Tag Archives: Esau

Understanding Edom #3: Jesus & Constantine

How did Christianity become its own religion distinct from Judaism? Why did “Edom” come to be associated with the Christian world in rabbinic texts? Who was the real, historical Jesus, and what was his spiritual connection to Esau? Find out in this class as we take a deep dive into the evolution of the Roman Empire and the Catholic Church, and explore what the prophet Malachi said about “replacement theology” and God’s eternal covenant with Israel.

For Part 1 of this series, see here.
For Part 2, see here.
For more on the Joshua-Jesus blueprint, see ‘Yehoshua and the Origins of Christianity’.

Hashem’s Mathematical Justice

In this week’s parasha, Vayeshev, we read about the unfortunate sale of Joseph. Two big questions come up: First, why did Jacob deserve the cruel experience of not only losing his beloved son, but then also being tricked by his other sons? Second, why did Joseph deserve to be sold into slavery and spend a dozen years in prison? We know that God always acts justly, middah k’neged middah, “measure for measure”, so why did these two righteous figures deserve such tribulations?

The Zohar (I, 185b) on this week’s parasha points out some incredible parallels between what Jacob’s sons did to him, and what Jacob did to his father Isaac. Jacob had slaughtered some goats, was dressed up in “goat skins”, and presented his father with delicious goat meat in order to trick his father into a blessing. Jacob’s sons did the same in slaughtering a goat and dipping Joseph’s tunic in its blood to trick their father. Isaac had asked Jacob “Are you my son Esau, or not?” (ha’atah ze bni Esav im lo?) and Jacob’s sons similarly told him “Do you recognize this tunic to be your son’s, or not?” (haker na haktonet binkha im lo?) The result was that Isaac experienced a “great terror” (charadah gedolah), just as Jacob did. Thus, the Zohar says, what Jacob’s sons put him through is precisely what he had put his own father through! And this all came from God, who is medakdek when it comes to tzadikim: He is perfectly, mathematically, precise in His justice, measure for measure.

We can take this teaching in the Zohar one step further. We find that after Jacob tricked Esau, the latter was so angry he resolved to kill Jacob, which prompted Rebecca to send Jacob to her uncle in Haran. Although there are different opinions as to how long it took him to get to Haran, the pshat of the Torah is that he went to Haran immediately and spent twenty years with Lavan (Genesis 31:38). After he came back to the Holy Land, he reunited with his father Isaac whom he hadn’t seen for at least twenty years (Genesis 35:27). In the case of Joseph, the Torah tells us he was seventeen when he was sold (Genesis 37:2), and thirty when he became viceroy of Egypt (Genesis 41:46). There was then a seven-year period of plenty—until Joseph turned 37 years old—followed by the start of the famine, during which time Jacob was reunited with Joseph. Doing the math, we find that Jacob and Joseph were also separated for just over twenty years. Again, God’s retribution is exact!

Let’s turn to Joseph: why did he have to be sold into servitude and spend twelve years in an Egyptian prison? We read that he was an excellent servant in the house of Potiphar, and was put in charge of all of Potiphar’s affairs (Genesis 39:3). He lived very well there, until Potiphar’s wife tried to seduce him incessantly. When he kept refusing, she put in a false report of sexual assault, leading to Joseph’s arrest and imprisonment. This is not a coincidence either, for the parasha begins by telling us that Joseph would bring “bad reports” about his brothers to his father (Genesis 37:2). Just as Joseph made false reports about his siblings, Potiphar’s wife made a false report about Joseph! The result was twelve years in prison, and it is easy to suggest why specifically twelve since, after all, Joseph had a total of twelve siblings (including Dinah). The Midrash (Beresheet Rabbah 84:7) further emphasizes God’s exacting punishment:

“Joseph brought evil report of them to their father” – what did he say? Rabbi Meir, Rabbi Yehuda, and Rabbi Shimon [taught]: Rabbi Meir says [that Joseph would report]: “Your sons are suspected of eating the limb of a living animal.” Rabbi Shimon says: “They are directing their gaze at the girls of the land.” Rabbi Yehuda says: “They are demeaning the sons of the maidservants [Bilhah and Zilpah] and calling them slaves.”

