“And it was when Isaac grew old, and his eyes dimmed from seeing.” The text does not use the phrase “advanced in days” [ba bayamim] because the term “advanced in days” implies that one’s intellectual light continues to grow stronger, as is typical of elderly Torah scholars whose intellectual clarity increases especially in their old age, as if they are emerging from nights into days. This is explained above in Parshat Chayei Sarah regarding the verse And Abraham was old, advanced in days (Genesis 24:1). Therefore, regarding Isaac, it states that even in his old age, his intellectual vision was dimmed from seeing through Esau’s schemes, for he erred about him and thought he was righteous, not perceiving his deceptiveness. This is why it doesn’t say “advanced in days,” because on the contrary, he walked in darkness with no light to see the true visions regarding the conduct of his son Esau.

And perhaps this is what Rashi explained: His eyes became dim from their smoke. Could it possibly enter one’s mind that Isaac saw them offering incense to idols and did not protest? For Abraham was meticulous about not allowing idolatry in, and surely Isaac was as careful about idolatry as he was. Rather, it must be that Isaac thought they were offering incense to Heaven [to God]. This is why immediately after [the verse] they were a source of spiritual bitterness to Isaac and Rebecca, [the Torah states] And it came to pass when Isaac was old, and his eyes dimmed. For they [Isaac and Rebecca] were not pleased with their [the wives’] actions, because even though they [the wives] claimed they were offering incense to Heaven, nevertheless, they [Isaac and Rebecca] were not content with their actions, suspecting that perhaps they were invalidating the offering through some foreign thought. The phrase spiritual bitterness refers either to the spirit of Isaac and Rebecca, or it refers to the women who were burning incense, for perhaps in their inner spirit they were rebellious, and who knows what was truly in their hearts. Therefore it says his eyes dimmed from seeing, because the eyes of his intellect did not perceive their schemes and the schemes of his son Esau. This is what is meant by “from the smoke of these,” meaning that his intellect was misled by their smoke.

According to its simple meaning, one can resolve [the issue] as follows: The reason why it says [his eyes were dim] from seeing, which seems superfluous, is certainly because the Holy One, Blessed be He, deliberately caused his eyes to dim so that he would not see his daughters-in-law burning incense to idols and thereby be distressed by this. This is what is meant by “from the smoke of these [women]” — because of their smoke, so that he would not see this and be distressed. And regarding what Rashi explains as another explanation — that it was so Jacob would receive the blessings — according to this interpretation, the word “rom seeing relates to what follows, meaning that his eyes became dim so that he would not see who was Esau and who was Jacob, and through this circumstance Jacob would receive the blessings. Therefore it says from seeing, so that he would not see and recognize his sons by their distinguishing features.

“And hunt game for me.” Why did Isaac see fit to request hunted game — did he not have in his flock a young goat whose taste was like that of deer, that he needed to send his son to a place of wild animals? The explanation that seems closest to me is based on what our Sages said (Chullin 84a) regarding that which one hunts, whether beast or fowl — the Torah teaches proper conduct, that one should not eat meat except with this preparation [outlook]. The reason for this is so that a person should not become accustomed to eating meat, as it is written When your soul desires to eat meat… as the deer and the hart are eaten, so shall you eat it (Deuteronomy 12:20-22). The intention here is that you should eat regular meat only occasionally, not as a fixed meal, like deer and hart which are not found in the house as they are wild animals, and their main dwelling is not with humans but in deserts and forests. Therefore, one only eats from them sparingly, for it is not every day that a miracle occurs to be saved from wild animals during hunting. Thus, presumably, a person only eats from them periodically. Similarly, you should not accustom yourself to eating regular meat, because it produces cruelty and negative traits in the human body, as all predatory birds eat meat, and likewise the lion hunts and eats. Therefore, it is said regarding the future And the lion, like cattle, shall eat straw (Isaiah 11:7) — for there will be peace in the world among all living creatures. Therefore Isaac said hunt game for me, for he did not want to eat meat except with this preparation [outlook].

