Letters to the Editor
Israel Stein of Bridgeport challenges Sidney Breitbart on Genesis 27: it is Esau who is the man of the field, Jacob who dwells in tents, and the blessing was never the same thing as the birthright. Breitbart answers that a mild man who stayed in camp was not merely eating and sleeping there — someone had to mind the goats — and that Isaac's blessing of dew and grain was plainly meant for a man of the field, not a hunter.
Sir,
I have two problems with Breitbart’s essay “The Problem of Deception in Genesis 27” (JBQ XXIX:1, January-March 2001). Esau is identified in Genesis 25:27 as an ish sadeh. Indeed, the word sadeh appears often in connection to Esau and in the very quote that Dr. Breitbart cites on page 46. If anything, Jacob is a yoshev o’halim (an indoor person). Where does the Torah suggest that Jacob tended fields? It is also quite clear from the texts that the blessing intended for Esau was altogether different in nature than the bekhorah entitlement. Isaac’s objective was simply to bless his favorite son (Esau) with a special benediction before his death (Gen. 27:4). It is tempting to connect the blessing and the birthright. The Torah suggests otherwise.
Israel Stein
Bridgeport, CT
Sir,
Rabbi Stein questions whether Jacob is a man who tended fields. He cites the statement that Jacob is a yoshev o’halim (an indoor person) and asks, “Where does the Torah suggest that Jacob tended fields?”
It is true that the Torah does not state explicitly that Jacob tended fields. The Torah is not often specific in its statements. It is multi-layered in meaning – thus, the constant study and possibilities of meaning and interpretation. It is up to rabbis and scholars to extricate meaning from its statements. With this in mind, permit me to state the reason for my statements.
The Torah describes Jacob as a mild mannered man who stayed in camp (New JPS). What was his function? He did not just eat and sleep in camp. A mild man fits the description of a pastoral man tending flock. Who else was there to take care of the goats? Not Esau. That Jacob had knowledge of the flock is revealed by Rebekah’s statement to bring her two choice kid goats. Furthermore, Isaac’s blessing to Jacob (supposedly Esau): May God give you of the dew of Heaven and the fat of the Earth, abundance of new grain and wine. . . indicates that Isaac knew the recipient was a man who tended the field, not a hunter, while Isaac’s blessing to Esau states Yet by the sword you shall live. Actually, both were men of the field. Jacob took care of the field about the camp, while Esau, being a hunter, was a man of the field away from camp.
Sidney Breitbart
Aberdeen, MD
Cite this article
JBQ Readers. "Letters to the Editor." Jewish Bible Quarterly 29, no. 3 (July – September 2001).
JBQ Readers. "Letters to the Editor." Jewish Bible Quarterly, vol. 29, no. 3, 2001.