Vayetzei (Part 2) Genesis 28:10-32:3

One of the first stories in this parashah is that of what is famously known as "Jacob's Ladder".

This story is about 11 lines long and so much has been written bout it.

Since the story is fairly short, let's look at some of the interesting points as well as the problems. Any word with an asterisk (*) after it is a word that is often used, but one that I would prefer not to, but to explain every sentence change would make this post way too long!

28:11 -  And he happened upon* the place, and he stayed* there [all night], because the sun had set*; and he took [one of the] stones from the place, and put it under his head, and lay down in that place to sleep.

One word that I will explain is "happened upon". פגע is an odd word to use and typically means that there is some sort of intermediary involved, as when Abraham requested the local people to plead his place on his behalf to another. Because of that, Rashi and others comment that this indicates that Jacob prayed, even though, from the time he was born until he was ready to leave home, the only time that he mentioned God was to pretend to be Esau and fool his father, indicating that Esau was more of a faithful believer than Jacob.

And yes, he chose to have a rock for a pillow.

28:12 - And he dreamed, and behold! A ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to the heavens*; and behold! The angels of Elohim ascending and descending on it.

The Hebrew word, "HaShamayim" is often translated as "the heavens". Some will mangle it to "heaven" to fit an ideological view. Keep in mind that, as noted in Genesis 1:8, "shamayim" is but a euphemism for "rakia", meaning the "firmament", a solid surface that was but a few miles above.

The angels flying (or climbing) up and down these ladders (the sages argue as to which order. Did they ascend and then descend?) are the source of many metaphysical interpretations by modern theists. The simple explanation is that this spot was the place where angels would arrive to the land and return back home, above the heavens.

Later on, Jacbo will encounter a camp of these angels and get them to work for him (in the next parashah, "And [Jacob] sent them...").

28:13 - And, behold, YHVH stood beside him, and said: "I am YHVH, Elohim of Abraham, your father, and Elohim of of Isaac. The land that you are lying upon, I will give to you and to your seed."

Onkelos had a problem with the anthropomorphic "YHVH stood beside him" and changed it to "the glory of YHVH stood beside him". Because that which is standing beside you, even in a dream, should not be a God. Although later on, Jacob will also say, "I have seen God face to face", and the Targumist will take issue with that as well.

Most likely, YHVH is simply repeating his promise (as one who deals in real estate) that was given to Abraham and Isaac, and not simply the special angel land that he was lying upon.

Angels and an anthropomorphic God - as the introduction to a story, that alone should tell us that this is a supernatural event.

28:14 And your seed will be as [numerous as] the dust of the earth, and you (your descendants) will spread out to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south. And with you and in your seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.

When Isaac sent Jacob forth, he blessed him in the name of "El Shaddai". This name is primarily used to describe God as on of fertility and protection. Here, YHVH is echoing that theme.

28:15 - "And, behold! I am with you and will protect you wherever you go, and will bring you back into this soil; for I will not leave you, until I have done that which I have spoken to you."

The Targumist has a lot of problems with God saying "I will be with you", since that implies a physical presence which is disturbing. So he changed it to "My memra will assist you". A memra is a supernatural entity that represents God, but isn't God. It is a sort of intermediary that the Sages invented to get around God having a form, but only made things worse!

Later on, you will see that YHVH does keep his promises, and is hanging around Jacob, and has a heck of a time getting Jacob to return to the soil where he had the vision, and thus complete the bargain in the next line:

28:16 - And Jacob awoke from his sleep, and he said: 'Surely YHVH is by this place; and I didn't know it!'

The Targumist was also uncomfortable with God having a form and being "by this place" or "near this spot", so he changed it to "the glory of YHVH dwells by this spot".

28:17 -  And he was awestruck and said: 'How terrifying is this place! this is none other than the house Elohim, and this is a gateway of the heavens!"

The belief of the time is that there were entry points into the raqia. This is expressed during the flood story, and is still maintained as part of Jewish prayer. Every Friday night they praise God who "...opens daily the doors of the gateways of the East, and splits the openings of the rakia" to let the sun in and out.

Jacob was astounded that he found such a place.

28:18 - And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put under his head, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it.

The "pillar" or מצבה (matzevah) is something that Jacob will do a lot. In the book of Genesis he is erecting them repeatedly (a total of 6 times). It is a term used today for a headstone, but it means a marker, a reminder of something special about that place as an announcement to others.

28:19 - And he called the name of that place Beth-El, but the name of the city was Luz at the first.

There is an interesting thing about this naming. It would appear that this place was known as Luz, and Jacob renamed it. But why mention what it was named before? Later, he will go to "Luz, which is Beth-El" and when he is reunited with Joseph, he will remind him that God appeared to him in Luz, but won't mention Beth-El. And other books too. For example, Joshua will connect Luz to Beth-El 3 times, while Judges mentions Luz twice, but not Beth-El.

This is helpful in dating some of these books and is interesting to think about.

28:20 - And Jacob made a vow (neder), saying: 'If YHVH-Elohim will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on...

A "neder" is not really a vow, but there is no really good single English word for it. It is akin to establishing something as though it has been commanded (say, a halakha) and treating it as a personal commitment.

But look at what he is saying, so long as YHVH-Elohim is with him on the way, protecting him, giving him food and clothing, and brings Jacob back to his father's house (next verse) THEN the promise takes effect.

Now ask yourself, did this happen? If so, when? If not, did the neder ever become fulfilled?

It's worth pondering.

28:21 - so that I come back to my father's house in peace, then YHVH shall be my Elohim...

This is the last part of God's part of the deal that Jacob is putting on God!

But what does it mean that "YHVH will be my Elohim"? Remember, up to that point, Jacob hadn't really been into having a God. And Elohim is a particular expression of a God as one who is to be obeyed, feared, with no expectation of a reward. I explain the nature of an Elohim here.

There is no satisfactory commentary about this sentence. The Targum uses, "...then the memra of YHVH will be my Elohim." Here, the Targum is treating "Elohim" as though it is speaking of a supernatural expression of YHVH (like an angel), and that Jacob is referring to that. Rashi somewhat alludes to that, but again, it's not a satisfying answer.

I prefer, "You do this for me, then I will be yours, to serve and obey in all things."

28:22 - and this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be Elohim's house; and of all that you will give me, a tenth, I will give the tenth to You.'

We now have a play on words, and that "Beth-El" is based on "the house of Elohim", which refers to the rock. The Targum tweaks this because he doesn't like the sound of handing things to God. He prefers, "I will lay before you a tenth...".

It should be noted that a "house of God" is a place of worship, and so Rashi indicates that when Jacob leaves Laban's house, he stops by and pours a libation upon it. Prayer wasn't a thing that Jacob did. He erected stones, made promises, and made offerings. Of course, there is no text that says that he offered a tenth of all of his flocks to God.

Perhaps this was an insert by the later priesthood?

It's hard to say!