Rabbi Yehuda bar Simon said: He was punished for all three of them, for “Balances and scales of justice are Hashem’s…” (Proverbs 16:11) The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: “You said: ‘Your sons are suspected of eating the limb of a living animal.’ As you live, even at their time of corruption, they will slaughter and only then will they eat [as it is written:] ‘and slaughtered a goat.’ (Genesis 37:31) You said: ‘They are demeaning the sons of the maidservants and calling them slaves.’ [And so,] ‘Joseph was sold as a slave.’ (Psalms 105:17) You said: ‘They are directing their gaze at the girls of the land.’ As you live, I will incite the same against you [as it is written,] ‘His master’s wife cast her eyes [upon Joseph, and she said: Lie with me.]’” (Genesis 39:7)

‘Joseph Makes Himself Known to His Brethren’ by Gustav Doré

One thing that we learn from this is that the brothers of Joseph were not all that wrong in being suspicious of him, and perhaps even wanting to rid of him. He did have a dangerously large ego, and we go on to read in the Torah how Joseph consolidated more and more power in Egypt, eventually enslaving the entire Egyptian populace (Genesis 47). It isn’t surprising that the angry and subdued Egyptians later turned the tables and enslaved the Israelites! Because of this need to dominate, the Zohar (I, 200a) says Joseph was not given his own flag among the Tribes. The Zohar points out there was no degel machane Yosef, but only a degel machane Ephraim. The flag of Joseph was replaced with the flag of his son, serving as something of a “demotion” due to Joseph’s desire for superiority. The Talmud (Berakhot 55a), meanwhile, points out that Joseph was first to die among his brothers for similar reasons of ego.

Now, all of this is not to take away from Joseph’s righteousness. After all, he is called Yosef haTzadik, the epitome of righteousness, and embodied sexual purity, restraint, and great wisdom. Nonetheless, no one is perfect, and the Torah highlights the flaws of its heroes so that we can learn from them. The Torah was given to guide us in refining ourselves and becoming better people; to teach us that God is merciful and longsuffering, giving us many opportunities to repent and rectify, even across multiple lives and eras.

In fact, Joseph was reincarnated in his descendant Joshua, the humble servant of Moses (see Sefer Gilgulei Neshamot, Letter Mem). Both Joseph and Joshua are described in the Torah as being filled with a Godly spirit, and both died at the exact same age of 110 (see Genesis 50:26 and Joshua 24:29). Joseph was the reason the brothers came down to Egypt in the first place and ended up staying there “in exile” for centuries, so fittingly it was Joshua that brought the Children of Israel back into the Holy Land. Humble Joshua—who spent the first part of his life enslaved to the Egyptians—was the rectification for haughty Joseph. And the final incarnation of that soul is in Mashiach ben Yosef (Sefer Gilgulei Neshamot, Letter Pei), to once more bring all the Children of Israel back to the Holy Land at the End of Days, and usher in a better world for all mankind.

Shabbat Shalom and Happy Chanukah!

Chanukah Learning Resources:

Chanukah’s Electrifying Secret (Video)
Chanukah & the Light of Creation (Video)
Did the Jews Really Defeat the Greeks?
When Jews and Greeks Were Brothers
Death of Hellenism, Then and Now
Rabbi Akiva and the Maccabees
Where in the Torah is Chanukah?

