“And there was a famine in the
land, aside from the first famine that had been in the days of Avraham, and
Yitzchak went to Avimelech the king of the Pelishtim, to Gerar.” (Beresheit 26:1)
This passage introduces a narrative that in some
ways is one of the most enigmatic episodes in Sefer Beresheit. The Torah tells us that there was a famine
in the Land of Canaan. Yitzchak
realizes that he must relocate in order to provide for his family. He travels to Gerar. Gerar is in the portion of the Land of
Canaan occupied by the Pelishtim. He
considers traveling from Gerar to Egypt.
However, Hashem appears to Yitzchak and tells him that he should not
leave the Land of Canaan. Yitzchak
remains in Gerar. The men of Gerar express
interest in Yitzchak’s wife, Rivkah.
Yitzchak decides that he should respond that Rivkah is his sister. Eventually, Avimelech, the king of the
Pelishtim, discovers that Rivkah is Yitzchak’s wife. He chastises Yitzchak for concealing Rivkah’s identity. He explains to Yitzchak that this subterfuge
could have resulted in disaster. One of
the men, not realizing that Rivkah was married, might have taken her as a wife. Avimelech commands his nation not to harass
Yitzchak and Rivkah.
Yitzchak plants crops. Despite the famine, his efforts yield abundant crops. Yitzchak becomes wealthy and his success
evokes the jealousy of the Pelishtim.
Avimelech suggests that Yitzchak relocate. Yitzchak follows these instructions and moves to Nachal
Gerar.
In Nachal Gerar the conflict between Yitzchak and
the Pelishtim continues. They are
constantly engaged is disputes over water rights. Eventually, Yitzchak succeeds in developing a well that is not
disputed. Again, Hashem appears to
Yitzchak and assures him that He will protect him and bless him. Yitzchak builds an altar and offers thanks
and praise to Hashem.
Avimelech comes to Yitzchak with a delegation. Yitzchak expresses his surprise at this
visit. Avimelech had sent him away and
now he is seeking his friendship!
Avimelech responds that it is clear that Yitzchak enjoys a special
relationship with Hashem. He denies
that he has ever wished or caused Yitzchak any harm. He asks Yitzchak to enter into a treaty of friendship. Yitzchak agrees. The narrative ends with Yitzchak’s servants informing him that
they have discovered additional water.
Yitzchak names the new well Shivah.
This name is a derivative of the word she’vuah – oath. It is a memorial to the treaty made with
Avimelech.
Every episode of the Torah is designed to teach a
lesson. Sometimes an episode can be
understood from various perspectives and at various levels. As a result, one episode can yield a number
of lessons. But usually there is some
obvious message. In this instance, it
is difficult to determine the message of the narrative. What are we to learn from this episode?
Furthermore, the Torah does not deal extensively
with Yitzchak. We are told very little
of his life. This is the only episode
in the entire Torah in which Yitzchak is clearly the main character. It seems that this is the incident in his
life that is most essential to the message of the Torah. Why is this episode so important?
Our Sages often comment that
the experiences of our forefathers are a sign, or indicator, to their
descendants. This comment can be
understood in many ways. It can be
interpreted as asserting that there is a mystical relationship between the
events experienced by our forefathers and the later experiences of their
descendants. However, the comments can
also be understood in a simpler manner.
The experiences of our forefathers often serve as a paradigm, or
template, for future events. We can
study the experiences of our forefathers, learn from them, and apply these
lessons to our own lives. What is the
paradigm described in this narrative?
What lesson can we learn from this episode that we can apply to our own
lives? In order to answer these
questions, we must consider some elements of the episode more carefully.
“And Yitzchak sowed in that
land, and he found in that year a hundred fold, and Hashem blessed him. And the man became great, and he grew
constantly greater until he had grown very great. And he had possessions of sheep and possessions of cattle and
much production, and the Pelishtim envied him.
And all the wells that his father's servants had dug in the days of
Avraham, his father, the Pelishtim stopped them up and filled them with
earth. And Avimelech said to Yitzchak,
"Go away from us, for you have become much stronger than we." (Beresheit 26:12-16)
As explained above, Yitzchak planted while in Gerar
and his efforts yielded a rich harvest.
Yitzchak continued to be successful and his wealth grew. The Pelishtim were jealous. This jealousy had two results: First, the Pelishtim destroyed the wells
that Avraham had dug in Gerar. Avraham
had also lived in Gerar. During his
time in Gerar he was also very successful and Avimelech entered into a treaty
with him. Avraham had dug various wells.
These are the wells the Pelishtim now destroyed. Second, Avimelech instructed Yitzchak to
leave Gerar.
This response is difficult to understand. We can understand the Pelishtim’s
jealousy. Jealousy is a natural human
response. However, the Pelishtim expressed their jealousy in a rather bizarre
and self-destructive manner. The wells
that Avraham had developed were an important element of the infrastructure that
benefited all of the people of the land.
