Vayishlach

 ( Weekly Torah Readings In Kislev ) 

As the reading continues in chapter 36, the text recounts Esau's children.. Esau took his household, animals, and all his possessions that he had gathered in Canaan and went to a land apart from Jacob, in Edom, for their substance was too great for them to dwell together.. The text then recounts Esau's descendants, among whom were Amalek.. The sixth reading and the third open portion end here.See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Bereishis/Genesis, page 213.

In the continuation of the reading, the text lists the Kings of Edom.. The maftir () reading of Genesis 36:40–43 that concludes the parashah lists the chiefs of Esau.. The seventh reading, the fifth open portion, and the parashah end here with the end of chapter 36.See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Bereishis/Genesis, page 216.

In Genesis 32:13, Jacob reminded God that God had promised that Jacob's descendants would be as numerous as the sands. In Genesis 15:5, God promised that Abraham's descendants would be as numerous as the stars of heaven. In Genesis 22:17, God promised that Abraham's descendants would as numerous as the stars of heaven and the sands on the seashore. In Genesis 26:4, God reminded Isaac that God had promised Abraham that God would make his heirs as numerous as the stars. Similarly, in Exodus 32:13, Moses reminded God that God had promised to make the Patriarch's descendants as numerous as the stars. In [[Book of Deuteronomy|Deuteronomy|1:10, Moses reported that God had multiplied the Israelites until they were then as numerous as the stars. In Deuteronomy 10:22, Moses reported that God had made the Israelites as numerous as the stars. And Deuteronomy 28:62 foretold that the Israelites would be reduced in number after having been as numerous as the stars.

Hosea 12:4–5, part of the haftarah for the parashah, interpreted Jacob's encounter with the angel. Hosea 12:4 says that Jacob by his strength strove with a godlike being. Hosea 12:5 says that Jacob strove with an angel and prevailed, and that Jacob wept and supplicated the angel. And Hosea 12:5 further says that at Bethel, Jacob found the angel and spoke with him there.

Just as in Genesis 32:30, Jacob asked his adversary to tell him his name, in Judges 13:17, Manoah asked the angel who visited him and his wife, "What is your name, so that when your words come to pass, we may do you honor?" And just as in Genesis 32:30, Jacob's adversary replied: "Why is it that you ask after my name?" in Judges 13:18, the angel replied to Manoah: "Why do you ask after my name, seeing it is hidden?"

Jacob's complaint to Simeon and Levi in Genesis 34:30 that they had made Jacob odious among the inhabitants of the land was echoed by the complaint of the overseers of the Israelites to Moses in Exodus 5:21 that Moses had made them loathsome to Pharaoh and his courtiers.

Joshua 14:15 reports that the former name of Hebron, Kiryat Arba, mentioned in Genesis 35:27, derived from the name of Arba, the greatest man among the Anakim.

The Rabbis of the midrash deduced that the "messengers" of Genesis 32:4 were angels. The Rabbis reasoned that if (as the midrash taught Genesis Rabbah 59:10.) an angel escorted Eliezer, who was just a servant of the house, how much the more would angels have accompanied Jacob, who was the beloved of the house. Rabbi Hama ben Hanina reasoned that if five angels appeared to Hagar, who was just Sarah's handmaid, how much more would angels appear to Jacob. And Rabbi Yannai reasoned that if three angels met Joseph (counting the three uses of "man" in Genesis 37:15–17), and he was the youngest of the ancestors of the Israelites, how much more would angels meet Jacob, who was the father of all 12. Genesis Rabbah 75:4.

Judah haNasi once directed Rabbi Afes to write a letter in Judah's name to Emperor Antoninus. Rabbi Afes wrote: "From Judah the Prince to our Sovereign the Emperor Antoninus." Judah read the letter, tore it up, and wrote: "From your servant Judah to our Sovereign the Emperor Antoninus." Rabbi Afes remonstrated that Judah treated his honor too lightly. Judah replied that he was not better than his ancestor, who in Genesis 32:5 sent a message saying: "Thus says your servant Jacob." Genesis Rabbah 75:5.

Rabbi Jacob bar Idi pointed out a contradiction between God's promise to protect Jacob in Genesis 28:15 and Jacob's fear in Genesis 32:8; Rabbi Jacob explained that Jacob feared that some sin might cause him to lose the protection of God's promise. Babylonian Talmud Berakhot 4a. Sanhedrin 98b.

Rabbi Eleazar taught that Obadiah hid 50 of 100 prophets of God in a cave in 1 Kings 18:4 because he learned the lesson of dividing his camp from Jacob's actions in Genesis 32:8–9. Rabbi Abbahu, however, said that it was because the cave could hold only 50. Babylonian Talmud Sanhedrin 39b.

Reading Jacob's beseeching God in Genesis 32:10, "O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac," a midrash asked whether Esau (from whom Jacob sought God's protection) could not have made the same claim for God's favor. The midrash taught that God affords God's protection to those who choose the Patriarchs' ways and act as they did, and not to those who do not. (Thus the midrash implied that Esau would not have been able to appeal for God's protection for his father's sake, for Esau had not emulated his father's deeds.) Genesis Rabbah 76:4.

Reading Genesis 32:11, "I am too small (, katonti) for all the mercies, and of all the truth, that You have shown to Your servant," Rabbi Abba bar Kahana interpreted the word , katonti, to mean "I do not deserve them" (the kindnesses that God had shown Jacob), for "I am too small." Rabbi Levi interpreted the word , katonti, to mean that Jacob did indeed deserve those kindnesses, but now "I am too small" (for God had already rewarded the merit that Jacob once had, and thus diminished the favor to which his merit may have entitled him, so now he feared that he might have no right to appeal for God's further assistance). Genesis Rabbah 76:5.

Rabbi Yannai taught that when people expose themselves to danger and are saved by miracles, it is deducted from their merits and so they end up with less merit to their credit. Rabbi Hanin cited Genesis 32:11 to prove this, reading Jacob to say to God: "I am become diminished that by reason of all the deeds of kindness and all the truth that You have shown to your servant." Babylonian Talmud Shabbat 32a.

Rabbi Eliezer taught that the five Hebrew letters of the Torah that alone among Hebrew letters have two separate shapes (depending whether they are in the middle or the end of a word)— (Kh, M, N, P, Z)—all relate to the mystery of the redemption. With the letter kaph (), God redeemed Abraham from Ur of the Chaldees, as in Genesis 12:1, God says, "Get you (, lekh lekha) out of your country, and from your kindred ... to the land that I will show you." With the letter mem (), Isaac was redeemed from the land of the Philistines, as in Genesis 26:16, the Philistine king Abimelech told Isaac, "Go from us: for you are much mightier (, mimenu m'od) than we." With the letter nun (), Jacob was redeemed from the hand of Esau, as in Genesis 32:12, Jacob prayed, "Deliver me, I pray (, hazileini na), from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau." With the letter peh (), God redeemed Israel from Ancient Egypt, as in Exodus 3:16–17, God told Moses, "I have surely visited you, (, pakod pakadeti) and (seen) that which is done to you in Egypt, and I have said, I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt." With the letter tsade (), God will redeem Israel from the oppression of the kingdoms, and God will say to Israel, I have caused a branch to spring forth for you, as Zechariah 6:12 says, "Behold, the man whose name is the Branch (, zemach); and he shall grow up (, yizmach) out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the Lord." These letters were delivered to Abraham. Abraham delivered them to Isaac, Isaac delivered them to Jacob, Jacob delivered the mystery of the Redemption to Joseph, and Joseph delivered the secret of the Redemption to his brothers, as in Genesis 50:24, Joseph told his brothers, "God will surely visit (, pakod yifkod) you." Jacob's son Asher delivered the mystery of the Redemption to his daughter Serah. When Moses and Aaron came to the elders of Israel and performed signs in their sight, the elders told Serah. She told them that there is no reality in signs. The elders told her that Moses said, "God will surely visit (, pakod yifkod) you" (as in Genesis 50:24). Serah told the elders that Moses was the one who would redeem Israel from Egypt, for she heard (in the words of Exodus 3:16), "I have surely visited (, pakod pakadeti) you." The people immediately believed in God and Moses, as Exodus 4:31 says, "And the people believed, and when they heard that the Lord had visited the children of Israel."Pirke De-Rabbi Eliezer, chapter 48.

A midrash interpreted the words of Genesis 32:13, "I will surely do you good (, heiteiv eitiv)," (in which the verb is doubled) to mean both "I will do you good for your own sake" and "I will do you good for the sake of your fathers." Genesis Rabbah 76:7.

Rabbi Hama ben Hanina taught that the "man" who wrestled with Jacob in Genesis 32:25 was Esau's guardian angel, and that Jacob alluded to this when he told Esau in Genesis 33:10, "Forasmuch as I have seen your face, as one sees the face of Elohim, and you were pleased with me." Genesis Rabbah 77:3; see also Genesis Rabbah 78:3.

Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani taught that Jacob's adversary appeared to Jacob as an idol worshiper, and the Master has said in a Baraita that if an Israelite is joined by a heathen on the way, the Israelite should let the heathen walk on the right (so that the Israelite can keep the right hand nearest to the idol worshiper, so as to more easily defend against a sudden attack. Jacob must have done so, as his attacker injured the thigh that was nearest to him, the right thigh). Rav Samuel bar Aha said in the name of Rava bar Ulla in the presence of Rav Papa that the attacker appeared to Jacob as one of the wise, and the Master (Rav Judah) said whoever walks at the right hand of his teacher is uncultured. (According to this view, Jacob regarded the other as a scholar and took his place at the other's left hand and so was injured in his right thigh, the side nearest to the other.) And the Rabbis said that he came from behind and dislocated both of Jacob's thighs. The Rabbis interpret Genesis 32:25, "As he wrestled with him," like Rabbi Joshua ben Levi, who said Genesis 32:25 teaches that the combatants threw up the dust of their feet to the Throne of Glory, for Genesis 32:25 says, "As he wrestled (, behe'avko) with him," and Nahum 1:3 says, "And, the clouds are the dust (, avak) of his feet." Babylonian Talmud Chullin 91a.

Reading Genesis 32:25, "And there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day," Rabbi Isaac deduced that a scholar should not go out alone at night (for the man assaulted Jacob only during the night, and departed with the break of day).

