This week's Parsha deals with the encounter between Yaakov and Eisav after 34 years of not seeing each other. In past years, we have dealt extensively with this meeting, and today I’d like to address another topic – the place called Shechem.
Yaakov arrived safely at the city of Shechem, which is in the Land of Cana’an, when he came from Padan Aram. He encamped before the city. He bought the part of the field where he had spread his tent, from the sons of Chamor, father of Shechem, for one hundred kesitahs.
On this story, the Midrash says (Bereshit Rabbah, 79:7):
This is one of three places where the nations of the world cannot deceive Israel by saying, "You have stolen them," and these are: the Cave of Machpelah, the Beit Hamikdash, and the burial place of Yosef.
There is a common denominator to these places (Avot 1:2):
The world stands on three things: on the Torah, on the service of G-d, and on acts of kindness.
How are the three locations mentioned by the Midrash connected by this Mishna?
- Torah is related to Shechem, because in Shechem, Hakadosh Baruch Hu made a covenant with Bnei Yisrael, and in Shechem, He commanded to place stones and coat them with plaster and write the Torah on them in seventy languages;
- Avodah is connected to the Beit Hamikdash, the place where the Korbanot were offered;
- Gemilut Chasadim is connected to the burial of the dead, which is a chesed (kindness) performed for the deceased. Shechem is also the burial place of Yosef HaTzaddik, as in Sefer Yehoshua it is written:
And the bones of Yosef, which the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt, they buried in Shechem, in the parcel of ground which Yaakov bought from the sons of Chamor, father of Shechem, for a hundred kesitahs, and it became the inheritance of the children of Yosef.
Chazal ask (Sotah 13b), why was Yosef buried specifically in Shechem? Why not in Chevron near the Avot? Why not in Bnei Brak?
From Shechem they kidnapped him, and to Shechem we should return his lost body.
I would like to move on to a pivotal event that occurred in Shechem, after Yaakov Avinu bought that parcel of land. The Torah tells us:
He erected an altar there and called it the Almighty is G-d of Yisrael. Rashi says, it does not mean that the altar was named “The G-d of Israel” bearing a Divine Name, but because Hakadosh Baruch Hu was with him and saved him, he called the name of the altar by a term that had an allusion to the miracle, so that praise of Hashem would be mentioned when people called it by its name. And immediately afterward, the Torah deals with the incident involving Dinah:
And Dinah, the daughter of Leah, whom she bore to Yaakov, went out to see the daughters of the land. And Shechem, the son of Chamor the Chivi, the prince of the land, saw her, and he took her, and lay with her, and defiled her.
The Gemara (Sanhedrin 102a) says: Shechem is a place ordained for calamity – a place set aside for punishment. In Shechem, they defiled Dinah; in Shechem, Yosef's brothers sold him; and in Shechem, the kingdom of the house of David was divided.
Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer (37) speaks about a Pasuk found in Sefer Amos (5:19):
As if a man did flee from a lion and a bear met him. The lion is Lavan, who chased after Yaakov to seize his life. The bear refers to Eisav, who stood on the way like a bear bereaved by man, to kill the mother with the children. The lion is shamefaced, but the bear is not. Yaakov stood before Hakadosh Baruch Hu and davened: “Ribbono Shel Olam, did You not tell me to return to the land of my fathers and to my birthplace, and that You will be with me? And now Eisav, my brother, is coming to kill me and is not afraid of You, but I am afraid of him.” Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer then touches on the second half of the Pasuk:
And he came to the house, and leaned his hand on the wall, and a snake bit him. The snake that bit him was Shechem, as Dinah sat inside the tent.
Why was Shechem, the son of Chamor, called a snake? The Rada"l writes, he is referred to as the Chivi, and the term Chivi is interpreted as snake. Additionally, the Gemara (Shabbat 146a) says, when the snake came upon Chava in Gan Eden, he injected her with impurity. Thus, it turns out that the act of the snake with Chava is similar to the act of the snake with Dinah.
Rabbotai, if Yaakov Avinu overcame the lion (Lavan) and the bear (Eisav), how is it possible that he fell specifically to the snake (Shechem)? Moreover, how is it possible that Yaakov, whose bed was complete – mitato sheleimah, representing a correction concerning immorality – had his daughter taken from under his hands by Shechem? As we know, if a person is punished, one must examine why the punishment came upon him, for Hakadosh Baruch Hu is not suspected of doing justice without reason. If so, we need to examine what the claim against Yaakov Avinu was.
Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer says, Yaakov's daughter was sitting inside the tent and did not go outside. So, what did Shechem do? He brought girls playing tambourines outside her tent, and when Dinah went out to see these girls he seized her and lay with her, and she conceived and gave birth to Osnat.