Rashi explained “from ownerless property and not from theft.” It seems appropriate to explain why he warned about theft at this time more than at other times, since Isaac had been eating Esau’s hunted food for many years. If he had already warned him about this, the warning was already established, so why did he need to warn him again? It appears that through these delicacies, Isaac thought that the Divine Spirit would rest upon him through joy, and he thought that if something stolen was brought, the Divine Presence would not dwell in a place where stolen goods are present. This is why he especially warned about theft, just as at the beginning of the sacrificial laws where it states When a person brings from you (Leviticus 1:2) — just as Adam did not sacrifice from stolen goods, etc., because sacrifices bring the Divine Presence closer while theft distances it. Similarly, according to the Midrash (Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 32) which says these two young goats — one was made into a Passover sacrifice, etc. And regarding the Passover sacrifice it is written Draw forth and take for yourselves — meaning from your own possessions, excluding stolen goods, as concluded in the Yalkut Parashat Bo and as explained by the Baal HaTurim. Because Esau had decided in his heart to hunt and bring even stolen game, God arranged for Rebecca to overhear and send Jacob in his place, so that Isaac would not stumble with an offering that came from stolen goods. It’s possible that Esau did bring stolen goods, which is why it states And Esau his brother came from his hunting and he too made delicacies — it mentions that he came from his hunting but doesn’t mention that he brought something from his hunting, surely because he didn’t find anything and therefore brought stolen goods. Esau said eat of his son’s game but this wasn’t actually true. Therefore, Isaac trembled greatly — explained as because Gehinnom entered with him. And why did Gehinnom enter with him specifically at this time? Surely because he brought stolen goods, and one who does this falls into that. This is why we don’t find that Isaac ate what Esau brought, because he sensed something was wrong after Gehinnom entered with him.

The format of the blessings proves [the difference], for he blessed him [Esau] with By your sword you shall live, because there is no bigger armed robber than one who inherits land by his sword. Furthermore, in Jacob’s blessing it states And may God give you, while in Esau’s blessing the language of “giving” is not mentioned, as it says Behold, of the fat places of the earth shall be your dwelling, because he [Esau] brought something stolen that was not a gift from God. Therefore, he blessed him with matters of banditry, saying that he would inherit the land by his sword and not through God’s giving. But Jacob, who brought from what God had given him, his blessing includes And may God give you. Isaac sensed this from the Garden of Eden’s fragrance that came with him through Esau’s precious garments, which he had coveted from Nimrod, which had originally come to him from Adam who had worn them in the Garden of Eden. Isaac smelled the scent of Adam and sensed that this one’s offering was similar to Adam’s offering — who was alone in the world and could not have brought anything stolen — so too this offering was not stolen. Therefore, he blessed him with the blessing of And may God give you.

The voice is the voice of Jacob, and the hands are the hands of Esau. He [Isaac] could not say “the voice OF Jacob and the hands OF Esau,” because then it would have implied that he judged definitively from the voice that this was certainly Jacob, and from the hands that this was certainly Esau — and this would be impossible, for if he is Jacob he cannot be Esau, and if he is Esau he cannot be Jacob. Rather, the explanation of the matter is thus: he was saying that the voice resembles the voice of Jacob, and perhaps this person is disguising his voice, and in truth it is Esau, who is disguising himself by speaking in pleading tones to show that he is worthy of receiving the blessings. Or [alternatively], the hands resemble the hands of Esau but it is Jacob, who is disguising himself by making his hands hairy so that I [Isaac] would think this is Esau. And regarding why it says AND the hands with a vav [conjunction], this is similar to the phrase and [one who] strikes his father and mother where the meaning is “or his mother” — similarly here, he is saying “or the hands resemble the hands of Esau.”