A midrash taught that an angel attacked Jacob in Genesis 32:25 because Jacob had failed to fulfill his vow to God. The Rabbis taught that Providence examines one's record of deeds on three occasions: (1) if one goes on a journey alone, (2) if one sits in an unstable house, and (3) if one vows and does not fulfill one's vow. The midrash taught that we know about the problem of vowing and not paying from Deuteronomy 23:22, "When you vow a vow to the Lord your God, you shalt not be slack to pay it"; and from Proverbs 20:25, "It is a snare to a man rashly to say, 'Holy,' and after vows to make inquiry." If one delays paying one's vow, Providence examines one's record, and the angels assume a prosecutorial stance, and scrutinize one's sins. The midrash illustrated this by noting that when Jacob left Canaan for to Aram-Naharaim, Genesis 28:20 reports, "Jacob made a vow." Then he became wealthy, returned, and did not pay his vow. So God brought Esau against him, bent on killing Jacob, and Esau took a huge gift from him of the 200 goats and other gifts reported in Genesis 32:15, yet Jacob did not fulfill his vow. So God brought the angel against him, and the angel wrestled with Jacob but did not kill him, as Genesis 32:25 reports, "Jacob was left alone. And a man wrestled with him until the break of dawn." The midrash taught that it was Samael, Esau's guardian angel, who wanted to kill him, as Genesis 32:26 reports, "He saw that he could not prevail against him." But Jacob left disabled. And when Jacob still did not pay his vow, the trouble with Dinah came upon him, as reported in Genesis 34. When Jacob still did not pay his vow, as Genesis 35:19 reports, "Rachel died and was buried." Then God asked how long Jacob would take punishment and not pay attention to the sin for which he suffered. So God told Jacob to go to Bethel, make an altar there, at the very place where Jacob vowed to God.Tanhuma Vayishlaḥ 8.

Similarly, the Pirke De-Rabbi Eliezer taught that Jacob wished to ford the Jabbok and was detained there by an angel, who asked Jacob whether Jacob had not told God (in Genesis 28:22), "Of all that you shall give me I will surely give a tenth to You." So Jacob gave a tenth of all the cattle that he had brought from Paddan-Aram. Jacob had brought some 5,500 animals, so his tithe came to 550 animals. Jacob again tried to ford the Jabbok but was hindered again. The angel once again asked Jacob whether Jacob had not told God (in Genesis 28:22), "Of all that you shall give me I will surely give a tenth to You." The angel noted that Jacob had sons and that Jacob had not given a tithe of them. So Jacob set aside the four firstborn sons (whom the law excluded from the tithe) of each of the four mothers, and eight sons remained. He began to count from Simeon, and included Benjamin, and continued the count from the beginning. And so Levi was reckoned as the tenth son, and thus the tithe, holy to God, as Leviticus 27:32 says, "The tenth shall be holy to the Lord." So the angel Michael descended and took Levi and brought him up before the Throne of Glory and told God that Levi was God's lot. And God blessed him, that the sons of Levi should minister on earth before God (as directed in Deuteronomy 10:8) like the ministering angels in heaven. Pirke de Rabbi Eliezer, chapter 37.

A midrash read Genesis 32:25, "And there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day," to refer to the breaking of the day for Israel, for exile was like night. The midrash taught that the nations of the world and the kingdom of Edom (symbolizing the Roman Empire) wrestled with Israel to lead Israel astray from God's path. And as Genesis 32:26 reports, "And when he saw that he could not prevail against him," that is, that he could not dissuade Israel from acknowledging God's unity, then (in the words of Genesis 32:26) "he touched the hollow of his thigh," that is, Jacob's circumcision. Thus, the Roman government (symbolized by Edom) forbade circumcision of Jewish children. And thus Genesis 32:26 continues, "And the hollow of Jacob's thigh was out of joint," referred to those defiled during those days of persecution.Tobiah ben Eliezer. Lekach Tov. 11th century. Quoted in Nehama Leibowitz. Studies in Bereshit (Genesis), page 369. Jerusalem: The World Zionist Organization, 1981. Reprinted as New Studies in the Weekly Parasha. Lambda Publishers, 2010.

Reading Genesis 32:27, "And he said: 'Let me go, for the day breaks,'" the Gemara told that Jacob asked his adversary whether he was a thief or a rogue that he was afraid of the morning. He replied that he was an angel, and from the day that he was created, he had not yet had his time to sing praises to God, until that moment. The Gemara noted that this statement implying that angels sing God praises at an appointed time supported the statement of Rav Hananel in the name of Rav, who said that three divisions of ministering angels sing praises to God every day. One proclaims (in the words of Isaiah 6:3), "Holy"; the second proclaims, "Holy"; and the third proclaims, "Holy is the Lord of hosts." Babylonian Talmud Chullin 91b.

Reading the words of Genesis 32:29, "Your name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel," the Tanna Devei Eliyahu taught that one should read "Israel" as ish ra'ah El, "a man who sees God," for all of Jacob's actions were directed to God.Tanna Devei Eliyahu. Seder Eliyyahu Rabbah, chapter (27) 25.

Reading Hosea 12:5, "Yea, he strove with an angel, and prevailed; he wept, and made supplication to him," the Gemara commented that this verse did not make clear who prevailed over whom. But Genesis 32:29, "For you have striven with God and with men and have prevailed," made clear that Jacob mastered the angel. Hosea 12:5, "He wept and made supplication to him," does not make clear who wept to whom. But the angel's words in Genesis 32:27, "And he said: 'Let me go,'" made clear that the angel wept to Jacob. Reading Genesis 32:29, "For you have striven with God and with men," Rabbah taught that the angel intimated to Jacob that two princes were destined to come from him: the Exilarch in Babylon and the Prince in the Land of Israel. The angel thus hinted to Jacob of the coming exile of the Jewish people. Babylonian Talmud Chullin 92a.

Chapter 7 of Tractate Hullin in the Mishnah, Tosefta, and Babylonian Talmud interpreted the laws of the prohibition of the sinew of the hip (the sciatic nerve, gid ha-nasheh) in Genesis 32:33. Mishnah Chullin 7:1–6; Tosefta Chullin 7:1–8; Babylonian Talmud Chullin 89b–103b. The Mishnah taught that the prohibition against eating the sciatic nerve in Genesis 32:33 is in force both within the Land of Israel and outside it, both during the existence of the Temple and after it, and with respect to both consecrated and unconsecrated animals. It applies to both domesticated and wild animals, and to both the right and the left hip. But it does not apply to birds, because they have no spoon-shaped hip as the muscles upon the hip bone (femur) of a bird lie flat and are not raised and convex like those of cattle. It also applies to a live fetus found in a slaughtered animal, although Rabbi Judah said that it does not apply to a fetus. And the live fetus' fat is permitted. Rabbi Meir taught that one should not trust butchers to remove the sciatic nerve, but the Sages taught that one may trust butchers to remove the sciatic nerve as well as the fat that Leviticus 3:17 and 7:23 forbids. Mishnah Chullin 7:1; Babylonian Talmud Chullin 89b.

A midrash interpreted Psalms 146:7, "The Lord lets loose the prisoners," to read, "The Lord permits the forbidden," and thus to teach that what God forbade in one case, God permitted in another. God forbade consuming the sciatic nerve in animals (in Genesis 32:33) but permitted it in fowl. God forbade the abdominal fat of cattle (in Leviticus 3:3) but permitted it in the case of beasts. God forbade eating meat without ritual slaughter (in Leviticus 17:1–4) but permitted it for fish. Similarly, Rabbi Abba and Rabbi Jonathan in the name of Rabbi Levi taught that God permitted more things than God forbade. For example, God counterbalanced the prohibition of pork (in Leviticus 11:7 and Deuteronomy 14:7–8) by permitting mullet (which some say tastes like pork).Leviticus Rabbah 22:10.

The Mishnah taught that one may send a thigh that still contains the sciatic nerve to a Gentile. Mishnah Chullin 7:2; Babylonian Talmud Chullin 93b. But Abahu taught that the Mishnah allowed a Jew to benefit only from the sciatic nerve of an animal that was not slaughtered according to the procedure prescribed by the Torah.Jerusalem Talmud Pesachim 13a.

Rabbi Tarfon taught that God came from Mount Sinai (or others say Mount Seir) and was revealed to the children of Esau, as Deuteronomy 33:2 says, "The Lord came from Sinai, and rose from Seir to them," and Seir means the children of Esau, as Genesis 36:8 says, "And Esau dwelt in Mount Seir." God asked them whether they would accept the Torah, and they asked what was written in it. God answered that it included (in Exodus 20:13 and Deuteronomy 5:17), "You shall do no murder." The children of Esau replied that they were unable to abandon the blessing with which Isaac blessed Esau in Genesis 27:40, "By your sword shall you live." From there, God turned and was revealed to the children of Ishmael, as Deuteronomy 33:2 says, "He shined forth from Mount Paran," and Paran means the children of Ishmael, as Genesis 21:21 says of Ishmael, "And he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran." God asked them whether they would accept the Torah, and they asked what was written in it. God answered that it included (in Exodus 20:13 and Deuteronomy 5:17), "You shall not steal." The children of Ishmael replied that they were unable to abandon their fathers' custom, as Joseph said in Genesis 40:15 (referring to the Ishmaelites' transaction reported in Genesis 37:28), "For indeed I was stolen away out of the land of the Hebrews." From there, God sent messengers to all the nations of the world asking them whether they would accept the Torah, and they asked what was written in it. God answered that it included (in Exodus 20:3 and Deuteronomy 5:7), "You shall have no other gods before me." They replied that they had no delight in the Torah, therefore let God give it to God's people, as Psalm 29:11 says, "The Lord will give strength identified to His people; the Lord will bless His people with peace." From there, God returned and was revealed to the children of Israel, as Deuteronomy 33:2 says, "And he came from the ten thousands of holy ones," and the expression "ten thousands" means the children of Israel, as Numbers 10:36 says, "And when it rested, he said, 'Return, O Lord, to the ten thousands of the thousands of Israel.'" With God were thousands of chariots and 20,000 angels, and God's right hand held the Torah, as Deuteronomy 33:2 says, "At his right hand was a fiery law to them." Pirke De-Rabbi Eliezer, chapter 41.

Rabbi Haninah taught that Esau paid great attention to his parent (horo), his father, whom he supplied with meals, as Genesis 25:28 reports, "Isaac loved Esau, because he ate of his venison." Rabbi Samuel the son of Rabbi Gedaliah concluded that God decided to reward Esau for this. When Jacob offered Esau gifts, Esau answered Jacob in Genesis 33:9, "I have enough (, rav); do not trouble yourself." So God declared that with the same expression that Esau thus paid respect to Jacob, God would command Jacob's descendants not to trouble Esau's descendants, and thus God told the Israelites in Deuteronomy 2:3, "You have circled this mountain (, har) long enough (, rav)."Deuteronomy Rabbah 1:17.