The Abarbanel asks about a peculiarity in the words of this story. And Dinah, the daughter of Leah, whom she bore to Yaakov – what is the need for all these titles and descriptions of Dinah? Was there another Dinah there that it was necessary to clarify that this was the daughter of Leah we’re talking about? And if it was said to emphasize that she was the "going out" daughter (vayetze Dinah) of a "going out" mother (vayetze Leah) – as Rashi explains, in an analysis showing how both went out solely for pure and noble reasons – why does it then need to also mention that Dinah was born to Yaakov?
The Abarbanel provides an answer: When Yaakov built the altar referenced earlier, his sons and daughters went there to eat from the Korbanot, and the people of the city came to see its dedication. That is where Shechem laid eyes upon Dinah and desired her. And when she went out to see the daughters of the city, what happened– happened. The Pasuk refers back to both her mother and father – the root of the story.
Immediately after the incident with Shechem, and after what Shimon and Levi did in response, the Torah says:
G-d said to Yaakov, Arise, go up to Beit-el and live there; make an altar there to the Almighty Who appeared to you when you were fleeing from your brother Eisav.
Why did Hakadosh Baruch Hu command Yaakov to go to Beit-el now, right after the incident with Dinah? Chazal say (Bereshit Rabbah 81:2):
Just as your hand precedes your mouth, so should your vow precede your mouth. Because Yaakov Avinu delayed fulfillment of his vow (made at the start of Parshat Vayeitzei), his ledger was examined, and he suffered many difficulties. At the time of distress, when threatened by Eisav, Yaakov made a vow; but two years later, when the incident was over and Yaakov found security in Shechem, he did not immediately deliver on his part by ascending to the place of the Mikdash and offering a Korban. Hence, the name of Hakadosh Baruch Hu reflecting Din (Justice) is used in the command given to ascend to Beit-el and build an altar, so that he should not be like Eisav – also referenced in the Pasuk – who does not fulfill his vows.
There is another explanation provided by Chazal for why Dinah was taken. When Yaakov split from Lavan, he proposed to his father-in-law that he’d take only the speckled, spotted, and dark-colored animals as his wages. This way, Rashi says, his righteousness could be verified in the future – any animal not matching this profile would be considered stolen. The Midrash (Bereshit Rabbah 73:9) indicates his proposition served as a precursor to the story of Dinah:
It is written: “Do not glory in a future day.” You said: “My righteousness will speak on my behalf on a future day” – in the future, your daughter will go out and be violated, as it is stated: “Dina, Leah’s daughter, went out.”
Another well-known explanation for the story of Dinah is brought in the words of Rashi. The Torah says:
That same night he arose, and taking his two wives, his two maidservants, and his eleven children, he crossed the Yabbok Crossing.
Where was Dinah? The Midrash (Bereshit Rabbah 76:9) says, Yaakov Avinu put her in a chest and locked her in, saying, "This wicked man (Eisav) has a haughty eye; he should not set his eyes on her and take her from me." Hakadosh Baruch Hu said to him: “You withheld kindness from your friend, you withheld kindness from your brother. If she had married a man, she would not have been defiled. You did not seek to marry her to a circumcised man; behold, she was married to an uncircumcised man. You did not seek to marry her in a permissible way; behold, she was married in a forbidden way.”
After reading this Midrash, a question immediately arises. There is a strong precedent to avoiding such a situation. The Torah tells us the eyes of Leah were tender. Why were her eyes tender? Chazal say, Leah was destined to marry Eisav, and Rachel to Yaakov. And Leah would sit at the crossroads and ask about Eisav's deeds, and passersby would say to her, "A wicked man, a murderer, a thief, commits all the abominations of Hashem." When she heard this, she would cry and say, "I and Rachel, my sister, came from the same womb. Rachel will marry the righteous Yaakov, and I will marry the wicked Eisav." And she would cry, and fast, until her eyes became tender. Chazal say, not only did Leah merit to marry Yaakov and avoid Eisav, she preceded her sister and married him first! And not only that, but half the shevatim came from her! She was clearly rewarded after avoiding Eisav.
In the sefer Da’at Shraga, by HaRav Tzvi Shraga Grossbard, a very beautiful idea is brought. We are told by the Midrash that Yaakov took his two wives, his two maidservants, and his eleven children, and that Dinah was hidden to keep her away from Eisav. The Midrash then says Yaakov was punished for withholding her from his brother, as perhaps she would have brought him back to the right path, and as a result, she fell into the hands of Shechem. But this is a very difficult idea to accept, as Yaakov was surely not obligated to marry his daughter to the wicked Eisav, and it would only be a remote possibility that she could bring him back to the right path. If so, why was Yaakov punished?