Ovadiah’s Vision of October 7

The Haftarah for this week’s parasha, Vayishlach, is the entire book of Ovadiah. This is the shortest book in Tanakh, just one chapter of 21 verses. The entire text is a prophecy regarding what will happen to Edom. The Zohar (I, 171a) explains that Ovadiah alone was able to foresee what exactly will happen to Edom in the distance future because he was himself a convert from Edom! There is a bit of a debate whether this Ovadiah is the same as the Ovadiah that assisted Eliyahu in I Kings 18. Recall that the latter Ovadiah was a servant in the palace of the wicked King Ahab and his evil wife Jezebel: “When Jezebel was killing off the prophets of God, Ovadiah had taken a hundred prophets and hidden them, fifty to a cave, and provided them with food and drink.” (I Kings 18:4) The Talmud teaches us that for this incredible act of kindness and bravery, Ovadiah was himself blessed with the gift of prophecy (Sanhedrin 39b). That said, it is possible the two Ovadiahs were distinct individuals (or reincarnations of the same soul, in two different bodies). In fact, there are at least a dozen people across the Tanakh named “Ovadiah”!

Petra, in today’s Jordan

Ovadiah’s prophecy to Edom begins by promising its destruction: “I will make you least among nations, you shall be most despised.” (1:2) What did the Edomites do to deserve this? “Your arrogant heart has seduced you, you who dwell in clefts of the rock, in your lofty abode. You think in your heart: ‘Who can pull me down to earth?’” (1:3) The main Edomite stronghold in ancient times is what is today called Petra, the famous rock outcropping on the east side of the Jordan River. The Edomites believed themselves to be safe in their Petra fortress, and they grew arrogant, and then joined the Babylonians in attacking Jerusalem:

For the outrage against your brother Jacob, disgrace shall engulf you, and you shall perish forever. On that day when you stood aloof, when aliens carried off his goods, when foreigners entered his gates and cast lots for Jerusalem, you were as one of them. How could you gaze with glee on your brother that day, on his day of calamity! How could you gloat over the people of Judah on that day of ruin! How could you loudly jeer on a day of anguish! (1:10-12)

This is echoed in Psalm 137:7, which describes the tragic destruction of Jerusalem at the hands of the Babylonians, and says: “Remember, Hashem, against the Edomites the day of Jerusalem’s fall; how they cried ‘Strip her, strip her to her very foundations!’” The Edomite cruelly went along with the Babylonian catastrophe, the destruction of the Holy Temple, and the exile of the Judeans. And for that, God promised that they should “perish forever”. When did this happen?

The Hasmoneans, of Maccabee fame, conquered Edom (by then called Idumea) during the reign of King Yochanan Hyrcanus (r. 134-104 BCE, probably the same person called Yochanan Kohen Gadol in the Talmud—more in his identity here). The Romans later absorbed Idumea into their own empire, and in 6 CE incorporated it into the province of Judea. It was then that Edom completely ceased to exist as its own entity—Ovadiah’s prophecy was finally fulfilled. Henceforth, in rabbinic texts, “Edom” was instead used as a code word for the Roman Empire (to understand why, see the second part of the recent ‘Understanding Edom’ series, and ‘How Esau Became Rome’ in Volume Two of Garments of Light).

That said, we know that the Tanakh often presents us with “double-level” prophecies, to be fulfilled in those contemporary days of the past, as well as in the far future. After all, at its core the Tanakh is not a historical text, but a prophetic one. It has relevance not just to the past, but for the present and future, too. We study Tanakh to better understand ourselves and our souls, and to understand the world around us. The Torah is a living text, and we view the world through the lens of Torah. Thus, Ovadiah’s prophecy was not just for the past, fulfilled two millennia ago, but also for the far future, for the End of Days, and we can use it to better understand our current reality.

The Evolution of Edom & Rome

The key to understanding Ovadiah’s End Times vision is recognizing the identity of Edom. In Jewish texts, Edom is always used in reference to the Roman Empire. The original Roman Empire collapsed in 476 CE with the sack of Rome by the Germanic king Odoacer. However, the Roman Empire had previously been split into Western and Eastern halves. The West half was centered in Rome, while the Eastern half was centered in Constantinople. The Eastern half was not overrun by barbarians, and continued to exist—referred to today as the “Byzantine Empire”. Henceforth, its illustrious capital Constantinople was seen as the new, “second” Rome.

