Parashat Vayishlach 5765/2004
EJD
The weekly reading for the week of 14 Kislev, 5765 - November 27, 2004 Parashah: Vayishlach Genesis 32:3(4) to 36:43; Haftarah: Obadiah 1:1-21; Mei Kituvim: 2 Chronicles 25:1-28; Brit Chadashah: Colossians 1:11-22
The Bagel: Overcoming the darkness. Evil is often portrayed as darkness in Scripture. Overcoming that darkness requires the power of G-d to intervene. G-d is light and He is the One who overcomes the darkness. All the readings emphasize that victory that is possible through Adonay.
Torah:
Genesis 32:3(4) to 36:43. In Parashat Vayishlach, Jacob faced Esau. Was it going to be revenge? The darkness of Esau's bitterness over Jacob's acquisition of Esau's blessings was very real. Jacob fled Esau. In the place of his refuge, Jacob was commanded to return and "face the music." It was like he was entering the Promised Land under a pall of darkness. Esau was there and who knows what could happen. Jacob knew that G-d was sending him there. He was reassured by G-d at Mahanaim and by the divine visitation at Peniel.
Being reassured is one thing, but turning the heart of Esau is another. It was in the darkness of the night that Jacob wrestled with the Man. In the darkness of night with the emergence of the dawn at hand, Jacob became Israel. In the daylight Israel faced Esau. This physical light was reflective of the victory of the Light over the spiritual darkness. Esau forgave Jacob. They embraced. Esau received the gifts from Jacob. Eventually, Esau moved to Seir to found a nation in a new land. This left the Promised Land for Jacob. The darkness was overcome so that Jacob could resettle safely.
Haftarah:
Obadiah 1:1-21. In the Haftarah reading, Obadiah recounts the darkness of Edom (Esau's nation) expressed against Judah (Jacob's people). Specifically, it is likely that Edom joined with the Babylonians in the conquest and destruction of Jerusalem in 586/7 BCE. The complaint of the prophet was in the merciless slaughter of the fleeing Jews by the Edomite soldiers. They treated the Jews worse than the Babylonians would have. In their pride Edom gloated over Judah's tragedy, and sought to aid their destruction by wholesale slaughter. Adonay was judging Judah for its sin, but that was no pretext to exceed the purpose of that judgement. It was a scene of darkness. But the promise of Obadiah indicates an ultimate victory of Jacob over the darkness.
There will come a day when "....on Zion's mount a remnant shall survive, And it shall be holy. The House of Jacob shall dispossess Those who dispossessed them. The House of Jacob shall be fire, And the House of Joseph flame, And the House of Esau shall be straw; They shall burn it and devour it, And no survivor shall be left of the House of Esau -- for the LORD has spoken (Obadiah 1:17-18 Tanakh JPS). The Light will shine in the form of a fiery judgement. The brotherly rivalry will be resolved. Those of Edom who take an anti-Jewish position will be burned away. Only the "Esau in the Light" party will remain. The party of the darkness of Esau's bitterness will come to an end. Divine Light will intervene to overcome that darkness in the Messianic Day of Redemption.
Mei Kituvim:
2 Chronicles 25:1-28. In the reading of the Kituvim, Amaziah's faith enabled him to win the war against Edom. The Edomites invaded Valley of Salt and were entrenched. Amaziah put together an army 300, 000 men. His faith was his light and Adonay granted the victory. The Edomites were driven home. But Amaziah switched off the Light. His heart was not a whole heart for Elohim. Somehow, either through bitterness or through pride, he turned away from G-d and worshipped the deities of Edom. Darkness ensued because of this decision. He rejected counsel from Adonay through a prophet. He was defeated in battle against Joash king of Israel. A conspiracy arose against him, so he fled to Lachish where he was assassinated. The tragedy of trading Light for darkness left its mark. He was overcome by darkness in the end.
Brit Chadashah:
Colossians 1:11-22. When we get to the Brit Chadashah, the victory of the Light is expressed cogent terms. The conflict of the ages between the Light and darkness is resolved by the victory of Yeshua on the cross. By the power of His atonement, redemption is available to all peoples. The effect of that victory on the redeemed is to enter a Kingdom where there is no pall of darkness: "He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son" (Colossians 1:13 ESV). Though there may be plenty of darkness encounters in this world, for the believer in Yeshua, there is the overcoming Light of His Kingdom.
Cream Cheese: Pall of darkness? Paul* the darkness!
* The Apostle Paul, the writer of Colossians.
|