And if you want to say that the vav [Hebrew letter] in vehayadayim [and the hands] is a conjunctive vav, we can say that Isaac thought perhaps some stranger was disguising himself in both aspects — in voice and hands. But ultimately, Isaac reasoned that the hands were more convincing than the voice, because it is more plausible to believe that Esau was pretending to speak in a pleading tone than to believe that Jacob made his hands hairy or that some stranger did so. For how could Jacob, and certainly how could any other person, make their hands hairy to such a degree that they would be exactly like Esau’s hands, similar to them in every way? This is what is meant by and he did not recognize him because his hands were like the hands of Esau his brother, hairy — similar to them in every aspect. And who could possibly replicate this without making some error in the likeness? For were Esau’s hands in his possession to take their exact form from them? This would be impossible.

Our Sages interpreted from this verse (Bereishit Rabbah 65:20) that as long as Jacob’s voice is heard [literally: chirping], the hands of Esau have no power over him. Although the simple meaning suggests that Isaac said this thinking it was Esau, and furthermore, what does this have to do with this blessing? Nevertheless, this is its explanation: Isaac’s intention was to bless Esau with the blessing be a master to your brothers — meaning over Jacob — that Esau’s hands would have power over him. However, he attached a condition to this, saying this would only be if Jacob is not using his voice in synagogues and study halls, but not when his voice is heard, because the voice repels the hands. He hinted at this by mentioning the voice before the hands, for one could ask: didn’t Isaac rely more on the hands than on the voice? If so, he should have mentioned the hands first, since we find everywhere that what comes first pushes away what comes after, as will be explained, God willing, later in Parashat Vayakhel regarding Rashi’s explanation of why Shabbat is mentioned before the Tabernacle — to tell you that the work of the Tabernacle does not override Shabbat (see there, Exodus 35:2). Rather, surely this is why he mentioned Jacob’s voice before Esau’s hands — to tell you that the voice pushes away the hands. And which voice is this? You must say it is Jacob’s voice in the study halls. This resolves what most people ask about this aggadah, as the verse seems to suggest that both [the voice and hands] rule simultaneously, which contradicts the Midrash’s words. Many forced answers have been given to this question, but what I have written is correct and precious.

On the level of allusion, [the verse] says “the [‘ha,’ being the definite article] voice” with a hei [the numerical equivalent of which is five], alluding to their voice in the houses of study where they learn the Torah that was given with five voices (Berakhot 6b). And the hands refers to the five hands of Esau, for five times the word “hand [‘yad,’ the numerical equivalent of which is 14]” equals 70, alluding to the hands of all 70 nations that rule over Israel when they [Israel] are not chirping with their voice [in Torah study]. And so they said in the Midrash (see Bereishit Rabbah 63:8), “Esau” contains the letters ayin, shav [70, in vain]: I created 70 nations in vain, and so explained the Baal HaTurim.

And may God give to you: The letter vav [prefix “and”] in vayiten [and he will give] is superfluous, and our Sages interpreted (Bereishit Rabbah 66:3) that it means “He will give and give again.” The explanation of this matter is as follows: It is known that in all the commandments that a person performs, there isn’t sufficient repayment for the benefits that the Holy One, blessed be He, has already done for him from the day of his birth, according to their deeds, accordingly He will repay (Isaiah 59:18). Everything that a person does in terms of commandments, he does as a form of repayment, and in all the goodness that we receive from Him, blessed be He, His kindness overwhelms us. The Holy One, blessed be He, precedes with His goodness in every giving, as it is written My God in His kindness will precede me (Psalms 59:11) and it is written For You precede him with blessings of goodness (Psalms 21:4) and it is written Who has preceded Me that I should repay him? (Job 41:3). According to this principle, if a person has an evil thought saying, “The past is gone, and what profit is there in serving God if I will always be indebted to Him?” You should respond and say to him: Go and see how people conduct business. It is the practice of merchants who give credit that when the buyer pays his old debt, the merchant then gives him credit again, and so it continues forever. However, if one doesn’t pay the old debt, the merchant won’t give him more merchandise. Similarly, the Great Creditor, blessed be He and blessed be His name, when a person pays back through his commandments the first credit, the Holy One, blessed be He, gives him credit again, and this is the meaning of “He will give and give again.”

