This Shabbat we will finish reading the book of Bereshit (Genesis). The first of the five books of the Tora includes a fascinating story, between the lines of the main narrative, which is worth analyzing. It is about fraternity, the relationship between brothers. Throughout Bereshit this relationship develops and evolves, from murder to harmony.

FROM BROTHERHOOD TO FRATRICIDE

The story of the first brothers of the Tora, as we know, ended badly. Abel offered a sacrifice to HaShem, in gratitude for everything he received from the Creator. Abel offered the best he had. And his offering was well received by the Creator. Cain, on the other hand, behaved more selfishly and was less appreciative. He offered to HaShem what he had left over. And his sacrifice was rejected (to clarify, the Almighty does not “need” human offerings, it is man who benefits from what he or she offers to God. This gesture of gratitude teaches men to appreciate what we have and to identify that all we have comes from Him). When Cain saw that his offering was not received, he became depressed. HaShem tried to make Cain understand his mistake. And to prevent him from repeating his father Adam’s mistake, transference of guilt, he explained what he had to do, “halo im tetib, se’et“, “If you improve your offering, it will be well received.” But Cain did not want to listen. And instead of reflecting on what he had done wrong, he became angry with Abel, as if his brother was to blame for his own failure. His personal frustration was transformed into a deep envy that led Cain to assassinate his brother Abel.

A DIFFICULT RELATIONSHIP

In the next generations, the relationship between siblings did not improve much. In reality, in the book of Bereshit , brotherhood seems to be a specially difficult human relationship to maintain …. among other issues because of te birthright. Ishmael envied – and according to the Sages, tried to kill – his brother Itshaq. The situation did not improve with Ya’aqob and Esav, who fought from the womb. With the children of Ya’aqob we find a similar pattern: Jealousy, envy and a new unfortunate dimension: hatred. “vaisneu oto”, “and the brothers hated Yosef”. In the case of Yosef, the threat of fratricide (= murdering a brother) was part of a real plan, which providentially was avoided.

YOSEF CLOSES THE CYCLE

Last week we read how Yosef, after recreating a scenario in which his brothers had to choose one more time between abandoning and protecting one of the sons of Rahel (Biniamin), this time they rectified their ways and acted differently. They did Teshuba and Toque (reparation), as Ramban explains. Yosef also demonstrated altruism at its highest level. There was no reproach but total forgiveness. He tells his brothers: “Now, do not feel bad (= guilty). It was not you who sent me here. It was HaShem. You were part of a Divine plan to prevent many people from starving. “ Yosef brought closure to the tensions, jealousy and hatred. His words healed the old wounds and opened the possibility of a new healthy relationship between brothers.Yosef’s altruism had its immediate effect. When Yaaqob calls his grandchildren, Yosef’s sons, he blessed the younger before the older. This act could have triggered again the cycle of jealousy, envy and fratricide between Efraim and Menashe. However, we do not see any act of jealousy, reproaches or tensions coming from Menashe, the first-born brother who was now in “a second place”. Bereshit began with an act of fratricide, but ends with two brothers who live in peace, and harmoniously.

A BLESSING TO OUR CHILDREN

When we bless our children, the custom is to wish them to be blessed by HaShem like Ephraim and Menashe. Why? Why do not we bless them like Abraham, Itshaq, Ya’aqob, Yosef, or Yehuda? The reason is that on the one hand we want our children to be Tsadiqiim, righteous and wholehearted towards HaShem. But we also want them to be good brothers, like Ephraim and Menashe. We want our children, not just to refrain from envying one another, we want them to learn to be happy, one for the success of the other.

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Challenging the Firstborn

Again and again, the stories in Sefer Bereshit overturn the ancient assumption of primogeniture, where the firstborn inherits wealth, authority, and leadership. The Torah insists that what matters is not birth order but the divine covenant. By choosing the younger, the unexpected, or the overlooked, God demonstrates that Israel’s destiny is not built on human hierarchy but on His promise. These narratives remind us that the covenantal story is guided by God’s will, not by social convention.

Cain and Abel

The Torah’s first siblings embody this pattern. Cain, the elder, offers a sacrifice, yet God accepts Abel’s (Bereshit 4:4–5). No reason is given, highlighting the mystery of God’s choice. Cain’s envy culminates in murder, but Abel—the younger—is remembered as righteous. From the very beginning, the Torah emphasizes that God’s favor does not follow human structures of privilege.

Ishmael and Isaac

Ishmael is Abraham’s firstborn, but God declares: “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named” (Bereshit 21:12). The covenant passes to Isaac, the younger son of Sarah, not to Ishmael, despite cultural norms. Harsh as the separation of Ishmael and Hagar seems, the Torah stresses that the covenantal future will be built through Isaac.

Esau and Jacob

Even before birth, Rebecca is told: “Two nations are in your womb… and the elder shall serve the younger” (Bereshit 25:23). Esau emerges first, but Jacob’s grasp of the heel symbolizes the coming reversal. Later, Esau sells his birthright for a bowl of lentils and further disqualifies himself by marrying Hittite women. Jacob, despite his own faults, inherits the covenant of Abraham, confirmed by God at Bet-El in the dream of the ladder. The Torah presents Jacob not as perfect, but as the chosen bearer of the covenant.

Zerah and Perez

When Tamar gives birth, Zerah’s hand emerges first, marked with a scarlet thread as if to confirm his firstborn status. Yet Perez bursts out ahead (Bereshit 38:27–30). Human attempts to fix destiny are overturned by divine plan. Perez, the unexpected son, becomes an ancestor of King David.

Joseph and His Brothers

Joseph, far from being the firstborn, is singled out by his father and by God through prophetic dreams. His brothers reject him, selling him into slavery. But providence elevates Joseph to viceroy of Egypt, the one who sustains his family during famine. Reuben, the actual firstborn, fades into the background, while Joseph rises as the savior of his brothers—again, the Torah showing that covenantal destiny is not tied to birth order.

Ephraim and Manasseh

In Jacob’s final blessing, he deliberately crosses his hands, giving priority to Ephraim, the younger, over Manasseh (Bereshit 48:13–20). Joseph protests, but Jacob insists. Once more, the Torah emphasizes God’s freedom to determine blessing regardless of human expectation.

Moses and Aaron

The pattern continues in Shemot. Aaron, the elder, is eloquent and confident, while Moses hesitates, describing himself as “slow of speech” (Shemot 4:10). Yet God chooses Moses to lead Israel out of Egypt and to receive the Torah at Sinai. Aaron supports him as spokesman, but the mantle of leadership rests on the younger brother—an inversion of expectation that defines Israel’s redemption.

