Parashat Toledot

Gen. 25:19-28:9

After returning from a hunt, Esau asks Jacob for some of the stew he has made. Jacob agrees, but only if Esau will sell his birthright.

Is Jacob taking advantage of his brother?
Esau claimed to be "at the point to die," is Jacob taking advantage of Esau in a time of weakness or crisis?
Is Esau exaggerating?

What is "the birthright?"

"the priviledges of the birthright so coveted by Jacob were purely spiritual. In primitive times, the head of the clan or the firstborn acted as the priest." The Pentateuch and Haftorahs, Dr. J.H.Hertz, C.H., Soncino Press
Do you agree with Hertz?

Why does Esau give it up so easily?

Could he really have fallen for an offer like the one Jacob made?
How much does Esau value his birthright?
As a "skillful hunter" is this something he really wants?

Later (chapter 27), when Issac was "old and his eyes were dim," he asks Esau to prepare him a meal of wild game. He tells Esau that after he has eaten he will give him a special blessing.

Why doesn't Issac give the blessing right away? Why wait until after a meal?

When Jacob is told by his mother to impersonate Esau he questions her about it.

What is it that he protests about?
Are his concerns ethical, or is he just afraid of being caught?
Is he a willing co-conspirator or another victim of the plot?
Should he (or could he) have protested more loudly against his mother's plan?
If God was behind the plot (as some of the commentators say) couldn't it have been done a little more openly?

There is really no polite way to ask this question:

Is Issac really as stupid as he seems? How could he have been fooled?
- He notices Jacobs voice
- He thinks sheep skin feels like Esau's hands
- He smells the "smell of his (Esau's) rainment but he doesn't smell the blood on the freshly killed sheep skins Jacob is wearing
- He thinks that lamb tastes like wild venison
If you answer no then what is the alternative?
- Could Issac have known all along it was Jacob?
- If he did why didn't he say something?

Can you support the premise that both Issac and Rebekah were in on the plot?

Would God really have supported a plan made up of lies in order for someone to take something that did not belong to him?
How much of the responsibility for the episode lies with Rebekah?

At this point Esau hates Jacob and threatens to kill him.

Is he really serious, or is he just venting his anger?
If he is serious why didn't Rebekah warn Jacob sooner?
- You could say she warned him as soon as she found out, but if Esau was serious about commiting murder wouldn't violence, or the threat of it, have been part of his personality all along? So, she should have know this would happen, right?

Before Jacob leaves Rebekah goes in to Issac and lies to him again; she tells him that Jacob is leaving to look for a wife.

Why doesn't she think Issac deserves to be told the truth.
Issac blessed Jacob again. What do you think the content of that blessing was?

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