Another explanation: Since the fragrance of the Garden of Eden entered with him [Jacob], from this Isaac judged that the one who entered would receive a great reward in the spiritual world of the Garden of Eden, because there God commanded the blessing of eternal life. Therefore, he said And may He give with the conjunctive vav [the Hebrew letter “vav” that means “and”], to say that in addition to the spiritual success stored for you in the World to Come, may He also give you in this world from the dew of heaven, etc. so that you may merit two tables [both this world and the World to Come].

Some say that the [letter] vav in and may He give [veyiten] indicates that a person should not rely on miracles, but rather should do their part to the best of their ability, and whatever nature lacks, the miracle will complete — as our Sages said (Sifrei Re’eh 15:18), “One might think [this applies] even if one sits idle? That is why Scripture states in all that you do.” Therefore it says and may He give, meaning: after you have already done everything within your power to do, then God will also give to you from His good treasury, as it is written (Psalms 85:12): Truth will spring up from the earth, and righteousness will look down from heaven; Also the Lord will give what is good, etc. For initially you must perform your action, specifically with truth, because God will not send His help to one who acts with human schemes that are neither righteous nor truthful and just. However, to one who engages in truth and faith, God will complete His holy assistance. And when human actions first spring forth from the earth, then by way of kindness, God looks down from His heights — and with what does He look down? Also the Lord will also give what is good, and our land will yield its produce. With the word also [gam], the entire matter is sealed, and it is self-evident.

“Those who curse you shall be cursed, and those who bless you shall be blessed.” However, Balaam said the opposite of this, and similarly it was said to Abraham I will bless those who bless you, and those who curse you I will curse (Genesis 12:3). It appears that there are two types of those who curse and two types of those who bless. The first type is one who actually curses or actually blesses. The pattern for the righteous is always that their beginning is filled with hardships and their end is peaceful. Now, anyone who blesses presumably does so when blessing is needed, meaning during times of hardship. This excludes times of peace when blessings are not needed, as God said to Balaam when he said “If so, I will bless them” — God responded that they don’t need His blessing because they are already blessed. And anyone who curses presumably does so during times of peace, for during times of hardship, why would they add a curse? It is regarding this type that it was first said to Abraham I will bless those who bless you (Genesis 12:3), because in the beginning there will be hardships and then you will need those who bless you, and I will bless all who bless you. And afterwards, during times of peace, many will be jealous of you and consider cursing you, and I will curse them. It is of this type that Balaam said Those who bless you are blessed, and those who curse you are cursed.

[Regarding] “but those who curse you [orerecha]” that is mentioned here, it is not speaking at all about those who curse, with the expression “kelalah,” but rather about those who cause pain, as Rashi explained. This [painful behavior] is especially common during times of suffering, as per [the Talmudic saying] (Shabbat 32a) “When the ox falls, sharpen the knife.” For in addition to the suffering, they come to pain you when they should have been comforting you — because during times of peace, how would they cause pain? Similarly, those who bless you refers to those who bring you joy, and this is especially common during times of tranquility when many will rejoice with you. From here Rashi learned to interpret orerecha as “those who cause them pain.” With this interpretation, all the questions and difficulties raised by the Re’em and Ramban are resolved — check their works. However, according to Rashi’s [other] interpretation, all this would not be settled, but I have only come to explain the verses. Know that this is so, for Balaam said may my end be like theirs, so how could He then say cursed be those who curse you at the end and predict that their end would be suffering? Rather, it must be that those who curse you speaks about the time of tranquility that will be in their later days, and about this He said may my end be like theirs. But for the wicked, He predicted the opposite and said Amalek was the first among nations, but its end will be eternal destruction. And the Holy One, blessed be He, also promised Abraham that his beginning would be in pain and he would need those who bless him, but his end would grow greatly and those who curse would come against him but would not prevail over him.

