Photo Credit: Hadas Parush/Flash 90
The illegal Arab settlement of Battir, built on the ruins of Jewish Betar.

He sends Yaacov away to find a wife from among the family of Terach, and he blesses him.

By doing so, he gives up short-term stability for the timeless connection to the divine. Critically, when he blesses Yaacov, he does not bless him with wealth and power, as he had planned for Esav. Instead, he blesses him with children, with the land he loves and with the legacy of his father.

Advertisement




With this blessing, Yitzchak becomes a bridge across the generations and a bridge to the divine.

Not long after, when Hashem begins his blessing of Yaacov, it is with these words: “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac…”

With his act of blessing, Yitzchak becomes a source of blessing in his own right.

While our leaders have been shepherds, the vast majority of the Children of Israel were farmers. Where others are source of vision (like Avraham), or will (like Yaacov), we may be quieter.

Like Yitzchak, we plan and execute. We reap and sow.

Perhaps, we share Yitzchak’s path to spiritual realization.

Perhaps, our dedication to the legacy of Avraham can enlarge our own spiritual legacy.

Perhaps, our act of blessing can enable us to become a source of blessing.

May we all merit the legacy of Yitzchak.

Shabbat Shalom.


Share this article on WhatsApp:
Advertisement

1
2
SHARE
Previous articleA Palestinian State Is A Greater Threat To Israel Than An Intifada
Next articleParshat Toldot
Joseph Cox is the author of the City on the Heights (cityontheheights.com) and an occasional contributor to the Jewish Press Online