Especially in a time a famine, wells are an invaluable resource. It seems that by destroying these wells the
Pelishtim harmed themselves at least
as much as they harmed Yitzchak!
Avimelech drove Yitzchak from Gerar. But Yitzchak derived his wealth from his
successful harvest. It was a time a
famine. The Pelishtim needed food. Yitzchak’s success in his agricultural
endeavors probably saved numerous lives.
Why send away the one source of hope at a time of desperation? In other words, both of these responses seem
remarkably self-destructive. Why were
the Pelishtim determined to strike out at Yitzchak even at their own expense?
Rashi makes an interesting comment regarding the
Pelishtim’s motivation for destroying the wells. He explains that the Pelishtim offered a reason for their
actions. They explained that they were
afraid that their land might be attacked.
These wells could not be protected.
They could be easily captured by their enemies and used to support the
attacking armies.[1] Rashi’s comments are somewhat
ambiguous. He comments that the
Pelishtim offered this explanation. This
seems to imply that this explanation was not their true motive. They offered
this explanation rather than revealing their real reasons for destroying the
wells. But Rashi does not indicate the
true motivation.
Rav Ovadia Sforno’s comments provide an insight that
may answer this question. He asks: What
was the source of the Pelishtim’s jealousy?
He explains that the Pelishtim observed that Yitzchak’s agricultural
efforts were remarkably successful and their own were correspondingly
fruitless.[2]
It is not difficult to identify the message that
this phenomenon communicated to the Pelishtim: The land responded with
abundance to the efforts of Yitzchak and rejected their efforts. This phenomenon communicated an affinity
between Yitzchak and the Land of Canaan.
It also communicated that the land responded to them as aliens and
usurpers. In other words, not only was
it clear to the Pelishtim that Yitzchak enjoyed Hashem’s providence, but it was
also clear that Yitzchak had a special relationship with the land they regarded
as their own!
We can now understand their response of destroying
Avraham’s wells and chasing Yitzchak away.
These wells represented an inter-generational connection to the
land. Before Yitzchak, Avraham had also
achieved great success in this land.
The wells were a reminder of this inter-generational relationship to the
land and the special connection that Avraham and Yitzchak had with the
land. The Pelishtim wanted to deny this
relationship and destroy any memorial of it.
The wells had to be destroyed and it was imperative to drive Yitzchak
away. In other words, the Pelishtim
were willing to sacrifice their own welfare for a cause that they believed was
more important than their immediate well-being. They felt that their claim to the land was at stake. They were determined to undermine and erase
any claim that Yitzchak had to the land.
In order to accomplish this end, they were willing to sacrifice their own
well-being.
It seems that these events are a paradigm and
template for current events. The
Palestinian rejection of the State of Israel reflects exactly the same
attitudes and includes the same measures attributed to the Pelishtim in our parasha. Like the Pelishtim, the Palestinians have no
reservations against engaging in the most outlandish, self-destructive
behaviors. They have ripped up much of
the infrastructure left by Israel in its abandonment of Gaza. They needed this infrastructure but they
could not tolerate any signs or memorials of Israel’s success in developing this
arid, barren land. The Palestinians
constantly acknowledge that they can only survive through access to Israel’s
economy: Israel’s economy is their only
source of jobs and Israel provides a market for any goods that the Palestinians
can produce. But despite these
compelling reasons to make peace with Israel, the Palestinians sacrifice their
children in futile suicide bombings.
They use their children and civilian population as human shields. These actions are clearly
self-destructive. But they serve the
greater end of attempting to wipe out any sign of a Jewish presence in the
land.
Our parasha also offers important advice
regarding how to respond to such attitudes.
Yitzchak did succeed in forcing Avimelech to accept him. How did he secure this outcome?
Nachmanides explains that there are two factors that
brought about this outcome. First,
Hashem provided Yitzchak with His continual support. As a result, Avimelech realized that his best hope was to enter
into a treaty with Yitzchak. This treaty
would acknowledge Yitzchak’s right to dwell in the land. However, it would also secure the future of
Avimelech’s people – Yitzchak would promise not to wage war against them. Second, implicit in Nachmanides’ comments is
the observation that Avimelech only entered into this treaty because he knew
that there was no alternative. He could
never succeed in driving out Yitzchak and his descendants.[3]
This provides us with an important lesson: In order to triumph in our conflict with the
Palestinians we must not allow them to have any hope of success. As long as they feel that there is a
reasonable chance that we can be driven from the Land of Israel, they will
never give up their battle. We must be
victorious in every confrontation. This
will require Hashem’s help and our determination. We cannot show weakness or doubt in the veracity of our rights to
the land. This will require our own
firm, unwavering commitment. Any doubt
or defeat only encourages renewed violence.
It is unfortunate that we find ourselves in this
situation. We all wish to resolve our
conflict with the Palestinians through reasoning and mutual understanding. But as long as the paradigm of this week’s parasha
is the template for our relationship with the Palestinians, we cannot forget
the lessons of the parasha. We
must appeal to Hashem for His constant support and we must never waiver in our
determination and convictions.