It seems that the Midrash explicitly states that there was a claim against Yaakov regarding the attribute of kindness, as it quotes from Sefer Iyov: A friend owes loyalty to one who fails. The explanation is that there is a very subtle claim regarding his attribute of kindness. If Yaakov Avinu had cared for Eisav exactly as he cared for himself – which is the essence of ve’ahavta lere’acha kamocha – then just as Yaakov was concerned and distressed about Dinah, so too, had similar thoughts been directed towards Eisav's correction, the matter would have remained unresolved and a balanced doubt for him. On one hand, he needed to protect Dinah, but on the other hand, he also needed to care for Eisav. This doubt should have been balanced within him, and both sides of the doubt should have carried equal weight. Therefore, Yaakov should not have resolved the doubt and certainly should not have hidden Dinah in a chest; he should have instead acted passively and placed his trust in Hakadosh Baruch Hu to be saved in this matter as well. Hiding Dinah in the chest showed a very subtle indication that Yaakov was not concerned with Eisav's correction, and therefore the Midrash says he withheld kindness from his brother and was punished. These are the words of Da'at Shraga, and it is also brought in the name of Rav Shach ztz”l.
In sefer Pardes Yosef, another wonderful idea is brought. The Gemara (Bava Metzia 84a) recounts:
One day, Rabbi Yochanan was swimming in the Jordan River. Resh Lakish, who was then a bandit, saw him and jumped into the Jordan after him. R’ Yochanan, seeing his great strength, said to him: "Your strength should be for Torah!" Resh Lakish replied: "Your beauty belongs to women." Rabbi Yochanan said to him: "If you return and accept upon yourself the yoke of mitzvot, I will give you my sister, who is more beautiful than I, as a wife." Resh Lakish accepted upon himself to return from his evil ways and learn Torah. He wanted to return to the bank of the Jordan to take his clothes, but he could not return, as his strength had waned – he had become weak. Rabbi Yochanan taught him scripture and Mishnah and made him a great man.
Pardes Yosef says, if so, the same thing that Rabbi Yochanan did with Resh Lakish, Yaakov Avinu should have done with Eisav! Eisav would come and see Dinah, and he’d say: "Tell me, who is this girl? I want to marry her!" Yaakov would then say to him: "No problem, consider it settled! But on one condition – go study in the Yeshiva for six years. When I receive your letter of completion there will be a wedding!" At that time, Eisav was 97 years old. He would study for six years and then be 103 – the gematria of egel (young calf) – by then, what is there to fear?! Why hide her in a chest?!
We can now proceed to another point before reaching our shiur’s primary idea. In sefer Nachalat Sadeh, the author comments on Yaakov and his eleven children crossing Ma’avar Yabbok, and the Midrash which says Yaakov hid Dinah in a chest and was punished for withholding her from his Eisav. He says additional explanation is needed as to Yaakov's reasoning, and why he was punished. Certainly, he knew that the influence of a wife on her husband is great, and that Dinah could have positively influenced Eisav. However, it is stated (Berachot 60a) that when Leah conceived Dinah, she conceived a male; but after Leah davened that her sister Rachel would not have less sons than the maidservants (two), Dinah was turned into a female and Rachel was allotted a second son. As a result, Dinah's characteristics were those of a male, and her influence was that of a male, and thus Yaakov feared that Dinah would not succeed in influencing Eisav.
According to this explanation, it can be said that Yaakov's punishment, as explained in Targum Yonatan, was that Yosef was in Leah's womb and Dinah was in Rachel's womb, and the fetuses were switched; Yosef went to Rachel's womb and Dinah to Leah's womb. Therefore, if Yaakov had given Dinah to Eisav, since Dinah's root is his decisive adversary Yosef – Chazal say (Bereshit Rabbah 73:6): It is a tradition that Eisav will fall only into the hand of the descendants of Rachel – Dinah would have defeated him and brought him back to the right path through the positive influence of a wife. But since Yaakov withheld this, he was punished that Yosef would have to fight Eisav, but in the manner of male against male – the way of fighting with trouble.
