Yaakov’s Error
Now, when we study the words of our Sages we see that they applied this advice on a national level too. And that’s what they tell us in the Medrash on this week’s sedrah. In the parshah, it’s related that יוָנָפ¿ל יםƒכָ‡¿לַמ בֹ ֲ̃ﬠַי חַל¿ׁ̆ƒּיַו – Yaakov sent messengers ahead of him, יוƒחָ‡ וָׂ̆≈ﬠ ל∆‡ – to his brother Eisav, םֹו„¡‡ ה≈„¿ׂ̆ ירƒע≈ׂ̆ הָˆ¿רַ‡- to the land of Seir, the fields of Edom (Vayishlach 32:4).
Now let’s understand the situation. Yaakov was returning home now after a long absence. He had left many years previous when Eisav had threatened his life after losing the blessings and now he’s finally returning home to settle in Eretz Canaan. But he’s worried. Eisav, after all, had promised to take his life and he was returning to where the trouble had begun.
And so he considered the situation and he made a decision. Before he would even come into the land he would send messengers to appease his brother. His brother wasn’t in Eretz Canaan anymore; he had moved to the neighboring land of Seir, but in order to forestall any trouble Yaakov decided to send peace ambassadors to the land of Seir where Eisav was. And he sent them with rich gifts and he commanded them to speak words of appeasement to Eisav. Yaakov made sure that they would speak with humility on his behalf.
Eisav Reacts
What happened? The Torah tells us that Yaakov heard the news that Eisav had received all the gifts and he was now coming to Canaan to meet him. But not to make shalom; he was coming with four hundred men. You don’t come with four hundred men to make a welcoming party. ‡¿רַּיַו„ֹ‡¿מ בֹ ֲ̃ﬠַי – Yaakov became very much afraid, ֹלו ר∆ˆ≈ּיַו – and he was distressed (ibid. 32:8). He was in big trouble now, serious trouble. לַﬠ ם≈‡ יƒנַּכƒה¿ו וָׂ̆≈ﬠ ‡ֹבוָי ן∆ּפ יםƒנָּב – I’m afraid Eisav will attack me now with his band of soldiers and kill me and my family (ibid. 32:12). Yaakov was greatly distressed by what was happening now, by the situation he had gotten himself entangled with.
So listen to what the Sages say about that (Bereishis Rabbah). They apply to Yaakov the possuk in Mishlei that we’re learning tonight: ̃יƒזֲחַמב∆לָכ י≈נ¿זָ‡¿ּב – He’s taking hold of the ears of a dog, ר≈בֹע – the passerby, ר≈ּבַﬠ¿ ̇מ – who gets involved, ‡ֹּל יבƒר לַﬠֹלו – in a business that wasn’t intended for him. And they compare it to the following case. A man is walking along a road and he sees sleeping by the side of a road an armed desperado and so he’s debating with himself: “Should I just try and pass by? But maybe this bandit will awaken and I’ll be in trouble; he’ll start pursuing me.” So he decides, “You know what? I’ll wake him up and offer him gifts. I’ll humble myself and win his favor.”
And that’s what he does. He awakens the bandit and begins to pal with him, to try and show that he’s humbled before him and he’s not looking for trouble.
But once the bandit is awake, he’s not interested in friends or humility. He’s most interested in this fellow’s packages, his money bag and maybe his life too. So the bandit draws his sword and says, “Thank you for waking me up; now I have you.” And now the man is in big trouble.
Avoiding it All
That’s called seizing the ears of a dog. You could have passed by and avoided getting involved. And so, Yaakov is criticized for that. We understand of course that Yaakov was using circumspection. There’s no question that Yaakov weighed his options but the verdict of our Sages is that it should be an eternal lesson for us, an example of someone who grabbed onto the ears of a dog when he didn’t have to. He could have come straight into Eretz Canaan and the whole incident would not have transpired.
Now anyone who learned anything remembers a famous statement made about our forefathers. The statement is יםƒנָב¿ל ןָימƒס ֹ̇בוָ‡ ה≈ֲׂ̆ﬠַמ – What happened to our fathers, Avraham, Yitzchok, v’Yaakov is a portent for their descendants. But even if you’re familiar with that idea I want to explain it so that it should be understood.
The Avos were among the highest of the prophets; of course Moshe Rabbeinu was the highest of all nevi’im because he spoke to Hashem face to face, but the Rambam says that the Avos were especially distinguished among the prophets. Because even though they sometimes foretold the future with words – Yaakov’s prophecy in Vayechi and so on – but their chief mode of prophesying was not by means of their words but by the acts of their lives. They were so great, so close to Hashem, that not only did they consciously foretell things in prophetic visions, but even what they did was a prophecy. To a certain extent Hakadosh Baruch Hu caused their acts to be controlled and He shaped the history of their lives in every detail so that whatever they did would be a portent for the future.