David and His Brothers

When Samuel comes to anoint a king from among Jesse’s sons, the older brothers seem obvious choices. But God rejects them: “Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (I Samuel 16:7). David, the youngest and least regarded, is chosen to lead Israel. From shepherd boy to king, his story echoes the Torah’s recurring theme—God does not follow the human rule of the firstborn; He chooses whom He wills.

Our Sages never overlooked the small and significant missteps made by our ancestors, especially in the times before the Tora had been revealed when most actions and decisions had to be made without explicit Divine instruction. By uncovering these mistakes, the Sages highlighted the credibility of the Tora, which does not portray superheroes or supervillains. Instead, it teaches the concept of evolution: in the Jewish lineage, children correct the errors of their parents, allowing for constant growth and improvement.

Today’s lesson comes from Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch (Hamburg, Germany, 1808–1888), considered the founder of modern European Orthodoxy. His idea is bold and can easily be misunderstood if read superficially, so we will explain it carefully.

THE PARENTING MODELS OF ISAAC AND JACOB

Rabbi Hirsch compares two models of parenting: Isaac’s and Jacob’s. Isaac had two sons, Yaakov and Esav, with very different and opposing personalities. One, Esav, strayed and completely abandoned the path of Abraham. On the other hand, Yaakov was a complete success: he continued Abraham’s legacy, had twelve sons (and a daughter), and all followed his path. The family that Jacob formed became the Am Yisrael (People of Israel).

WHEN THE SAME IS DIFFERENT, AND THE DIFFERENT IS THE SAME

Rabbi Hirsch poses an important question:

Why did Isaac and Rivka fail to raise Esav properly?

Why did Esav abandon Judaism?

Did his parents give Esav a different education than they gave Yaakov?

Rabbi Hirsch’s answer is surprising:

“Esav’s continuity failed because his parents gave him the same education they gave his brother Yaakov.”

Based on the Midrash cited below, Rabbi Hirsch points out that Isaac and Rivka failed to recognize the significant differences between their sons. They naively assumed that providing the same Jewish education to both children would yield the same results.

However, Esav required a different and personalized education to remain on the Jewish path. He needed a school system—or a good teacher—that considered his unique learning needs. Perhaps Esav did not enjoy libraries or books, or he had a form of ADD. He needed a religious education to address his learning challenges and help channel his talents toward serving God.

Rabbi Hirsch offers a strong warning to parents:

“A father who places Yaakov and Esav [two children with different characters: Yaakov was naturally studious, while Esav preferred hunting in the field] in the same classroom and teaches them the same way will surely ruin one of them. While a child-like Yaakov will thrive on learning, like someone thirsty drinking from a spring, a child-like Esav will only dream of the day he can throw away those old books and leave behind that [religious] lifestyle…”

Rabbi Hirsch highlights that:

“[Isaac and Rivka failed to see] that Esav’s strength and courage were just as important as Yaakov’s thoughtfulness and sensitivity. As parents, we must work with each of our children, acknowledging their diverse talents, to achieve the collective ideal of Am Yisrael.”

EVOLUTION IN PARENTING

Having witnessed the failure with Esav, Jacob learned from it and educated his children in line with their unique personalities and talents. He understood that although siblings might grow up under the same roof, they can have vastly different traits and needs.

Rabbi Hirsch identifies this in Jacob’s blessings to his sons in this week’s Parasha:

“When Jacob’s sons, the future twelve tribes, gathered to receive their father’s blessing, Jacob envisioned the future nation of Israel. He saw priests and rabbis (the tribes of Levi and Issachar), political leaders (Yehuda), great merchants (Zebulun), farmers (Asher), skilled soldiers (Gad), judges (Dan), and more. He blessed them all, but not with a single blessing. Instead, he gave each one a different blessing, saying:

אִישׁ אֲשֶׁר כְּבִרְכָתוֹ בֵּרַךְ אֹתָם – ‘Each according to his own blessing, he blessed them’ (Genesis 49:28).”

Jacob understood that God’s covenant with Abraham required creating a whole and self-sufficient nation. Every individual had to play a different role toward the shared Divine goal: building a nation that would uphold the way of God by practicing and promoting kindness and justice.

CONCLUSION

Suppose Isaac and Rivka had understood the depth of Esav’s soul and asked themselves how his courage and physical energy could be channeled into Avodat Hashem. In that case, Esav might have become a “mighty soldier of God” instead of a “skilled hunter.”

Jacob and Esav, despite their different tendencies and talents, could have become spiritual partners. Esav’s sword would have served Jacob’s spiritual mission.

Rabbi Hirsch does not intend to criticize Yitzhak and Rivka but to teach us a critical life lesson: as Jewish parents, our primary mission is to educate all our children to follow the path of the Tora. This requires recognizing and accepting each child’s unique talents and guiding them toward a religious education, considering both: their strengths and limitations.

MIDRASH

וַיִּגְדְּלוּ הַנְּעָרִים (בראשית כה, כז) רַבִּי לֵוִי אָמַר מָשָׁל לַהֲדַס וְעִצְבוֹנִית שֶׁהָיוּ גְּדֵלִים זֶה עַל גַּבֵּי זֶה וְכֵיוָן שֶׁהִגְדִּילוּ וְהִפְרִיחוּ זֶה נוֹתֵן רֵיחוֹ וְזֶה חוֹחוֹ.

The Midrash compares Yaakov and Esav to two plants growing side by side. At first, they appear similar. But as they mature, one produces fragrance, and the other grows thorns. Similarly, Yaakov and Esav went to school together as children, but when they reached adulthood, Yaakov went to study in Bate Midrash, while Esav turned toward idol worship.

(Bereshit Rabbah 63:9)

RABBI HIRSCH’S TEXTS

המושיב את יעקב ועשו על ספסל לימודים אחד … מובטח לו שאת האחד מהם הוא מקלקל

“A father who places Yaakov and Esav on the same school bench and educates them in the same way will certainly ruin one of them…”

כאשר נקבצו בני יעקב לשמוע את ברכת אביהם

“When Jacob’s sons gathered to hear their father’s blessing, he envisioned the diverse future of Israel and blessed each one according to their unique virtues…”

איש אשר כברכתו ברך אתם (בראשית מט, כח)

Each child has their own mission. Strength and courage are as valuable as thought and emotion. The covenant with God aims to build a complete nation, with every individual contributing uniquely to the fulfillment of Abodat Hashem.