The Gemara cited the accounts of Genesis 28:13 and 33:9 to demonstrate Jacob's trust in God. The Gemara taught that God punished Moses for complaining to God in Exodus 5:23, "Since I came to Pharaoh to speak in Your name, he has done evil to this people, neither have You delivered Your people at all." The Gemara told that God replied to Moses by lamenting that the Patriarchs were gone, as several times God had revealed God's Self to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as God Almighty (El Shaddai), and they did not question God's ways as Moses had. Regarding Jacob, in Genesis 28:13, God told Jacob, "The land upon which you lie, to you I will give it," but Jacob sought a place to pitch his tent and did not find one until (as Genesis 33:19) he purchased it for one hundred coins, and still Jacob did not question God's ways. Babylonian Talmud Sanhedrin 111a.

The Rabbis of the Gemara discussed Jacob's extreme flattery in Genesis 33:10, where Jacob compares seeing Esau's face to seeing God's face. Rabbi Judah of the Land of Israel (and some say Rabbi Simon ben Pazi) taught that one may flatter wicked people, as Isaiah 32:5 says that in the World To Come, "The vile person shall no longer be called generous, nor shall the churl be said to be noble," and this implies that in this world, one is may flatter them. Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish (Resh Lakish) taught that this can be proven from Jacob's flattery of Esau in Genesis 33:10. The Gemara noted that Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish thus disagreed with Rabbi Levi, who compared the interaction between Jacob and Esau to a host who invited a guest to a meal, and the guest realized that the host wanted to kill the guest. The guest told the host that the dish that the host served tasted like a dish that the guest had tasted in the king's house, so that the host might think that the king must know the guest and be afraid to kill the guest. Thus, when Jacob told Esau that his face was like a divine face, Jacob intended to let Esau know that he had seen angels, to make Esau afraid to harm him. But Rabbi Elazar said that anyone who flatters brings wrath to the world, as Job 36:13 says, "But those with flattery in their hearts bring about wrath," and the prayer of the flatterer is not heard, as Job 36:13 also says, "They do not cry for help when He binds them." Babylonian Talmud Sotah 41b.

The Gemara read the words of Genesis 33:11, "Because I have everything," to support the Sages' teaching that God gave three people in this world a taste of the World To Come]]—Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Of Abraham, Genesis 24:1 says, "And the Lord blessed Abraham with everything." Of Isaac, Genesis 27:33 says, "And I have eaten from everything." Already in their lifetimes they merited everything, that is perfection. The Gemara read these three verses also to teach that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were three people over whom the evil inclination had no sway, as Scripture says about them, respectively, "with everything," "from everything," and "everything," and the completeness of their blessings meant that they did not have to contend with their evil inclinations. And the Gemara read these same three verses to teach that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were three of six people over whom the Angel of Death had no sway in their demise—Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Aaron, and Miriam. As Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were blessed with everything, the Gemara reasoned, they were certainly spared the anguish of the Angel of Death. Babylonian Talmud Bava Batra 16b–17a.

A Baraita taught that if an idol worshiper asks a Jew where the Jew is going, the Jew should tell the idolater that the Jew is heading towards a place beyond the Jew's actual destination, as Jacob told the wicked Esau. For in Genesis 33:14, Jacob told Esau, "Until I come to my lord to Seir," while Genesis 33:17 records, "And Jacob journeyed to Succot." Babylonian Talmud Avodah Zarah 25b. Reading the account in Genesis 33:14, Rabbi Abbahu said that he searched the whole Scriptures and did not find that Jacob ever went to Esau at Seir. Rabbi Abbahu asked whether it was then possible that Jacob, the truthful, could have deceived Esau. Rabbi Abbahu concluded that Jacob would indeed come to Esau, in the Messianic Age, as Obadiah 1:21 reports, "And saviors shall come up on Mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau." Genesis Rabbah 78:14.

Rabbi Judan the son of Rabbi Simon cited Joseph's Tomb as one of three places where Scripture reports purchases in the Land of Israel, thus providing a defense against the nations of the world who might taunt the Jews, saying that the Israelites had stolen the Land. The three instances are: the cave of Machpelah, of which Genesis 23:16 reports, "And Abraham weighed to Ephron the silver"; Joseph's Tomb, of which Genesis 33:19 reports, "And he bought the parcel of ground"; and the Temple, of which 1 Chronicles 21:25 reports, "So David gave to Araunah for the place six hundred shekels of gold." Genesis Rabbah 79:7.

A Tannaim taught in Rabbi Jose's name that Shechem was a place predestined for evil, for in Shechem Dinah was raped (as reported in Genesis 34:2), Joseph's brothers sold him (as reported in Genesis 37:17, Dothan being near Shechem), and the United Monarchy was divided (as reported in 1 Kings 12:1). Babylonian Talmud Sanhedrin 102a.

In Genesis 34:3, the heart is enticed. A midrash catalogued the wide range of additional capabilities of the heart reported in the Hebrew Bible.Ecclesiastes Rabbah 1:36 ( 1:16:1). The heart speaks,Ecclesiastes . sees, hears,. walks,. falls,. stands,. rejoices,. cries,. is comforted,. is troubled,. becomes hardened,. grows faint,. grieves,. fears,. can be broken,. becomes proud,. rebels,. invents,. cavils,. overflows,. devises,. desires,. goes astray,. lusts,. is refreshed,. can be stolen,. is humbled,. errs,. trembles,. is awakened,. loves,. hates,. envies,. is searched,. is rent,. meditates,. is like a fire,. is like a stone,. turns in repentance,. becomes hot,. dies,. melts,. takes in words,. is susceptible to fear,. gives thanks,. covets,. becomes hard,. makes merry,. acts deceitfully,. speaks from out of itself,. loves bribes,. writes words,. plans,. receives commandments,. acts with pride,. makes arrangements,. and aggrandizes itself..

A Baraita reported that some said that Job lived in the time of Jacob and married Dinah, finding the connection in the use of the same word with regard to Job's wife in Job 2:10, "You speak as one of the impious women (, nebalot) speaks," and with regard to Dinah in Genesis 34:7, "Because he had committed a vile deed (, nebalah) in Israel." Babylonian Talmud Bava Batra 15b.

The Mishnah deduced from Genesis 34:25 that the wound from a circumcision is still serious enough on the third day that one bathes a circumcised baby on that day even if it is the Sabbath. Mishnah Shabbat 9:3, 19:3; Babylonian Talmud Shabbat 86a, 134b.

Reading the words of Genesis 34:30, "And Jacob said to Simeon and Levi: 'You have troubled (, achartem) me,'" the Rabbis paraphrased: "The vat was clear, and you have muddied (, achartem) it." Genesis Rabbah 80:12.

A midrash read Judah's questions in Genesis 44:16, "What shall we speak or how shall we clear ourselves?" to hint to a series of sins. Judah asked, "What shall we say to my lord," with respect to the money that they retained after the first sale, the money that they retained after the second sale, the cup found in Benjamin's belongings, the treatment of Dinah in Genesis 34, the treatment of Bilhah in Genesis 35:22, the treatment of Tamar in Genesis 38, the sale of Joseph, allowing Simeon to remain in custody, and the peril to Benjamin. Genesis Rabbah 92:9.

A midrash taught that wherever there is idolatry, the Divine Presence ( Shekhinah) will not dwell there. Once, however, people remove idolatry, the Divine Presence can appear. For as soon as Jacob removed all idolatry from his camp, as Genesis 35:2 reports, "Then Jacob said to his household . . . 'Put away the strange gods that are among you,'" the Divine Presence immediately appeared to him, as Genesis 35:9 states, "God appeared again to Jacob."Midrash HaGadol (Yemen, 13th century), in Menahem M. Kasher, Torah Sheleimah, 35, 41 (Jerusalem, 1927), in Harry Freedman, translator, Encyclopedia of Biblical Interpretation (New York: American Biblical Encyclopedia Society, 1965), volume 4, pages 193–94.

Rabbi Samuel bar Nahman interpreted the report of Genesis 35:8 that "Deborah, Rebekah's nurse died, and she was buried below Beth-el under the oak; and the name of it was called Allon-bacuth ()." Rabbi Samuel bar Nahman taught that the name Allon-bacuth was Greek language, in which allon means 'another' (and thus the phrase could be read, "The name of it was called 'another weeping'"). Rabbi Samuel bar Nahman deduced from this that while Jacob was mourning for Deborah, word reached him that his mother Rebekah had died. And thus Genesis 35:9 reports, "and God appeared to Jacob again . . . and blessed him." Rabbi Aha taught in Rabbi Jonathan's name that the blessing with which God blessed Jacob in Genesis 35:9 was the mourners' blessing of consolation and comfort. Genesis Rabbah 81:5; see also Genesis Rabbah 82:3 (mourners' blessing).

Similarly, the Rabbis taught that when Rebekah died, her bier was not taken out in public because of Esau. When Rebekah died, the people asked who would go out in front of her body, for Abraham had died, Isaac sat at home unable to see, Jacob had gone to Paddan Aram, and if Esau went out in front of her, people would curse her for raising such a person as Esau. So they took her bier out at night. Rabbi Jose bar Hanina taught that because they took her bier out at night, Scripture does not openly describe her death, but only alludes to it in Genesis 35:8. Rabbi Jose bar Hanina read Genesis 35:8 to say, "Deborah, Rebekah's nurse died, . . . and he called it the Weeping Oak," for they wept twice, for while Jacob was mourning for Deborah, the news of Rebekah's death reached him. And thus Genesis 35:9 reports, "and God appeared to Jacob again . . . and blessed him," because God blessed Jacob with the mourners' blessing. Midrash Tanḥuma Ki Teitzei 4.

A midrash interpreted Psalm 112:4, "To the upright He shines as a light in the darkness," to apply to the Patriarchs, "the upright," who saw the Divine Presence ( Shechinah) face to face (so to speak). The midrash taught that we know this about Jacob from Genesis 35:9, which says, "God appeared to Jacob . . . and blessed him."Midrash HaGadol, Vayyera, in Menahem Kasher, Torah Sheleimah, 35, 41, in Harry Freedman, translator, Encyclopedia of Biblical Interpretation, volume 4, page 194.

