the first half of the third century. He lived and taught in the city of Lod. He was an elder contemporary of Johanan ben Napp ...

(according to the

Jerusalem Talmud The Jerusalem Talmud ( he, תַּלְמוּד יְרוּשַׁלְמִי, translit=Talmud Yerushalmi, often for short), also known as the Palestinian Talmud or Talmud of the Land of Israel, is a collection of rabbinic notes on the second-century ...

and Genesis Rabbah) or a Baraita in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Yose the son of Rabbi Haninah (according to the Babylonian Talmud) said that the three daily prayers derived from the

Patriarchs The highest-ranking bishops in Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, the Catholic Church (above major archbishop and primate (bishop), primate), the Hussite Church, Church of the East, and some Independent Catholicism, Independent Catholic Chur ...

, and cited for the proposition that Jews derived the evening prayer from Jacob, arguing that within the meaning of , 'came upon' (, ) meant 'pray', just as a similar word (, ) did in (according to the Jerusalem Talmud) or another similar word (, ) did in (according to the Babylonian Talmud and Genesis Rabbah).

Bar Kappara Bar Kappara ( he, בר קפרא) was a rabbi of the late 2nd and early 3rd century CE, during the period between the ''tannaim'' and ''amoraim''. He was active in Caesarea in the Land of Israel, from around 180 to 220 CE. His name, meaning "Son o ...

taught that every dream has its interpretation. The "ladder" in symbolizes the stairway leading up to the altar in the

Temple in Jerusalem The Temple in Jerusalem, or alternatively the Holy Temple (; , ), refers to the two now-destroyed religious structures that served as the central places of worship for Israelites and Jews on the modern-day Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusa ...

. "Set upon the earth" implies the altar, as (20:21 in NJPS) says, "An altar of earth you shall make for Me." "And the top of it reached to heaven" implies the sacrifices, the odor of which ascended to heaven. "The angels of God" symbolize the High Priests. "Ascending and descending on it" describes the priests ascending and descending the stairway of the altar. And the words "and, behold, the Lord stood beside him" in once again invoke the altar, as in , the prophet reports, "I saw the Lord standing beside the altar."Genesis Rabbah 68:12, in, e.g., Harry Freedman and Maurice Simon, translators, ''Midrash Rabbah: Genesis'', volume 2, page 625. Songe de Jacob, Solimena (2)

The Rabbis related Jacob's dream in to Sinai. The "ladder" symbolizes

Mount Sinai Mount Sinai ( he , הר סיני ''Har Sinai''; Aramaic: ܛܘܪܐ ܕܣܝܢܝ ''Ṭūrāʾ Dsyny''), traditionally known as Jabal Musa ( ar, جَبَل مُوسَىٰ, translation: Mount Moses), is a mountain on the Sinai Peninsula of Egypt. It is ...

. That the ladder is "set upon (, ) the earth" recalls , which says, "And they stood (, ) at the nether part of the mount." The words of , "and the top of it reached to heaven," echo those of , "And the mountain burned with fire to the heart of heaven." "And behold the angels of God" alludes to Moses and

Aaron According to Abrahamic religions, Aaron ''′aharon'', ar, هارون, Hārūn, Greek (Septuagint): Ἀαρών; often called Aaron the priest ()., group="note" ( or ; ''’Ahărōn'') was a prophet, a high priest, and the elder brother of ...

. "Ascending" parallels "And Moses went up to God." "And descending" parallels "And Moses went down from the mount." And the words "and, behold, the Lord stood beside him" in parallel the words of "And the Lord came down upon Mount Sinai." Interpreting Jacob's dream of a ladder in , a Tanna taught that the width of the ladder was 8,000

parasang The parasang is a historical Iranian unit of walking distance, the length of which varied according to terrain and speed of travel. The European equivalent is the league. In modern terms the distance is about 3 or 3½ miles (4.8 or 5.6 km). Hist ...

s (perhaps 24,000 miles). The Tanna noted that reports "the angels of God ascending and descending on it," and thus deduced from the plural that at least two angels were ascending and two descending, and when they came to the same place on the ladder, there were four angels abreast. And reports of an angel that "His body was like the Tarshish," and by tradition the sea of Tarshish is 2,000 parasangs long. reports that Jacob "had a dream." And reports that "God appeared to Laban the

Aramean The Arameans ( oar, 𐤀𐤓𐤌𐤉𐤀; arc, 𐡀𐡓𐡌𐡉𐡀; syc, ܐܪ̈ܡܝܐ, Ārāmāyē) were an ancient Semitic-speaking people in the Near East, first recorded in historical sources from the late 12th century BCE. The Aramean h ...

in a dream by night." The Gemara taught that a dream is a sixtieth part of prophecy. Rabbi Hanan taught that even if the Master of Dreams (an angel, in a dream that truly foretells the future) tells a person that on the next day the person will die, the person should not desist from prayer, for as says, "For in the multitude of dreams are vanities and also many words, but fear God." (Although a dream may seem reliably to predict the future, it will not necessarily come true; one must place one's trust in God.) Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani said in the name of

Rabbi Jonathan Rabbi Jonathan (Hebrew: רבי יונתן, ''Rabi Yonatan'') was a '' tanna'' of the 2nd century and schoolfellow of R. Josiah, apart from whom he is rarely quoted. Jonathan is generally so cited within further designation; but there is ample re ...

that a person is shown in a dream only what is suggested by the person's own thoughts (while awake), as says, "As for you, Oh King, your thoughts came into your mind upon your bed," and says, "That you may know the thoughts of the heart." When

Samuel Samuel ''Šəmūʾēl'', Tiberian: ''Šămūʾēl''; ar, شموئيل or صموئيل '; el, Σαμουήλ ''Samouḗl''; la, Samūēl is a figure who, in the narratives of the Hebrew Bible, plays a key role in the transition from the bibl ...

had a bad dream, he used to quote , "The dreams speak falsely." When he had a good dream, he used to question whether dreams speak falsely, seeing as in , God says, "I speak with him in a dream?" Rava pointed out the potential contradiction between and . The Gemara resolved the contradiction, teaching that , "I speak with him in a dream?" refers to dreams that come through an angel, whereas , "The dreams speak falsely," refers to dreams that come through a demon. Jacob at Bethel

A Midrash taught that those angels who escort a person in the Land of Israel do not escort that person outside of the Land. Thus "the angels of God ascending" in refers to those who had escorted Jacob in the Land of Israel (who were then returning to heaven) while "descending" refers to those who were to escort him outside of the Land. A Tanna taught that the angels ascended to look at the sight of Jacob above and descended to look at the sight below, and they wished to hurt him, and thus immediately (as reports) "the Lord stood beside him." Rabbi Simeon ben Lakish said that were it not expressly stated in the Scripture, we would not dare to say it, but God is made to appear like a man who fans his son to protect him from the heat.

Rabbi Johanan Yohanan, Yochanan and Johanan are various transliterations to the Latin alphabet of the Hebrew male given name ('), a shortened form of ('), meaning "YHWH is gracious". The name is ancient, recorded as the name of Johanan, high priest of the Se ...

taught that the wicked stand over their gods, as says, "And Pharaoh dreamed, and, behold, he stood over the river." (The Egyptians worshiped the Nile as a god.) But God stands over them, as says, "and, behold, the Lord stood over him." (Thus, idolaters must stand over and protect their idols, but God protects God's people.) The Gemara asked what the significance was of God's promise in to give Jacob "the land on which you lie," which would have been about six feet of land. Rabbi Isaac deduced that God rolled up the whole Land of Israel and put it under Jacob, thus indicating that his descendants would easily conquer it. A Midrash taught that God's promise to Jacob in , "The land whereon you lie, to you will I give it, and to your seed," caused Jacob to ask Joseph in , "Bury me not, I pray, in Egypt." The Midrash taught that God's promise in , "The land whereon you lie, to you will I give it, and to your seed," implied that if Jacob lay in the land, it would be his, but if not, it would not be his. Book of Genesis Chapter 28-4 (Bible Illustrations by Sweet Media)

Book of Genesis Chapter 28-4 (Bible Illustrations by Sweet Media)

Rabbi Judan said that Jacob declared that Isaac blessed him with five blessings, and God correspondingly appeared five times to Jacob and blessed him (, , , , and ). And thus, in , 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 , "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.) Rabbi Akiva taught that for Jacob's sake God divided the sea for Jacob's descendants, for in , God told Jacob, "You shall spread abroad to the west, and to the east." The Rabbis taught that God's promise in , "and, behold, I am with you, and will keep you wherever you go," answered all of Jacob's requests, except that for sustenance. Jacob prayed in , "If God will be with me," and God assured Jacob, "Behold, I am with you." Jacob prayed, "And will keep me," and God assured Jacob, "And I will keep you." Jacob prayed, "In this way that I go," and God assured Jacob, "wherever you go." Jacob prayed in , "So that I come back to my father's house in peace," and God assured Jacob, "and will bring you back." But the Rabbis taught that God did not answer Jacob's request for sustenance.

Rabbi Assi Assi II (Assa, Issi, Jesa, Josah, Jose, he, רבי אסי) was a Jewish Talmudist of the 3rd and 4th centuries (third generation of amoraim) who lived in the Land of Israel. He is known by the name of Yessa in the Jerusalem Talmud. He should n ...

, however, taught that God answered Jacob's request for sustenance, too, for in , God says, "for I will not forsake you," and forsaking applies to sustenance, as in , "Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread." Jacobs Vision and Gods Promise

Rabbi Jacob bar Idi pointed out a contradiction between God's promise to protect Jacob in and Jacob's fear in ; Rabbi Jacob explained that Jacob feared that some sin might cause him to lose the protection of God's promise. Reading the words "and Jacob vowed a vow" in , a Midrash taught that of four who made vows, two vowed and profited, and two vowed and lost. The

Israelites The Israelites (; , , ) were a group of Semitic-speaking tribes in the ancient Near East who, during the Iron Age, inhabited a part of Canaan. The earliest recorded evidence of a people by the name of Israel appears in the Merneptah Stele o ...

vowed and profited in , and Hannah vowed and profited in .

Jephthah Jephthah (pronounced ; he, יִפְתָּח, ''Yīftāḥ''), appears in the Book of Judges as a judge who presided over Israel for a period of six years (). According to Judges, he lived in Gilead. His father's name is also given as Gilead, ...

vowed and lost in , and Jacob vowed in and lost (some say in the loss of Rachel in and some say in the disgrace of Dinah in , for Jacob's vow in was superfluous, as Jacob had already received God's promise, and therefore Jacob lost because of it). Book of Genesis Chapter 28-6 (Bible Illustrations by Sweet Media)

Book of Genesis Chapter 28-6 (Bible Illustrations by Sweet Media)

Reading the words, "love the stranger, in giving him food and clothing," in , Akilas the proselyte asked

Rabbi Eliezer Eliezer ben Hurcanus or Hyrcanus ( he, אליעזר בן הורקנוס) was one of the most prominent Sages (tannaim) of the 1st and 2nd centuries in Judea, disciple of Rabban Yohanan ben ZakkaiAvot of Rabbi Natan 14:5 and colleague of Gamaliel ...

whether food and clothing constituted all the benefit of

conversion to Judaism Conversion to Judaism ( he, גיור, ''giyur'') is the process by which non-Jews adopt the Jewish religion and become members of the Jewish ethnoreligious community. It thus resembles both conversion to other religions and naturalization. "Th ...

. Rabbi Eliezer replied that food and clothing are no small things, for in , Jacob prayed to God for "bread to eat, and clothing to put on," while God comes and offers it to the convert on a platter. Akilas then visited

, who taught that ''bread'' refers to the Torah (as in , Wisdom—the Torah—says, "Come, eat of my bread") while ''clothing'' means the Torah scholar's cloak. A person privileged to study the Torah is thus privileged to perform God's precepts. Moreover, converts' daughters could marry into the priesthood, so that their descendants could offer burnt-offerings on the altar. The Midrash offered another interpretation: ''bread'' refers to the

showbread Showbread ( he, לחם הפנים ''Leḥem haPānīm'', literally: "Bread of the Faces"), in the King James Version: shewbread, in a biblical or Jewish context, refers to the cakes or loaves of bread which were always present, on a specially-de ...

, while ''clothing'' refers to the priestly vestments. The Midrash offered yet another interpretation: ''bread'' refers to

challah Challah (, he, חַלָּה or ; plural: or ) is a special bread of Ashkenazi Jewish origin, usually braided and typically eaten on ceremonial occasions such as Shabbat and major Jewish holidays (other than Passover). Ritually acceptable ...

, while ''clothing'' refers to the first shearings of the sheep, both of which belong to the priests. The

Tosefta The Tosefta (Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: תוספתא "supplement, addition") is a compilation of the Jewish oral law from the late 2nd century, the period of the Mishnah. Overview In many ways, the Tosefta acts as a supplement to the Mishnah ( ...

deduced from that Jacob spoke as if God was not Jacob's God when Jacob was not in the land of Canaan. Rabbi Ilai taught that the Sages ordained at Usha that if a person wishes to give charity liberally, the person should not give away more than a fifth of the person's wealth. Rav Nahman (or some say Rav Aha bar Jacob) cited as proof for the proposition, as in the words "And of all that You shall give me, I will surely give a tenth to You," repetition of the verb ''to give a tenth'' or ''tithe'' implies two tenths or one fifth. The Gemara did the math and questioned whether the second tenth would not be less than the first tenth, as it would be taken from the nine-tenths that remained after the first tenth had been given away and thereby represented only 1/10 x 9/10 = 9/100 of the original capital.

