The Divrei Yisrael (ד"ה יבוא אם) discusses how the "Polish ganavim" would steal:
They developed a technique to get the store owner out of the store and leave it unattended.
The thief comes to the store and takes an item off the shelves. He smiles at the store owner, sticks out his tongue at him, and then runs off with the item without paying.
The incensed store owner runs after him and leaves his store unattended. Several ganavim then enter and empty the store of its valuable merchandise.
The Divrei Yisrael writes, "What does a wise merchant do? He says, 'Let the thief have what he grabbed.' He doesn't run after him and, therefore, doesn’t lose the rest of his money. He guards the store, which is much wiser."
The Divrei Yisrael explains that the yetzer hara uses the technique of the Polish ganavim. He causes a person to transgress a relatively minor transgression. The person becomes very upset and feels dejected, and now he is in the yetzer hara's hands.
As the Kotzker zt'l would say, "The yetzer hara doesn't want the aveirah. He wants the depression that comes after the aveirah" because then the person can fall to very low levels.
The lesson is to keep on trying. Even if we lose a battle, we have to continue fighting, or we will lose so much more.
We can compare this to an airplane caught in turbulence. The plane is tossing up and down, but it must keep on flying. What else can it do? What is the alternative? To stand still? It will spiral downwards.
We can also draw an analogy from the business world: Someone's business was enduring a financial crisis. The expenses were greater than the income, and there were unpaid debts that needed to be paid up. The store owner has two options: He can give up and close his business, which will still leave him in debt and make it impossible for the company to recover. Another approach is to borrow more money and to keep the business alive. The tide can turn, and he can be successful again.
The Divrei Yisrael zt'l said that this lesson is alluded to in this week's parashah (32:9) אם יבוא עשו אל המחנה האחת והכהו והיה המחנה הנשאר לפליטה, "If Eisav comes to one camp and strikes it down, the remaining camp will escape."
If Eisav, the yetzer hara, wins a battle, don't allow yourselves to fall into his hands. Salvage whatever you can.
Another hint from this week's parashah is in the following words (32:26, 32) וירא כי לא יכול לו ויגע בכף ירכו ותקע כף ירך יעקב בהאבקו עמו... ויזרח לו השמש כאשר עבר את פנואל והוא צלע על ירכו "When [the malach] saw that he could not prevail against [Yaakov], he touched the socket of his hip, and the socket of Yaakov's hip became dislocated as he wrestled with him. And the sun rose for him when he passed Penuel, and he limped on his thigh."
The Avodas Yisachar zt'l explains that although Yaakov was hurt, he kept on walking. And then Hashem healed him. He writes, "A primary aspect of avodas Hashem is to keep on moving without stopping. The holy sefarim explain that one must do his obligations, and not pay attention to his wounds (aveiros) r'l… Sometimes, there is darkness, and he almost can't speak a word of Torah and tefillah. Nevertheless, he should not give up. He must do whatever he can to be strong."
Another hint is from the pasuk (33:3) וישתחו ארצה שבע פעמים עד גשתו עד אחיו, "[Yaakov] went ahead of them and bowed himself to the ground seven times, until he came close to his brother." The Midrash (Bereishis Rabba 78:8) asks: Why did Yaakov bow specifically seven times? It is to correspond to (Mishlei 24:16) שבע יפול צדיק וקם, "Even if a tzaddik falls seven times, he will get up again."
By bowing down seven times, Yaakov was teaching us that even if one bowed to Eisav seven times (which means he obeyed the yetzer hara and bowed his head to its influence), he could lift himself again and begin again as if nothing ever happened.
It states (32:29) ויאמר לא יעקב יאמר עוד שמך כי אם ישראל כי שרית עם אלקים ועם אנשים ותוכל, "[The malach] said, 'Your name shall no longer be called Yaakov, but Yisrael, because you have commanding power with [an angel of] Hashem and with men, and you have prevailed."
Rashi writes that אנשים, men, refer to Eisav and Lavan. But we wonder, is this called ותוכל, prevailing and winning the battle? He was lamed by Eisav, and Lavan tricked him a hundred times. Is that called winning a fight? The answer is that he continued even after being lamed and tricked, and with that attitude, one prevails.