And Yitzchok loved Esav because he was hunting in his mouth, and Rifka loved Jacob. (25:28) Hagaon Rav Yeshayahu ben Avraham Ha-Levi Horowitz (1555-1630), also known as the Shelah Hakadosh (yecwd d"lyd) asks a strong question: Why does it by Yitzchok it state a ©d ¡`¤I©e e ̈U¥r z ¤` w ̈g §v ¦i : in past presence, but by Rifka it statesd ̈w §a ¦x §e a Ÿ w£r©i z ¤` z ¤a ¤d Ÿ `the love in a present tense, continuous love?
The Shela Hakadosh answers: We find in the Mishnah (Avot 5:16).d ̈a£d ©` d ̈l ¥h §A ,x ̈a ̈C l ¥h ̈A ,x ̈a ̈c §a d ̈iEl §z `i ¦d¤W d ̈a£d ©` l ̈M m ̈l Ÿ er §l d ̈l ¥h §A D ̈pi ¥`* ,x ̈a ̈c §a d ̈iEl §Y D ̈pi ¥` ¤W §e All love that depends on something ceases when that thing ceases, and all love that does not depend on anything will never cease.” Therefore, Yitzchok’s love for Esav, which was based on his hunting, can cease. Hence, love is only temporary and in the past tense. However, Rifka’s love for Yaakov was pure love and not based on anything; this love is ongoing in the present tense.
The commentaries brought a Midrash (Bereishis Rabbah 63:10) to bolster the insight of Shela Hakadosh. The Midrash says on a Ÿ w£r©i z ¤` z ¤a ¤d Ÿ ` d ̈w §a ¦x §e “And Rifka loved Yaakov” –the more she would hear his voice, the more she would add love to her love for him. This means Rifka, after hearing the voice of Yaakov himself, attributed more love to him. The love continued to increase constantly. Therefore, the Torah states z ¤a ¤d Ÿ ` the present tense, as the love kept on getting stronger whenever hearing the voice of Yaakov. According to this, we can understand another Posuk .(ak fk) :e ̈U¥r i ¥c §i m ¦i ©c ̈I ©d §e a Ÿ ½w£r«©i lF ́w Æl Ÿ T ©d Yaakov approached his father, Yitzchok, who said the voice was of Yaakov and the hands were of Esav. (27:22) We need to understand what was so special about the voice of Yaakov. And why is there a doubling of the language Æl Ÿ T ©d a Ÿ ½w£r«©i lF ́w the voice is the voice of Yaakov? But according to the Midrash, which says that Rifka, upon hearing Yaakov's voice, brought love to him, evidently the sweetness and holiness of Yaakov's voice brought love to the person who heard it. Therefore, when Yitzchok heard the sweet and holy voice and suddenly felt an attachment and love for that person from the voice, Yitzchok understood that it was Yaakov's voice and that his wife Rifka loved him because of the voice. That is the reason for repeating the voice of Yaakov.
With this insight, we can go deeper into why Yitzchok was willing to give the blessing intended for Esav to Yaakov, even though it appears that he realized that it wasn’t Esav standing in front of him. However, the voice of Yaakov overtook Yitzchok, and tremendous love and affection were bonded between father and son. This sealed the bond, and Yitzchok was willing to bless Yaakov.
According to Chazal, this was the night of Pesach, and one of the kid goats that Yaakov brought was for Korban Pesach. Therefore, the Midrash says that Yaakov went with wisdom, knowing that after the eating of the Pesach, one is not allowed to eat .onewit` gqtd xg` oixihtn oi` Hence say the Mefarshim that on the night of Pesach, the gates of heaven open up for Tefilos, and Hashem bestows Yeshua, the same as when Klal Yisrael left Egypt. Yaakov knew that the blessing that Yitzchok prepared was conditional on giving it only on the night of Pesach. Then Yaakov gave Yitzchok the Korban Pesach to eat, and Yitzchok relished the Kedusha. Now, when Esav finally arrived with his food for Yitzchok, which was a condition for the blessing as the Torah states, Yitzchok answered your brother came with wisdom, and I cannot eat any food tonight. Therefore, I cannot give any more blessings tonight, and he would have to wait until the next day, at which time he would see what the gates of heaven would allow.
The Shem Mishmuel son of the Avnei Nezer, the Rav of Sochatchov, relates that the reason we recite Shir Hashirim Pesach by night as well as pray for Dew is that Hashem is knocking at our door on Seder night and the divine “Head” is filled with the dew of limitless blessing. The Eternal One is calling out to us, urging us to open our hearts to receive grace. This was Yaakov’s plan, and he received the Birkas Yitzchok. Yaakov prepared Klal Yisrael to receive Olam Hazeh, this material world, which would have gone to Esav. Once Yaakov had the blessing, he then shared it with Esav. Hence, Klal Yisrael has both this world and the world to come.
(Yehuda Z. Klitnick)