TEXTS

MIDRASH

וַיִּגְדְּלוּ הַנְּעָרִים (בראשית כה, כז), רַבִּי לֵוִי אָמַר מָשָׁל לַהֲדַס וְעִצְבוֹנִית שֶׁהָיוּ גְּדֵלִים זֶה עַל גַּבֵּי זֶה, וְכֵיוָן שֶׁהִגְדִּילוּ וְהִפְרִיחוּ זֶה נוֹתֵן רֵיחוֹ וְזֶה חוֹחוֹ, כָּךְ כָּל י»ג שָׁנָה שְׁנֵיהֶם הוֹלְכִים לְבֵית הַסֵּפֶר וּשְׁנֵיהֶם בָּאִים מִבֵּית הַסֵּפֶר, לְאַחַר י»ג שָׁנָה זֶה הָיָה הוֹלֵךְ לְבָתֵּי מִדְרָשׁוֹת וְזֶה הָיָה הוֹלֵךְ לְבָתֵּי ע»ז 

Bereshit Rabba 63:9

TEXTOS DEL RAB HIRSCH

. המושיב את יעקב ועשו על ספסל לימודים אחד , ובאותם הרגלי החיים מחנך אותם כאחד לחיי לימוד ומחשבה – מובטח לו שאת האחד מהם הוא מקלקל . יעקב ישאב ממעיין החכמה בחפץ גובר והולך , ואילו עשו רק יצפה ליום , בו ישליך מאחורי גבו את הספרים הישנים , ויחד אתם תעודת חיים גדולה , שהכיר אותה רק באופן חד צדדי , ובדרך שמעצם טבעו הוא סולד בה . . (

כאשר נקבצו בני יעקב לשמוע את ברכת אביהם , והלה ראה בהם את שבטי ישראל שלעתיד , לא ראה רק כוהנים ומורי הוראה ; הנה עמד שם שבט הלוויה ושבט המלוכה , שבט הסוחרים , שבט האיכרים , ושבט הלוחמים ; עמד שם לנגד עיניו העם כולו , על כל סגולותיו הרבגוניות , ועל כל דרכי התפתחותו ; את כולם הוא ברך , ‘איש אשר כברכתו ברך אתם’ ( בראשית מ»ט , כח , ( איש איש בסגולותיו המיוחדות לו . כי ברית ה’ הכרותה עם אברהם , חפצה באומה בריאה , שלמה ורעננה ; מטרתה לבנות חיי עם שלמים על כל צורותיהם הרבגוניות , על מנת לכוון אותם אל התפקיד הגדול האחד : לשמור דרך ה’ לעשות צדקה ומשפט . הכוח והאומץ , לא פחות מהמחשבה והרגש , ימצאו שם את גיבוריהם העובדים לה , ‘ ובמקצועות שונים יקיימו כולם את התפקיד הגדול של הכלל . דווקא משום כך – ‘חנוך לנער על פי דרכו , ‘ חנכהו למטרה הגדולה האחת על פי דרכו המיוחדת לו , בהתאם לעתיד הצפוי לו מנטיותיו 

אילו העמיקו יצחק ורבקה לחדור לנפש עשו , אילו הקדימו לשאול את עצמם , היאך יכולים גם האומץ , הכוח והגמישות הרדומים בנפש עשו – היאך יכולים כל אלה להטות שכם לעבודת , ‘ה כי אז ‘הגיבור’ שלעתיד לא היה הופך ל’גיבור ציד , ‘ אלא ל’גיבור לפני ה’ ‘ באמת . יעקב ועשו , על כל נטיותיהם השונות , היו נשארים אחים תאומים ברוחם ובדרך חייהם ; עוד מראשית הייתה חרבו של עשו כורתת ברית עם רוחו של יעקב ; ומי יודע איזה שינוי היה צפוי לקורות הימים על ידי כך . אך לא כן היה : ‘ויגדלו הנערים , ‘ רק משגדלו הנערים והיו לגברים , הופתעו הכל לראות , כי אלה אשר מרחם אחד יצאו , ויחד נתגדלו , נתחנכו ולמדו , היו כה שונים בטבעם ומנוגדים במעשיהם 

1. While in jail, Yosef correctly interprets the dreams of the imprisoned Pharaoh’s officers. Two years later, Pharaoh has a dream. He is standing by the Nile when he sees seven fat cows coming out of the river and seven skinny cows eating the fat ones. Pharaoh has a second dream: seven healthy ears of wheat come out of a stalk, followed by seven thin ears. And the seven healthy ears are swallowed by the thin ones. Pharaoh was troubled and called all the wise men of his land, but none could understand his dream’s meaning. The officer tells Pharaoh about Yosef, and Yosef was immediately taken out of jail and introduced to Pharaoh.
2. Yosef satisfyingly interprets Pharaoh’s dream: both dreams contain a single message: there will be seven years of plenty in Egypt followed by seven years of severe famine. Yosef proposed a plan to store grain during the years of plenty as a reserve for famine. Pharaoh is very impressed by Yosef’s wisdom and appoints him to oversee Egypt’s economy and second in command. Pharaoh orders the Egyptians to bow down to Yosef, changes his name to Tzafenat Pa’aneach, and gives him a priest’s daughter as his wife. Yosef was then only 30 years old.
3. Yosef stores extra grain in the cities. Two sons are born to him during this time: Menashe and Efraim. The seven years of plenty end and famine arrives in Egypt. When the people started complaining to Pharaoh, Yosef opened the silos and started selling the grain. Starving people come from all over Egypt to buy food. Hunger also reaches the entire Middle East. Jacob sends all of his children, except Binyamin, to buy food in Egypt. When Yosef sees his brothers, he pretends he doesn’t know them while they do not recognize him. Yosef deliberately accuses his brothers of being spies and imprisons them for three days.
4. On the third day, Yosef frees them all except Shimon, whom he holds hostage, and allows the brothers to return to Canaan. He also warns them that they can only return to Egypt if they arrive with Binyamin to establish their innocence. The brothers acknowledge to themselves that what was happening to them was a punishment for selling Yosef and express their repentance. Yosef instructs his servants to deposit the money the brothers had paid for the food in the grain sacks they were given. The brothers return to Canaan and tell everything that happened to Jacob. Jacob is very disturbed by the events and initially refuses to send Benjamin to Egypt because he is unwilling to the possibility of losing Rachel’s only remaining son. However, in the end, after the food supplies run out and Yehuda personally guarantees his return, Jacob agrees to send Binyamin. He sends his sons to Egypt with generous gifts for the Egyptian ruler.
5. The brothers arrive in Egypt. Yosef orders his assistant to invite them and join him for the evening meal. The brothers arrive at Yosef’s house, they meet Shimon, and when Yosef arrives, they give him the gifts that Jacob sent. Yosef gets very emotional seeing his younger brother Benjamin. The brothers sit down to eat and enjoy a good dinner, and Yosef gives presents to everyone and extra gifts to Benjamin. In the morning, the brothers return, but only after Yosef has his royal cup planted in Benjamin’s food sack. Yosef then sends an officer to confront the brothers and to find the “stolen” silver goblet. The brothers are brought back to Yosef, who demands that Binyamin, the alleged thief, be punished by remaining there as a slave.