The Tanna Devei Eliyahu taught that when God found Jacob declaring what was true, that God is God, and acknowledging this truth in his own heart, God revealed God's Self to him at once, as Genesis 35:9 reports, "God appeared to Jacob again, when he came from Paddan-aram, and blessed him." The Tanna Devei Eliyahu taught that this was an application of Ezekiel 16:8, "behold, your time was the time of love" (that was promised to those who proved their love for God).

Reading the beginning of Genesis 35:9 as, "And God yet (, od) appeared to Jacob," a midrash taught that the word yet (, od) signified that God would never again unite God's Name with another person. God is the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob only.Tanḥuma Yashan Vayyishlah 27, in Menahem Kasher, Torah Sheleimah, 35, 42–45, in Harry Freedman, translator, Encyclopedia of Biblical Interpretation, volume 4, page 194; see also Genesis Rabbah 82:3 (attributing the teaching to Rabbi Abba ben Kahana).

Reading the beginning of Genesis 35:9, "And God appeared to Jacob again (, od)," Rabbi Jose bar Rabbi Hanina taught that again implies that God appeared this time as on the first occasion in Genesis 28:12–15. As on the first occasion, God spoke to Jacob through an angel, so on this occasion, it was through an angel. Alternatively, Rabbi Judan taught that the word again intimated that God would once again reveal God's self to Jacob, at Beersheba, on Jacob's descent into Egypt, in Genesis 46:1–4. Genesis Rabbah 82:3.

Reading Leviticus 9:4, "And an ox and a ram for peace offerings . . . for today the Lord appears to you," Rabbi Levi taught that God reasoned that if God would appear to and bless a Priest who offered a ram in God's name, how much more should God appear to and bless Jacob, whose features are engraved on God's throne. Thus Genesis 35:9 says, "And God appeared to Jacob again, when he came from Paddan-aram, and blessed him." Genesis Rabbah 82:2.

Bar Kappara taught that whoever calls Abraham "Abram" violates a positive command. Rabbi Levi said that such a person violates both a positive and a negative command, as Genesis 17:5 says: "Neither shall your name any more be called Abram"—that is a negative command—and Genesis 17:5 also says: "But your name shall be called Abraham"—that is a positive command. The midrash asked by analogy if one calls Israel "Jacob" does one infringe a positive command? The midrash answered that one does not, for it was taught that it was not intended that the name of Jacob should disappear, but that "Israel" should be his principal name and "Jacob" be his secondary name. Rabbi Zechariah interpreted it in Rabbi Aha's name as follows: In any event (in the words of Genesis 35:10), "Your name is Jacob," except that, "But Israel too shall be your name." Thus Jacob would be his principal name and "Israel" was added to it. Genesis Rabbah 78:3.

Reading the words of Genesis 35:10, "but Israel shall be your name," the Tanna Devei Eliyahu taught that one should read not "Israel," but ish ra'ah El, "the man who saw God"; for all his actions were concentrated before him.Tanna Devei Eliyahu, Seder Eliyyahu Rabbah 28.

Resh Lakish taught that the words "I am God Almighty" (, El Shaddai) in Genesis 35:11 mean, "I am He Who said to the world: 'Enough!'" (, Dai). Resh Lakish taught that when God created the sea, it went on expanding, until God rebuked it and caused it to dry up, as Nahum 1:4 says, "He rebukes the sea and makes it dry, and dries up all the rivers." Babylonian Talmud Chagigah 12a.

A midrash taught that of four who made vows, two vowed and profited, and two vowed and lost. The Israelites vowed and profited in Numbers 21:2–3, and Hannah vowed and profited in 1 Samuel 1:11–20. Jephthah vowed and lost in Judges 11:30–40, and Jacob vowed in Genesis 28:20 and lost (some say in the loss of Rachel in Genesis 35:18 and some say in the disgrace of Dinah in Genesis 34:2, for Jacob's vow in Genesis 28:20 was superfluous, as Jacob had already received God's promise, and therefore Jacob lost because of it). Genesis Rabbah 70:3.

The Rabbis of the Talmud disputed whether Reuben sinned in Genesis 35:22. Rabbi Samuel bar Nahman said in Rabbi Jonathan's name that whoever maintains that Reuben sinned errs, for Genesis 35:22 says, "Now the sons of Jacob were twelve," teaching that they were all equal in righteousness. Rabbi Jonathan interpreted the beginning of Genesis 35:22, "and he lay with Bilhah his father's concubine," to teach that Reuben moved his father's bed from Bilhah's tent to Leah's tent, and Scripture imputes blame to him as though he had lain with her. Similarly, it was taught in a Baraita that Rabbi Simeon ben Eleazar said that the righteous Reuben was saved from sin. Rabbi Simeon ben Eleazar asked how Reuben's descendants could possibly have been directed to stand on Mount Ebal and proclaim in Deuteronomy 27:20, "Cursed be he who lies with his father's wife," if Reuben had sinned with Bilhah. Rabbi Simeon ben Eleazar interpreted Genesis 35:22, "and he lay with Bilhah his father's concubine," to teach that Reuben resented his mother Leah's humiliation and did not want Rachel's maid Bilhah to join Rachel as a rival to Leah. So Reuben moved her bed. Others told that Reuben moved two beds, one of the Divine Presence (Shechinah) and the other of his father, as Jacob set a couch for the Divine Presence in each of his wives' tents, and he spent the night where the Divine Presence came to rest. According to this view, one should read Genesis 49:4 to say, "Then you defiled my couch on which (the Divine Presence) went up." But the Gemara also reported disputes among the Tannaim on how to interpret the word "unstable (, pachaz)" in Genesis 49:4, where Jacob called Reuben, "unstable (, pachaz) as water." Several Rabbis read the word , pachaz, as an acronym, each letter indicating a word. Rabbi Eliezer interpreted Jacob to tell Reuben: "You were hasty (, paztah), you were guilty (, habtah), you disgraced (, zaltah)." Rabbi Joshua interpreted: "You overstepped (, pasatah) the law, you sinned (, hatata), you fornicated (, zanita)." Rabban Gamaliel interpreted: "You meditated (, pillaltah) to be saved from sin, you supplicated (, haltah), your prayer shone forth (, zarhah)." Rabban Gamaliel also cited the interpretation of Rabbi Eleazar the Modiite, who taught that one should reverse the word and interpret it: "You trembled (, zi'az'ata), you recoiled (, halita), your sin fled (, parhah) from you." Rava (or others say Rabbi Jeremiah bar Abba) interpreted: "You remembered (, zakarta) the penalty of the crime, you were grievously sick (, halita) through defying lust, you held aloof (, pirashta) from sinning." Babylonian Talmud Shabbat 55b.

Considering the consequences of Reuben's infidelity with Jacob's concubine Bilhah in Genesis 35:22, Rabbi Eleazar contrasted Reuben's magnanimity with Esau's jealousy. As Genesis 25:33 reports, Esau voluntarily sold his birthright, but as Genesis 27:41 says, "Esau hated Jacob," and as Genesis 27:36 says, "And he said, 'Is not he rightly named Jacob? for he has supplanted me these two times.'" In Reuben's case, Joseph took Reuben's birthright from him against his will, as 1 Chronicles 5:1 reports, "for as much as he defiled his father's couch, his birthright was given to the sons of Joseph." Nonetheless, Reuben was not jealous of Joseph, as Genesis 37:21 reports, "And Reuben heard it, and delivered him out of their hand." Babylonian Talmud Berakhot 7b.

A midrash taught that had Reuben not disgraced himself by his conduct with Bilhah in Genesis 35:22, his descendants would have been worthy of assuming the service of the Levites, for ordinary Levites came to replace firstborn Israelites, as Numbers 3:41 says, "And you shall take the Levites for Me, even the Lord, instead of all the firstborn among the children of Israel."Numbers Rabbah 6:3.

The Rabbis taught that Reuben reasoned that Joseph had included Reuben with his brethren in Joseph's dream of the sun and the moon and the eleven stars in Genesis 37:9, when Reuben thought that he had been expelled from the company of his brothers on account of the incident of Genesis 35:22. Because Joseph counted Reuben as a brother, Reuben felt motivated to rescue Joseph. And since Reuben was the first to engage in life saving, God decreed that the Cities of Refuge would be set up first within the borders of the Tribe of Reuben in Deuteronomy 4:43. Genesis Rabbah 84:15.

Rabbi Judah bar Simon taught that Moses later ameliorated the effects of Reuben's sin in Genesis 35:22. Rabbi Judah bar Simon read Deuteronomy 28:6, "Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out," to refer to Moses. Rabbi Judah bar Simon read "when you come in" to refer to Moses, because when he came into the world, he brought nearer to God Bithiah the daughter of Pharaoh (who by saving Moses from drowning merited life in the World to Come). And "blessed shall you be when you go out" also refers to Moses, for as he was departing the world, he brought Reuben nearer to his estranged father Jacob, when Moses blessed Reuben with the words "Let Reuben live and not die" in Deuteronomy 33:6 (thus gaining for Reuben the life in the World to Come and thus proximity to Jacob that Reuben forfeited when he sinned against his father in Genesis 35:22 and became estranged from him in Genesis 49:4).Deuteronomy Rabbah 7:5; see also Genesis Rabbah 98:4 (restoration of Reuben).

The Mishnah taught that the story of Reuben's infidelity with Jacob's concubine Bilhah in Genesis 35:22 is read in the synagogue but not translated. Mishnah Megillah 4:10; Babylonian Talmud Megillah 25a.

Abba Arika and Samuel differed with regard to the Machpelah Cave in which the Patriarchs and Matriarchs were buried. One said that the cave consisted of two rooms, one farther in than the other. And the other said that it consisted of a room and a second story above it. The Gemara granted that the meaning of Machpelah—'double'—was understandable according to the one who said the cave consisted of one room above the other, but questioned how the cave was Machpelah—'double'—according to the one who said it consisted of two rooms, one farther in than the other, as even ordinary houses have two rooms. The Gemara answered that it was called "Machpelah" in the sense that it was doubled with the Patriarchs and Matriarchs, who were buried there in pairs. The Gemara compared this to the homiletic interpretation of the alternative name for Hebron mentioned in Genesis 35:27: “Mamre of Kiryat Ha’Arba, which is Hebron.” Rabbi Isaac taught that the city was called "Kiryat Ha’Arba"—'the city of four'—because it was the city of the four couples buried there: Adam and Eve, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca, and Jacob and Leah. Babylonian Talmud Eruvin 53a.