Rav Ashi Rav Ashi ( he, רב אשי) ("Rabbi Ashi") (352–427) was a Babylonian Jewish rabbi, of the sixth generation of amoraim. He reestablished the Academy at Sura and was the first editor of the Babylonian Talmud. Biography According to a trad ...

replied that the words "I will . . . give a tenth ''of it''" in implied that he would make the second like the first. The Pirke de Rabbi Eliezer taught that Jacob wished to ford the Jabbok and was detained there by an angel, who asked Jacob whether Jacob had not told God (in ), "Of all that you shall give me I will surely give a tenth to You." So Jacob gave a tenth of all the cattle that he had brought from Paddan-Aram. Jacob had brought some 5,500 animals, so his tithe came to 550 animals. Jacob again tried to ford the Jabbok, but was hindered again. The angel once again asked Jacob whether Jacob had not told God (in ), "Of all that you shall give me I will surely give a tenth to You." The angel noted that Jacob had sons and that Jacob had not given a tithe of them. So Jacob set aside the four firstborn sons (whom the law excluded from the tithe) of each of the four mothers, and eight sons remained. He began to count from Simeon, and included

Benjamin Benjamin ( he, ''Bīnyāmīn''; "Son of (the) right") blue letter bible: https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/h3225/kjv/wlc/0-1/ H3225 - yāmîn - Strong's Hebrew Lexicon (kjv) was the last of the two sons of Jacob and Rachel (Jacob's thir ...

, and continued the count from the beginning. And so Levi was reckoned as the tenth son, and thus the tithe, holy to God, as says, "The tenth shall be holy to the Lord." So the angel Michael descended and took Levi and brought him up before the Throne of Glory and told God that Levi was God's lot. And God blessed him, that the sons of Levi should minister on earth before God (as directed in ) like the ministering angels in heaven. Rabbi Berekiah and Rabbi Ahi taught in the name of Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani that Jacob would not have told God, "of all that You shall give me, I will surely give a tenth to You," in unless God had already offered Jacob, "Ask what I shall give you," as God offered

Solomon Solomon (; , ),, ; ar, سُلَيْمَان, ', , ; el, Σολομών, ; la, Salomon also called Jedidiah (Hebrew language, Hebrew: , Modern Hebrew, Modern: , Tiberian Hebrew, Tiberian: ''Yăḏīḏăyāh'', "beloved of Yahweh, Yah"), ...

in .

taught that God invited three people to ask what God could give them: Solomon in ,

Ahaz Ahaz (; gr, Ἄχαζ, Ἀχάζ ''Akhaz''; la, Achaz) an abbreviation of Jehoahaz II (of Judah), "Yahweh has held" (; akk, 𒅀𒌑𒄩𒍣 ''Ya'úḫazi'' 'ia-ú-ḫa-zi''Hayim Tadmor and Shigeo Yamada, ''The Royal Inscriptions of Tiglath- ...

in , and the

Messiah In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; , ; , ; ) is a saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of ''mashiach'', messianism, and of a Messianic Age originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible, in which a ''mashiach'' ...

in . Rabbi Berekiah and Rabbi Ahi in the name of Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani cited two more: Abraham in and Jacob in , teaching that neither Patriarch would have asked God unless God had first offered to give them what they asked. Tissot Jacob and Rachel at the Well

Genesis chapter 29

The Gemara cited the words "And it came to pass" (, ) in as an exception to the general rule taught by Rabbi Levi, or some say Rabbi Jonathan, in a tradition handed down from the Men of the

Great Assembly According to Jewish tradition the Men of the Great Assembly ( he, כְּנֶסֶת הַגְּדוֹלָה) or Anshei Knesset HaGedolah (, "The Men of the Great Assembly"), also known as the Great Synagogue, or ''Synod'', was an assembly of 120 sc ...

, that wherever the Bible employs the term ''and it was'' or ''and it came to pass'' (, ) it indicates misfortune, as one can read as , , 'woe, sorrow.' Thus the words, "And it came to pass when man began to multiply," in , are followed by the words, "God saw that the wickedness of man was great," in . And the Gemara also cited the instances of followed by ; followed by ; followed by the rest of ; followed by ; followed by ; followed by ; close after ; followed by ; followed by the rest of ; and followed by

Haman Haman ( ; also known as Haman the Agagite or Haman the evil) is the main antagonist in the Book of Esther, who according to the Hebrew Bible was an official in the court of the Persian empire under King Ahasuerus, commonly identified as Xerxes I ...

. But the Gemara also cited as counterexamples the words, "And there was evening and there was morning one day," in , as well as , and . So

replied that ''wa-yehi'' sometimes presages misfortune, and sometimes it does not, but the expression "and it came to pass in the days of" always presages misfortune. And for that proposition, the Gemara cited , , , and . The Gemara read to employ the euphemistic expression "not clean," instead of the brief, but disparaging expression "unclean," so as not to speak disparagingly of unclean animals. The Gemara reasoned that it was thus likely that Scripture would use euphemisms when speaking of the faults of righteous people, as with the words, "And the eyes of Leah were weak," in . Schnorr von Carolsfeld - Jakob und Rahel

Schnorr von Carolsfeld - Jakob und Rahel

Rabbi Eleazar interpreted the words "He withdraws not his eyes from the righteous" in to teach that God rewards righteousness, even generations later. The Gemara taught that in reward for Rachel's modesty as shown in her dealings with Jacob, God rewarded her with King

Saul Saul (; he, , ; , ; ) was, according to the Hebrew Bible, the first monarch of the United Kingdom of Israel. His reign, traditionally placed in the late 11th century BCE, supposedly marked the transition of Israel and Judah from a scattered tri ...

as a descendant. The Gemara taught that Jacob asked Rachel, "Will you marry me?" She replied, "Yes, but my father is a trickster, and he will outwit you." Jacob replied, "I am his brother in trickery." She said to him, "Is it permitted to the righteous to indulge in trickery?" He replied, "Yes, with the pure you show yourself pure, and with the crooked you show yourself subtle." He asked her, "What is his trickery?" She replied: "I have a sister older than I am, and he will not let me marry before her." So Jacob gave her certain tokens through which he could identify her. When night came, she said to herself, "Now my sister will be put to shame," so she gave Leah the tokens. Thus when reports, "And it came to pass in the morning that, behold, it was Leah," we are not to infer that up until then she had not been Leah, but rather that on account of the tokens that Rachel had given Leah, Jacob did not know until then that it was Leah. Therefore, God rewarded Rachel with having Saul among her descendants.Babylonian Talmud Megillah 13a–b
in, e.g., ''Talmud Bavli: Tractate Megillah'', elucidated by Gedaliah Zlotowitz and Hersh Goldwurm, volume 20, pages 13a–b

in, e.g., ''Talmud Bavli''. Elucidated by Yosef Asher Weiss; edited by Hersh Goldwurm, volume 46, pages 123a^3–4. Rabbi Haggai said in Rabbi Isaac's name that all of the Matriarchs were prophets. Dante's Vision of Rachel and Leah

Rabbi Helbo Rabbi Helbo (רבי חלבו) was an amoraim, amora who flourished about the end of the 3rd century, and who is frequently mentioned in both Talmuds. It seems that Helbo lived at first in Babylonia, where he studied under Rav Huna, the head of the ...

quoted

to teach that the firstborn should have come from Rachel, as says, "These are the generations of Jacob, Joseph," but Leah prayed for mercy before Rachel did. On account of Rachel's modesty, however, God restored the rights of the firstborn to Rachel's son Joseph from Leah's son Reuben. To teach what caused Leah to anticipate Rachel with her prayer for mercy,

Rav ''Rav'' (or ''Rab,'' Modern Hebrew: ) is the Hebrew generic term for a person who teaches Torah; a Jewish spiritual guide; or a rabbi. For example, Pirkei Avot (1:6) states that: The term ''rav'' is also Hebrew for ''rabbi''. (For a more nuan ...

taught that Leah's eyes were sore (as reports) from her crying about what she heard at the crossroads. There she heard people saying: "Rebecca has two sons, and Laban has two daughters; the elder daughter should marry the elder son, and the younger daughter should marry the younger son." Leah inquired about the elder son, and the people said that he was a wicked man, a highway robber. And Leah asked about the younger son, and the people said that he was "a quiet man dwelling in tents." So she cried about her fate until her eyelashes fell out. This accounts for the words of , "And the Lord saw that Leah was hated, and He opened her womb," which mean not that Leah was actually hated, but rather that God saw that Esau's conduct was hateful to Leah, so he rewarded her prayer for mercy by opening her womb first. Book of Genesis Chapter 29-5 (Bible Illustrations by Sweet Media)

Book of Genesis Chapter 29-5 (Bible Illustrations by Sweet Media)

The seven days of Jacob's wedding feast in are reflected in the Sages' ruling that if a groom developed symptoms of skin disease (''

tzaraat ''Tzaraath'' (Hebrew צָרַעַת ''ṣāraʿaṯ''), variously transcribed into English and frequently mistranslated as leprosy, describes various ritually unclean disfigurative conditions of the skin, hair of the beard and head, clothing mad ...

'') they granted him a delay of inspection to the end of the seven days of his marriage feast. The

Pesikta de-Rav Kahana Pesikta de-Rab Kahana (Hebrew: פסיקתא דרב כהנא) is a collection of aggadic midrash which exists in two editions, those of Solomon Buber (Lyck, 1868) and Bernard Mandelbaum (1962). It is cited in the ''Arukh'' and by Rashi. The nam ...

taught that Leah and Rachel were two of seven barren women about whom says (speaking of God), "He . . . makes the barren woman to dwell in her house as a joyful mother of children." The Pesikta de-Rav Kahana also listed Sarah, Rebekah,

Manoah Manoah ( ''Mānoaḥ'') is a figure from the Book of Judges 13:1-23 and 14:2-4 of the Hebrew Bible. His name means "rest". Family According to the Bible, Manoah was of the tribe of Dan and lived in the city of Zorah. He married one woman, who w ...

's wife, Hannah, and Zion. The Pesikta de-Rav Kahana taught that the words of , "He . . . makes the barren woman to dwell in her house," apply to Leah, for reports: "And the Lord saw that Leah was hated, and he opened her womb," implying that she had previously been barren. And the words of , "a joyful mother of children," apply to Leah, as well, for reports that Leah said, "I have borne him six sons." The Pesikta de-Rav Kahana taught that the words of , "He . . . makes the barren woman to dwell in her house," apply to Rachel, for reports: "Rachel was barren." And the words of , "a joyful mother of children," apply to Rachel, as well, for reports, "the sons of Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin." Rabbi Elazar taught that when in Leah named her son Reuben, she said prophetically: "See (, ''re'u'') the difference between my son (, ''ben'') and Isaac's son Esau. Even though Esau knowingly sold his birthright to his brother Jacob, as says, "And he sold his birthright to Jacob," nonetheless reports, "Esau hated Jacob." But even though Joseph took Reuben's birthright (as reports), Reuben was not jealous of Joseph, and when Joseph's brothers sought to kill Joseph, reports, "Reuben heard and he saved him from their hands, saying 'Let us not take his life.'" Lesser Ury Biblische Gestalten Rahel

Rabbi Johanan said in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai that showed that from the day that God created the world, no man praised God until Leah did upon the birth of Judah.

Genesis chapter 30

It was taught in a Baraita that four types of people are accounted as though they were dead: a

poor Poverty is the state of having few material possessions or little

income< ...

person, a person affected by skin disease (, '' metzora''), a blind person, and one who is childless. A poor person is accounted as dead, for says, "for all the men are dead who sought your life" (and the Gemara interpreted this to mean that they had been stricken with poverty). A person affected by skin disease (, ) is accounted as dead, for says, "And Aaron looked upon

Miriam Miriam ( he, מִרְיָם ''Mīryām'', lit. 'Rebellion') is described in the Hebrew Bible as the daughter of Amram and Jochebed, and the older sister of Moses and Aaron. She was a prophetess and first appears in the Book of Exodus. The Tor ...

, and behold, she was leprous (, ). And Aaron said to Moses . . . let her not be as one dead." The blind are accounted as dead, for says, "He has set me in dark places, as they that be dead of old." And one who is childless is accounted as dead, for in , Rachel said, "Give me children, or else I am dead." Tissot Rachel and Leah

Rabbi Simeon taught that because Rachel treated the righteous Jacob so slightingly (as to trade away sleeping with him for some mandrakes, as reported in ) she was not buried with him. Thus in Rachel said (in unwitting prophecy) "Therefore, he acobshall lie with you eah" hinting that Jacob would lie with Leah in death, and not with Rachel. Rabbi Berekiah taught that Rabbi Eleazar and Rabbi Samuel ben Nahman commented on this. Rabbi Eleazar said that each wife lost (by the transaction) and each gained. Leah lost the mandrakes and gained the tribes (of Issachar and Zebulun) while Rachel gained the mandrakes and lost the tribes (of Issachar and Zebulun). (And some say Leah lost the birthright and Rachel gained the birthright. The birthright belonged to Reuben, but as a punishment for Reuben's causing this transaction, the birthright was taken from him and given to Joseph.) Rabbi Samuel ben Nahman said that Leah lost mandrakes and gained (two) tribes and the privilege of burial with Jacob, while Rachel gained mandrakes and lost the tribes and burial with Jacob. Alluding to , Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani said in the name of Rabbi Jonathan that when a wife summons a husband to his marital duty, they will have children such as were not to be found even in the generation of Moses. For with regard to the generation of Moses, says, "Take wise men, and understanding and known among your tribes, and I will make them rulers over you." But says, "So I took the chiefs of your tribes, wise men and known," without mentioning "understanding" (implying that Moses could not find men with understanding). And says, "Issachar is a large-boned donkey" (alluding to the Midrash that Leah heard Jacob's donkey, and so came out of her tent to summon Jacob to his marital duty, as reported in ). And

1 Chronicles The Book of Chronicles ( he, דִּבְרֵי־הַיָּמִים ) is a book in the Hebrew Bible, found as two books (1–2 Chronicles) in the Christian Old Testament. Chronicles is the final book of the Hebrew Bible, concluding the third sect ...

says, "of the children of Issachar . . . were men who had understanding of the times to know what Israel ought to do." But the Gemara limited the teaching of Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani in the name of Rabbi Jonathan by counseling that such behavior is virtuous only when the wife ingratiates herself to her husband without making brazen demands. Rabbi Johanan taught that the words "and he lay with her that night" in , in which the word , ("He") appears in an unusual locution, indicate that God assisted in causing Issachar's conception. Rabbi Johanan found in the words "Issachar is a large-boned donkey" in an indication that Jacob's donkey detoured to Leah's tent, helping to cause Issachar's birth.

