A Portrait of Esav/2

A Portrait of Esav

Exegetical Approaches

THIS TOPIC HAS NOT YET UNDERGONE EDITORIAL REVIEW

Innately Evil

Sources: Bavli Bava Batra16bAbout the Bavli, Pesikta DeRav Kahana3:1 ("Zakhor")About Pesikta DeRav Kahana, Targum NeofitiBereshit 25:34About Targum Neofiti, Targum Pseudo-JonathanBereshit 25:27-34Bereshit 26:34-35Bereshit 27:31Bereshit 32:7Bereshit 33:1-4About Targum Pseudo-Jonathan, Targum YerushalmiBereshit 25:34Bereshit 32:7Bereshit 33:4About Targum Yerushalmi, Bereshit Rabbah63:6-14About Bereshit Rabbah, TanchumaToledot 8Vayishlach 4About the Tanchuma, Tanchuma (Buber)Toledot 2Toledot 3About Tanchuma (Buber), ?R. Saadia GaonCommentary Bereshit 25About R. Saadia Gaon, RashiBereshit 25:22Bereshit 25:27-28Bereshit 25:29Bereshit 25:32-34Bereshit 26:34-35Bereshit 27:5Bereshit 32:7Bereshit 32:12Bereshit 33:4About R. Shelomo Yitzchaki, ChizkuniBereshit 25:27About R. Chizkiyah b. Manoach, Minchat YehudaBereshit 25:27About R. Yehuda b. Elazar, RanDerashot HaRan 2About R. Nissim Gerondi, AbarbanelBereshit 25 QuestionsBereshit 25:19Bereshit 25:24, 29About R. Yitzchak Abarbanel, SefornoBereshit 25:27-34Bereshit 26:35Bereshit 27:1Bereshit 32:7About R. Ovadyah Seforno, MalbimBereshit 27:1Bereshit 27:5About R. Meir Leibush Weiser

In utero – According to Bereshit Rabbah and Rashi, already in utero, Esav portrayed his wicked tendencies.  Whenever Rivka passed a house of idolatry, he would push in the womb,¹  drawn to worship there.  R. Yochanana and Reish Lakish further suggest that even his animosity towards Yaakov began pre-birth, as evidenced by the running around in the womb, understood to be attempts to kill the second fetus.²

Chosen Profession: "אִישׁ יֹדֵעַ צַיִד אִישׁ שָׂדֶה" – Targum Pseudo-Jonathan suggests that, as a hunter, Esav killed not just animals but people as well.³ Bereshit Rabbah, Tanchuma, and Rashi, instead, assert that the term is metaphoric, describing one who is a trickster and traps (צד) people with his words.⁴ Even the term "איש שדה" is understood negatively by R. Hiyya  in Bereshit Rabbah to refer to one who neglects himself.⁵

"וַיִּבֶז עֵשָׂו אֶת הַבְּכֹרָה"

Yaakov and Esav's reunion

Esav's marriage

Yitzchak's preference for Esav

Esav's descendants

Mildly Negative

Sources: RadakBereshit 25:27-29Bereshit 25:31-34Bereshit 27:4Bereshit 32:7About R. David Kimchi,R. Avraham b. HaRambamBereshit 25:23Bereshit 25:27-29Bereshit 25:31Bereshit 26:34Bereshit 32:7About R. Avraham Maimonides, ?RambanBereshit 25:34Bereshit 32:8About R. Moshe Nachmanides, RalbagBeiur Divrei HaParashah Bereshit 25:23-34Bereshit 25:19-34 Toelet 4Bereshit 27:1-28:9 Toelet 2Bereshit 27:1-28:9 Toelet 8About R. Levi b. Gershon, R. S"R HirschBereshit 25:27About R. S"R Hirsch

Neutral

Sources: JosephusAntiquities 1:18:1Antiquities 1:18:4-8Antiquities 1:20:1Antiquities 2:1:1About Josephus, RashbamBereshit 25:22,27-28Bereshit 25:31-34Bereshit 32:7-8Bereshit 32:21-29About R. Shemuel b. Meir, Ibn EzraBereshit 25:32-34Bereshit 27:40About R. Avraham ibn Ezra, R. Yosef Bekhor ShorBereshit 25:29-30Bereshit 25:34Bereshit 27:45Bereshit 32:7-8About R. Yosef Bekhor Shor, ShadalBereshit 25:31Bereshit 32:7About R. S.D. Luzzatto,

¹ This is the midrashic understanding of the phrase, "וַיִּתְרֹצֲצוּ הַבָּנִים בְּקִרְבָּהּ ".

² According to these sages, though, the attempts are two sided.  Both brothers attempted to kill or overpower the other; Yaakov was just as active in this as Esav.

³ R. Abba b. Kahana in Bereshit Rabbah and Rashi maintain that even the term "אַדְמוֹנִי" refers to this murderous trait and denotes one who spills blood.

⁴ Tanchuma describes how he would trick his father into believing that he was God-fearing by asking questions even about the minutiae of legal practice, such as the laws of tithing salt.

⁵ A field as a place which is free for all, or הפקר, and thus the midrash suggests that Esav "הפקיר עצמו כשדה".  See Rashi who explains similarly, describing Esav as a loafer.