Yaakov’s Portent
And so when Yaakov awakened Eisav and grabbed onto the ears of a dog, that is, when he sent gifts to him and Eisav now came to meet him and Yaakov regretted it, this was a portent for the future. Not only of what would happen in the future – we’ll see soon that it did happen again and again; but it was also intended as a portent of what could happen, but wouldn’t – it would be avoided – if the Am Yisroel would study and understand the portent.
What happened in the future? The Am Yisroel was sometimes reckless and grabbed onto the dog’s ears. Every Jew who knows a little about the history of his people knows that for the destruction of the Beis Hamikdash we are indebted to Rome. Rome was the mashchis that burned the Beis Hamikdash and sent us out into exile.
Now the question is: How did Rome come to have any business with us? After all, we were an Oriental nation and Rome was in Europe. How did Rome come to gain dominion over our people? The answer is what we’re studying tonight.
Chashmonai Trouble
About two hundred years before the Churban, the Chashmonaim, that’s the Maccabees, were having trouble. We are talking now about the early Chashmonaim, the sons of Mattisyahu. They had enemies within, the Misyavnim, the Hellenizers; and the Syrian Greeks were a great external enemy. So at that time, as a means of strengthening their position, the Chashmonaim sent a delegation to far-off Rome to request an alliance.
“We’ll be of service to you in your needs here in the Middle East,” the Chashmonaim said, “and you’ll stand on our side in return.” They were looking for a treaty of mutual protection.
Now Rome was always waiting for such an opportunity, a chance to get a foothold in Eretz Yisroel, and so they accepted. The Roman Senate confirmed a treaty and sent a message of alliance to the Jews. “We make with you a treaty of mutual defense. Whoever attacks you is considered as if he attacks us and whoever attacks us, you must come to our help also.” That was the treaty and it was inscribed on copper tablets in Rome.
But in practice, Rome didn’t help one bit. Years and years passed, the wars continued, and from Rome there came no help at all. The Chashmonaim fought all their battles alone. That’s the story of Chanukah, how Hakadosh Baruch Hu came to their aid and finally they gained complete independence. But it wasn’t because of any help from Rome. The Romans never lifted up a finger to help them.
Trouble from Rome
But that was not the end. This sending of those peace messengers had very great consequences because Rome became now a mechutan, an unwanted relative. Rome now considered the land of Judea as its bound ally. Up until that time Rome had no business with Jews; they had no contact with the Mediterranean where the Jews lived. But once Rome contracted an alliance they didn’t stop there.
The story takes too long to recount but in the end, Rome finally took over and the land of Judea became a Roman province. And then they oppressed the Jews so much that the Jews were driven to acts of desperation; and then the war came and Rome destroyed a million and two hundred thousand Jews besides a hundred thousand captives sold in slavery. They burned down the Bayis Sheini and they crushed the Jewish nation. And we can trace these events step by step from the first ambassadors, the first embassy which was sent to Rome.
And here’s what our Sages say. The Ramban on this possuk יםƒכָ‡¿לַמ בֹ ֲ̃ﬠַי חַל¿ׁ̆ƒּיַו brings this whole subject and he said it all began when Yaakov sent messengers to Eisav – that was the cause of the Chashmonaim sending emissaries to Rome. That’s יםƒנָב¿ל ןָימƒס ֹ̇בוָ‡ ה≈ֲׂ̆ﬠַמ; what the forefathers did was a portent what would happen to their children. They should have learned from Chumash; that’s what the Chumash is for. The precedent should have been studied and should have been used as a warning.
More Recent Dogs
Now, when we study such things we aren’t too troubled because it’s ancient history. When it’s far off, it’s easier to discount. But the truth is the same thing is in recent history too. Because the same mistake was made in Germany – one of the things that paved the way for the Holocaust was when the Jews got involved in an argument that wasn’t theirs.
In Bismarck’s time the Jews prepared the German people for the advent of Hitler. Do you know how? Otto von Bismarck was a powerful German Prime Minister in the late 1800’s, he was a conservative but the Jews all aligned themselves on the liberal side against Bismarck. They had their reasons and they attached themselves to the liberal politics.
Now Bismarck couldn’t be an open anti-Semite – it was still a cultured Germany – but there was no question he resented it deeply. And more fatefully many Germans resented it too. “What are the Jews getting involved in our country for?!” They didn’t get involved just with voting, like ordinary citizens; they went all out. They grabbed onto the ears of one side of the debate.
Waking Up the Anti-Semites
At that time the Jews also attacked the Catholic Church politically. There were those among the German gentiles who were interested