כי זה שנתים הרעב בקרב הארץ ועוד חמש שנים אשר אין חריש וקציר 

There has been famine in the land for two years now, and for the next five years, there will be no plowing, no reaping.

Genesis 45:6

Popular wisdom notwithstanding, modern archeology helps us to corroborate some historical aspects of the Tora’s narrative. Sometimes, it also provides us with cultural or historical tools to understand some little details that the Tora tells us that might go unnoticed. 

Let’s see now a couple of examples.

THE REASON FOR THE FAMINE

We all know Yosef’s story and rise as the Vizier of Egypt. Yosef interpreted Pharaoh’s dream, who saw seven full cows coming up from the Nile and seven thin, unhealthy cows coming from the Nile. Yosef interpreted the dream, predicting that Egypt would benefit from seven years of abundance followed by seven years of famine. 

Famine also affected other regions in the area, such as the land of Israel (Canaan). That’s when Yosef’s brothers came to Egypt for food, and Yosef recognized them, and after a dramatic reunion and reconciliation, his father and his brothers settled in Egypt.

Personally, and although I never thought much about the subject, I always assumed that the years of famine in Egypt were due to the same factor that determined hunger in the land of Israel: a severe drought. The problem with this assumption is that there is virtually no rain in Egypt (between 10 and 15 days a year), and Egypt’s abundant water comes exclusively from the Nile. But if lack of rain is not a phenomenon that could affect Egypt, what caused starvation in Egypt?

THE ARCHIVES OF AMENEMHAT

Modern archeologist and egyptologist David Rohl refers to ancient archives that recorded the measurements of the river Nile. Records show that the average level of the Nile was approximately 30 feet height. When the river dropped to, say, 25 feet, fewer crops were expected since the waters that annually overflowed the river would cover less land. When this happened, Pharaohs lowered the taxes to alleviate the farmers. On the other hand, when the river level rose to 40 or 45 feet, the water covered more territory, producing more crops, and taxes were obviously up. 

The most exciting thing for our subject is the records of a gradual and “exceptional” flood of the Nile in the time of Amenemhat III, which allows us to entertain a perhaps different explanation of some of the details of Yosef’s story.

TOO LITTLE OR TOO MUCH WATER

The archives record that in the times of Amenemhat, the Nile rose to 50 feet, producing an unprecedented abundance in Egypt. But then, and according to these identical records, the waters rose higher and higher, reaching almost 70 feet high! And suddenly, the abundance of water became a national emergency. The waters of the Nile rose like tsunamis, destroying the levees, drowning the cattle, and razing the adobe houses. The water did not recede. And it flooded the land during the plowing and sowing seasons. And as a result, there was no harvest. The starvation caused by these floods threatened Egypt on an unprecedented scale.

According to what was discovered in these archives then, it is possible that the famine in Yosef’s time was not a product of the drought but of the overflowing of the Nile.. This data would allow us to understand better a mysterious (or superfluous) little word that our Tora incidentally mentions, as in passing. 

When Yosef tries to comfort his brothers, who feel guilty about having sold him as a slave to Egypt, he tells them that in all these events, the Divine Providence intervened. It was God who sent Yosef to Egypt to save its people from famine. And then Yosef says (Genesis 45: 6): “… two years of hunger have already passed, and there are still five more years in which [the land] will not be plowed or harvested”

It is obvious why the Tora says that there will be no harvest. But why would Yosef mention that the land will not be plowed? Typically, every year, the farmer tries to plow and sow at the right season, even after a year of drought, hoping for the rain to come. The variable is the harvest, not the plowing.

We can understand now that in Egypt, the problem was not the drought but the flooding that prevented the plowing and sowing of the land.

Thanks to the discoveries of these archives, we can better appreciate the exquisite accuracy of the biblical story, even in what seems to be an extra and otherwise, irrelevant detail, like: “that the land will not be plowed”.

WHEN YOU DREAM OF COWS 

Ramban asserts that the cows represent “plowing” and wheat represents “harvesting”.

The records of the Nile may help us understand the symbolism of Pharaoh’s dream, and his confusion, differently. “The cows that rise from the Nile” represent the rise of the Nile. Usually, “the cows are full, healthy, that is, the annual flooding of the Nile brings food and prosperity. The mysterious and confusing element of Pharaoh’s second dream is that he saw seven “thin”, “hungry” cows coming up from the Nile. These skinny cows were an oxymoron for Pharaoh because the flooding of the Nile was supposed to be a source of abundance, not hunger!

The extreme flooding of the Nile for so many years in a row, as David Rohl suggests, was an exceptional phenomenon in the history of Egypt. In that case, it is not surprising that neither Pharaoh nor any of his advisers were able to understand the meaning of that mysterious dream until Yosef came to the Royal Palace. 

“Emuna” is generally translated as faith, and is understood as “believing in the existence of God”. But the Emuna / faith of Yosef went far beyond a passive faith/belief type. Yosef’s Emuna consisted of focusing his mind in God in bad times and in good times . His active faith guided his steps: stopping him before doing something morally wrong and motivating him to do what is right.   There is a fundamental difference between Yosef and his ancestors. HaShem spoke and communicated directly with Abraham, Itshaq and Ya’aqob. But HaShem never spoke directly with Yosef. In that sense, Yosef is similar to us: we do not have the privilege of a “direct” prophetic  revelation from God. Like Yosef, we also have to actively seek HaShem, think about Him, feel His presence and mainly, allow Him to guide our steps.

LIVING UNDER GOD’S SIGHT

When harassed by Potiphar’s wife (Gen. 39: 9) Yosef had HaShem in his mind. At the time of that particular event, Yosef saw in his mind the image of his father Jacob, who reminded Yosef that what was about to happen with Potiphar’s wife was not be right in the eyes of HaShem. It is not rare or unusual than God’s memory appears by remembering our parents, especially what THEY taught us about God.  The most important manifestation of  Emuna should take place on the moral sphere. Emuna means: feeling that HaShem is watching us. This aspect of Emuna will prevent us from doing what is wrong in His eyes.

BAD BEGINNING. GOOD ENDING.

Later on, we see that Yosef’s Emuna also helped him to forgive his brothers. Yosef told them that when they sold him to slavery (Bereshit 50:19): “It is possible that you thought to do me wrong, but HaShem transformed that evil into a great good, to achieve what we are seeing today: saving the lives of many people”. Yosef’s Emuna made him realize that, many times, what today seems like a big problem, tomorrow turns out to be a great solution.