Division of the Roman Empire in 395 CE

In 1453 CE, the Ottomans conquered Constantinople, turning it into Istanbul. As the city became Islamified, the Orthodox Christian establishment fled—many of them to Moscow. They designated Moscow as the new, and “third” Rome. Henceforth, the leader of Russia was no longer called a “duke”, but rather czar, literally “caesar”. Russia adopted the Roman eagle as its symbol, and the red Edomite colours. This continued all the way through to the Red Army of the USSR, with its red flag and its epicentre at Red Square in Moscow. And so, although “Edom” certainly refers to the entire Western and Christian world, the leading oppressor of Edom is referred to more specifically as the “Third Rome”.

Indeed, we find that Russia and the USSR have been the longest and most consistent oppressor of Israel for centuries. Whether it’s the Pale of Settlement, the Cantonist Laws (that forcibly conscripted Jewish children to the Russian Army for decades of service), the pogroms, or the gulags; the USSR’s role in creating the “Palestinian” movement and training the PLO, or the KGB’s infiltration of the Israeli Knesset (discussed in this class), or Russia today supporting Hamas and Hezbollah (neither of which is designated a terrorist organization by Russia, unlike by nearly all Western countries). It was also in Russia that the infamous Protocols of the Elders of Zion was produced, inspiring generation after generation of antisemites and Jew-murderers.

So, while there may still be some debate in Jewish circles regarding who exactly is the “Third Rome” of the world today, it actually seems quite clear that all signs point to Moscow. Amazingly, the Talmud (Sanhedrin 98a) predicted that there would be three Romes, but not a fourth, and that Mashiach would come after the fall of the Third Rome. As explored in the past (in an essay here, and in the three-part video series on “Third Rome”), the fall of the Soviet Union in 1989 (or 5750) corresponded perfectly to the final possible starting point of the Ikvot haMashiach, the “End of Days” era leading up to the Messianic Age. With this in mind, we can understand Ovadiah’s prophecy and how it relates to today’s events.

Hamas, Hezbollah, Houthis

Ovadiah 1:3 accuses Edom of becoming arrogant, and feeling safe in their “lofty abode”. This could certainly apply to Russia, which has in recent years been arrogantly trying to conquer (or reconquer) neighbouring lands in Georgia, Crimea, and Ukraine. Perhaps the Russian regime feels safe in their vast and cold northern abode, knowing full well that no one has been able to defeat them in the past, not even the massive, powerful armies of Napoleon or Hitler. So, Russia arrogantly went to war with Ukraine, and thought it would be a quick “special operation”. Instead, it has turned into a full-blown proxy war against NATO, and Russia has suffered horrendous losses. They are now relying partly on cheaply-made Iranian drones and missiles, and on thousands of North Korean mercenaries who have not been able to help very much either. At the same time, support from allies like China and Belarus has been underwhelming. Ovadiah describes this all very well:

How thoroughly rifled is Esau, how ransacked his hoards! All your allies turned you back at the frontier; your own confederates have duped and overcome you; [those who ate] your bread have planted snares under you. He is bereft of understanding. (v. 6-7)

One of the Edomite allies that Ovadiah refers to are the “warriors of Teiman”, and Ovadiah says they will “lose heart” and faulter: v’hatu giborekha teiman! (v. 9) It is interesting to point out that one of the so-called 3 H’s that Russia supports is the Houthis of Yemen, ie. Teiman (the other two are Hamas and Hezbollah). Ovadiah even gives a cryptic allusion to this in saying those murderers in Teiman will be hatu—Houthis! More incredibly, the very next verse mentions Hamas: “For the violence against your brother Jacob, disgrace shall engulf you, and you shall perish forever.” (v. 10) The word for “violence” here, of course, is hamas. Ovadiah goes on to accuse Edom of supporting those who came against Israel:

On that day when you stood aloof, when aliens carried off his goods, when foreigners entered his gates and cast lots for Jerusalem, you were as one of them. How could you gaze with glee on your brother that day, on his day of calamity! How could you gloat over the people of Judah on that day of ruin! How could you loudly jeer on a day of anguish! How could you enter the gate of My people on its day of disaster, gaze in glee with the others on its misfortune on its day of disaster, and lay hands on its wealth on its day of disaster! (v. 12-14)