Rebbi Judah ha-Nasi ( he, יְהוּדָה הַנָּשִׂיא‎, ''Yəhūḏā hanNāsīʾ‎''; Yehudah HaNasi or Judah the Prince) or Judah I, was a second-century rabbi (a tanna of the fifth generation) and chief redactor and editor of the ''Mis ...

(or some say Rabbi Judah ben Pazi) said in the name of the academy of Yannai that Dinah was originally conceived as a boy, but when Rachel prayed for another son in , God transformed Dinah's fetus into a girl, and that is why the description of Dinah's birth in uses the word "afterward," showing that this happened after Rachel prayed. And

taught that the word "afterward" in signified that Leah bore Dinah "after" she passed judgment on herself, reasoning that twelve tribes were destined to issue from Jacob and six had already issued from her and four from the handmaids, and if the child of the current pregnancy were to be a boy, then Rachel would not have as many sons as one of the handmaids. Thereupon the child was turned into a girl, and Dinah was born. Gottlieb-Rachela

A Baraita taught that on

Rosh Hashanah Rosh HaShanah ( he, רֹאשׁ הַשָּׁנָה, , literally "head of the year") is the Jewish New Year. The biblical name for this holiday is Yom Teruah (, , lit. "day of shouting/blasting") It is the first of the Jewish High Holy Days (, , " ...

, God remembered each of Sarah, Rachel, and Hannah and decreed that they would bear children. Rabbi Eliezer found support for the Baraita from the parallel use of the word "remember" in , which says about Rachel, "And God ''remembered'' Rachel," and in , which calls Rosh Hashanah "a ''remembrance'' of the blast of the trumpet." A Midrash taught that the words of , "He has remembered His mercy and His faithfulness toward the house of Israel," allude to the report of , "And God remembered Rachel, and God hearkened to her." Rabbi Judan said in Rabbi Aibu's name that Rachel was remembered through many prayers. First, for her own sake, as says, "And God remembered Rachel (, )," and , , implies for the sake of her sister (as , , is often interpreted as an extending particle, adding instances or cases not explicitly mentioned). "And God hearkened to her" for Jacob's sake; "and opened her womb" for the sake of the matriarchs. A Midrash taught that when says, "And God remembered Rachel," it reports that God remember in her favor her silence on her sister Leah's behalf, for when Leah was being given to Jacob, Rachel knew it, yet was silent.Genesis Rabbah 73:4, in, e.g., Harry Freedman and Maurice Simon, translators, ''Midrash Rabbah: Genesis'', volume 2, pages 669. For the Gemara taught (as recounted at greater length above) that when Jacob asked Rachel to marry him, Jacob entrusted Rachel with certain signs by which he might know her in the dark. While Leah was being led into the bridal chamber, Rachel realized that Leah would be disgraced, so Rachel gave Leah the signs. And thus because of what Rachel did, Jacob did not know that it was Leah until the morning. A Midrash taught that it was only just that "God remembered Rachel," because Rachel had allowed her rival Bilhah into her home. Rav Huna and

Rabbi Aha Rabbi Aha ( he, רבי אחא, read as ''Rabbi Achah'') was a rabbi of the Land of Israel, of the fourth century (fourth generation of amoraim). Biography He resided at Lod, but later settled in Tiberias where Huna II, Judah ben Pazi, and himse ...

in Rabbi Simon's name quoted "Dan, Joseph, and Benjamin," and taught that for the sake of Dan, Rachel was remembered; for the sake of Dan, Joseph and Benjamin were born (as a reward for Rachel's giving her rival Bilhah to Jacob, from whom was born Dan). Rabbi Johanan taught that God holds three keys that God does not entrust to any messenger: the key of rain, the key of childbirth, and the key of the revival of the dead. The Gemara cited to support the proposition that God holds the key of childbirth, as the verse says, "And God remembered Rachel, and God hearkened to her, and opened her womb." And the Gemara noted that Scripture uses the verb "bear" with regard to both childbirth, in , "she conceived, and bore a son," and rain, in , "the rain comes down and the snow from heaven, and returns not there, but waters the earth, and makes it bear and bud." Rabbi Akiva read the words "God . . . opened her womb" in to support the proposition that just as there is key to a house, there is a key to a woman's fertility. Rabbi Judah ben Pazi said in the name of the academy of Rabbi Yannai that Rachel showed that she was a prophetess when in she prophesied that she would bear another son, and by using the singular "son" she foretold that Jacob would have just one more son. Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani, citing

, noted that

reports that "the children of Issachar . . . had understanding." Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani noted that reports that Jacob and Leah conceived Issachar after "Leah went out to meet him, and said: ‘You must come to me, for I have surely hired you.'" In contrast, Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani noted that in , God told Moses, "Get you from each one of your tribes, wise men and understanding, and full of knowledge," but in , Moses reported, "So I took the heads of your tribes, wise men and full of knowledge," and Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani thus deduced that Moses could not find men of "understanding" in his generation. Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani concluded that a woman who solicits her husband to perform the marital obligation, as Leah did, will have children the like of whom did not exist even in the generation of Moses. The Tosefta deduced from that before Jacob arrived, Laban's house had not received a blessing, and deduced from that it was because of Jacob's arrival that Laban was blessed thereafter. Rabbi Judah the son of Rabbi Simon in the name of Hezekiah employed the meaning of the pilgrim's recitation in to help interpret Jacob's statement to Laban in . Rabbi Judah the son of Rabbi Simon noted that the word ''little'' or ''few'' (, ) appears both in Jacob's statement to Laban in , "For it was little (, ) that you had before I came, and it has increased abundantly," and also in the pilgrim's recitation in , "few (, ) in number" (went down to Egypt). Rabbi Judah the son of Rabbi Simon said in the name of Hezekiah that just as in , ''few'' (, ) means 70 (people), so in , ''little'' (, ) must also mean 70 (head of cattle and sheep). Schnorr von Carolsfeld - Jakobs Flucht

Genesis chapter 31

It was taught in a Baraita that Rabbi Akiva said that one of three things that he liked about the

Medes The Medes (Old Persian: ; Akkadian: , ; Ancient Greek: ; Latin: ) were an ancient Iranian people who spoke the Median language and who inhabited an area known as Media between western and northern Iran. Around the 11th century BC, the ...

was that when they held counsel, they did so only in the field. Rav Adda bar Ahabah said that , where Jacob called Rachel and Leah to the field, could be cited in support of the practice. In , the heart can be stolen. A Midrash catalogued the wide range of additional capabilities of the heart reported in the Hebrew Bible. The heart speaks, sees, hears, 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, is humbled, is enticed, 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. Book of Genesis Chapter 31-2 (Bible Illustrations by Sweet Media)

Book of Genesis Chapter 31-2 (Bible Illustrations by Sweet Media)

The Rabbis taught that God appears to non-Jews only in dreams, as God appeared to Laban the "in a dream of the night" in , God appeared to Abimelech "in a dream of the night" in , and God appeared to Balaam "at night" in . The Rabbis taught that God thus appeared more openly to the prophets of Israel than to those of other nations. The Rabbis compared God's action to those of a king who has both a wife and a

concubine Concubinage is an interpersonal and sexual relationship between a man and a woman in which the couple does not want, or cannot enter into a full marriage. Concubinage and marriage are often regarded as similar but mutually exclusive. Concubi ...

; to his wife he goes openly, but to his concubine he goes stealthily.Genesis Rabbah 52:5
in, e.g., Harry Freedman and Maurice Simon, translators, ''Midrash Rabbah: Genesis'', volume 1, pages 453–54. And a Midrash taught that God's appearance to Laban in and God's appearance to Abimelech in were the two instances where the Pure and Holy One allowed God's self to be associated with impure (idolatrous) people, on behalf of righteous ones. Book of Genesis Chapter 31-5 (Bible Illustrations by Sweet Media)

Book of Genesis Chapter 31-5 (Bible Illustrations by Sweet Media)

Similarly, a Midrash cited as an application of the principle that all miracles that God did for Israel, and the punishment of the wicked on their behalf, took place at night. To this end, the Midrash cited , "And he divided himself against them by night"; , "But God came to Abimelech in a dream of the night"; , "And God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream of the night"; , "It was a night of watching unto the Lord . . . this same night"; , "And it came to pass at midnight"; , "And there was the cloud and the darkness here, yet gave it light by night there"; and , "And God came to Balaam at night." A Midrash taught that the words of , "And God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream of the night," indicated God's distance from Laban. Rabbi Leazar taught that the words of , "The Lord is far from the wicked," refer to the prophets of other nations. But the continuation of , "He hears the prayer of the righteous," refers to the prophets of Israel. God appears to nations other that Israel only as one who comes from a distance, as says, "They came from a far country to me." But in connection with the prophets of Israel, says, "And the Lord appeared," and says, "And the Lord called," implying from the immediate vicinity. Rabbi Haninah compared the difference between the prophets of Israel and the prophets of other nations to a king who was with his friend in a chamber (separated by a curtain). Whenever the king desired to speak to his friend, he folded up the curtain and spoke to him. (But God speaks to the prophets of other nations without folding back the curtain.) The Rabbis compared it to a king who has a wife and a concubine; to his wife he goes openly, but to his concubine he repairs with stealth. Similarly, God appears to non-Jews only at night, as says, "And God came to Balaam at night," and says, "And God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream of the night." The

Pirke De-Rabbi Eliezer Pirkei de-Rabbi Eliezer (also Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer; Aramaic: פרקי דרבי אליעזר, or פרקים דרבי אליעזר, Chapters of Rabbi Eliezer; abbreviated PdRE) is an aggadic-midrashic work on the Torah containing exegesis and re ...

taught that Laban took all the men of his city, mighty men, and pursued after Jacob, seeking to slay him. Then the angel Michael descended, and drew his sword behind Laban, seeking to slay him. Michael told Laban (as reported in ): "Do not speak to Jacob, either good or bad." Rabbi Johanan taught in the name of Rabbi Simeon ben Yohai that all the favors that the wicked do for the righteous are in fact evil for the righteous. For in , God told Laban, "Take heed to yourself that you speak not to Jacob either good or evil." Rabbi Johanan observed that one can understand why God would direct Laban not to speak evil to Jacob, but asked why God would direct him not to say anything good. From here Rabbi Johanan inferred that even if Laban had tried to speak good to Jacob, it would have resulted in bad for Jacob. Ciro Ferri - The Reconciliation of Jacob and Laban

Ciro Ferri - The Reconciliation of Jacob and Laban

Rabbi Aibu taught that when Laban's grandchildren heard Laban ask in , "Why have you stolen my gods?" they exclaimed that they were ashamed that in his old age their grandfather could say that these idols were his gods. Figures Jacob Laban Make Covenant

A Midrash taught that Rachel's death ensued because Jacob told Laban in , "With whomever you find your gods, he shall not live." The Midrash thus taught that Jacob's words were (in the words of

Ecclesiastes Ecclesiastes (; hbo, קֹהֶלֶת, Qōheleṯ, grc, Ἐκκλησιαστής, Ekklēsiastēs) is one of the Ketuvim ("Writings") of the Hebrew Bible and part of the Wisdom literature of the Christian Old Testament. The title commonly use ...

) "like an error that proceeds from a ruler." Rabbi Berekiah in Rabbi Levi's name may have drawn on for the proposition that Laban tried to destroy Jacob. Rabbi Berekiah in Rabbi Levi's name read to say, "The blessing of the destroyer (, ) came upon me," and interpreted "The blessing of the destroyer (, )" to allude to Laban the Syrian. Rabbi Berekiah in Rabbi Levi's name thus read to say, "An Aramean (Laban) sought to destroy (, ) my father (Jacob)." (Thus Laban sought to destroy Jacob by, perhaps among other things, cheating Jacob out of payment for his work, as Jacob recounted in . This interpretation thus reads , , as a transitive verb.) Rabbi Berekiah and Rabbi Levi in the name of Rabbi Hama ben Haninah thus explained that Rebekah was remembered with the blessing of children only after Isaac prayed for her, so that the heathens in Rebekah's family might not say that their prayer in caused that result. Rather, God answered Isaac's prayer, as reports, "And Isaac entreated the Lord for his wife . . . and his wife Rebekah conceived." The Gemara interpreted the words, "If you shall afflict my daughters, and if you shall take wives beside my daughters," in to mean that Jacob forswore two kinds of affliction. The Gemara read "if you shall afflict" to mean by denying conjugal duty, and the Gemara read "if you shall take" to refer to marrying rival wives. Thus the Gemara deduced that abstention from marital intercourse is considered an affliction.

Genesis chapter 32

Rav taught that Jacob's merit saved later Israelites. reports that after King

ordered a

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

of the Israelites, God punished the Israelites with a

plague Plague or The Plague may refer to: Agriculture, fauna, and medicine *Plague (disease), a disease caused by ''Yersinia pestis'' * An epidemic of infectious disease (medical or agricultural) * A pandemic caused by such a disease * A swarm of pes ...

. then reports, "And as He was about to destroy, the Lord beheld, and He repented Him." The Gemara asked what God beheld that caused God to withhold destruction. Rav taught that God beheld (the merit of) Jacob, as says, "And Jacob said when he beheld them (the angels that would protect Israel): 'This is God's camp.'"

In modern interpretation

The parashah is discussed in these modern sources: Gunkel

Genesis chapters 25–33

Hermann Gunkel Hermann Gunkel (23 May 1862 – 11 March 1932), a German Old Testament scholar, founded form criticism. He also became a leading representative of the history of religions school. His major works cover Genesis and the Psalms, and his major inte ...

wrote that the legend cycle of Jacob-Esau-Laban divided clearly into the legends (1) of Jacob and Esau (; ; ; ; ), (2) of Jacob and Laban (; ), (3) of the origin of the twelve tribes (), and (4) of the origin of ritual observances (;
22–32
.