FAITH IN BAD TIMES

When Potiphar’s wife falsely accused him of sexual harassment, Yosef was taken to jail. He was imprisoned for a  crime he did not commit. Apart from being a slave, Yosef was now a criminal. Nothing lower than that position in Ancient Egypt. Yosef had no hope of getting out of jail. He had no family to be looking for him and no one who knew him or cared about him. And yet, in this unjust and desperate situation, Yosef did not abandon HaShem. Many people in those circumstances would have lost their faith thinking: “If HaShem does not help me, why should I continue to believe in Him and be guided by His laws?”. Or “If this is happening to me, maybe God does not exist… “. When one is the victim of a great injustice, it is very possible that he would feel that HaShem abandoned him, or that ח”ו God does not exist. But Yosef persevered. He had HaShem present even in jail and never stopped believing in Him (40: 8).

FAITH AND HUMILITY

We read in this week’s Parasha, that Pharaoh suddenly needed the services of Yosef. The Egyptian monarch takes Yosef out of jail and tells him his dream. Yosef listens to Pharaoh’s dream and realizes what it means. The Tora does not say that HaShem revealed to Yosef the meaning of Pharaoh’s dream, as it happened with Daniel and Emperor Nebukhadnetsar a thousand years later. Yosef interprets the royal dream, apparently, on his own. Any average individual would have boasted of possessing a great wisdom or superpowers to interpret dreams. Yosef, however, did not attribute to himself the interpretation of the dream. “God [and not me!] is the one who will reveal the [meaning of] Pharaoh’s dream,”   said Yosef (Bereshit 41:16).   This too seems to be the reason Yosef did not ask anything in return for his service. When an opportunity of this kind arises, when, for example, the authorities take an inmate out of jail to ask for some type of information or to use some of his talents, the prisoner realizes that he has the possibility of getting out of jail, and he tries to make a “deal” with the authorities to go out. Yosef did not ask anything in exchange for interpreting Pharaoh’s dream. Because he attributed the interpretation to God, not to himself.

FAITH IN GOOD TIMES

It is important to have Emuna, faith in HaShem in bad times. But the most significant achievement in regard to a person’s Emuna is to keep HaShem in mind when he or she is in good health, happy and financially well. The faith of many people fails when facing the challenge of affluence, wealth and well-being. Then, a person might forget HaShem because he feels he does not need him any more ח”ו. Our Hakhamim warned us about this phenomenon when they told us גדול נסיון העושר מנסיון העוני that “the challenge of wealth” , having HaShem present when I’m well, “is more difficult than the challenge of poverty”, having God in mind when we require His help.

YOSEF, THE MANAGER

Yosef was sold by his brothers and transported to the slave market in Egypt, where Potiphar, a minister in Pharaos court, acquired him. In Potiphar’s house, Yosef stands out. His master realizes that the slave he had bought for manual labor was a genius at administration. And he also inspired trust. Potiphar leaves all his assets and household, probably hundreds of people, in the hands of Yosef. Seemingly, Yosef had found his final destination; even though he was away from his family, at least he was in a privileged position. Being promoted to “manager” was the ultimate dream, the utopia, of any slave. However, got worse for Yosef. Potifar’s wife provokes him. But Yosef does not succumb, and he rejects her advances with great subtlety but firmness. He tried to reason with the woman and explained to her that what she wanted to do would be a great sin against her husband and, above all, against God. “How could I do something so wrong and sin against God” (Gen. 39:9). But Potiphar’s wife did not take Yosef’s rejection well: she felt offended that a man, a slave under her command! rejected her. And she falsely accused Yosef of abuse. Potiphar, I think, did not believe his wife – if he had, he would have killed Yosef on the spot – but he could not ignore her and had to save his family’s honor, so he sent Yosef to a dungeon.

YOSEF, IN AND OUT OF PRISON

Yosef’s situation is now desperate. His sentence is for life. Yosef goes from being a successful manager with privileges to the lowest level a human being could reach in Egypt: a slave sentenced to prison. In Egypt, the value of a slave’s life was probably less than that of a horse or a dog. What can be said then about the insignificant value of a slave in prison? However, thanks to his personality and hardworking character, Yosef also wins the trust of the head of the prison, who, like Potifar, leaves the administration in the hands of Yosef.

Yosef takes care of two VIP prisoners, Pharaoh’s ministers. Both had very strange dreams. And Yosef, who knew a lot about dreams, tells one of the two ministers, the one in charge of Pharaoh’s beverages (making sure that the drinks were not poisoned), that he was going to be released and restored to court. And Yosef takes advantage of this fortuitous circumstance and asks the minister to remember him, and as payback for interpreting his dream positively, he begs him to tell Pharaoh, through one of his officers, to release Yosef from prison, since he is innocent!

A HAPPY END

But as the days or weeks go by, Yosef realizes his hope is a fantasy. Pharaoh’s minister forgot Yosef and consciously erased him from his memory. Because, naturally, the last thing the minister would have wanted was something to remind his boss — who had given him a second chance — of his days in jail! One day, however, Pharaoh has a disturbing dream, and no one can interpret it. At that moment, the minister –knowing that now he was not “asking” but “doing” Pharaoh a favor– informs him that there is a young Hebrew man in jail who knows how to interpret dreams. Yosef is brought into the palace and then, as we all know, becomes Pharaoh’s right-hand man, which allows him to identify his brothers and eventually reconcile with them.

WHAT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED IF…?

One of the great life lessons that Yosef’s story teaches us is that we often desperately want something to happen NOW. We pray and beg HaShem and do everything we can to achieve it… and in the end, it might NOT happen. But after a while, we might be looking at our lives and realize that THANKS TO WHAT WE WANTED TO HAPPEN AND DID NOT HAPPEN, we now have a better opportunity, or we are now in a better position!

Yosef desperately wanted Pharaoh’s minister to exert all his influence to get out of prison. I suppose that Yosef must have waited impatiently day and night for someone to come and get him out of jail on behalf of Pharao’s minister. But imagine for a second if that had happened: Yosef would be now out of jail, with no money, no family, and with the record of an ex-convict slave. He could not have gotten very far…. He would have been sold as a slave a second time. And in the best of cases scenario, he would have ended his life being a good slave manager in someone’s household. The same would have happened if Potiphar’s wife would not have accused Yosef of improper behavior.

PATIENCE AS A FORM OF FAITH

Yosef learns and teaches us that patience is a form of Emuna, faith. Because many times, things that happen or are not happening to us are eventually for our own good. All the negative experiences that Yosef lived at first made him get lower and lower, to the point of despair. But when Yosef hits rock bottom unexpectedly, and without Yosef ever dreaming of such a scenario, Yosef’s life improves meteorically.