Edom stood by while Israel was being slaughtered. The terrorists came to “cast lots for Jerusalem”. Recall that the name Hamas chose for their day of terror on October 7 was “Al-Aqsa Flood”—they believed they were coming to “liberate” Al-Aqsa, ie. Jerusalem. Ovadiah says Edom played a role in this because they were concerned for their own wealth. Indeed, many have pointed out that Russia had the most to gain from October 7: In the days leading up to it, all the talk in the media was about Israel’s impending peace deal with Saudi Arabia—which would include oil and gas pipelines through Israel to Europe that would undermine Russia’s own supply to Europe (Russia’s main source of wealth). Russia had to stop the deal to protect its oil and gas riches. It worked, as October 7 quashed the Israel-Saudi deal.

At the same time, Russia wanted to get the world off its back for Ukraine, and this too happened post-October 7, with the world quickly forgetting about Ukraine and turning all of its attention to Gaza. Funding and donations for Ukraine subsequently dropped in dramatic fashion, the world’s money now channeled to Gaza instead. (Ukrainian officials complained greatly about this, to deaf ears!) For Russia, October 7 was a win-win. And it also just happened to be Putin’s birthday!

Ovadiah concludes his prophecy by relaying God’s promise that the wicked Edomite regime would be destroyed, and would never again bother Israel. The flame of Israel will be rekindled, “the House of Jacob shall be fire, and the House of Joseph flame, and the House of Esau shall be straw…” (v. 18) and we will see the eventual positive outcome of this tragic war, with Israel reclaiming “the Negev and Mount Esau as well, the Shephelah and Philistia. They shall possess the Ephraimite country and the district of Samaria, and Benjamin along with Gilead.” Remember that Philistia is Gaza, and the Ephraimite country, Samaria, and Benjamin makes up most of the “West Bank”, while Gilead refers to the general area around the Golan Heights. We are seeing this happening right before our eyes now.

Finally, “the exile of the Children of Israel, that have gone to be kna’anim as far as Tzarfat, and the Jerusalemite exile as far as Sepharad, shall possess the towns of the Negev.” (v. 20) In the times of Ovadiah, Tzarfat and Sepharad referred to places north of Israel, in what is today Lebanon and Turkey. Over time, just as Edom became the Roman Empire, Tzarfat became France and Sephard became Spain. Interestingly, when looking back at Jewish texts from around 1000 years ago, we find that there is mention of Jewish communities distinct from Ashkenazi and Sephardi, called Tzarfati Jews and Kna’ani Jews. The Tzarfati Jews are a bit better known because of great figures like Rashi, but we hear very little of the Kna’ani Jews. Who were they?

“Kna’ani” was the label for those Jews living in Eastern Europe, among Slavic peoples. Intriguingly, they were called Kna’ani because in Biblical parlance “Canaanite” was synonymous with being a “slave” (since Canaan was cursed with slavery). The Slavic peoples of Eastern Europe were a major source of slaves in Roman and Medieval times; in fact, the root of the word “slave” is slav! This is why Jews living among the Slavs were nicknamed “Kna’ani”. Over time, the Kna’ani Jewish community fused together with the Ashkenazi community originally rooted in Germany, and most of the Tzarfati community in France (while many in southern France fused with their nearby Sephardis). Meanwhile, following the Spanish Expulsion the Sephardi community fused together with North African and Mizrachi communities. Thus, in effect, when Ovadiah speaks of Kna’ani, Tzarfati, and Sephardi Judeans in exile, he is really referring to all the major groups of Jews today.

Very soon, all Jews still in exile will return to a stronger and larger and more prosperous Israel, “For liberators shall march up on Mount Zion to wreak judgment on Mount Esau; and dominion shall be God’s.” (v. 21) May it come speedily and in our days.

Shabbat Shalom!