Walter Brueggemann Walter Brueggemann (born March 11, 1933) is an American Protestant Old Testament scholar and theologian who is widely considered one of the most influential Old Testament scholars of the last several decades. His work often focuses on the Hebrew p ...

suggested a

chiastic structure Chiastic structure, or chiastic pattern, is a literary technique in narrative motifs and other textual passages. An example of chiastic structure would be two ideas, A and B, together with variants A' and B', being presented as A,B,B',A'. Chi ...

to the Jacob narrative (shown in the chart below), moving from conflict with Esau to reconciliation with Esau. Within that is conflict with Laban moving to covenant with Laban. And within that, at the center, is the narrative of births, in which the birth of Joseph (at ) marks the turning point in the entire narrative, after which Jacob looks toward the Land of Israel and his brother Esau. In the midst of the conflicts are the two major encounters with God, which occur at crucial times in the sequence of conflicts. Acknowledging that some interpreters view Jacob's two encounters with God in and as parallel,

Terence Fretheim Terence E. Fretheim was an Old Testament scholar and the Elva B. Lovell professor of Old Testament at Luther Seminary. His writings have played a major part in the development of process theology and open theism. Biographical Information Tere ...

argued that one may see more significant levels of correspondence between the two Bethel stories in and , and one may view the oracle to Rebekah in regarding "struggling" as parallel to Jacob's struggle at the

Jabbok The Zarqa River ( ar, نهر الزرقاء, ''Nahr az-Zarqāʾ'', lit. "the River of the Blue ity) or Jabbok River (Hebrew: נַחַל יַבּוֹק ''Nahal Yabōq'') is the second largest tributary of the lower Jordan River, after the Yarmou ...

in . Fretheim concluded that these four instances of Divine speaking link to each other in complex ways.

Israel Finkelstein Israel Finkelstein ( he, ישראל פינקלשטיין, born March 29, 1949) is an Israeli archaeologist, professor emeritus at Tel Aviv University and the head of the School of Archaeology and Maritime Cultures at the University of Haifa. Fin ...

and

Neil Asher Silberman Neil Asher Silberman (born June 19, 1950 in Boston, Massachusetts) is an American archaeologist and historian with a special interest in biblical archaeology. He is the author of several books, including ''The Hidden Scrolls'', '' The Message an ...

argue that the stories about Jacob and Laban metaphorically express the complex and stormy relations between the nations of Aram and Israel over many centuries. Cynthia Chapman suggested that

Judea Judea or Judaea ( or ; from he, יהודה, Hebrew language#Modern Hebrew, Standard ''Yəhūda'', Tiberian vocalization, Tiberian ''Yehūḏā''; el, Ἰουδαία, ; la, Iūdaea) is an ancient, historic, Biblical Hebrew, contemporaneous L ...

ns compiled and edited the ancestor narratives in Genesis after the

Babylonian captivity The Babylonian captivity or Babylonian exile is the period in Jewish history during which a large number of Judeans from the ancient Kingdom of Judah were captives in Babylon, the capital city of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, following their defeat ...

to serve as stories of national origin. Chapman noted that several recurring themes of the Patriarchal narratives spoke to the exilic reality of those who preserved the stories. These stories emphasize God's presence and power transcending national boundaries, the special covenant between God and Abraham's descendants, the eternal nature of their covenant relationship, and the everlasting gift of the Promised Land. The stories also acknowledge tensions that threaten the protagonists. Jacob spent most of his adult life in Mesopotamia, and stories of hard-won children who were born into a land inheritance spoke powerfully to an exilic community that had lost many children to war and sickness during the long journey to exile. The Israelites viewed their world as a family tree; the story of Jacob's family became the basis for how the Israelites understood themselves socially and politically as an alliance of 12 tribes; and where tribes stood in relation to each other. The process by which Jacob became Israel involved fleeing, exile, and hard labor. From the perspective of a people exiled from their land living in Mesopotamia, Jacob's story was a powerful story of redemption. The Tribe of Judah also endured hard labor, took wives and had children, replenishing themselves into something resembling a nation. Many would build wealth in exile, and when they returned during the Persian period, they returned not as Judah, but as Israel, renamed before they crossed the

Jordan River The Jordan River or River Jordan ( ar, نَهْر الْأُرْدُنّ, ''Nahr al-ʾUrdunn'', he, נְהַר הַיַּרְדֵּן, ''Nəhar hayYardēn''; syc, ܢܗܪܐ ܕܝܘܪܕܢܢ ''Nahrāʾ Yurdnan''), also known as ''Nahr Al-Shariea ...

back into the Promised Land.

Genesis chapter 28

Ephraim Speiser saw in two accounts about Jacob's first stay at Bethel that were blended into a single sequence. an
17
use the Divine name Elohim (), while an

use the

Tetragrammaton The Tetragrammaton (; ), or Tetragram, is the four-letter Hebrew language, Hebrew theonym (transliterated as YHWH), the name of God in the Hebrew Bible. The four letters, written and read from right to left (in Hebrew), are ''yodh'', ''he (l ...

(). Speiser argued that taken as a unit, the fused version is repetitious, but separately, each strand represents an independent tradition. Speiser thus cited as an instance when the Tetragrammaton and Elohim occur in otherwise duplicate narratives, and the presence of the

Priestly source The Priestly source (or simply P) is perhaps the most widely recognized of the sources underlying the Torah. It is both stylistically and theologically distinct from other material in the Torah, and includes a set of claims that are contradicted b ...

is ruled out on other grounds, evincing the probability that the passages with Elohim point to a source that is neither the

Jahwist The Jahwist, or Yahwist, often abbreviated J, is one of the most widely recognized sources of the Pentateuch (Torah), together with the Deuteronomist, the Priestly source and the Elohist. The existence of the Jahwist is somewhat controversial, ...

nor the Priestly source, and thus evidently the

Elohist According to the documentary hypothesis, the Elohist (or simply E) is one of four source documents underlying the Torah,McDermott, John J., ''Reading the Pentateuch: A Historical Introduction'' (Pauline Press, 2002) p. 21. Via Books.google.com.a ...

. Similarly, Speiser saw further evidence in the doublet of , where Jacob's wealth is attributed to his own shrewdness, but Jacob refers to the Tetragrammaton, while the next account in
11
credits Jacob's success to the advice of an angel of God—called Elohim—who conveyed it to Jacob in a dream. Brueggemann noted that reflects the standard promise to the Patriarchs, but in , God addressed a promise peculiarly to Jacob. Brueggemann identified three parts to the promise: (1) "I am with you." In a central thrust of Biblical faith, God commits to accompany the empty-handed fugitive in places of threat. (2) "I will keep you." Like a shepherd, the Keeper of Israel guarantees the lives of those who are exposed and defenseless. (3) The promise of homecoming. Brueggemann argued that makes clear that God does watch over God's promise and bring it to fulfillment. John Kselman noted that God concluded God's promise to Jacob in with the blessing that will come upon the nations of the world through contact with Jacob and his descendants. Kselman saw the beginning of the accomplishment of this promise in the story of Laban's prosperity through association with Jacob in .John S. Kselman. "Genesis." In ''The HarperCollins Bible Commentary''. Edited by James L. Mays, page 100. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, revised edition, 2000. Kselman suggested that the original function of the story of Jacob's dream in and the naming of the place Bethel in was to explain the founding of the sanctuary at Bethel, an important Northern site of worship after the succession of the Northern Tribes from the

United Monarchy The United Monarchy () in the Hebrew Bible refers to Israel and Judah under the reigns of Saul, David, and Solomon. It is traditionally dated to have lasted between and . According to the biblical account, on the succession of Solomon's son Re ...

. Kselman argued that in designating Bethel as the site for one of the Northern temples, the new

Northern Kingdom The Kingdom of Israel (), or the Kingdom of Samaria, was an Israelite kingdom in the Southern Levant during the Iron Age. The kingdom controlled the areas of Samaria, Galilee and parts of Transjordan. Its capital, for the most part, was Samar ...

reached back before the "innovation" of Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem to a site sacred to the ancestors. Sandra Gravett, Karla Bohmbach, Franz Greifenhagen, and Donald Polaski reported that some scholars suggested that a scribe copying an earlier text may have added , "And he called the name of that place Beth-el, but the name of the city was Luz at the first," seeking to explain the location and history of the site.

Genesis chapter 29

Nahum Sarna Nahum Mattathias Sarna (Hebrew: נחום סרנא; March 27, 1923 – June 23, 2005) was a modern biblical scholar who is best known for the study of Genesis and Exodus represented in his ''Understanding Genesis'' (1966) and in his contributions t ...

reported that modern scholars deduce from the Genesis listings of Jacob's sons the evolution of the league of Israelite tribes. These scholars deduce from the listing of Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah as Leah tribes that they were politically related. As their tribal territories were not contiguous, their organizing principle could not have been geographical, and their association must therefore reflect a presettlement reality. These scholars conclude that the six Leah tribes must have originated as a separate fraternity in Mesopotamia that evolved in two distinct stages. The account of the birth of Jacob's sons in preserves the earliest traditions. The position of Judah as the fourth son reflects the situation prior to Judah's ascendancy, reflected in . The handmaid tribes had a subordinate status. And the tribe of Benjamin was the last to join the Israelite league and came into being in Canaan.

Genesis chapter 32

Kselman noted that Laban pointedly did not kiss Jacob good-bye in .

Commandments

According to

Maimonides Musa ibn Maimon (1138–1204), commonly known as Maimonides (); la, Moses Maimonides and also referred to by the acronym Rambam ( he, רמב״ם), was a Sephardic Jewish philosopher who became one of the most prolific and influential Torah ...

and

Sefer ha-Chinuch ''Sefer ha-Chinuch'' ( he, ספר החינוך, "Book of Education") is a Jewish rabbinic text which systematically discusses the 613 commandments of the Torah. It was published anonymously in 13th-century Spain. History The work's enumeration o ...

, there are no

commandments Commandment may refer to: * The Ten Commandments * One of the 613 mitzvot of Judaism * The Great Commandment * The New Commandment The New Commandment is a term used in Christianity to describe Jesus's commandment to "love one another" which, ac ...

in the parashah. Shlomo Ganzfried

The ''Kitzur Shulchan Aruch'' told how some Jews emulate Jacob's action in by sleeping with a stone under their head on

Tisha B'Av Tisha B'Av ( he, תִּשְׁעָה בְּאָב ''Tīšʿā Bəʾāv''; , ) is an annual fast day in Judaism, on which a number of disasters in Jewish history occurred, primarily the destruction of both Solomon's Temple by the Neo-Babylonian E ...

, the annual

fast day Fast Day was a holiday observed in some parts of the United States between 1670 and 1991. "A day of public fasting and prayer," it was traditionally observed in the New England states. It had its origin in days of prayer and repentance proclai ...

to commemorate the destruction of the

. The ''Kitzur Shulchan Aruch'' taught that on Tisha B'Av, people should make themselves uncomfortable when they go to bed at night. If they are used to sleeping with two pillows, on Tisha B'Av, they should sleep on one. The ''Kitzur Shulchan Aruch'' reported that some thus have the custom on the night of Tisha B'Av of sleeping on the ground with a stone under their head as a reminder of what says of Jacob: "He took from the stones of the place." The ''Kitzur Shulchan Aruch'' told that on that night, Jacob had a vision of the destruction of the Temple and said (in the words of ), "How awesome is this place." The ''Kitzur Shulchan Aruch'' taught that it is forbidden to hold two weddings for two siblings on the same day, because one should not mix one celebration with another celebration. And the ''Kitzur Shulchan Aruch'' reported that some authorities taught that one should not hold two weddings for two siblings in the same week, because , speaks of Jacob fulfilling "the week" of the newlywed Leah before marrying her sister Rachel. Based on Jacob's words in , the ''Kitzur Shulchan Aruch'' taught that just as an employer is enjoined not to steal a poor worker's wages nor pay them late, a worker is warned not to neglect the employer's work, and is obliged to work with all the worker's might, as Jacob said of his working for Laban in , "with all my power I have served your father." Therefore, workers are not allowed to work at night and then hire themselves out during the day, because they will already be weak from their night work. Similarly, the ''Kitzur Shulchan Aruch'' taught that one is not allowed to work one's animal by night and then hire it out during the day. And workers are not allowed to starve or stint themselves, because this weakens their strength so that they will not be able to do their work properly.

In the liturgy

The

Passover Passover, also called Pesach (; ), is a major Jewish holidays, Jewish holiday that celebrates the The Exodus, Biblical story of the Israelites escape from slavery in Ancient Egypt, Egypt, which occurs on the 15th day of the Hebrew calendar, He ...

Haggadah The Haggadah ( he, הַגָּדָה, "telling"; plural: Haggadot) is a Jewish text that sets forth the order of the Passover Seder. According to Jewish practice, reading the Haggadah at the Seder table is a fulfillment of the mitzvah to each J ...

, in the concluding section of the

Seder The Passover Seder (; he, סדר פסח , 'Passover order/arrangement'; yi, סדר ) is a ritual feast at the beginning of the Jewish holiday of Passover. It is conducted throughout the world on the eve of the 15th day of [isan in the Hebrew c ...

, in a reference to , recounts how God frightened the Aramean Laban in the night. The doubling of the Hebrew word to express intense longing in also appears in the 16th-century

Safed Safed (known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as Tzfat; Sephardi Hebrew, Sephardic Hebrew & Modern Hebrew: צְפַת ''Tsfat'', Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation, Ashkenazi Hebrew: ''Tzfas'', Biblical Hebrew: ''Ṣǝp̄aṯ''; ar, صفد, ''Ṣafad''), i ...