Not all of us have the same privilege as Yosef. It is not always possible to see an excellent final resolution for all our problems in life. However, this lesson is so important. I hear virtually every day of someone who did not get the job he so much wanted or someone who failed in a potential shidduch date or in a business deal. We might feel then that God has abandoned us. But then, I hear many people saying, “thanks to the fact that what I so much wanted didn’t happen, HaShem helped me to get something better. “Now I realize that God protected me from a terrible business/job/shidduch, etc.”

This is a critical attitude to cultivate in life. Knowing that (or even: strategically acting as if… ) when what I pray for is not happening, ultimately, something better might be waiting for me around the corner.

ABRAHAM AND ISAAC

At the beginning of Jewish history, when we were not yet a people or even a tribe, but merely a small nuclear family, a painful pattern repeated itself more than once: abuse. Our first two patriarchs, Abraham and Isaac, had to face existential threats when, due to drought and famine, they left their place of residence and became vulnerable refugees. When Abraham emigrated to Egypt, he knew that the locals might kill him in order to seize his wife Sarah. That is why he had to pretend she was his sister. Abraham had cut ties with his family in Haran; he did not belong to a powerful nation nor did he have a large extended family. There was no one who could defend him or avenge his blood if he was attacked. He was completely vulnerable. Abusable. The same thing happened in another city, Gerar, and it was repeated a generation later with Isaac. He too had to hide that Rivka was his wife. God intervened directly and protected our matriarchs.

Abuse, which in its extreme expression—taking women by force—had sentenced the generation of the flood to extinction, remained present. Apparently, Sodom and Gomorrah were not the only places where foreigners were abused: the complete lack of basic human rights for the poor and the refugee was the rule, not the exception.

Incidentally, in light of this terrible normalization of the abuse of the unprotected in that era, we can better appreciate the extraordinary revolution of the Tora, which commands not only not to abuse but to “love the foreigner,” to actively care for the non-Jew—the ger toshab—who comes to seek refuge in our land. This mitsva constitutes a total inversion of the moral order of the ancient pagan world, where the law of the jungle prevailed.

JACOB

In this week’s Parasha we read about an episode that is not identical but very similar, which happened with Jacob. When our third patriarch and his family arrived in Shekhem, the powerful local prince took Dina, Jacob’s daughter, carried her off, abused her, and held her by force.

Jacob did not react. He was obviously devastated but remained passive, like his father Isaac and his grandfather Abraham. Perhaps he was afraid to react because he knew the enemy had a numerical advantage. Or perhaps he thought that, just as had happened with his ancestors, direct Divine intervention was imminent. But there was no Divine intervention. God did not appear in dreams to Hamor or to his son to warn them not to touch Jacob’s daughter.

Two of Jacob’s sons, however, did react. They understood perfectly that the law of the fittest prevailed in the Middle East and that they could not survive if they showed weakness. It was also unrealistic to passively expect miracles. Ein somkhim al hanes: “miracles are not guaranteed.” The rules of the game had changed—perhaps because now they were able to defend themselves.

Through a cleverly planned strategy, they deceived the aggressors, incapacitated them, attacked them by surprise, destroyed the city, and rescued their sister Dina.

Jacob, surprised by his sons’ unprecedented military operation, reproached them for what they had done. He feared retaliation from the neighboring peoples, who were far more numerous than his family. But the military operation of Shimon and Levi produced an unexpected effect. The Tora states explicitly that a “Divine fear” (hittat Eloqim) took hold of the neighboring peoples and dissuaded them from attacking Jacob’s sons. That supernatural, miraculous fear made the locals feel that the Jews were unpredictable and that it was not wise to mess with them. God’s more subtle intervention manifested itself, but only once they had acted.

SHIMON AND LEVI

Abraham had a very small family: three people. Isaac, four. Neither of them could do without direct Divine intervention to rescue their wives; they simply did not have the minimum number of people required to do so.

Shimon and Levi, on the other hand, were fully aware that although the enemy possessed a numerical advantage, defeating them was possible. They had such strong self-esteem and emunah that they launched into combat even without the help of their other brothers, who remained waiting in the rear.

Shimon and Levi represent the new generation: a generation that does not surrender to abuse and uses intelligence to compensate for numerical disadvantage, defending itself with determination.

They did not wait passively for miracles; instead, they sought another type of Divine intervention—one that accompanies the military operation, not one that replaces it.

And in the long term, this became the normal modus operandi of Divine intervention in the fights of the people of Israel against their enemies. As the Tora states unambiguously (Devarim 20:4):

כִּי ה׳ אֱלֹ-הֵיכֶם הַהֹלֵךְ עִמָּכֶם לְהִלָּחֵם לָכֶם עִם־אֹיְבֵיכֶם לְהוֹשִׁיעַ אֶתְכֶם

HaShem will go with you (holekh imakhem) when you go out to fight against your enemies, and He will grant you victory.

Help comes once Israel defends itself, goes out to battle, and refuses to become a victim.

MEDINAT ISRAEL

It is impossible to ignore the parallel between what happened with Shimon and Levi and what is happening today in Medinat Israel.

Shimon and Levi represent a generational change: they are the brave young men who have lost the fear of confronting the enemy, who are no longer a defenseless minority, and who use not only their strength but also their Jewish intelligence to defeat those who seek our destruction.

A final reflection, somewhat interpretative:

Shimon represents among the tribes the least observant one, as we see in the Tora, especially in the episode of Bil‘am.

Levi represents the opposite: it is the most observant tribe, the one that will give rise to the Kohanim who will serve in the Bet HaMiqdash, but when there is a war of survival (milchemet mitsva), they join the army. And Shimon and Levi are fighting together!

In post–October 7 Israel, a very significant social and cultural process is taking place: more and more young religious haredim, who study Tora, prepare themselves in academies or technological institutes with professional careers. And also, little by little, more of them are enlisting in the army, especially in special units where religious observance is stricter.

According to Shlomo Filber, a demographic analyst, although the haredi population today in Israel constitutes around 15%, its demographic growth is, B”H, the highest in the Western world, with more than six children per family (see here Filber’s article).

According to Filber, the new Israeli army, in the coming years, will have at least 50% religious soldiers—dati leumi and haredi. That is, it will be a modern version of the partnership between Shimon and Levi.

Like Jacob’s family, Israel is growing demographically in a miraculous way, and its army is preparing to incorporate thousands of young scholars of Tora who understand that they must defend their “families” and that Divine intervention will accompany them and grant them victory when they face their enemies.

The Israel Defense Forces in the immediate future will not only be “an army with more Jews,” but “an army with more Judaism.”