Expanding on Genesis 35:27, the Pirke De-Rabbi Eliezer told that Jacob took his sons, grandsons, and wives, and went to Kiryat Arba to be near Isaac. Jacob found Esau and his sons and wives there dwelling in Isaac's tents, so Jacob spread his tent apart from Esau's. Isaac rejoiced at seeing Jacob. Rabbi Levi said that in the hour when Isaac was dying, he left his cattle, possessions, and all that he had to his two sons, and therefore they both loved him, and thus Genesis 35:29 reports, "And Esau and Jacob his sons buried him." The Pirke De-Rabbi Eliezer told that after that, Esau told Jacob to divide Isaac's holdings into two portions, and Esau would choose first between the two portions as a right of being the older. Perceiving that Esau had his eye set on riches, Jacob divided the land of Israel and the Cave of Machpelah in one part and all the rest of Isaac's holdings in the other part. Esau went to consult with Ishmael, as reported in Genesis 28:9. Ishmael told Esau that the Amorite and the Canaanite were in the land, so Esau should take the balance of Isaac's holdings, and Jacob would have nothing. So Esau took Isaac's wealth and gave Jacob the land of Israel and the Cave of Machpelah, and they wrote a perpetual deed between them. Jacob then told Esau to leave the land, and Esau took his wives, children, and all that he had, as Genesis 36:6 reports, "And Esau took his wives . . . and all his possessions which he had gathered in the land of Canaan and went into a land away from his brother Jacob." As a reward, God gave Esau a hundred provinces from Seir to Magdiel, as Genesis 36:43 reports, and Magdiel is Rome. Then Jacob dwelt safely and in peace in the land of Israel.

The Midrash Tehillim interpreted Psalm 18:41, "You have given me the necks of my enemies," to allude to Judah, because Rabbi Joshua ben Levi reported an oral tradition that Judah slew Esau after the death of Isaac. Esau, Jacob, and all Jacob's children went to bury Isaac, as Genesis 35:29 reports, "Esau, Jacob, and his sons buried him," and they were all in the Cave of Machpelah sitting and weeping. At last Jacob's children stood up, paid their respects to Jacob, and left the cave so that Jacob would not be humbled by weeping exceedingly in their presence. But Esau reentered the cave, thinking that he would kill Jacob, as Genesis 27:41 reports, "And Esau said in his heart: 'Let the days of mourning for my father be at hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob.'" But Judah saw Esau go back and perceived at once that Esau meant to kill Jacob in the cave. Quickly Judah slipped after him and found Esau about to slay Jacob. So Judah killed Esau from behind. The neck of the enemy was given into Judah's hands alone, as Jacob blessed Judah in Genesis 49:8 saying, "Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies." And thus David declared in Psalm 18:41, "You have given me the necks of my enemies," as if to say that this was David's patrimony, since Genesis 49:8 said it of his ancestor Judah. Midrash Tehillim 18:32.

Notwithstanding Esau's conflicts with Jacob in Genesis 25–33, a Baraita taught that the descendants of Esau's descendant Haman identifies Amalek as Esau's grandson. identifies the Amalekites with the . identifies Haman as an Agagite. studied Torah in Beneberak. Babylonian Talmud Sanhedrin 96b.

Baḥya ibn Paquda taught that whenever God singles out a person for special favor, that person is under an obligation of increased service as an expression of gratitude for that favor. Baḥya reasoned that because of this, when some good fortune happened to the righteous of ancient times, they were troubled for two reasons: First, that they should not fall short in the fulfillment of the service and gratitude that they owed for this good fortune and that it should not turn into misfortune for them, as Jacob said in Genesis 32:11, "I have diminished from all the mercies, and truth which You have shown to Your servant." And secondly, that this should not be God's reward for their service, at the expense of their reward in the World To Come, as the Sages explained Deuteronomy 7:10, "And repays them that hate Him to their face (during this life) to destroy them (in the hereafter)."Baḥya ibn Paquda, Chovot HaLevavot (Duties of the Heart), section 3, chapter 6 (Zaragoza, Al-Andalus, circa 1080), in, e.g., Bachya ben Joseph ibn Paquda, Duties of the Heart, translated by Yehuda ibn Tibbon and Daniel Haberman (Jerusalem: Feldheim Publishers, 1996), volume 1, pages 310–11.

Maimonides taught that when Scripture reports an angel's appearance or speech, it reports a vision or dream, whether Scripture expressly states this or not. This, Maimonides held, was the case when Genesis 32:25 reports regarding Jacob, "And a man wrestled with him." Maimonides concluded that this took place in a prophetic vision, as Genesis 32:31 states that the "man" was an angel. Maimonides noted that the circumstances in Genesis 32 are exactly the same as those in the vision of Abraham in Genesis 18, where Scripture starts with the general statement of Genesis 18:1, "And the Lord appeared to him . . . ," and follows with a detailed description. Similarly, Maimonides taught, the account of Jacob's vision begins in Genesis 32:2, "And the angels of God met him." Scripture then follows with a detailed description of how it came to pass that they met him. Maimonides argued that the "man" of Genesis 32:25 was one of the angels mentioned in Genesis 32:2, "And angels of God met him." Maimonides concluded that the wrestling and speaking occurred entirely in Jacob's prophetic vision.Maimonides. The Guide for the Perplexed, . Cairo, Egypt, 1190, in, e.g., Moses Maimonides. The Guide for the Perplexed. Translated by Michael Friedländer, pages 236–37. New York: Dover Publications, 1956.

Rashi read Jacob's words in Genesis 32:27, "unless you have blessed me," to ask the angel to concede to Jacob the blessings with which Isaac blessed Jacob, and to which Esau objected.Rashi. Commentary. chapter 32. Troyes, France, late 11th century, in, e.g., Rashi. The Torah: With Rashi's Commentary Translated, Annotated, and Elucidated: Bereishis/Genesis. Translated and annotated by Yisrael Isser Zvi Herczeg, volume 1, page 371. Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 1995.

Rashi interpreted the angel's words in Genesis 32:29, "No longer . . . Jacob," to mean that it shall no longer be said that Isaac's blessings came to Jacob through trickery (, akevah) and deceit, but with nobility and openness, and ultimately, God would reveal God's Self to Jacob at Bethel and change Jacob's name, and there God would bless Jacob, and the angel would be there, too. The angel then acknowledged Isaac's blessings as being Jacob's. Rashi taught that this is the meaning of Hosea 12:5, "He strove with an angel and prevailed over him; he wept and supplicated him," meaning that the angel wept and supplicated Jacob. Rashi taught that the angel supplicated Jacob by telling him, as Hosea 12:5 says: "In Bethel, he will find Him, and there He will speak with us." The angel asked Jacob to wait for him until God would speak with them there. Jacob, however, did not agree to release the angel, and, against the angel's will, the angel acknowledged the blessings as being Jacob's. Rashi read Genesis 32:30, "And he blessed him there," to indicate that the angel entreated Jacob to wait, but Jacob did not wish to do so.Rashi. Commentary. chapter 32, in, e.g., Rashi. The Torah: With Rashi's Commentary Translated, Annotated, and Elucidated: Bereishis/Genesis. Translated and annotated by Yisrael Isser Zvi Herczeg, volume 1, pages 371–72.

Reading Genesis 32:30, "And he said: 'Why is it that you ask after my name?'" Nachmanides wrote that the angel told Jacob that there was no advantage to Jacob in knowing the angel's name, for no one possessed the power and the capability other than God alone.Nachmanides. Commentary on the Torah. Jerusalem, circa 1270, in, e.g., Ramban (Nachmanides): Commentary on the Torah: Genesis. Translated by Charles B. Chavel, volume 1, page 406. New York: Shilo Publishing House, 1971.

Isaac ben Moses Arama read the angel's request in Genesis 32:30 for Jacob to let him go as simply another way of asking Jacob why he was wasting his time detaining the angel, when he should have been busy preparing gifts for Esau. Isaac ben Moses Arama taught that Jacob's request to know the angel's name meant that Jacob wanted to know who had the power to inflict such damage on his hip joint. The angel told Jacob that it was not the angel's name that mattered, since the ability to inflict damage was not rooted in the identity of the angel, but rather, the mission of the angel was the important thing.Isaac ben Moses Arama. Akedat Yizhak (The Binding of Isaac). Late 15th century, in, e.g., Yitzchak Arama. Akeydat Yitzchak: Commentary of Rabbi Yitzchak Arama on the Torah. Translated and condensed by Eliyahu Munk, volume 1, page 217. New York, Lambda Publishers, 2001.

Maimonides taught that the encounter where Genesis 35:10 reports, "God said to him: 'Your name is Jacob," is an instance of where a prophet reports the words of an angel without mentioning that they were perceived in a dream or vision, assuming that it is well known that prophecy can only originate in one of those two ways.Maimonides. The Guide for the Perplexed, , in, e.g., Moses Maimonides. The Guide for the Perplexed. Translated by Michael Friedländer, page 235.

Walter Brueggemann suggested a Chiasmus to the Jacob narrative (shown in the chart below), moving from conflict with Esau to reconciliation with Esau. Within that is conflict with Laban moving to covenant with Laban. And within that, at the center, is the narrative of births, in which the birth of Joseph (at Genesis 30:24) marks the turning point in the entire narrative, after which Jacob looks toward the Land of Israel and his brother Esau. In the midst of the conflicts are the two major encounters with God, which occur at crucial times in the sequence of conflicts.Walter Brueggemann. Genesis: Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching, pages 211–13. See also Gary A. Rendsburg. The Great Courses: The Book of Genesis: Part 2, page 13. Chantilly, Virginia: The Teaching Company, 2006. (similar chiastic structure).

Nahum Sarna reported that modern scholars deduce from the Genesis listings of Jacob's sons the evolution of the league of Israelite tribes. These scholars deduce from the listing of Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah as Leah tribes that they were politically related. As their tribal territories were not contiguous, their organizing principle could not have been geographical, and their association must therefore reflect a presettlement reality. These scholars conclude that the six Leah tribes must have originated as a separate fraternity in Mesopotamia that evolved in two distinct stages. The account of the birth of Jacob's sons in Genesis 29:31–35:18 preserves the earliest traditions. The position of Judah as the fourth son reflects the situation prior to Judah's ascendancy, reflected in Genesis 49:8–12. The handmaid tribes had a subordinate status. And the tribe of Benjamin was the last to join the Israelite league and came into being in Canaan.Nahum M. Sarna. The JPS Torah Commentary: Genesis: The Traditional Hebrew Text with the New JPS Translation, pages 401–03. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 1989.