Rabbi Eliezer Azikri's Kabbalah, kabbalistic poem "" ("Soul's Beloved") which many congregations chant just before the Kabbalat Shabbat Jewish services, prayer service. Many Jews recite three times as part of the '' Tefilat HaDerech'' (Wayfarer's Prayer) before setting out on a journey. Duccio di Buoninsegna 063

The Weekly Maqam

the Weekly Maqam In Mizrahi and Sephardic Middle Eastern Jewish prayer services, each Shabbat the congregation conducts services using a different maqam. A ''maqam'' (), which in Arabic literally means 'place', is a standard melody type and set of related tunes. T ...

Sephardi Jews Sephardic (or Sephardi) Jews (, ; lad, Djudíos Sefardíes), also ''Sepharadim'' , Modern Hebrew: ''Sfaradim'', Tiberian: Səp̄āraddîm, also , ''Ye'hude Sepharad'', lit. "The Jews of Spain", es, Judíos sefardíes (or ), pt, Judeus sefar ...

each week base the songs of the services on the content of that week's parashah. For Parashah Vayetze, Sephardi Jews apply Maqam Ajam, the maqam that expresses happiness, commemorating the joy and happiness of the weddings of Jacob to Leah and Rachel.See Mark L. Kligman. "The Bible, Prayer, and Maqam: Extra-Musical Associations of Syrian Jews." ''

Ethnomusicology Ethnomusicology is the study of music from the cultural and social aspects of the people who make it. It encompasses distinct theoretical and methodical approaches that emphasize cultural, social, material, cognitive, biological, and other dim ...

'', volume 45 (number 3) (Autumn 2001): pages 443–479. Mark L. Kligman. ''Maqam and Liturgy: Ritual, Music, and Aesthetics of Syrian Jews in Brooklyn''.

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

Wayne State University Press Wayne State University Press (or WSU Press) is a university press that is part of Wayne State University. It publishes under its own name and also the imprints Painted Turtle and Great Lakes Books Series. History The Press has strong subjec ...

, 2009.

Haftarah

haftarah The ''haftara'' or (in Ashkenazic pronunciation) ''haftorah'' (alt. ''haftarah, haphtara'', he, הפטרה) "parting," "taking leave", (plural form: ''haftarot'' or ''haftoros'') is a series of selections from the books of ''Nevi'im'' ("Prop ...

is a text selected from the books of

Nevi'im Nevi'im (; he, נְבִיאִים ''Nəvīʾīm'', Tiberian: ''Năḇīʾīm,'' "Prophets", literally "spokespersons") is the second major division of the Hebrew Bible (the ''Tanakh''), lying between the Torah (instruction) and Ketuvim (wri ...

("The Prophets") that is read publicly in the synagogue after the reading of the Torah on Sabbath and holiday mornings. The haftarah usually has a thematic link to the Torah reading that precedes it. The specific text read following Parashah Vayetze varies according to different traditions within Judaism. Examples are: :*for

Ashkenazi Jews Ashkenazi Jews ( ; he, יְהוּדֵי אַשְׁכְּנַז, translit=Yehudei Ashkenaz, ; yi, אַשכּנזישע ייִדן, Ashkenazishe Yidn), also known as Ashkenazic Jews or ''Ashkenazim'',, Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: , singu ...

: :*for

Karaite Jews Karaite Judaism () or Karaism (, sometimes spelt Karaitism (; ''Yahadut Qara'it''); also spelt Qaraite Judaism, Qaraism or Qaraitism) is a Jewish religious movement characterized by the recognition of the written Torah alone as its supreme au ...

Notes

, Land of Israel, circa 400 CE. In, e.g., ''Talmud Yerushalmi''. Edited by Chaim Malinowitz, Yisroel Simcha Schorr, and Mordechai Marcus, volumes 1–2, 13, 15, 25, 28, 30–31, 33–34, 36–37, 44–45, 48. 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. First page of the first tractate of the Talmud (Daf Beis of Maseches Brachos)

First page of the first tractate of the Talmud (Daf Beis of Maseches Brachos)

Genesis Rabbah Genesis Rabbah (Hebrew: , ''B'reshith Rabba'') is a religious text from Judaism's classical period, probably written between 300 and 500 CE with some later additions. It is a midrash comprising a collection of ancient rabbinical homiletical inter ...

br>44:852:5
67:9, 13; 68:1–74:17; 94:5. Land of Israel, 5th Century. In, e.g., ''Midrash Rabbah: Genesis''. Translated by

Harry Freedman Harry Freedman (''Henryk Frydmann''), (April 5, 1922 – September 16, 2005) was a Canadian composer, English hornist, and music educator of Polish birth. He wrote a significant amount of symphonic works, including the scores to films such as '' T ...

and Maurice Simon. London: Soncino Press, 1939. *Babylonian

Berakhot 4aEruvin 100bYoma 38b74b77a–bSukkah 53aRosh Hashanah 11aTaanit 2a–b8bMegillah 9a10b13a–b17aMoed Katan 7b15a21bMakkot 19bMenachot 63aChullin 18b91bBekhorot 45a

Sasanian Empire The Sasanian () or Sassanid Empire, officially known as the Empire of Iranians (, ) and also referred to by historians as the Neo-Persian Empire, was the History of Iran, last Iranian empire before the early Muslim conquests of the 7th-8th cen ...

, 6th Century. In, e.g., ''Talmud Bavli''. Edited by Yisroel Simcha Schorr, Chaim Malinowitz, and Mordechai Marcus, 72 volumes. Brooklyn: Mesorah Pubs., 2006. Rashi woodcut cropped

Medieval

Rashi Shlomo Yitzchaki ( he, רבי שלמה יצחקי; la, Salomon Isaacides; french: Salomon de Troyes, 22 February 1040 – 13 July 1105), today generally known by the acronym Rashi (see below), was a medieval French rabbi and author of a compre ...

. ''Commentary''
Genesis 28–32

Troyes Troyes () is a commune and the capital of the department of Aube in the Grand Est region of north-central France. It is located on the Seine river about south-east of Paris. Troyes is situated within the Champagne wine region and is near to ...

, 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 309–57. Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 1995. *

Rashbam Samuel ben Meir (Troyes, c. 1085 – c. 1158), after his death known as "Rashbam", a Hebrew acronym for RAbbi SHmuel Ben Meir, was a leading French Tosafist and grandson of Shlomo Yitzhaki, "Rashi". Biography He was born in the vicinity of Troye ...

. ''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 162–97.

Lewiston, New York Lewiston is a town in Niagara County, New York, United States. The population was 15,944 at the 2020 census. The town and its contained village are named after Morgan Lewis, a governor of New York. The Town of Lewiston is on the western bord ...

: The Edwin Mellen Press, 1989. ריהל ראלי

Judah Halevi Judah Halevi (also Yehuda Halevi or ha-Levi; he, יהודה הלוי and Judah ben Shmuel Halevi ; ar, يهوذا اللاوي ''Yahuḏa al-Lāwī''; 1075 – 1141) was a Spanish Jewish physician, poet and philosopher. He was born in Spain, ...

. ''

Kuzari The ''Kuzari'', full title ''Book of Refutation and Proof on Behalf of the Despised Religion'' ( ar, كتاب الحجة والدليل في نصرة الدين الذليل: ''Kitâb al-ḥujja wa'l-dalîl fi naṣr al-dîn al-dhalîl''), also k ...

''. 2:14, 50, 80. Toledo, Spain, 1130–1140. In, e.g., Jehuda Halevi. ''Kuzari: An Argument for the Faith of Israel.'' Introduction by Henry Slonimsky, pages 91, 114, 133. New York: Schocken, 1964. * 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 275–310. New York: Menorah Publishing Company, 1988. *

Hezekiah ben Manoah Hezekiah ben Manoah, or Hezekiah bar Manoah, was a French rabbi and Bible commentator of the 13th century. He is generally known by the title of his commentary, Chizkuni ( he, חזקוני). In memory of his father, who lost his right hand through ...

. ''Hizkuni''. France, circa 1240. In, e.g., Chizkiyahu ben Manoach. ''Chizkuni: Torah Commentary''. Translated and annotated by Eliyahu Munk, volume 1, pages 215–41. Jerusalem: Ktav Publishers, 2013. *

Nachmanides Moses ben Nachman ( he, מֹשֶׁה בֶּן־נָחְמָן ''Mōše ben-Nāḥmān'', "Moses son of Nachman"; 1194–1270), commonly known as Nachmanides (; el, Ναχμανίδης ''Nakhmanídēs''), and also referred to by the acronym Ra ...

. ''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 349–93. New York: Shilo Publishing House, 1971. Zohar

*''Midrash ha-Ne'lam (The Midrash of the Concealed)''.

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

, 13th century. In ''Zohar Chadash'', pages 27b–28d.

Salonika Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...

, 1587. In, e.g., ''The Zohar: Pritzker Edition''. Translation and commentary by Nathan Wolski, volume 10, pages 425–47.

Stanford, California Stanford is a census-designated place (CDP) in the northwest corner of Santa Clara County, California, United States. It is the home of Stanford University. The population was 21,150 at the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census. Stanford is ...

Stanford University Press Stanford University Press (SUP) is the publishing house of Stanford University. It is one of the oldest academic presses in the United States and the first university press to be established on the West Coast. It was among the presses officially ...

, 2016. *

Zohar The ''Zohar'' ( he, , ''Zōhar'', lit. "Splendor" or "Radiance") is a foundational work in the literature of Jewish mystical thought known as Kabbalah. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah (the five ...

br>1:146b–65b
Spain, late 13th Century. In, e.g., ''The Zohar''. Translated by Harry Sperling and Maurice Simon. 5 volumes. London: Soncino Press, 1934. *

Nissim of Gerona Nissim ben Reuven (1320 – 9th of Shevat, 1376, he, נִסִּים בֶּן רְאוּבֵן) of Girona, Catalonia was an influential talmudist and authority on Jewish law. He was one of the last of the great Spanish medieval Talmudic scholars. ...

(The Ran). ''Derashos HaRan (Discourses of the Ran)'', discourse 5.

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the north ...

, 14th century. In, e.g., Yehuda Meir Keilson. ''Derashos HaRan: Discourses of the Ran, Rabbeinu Nissim ben Reuven of Gerona, Translated, Annotated, and Elucidated''. Volume 1, pages 365–464. Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 2019. *

Isaac ben Moses Arama Isaac ben Moses Arama ( 1420 – 1494) was a Spanish rabbi and author. He was at first principal of a rabbinical academy at Zamora (probably his birthplace); then he received a call as rabbi and preacher from the community at Tarragona, and later ...

. ''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 196–209. New York, Lambda Publishers, 2001.

Modern

Isaac Abravanel Isaac ben Judah Abarbanel ( he, יצחק בן יהודה אברבנאל;‎ 1437–1508), commonly referred to as Abarbanel (), also spelled Abravanel, Avravanel, or Abrabanel, was a Portuguese Jewish statesman, philosopher, Bible commentator ...

. ''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 185–209. Brooklyn: CreateSpace, 2015. *

Obadiah ben Jacob Sforno Ovadia ben Jacob Sforno (Obadja Sforno, Hebrew: עובדיה ספורנו) was an Italian rabbi, Biblical commentator, philosopher and physician. A member of the Sforno family, he was born in Cesena about 1475 and died in Bologna in 1550. Bio ...

. ''Commentary on the Torah''. Venice, 1567. In, e.g., ''Sforno: Commentary on the Torah''. Translation and explanatory notes by Raphael Pelcovitz, pages 148–73. Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 1997. *

Moshe Alshich Moshe Alshich he, משה אלשיך, also spelled Alshech, (1508–1593), known as the ''Alshich Hakadosh (the Holy)'', was a prominent rabbi, preacher, and Bible, biblical commentator in the latter part of the sixteenth century. The Alshich wa ...

. ''Commentary on the Torah''.

, circa 1593. In, e.g., Moshe Alshich. ''Midrash of Rabbi Moshe Alshich on the Torah''. Translated and annotated by Eliyahu Munk, volume 1, pages 183–207. New York, Lambda Publishers, 2000. *

Saul Levi Morteira Saul Levi Morteira or Mortera ( 1596 – 10 February 1660) was a Dutch rabbi of Portuguese descent. Life In a Spanish poem Daniel Levi de Barrios speaks of him as being a native of Germany ("''de Alemania natural''"). From the age of thirt ...

. "The Dust of the Earth." Budapest, circa 1623. In Marc Saperstein. ''Exile in Amsterdam: Saul Levi Morteira’s Sermons to a Congregation of "New Jews,"'' pages 377–92.

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

Hebrew Union College Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

Press, 2005. JohnDonne

John Donne John Donne ( ; 22 January 1572 – 31 March 1631) was an English poet, scholar, soldier and secretary born into a recusant family, who later became a clergy, cleric in the Church of England. Under royal patronage, he was made Dean of St Paul's ...

"Song: Go and catch a falling star."
England, early 17th century. ("Get with child a mandrake root"). *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 78–80.

Southfield, Michigan Southfield is a city in Oakland County, Michigan, Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, the city had a population of 76,618. As a northern suburb of Detroit, Southfield shares part of its ...

Targum Press Menucha Publishers is an Orthodox Jewish English-language publishing company based in Brooklyn, New York. Originally founded as a distributor for Targum Press, in 2011 after Targum's shutdown, Menucha established itself as an independent publish ...

Feldheim Publishers Feldheim Publishers (or Feldheim) is an American Orthodox Jewish publisher of Torah books and literature. Its extensive catalog of titles includes books on Jewish law, Torah, Talmud, Jewish lifestyle, Shabbat and Jewish holidays, Jewish history, b ...

, 2004.

Thomas Hobbes Thomas Hobbes ( ; 5/15 April 1588 – 4/14 December 1679) was an English philosopher, considered to be one of the founders of modern political philosophy. Hobbes is best known for his 1651 book ''Leviathan'', in which he expounds an influent ...

. ''

Leviathan Leviathan (; he, לִוְיָתָן, ) is a sea serpent noted in theology and mythology. It is referenced in several books of the Hebrew Bible, including Psalms, the Book of Job, the Book of Isaiah, the Book of Amos, and, according to some ...

