“And Yitzchak loved Eisav, as trapping was in his mouth, whereas Rivkah loved Yaakov.” (25:28)
There’s an old adage that runs: Don’t throw out the baby with the bath water. Meaning, don’t confuse the essential with the subordinate.
What does the Torah mean when it says ”trapping“ was in Eisav’s mouth? Rashi explains that Eisav knew how to trap with his mouth, to deceive. He asked his father how to tithe salt and straw, things that don’t require tithing. His father assumed from these questions that he was very pious.
Why did Eisav choose to ask his question about salt and straw? Surely there were many other ways he could have paraded his ”piety.“ Why specifically did he choose salt and straw?
All things are not created equal. Some things are of the essence; others are subordinate. Every palace has an entrance hall. No one would confuse the importance of the entrance hall with the palace itself. The palace is the essence. The entrance hall has importance only because it is the only way into the palace.
Similarly, this world is not the be-all and end-all of existence. This world is merely an entrance hall to a great palace of light, the World to Come. The World to Come is the essence. This world is subordinate to it. This world derives its importance only from the fact that it is the only access to the World to Come. By itself, it has no value.
In the realm of time, Shabbos is the essence. The six days of the week derive their importance because they lead to Shabbos. By themselves, they are insignificant.
The spiritual is of the essence. The physical is subordinate to it. The physical is only significant to the extent that it provides a stage on which Man may grow in spiritual stature.
Yaakov represents the spiritual; Eisav, the physical. The relationship between Yaakov and Eisav was supposed to be that of essence and subordinate. As long as Yaakov remains pre-eminent, the world can reach its fruition, and Eisav himself, while being the incarnation of the physical, can also achieve spirituality by supporting Yaakov. Eisav, however, wasn’t satisfied with his role. He wanted to be the star of the show. He wanted to be the essence of Creation.
Eisav betrayed his true intentions, to star in Creation, when he asked his father how one tithes salt and straw. Salt has no intrinsic value. It finds its value as a condiment to other foods. It is always subordinate. Straw, too, is subordinate to wheat. It is the vessel that carries the wheat, its support, its method of existence. But it is not the essence. The wheat is the essence. The Jewish People – Yaakov – are the ”wheat of the world.“ The nations of the world are the ”straw,“ the means by which the Jewish People can fulfill their spiritual mission.
In Eisav’s mind, however, straw and salt were of the essence. Thus, he could ask his father how to tithe them. Eisav’s question betrayed his true intentions. Eisav was trying to overturn the Divine order of Creation. Eisav was trying to turn the bath water into the baby.
