Why Exasperate Eisav’s Ignorance
On the verse, “The youths grew up, and Eisav was a man who knew hunting, a man of the field...” Rashi comments on the words “knew hunting” and explains: “[He knew how] to trap and deceive his father with his mouth by asking him, ‘Father, how does one tithe salt and straw?’ His father thereby thought that he was meticulous in {his observance of} mitzvos.”
Commentators explain that the reason Eisav specifically asked about salt and straw is because these items are completely exempt from tithing, even according to rabbinic law. (Through this question, Eisav wanted to demonstrate that he was so meticulous in [his observance of] mitzvos that he would even tithe items that are exempt from the obligation.) According to this explanation, however, a question arises: Had Eisav actually separated tithes from salt and straw, this might have demonstrated his meticulousness in mitzvos. But by merely asking how one tithes these items, not only would he have failed to impress Yitzchak, but on the contrary, the question would have revealed his ignorance — that he did not know the laws of tithing!
Moreover, Eisav had been raised in Yitzchak’s home for many years, from his childhood through his youth. If he was truly as meticulous in mitzvos as he tried to present himself, he would certainly have observed how Yitzchak performed mitzvos and would have definitely noticed that Yitzchak did not tithe salt and straw. How, then, did he expect to impress Yitzchak with the question “how does one tithe, etc.”?
The question becomes even stronger:
The content of this commentary of Rashi (how Eisav tried to demonstrate to Yitzchak that he was meticulous in mitzvos) appears both in the Tanchuma and in Bereishis Rabbah. In the Tanchuma, it appears with a different wording: “whether it [salt or straw] is obligated in tithing,” indicating that Eisav asked Yitzchak. In Bereishis Rabbah, however, the wording is similar to Rashi’s: “How does one prepare salt? ... How does one prepare straw?” — which suggests (as commentators explain) that Eisav had no doubt that salt and straw were obligated in tithing; his question was only “how does one tithe salt and straw.”
It turns out that Rashi deliberately chooses the version that further emphasizes: a) Eisav’s ignorance (that he was certain salt and straw required tithing), and b) his failure to notice that Yitzchak did not tithe salt and straw.
2. A Question of “How”
Another issue requires clarification: How was it even appropriate to ask “How does one tithe?” Everyone knows the simple meaning of tithing — one-tenth. So what exactly is the question “How does one tithe,” i.e., how does one take a tithe (one-tenth) from salt and straw?!
Regarding the Midrash, one could answer that this question (and the question raised in section 1) is addressed by the precise wording of the Midrash: “how does one prepare salt... straw” (rather than “how does one tithe”).
{To explain:} Certainly Eisav knew that salt and straw are exempt from tithing. His question, however, was “how does one prepare { — “mesaknin” lit. fix — } them.” {He speculated that} since we find that one must take tithes from “the seed of your crop” (and similarly for animal tithes, etc.) to demonstrate that “the earth and its fullness belong to Hashem” — there should be some similar action or “tikkun” for items that are exempt from tithing, so that with these items too, one would demonstrate that they come from the Almighty.
And this was Eisav’s question: “how does one prepare salt... {and} straw,” i.e., how does one “fix” them (since there is no mitzvah of tithing for them).
This would also address the question {mentioned in section 1} of how it is appropriate to ask “how does one tithe”: He indeed did not ask “how does one tithe” but rather “how does one prepare.”
{This all answers for the Midrash’s wording. Thus,} according to this, the question becomes even greater — why did Rashi depart from the language of the Midrash and instead of “(how does one) prepare,” he says “(how does one) tithe”?!
3. Pre-Torah Tithing Practices
The explanation for this is as follows:
It has been discussed many times that Rashi explains the straightforward meaning of Scripture — {in his own words:} “I have come only to explain the simple meaning of the text” — even when this does not align with the halachic aspect of Torah.
Similar {reasoning can be offered} in our case: The question “how does one tithe salt and straw” in Rashi’s commentary is not related to the mitzvah of tithing crops (which was instituted after the Giving of the Torah), but rather to the mitzvah of tithing that was practiced at that time ({a practice which seems to have taken place even} according to the simple meaning of Scripture):
Earlier, in Parshas Lech Lecha, after Avraham defeated the four kings, it states: “And Malki-Tzedek, king of Shalem ... he was a priest ... and he [Avraham] gave him a tenth of everything.” Rashi explains: “And he gave him — Avram gave a tenth of all that was his because [Malki-Tzedek] was a priest.” {This implies 2 things}:
- Avraham gave tithes to Malki-Tzedek (“who was a priest”).