'', 3:34, 36; 4:45. England, 1651. Reprint edited by

C. B. Macpherson Crawford Brough Macpherson (1911–1987) was an influential Canadian political scientist who taught political theory at the University of Toronto. Life Macpherson was born on 18 November 1911 in Toronto, Ontario. After graduating from the Univ ...

, pages 437, 460, 676–77. Harmondsworth, England: Penguin Classics, 1982. *

Moshe Chaim Luzzatto Moshe Chaim Luzzatto ( he, משה חיים לוצאטו, also ''Moses Chaim'', ''Moses Hayyim'', also ''Luzzato'') (1707 – 16 May 1746 (26 ''Iyar'' 5506)), also known by the Hebrew acronym RaMCHaL (or RaMHaL, ), was a prominent Italia ...

Mesillat Yesharim ''Mesillat Yesharim'' or ''Mesillas Yeshorim'' ( he, מסילת ישרים, lit. "Path of the Upright") is an ethical ('' musar'') text composed by the influential Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto (1707–1746). It is different from Luzzato's other wri ...

'', chapter 4. Amsterdam, 1740. In ''Mesillat Yesharim: The Path of the Just'', page 53. Jerusalem: Feldheim, 1966. George Eliot by Samuel Laurence

Chaim ibn Attar Chaim ibn Attar or Ḥayyim ben Moshe ibn Attar ( ar, حاييم بن موشي بن عطار, he, חיים בן משה בן עטר; b. - 7 July 1743) also known as the Or ha-Ḥayyim after his popular commentary on the Torah, was a Talmudist ...

. ''Ohr ha-Chaim''. Venice, 1742. In Chayim ben Attar. ''Or Hachayim: Commentary on the Torah''. Translated by Eliyahu Munk, volume 1, pages 234–72. Brooklyn: Lambda Publishers, 1999. *

George Eliot Mary Ann Evans (22 November 1819 – 22 December 1880; alternatively Mary Anne or Marian), known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, poet, journalist, translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era. She wro ...

. ''

Adam Bede ''Adam Bede'' was the first novel by Mary Ann Evans (George Eliot), and was published in 1859. It was published pseudonymously, even though Evans was a well-published and highly respected scholar of her time. The novel has remained in print ev ...

'', chapters 3, 21. Edinburgh and London: William Blackwood and Sons, 1859. Reprinted, e.g., edited by Carol A. Martin, pages 31, 220. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008. (Seth tells Dinah, "It’s a deep mystery—the way the heart of man turns to one woman out of all the rest he’s seen i’ the world, and makes it easier for him to work seven year for her, like Jacob did for Rachel, sooner than have any other woman for th’ asking. I often think of them words n ‘And Jacob served seven years for Rachel; and they seemed to him but a few days for the love he had to her.’" Separately, Miss Liddy works on a needlepoint of "Jacob and Rachel a-kissing one another among the sheep," as reported in ). *"Jacob’s Ladder." In

Greensbury Washington Offley Greensbury Washington Offley (December 18, 1808 – March 22, 1896) was an American slave narrative author and minister. Born into slavery in Maryland and eventually freed, Offley wrote ''A Narrative of the Life and Labors of the Rev. G. W. Offl ...

''A Narrative of the Life and Labors of the Rev. G.W. Offley, a Colored Man, Local Preacher and Missionary''
pages 23–24. Hartford, 1859. (a hymn). Shadal

Samuel David Luzzatto Samuel David Luzzatto ( he, שמואל דוד לוצאטו, ; 22 August 1800 – 30 September 1865), also known by the Hebrew acronym Shadal (), was an Italian Jewish scholar, poet, and a member of the Wissenschaft des Judentums movement. Early ...

(Shadal). ''Commentary on the Torah.''

Padua Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...

, 1871. In, e.g., Samuel David Luzzatto. ''Torah Commentary''. Translated and annotated by Eliyahu Munk, volume 1, pages 272–309. New York: Lambda Publishers, 2012. *

Yehudah Aryeh Leib Alter Yehudah Aryeh Leib Alter ( he, יהודה אריה ליב אלתר, 15 April 1847 – 11 January 1905), also known by the title of his main work, the ''Sfas Emes'' (Ashkenazic Pronunciation) or ''Sefat Emet'' (Modern Hebrew), was a Hasidic rabbi ...

. ''Sefat Emet''.

Góra Kalwaria Góra Kalwaria (; "Calvary Mountain", yi, גער, ''Ger'') is a town on the Vistula River in the Masovian Voivodeship, in east-central Poland. It is situated approximately southeast of Warsaw and has a population of around 12,109 (as of 2019). ...

(Ger),

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

, before 1906. Excerpted in ''The Language of Truth: The Torah Commentary of Sefat Emet''. Translated and interpreted by

Arthur Green Arthur Green ( he, אברהם יצחק גרין, born March 21, 1941) is an American scholar of Jewish mysticism and Neo-Hasidic theologian. He was a founding dean of the non-denominational rabbinical program at Hebrew College in Boston, where he ...

, pages 43–48. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 1998. Reprinted 2012. Abraham Isaac Kook 1924

Abraham Isaac Kook Abraham Isaac Kook (; 7 September 1865 – 1 September 1935), known as Rav Kook, and also known by the acronym HaRaAYaH (), was an Orthodox rabbi, and the first Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of British Mandatory Palestine. He is considered to be one ...

. ''The Moral Principles''. Early 20th Century. In ''Abraham Isaac Kook: the Lights of Penitence, the Moral Principles, Lights of Holiness, Essays, Letters, and Poems''. Translated by

Ben Zion Bokser Ben-Zion Bokser (July 4, 1907 – January 30, 1984) was a major Conservative rabbi in the United States. Biography Bokser was born in Liuboml, then a part of Poland, and emigrated to the United States at the age of 13 in 1920. He attended City ...

, page 162. Mahwah, New Jersey: Paulist Press 1978. *Rufus Town Stephenson
"The Jacob's Ladder in Homer."
''

The Classical Journal ''The Classical Journal'' (CJ) is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal of classical studies published by the Classical Association of the Middle West and South. Print edition The journal currently has about 2300 subscribers, including app ...

'', volume 30 (number 9) (June 1935): pages 515–30. *Alexander Alan Steinbach. ''Sabbath Queen: Fifty-four Bible Talks to the Young Based on Each Portion of the Pentateuch'', pages 20–22. New York: Behrman's Jewish Book House, 1936. *

Millar Burrows Millar Burrows (Wyoming, Ohio, October 26, 1889 – April 29, 1980) was an American biblical scholar, a leading authority on the Dead Sea scrolls and professor emeritus at Yale Divinity School. Burrows was director of American School of Oriental Re ...

. "The Complaint of Laban's Daughters." ''

Journal of the American Oriental Society The ''Journal of the American Oriental Society'' is a quarterly academic journal published by the American Oriental Society The American Oriental Society was chartered under the laws of Massachusetts on September 7, 1842. It is one of the olde ...

'', volume 57 (1937): pages 259–76. *

Cyrus H. Gordon Cyrus Herzl Gordon (June 29, 1908 – March 30, 2001) was an American scholar of Near Eastern cultures and ancient languages. Biography Gordon was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the son of Lithuanian emigrant and physician Benjamin Gordon. ...

. "The Story of Jacob and Laban in the Light of the Nuzi Tablets." ''

Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research The ''Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research'' is one of three academic journals published by the American Schools of Oriental Research. It began as the ''Bulletin of the American School of Oriental Research in Jerusalem'', in 1919 ...

'', volume 66 (1937): pages 25–27. Thomas Mann 1937

*Irving Fineman. ''Jacob, An Autobiographical Novel''. New York: Random House, 1941. *

Thomas Mann Paul Thomas Mann ( , ; ; 6 June 1875 – 12 August 1955) was a German novelist, short story writer, social critic, philanthropist, essayist, and the 1929 Nobel Prize in Literature laureate. His highly symbolic and ironic epic novels and novella ...

. ''

Joseph and His Brothers ''Joseph and His Brothers'' (''Joseph und seine Brüder'') is a four-part novel by Thomas Mann, written over the course of 16 years. Mann retells the familiar stories of Genesis, from Jacob to Joseph (chapters 27–50), setting it in the hi ...

''. Translated by John E. Woods, pages 24–25, 37, 47, 51, 87, 103–12, 119–20, 124–25, 135, 138, 142, 173–305, 307, 313, 323, 334, 337, 384–86, 388–92, 425, 460, 474, 488, 491–93, 502–03, 511, 515, 517, 519, 524, 530, 669–70, 676–77, 690–91, 693, 715–16, 729–30, 778, 805, 814, 883, 915. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2005. Originally published as ''Joseph und seine Brüder''. Stockholm: Bermann-Fischer Verlag, 1943. Bernard Malamud portrait

Bernard Malamud Bernard Malamud (April 26, 1914 – March 18, 1986) was an American novelist and short story writer. Along with Saul Bellow, Joseph Heller, and Philip Roth, he was one of the best known American Jewish authors of the 20th century. His baseba ...

. "The Literary Life of Laban Goldman." ''Assembly'' (November 1943). In Bernard Malamud. ''The People and Uncollected Stories''. New York:

Farrar, Straus and Giroux Farrar, Straus and Giroux (FSG) is an American book publishing company, founded in 1946 by Roger Williams Straus Jr. and John C. Farrar. FSG is known for publishing literary books, and its authors have won numerous awards, including Pulitzer ...

, 1989. And reprinted in Bernard Malamud. ''The Complete Stories''. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1997. (a character named Laban seeks to change marriage conventions, deceives others and himself). *Bernard Malamud. "The First Seven Years." ''

Partisan Review ''Partisan Review'' (''PR'') was a small-circulation quarterly "little magazine" dealing with literature, politics, and cultural commentary published in New York City. The magazine was launched in 1934 by the Communist Party USA–affiliated John ...

'' (September–October 1950). In Bernard Malamud. ''

The Magic Barrel ''The Magic Barrel'' is a 1958 collection of thirteen short stories written by Bernard Malamud and published by Farrar, Straus & Giroux. Also, the Jewish Publication Society released its own edition at the same time. It won the 1959 U.S. Natio ...

''. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1958. And reprinted in Bernard Malamud. ''A Malamud Reader''. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1967. And reprinted in Bernard Malamud. ''The Stories of Bernard Malamud''. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1983. And reprinted in Bernard Malamud. ''The Complete Stories''. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1997. (a refugee works for seven years to win the hand of his employer's daughter). *

Charles Reznikoff Charles Reznikoff (August 31, 1894 – January 22, 1976) was an American poet best known for his long work, ''Testimony: The United States (1885–1915), Recitative'' (1934–1979). The term Objectivist was coined for him. The multi-volume ''Test ...

. ''Luzzato: Padua 1727''. Mid 20th Century. In

Harold Bloom Harold Bloom (July 11, 1930 – October 14, 2019) was an American literary critic and the Sterling Professor of Humanities at Yale University. In 2017, Bloom was described as "probably the most famous literary critic in the English-speaking wor ...

. ''American Religious Poems'', page 247. Library of America, 2006. *Peter R. Ackroyd. "The Teraphim." ''

Expository Times ''The Expository Times'' is a long-established academic journal of biblical studies, theology, and ministry established in 1889 by the Scottish theologian James Hastings. The journal is abstracted and indexed in the ATLA Religion Database, New Te ...

'', volume 62 (1950–51): pages 378–80. *M. David. "Zabal (Gen. Xxx 26)." ''

Vetus Testamentum ''Vetus Testamentum'' is a quarterly academic journal covering various aspects of the Old Testament. It is published by Brill Publishers Brill Academic Publishers (known as E. J. Brill, Koninklijke Brill, Brill ()) is a Dutch international a ...

'', volume 1 (1951): pages 59–60. *

David Daube David Daube (8 February 1909, in Freiburg, Germany – 24 February 1999, in Berkeley, California) was the twentieth century's preeminent scholar of ancient law. He combined a familiarity with many legal systems, particularly Roman law and biblica ...

and Reuven Yaron. "Jacob's Reception by Laban." ''

Journal of Semitic Studies A journal, from the Old French ''journal'' (meaning "daily"), may refer to: *Bullet journal, a method of personal organization *Diary, a record of what happened over the course of a day or other period *Daybook, also known as a general journal, a ...

'', volume 1 (1956): pages 60–62. *

Moshe Greenberg Moshe Greenberg (Hebrew: משה גרינברג; July 10, 1928 – May 15, 2010) was an American rabbi, Bible scholar, and professor emeritus of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Biography"Another Look at Rachel's Theft of the Teraphim."
''

Journal of Biblical Literature The ''Journal of Biblical Literature'' (''JBL'') is one of three academic journals published by the Society of Biblical Literature (SBL). First published in 1881, ''JBL'' is the flagship journal of the field. ''JBL'' is published quarterly and inc ...

'', volume 81 (1962): pages 239–48. *Walter Orenstein and Hertz Frankel. ''Torah and Tradition: A Bible Textbook for Jewish Youth: Volume I: Bereishis'', pages 72–82. New York: Hebrew Publishing Company, 1964. *John G. Griffiths. "The Celestial Ladder and the Gate of Heaven (Genesis 28:12,17)." ''Expository Times'', volume 76 (1964–65): page 229. *

Frederick Buechner Carl Frederick Buechner ( ; July 11, 1926 – August 15, 2022) was an American author, Presbyterianism, Presbyterian Minister (Christianity), minister, preacher, and theologian. The author of thirty-nine published books, his work encompassed d ...

. ''The Magnificent Defeat'', pages 10–18. Seabury Press, 1966. Reprinted San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1985. *Francisco O. Garcia-Treto. "Genesis 31:44 and ‘Gilead.'" ''

Zeitschrift für die Alttestamentliche Wissenschaft The ''Zeitschrift für die Alttestamentliche Wissenschaft'' (''ZATW''/''ZAW'') is an academic German journal established in 1881. It is concerned with theological, linguistic and historical criticism of the Hebrew Bible. Formerly, it represented a ...