Kselman noted that Jacob's dividing his gifts to Esau into droves in Genesis 32:14–22 served both to appease Esau and to act as a buffer between Esau and Jacob.

Everett Fox translated Genesis 32:21: "For Jacob said to himself: I will wipe the his face with the gift that goes ahead of my face; afterward, when I see his face, perhaps he will lift up my face!"Everett Fox. The Five Books of Moses, pages 153–55. Dallas: Word Records, 1995. Karen Armstrong wrote that Fox's translation preserved the "insistent diction" of the Hebrew, directing the reader to Jacob's imminent wrestling match, when Jacob would see God "face to face" (in the words of Genesis 32:31), and implying that the "faces" of God, Jacob, and Esau were all the same. Armstrong argued that by facing his brother, Jacob confronted the "face" of God, but also confronted himself. Jacob came to terms not only with his wronged brother, but with Jacob's inner Esau, the alter ego that Jacob hated and had tried to discard. Armstrong concluded that only by confronting the subconscious aspects of his personality that filled his waking self with fear and disgust could Jacob heal his internal conflict and experience God's healing power.Karen Armstrong. In the Beginning: A New Interpretation of Genesis, page 91. New York: Knopf, 1996.

Kselman cited the identification of the adversary as Divine as the chief difficulty with the story of Jacob wrestling with a mysterious adversary in Genesis 32:25–33. Kselman suggested that at an earlier level of the story, the opponent may have been some Canaanite god attempting to keep Jacob from entering the land. But Israel's monotheism did away with the possibility of supernatural adversaries to God. So the resulting text enigmatically has God both originate the quest of returning to Canaan in Genesis 31:3 and 13 and oppose the quest in Genesis 32:25–33.John Kselman, "Genesis," in The HarperCollins Bible Commentary, page 103.

Everett Fox argued that the wrestling scene in Genesis 32:25–33 both symbolized and resolved beforehand Jacob's meeting with Esau in Genesis 33, much as William Shakespeare's prebattle dream scenes did in his plays Julius Caesar, Richard III, and Macbeth. The struggle motif, introduced in Genesis 25, returned in Genesis 32, but Fox argued that Jacob's whole life and personality were at stake, as despite his recent material successes, they were still under the pall of Esau's curse in Genesis 27:36. Fox concluded that the name change in Genesis 32:29 was central, suggesting both victory in the struggle and the emergence of a new power.Everett Fox. The Five Books of Moses, page 154.

Ephraim Speiser read the eerie encounter at Penuel in Genesis 32:25–33 to teach that no one may grasp God's complete design, which remains reasonable and just no matter who the chosen agent may be at any given point.Ephraim A. Speiser. Genesis: Introduction, Translation, and Notes, volume 1, page xxviii. New York: Anchor Bible, 1964.

• Not to eat the sinew of the thigh (gid ha-nasheh).

In the Blessing after Meals ( Birkat Hamazon), at the close of the fourth blessing (of thanks for God's goodness), Jews allude to God's blessing of the Patriarchs described in Genesis 24:1, 27:33, and 33:11.Menachem Davis, editor, The Schottenstein Edition Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals with an Interlinear Translation (Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 2002), page 172; Reuven Hammer, Or Hadash: A Commentary on Siddur Sim Shalom for Shabbat and Festivals (New York: The Rabbinical Assembly, 2003), page 342.

In the morning blessings ( Birkot hashachar), before the first recitation of the Shema Yisrael, Jews refer to God's changing of Jacob's name to Israel in Genesis 35:10.Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals with an Interlinear Translation, page 212; Reuven Hammer, Or Hadash: A Commentary on Siddur Sim Shalom for Shabbat and Festivals, page 66.

The specific text read following Parashat Vayishlach varies according to within Judaism. Examples are:

• for Ashkenazi Jews: Hosea 11:7–12:12 or Obadiah 1:1–21
• for Sephardi Jews: Obadiah 1:1–21

The Book of Obadiah deals with God's wrath against the kingdom of Edom, who are descended from Esau. At times Esau's name is used as a synonym for the nation.

• Genesis 1:28 (be fruitful and multiply); 9:1, 7; (be fruitful and multiply); 48:7 (Rachel's death).
• Deuteronomy 2:4–5.
• Jeremiah 31:15 (site of Rachel's death).

• Wisdom of Solomon 10:9–12. Alexandria, circa 26 CE. In, e.g., David Winston. The Wisdom of Solomon: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary, The Anchor Bible, volume 43, pages 210–11, 217. Garden City, New York: Doubleday & Company, 1979.
• Josephus. Antiquities of the Jews 1:20:1– 2:1:2 . Circa 93–94. In, e.g., The Works of Josephus: Complete and Unabridged, New Updated Edition. Translated by William Whiston, pages 51–53. Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, 1987.

• Mishnah: Shabbat 9:3, 19:3; Megillah 4:10; Chullin 7:1–6. Land of Israel, circa 200 CE. In, e.g., The Mishnah: A New Translation. Translated by Jacob Neusner, pages 190, 202, 323–24, 778–80. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1988.
• Tosefta: Berakhot 1:10, 4:16; Bikkurim 2:2; Megillah 3:35; Avodah Zarah 3:4; Chullin 7:1–8. Land of Israel, circa 300 CE. In, e.g., The Tosefta: Translated from the Hebrew, with a New Introduction. Translated by Jacob Neusner, volume 1, pages 6, 26, 348, 652; volume 2, pages 1269, 1393–95. Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, 2002.
• Jerusalem Talmud: Berakhot 17b, 83a, 84b; Sheviit 72a; Orlah 34a; Shabbat 72b, 73b, 107a; Eruvin 33a; Pesachim 13a; Taanit 30b; Yevamot 7a; Ketubot 21b, 38b; Sotah 28b; Sanhedrin 18a, 61b; Avodah Zarah 2b, 8a, 14b, 30b; Horayot 5a. Tiberias, Land of Israel, circa 400 CE. In, e.g., Talmud Yerushalmi. Edited by Chaim Malinowitz, Yisroel Simcha Schorr, and Mordechai Marcus, volumes 1–2, 6b, 12, 14–15, 17–18, 25, 29, 31, 36, 44–45, 47–49. Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 2005–2020. And in, e.g., The Jerusalem Talmud: A Translation and Commentary. Edited by Jacob Neusner and translated by Jacob Neusner, Tzvee Zahavy, B. Barry Levy, and Edward Goldman. Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, 2009.
• Genesis Rabbah 8:13; 11:7; 18:2; 19:12; 34:13; 37:3; 43:8; 45:5; 46:8; 47:6; 42:4; 75:1–83:5; 84:2, 4–5. Land of Israel, 5th Century. In, e.g., Midrash Rabbah: Genesis. Translated by Harry Freedman and Maurice Simon, volume 1, pages 63, 85, 142, 157, 279, 296, 358, 383–84, 394, 403, 505; volume 2, pages 536, 557, 568, 589, 615, 623, 631, 668, 673, 679, 682, 688–772, 781, 783, 789, 829–30, 855, 872, 904, 919, 943–44, 949, 968, 979ff. London: Soncino Press, 1939.
• Babylonian Talmud: Berakhot 4a, 7b 7b, 12b; Shabbat 32a, 33b, 55b, 85a, 86a, 134b; Eruvin 53a; Pesachim 7b, 22a, 47b, 54a, 83b, 118b, 119b; Yoma 77b; Sukkah 5b, 39a; Beitzah 12a; Rosh Hashanah 26a; Taanit 20b, 27b; Megillah 11a, 17a, 18a, 21b, 25a–b; Chagigah 5b, 12a; Yevamot 65b; Nedarim 31b; Nazir 23a; Sotah 22b, 36b, 41b; Kiddushin 21b, 55a; Bava Kamma 41a, 92a; Bava Metzia 86b; Bava Batra 15b, 74b, 115b–16a, 123b; Sanhedrin 39b, 56a, 59a, 82b, 94a, 98b, 99b, 102a; Makkot 7b, 11a–b, 21b; Avodah Zarah 8b, 11b, 25b; Horayot 10b, 12a; Chullin 7b, 69a, 89b–103b, 134b, 137b; Keritot 21a; Niddah 63a. Sasanian Empire, 6th Century. In, e.g., Talmud Bavli. Edited by Yisroel Simcha Schorr, Chaim Malinowitz, and Mordechai Marcus, 72 volumes. Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 2006.

• Solomon ibn Gabirol. A Crown for the King, 36:488–89. Spain, 11th Century. Translated by David R. Slavitt, pages 66–67. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998.
• Rashi. Commentary. Genesis 32–36. Troyes, France, late 11th Century. In, e.g., Rashi. The Torah: With Rashi's Commentary Translated, Annotated, and Elucidated. Translated and annotated by Yisrael Isser Zvi Herczeg, volume 1, pages 359–407. Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 1995.
• Rashbam. Commentary on the Torah. Troyes, early 12th century. In, e.g., Rabbi Samuel Ben Meir's Commentary on Genesis: An Annotated Translation. Translated by Martin I. Lockshin, pages 197–238. Lewiston, New York: The Edwin Mellen Press, 1989.
• Abraham ibn Ezra. Commentary on the Torah. Mid-12th century. In, e.g., Ibn Ezra's Commentary on the Pentateuch: Genesis (Bereshit). Translated and annotated by H. Norman Strickman and Arthur M. Silver, pages 310–44. New York: Menorah Publishing Company, 1988.
• Hezekiah ben Manoah. Hizkuni. France, circa 1240. In, e.g., Chizkiyahu ben Manoach. Chizkuni: Torah Commentary. Translated and annotated by Eliyahu Munk, volume 1, pages 242–68. Jerusalem: Ktav Publishers, 2013.
• Nahmanides. Commentary on the Torah. Jerusalem, circa 1270. In, e.g., Ramban (Nachmanides): Commentary on the Torah: Genesis. Translated by Charles B. Chavel, volume 1, pages 394–445. New York: Shilo Publishing House, 1971.
• Zohar 1:165b–79a. Spain, late 13th Century. In, e.g., The Zohar. Translated by Harry Sperling and Maurice Simon. 5 volumes. London: Soncino Press, 1934.
• Joshua ibn Shueib. "Sermon on Wa-Yishlah." Aragon, First half of 14th century. In Marc Saperstein. Jewish Preaching, 1200–1800: An Anthology, pages 137–55. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1989.
• Isaac ben Moses Arama. Akedat Yizhak (The Binding of Isaac). Late 15th century. In, e.g., Yitzchak Arama. Akeydat Yitzchak: Commentary of Rabbi Yitzchak Arama on the Torah. Translated and condensed by Eliyahu Munk, volume 1, pages 209–29. New York, Lambda Publishers, 2001.

