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THE WEEKLY SIDRA- DEVARIM
Rabbi Moshe Greebel
As is well known, the alternate name of Aisav, the brother of Ya’akov, is Edom, which is evident from the Torah. Here are just a few examples:
“And Aisav said to Ya’akov, ‘Feed me, I beg you, with that same red pottage; for I am famished;’ therefore was his name called Edom (red).” (B’raishis 25:30)
“And Ya’akov sent messengers before him to Aisav his brother to the land of Seir, the country of Edom.” (ibid. 32:4)
“Now these are the generations of Aisav, who is Edom.” (ibid. 36:1)
And, from this week’s Sidra, we see that Aisav/Edom is considered a brother to us:
“And when we passed by our brothers the sons of Aisav, who lived in Seir, through the way of the Arava from Ailas, and from Ezion- Gever, we turned and passed by the way of the wilderness of Moab.” (D’varim 2:8)
Other examples in the Torah of this brotherhood with Aisav/Edom, are quite common:
“And Moshe sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom, ‘Thus said your brother Yisroel, you know all the adversity that has befallen us.’” (Bamidbar 20:14)
“You shall not loathe an Edomite; for he is your brother…..” (D’varim 23:8)
Now, while Ya’akov and Aisav were literal brothers, why would the Torah need to remind us of this fact so often? What is the significance of this brotherhood? For an answer to this question, we go to the text Mai’Ain Bais HaSho’Aiva, by Rav Shimon Schwab (1908- 1993) of blessed memory.
Rav Shimon began by pointing out a most unusual aspect of Aisav/Edom, which is that we do not find any mention in Tanach, of an idolatrous deity which was worshipped by Aisav/Edom, until the time of King Amatziya:
“And it came to pass, after Amatziya came from the slaughter of the Edomites, that he brought the deities of the men of Seir, and set them up to be his deities, and worshipped them, and burned incense to them.” (Divrei HaYamim II 25:14)
That is, until this time of Amatziya, Aisav/Edom believed in the unity of HaKadosh Baruch Hu, surprising as that may sound. Now, even Aisav, who rebelled against the authority of HaShem (see Baba Basra 16b), never actually denied the existence of HaShem. Unlike the other gentile nations of the time, Aisav/Edom did not yet worship idolatry, and recognized HaShem, as did the B’nai Yisroel. And, that is why the Torah repeatedly made mention of Aisav/Edom being our brothers at that time, taught Rav Shimon. But, there is more.
Most assuredly, continued Rav Shimon, the reason the Torah carefully memorialized the names of each and every chief and king of Aisav/Edom in B’raishis 36:1-43 until the time of Moshe Rabbeinu, was because they did not at that time worship idolatry. And, the fact that we do find an idolatry of Aisav/Edom in the time of Amatziya, is only because there already existed idolatry in the kingdoms of Y’huda and Yisroel. Prior to that, Aisav/Edom acknowledged HaShem.
Continuing, Rav Shimon instructed that the hated nation of Amalek was the grandson of Aisav through a Pilegesh (concubine)- not through an actual wife:
“And Timna was concubine to Eliphaz Aisav’s son; and she bore to Eliphaz Amalek; these were the sons of Adah Esau’s wife.” (B’raishis 36:12)
Now, at some juncture in history, taught Rav Shimon, the nation of Amalek had to join together with the nation of Aisav/Edom. To prove this, we begin with Yoav, the Supreme Military Commander of the armies of Dovid HaMelech:
“For six months Yoav remained there (Edom) with all Yisroel, until he had cut off every male in Edom.” (M’lachim I 11:16)
Now, this is difficult to understand, posed Rav Shimon. Was there ever an actual Mitzvah to cut off, or destroy the nation of Aisav/Edom, as there was to destroy the nation of Amalek? Of course, not. Additionally, why did Yoav require six months to destroy Amalek, if Shaul (the first king of Yisroel) did it in only a few days? The answers to these questions can be found in the Gemarah Bava Basra 21a:
“When Yoav came before Dovid, the latter said to him, ‘Why have you acted thus (i.e. killed only the males of Amalek)?’ He replied, ‘Because it is written, “You shall blot out the males (Zachor) of Amalek”’….’”
Hence, it was Amalek, not the rest of Aisav/Edom whom Yoav was destroying, and because he had to weed out individually the Amalek who joined together with Aisav/Edom, the project took him six months to accomplish.
Nevertheless, prior to these events in the time of Yoav, the nation of Amalek did not join together with Aisav/Edom, but kept themselves separate. This, we can see from the Ramban (Rabbeinu Moshe Ben Nachman 1194- 1270) of blessed memory, who in B’raishis 36:12 wrote:
“Since Amalek was the issue of a Pilegesh (not a full wife), he did not share the name (Aisav/Edom) with his brothers, was not considered a direct son of Aisav/Edom, and did not inherit Har Seir with the rest of his brothers. For the son of the maid (Timna) will not inherit with the son of an actual mother….. Now, concerning the B’nai Aisav, those who we know are of Har Seir, we are commanded not to loath them, and not to take their land, for they are referred to as Edom. However, the son of the Pilegesh is not one of the children of Edom, and not with them in their land. Concerning them (Amalek), we are commanded just the opposite- to hate and blot them out.”
Concluding, Rav Shimon taught, therefore, in the time of Shaul, Amalek had not yet joined together with the rest of Aisav/Edom. In fact, Amalek lived in its own city:
“And Saul came to a city of Amalek, and laid wait in the valley.” (Sh’muel I 15:5)
Hence, all the time that Amalek did not join together with them, Aisav/Edom are referred to in the Torah, as our brothers, to instruct that they were yet innocent from the influence of Amalek.
May we soon see the G'ulah Sh'laimah in its complete resplendency- and in our times.
Good Shabbos
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