THE SWORD OF ESAV

Ya’aqob Abinu returns to the land of Israel. He has many doubts. One of those doubts is whether his brother Esav still bears a grudge against him. Let’s remember that 20 years ago, Esav was determined to kill Ya’aqob. Now, Yaaqob’s question was: Does Esav still hate me, 20 years later? Maybe his resentments have changed, and he already forgot what happened so long ago….  Ya’aqob cannot be sure. And then he finds one more complication: he hears that Esav is arriving leading a band of 400 men: too many people for a welcoming committee….   Ya’aqob fears the worst, and feels the danger that lies in wait for him and his family. Ya’aqob prays and pleads for Divine intervention, with the famous phrase: “[HaShem], save me from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esav.” When the brothers finally meet again, Esav does not attack Ya’aqob. Some biblical commentators explain that Esav came to meet his brother with the intention of destroying him and stealing his family and his possessions, but that at the last minute, there was an emotional change in Esau’s heart. Why? Because the previous night, Ya’aqob fought against an envoy of HaShem (“angel”, although the Tora describes him as a “man”). This individual hit Ya’aqob on his thigh and left Ya’aqob wounded. When Esav saw Ya’aqob limping, he was moved (or thought that Ya’aqob was no longer a worthy adversary …) and, according to this interpretation, what 20 years were not able to do in terms of forgiveness, “pity” for Ya’aqob’s vulnerability, did it in a matter of minutes. Following this idea, in a direct or indirect way, HaShem saved Ya’aqob from Esav, by making him fight against that individual.

THE INVITATION OF ESAV

In the following act, and now in a family-reunion atmosphere, Esav thanks Ya’aqob for his generous gifts and tells him: “I don’t need anything, my brother, I already have too much.”  Esav is materially successful, he is the patriarch, founder and leader of the people of Edom. But Esav, as his mother had anticipated, did not follow the path of his grandfather and his father. The Edomites, led by Esav, abandoned the beliefs of Abraham Abinu and were idolaters, like the rest of the world.  At this point, Esav no longer sees Ya’aqob as his enemy, but as his peer and friend.  And here, ironically, a huge problem begins for Ya’aqob. Something more delicate and more subtle than Esav’s sword, but just as deadly.  As a consequence of the new fraternal reconciliation, Esav does what any normal brother does when his sibling comes from overseas. Esav invites Ya’aqob to join his family. (Gen. 33:12) “nis’a venelekha”.  Come on now! Let’s go together to my land Se’ir, and there we will live as one family. Your little children are going to play with my children: their cousins. And I already have in mind some of my daughters and granddaughters who could be very good candidates to marry your sons.  Ya’aqob knows that if he accepts Esav’s invitation, his children will end up assimilating to Esav and becoming part of his family. And that would be the end of the legacy of Abraham Abinu (the end of “Judaism” of that time) by the inevitable dissolution of the “religion” practiced by Ya’aqob’s family.

THE “NO” THAT CHANGED HISTORY

And at that defining and crucial moment , Ya’aqob “heroically” said ‘NO’ to Esav. He said it in a very diplomatic way.  Esav, you go ahead, and I will arrive, at the pace of my little children. Esav, who perhaps did not understand Ya’aqob’s way of refusing his invitation, insisted.  If you wish, I’ll leave you some men to protect you on the way, until you get to my house. Ya’aqob, stoically, endured the tremendous psychological pressure of the moment and with great discomfort, but uncompromising firmness rejected for a second time Esav’s offer. Why should I find so much grace in your eyes?. Esav finally got the message and left. If I were to describe in our own words what Ya’aqob experienced in his intense encounter with Esav,  I would say that in one and same event Ya’aqob confronted  anti-Semitism and assimilation.  God intervened “directly” (following the opinion we mentioned above) to save Ya’aqob from the hands of Esav, “his enemy” by sending the “fighting angel”.  But when Ya’aqob confronts Esav “his friend” there is no Divine intervention. There is a human decision. Ya’aqob had to act on hos own and assume the consequences of his choice”. To clarify, in this second instance God does not intervene, but He expects Ya’aqob to make the right decision.

IF YAAQOB HAD NOT SAID “NO”….

We, contemporary descendants of Ya’aqob Abinu, continue to face very similar challenges. The gentile society is open to cultural and social integration without barriers or discrimination. Assimilation has already claimed millions of Jewish “souls”. Instances in which children –or parents or family– did not have the strength or the conviction to say ‘NO’ to Esav ‘the friend’.  And the results have been catastrophic. Two numbers say it all: 1) 1927. 2) 4,200,000. In 1927 the Jewish population in the United States was 4.2 million souls. How many Jews should there be in the United States in 2021, almost 100 years later? There was no Shoah in America, no concentration camps, no anti-Semitic mega-massacres. And Jewish emigration to this country continued uninterrupted. I am not a math genius, but my intuition tells me that today there should be no less than 15 or 20 million Jews in the United States…. but there are less than 6 million today…. What happened to the millions of Jews who are no longer counted as such? To resist assimilation, we have to constantly improve and grow in our observance and knowledge of Jewish values. Educate our children in Jewish schools, and preach by example. And having the courage and conviction to say “NO” if ever a relationship with Esav has the potential to go from cordiality and respect, towards a social level in which we risk losing our identity and our Jewish future.

Written in December 2023

THE NATIONS, UNITED AGAINST ISRAEL

Most of the world’s nations systematically criticize and demonize Israel when Israel defends itself from terrorist attacks. And when the crime of Israel’s enemies is so great that our political foes can no longer justify calling for Israel’s passivity, they use one of their favorite arguments: “Israel must defend itself proportionally to the crime to which it was subjected.” These nations use this aberrant argument with just one purpose in mind: restraining Israel and preventing her victory. After the fact, it also serves to delegitimize and demonize Israel and as an invitation to the enemy to continue with its aggression. Israel, of course, should not listen (and B”H is not presently listening ) to these claims coming from those who fervently wish for the disappearance of a Jewish State.

I want to present a historical episode—a crime against the newborn family of Israel and their subsequent reaction to that crime, found in this week’s Parasha Vayishlach, chapter 34 of Genesis. We might learn a valuable lesson from this story.

THE INNOCENCE OF DINA

Jacob and his children finally settled in the land of Israel near the city of Shechem. One day, Dina, Yaakob’s only daughter and sister of twelve boys, visits the neighboring town to meet the local girls. She is young and has gone out alone without the protection of her brothers. Dina, mistakenly, is not afraid because she was raised in a safe place for women: Yaakob’s house. She is unaware of the behavior of men in those places and ended up in their vicious hands. 

The attacker was Shechem (named after his own town). He was King Hamor’s son. This prince, who probably lacked nothing, saw the young Jewish girl “took her by force, subdued her, and raped her.” After raping her, he became obsessed with Dina and kidnapped her.

Jacob’s family finds out what is happening. They  “are sad and outraged” at the abomination committed by these people.