• Isaac Abravanel. Commentary on the Torah. Italy, between 1492 and 1509. In, e.g., Abarbanel: Selected Commentaries on the Torah: Volume 1: Bereishis/Genesis. Translated and annotated by Israel Lazar, pages 210–32. Brooklyn: CreateSpace, 2015.
• Obadiah ben Jacob Sforno. Commentary on the Torah. Venice, 1567. In, e.g., Sforno: Commentary on the Torah. Translation and explanatory notes by Raphael Pelcovitz, pages 174–97. Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 1997.
• Moshe Alshich. Commentary on the Torah. Safed, circa 1593. In, e.g., Moshe Alshich. Midrash of Rabbi Moshe Alshich on the Torah. Translated and annotated by Eliyahu Munk, volume 1, pages 207–32. New York, Lambda Publishers, 2000.
• Avraham Yehoshua Heschel. Commentaries on the Torah. Cracow, Poland, mid 17th century. Compiled as Chanukat HaTorah. Edited by Chanoch Henoch Erzohn. Piotrkow, Poland, 1900. In Avraham Yehoshua Heschel. Chanukas HaTorah: Mystical Insights of Rav Avraham Yehoshua Heschel on Chumash. Translated by Avraham Peretz Friedman, pages 81–88. Southfield, Michigan: Targum Press/Feldheim Publishers, 2004.
• Chaim ibn Attar. Ohr ha-Chaim. Venice, 1742. In Chayim ben Attar. Or Hachayim: Commentary on the Torah. Translated by Eliyahu Munk, volume 1, pages 273–96. Brooklyn: Lambda Publishers, 1999.
• Rumpelstiltskin. In Jacob Grimm & Wilhelm Grimm. Children's and Household Tales. Germany, 1812. In, e.g., The Complete Brothers Grimm Fairy Tales. Edited by Lily Owens, pages 203–06. New York: Gramercy Books, 2006. (power of a true name).
• Emily Dickinson. . Circa 1859. In The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson. Edited by Thomas H. Johnson, page 31. New York: Little, Brown & Co., 1960.
• Samuel David Luzzatto (Shadal). Commentary on the Torah. Padua, 1871. In, e.g., Samuel David Luzzatto. Torah Commentary. Translated and annotated by Eliyahu Munk, volume 2, pages 310–54. New York: Lambda Publishers, 2012.
• Yehudah Aryeh Leib Alter. Sefat Emet. Góra Kalwaria (Ger), Poland, before 1906. Excerpted in The Language of Truth: The Torah Commentary of Sefat Emet. Translated and interpreted by Arthur Green, pages 49–54. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 1998. Reprinted 2012.
• Abraham Isaac Kook. The Lights of Penitence, 14:40. 1925. In Abraham Isaac Kook: the Lights of Penitence, the Moral Principles, Lights of Holiness, Essays, Letters, and Poems. Translated by Ben Zion Bokser, page 111. Mahwah, New Jersey: Paulist Press 1978.
• Nathaniel Schmidt. "The Numen of Penuel." Journal of Biblical Literature, volume 45 (number 3/4) (1926): pages 260–79.
• Alexander Alan Steinbach. Sabbath Queen: Fifty-four Bible Talks to the Young Based on Each Portion of the Pentateuch, pages 23–25. New York: Behrman's Jewish Book House, 1936.
• Irving Fineman. Jacob, An Autobiographical Novel. New York: Random House, 1941.
• Thomas Mann. Joseph and His Brothers. Translated by John E. Woods, pages 51–53, 64–65, 69–73, 77, 84–85, 100–03, 112–51, 155–56, 239, 294, 303–14, 326, 335, 399–400, 402–04, 426–27, 429, 432, 438, 446, 454, 491, 500–01, 507, 515, 563, 805, 917, 978–79. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2005. Originally published as Joseph und seine Brüder. Stockholm: Bermann-Fischer Verlag, 1943.
• Walter Orenstein and Hertz Frankel. Torah and Tradition: A Bible Textbook for Jewish Youth: Volume I: Bereishis, pages 83–93. New York: Hebrew Publishing Company, 1964.
• John R. Bartlett. "The Edomite King-list of Genesis XXXVI. 31–39 and I Chron. I. 43–50." The Journal of Theological Studies, volume 16 (1965): pages 301–14.
• Martin Kessler. "Genesis 34—An Interpretation." Reformed Review, volume 19 (1965): pages 3–8.
• Frederick Buechner. The Magnificent Defeat, pages 10–18. Seabury Press, 1966. Reprinted San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1985.
• Delmore Schwartz. Jacob. In Selected Poems: Summer Knowledge, pages 233–35. New York: New Directions, 1967.
• Bernhard W. Anderson. "An Exposition of Genesis 32:22–32: The Traveller Unknown." Australian Biblical Review, volume 17 (1969): pages 21–26.
• Robert Coote. "The Meaning of the Name Israel." Harvard Theological Review, volume 65 (1972): pages 137–46.
• Joe O. Lewis. "Gen 32:23–33, Seeing a Hidden God." Society of Biblical Literature Abstracts and Seminar Papers, volume 1 (1972): pages 449–57.
• Laurel Trivelpiece. "Jacob at Peniel." Prairie Schooner, volume 47 (number 2) (Summer 1973): page 141.
• Roland Barthes. "The Struggle with the Angel: Textual Analysis of Genesis 32:23–33." In Structural Analysis and Biblical Exegesis: Interpretational Essays. Translated by Alfred M. Johnson Jr., pages 21–33. Pittsburgh: Pickwick, 1974.
• Godfrey R. Driver. "Gen. Xxxvi 24: Mules or Fishes." Vetus Testamentum, volume 25 (1975): pages 109–10.
• Frank C. Fensham. "Gen XXXIV and Mari." Journal of Northwest Semitic Languages, volume 4 (1975): pages 15–38.
• Stanley Gevirtz. "Of Patriarchs and Puns: Joseph at the Fountain, Jacob at the Ford." Hebrew Union College Annual, volume 46 (1975): pages 33–54.
• Seän M. Warner. “The Patriarchs and Extra-Biblical Sources.” Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, volume 1, number 2 (June 1976): pages 50–61.
• J. Maxwell Miller. “The Patriarchs and Extra-Biblical Sources: a Response.” Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, volume 1, number 2 (June 1976): pages 62–66.
• Elie Wiesel. "And Jacob Fought the Angel." In Messengers of God: Biblical Portraits & Legends, pages 103–38. New York: Random House, 1976.
• John R. Bartlett. “The Brotherhood of Edom.” Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, volume 2, number 4 (February 1977): pages 2–27. (Genesis 36).
• Amy K. Blank. The Struggle. In The Struggle and Other Poems. Cincinnati, 1978. (poem about Genesis 32:17–33).
• Peter D. Miscall. “The Jacob and Joseph Stories as Analogies.” Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, volume 3, number 6 (April 1978): pages 28–40.
• Donald Wiseman. "They Lived in Tents." In Biblical and Near Eastern Studies: Essays in Honor of William Sanford La Sor. Edited by Gary A. Tuttle, pages 195–200. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1978.
• Michael Fishbane. "Genesis 25:19–35:22/The Jacob Cycle." In Text and Texture: Close Readings of Selected Biblical Texts, pages 40–62. New York: Schocken Books, 1979.
• John G. Gammie. "Theological Interpretation by Way of Literary and Tradition Analysis: Genesis 25–36." In Encounter with the Text: Form and History in the Hebrew Bible. Edited by Martin J. Buss, pages 117–34. Philadelphia: Fortress, 1979.
• Louis T. Brodie. "Jacob's Travail (Jer 30:1–13) and Jacob's Struggle (Gen 32:22–32): A Test Case for Measuring the Influence of the Book of Jeremiah on the Present Text of Genesis." Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, volume 19 (1981): pages 31–60.
• Nehama Leibowitz. Studies in Bereshit (Genesis), pages 345–93. Jerusalem: The World Zionist Organization, 1981. Reprinted as New Studies in the Weekly Parasha. Lambda Publishers, 2010.
• Nathaniel Wander. "Structure, Contradiction, and 'Resolution' in Mythology: Father's Brother's Daughter Marriage and the Treatment of Women in Genesis 11–50." Journal of the Ancient Near Eastern Society, volume 13 (1981): pages 75–99.
• Walter Brueggemann. Genesis: Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching, pages 260–87. Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1982.
• Stephen A. Geller, "The Struggle at the Jabbok: The Uses of Enigma in a Biblical Narrative." Journal of the Ancient Near Eastern Society, volume 14 (1982): pages 37–60.
• Meir Sternberg. “Delicate Balance in the Rape of Dinah.” In The Poetics of Biblical Narrative: Ideological Literature and the Drama of Reading, pages 445–75. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1985.
• Walter Brueggemann. Genesis: Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching, pages 204–12, 260–87. Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1986.
• Pinchas H. Peli. Torah Today: A Renewed Encounter with Scripture, pages 33–36. Washington, D.C.: B'nai B'rith Books, 1987.
• Robert A. Coughenour. "A Search for Maḥanaim." Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, number 273 (February 1989): pages 57–66.
• Louis Feldman. "Josephus' Portrait of Jacob." The Jewish Quarterly Review, New Series, volume 79 (number 2/3) (October 1988–January 1989): pages 101–51.
• Torgny Lindgren. "The Sump-Grubber." In Merab's Beauty and Other Stories. Translated by Mary Sandbach. The Harvill Press, 1989. In The Art of the Story: An International Anthology of Contemporary Short Stories. Edited by Daniel Halpern, pages 373–79. New York: Penguin Books, 1999. Originally published as Merabs skönhet: Berättelser. Sweden: Norstedt, 1983. (loose fictional retelling of Jacob's wrestling with the angel, in the form of an implement to extract tree stumps).
• Nahum M. Sarna. The JPS Torah Commentary: Genesis: The Traditional Hebrew Text with the New JPS Translation, pages 223–53, 403–10. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 1989.
• Kevin Hart. Peniel. Golvan Arts, 1991.
• Leon Kass. "Regarding Daughters and Sisters." Commentary (April 1992): pages 29–38.
• Frederick Buechner. The Son of Laughter. New York: HarperCollins, 1993.
• Steven Molen. "The Identity of Jacob's Opponent: Wrestling with Ambiguity in Gen. 32:22–32." Shofar, volume 11 (number 2) (Winter 1993): pages 16–29.
• Pat Schneider. Welcoming Angels. In Long Way Home: Poems, page 90. Amherst, Massachusetts: Amherst Writers and Artists Press, 1993.
• Aaron Wildavsky. Assimilation versus Separation: Joseph the Administrator and the Politics of Religion in Biblical Israel, pages 6, 27–28. New Brunswick, New Jersey: Transaction Publishers, 1993.
