BY: Michal Dicker
In parashat Vayechi, Jacob gathers his twelve sons together, before his impending death, in order to tell them what will befall them in אַחֲרִית הַיָּמִים,” “the end of days” (Genesis 49:1). Jacob then proceeds to present an analysis of each of his sons’ personalities. His analysis highlights his sons’ strengths but more often, focuses on the weakness reflected in each son's actions throughout the Biblical narrative. Jacob’s predictions and aspirations for his family’s future function as an outgrowth of his assessment of his sons’ characters. The verse concluding Jacob’s speech states:
“כָּל-אֵלֶּה שִׁבְטֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, שְׁנֵים עָשָׂר; וְזֹאת אֲשֶׁר-דִּבֶּר לָהֶם אֲבִיהֶם, וַיְבָרֶךְ אוֹתָם--אִישׁ אֲשֶׁר כְּבִרְכָתוֹ, בֵּרַךְ אֹתָם” “All these are the twelve tribes of Israel; and this is how their father spoke to them, and blessed them; every one according to his blessing he blessed them” (Genesis 49:28).
Yet, when contrasted to the blessings Jacob bestows upon his grandchildren, Ephraim and Menashe, what Jacob relays to his sons does not seem to be much of a blessing at all. For one, the Bible consistently uses the verb “.כ.ר.ב,” “bless,” in the former case, to describe Jacob’s speech, and he tells them how great and powerful they will become. However, Jacob’s speeches to his sons seem less like blessings than warnings and predictions. Further, Jacob mimics his father Isaac’s blessing methodology by holding his grandsons and placing his hands upon them.[1] In parashat Vayechi, Joseph presents his sons to Jacob such that Jacob’s right hand rests upon the elder Menashe’s head, while Jacob places his left hand on the younger brother Ephraim’s head. Yet, before blessing his grandchildren, Jacob switches his hands:
“וַיִּשְׁלַח יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶת-יְמִינוֹ וַיָּשֶׁת עַל-רֹאשׁ אֶפְרַיִם, וְהוּא הַצָּעִיר, וְאֶת-שְׂמֹאלוֹ, עַל-רֹאשׁ מְנַשֶּׁה: שִׂכֵּל, אֶת-יָדָיו, כִּי מְנַשֶּׁה, הַבְּכוֹר.” “And Israel stretched out his right hand, and laid it upon Ephraim’s head, who was the younger, and his left hand upon Menashe’s head, changing his hands; for Menashe was the firstborn” (Genesis 48:14). Upon seeing what his father has done, Joseph objects by appealing to Menashe’s status as the בכר, the firstborn. But Jacob refuses, on the grounds that one day Ephraim will outstrip Menashe.[2] This decision of Jacob, or Israel (the name that he is called during this particular episode) creates a contrast between the blessing that he gives Ephraim and Menashe, and Isaac’s blessing of Jacob and his twin brother Eisav. In the latter case, Jacob—the younger of the brothers—had to manipulate his father in order to receive the blessing of the firstborn.[3] Although Isaac was very disturbed by the fact that Jacob tricked him, and had emitted a “חֲרָדָה גְּדֹלָה,” “a great trembling” at his deceit, he ultimately endorses Jacob by blessing him a second time (Genesis 27:33). In further contrast to Eisav and Jacob, Ephraim and Menashe are blessed simultaneously, and receive the same substantive blessing. These various parallel accounts of fathers blessing their sons and grandsons in the Bible reflect a variety of different views on the hierarchy of seniority.
It appears that Jacob, possibly as a result of his scarring personal experience, chooses to ignore the common trend of blessing the elder above the younger. He is explicit in choosing the grandson that he wishes to honor, Ephraim, with the placement of his right hand, despite his status of the younger brother. Furthermore, it is possible that it was the competitive nature of his ancestors that inspired Jacob to take a stand and re-imagine the way in which lineage is inherited. By placing both his hands on his grandchildren’s heads and, doing what is never done in the Book of Genesis, choosing both to bless both of Joseph’s children and each of his sons, Jacob actively includes many of his offspring in the continuing Biblical story. None of his sons would have to share the fate of the sibling not chosen, e.g. Ishmael and Eisav. Although neither Isaac nor Ishmael receive a blessing from Abraham, immediately after he dies, the verse states: “וַיְבָרֶךְ אֱלֹהִים, אֶת-יִצְחָק בְּנוֹ” “God blessed his son Isaac” (Genesis 25:11); the Torah doesn’t focus again on Ishmael. Similarly, when Eisav and Yaakov part after their joyful and tear-filled reunion, the Torah refocuses on Yaakov and his descendants, turning all focus away from Eisav. Clearly, the Torah devotes little attention to the lives of Eisav and Ishmael. Furthermore, Jacob’s efforts to bless all of his children reflect his desire that none of them suffer Eisav’s fate.[4] In blessing all of his children, Jacob is offering a criticism of the jealousy and competition that derives from exclusivity and chosen-ness. For example, both of the wives of Jacob, Rachel and Leah, perpetually compete for Jacob’s love through their ability to have children. Their feud is memorialized through the names of most of their children, which bear the mark of each of their respective fertility. For example, Leah names her first son Reuven because: “כִּי-רָאָה ה בְּעָנְיִי--כִּי עַתָּה, יֶאֱהָבַנִי אִישִׁי.” “Surely the Lord has looked upon my affliction; now therefore my husband will love me” (Genesis 29:32). Hence, Jacob experiences the burdens of competition not only in the fraternal but in the marital sphere as well.
Jacob reflects on the events of Genesis up until this point in Vayechi and therefore decides to undermine the value of fixed and “unmerited” qualities, such as age, and in the Torah’s case, first-born rights. Although Eisav is older than Jacob, Jacob undermines the age-hierarchy by taking action and securing the firstborn blessing for himself. Further, although Menashe is older than Ephraim, again Jacob chooses to disregard the age-hierarchy, and empower Ephraim by virtue of his promising future and innate potential. Finally, Reuven, who Jacob describes in his blessing in Vayechi as being “בְּכֹרִי”––“my firstborn,” and “כֹּחִי וְרֵאשִׁית אוֹנִי”—“the beginning of my strength” (Genesis 49: 3-4), does not receive the firstborn honors since he dishonored Jacob. Rather, Yehuda, Leah and Jacob’s third son, is the one who Jacob predicts will rule over his brothers. For, the “brothers will praise” Yehuda and “staff shall not depart” from his control (Genesis 49: 8-10). Jacob continually communicates that action, rather than status, gauges a person’s worth. The message that he conveys in Vayechi is that it is initiative, rather than an inherited (genetic) position, that can ultimately change the course of one’s own life, or the lives of one’s children.
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