'', volume 79 (1967): pages 13–17. *

Delmore Schwartz Delmore Schwartz (December 8, 1913 – July 11, 1966) was an American poet and short story writer. Early life Schwartz was born in 1913 in Brooklyn, New York, where he also grew up. His parents, Harry and Rose, both Romanian Jews, separated when ...

. "Jacob." In ''Selected Poems: Summer Knowledge'', pages 233–35. New York: New Directions, 1967. *Jacob J. Finkelstein. "An Old Babylonian Herding Contract and Genesis 31:38." ''Journal of the American Oriental Society'', volume 88 (1968): pages 30–36. * Francis I. Andersen. "Note on Genesis 30:8." ''Journal of Biblical Literature'', volume 88 (1969): page 200. *Murray H. Lichtenstein
"Dream-Theophany and the E Document."
''Journal of the Ancient Near Eastern Society'', volume 1 (number 2) (1969): pages 45–54. *Rintje Frankena
"Some Remarks on the Semitic Background of Chapters XXIX–XXXI of the Book of Genesis."
''Oudtestamentische Studiën'', volume 17 (1972): pages 53–64. *Ernest G. Clarke. "Jacob's Dream at Bethel as Interpreted in the Targums and the New Testament." ''

Studies in Religion/Sciences Religieuses ''Studies in Religion/'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal that publishes papers in English and French in the field of theology. The editors-in-chief are Alain Bouchard () and Patricia Dold ( Memorial University of Newfoundland). It wa ...

'', volume 4 (1974–75): pages 367–77. *Francisco O. Garcia-Treto. "Jacob's ‘Oath-Covenant' in Genesis 28." ''Trinity University Studies in Religion'', volume 10 (1975): pages 1–10. *Seän M. Warner. "The Patriarchs and Extra-Biblical Sources." ''

Journal for the Study of the Old Testament The ''Journal for the Study of the Old Testament'' (JSOT) is a peer-reviewed academic journal covering the field of Biblical studies. The editors-in-chief are David Shepherd (Trinity College Dublin) and Lena-Sofia Tiemeyer ( Örebro School of Theol ...

'', volume 1, number 2 (June 1976): pages 50–61. *

J. Maxwell Miller Joseph Maxwell Miller (December 23, 1877 – February 20, 1933) was an American sculptor. Biography J. Maxwell Miller was born in Baltimore, Maryland on December 23, 1877. He studied at the Maryland Institute School of Art and Design and at ...

. "The Patriarchs and Extra-Biblical Sources: a Response." ''Journal for the Study of the Old Testament'', volume 1, number 2 (June 1976): pages 62–66. *Cornelis Houtman. "What Did Jacob See in His Dream at Bethel? Some Remarks on Genesis xxviii 10–22." ''Vetus Testamentum'', volume 27 (1977): pages 337–51. *Cornelis Houtman. "Jacob at Mahanaim. Some Remarks on Genesis xxxii 2–3." ''Vetus Testamentum'', volume 28 (1978): pages 37–44. *Peter D. Miscall. "The Jacob and Joseph Stories as Analogies." ''Journal for the Study of the Old Testament'', volume 3, number 6 (April 1978): pages 28–40. * Donald J. Wiseman. "They Lived in Tents." In ''Biblical and Near Eastern Studies: Essays in Honor of

William Sanford La Sor William Sanford LaSor (October 25, 1911 – 1991) was an American academic who worked as a professor emeritus of Old Testament at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California.LA Sor, William Sanford et al, ''Old Testament survey: the mes ...

''. Edited by Gary A. Tuttle, pages 195–200. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1978. *

Michael Fishbane Michael A. Fishbane (born 1943) is an American scholar of Judaism and rabbinic literature. Formerly at Brandeis University, he is currently Professor Emeritus of Jewish Studies at the Divinity School, University of Chicago. Fishbane (Ph.D., Brande ...

. "Genesis 25:19–35:22/The Jacob Cycle." In ''Text and Texture: Close Readings of Selected Biblical Texts'', pages 40–62. New York: Schocken Books, 1979. *John G. Gammie. "Theological Interpretation by Way of Literary and Tradition Analysis: Genesis 25–36." In ''Encounter with the Text: Form and History in the Hebrew Bible''. Edited by Martin J. Buss, pages 117–34. Philadelphia: Fortress, 1979. *Charles Mabee. "Jacob and Laban: The Structure of Judicial Proceedings: (Genesis XXXI 25–42)." ''Vetus Testamentum'', volume 30 (1980): pages 192–207. * Nehama Leibowitz. ''Studies in Bereshit (Genesis)'', pages 298–344. Jerusalem: The

World Zionist Organization The World Zionist Organization ( he, הַהִסְתַּדְּרוּת הַצִּיּוֹנִית הָעוֹלָמִית; ''HaHistadrut HaTzionit Ha'Olamit''), or WZO, is a non-governmental organization that promotes Zionism. It was founded as the ...

, 1981. Reprinted as ''New Studies in the Weekly Parasha''. Lambda Publishers, 2010. *Molly Tuby
"Jacob's Dream."
''European Judaism: A Journal for the New Europe'', volume 15 (number 1) (Summer 1981): pages 13–16. *Nathaniel Wander
"Structure, Contradiction, and ‘Resolution' in Mythology: Father's Brother's Daughter Marriage and the Treatment of Women in Genesis 11–50."
''Journal of the Ancient Near Eastern Society'', volume 13 (1981): pages 75–99. Margaret Atwood Eden Mills Writers Festival 2006

Margaret Atwood Eden Mills Writers Festival 2006

. ''Genesis: Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching'', pages 241–66. Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1982. *James A. Diamond. "The Deception of Jacob: A New Perspective on an Ancient Solution to the Problem." ''Vetus Testamentum'', volume 34 (1984): pages 211–13. *

Margaret Atwood Margaret Eleanor Atwood (born November 18, 1939) is a Canadian poet, novelist, literary critic, essayist, teacher, environmental activist, and inventor. Since 1961, she has published 18 books of poetry, 18 novels, 11 books of non-fiction, nin ...

. ''

The Handmaid's Tale ''The Handmaid's Tale'' is a futuristic dystopian novel by Canadian author Margaret Atwood and published in 1985. It is set in a near-future New England in a patriarchal, totalitarian theonomic state known as the Republic of Gilead, which h ...

''. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1986. Louis Feldman

. ''Genesis: Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching'', pages 204–12, 241–64. Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1986. * Pinchas H. Peli. ''Torah Today: A Renewed Encounter with Scripture'', pages 29–32. Washington, D.C.: B'nai B'rith Books, 1987. *

Louis H. Feldman Louis Harry Feldman (October 29, 1926 – March 25, 2017) was an American professor of classics and literature. He was the Abraham Wouk Family Professor of Classics and Literature at Yeshiva University, the institution at which he taught s ...

"Josephus' Portrait of Jacob."
''

The Jewish Quarterly Review ''The Jewish Quarterly Review'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal covering Jewish studies. It is published by the University of Pennsylvania Press on behalf of the Herbert D. Katz Center for Advanced Judaic Studies (University of Pe ...

'', New Series, volume 79 (number 2/3) (October 1988–January 1989): pages 101–51. *

Nahum M. Sarna Nahum Mattathias Sarna (Hebrew: נחום סרנא; March 27, 1923 – June 23, 2005) was a modern biblical scholar who is best known for the study of Genesis and Exodus represented in his ''Understanding Genesis'' (1966) and in his contributions t ...

. ''The JPS Torah Commentary: Genesis: The Traditional Hebrew Text with the New JPS Translation'', pages 197–223, 398–403. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 1989. *Jeanne Steig and

William Steig William Steig (November 14, 1907 – October 3, 2003) was an American cartoonist, illustrator and writer of children's books, best known for the picture book ''Shrek!'', which inspired the film series of the same name, as well as others that in ...

. "Jacob's Ladder." In ''The Old Testament Made Easy''. New York: Farrar Straus Giroux, 1990. *

. ''The Son of Laughter''. New York: HarperCollins, 1993. *

Lawrence Kushner Lawrence Kushner (born 1943) is a Reform rabbi and the scholar-in-residence at Congregation Emanu-El in San Francisco, California. Biography Born in Detroit in 1943, Kushner graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Cincinnati and went on ...

. ''God Was in This Place and I, I Did Not Know: Finding Self, Spirituality and Ultimate Meaning''. Jewish Lights Publishing, 1993. *

Pat Schneider Pat Schneider (June 1, 1934 – August 10, 2020) was an American writer, poet, writing teacher and editor. Biography Schneider was born in Ava, Missouri in 1934. She was educated at Central Methodist College in Missouri, and earned her MA from ...

br>''Welcoming Angels''
In ''Long Way Home: Poems'', page 90. Amherst, Massachusetts: Amherst Writers and Artists Press, 1993. *

Aaron Wildavsky Aaron Wildavsky (May 31, 1930 – September 4, 1993) was an American political scientist known for his pioneering work in public policy, government budgeting, and risk management. Early years A native of Brooklyn in New York, Wildavsky was th ...

. ''Assimilation versus Separation: Joseph the Administrator and the Politics of Religion in Biblical Israel'', pages 5–6, 8.

New Brunswick, New Jersey New Brunswick is a city (New Jersey), city in and the county seat, seat of government of Middlesex County, New Jersey, Middlesex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Northvale, New Jersey Northvale is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 4,640,Jason Aronson Jason Aronson was an American publisher of books in the field of psychotherapy. Topics dealt with in these books include child therapy, family therapy, couple therapy, object relations therapy, play therapy, depression, eating disorders, persona ...

, 1995. *Naomi H. Rosenblatt and Joshua Horwitz. ''Wrestling With Angels: What Genesis Teaches Us About Our Spiritual Identity, Sexuality, and Personal Relationships'', pages 259–88. Delacorte Press, 1995. *

Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg (born March 1944) is a Scottish contemporary Torah scholar and author. Biography She was born in London, England, grew up in Glasgow, Scotland, and moved to Israel in 1969, where she currently resides in Jerusalem. Zor ...

. ''The Beginning of Desire: Reflections on Genesis'', pages 180–215. New York: Image Books/Doubelday, 1995. Gunther Plaut cropped

Ellen Frankel Ellen Frankel (born 1951) was the Editor-in-Chief of the Jewish Publication Society (JPS) from 1991 until 2009, and also served as CEO of the JPS for 10 years. She retired in 2009 to pursue her own writing and scholarly projects, serving as JPS's f ...

. ''The Five Books of Miriam: A Woman’s Commentary on the Torah'', pages 49–63. New York:

G. P. Putnam's Sons G. P. Putnam's Sons is an American book publisher based in New York City, New York. Since 1996, it has been an imprint of the Penguin Group. History The company began as Wiley & Putnam with the 1838 partnership between George Palmer Putnam and J ...

, 1996. *

W. Gunther Plaut Wolf Gunther Plaut, (November 1, 1912 – February 8, 2012) was an American Reform rabbi and writer who was based in Canada. Plaut was the rabbi of Holy Blossom Temple in Toronto for several decades and since 1978 was its senior scholar. L ...

. ''The Haftarah Commentary'', pages 64–73. New York: UAHC Press, 1996. *''Beginning The Journey: Toward a Women's Commentary on Torah''. Edited by Emily H. Feigenson, pages 1–59, 151–53. Women of Reform Judaism, The Federation of Temple Sisterhoods, 1997. *Sorel Goldberg Loeb and Barbara Binder Kadden. ''Teaching Torah: A Treasury of Insights and Activities'', pages 46–51.

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

: A.R.E. Publishing, 1997. Celiadefreine2

*Scott E. Noegel
"Sex, Sticks, and the Trickster in Gen. 30:31–43."
''Journal of the Ancient Near Eastern Society'', volume 25 (1997): pages 7–17. *

Celia de Fréine Celia de Fréine (born 1948) is a poet, playwright, screenwriter and librettist who writes in Irish and English. Background Celia de Fréine was born in Newtownards, County Down. At an early age she moved with her family to Dublin, maint ...

"Jacob's Ladder."
''

Poetry Ireland Review ''Poetry Ireland Review'' is a journal of Irish poetry published three times a year by Poetry Ireland, the national Irish poetry organisation. ''Poetry Ireland Review'' publishes the work of both emerging and established Irish and international ...

'', number 57 (Summer 1998): pages 41–42. *

Mary Doria Russell Mary Doria Russell (born August 19, 1950) is an American novelist. Early life and education Russell was born in Elmhurst, Illinois She graduated from Glenbard East High School in Lombard, Illinois, which has registered its chapter of the Nati ...

. '' Children of God: A Novel'', page 427. New York: Villard, 1998. ("God was in this place, and I—I did not know it."). Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz

*Susan Freeman. ''Teaching Jewish Virtues: Sacred Sources and Arts Activities'', pages 69–84, 228–40, 332–46. Springfield, New Jersey: A.R.E. Publishing, 1999. (;
13
. *

Adin Steinsaltz Rabbi Adin Even-Israel Steinsaltz (11 July 19377 August 2020) ( he, עדין אבן-ישראל שטיינזלץ) was an Israeli Chabad Chasidic rabbi, teacher, philosopher, social critic, author, translator and publisher. His '' Steinsaltz edi ...

. ''Simple Words: Thinking About What Really Matters in Life'', page 199. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1999. *John S. Kselman. "Genesis." In ''The HarperCollins Bible Commentary''. Edited by James L. Mays, pages 100–03. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, revised edition, 2000. *Tamara Goshen-Gottstein. "The Souls that They Made: Physical Infertility and Spiritual Fecundity." In ''Torah of the Mothers: Contemporary Jewish Women Read Classical Jewish Texts''. Edited by Ora Wiskind Elper and Susan Handelman, pages 123–54. New York and Jerusalem: Urim Publications, 2000. (). Israël Finkelstein-2007

and

. "Searching for the Patriarchs." In ''The Bible Unearthed: Archaeology's New Vision of Ancient Israel and the Origin of Its Sacred Texts'', pages 27–47. New York: The Free Press, 2001. *Lainie Blum Cogan and Judy Weiss. ''Teaching Haftarah: Background, Insights, and Strategies'', pages 519–36. Denver: A.R.E. Publishing, 2002. *

. ''The JPS Bible Commentary: Haftarot'', pages 40–55. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 2002. *Alan Lew. ''This Is Real and You Are Completely Unprepared: The Days of Awe as a Journey of Transformation'', pages 154–55. Boston: Little, Brown and Co., 2003. *

Robert Alter Robert Bernard Alter (born 1935) is an American professor of Hebrew and comparative literature at the University of California, Berkeley, where he has taught since 1967. He published his translation of the Hebrew Bible in 2018. Biography Rober ...