Let my father arise and eat from his son’s hunt. Jacob spoke with pleading language [saying] Please rise and sit — the word “na” [please] is only used as a request. Furthermore, he told him to sit and eat, speaking to him directly [in second person]. But Esau did not tell him to rise from the place where he was standing to sit in the place prepared for eating, and did not mention the language of “please” [na], and spoke in third person due to his overwhelming arrogance.

“He too shall be blessed.” What is this coming to teach us? Was Esau in doubt about his blessing? Therefore, we must say that when [Isaac] said those who curse you [shall be] cursed, he meant that if you curse others, I will agree with you in such a way that whoever you curse will be cursed. Similarly, with those who bless you whoever you bless, I will agree with your blessing that they shall be blessed. For he had placed the power of blessings in his hands to bless whomever he wished. Regarding this, Isaac said he too shall be blessed — not only have I already blessed him, but I even said to him and be a blessing and placed in his hands the power to bless whomever he wishes. Now that I have handed over the blessings to him, how can I take back what I have already given him? And what good would it do if I bless you if he does not agree with me? According to this interpretation, he too shall be blessed is related to the phrase and be a blessing. And don’t challenge me regarding the letter vav in baruch [blessed], which implies that he will be blessed [passively] — we find a similar example where our Sages taught (Sotah 38b) that we only give the cup of blessing to one who has a generous eye, as it is said One who has a generous eye shall be blessed (Proverbs 22:9) — don’t read it as shall be blessed [yevorach] but as “shall bless” [yevarech].

Another explanation: This is why he said he shall also be blessed — so that Esau would not say “Surely Jacob’s blessing is not eternal,” and you [Isaac] could interpret your words to mean that Jacob’s blessing would only be effective for a fixed time, and when that time expires, Esau’s blessings would begin. Regarding this, he said he shall also be blessed — not only will I bless him in the present, but he shall also be blessed, meaning it will be so forever. Therefore, there is no room for your blessings to take effect, neither in the present nor in the future. And Esau said, “Have you not reserved a similar blessing for me?” meaning, “Is it not possible for both blessings to take effect simultaneously?” And he [Isaac] answered him, Indeed, I have made him your master, and whatever a slave acquires belongs to his master, so what can be given to him? But because of his persistent pleading, he gave room for his blessing to take effect by saying And it shall come to pass when you shall break free…

“He took my blessing, etc.” Why did [Esau] say that [Jacob] took the birthright through deception and trickery, when in fact [Esau] sold it willingly? And if Esau despised the birthright with contempt, what was Jacob’s transgression in this? The explanation that seems closest to me is that Esau was saying that one thing depended on the other. For when Isaac asked him Who are you? and [Jacob] replied I am Esau your firstborn, how could he utter falsehood from his mouth — isn’t it true that the remnant of Israel does not speak lies? Rather, certainly he meant to say “I am in place of Esau your firstborn,” since he had purchased the birthright from him, and thus “I am in his place.” Had he not purchased the birthright, he would not have been able to reply I am Esau your firstborn, and would not have been able to receive the blessings. And surely, says Esau, at the time he purchased the birthright, his intention was to deceive me in this way, knowing that such things would befall me. And the reason [Esau] blames him for taking the birthright is because he’s saying “Now I know that this was a mistaken transaction. For initially, I thought the birthright had no advantage except for receiving a double portion after father’s death, and I thought perhaps my father would not leave anything behind, therefore I sold it for a small thing. But now I see that the birthright is worth much more because the blessings depend on it. For why did Jacob say ‘I am Esau your firstborn’? Why did he need to mention the birthright? Rather, certainly it’s because through the birthright one is worthy of greater elevation and strength.” And in this way he deceived me [ya’akveni], for I didn’t know that receiving the blessings depended on the birthright. A hint to this matter is that the letters of “bekhor” [firstborn] are the same as “berekh” [blessing]. Therefore he said he has deceived me these two times, but the loss is really only one.