I would like to conclude this collection of explanations with another idea brought in the name of R’ Meir Yechiel Halevi Halstock, the Ostrovtser Rebbe, who says (Or Torah, Vayishlach): We’re told that Eisav approached Yaakov together with four hundred men: and four hundred men with him. The Yalkut Shimoni explains, with him means like him. Just as he was accompanied by four hundred men, so too each of them was accompanied by four hundred men. There were four hundred times four hundred, or 160,000 men, plus Eisav! The Ostrovtser Rebbe says, the reason there were so many is that it they were intended to fight against Yaakov, it is stated in Tehillim (91:7): A thousand may fall at your side, and ten thousand at your right hand, but it shall not come near you. Thus, one member of Bnei Yisrael can stand opposed to ten thousand. Here, Yaakov and his eleven children and four wives were sixteen people in total, able to counter 160,000 in opposition. Standing against them was Eisav plus 160,000 troops, ultimately leaving Eisav standing alone without anyone opposing him. Eisav intentionally took 160,000 extra men so that he’d be one more than Yaakov, and therefore, Yaakov davened: Deliver me, I pray, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Eisav, for I fear him. He was not afraid of all the men with Eisav, but that Eisav was one more than the sixteen thousand. This is why Yaakov Avinu was punished for hiding Dinah – if Dinah had been included, there’d have been an extra person and Yaakov would not have feared at all.
We can now delve deeper into the subject of Shechem himself. Shechem, the son of Chamor, kidnapped Dinah. At that time, Yaakov's sons were not at home, but after they returned and heard what Shechem had done to their sister, both Shechem and Chamor knew the action would not go unpunished. They immediately came and pleaded for their lives, with Shechem offering to pay any price for Dinah, and now seeking to marry her. Yaakov’s sons responded deceitfully, saying they would agree only if all the males of Shechem's town were circumcised, as it was disgraceful for their sister to marry an uncircumcised man. Shechem and his father Chamor accepted the condition and set out to convince the townsmen to comply, promising tremendous benefits from this new alliance with Yaakov’s family. "Gentlemen, you have no idea what's going to happen here – a new Middle East! On every street corner, a Cofix branch will open!" The townsmen agreed, and all the males were circumcised, every single man in town sure he was now set for life!
Rabbotai, twenty-four thousand men were circumcised in one day, and nobody asked any questions. Whatever Shechem ben Chamor said, they answered 'Amen'! Have you ever thought about this?! One man stands up in front of twenty-four thousand men and tells them to circumcise, and they all go along with it, no questions asked?! Today, you can't even convince two tenants in a building to close a window! It’s clear that there’s something deeper and hidden behind this man named Shechem, the son of Chamor.
To understand what took place here with Shechem, I would like to ask a question. When Bnei Yisrael were leaving Egypt, Moshe Rabbeinu came and said to them: Go, pick out lambs for your families, and slaughter the Passover offering. Within the directions that followed, they were told But no uncircumcised man may eat from it. Everyone went and bought a lamb and tied it to the legs of the bed, ready to slaughter it and eat it. But there was one issue that stood in the way. Chazal say (Shemot Rabbah 19:5), Bnei Yisrael did not want to circumcise in Egypt, and all of them neglected Brit Milah except for Shevet Levi. When it then came time for redemption, they lacked the requisite merit.
The Midrash says, Hakadosh Baruch Hu called Moshe and said: “Go and circumcise them.” But many of them did not accept upon themselves to be circumcised. Hakadosh Baruch Hu instructed that they offer the Korban Pesach, and once Moshe performed his Korban, the four winds of the world that blow in Gan Eden stuck to it, and its aroma went a distance of forty days travel. All of Bnei Yisrael gathered around Moshe and said: “Please, feed us from your Korban Pesach,” because they were famished from its aroma. Hakadosh Baruch Hu said: “If you will not be circumcised, you will not eat.” Immediately, they submitted and were circumcised, and the blood of the Korban Pesach and the blood of the Brit Milah intermingled, and Hakadosh Baruch Hu passed and took each of them, as it says: And I passed by you, and saw you wallowing in your blood, and I said to you, 'In your blood, live.'
Rabbotai, picture this scenario: Bnei Yisrael are on the cusp of leaving Egypt – the 210 years of slavery are finally over – and they’re told, "Go circumcise yourselves!" And how do they respond? They dismissed it. "No, we don't want to!" They had to import a fragrance from Gan Eden, infuse it into the Korban Pesach to generate an overwhelming aroma that led to an irresistible appetite, only after which they could be told again, "If you want to eat, go circumcise yourselves!"
Shechem ben Chamor promised twenty-four thousand residents of Shechem a fairy-tale New Middle East, but with one small catch. They were told to circumcise themselves. And what did they do? They all rushed to circumcise! There was no need to infuse meat with a fragrance or light the grills in order to whet their appetite – everyone enthusiastically stood in line to perform their circumcision!
Rabbotai, what is the secret charm of this man named Shechem, who managed to influence twenty-four thousand men to circumcise themselves without anyone asking questions or needing a push? Let's try to understand what is happening here. On the words describing Shechem’s longing for Dinah, the Midrash (Berishit Rabbah 80:7) says: Reish Lakish said: With three expressions of love, the Holy One, blessed be He, cherished...