. ''The Five Books of Moses: A Translation with Commentary'', pages 149–77. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 2004. *

Jon D. Levenson Jon Douglas Levenson is an American Hebrew Bible scholar who is the Albert A. List Professor of Jewish Studies at the Harvard Divinity School. Education *A.B. '' summa cum laude'' in English, Harvard College, 1971. *A.M. Department of Near Easter ...

. "Genesis." In ''The Jewish Study Bible''. Edited by

Adele Berlin Adele Berlin (born May 23, 1943 in Philadelphia) is an American biblical scholar and Hebraist. Before her retirement, she was Robert H. Smith Professor of Biblical Studies at the University of Maryland. Berlin is best known for 1994 work ''Poeti ...

and

Marc Zvi Brettler Marc Brettler (Marc Zvi Brettler) is an American biblical scholar, and the Bernice and Morton Lerner Professor in Judaic Studies at Duke University. He earned his B.A., M.A., and PhD from Brandeis University, where he previously served as Dora Gold ...

, pages 58–66. New York: Oxford University Press, 2004. *''Professors on the Parashah: Studies on the Weekly Torah Reading'' Edited by Leib Moscovitz, pages 56–59. Jerusalem: Urim Publications, 2005. *Frank Anthony Spina. "Esau: The Face of God." In ''The Faith of the Outsider: Exclusion and Inclusion in the Biblical Story'', pages 14–34. William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2005. James Kugel cropped

*Jules Francis Gomes. ''The Sanctuary of Bethel and the Configuration of Israelite Identity''. De Gruyter, 2006. * James L. Kugel. ''The Ladder of Jacob: Ancient Interpretations of the Biblical Story of Jacob and His Children''. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2006. *

Denise Levertov Priscilla Denise Levertov (24 October 1923 – 20 December 1997) was a British-born naturalised American poet. She was a recipient of the Lannan Literary Award for Poetry. Early life and influences Levertov was born and grew up in Ilford, Ess ...

. "The Jacob's Ladder" in Harold Bloom, ''American Religious Poems'', page 379. Library of America, 2006. *W. Gunther Plaut. ''The Torah: A Modern Commentary: Revised Edition''. Revised edition edited by David E.S. Stern, pages 194–217. New York:

Union for Reform Judaism The Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), known as the Union of American Hebrew Congregations (UAHC) until 2003, founded in 1873 by Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise, is the congregational arm of Reform Judaism in North America. The other two arms established ...

, 2006. *Suzanne A. Brody. "Leah's Lesson." In ''Dancing in the White Spaces: The Yearly Torah Cycle and More Poems'', page 68. Shelbyville, Kentucky: Wasteland Press, 2007. *James L. Kugel. ''How To Read the Bible: A Guide to Scripture, Then and Now'', pages 133–62, 170–71, 195, 353, 400, 521. New York: Free Press, 2007. *

Esther Jungreis Esther Jungreis (April 27, 1936 – August 23, 2016, 19 Menachem Av, 5776) was a Jewish, Hungarian-born, American author, and public speaker. She was the founder of the international Hineni organization in the United States. A Holocaust survivor ...

. ''Life Is a Test'', pages 77–78, 130, 134, 163. Brooklyn: Shaar Press, 2007. *Sandra L. Gravett, Karla G. Bohmbach, F.V. Greifenhagen, Donald C. Polaski. ''An Introduction to the Hebrew Bible: A Thematic Approach'', pages 53–58, 61–62, 68–70, 73. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2008. (comparison of the story of Jacob's vision in in theological readings, source critical analysis, literary critical analysis, and

Deconstruction The term deconstruction refers to approaches to understanding the relationship between text and meaning. It was introduced by the philosopher Jacques Derrida, who defined it as a turn away from Platonism's ideas of "true" forms and essences w ...

ist analysis). JonathanGoldstein

*''The Torah: A Women's Commentary''. Edited by

Tamara Cohn Eskenazi Tamara Cohn Eskenazi is The Effie Wise Ochs Professor of Biblical Literature and History at the Reform Jewish seminary Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Los Angeles. She was the first woman hired by the Hebrew Union College-Jewi ...

and Andrea L. Weiss, pages 157–82. New York: URJ Press, 2008. * Jonathan Goldstein. "Jacob and Esau." In ''

Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bible! ''Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bible!'' is a book written by author and radio presenter Jonathan Goldstein. The book is a comedic retelling of the Old Testament stories such as Adam and Eve, Samson, Noah, and David and Goliath. ''Ladies and Gentlem ...

'' pages 105–14. New York: Riverhead Books, 2009. *

Reuven Hammer Reuven Hammer (June 30, 1933 – August 12, 2019) was an American-Israeli Conservative rabbi, scholar of Jewish liturgy, author and lecturer who was born in New York. He was a founder of the "Masorti" (Conservative) movement in Israel and a presid ...

. ''Entering Torah: Prefaces to the Weekly Torah Portion'', pages 41–46. New York: Gefen Publishing House, 2009. *Yoel Kahn. "And Jacob Came Out: Parashat Vayetzei (Genesis 28:10–32:3)." In ''Torah Queeries: Weekly Commentaries on the Hebrew Bible''. Edited by Gregg Drinkwater, Joshua Lesser, and David Shneer; foreword by

Judith Plaskow Judith Plaskow (born March 14, 1947) is an American theologian, author, and activist known for being the first Jewish feminist theologian. After earning her doctorate at Yale University, she taught at Manhattan College for thirty-two years before ...

, pages 43–46. New York:

New York University Press New York University Press (or NYU Press) is a university press that is part of New York University. History NYU Press was founded in 1916 by the then chancellor of NYU, Elmer Ellsworth Brown. Directors * Arthur Huntington Nason, 1916–1932 ...

, 2009.

* Timothy Keller. "Love Is Not All You Need" and "The End of Counterfeit Gods." In ''Counterfeit Gods: The Empty Promises of Money, Sex, and Power, and the Only Hope that Matters''. Dutton Adult, 2009. (Jacob's love for Rachel; Jacob and Esau). *

Jonathan Sacks Jonathan Henry Sacks, Baron Sacks ( he, יונתן הנרי זקס, translit=Yona'tan Henry Zaks; 8 March 19487 November 2020) was an English Orthodox rabbi, philosopher, theologian, and author. Sacks served as the Chief Rabbi of the United He ...

. ''Covenant & Conversation: A Weekly Reading of the Jewish Bible: Genesis: The Book of Beginnings'', pages 177–210.

New Milford, Connecticut New Milford is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The town is in western Connecticut, north of Danbury, on the banks of the Housatonic River, and it shares its border with the northeastern shore of Candlewood Lake. It is t ...

: Maggid Books, 2009. *

John H. Walton John H. Walton (born 1952) is an Old Testament scholar and Professor at Wheaton College. He was a professor at Moody Bible Institute for 20 years. He specializes in the Ancient Near Eastern backgrounds of the Old Testament, especially Genesis ...

. "Genesis." In ''Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary''. Edited by John H. Walton, volume 1, pages 106–15.

Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is a city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 198,917 which ranks it as the List of municipalities in Mi ...

Zondervan Zondervan is an international Christian media and publishing company located in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Zondervan is a founding member of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA). They are a part of HarperCollins Christian Publ ...

, 2009. *Raymond Westbrook. "Good as His Word: Jacob Manipulates Justice." ''

Biblical Archaeology Review ''Biblical Archaeology Review'' is a magazine appearing every three months and sometimes referred to as ''BAR'' that seeks to connect the academic study of archaeology to a broad general audience seeking to understand the world of the Bible, the ...

'', volume 35 (number 3) (May/June 2009): pages 50–55, 64. Shmuel Herzfeld at House of Representatives cropped

*Calum Carmichael. ''The Book of Numbers: A Critique of Genesis'', pages 1, 7–8, 20, 55, 73, 92, 99–100, 120–21, 126–30, 133–34, 136, 147–56, 159, 192. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2012. *

Shmuel Herzfeld Shmuel Herzfeld (born October 9, 1974) is an American Modern Orthodox rabbi. He previously served as the Senior Rabbi of Ohev Sholom - The National Synagogue in Washington, D.C. He is a teacher, lecturer, activist, and author. Early life and ed ...

. "Yaakov's Synagogue: A Model for All of Us." In ''Fifty-Four Pick Up: Fifteen-Minute Inspirational Torah Lessons'', pages 35–38. Jerusalem:

Gefen Publishing House Gefen Publishing House (הוצאת גפן) is an English language publishing firm located in Jerusalem, which also has a department in New York City. History Gefen was founded in 1981 by Murray and Hana Greenfield. Its CEO is Ilan Greenfield, so ...

, 2012. *Chee-Chiew Lee
"Once Again: The Niphal and the Hithpael of in the Abrahamic Blessing for the Nations."
''Journal for the Study of the Old Testament'', volume 36 (number 3) (March 2012): pages 279–96. (). *

William G. Dever William Gwinn Dever (born November 27, 1933, Louisville, Kentucky) is an American archaeologist, Old Testament scholar, and historian, specialized in the history of the Ancient Near East and the ancient kingdoms of Israel and Judah in biblical ...

. ''The Lives of Ordinary People in Ancient Israel: When Archaeology and the Bible Intersect'', pages 46, 290.

William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company is a religious publishing house based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Founded in 1911 by Dutch American William B. Eerdmans (November 4, 1882 – April 1966) and still independently owned with William's daughte ...

, 2012. *Jerry Rabow. ''The Lost Matriarch: Finding Leah in the Bible and Midrash''. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 2014. *Jonathan Sacks. ''Lessons in Leadership: A Weekly Reading of the Jewish Bible'', pages 31–34. New Milford, Connecticut: Maggid Books, 2015. *

Jean-Pierre Isbouts Jean-Pierre Isbouts (born 1954) is a professor in the Social Sciences PhD program of Fielding Graduate University in Santa Barbara, California, and an archaeologist, author, screenwriter, director, and producer of works addressing various histori ...

. ''Archaeology of the Bible: The Greatest Discoveries From Genesis to the Roman Era'', pages 62–66.

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

: National Geographic Society, National Geographic, 2016. *Jonathan Sacks. ''Essays on Ethics: A Weekly Reading of the Jewish Bible'', pages 41–45. New Milford, Connecticut: Maggid Books, 2016. *Shai Held. ''The Heart of Torah, Volume 1: Essays on the Weekly Torah Portion: Genesis and Exodus'', pages 60–68. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 2017. *Steven Levy and Sarah Levy. ''The JPS Rashi Discussion Torah Commentary'', pages 21–23. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 2017. *Jeffrey K. Salkin. ''The JPS B'nai Mitzvah Torah Commentary'', pages 30–34. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 2017. *Pallant Ramsundar
"Biblical Mistranslations to 'Euphrates' and the Impact on the Borders of Israel."
''American Journal of Biblical Theology'' (2019). Liana Finck (30817591717) (cropped)

*Aren M. Wilson-Wright
"Bethel and the Persistence of El: Evidence for the Survival of El as an Independent Deity in the Jacob Cycle and 1 Kings 12:25–30."
''Journal of Biblical Literature'', volume 138, number 4 (2019): pages 705–20. *Andrew Tobolowsky
"The Problem of Reubenite Primacy: New Paradigms, New Answers."
''Journal of Biblical Literature'', volume 139, number 1 (2020): pages 27–45. *Liana Finck. ''Let There Be Light: The Real Story of Her Creation'', pages 249–73. New York: Random House, 2022.

External links

Texts

Masoretic text and 1917 JPS translationHear the parashah chanted

Commentaries

Academy for Jewish Religion, CaliforniaAcademy for Jewish Religion, New YorkAkhlah: The Jewish Children's Learning NetworkAleph Beta AcademyAlicia Jo RabinsAmerican Jewish University—Ziegler School of Rabbinic StudiesAscent of SafedBar-Ilan UniversityChabad.orgeparsha.comG-dcastJewish Theological SeminaryMechon HadarMiriam AflaloMyJewishLearning.comOhr SameachOzTorah—Torah from AustraliaOz Ve Shalom—Netivot ShalomPardes from JerusalemProfessor James L. KugelRabbi Dov LinzerRabbi Jonathan SacksRabbiShimon.comRabbi Shmuel HerzfeldReconstructionist JudaismSephardic InstituteShiur.comTeach613.org, Torah Education at Cherry HillTheTorah.comTorah from DixieTorah.orgTorahVort.comUnion for Reform JudaismUnited Synagogue of Conservative JudaismYeshivat Chovevei TorahYeshiva University
{{Book of Genesis Weekly Torah readings in Kislev Weekly Torah readings from Genesis

Readings

First reading—Genesis 28:10–22

Second reading—Genesis 29:1–17

Third reading—Genesis 29:18–30:13

Fourth reading—Genesis 30:14–27

Fifth reading—Genesis 30:28–31:16

Sixth reading—Genesis 31:17–42

Seventh reading—Genesis 31:43–32:3

Readings according to the triennial cycle

In inner-biblical interpretation

Genesis chapter 28

Genesis chapter 29

Genesis chapter 30

In classical rabbinic interpretation

Genesis chapter 28

Genesis chapter 29

Genesis chapter 30

Genesis chapter 31

Genesis chapter 32

In modern interpretation

Genesis chapters 25–33

Genesis chapter 28

Genesis chapter 29

Genesis chapter 32

Commandments

In the liturgy

The Weekly Maqam

Haftarah

Notes

Further reading

Biblical

Classical rabbinic

Medieval

Modern

External links

Texts

Commentaries