• Judith S. Antonelli. "Dinah: Rape Victim." In In the Image of God: A Feminist Commentary on the Torah, pages 88–102. Northvale, New Jersey: Jason Aronson, 1995.
• Naomi H. Rosenblatt and Joshua Horwitz. Wrestling With Angels: What Genesis Teaches Us About Our Spiritual Identity, Sexuality, and Personal Relationships, pages 289–312. Delacorte Press, 1995.
• Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg. The Beginning of Desire: Reflections on Genesis, pages 216–42. New York: Image Books/Doubelday, 1995.
• Karen Armstrong. In the Beginning: A New Interpretation of Genesis, pages 88–100. New York: Knopf, 1996.
• Ellen Frankel. The Five Books of Miriam: A Woman's Commentary on the Torah, pages 64–71. New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1996.
• Michael Graves. "At Peniel." European Judaism, volume 29 (number 2) (Autumn 1996): page 143.
• Gunther Plaut. The Haftarah Commentary, pages 74–91. New York: UAHC Press, 1996.
• Anita Diamant. The Red Tent. St. Martin's Press, 1997.
• Sorel Goldberg Loeb and Barbara Binder Kadden. Teaching Torah: A Treasury of Insights and Activities, pages 52–57. Denver: A.R.E. Publishing, 1997.
• Adele Reinhartz. "Why Ask My Name?" Anonymity and Identity in Biblical Narrative, pages 166–67. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998.
• Susan Freeman. Teaching Jewish Virtues: Sacred Sources and Arts Activities, pages 165–78, 228–40. Springfield, New Jersey: A.R.E. Publishing, 1999. (Genesis 32:14–20; 33:4, 10).
• John S. Kselman. "Genesis." In The HarperCollins Bible Commentary. Edited by James L. Mays, pages 102–04. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, revised edition, 2000.
• Israel Finkelstein and Neil Asher Silberman. "Searching for the Patriarchs." In The Bible Unearthed: Archaeology's New Vision of Ancient Israel and the Origin of Its Sacred Texts, pages 27–47. New York: The Free Press, 2001.
• Victor Hurowitz. "Whose Earrings Did Jacob Bury?" Bible Review, volume 17 (number 4) (August 2001): pages 31–33, 54.
• Lainie Blum Cogan and Judy Weiss. Teaching Haftarah: Background, Insights, and Strategies, pages 519–27, 560–68. Denver: A.R.E. Publishing, 2002.
• Michael Fishbane. The JPS Bible Commentary: Haftarot, pages 48–61. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 2002.
• Rodger Kamenetz. "Naming the Angel." In The Lowercase Jew, page 39. Evanston, Illinois: Triquarterly Books/Northwestern University Press, 2003.
• Leon R. Kass. The Beginning of Wisdom: Reading Genesis, pages 446–508. New York: Free Press, 2003.
• Robert Alter. The Five Books of Moses: A Translation with Commentary, pages 177–205. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 2004.
• Jon D. Levenson. "Genesis." In The Jewish Study Bible. Edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler, pages 66–74. New York: Oxford University Press, 2004.
• William H.C. Propp. "Exorcising Demons." Bible Review, volume 20 (number 5) (October 2004): pages 14–21, 47.
• Suzanne M. Singletary. "Jacob Wrestling with the Angel: A Theme in Symbolist Art." Nineteenth-Century French Studies, volume 32 (number 3/4) (spring summer 2004): pages 298–315.
• Professors on the Parashah: Studies on the Weekly Torah Reading. Edited by Leib Moscovitz, pages 60–62. Jerusalem: Urim Publications, 2005.
• Frank Anthony Spina. "Esau: The Face of God." In The Faith of the Outsider: Exclusion and Inclusion in the Biblical Story, pages 14–34. William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2005.
• Jules Francis Gomes. The Sanctuary of Bethel and the Configuration of Israelite Identity. De Gruyter, 2006.
• Hilary Lipka. Sexual Transgression in the Hebrew Bible. Sheffield Phoenix Press, 2006. (Genesis 34).
• W. Gunther Plaut. The Torah: A Modern Commentary: Revised Edition. Revised edition edited by David E.S. Stern, pages 218–43. New York: Union for Reform Judaism, 2006.
• Suzanne A. Brody. Deborah and Encountering Dinah. In Dancing in the White Spaces: The Yearly Torah Cycle and More Poems, pages 69–70. Shelbyville, Kentucky: Wasteland Press, 2007.
• Anita Diamant. The Red Tent. New York: St. Martin's Press, 2007.
• Shmuel Goldin. Unlocking the Torah Text: Bereishit, pages 175–99. Jerusalem: Gefen Publishing House, 2007.
• James Kugel. How To Read the Bible: A Guide to Scripture, Then and Now, pages 31, 39, 60, 115, 144, 150, 152–75, 182, 187, 189–90, 195, 211, 268, 331, 421, 439–40, 595. New York: Free Press, 2007.
• Caroline Blyth. "Redeemed by His Love? The Characterization of Shechem in Genesis 34." Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, volume 33 (number 4) (September 2008): pages 3–18.
• Ian Goldberg. "Brothers of Nablus." In , season 2, episode 7. Burbank: Warner Bros. Television, 2008. (Shechem plot element).
• The Torah: A Women's Commentary. Edited by Tamara Cohn Eskenazi and Andrea L. Weiss, pages 183–208. New York: URJ Press, 2008.
• David Brodsky. "Biblical Sex: Parashat Vayishlach (Genesis 32:4–36:43)." In Torah Queeries: Weekly Commentaries on the Hebrew Bible. Edited by Gregg Drinkwater, Joshua Lesser, and David Shneer; foreword by Judith Plaskow, pages 47–52. New York: New York University Press, 2009.
• Reuven Hammer. Entering Torah: Prefaces to the Weekly Torah Portion, pages 47–52. New York: Gefen Publishing House, 2009.
• Timothy Keller. "The End of Counterfeit Gods." In Counterfeit Gods: The Empty Promises of Money, Sex, and Power, and the Only Hope that Matters. Dutton Adult, 2009. (Jacob and Esau).
• Jonathan Sacks. Covenant & Conversation: A Weekly Reading of the Jewish Bible: Genesis: The Book of Beginnings, pages 211–41. New Milford, Connecticut: Maggid Books, 2009.
• John H. Walton. "Genesis." In Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary. Edited by John H. Walton, volume 1, pages 115–20. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2009.
• Nick Wyatt. "Circumcision and Circumstance: Male Genital Mutilation in Ancient Israel and Ugarit." Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, volume 33 (number 4) (June 2009): pages 405–31.
• Stuart Lasine. "Everything Belongs to Me: Holiness, Danger, and Divine Kingship in the Post-Genesis World." Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, volume 35 (number 1) (September 2010): pages 31–62.
• Connie Wanek. "A Sighting." In On Speaking Terms. Copper Canyon Press, 2010. ("I will not let thee go except thou bless me.")
• Lachlan Brown. "'A Name I Never Heard Till Now': Reading Kevin Hart's 'Peniel.'" Religion & Literature, volume 43 (number 1) (spring 2011): pages 101–17.
• Esther J. Hamori. "Echoes of Gilgamesh in the Jacob Story." Journal of Biblical Literature, volume 130 (number 4) (winter 2011): pages 625–42.
• Calum Carmichael. The Book of Numbers: A Critique of Genesis, pages 1, 6, 8, 11, 13, 19–20, 24–25, 29–30, 32, 55, 120, 127, 130–40, 142–50, 154–64, 191–92, 194. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2012.
• William G. Dever. The Lives of Ordinary People in Ancient Israel: When Archaeology and the Bible Intersect, page 317. Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2012.
• Shmuel Herzfeld. "Outside the Box." In Fifty-Four Pick Up: Fifteen-Minute Inspirational Torah Lessons, pages 39–45. Jerusalem: Gefen Publishing House, 2012.
• Angela B. Wagner. "Considerations on the Politico-Juridical Proceedings of Genesis 34. Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, volume 38 (number 2) (December 2013): pages 145–61.
• Edward J. Bridge. "The 'Slave' Is the 'Master': Jacob's Servile Language to Esau in Genesis 33.1–17. Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, volume 38 (number 3) (March 2014): pages 263–78.
• Eve Levavi Feinstein. “Dinah and Shechem (Gen 34).” In Sexual Pollution in the Hebrew Bible, pages 65–91. New York: Oxford University Press, 2014.
• Jonathan Sacks. Lessons in Leadership: A Weekly Reading of the Jewish Bible, pages 35–39. New Milford, Connecticut: Maggid Books, 2015.
• "The Hittites: Between Tradition and History." Biblical Archaeology Review, volume 42 (number 2) (March/April 2016): pages 28–40, 68.
• Jean-Pierre Isbouts. Archaeology of the Bible: The Greatest Discoveries From Genesis to the Roman Era, pages 66–67. Washington, D.C.: National Geographic, 2016.
• Jonathan Sacks. Essays on Ethics: A Weekly Reading of the Jewish Bible, pages 47–52. New Milford, Connecticut: Maggid Books, 2016.
• Shai Held. The Heart of Torah, Volume 1: Essays on the Weekly Torah Portion: Genesis and Exodus, pages 69–78. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 2017.
• Steven Levy and Sarah Levy. The JPS Rashi Discussion Torah Commentary, pages 24–26. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 2017.
• Pekka Pitkänen. “Ancient Israelite Population Economy: Ger, Toshav, Nakhri and Karat as Settler Colonial Categories.” Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, volume 42, number 2 (December 2017): pages 139–53.
• Jeffrey K. Salkin. The JPS B'nai Mitzvah Torah Commentary, pages 34–38. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 2017.
• Luis A. Quinones Roman. “The ענה of Dinah: A Virgin in the Midst of a Dangerous World (Gen 34).” Jerusalem: Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 2019.
• Aren M. Wilson-Wright. "Bethel and the Persistence of El: Evidence for the Survival of El as an Independent Deity in the Jacob Cycle and 1 Kings 12:25–30." Journal of Biblical Literature, volume 138, number 4 (2019): pages 705–20.
• Liana Finck. Let There Be Light: The Real Story of Her Creation, pages 274–80. New York: Random House, 2022.

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