- He gave “of everything that was his,” and as commentators explain, Rashi hereby intends to negate the interpretation that the tithe Avraham gave was (only) from the spoils of war — which is explicitly addressed separately in the verse, as the text immediately continues that Avraham said, “from a thread, etc., if I take anything that is yours” ({detailing} that he took nothing from the spoils of Sodom) — but rather the tithe was “of everything that was his.”
{From this} we see that Avraham had the practice of giving tithes “of everything that was his (Avram’s),” i.e., from all his possessions (as explicitly mentioned earlier — sheep, etc., and servants, etc., silver and gold). And since “he will command his children and his household after him to keep the way of G-d, to do righteousness and justice”, it is understood that Yitzchak also followed this practice and gave tithes not only from his crops (as Rashi cites later on the verse, “and he found, etc., a hundred measures”), but “tithes of everything that was his.”
One could suggest even further that this is the case {not just according to the simple meaning, but also} according to all methods of interpreting the Torah: Avraham observed the entire Torah, including the mitzvah of charity, by (at least) tithing from the principal, and {surely} “he will command his children, etc., to do righteousness, etc.”
Based on this, it becomes simply understood what Eisav meant (when trying to impress his father) with his question “how does one tithe salt and straw” — because Yitzchak did indeed separate tithes from salt and straw (since he too separated “tithes of everything that was his”). Eisav’s question was simply “how does one tithe, etc.,” as will be explained {in the next section}.
4. The Unique Properties of Salt and Straw
The common denominator of salt and straw (in what makes them different from other things) is that by themselves, they have little (or no) importance, but when mixed with other things, they provide a benefit that is incomparably greater than their benefit on their own.
As we clearly see, a small amount of salt — which by itself has very little monetary value and importance — adds flavor to a cooked dish or food and enhances it in a way that is far greater and more significant than the small amount of salt itself; and not just an addition of flavor, but in a way that without the salt, the food would be lacking altogether, as the verse states, “Can bland food be eaten without salt?”
Similarly with straw: By itself (as animal feed or for heating an oven or the like), straw has very little monetary value and importance, but when used for making bricks for building, etc., its value is much greater.
And this was Eisav’s question: In regards to the tithing under discussion — {described in the verse as:} “and he gave him a tithe of everything (that was his),” which is (stringently) from everything one possesses — there is arguably reason to say that one calculates the tithe of straw and salt not according to their measure, weight, or count independently and in their present state — as {is done} with animal tithes — but according to the value of these items when they will actually be used.
Given this, the question regarding salt and straw becomes: how does one assess their value? {Is it:} (a) According to their worth by themselves now, or (b) according to their value when they are used as a mixture or flavor enhancer, etc.?
This clarifies Rashi’s precise wording: “His father thought that he was meticulous in mitzvos,” {he thought} that he fulfills the mitzvos properly with the utmost precision in calculation and the like.
[In contrast, according to the commentators’ explanation that Eisav wanted to impress Yitzchak by showing that he tithed even items that are not obligated in tithing, the more appropriate wording would have been “strict in [observing] mitzvos,” “enhancing [his observance of] mitzvos,” or the like {not “meticulous.”}]
5. A Halachic Dimension to Rashi’s Commentary
Among the remarkable halachic aspects of this Rashi commentary:
As mentioned earlier (section 2), the Midrash uses the wording “how does one prepare,” while Rashi says “how does one tithe.” One could suggest that this difference in wording depends on the dispute between Rambam and Raavad:
In Hilchos Melachim, the Rambam discusses the mitzvos that existed before the Giving of the Torah, stating:
“Adam was commanded regarding six matters ... Avraham came and was commanded ... and he prayed the morning prayer, and Yitzchak separated tithes.”
To this, the Raavad comments:
“It would have been appropriate to say that he (Avraham) ... separated tithes.”
Commentators explain that the Rambam and Raavad disagree about the interpretation of “and he gave him a tithe of everything” (which is stated regarding Avraham):
- According to the Rambam, the {tithe hinted at in the verse} “and he gave him a tithe” was not in the category of separating tithes like the mitzvah of tithing after the Giving of the Torah, because “tithes apply only to one’s own produce” — rather, it was merely a tithe from the spoils that came to his hand, and as the Rogatchover explains, according to the Rambam’s view, this tithe was similar to the mitzvah of the tribute offering from the captives and plunder taken in the war with Midian (a mitzvah that does not apply for all generations).
