Tafsiran Kejadian 25:22: Tze'enah Ure'enah, Rashi, Chizkuni & Ramban

“The children struggled in her womb” [25:22]. The children struggled in her womb. Jacob and Esau argued in their mother’s body. When Rebecca walked past the door of a house of study, Jacob wanted to get out. When Rebecca passed the door of a place of idol worship, Esau wanted to get out and the two nations struggled with each other. Rebecca said: if it is such a great trouble to be pregnant, why did I ask to have children.¹¹Rashi, Genesis, 25:22.

“She went to inquire of the Lord” [25:22]. Rebecca went to ask of God why the children were struggling? Here Rashi asks a question. Where did she go to inquire? The explanation is that she went to the house of study and asked Shem, who was the rabbi that he should tell her. He told Rebecca: you will have two important children, as it is written, “two nations are in your womb” [25:23]. This means, two lords will come from you. That is, from Jacob will come Rabbi [Judah the Prince], who will be as important as a king. From Esau will come Antoninus, the king of Esau.¹²Rashi, Genesis, 25:23. Esau is identified with Rome in Rabbinic literature. Antoninus was an emperor of Rome.

Bahya writes. Antoninus was a great king of Esau and studied Torah from Rabbi [Judah the Prince] secretly, and was very afraid that his servants and ministers should not learn about this. The Talmud in [tractate] Avodah Zarah¹³B. Avodah Zarah, 10b. says that there was a large cave under the earth. King Antoninus could easily go from his castle to the house of Rabbi [Judah] through that cave. Every day the king went to study Torah with Rabbi [Judah] through that cave under the earth and took along two servants. The king placed one at the door of his house, and the other one he put at the door of Rabbi [Judah’s] house. He did this every day. He told them that no person should come to Rabbi [Judah] when he would come. Once the king came to Rabbi [Judah] and found Rabbi Haninah sitting before Rabbi [Judah]. The king said: I asked you that no person should be here when I came. Rabbi [Judah] responded: this is not a person. The king said: if this is not a person, let him go and call in the one who is sleeping at the door. Rabbi Haninah went and found that the one at the door had been killed. Rabbi Haninah thought; what should I do? Should I tell him that he had been killed? One does not tell bad news easily. If I will go away, then it is degrading to the king that I would not answer him. He prayed and brought him back to life and sent him to the king. The king said: I know well that every Israelite can bring someone back to life. Nonetheless, I ask you, let no person be with you when I come to you. The king served Rabbi [Judah]; he poured his cup and stood before him like a servant. When Rabbi [Judah] wanted to sleep in his bed, the king bowed down to the earth before the bed so that Rabbi [Judah] would step on him, to more easily let him get into his bed. Rabbi [Judah] said: you are a king and it is not just that a king should do this. The king responded: I wish that I would be the bed under you in the next world. He asked Rabbi [Judah]: will I come to the World to Come? Rabbi [Judah] answered him: you will come. The king said: the verse says, “no survivor shall be left of the House of Esau” [Obadiah 1:18]. Rabbi [Judah] responded: whoever does the deeds of Esau. He asked: the verse says, “Edom is there, her kings and all her chieftains” [Ezekiel 32:29]. There in Gehenna is Edom, the king and his ministers. Rabbi [Judah] answered: except for Antoninus and Ketia the son of Shalom, who will not come to Gehenna.¹⁴Bahya, Genesis, 25:22.

ויתרצצו AND [THE CHILDREN] STRUGGLED — You must admit that this verse calls for a Midrashic interpretation since it leaves unexplained what this struggling was about and it states that she exclaimed “If it be so, wherefore did I desire this” (i.e. she asked whether this was the normal course of child-bearing, feeling that something extraordinary was happening). Our Rabbis explain that the word ויתרוצצו has the meaning of running, moving quickly: whenever she passed by the doors of the Torah (i. e. the Schools of Shem and Eber) Jacob moved convulsively in his efforts to come to birth, but whenever she passed by the gate of a pagan temple Esau moved convulsively in his efforts to come to birth (Genesis Rabbah 63:6). Another explanation is: they struggled with one another and quarrelled as to how they should divide the two worlds as their inheritance (Yalkut Shimoni on Torah 111:2).