Meanwhile, the entitled young man asks his father to “acquire this girl for him as a wife” (קַח לִי אֶת הַיַּלְדָּה הַזֹּאת לְאִשָּׁה). King Hamor offers Jacob’s family money to keep Dina: “You set the value of the dowry”, he tells them, “and I will pay it to you.” But Jacob’s sons have a different plan. They deceive the king with words he understands: “We are willing to join your people in marriage and trade. But on one condition: first, you must be circumcised.” The inhabitants of Shechem, thinking about future benefits, undergo mass circumcision.

THE POWER OF DETERRENCE

On the third day after the circumcision, which is when the pain is most evident, Shimon and Levi, Dina’s brothers by father and mother, carry out a military rescue operation: they attack the city, which was incapable of defending itself and kill all men, they destroy the city and finally rescue their sister Dina from captivity. 

The reaction of Jacob’s sons was not proportional to the crime they suffered. Jacob objected to what his sons did (I follow in this explanation the opinion of Rabbi David Qimchi) and told them: “You are destroying me! You have put me in danger before all the nations of this region since now they are going to unite among themselves, attack us, and eliminate me and my entire family.” Ya’akob, explains Rabbi Quimchi, was afraid of the potential violent reaction of his neighbors, who were much more numerous than his family and could easily attack and destroy him. His sons, who, according to Rabbi Qimchi showed more courage than Jacob, said to his father: “Are we going to allow our sister to be treated like a prostitute?”

WHO WAS RIGHT?

The previous chapter ends without a final verdict from the Tora regarding this argument: did the brothers do the right thing by disproportionately attacking the inhabitants of Shechem? 

To find an indirect but unequivocal verdict, we must continue reading the next chapter, 35.

Jacob’s family prepares to leave the place. When they break camp and are about to leave, they know it is a moment of extreme vulnerability. It would be natural for their enemies to attack them then. Jacob knows it. There is tension in the air. Verse 5 says it all in one word, “VAYISAU.” “And they began their journey”. Then, there is almost a full stop (atnach), creating suspense and expectation as to what the enemy will do next. Then, the Tora says with his usual economy of words: “But the nations of the region were possessed by a ‘divine’ (supernatural) fear and did not persecute Jacob’s family.”

The non-proportionate reaction of Shimon and Levi had the desired effect: it persuaded the nations of the region that these Jews were unpredictable and it was not wise to mess with them. The Tora thus issued its verdict: a proportional response could have endangered Jacob. Shimon and Levi’s disproportionate response created a deterrent for the entire hostile neighborhood.

SHIMON LEVI AND THE ISRAEL ARMY

As I mentioned on previous occasions, the present history of the Jewish people, especially since 1948, is like a biblical déjà vu: it feels that we have already lived similar experiences that are recorded in our biblical genetic memory. We see how the pattern of behavior of our enemies—violence, outrage, kidnapping—is repeated exponentially. But perhaps we can also learn from biblical events a thing or two regarding the appropriate response to the Shoatic massacre of last October 7: Israel does not have to react proportionally to the massacre. Israel must respond in a non-proportionate manner that will prevent this crime from being repeated by Hamas or other enemies of Israel. Israel must react in a way that creates a ‘supernatural deterrent among our relentless enemies. There is no other way.

My friend Mordechai Kedar already said it: the Lebanese officials warned Hezbollah not to mess with Israel when they saw the destruction of Gaza City. They don’t want Beirut to look like Gaza! And the words they used were: “Israel went mad. Israelis are dangerously out of their mind.” The non-proportional response deterred the enemy and made them think twice before attacking us. If Israel does not destroy Hamas, if it does not reach a complete humiliating lesson, it risks being attacked by Hamas and our other neighbors.

Israel, like the sons of Jacob, not only has to be the most muscular guy in the Middle East neighborhood but the most unpredictable if attacked as well. The non-proportionality of the response to the enemy’s attack is the existential strategy for the future of the Jewish state.

LOVE OF DEATH

There is an additional reason why Israel cannot proportionally defend itself against an enemy like Hamas. It is a very delicate topic, misunderstood by most of the world and cynically abused by Hamas as propaganda material. It has to do with the total moral asymmetry between Judaism and jihadism regarding the value of life.

This topic, absolutely critical to understanding Israel’s phenomenal vulnerabilities, was masterfully formulated by the American journalist Charles Krauthammer, who died a few years ago. He wrote the following words in January 2009 when Israel was fighting against Hamas in response to a series of suicide attacks and the murder of three young Israelis. After relentless international pressure over the Palestinian victims, Israel had to suspend its attack and back down:

“Some geopolitical conflicts are morally complicated. The Israel-Gaza war is not. It possesses a moral clarity that is not only rare but excruciating. […] For Hamas, the only thing more prized than dead Jews are dead Palestinians.”

 Krauthammer explains the inconceivable: that Hamas “celebrates” the martyrdom, the death of its civilians, not just because, according to their religion, they inherit a sexual paradise in the afterlife but also because their deaths is a critical factor in the Jihad, it creates a precious “prized” element that brings Israel to its knees, when the Jewish army is about to defeat Hamas, by tremendous international pressure. 

The idea that the deaths of one’s own citizens serve as a tool of pressure in the international arena is very difficult to digest for a person with Western morality. But it explains, for example, why Hamas has no problem hiding behind civilians or storing arsenals in hospitals and schools or why Hamas fighters opened fire on their population when they were leaving northern Gaza while Israel, ironically, protected the civilians with his tanks.

The proportional and still abhorrent response that our political enemies always propose, “I should kill one person from your side for every person you kill on my side”, will never deter a movement that embraces the martyrdom of Jihad. Even if the proportion is higher: 10 x 1 or 100 x 1, this will not make Hamas put down its weapons and surrender, since for Jihdist, the death that Jihad causes to civilians is morally and religiously justified, as long as they can be attributed to the Zionist army, and serves to exacerbate international public opinion with cynical claims of genocide.  

The following words by Ismail Haniyeh, one of the actual leaders of Hamas, explain it all: “We [Hamas] love death to the same extent that our enemy [Israel] loves life.”

LAND > LIFE

But if the death of its fighters and civilians—15,000, 20,000, or more—does not mean a defeat for Hamas, what should be Israel’s response to deter the terrorist enemy? According to Israeli journalist Guy Bechor, the only sobering response to terror and the only significant and actually “proportional” punishment that Hamas should suffer, beyond losing its political power, is to lose part of its territories in Gaza. Why? Because for the jihadist Palestinian narrative, land is more precious than life. This would be Hamas’s nightmare. The recovery of Gush Katif and the creation of 5 km of territorial security belts by Israel would represent the most significant defeat for Hamas and a deterrent of Biblical dimensions for them and for all the peoples of the region. I hope and pray that this “proportional” response is part of  Netanyahu’s plans for the day after the war. 

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