- According to the Raavad, however, it had the status of the mitzvah of tithing.
[And although tithing applies specifically to grown produce, one could say:
- This condition is an innovation that was established only after the Giving of the Torah, whereas the tithe before the Giving of the Torah applied to all things, without exception — as explicitly stated “of everything” (similar to what we find with other mitzvos that the Patriarchs observed, which were not performed with all the conditions required after the Giving of the Torah) — similar to yibbum {levirate} marriage before the Giving of the Torah, which at that time was performed “by a brother or a father or a relative from the family,” {contrary to the post-Torah restrictions to just the brother}.
- Avraham’s tithe was similar to monetary tithing [ma’aser kesafim]. {And} even if we consider monetary tithing as merely rabbinic in origin, we can still attribute this practice to Avraham for {two reasons}: [{First}, as mentioned earlier, Avraham “kept My teachings” — which includes the Oral Torah. {Second}, monetary tithing is conceptually connected to the regular mitzvah of tithing. This is why the Sifri derives the practice of monetary tithing from the verse, “You shall surely tithe.” {For these reasons}, the general concept of tithing can be properly attributed to Avraham’s act of “and he gave him a tithe.”]
Based on this, one could suggest that the difference between the interpretation of the Midrash and Rashi’s commentary depends on the aforementioned dispute:
- According to the Midrash, “and he gave him a tithe of everything” was not in the category of the mitzvah of tithing, and since the mitzvah of tithing is only from produce, etc., the question “how does one tithe salt, etc.” is not relevant — therefore the Midrash states that Eisav’s question was “how does one prepare salt... straw” (as explained in section 2).
- Rashi, however, understands (as mentioned in section 3) that “and he gave him a tithe of everything” was in the category of the mitzvah of tithing, and since the “tithe” was “of everything,” therefore, the question “how does one tithe salt and straw” is appropriate.
6. The Inner Meaning: Salt and Straw as Spiritual Metaphors
From the “wine of Torah” {i.e., the inner dimension} in this Rashi commentary {we can further our understanding, for}
There is still an unresolved issue: Why did Eisav specifically ask about these two items, salt and straw?
Surely there are other items with the same characteristic mentioned above, that when they are used in a mixture with other kinds, they gain greater importance (relative to their importance on their own)?
The (inner) explanation for this is {by way of introduction}:
The Alter Rebbe raises a question in Torah Or: If Yitzchak knew that Eisav did not regularly mention G-d’s name (as Rashi comments, “the name of Heaven was not fluent in his mouth”), how could Eisav’s questions about tithing straw deceive him?
The Alter Rebbe explains that we must distinguish between Eisav as he appears in this world (“his internalized self”), where he indeed “does not have the name of Heaven fluent in his mouth,” versus Eisav the way he is in his spiritual source (which exists above and surrounds him). There, he represents an elevated level of holiness {as brought out by the statement} “the head of Eisav rests in the bosom of Yitzchak.” {This means that} the source of Eisav (which represents severity (gevurah) of the kelipah) derives from Yitzchak, {who embodies} the attribute of gevurah in holiness. Therefore, “from the perspective of the encompassing level, Eisav asks how to tithe straw” — this higher dimension of Eisav is what enabled him to ask such questions.
{Accordingly,} This is why Yitzchak wanted to give the blessings to Eisav, because through this he wanted to draw down Eisav’s source here below, which (according to Yitzchak’s understanding) would have refined Eisav.
{Returning now to the question:} Based on this, one could suggest that the reason Eisav specifically chose the topic of “how does one tithe salt and straw” is because it alludes to his refinement:
Chassidic teachings explain that “salt” is the “root of all severities,” and therefore salt sweetens judgments because “severities are sweetened only at their source.” It follows that the concept of “tithing salt” alludes to the refinement of the severities of Eisav.
Similarly with “tithing straw” — as explained in Chassidic teachings, “chaff and straw, which are merely the waste of wheat,” are “from the realm of kelipos,” and therefore Eisav — who “was from the side of kelipah” — “praised himself for giving tithes from chaff and straw.”
And therefore it is written regarding the refinement of Eisav in the future: “The house of Yaakov will be fire, and the house of Yosef a flame, and the house of Eisav will be straw.”
May it be so speedily in our days, with the coming of Mashiach Tzidkeinu.
(From a Sichah delivered on Shabbos Parshas Toldos 5734)
