Parshas Toldos – FFB and BT Tzaddikim
November 19th, 2009 - Guest Contributor
Rabbi Yaacov Haber has an interesting piece on Parsha Toldos where he points out:
- Rashi says that Yitzchak’s prayers were answered instead of Rifkas because he was a Tzaddik, who was a child of a Tzaddik, while Rivka was a Tzaddik who was the child of a Rasha.
- This seems to contradict the Gemora which says that a Tzaddik can not stand in the place of a Baalei Teshuva seemingly because a BT has a harder job and therefore more reward. And therefore Rifka’s prayers should have been answered because she worked harder.
- Rabbi Haber says that a FFB has it harder than a BT because the BT approaches Judaism with more enthusiasm.
- Therefore Yitzchak’s prayers were answered because he was still a Tzaddik even though he was an FFB (the son of a Tzaddik).
But we all know that to many that BT enthusiasm we have to keep on learning, so here is Rabbi Rietti’s outline of Toldos. You can purchase the entire outline of the Chumash here.
Toldot
#25 Esav Sells Birthright to Yaakov
#26 Rivkah in Palace of Avimelech
#27 Yaakov Takes Blessing from Esav
#28 Yaakov Goes to Padan Aram
#25 Esav Sells Birthright to Yaakov
* Rivkah is barren
* Rivkah’s painful pregnancy
* Prophecy that she will give birth to twins – two great nations
* Yaakov completely honest, Esav deceitful
* Esav sells birthright to Yaakov
#26 Rivkah in Palace of Avimelech
* Famine
* ‘Don’t go down to Egypt’
* G-d’s promise to Yitschak to be an Eternal G-d & inherit the land forever.
* Avimelech almost takes Rivkah
* HaShem makes Yitschak exceedingly wealthy
* Avimelech tells Yitschak to leave his land
* Three wells of conflict: Esek-Sitna-Rechovot
* Yitschak goes to Be’ar Sheva
* HaShem reassures Yitschak: “Don’t fear, I’m with you!”
* Yitschak builds an altar
* Agreement with Avimelech
* Esav marries at 40 years old
#27 Yaakov Takes Blessing from Esav
* Rivkah persuades Yaakov to impersonate Esav
* Yitschak blesses Yaakov believing him to be Esav
* Esav’s blessing
* Rivkah tells Yaakov to flee from Esav
#28 Yaakov Goes to Padan Aram
* Yitschak tells Yaakov to go to Padam Aram
* Yitschak blesses Yaakov
* Esav marries Mahlat, daughter of Yishmael
November 19th, 2009 16:59
Rabbi Haber’s explanation cited above is interesting, and would appeal to BT’s, but is not convincing. It’s too general and may not apply at all to the situations and thought patterns of our Avos and Imahos.
November 19th, 2009 17:18
“Rashi says that Yitzchak’s prayers were answered instead of Rifkas because he was a Tzaddik, who was a child of a Tzaddik, while Rivka was a Tzaddik who was the child of a Rasha.”
I explain this by quoting Shemot [Exodus] chapter 20, also known as The Ten Commandments, in which G_d revealed that He remembers the rightous for thousands of generations and punishes the descendants of the wicked for 4 generations.
November 20th, 2009 08:48
Nathan, see what our commentators say about your quoted passage.
November 25th, 2009 19:29
IMO, based on the Netziv at the end of Parshas Chayei Sarah, one can and should compare the interaction between Avraham and Sarah and Yitzchak and Rivkah and why Rivkah had to resort to dressing Yaakov like Esau as a means of understanding that while Yitzchak may have been on a higher spiritual level as a FFB, Rivkah’s perspective, based on her being raised in the far less spiritual environment was far more realistic with respect to her evaluation of the respective potential and future roles of Yaakov and Esau . One can maintain that Rivkah, just as Sarah, had a greater sense of Nvuah about these issues than her husband.