Behold, of the fat places of the earth shall be your dwelling. Since Jacob’s eyes were lifted toward heaven, more than he would set his eyes upon naturally fertile land, therefore for Jacob [Isaac] preceded the dew of heaven before the fat places of the earth. This is because Jacob’s primary trust was in the Holy One, Blessed be He, Who holds the keys of rain. However, the fatness of the earth which is in man’s power to fertilize and enrich — this trust was secondary and less important to him. But with Esau it was the opposite — he placed his trust more in his own strength and might through which he could enrich the earth, rather than lifting his eyes to heaven that it should send down beneficial dew. And because he was of little faith, therefore he would choose for his dwelling a naturally fertile land. This is why [Isaac] used the language Behold, of the fat places of the earth shall be your dwelling — he did not mention God’s giving in this blessing. And he mentioned your dwelling because it speaks to how he [Esau] would choose for himself a rich and fertile place to settle there. But Jacob, who placed his trust in God, therefore was not particular about which land he would settle in, because even if it was naturally lean, his heart was secure in God that He would enrich it. This is why regarding him it says And may God give you.

And there are those who say that [God] mentioned the dew first regarding Jacob because miraculously his land would be enriched by the dew — even if it fell on lean soil, the dew would enrich it miraculously. However, Esau needs to first seek fertile land and only then will the dew be beneficial, but on lean soil it will not help. Therefore, he needs to seek to inherit land by his sword, which is why [Isaac] immediately followed this with the blessing and by your sword you shall live.

“And it shall be when you will rule [tarid], you shall break his yoke, etc.” The word tarid is unusual in Scripture and doesn’t fit well with Rashi’s interpretation, as the nature of the suffering is not explained in the text. Some interpret it as relating to dominion and rule, interpreting it as they have. But I say this is its interpretation: Isaac knew through divine inspiration that the blessing the elder shall serve the younger would only be fulfilled when Israel is meritorious. Perhaps he understood this from what was told to him two nations will separate from your innards — one to his wickedness and one to his innocence — and then the elder shall serve the younger, for the righteous one rules over the wicked one through fear of God. However, if he is not meritorious, why should he rule over him? One might think that when Israel is not meritorious, not only would the elder not serve the younger, but the elder would actually rule over the younger. Therefore, he said this is not so — rather, when the younger is meritorious and maintains his innocence, you shall serve your brother. But when you shall rule — meaning when the time comes that you will have dominion and rule over the whole world, which happens when Israel is not meritorious [for when one falls, the other rises] — then it will be enough for you to break his yoke from your neck, but nevertheless, you too will not be able to dominate him. This is why it says in Obadiah, For the violence against your brother Jacob, shame shall cover you (Obadiah 1:10), and it is written, And saviors shall ascend Mount Zion to judge the mountain of Esau (Obadiah 1:21). From all this, it implies that Esau will ultimately be held accountable for having dominated Israel, as he was only given permission to break the yoke from his neck, not to dominate over Israel.

“Let the days of mourning for my father draw near.” [Esau] connected his plan to the days of mourning because a mourner is forbidden to study Torah, which is described as the precepts of God are upright, rejoicing the heart. And [previously] Isaac had said when you cast off — meaning at a time when they [Jacob’s descendants] do not engage in Torah study — you shall break his yoke. Therefore, during the mourning period [Jacob] would certainly not engage in Torah study and would have nothing to protect him, and then I will kill my brother. For this reason, our Sages taught (Berachot 44b) that a mourner requires protection because he lacks the Torah that normally protects him, as it is said When you walk, it shall guide you; when you lie down, it shall guard you (Proverbs 6:22).