오바댜 1:21의 Musar

Isaac slowed the expansion of the influence of the tree of knowledge by means of the birth of the twins Jacob and Esau. This was an indication that even evil can be rehabilitated. Our sages phrased it thus: Esau's head reposes within the lap of Isaac; such is the mystery of how evil can be rehabilitated. The secret of how this happens was alluded to by our sages' explanation that the reason the pig is called חזיר, (from the root חזר to return) is that in the future it will restore the crown to its Master, as we know from Ovadiah 1,21 ועלו מושיעין בהר ציון … והיתה לה' המלוכה, "For the saviours will march up Mount Zion… and the kingdom will be G–d's." (cf. details in Kohelet Rabbah end section 1). All of these events will occur at the time when G–d will "slaughter" the angel of death. This is the plain meaning of Isaiah 25,8 בלע המות לנצח, "He will destroy death forever." This angel of death will then remain as a regular angel, since all the negative forces we know as קליפות are after all an outgrowth of a holy source. This is what was alluded to in the quote that the head of Esau reposes in Isaac's lap. When the head expands it becomes a symbol of impurity. The very name סמ-אל Samael, (Satan) reflects the dual nature of evil. On the one hand the name א-ל, G–d, is part of that definition, on the other hand the word סם represents the סם המות, lethal poison. In such a future the סם aspect of Satan/ Samael will be abolished. We, the Jewish nation however, are called by the name of G–d. Our sages interpreted Genesis 33,20 ויקרא לו א-ל א-לוהי ישראל, "He (G–d) called him (Jacob) El the G–d of Israel" (Megillah 18a, proving that the word לו could not refer to the altar Jacob had built). We have an allusion to this in Genesis 11,10 אלה תולדת שם, suggesting that we, his descendants, are all a "full name," not half a name such as סמא-ל.

And inasmuch as He had created all of these, it was necessary to create the Temple and the name of the Messiah before creating man. For in the days of the Messiah, the earth will be filled with knowledge and there will be no evil desire among men. And all people, great and small, will know the name of God, may He be exalted, with a great knowledge and then they will know, all of them, that the principal reason for the creation of the world was service to the Creator, may He be exalted. Therefore, He first created all of these seven before He created the world. "And saviours shall come up on mount Zion (Obad. 1:21) and "a redeemer will come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob" (Is. 59:20). Amen. And thus may it be His will.

King David held on to the קו המלכות, i.e. the fourth "line." This is what is commonly known as מגן דוד, the shield of David. [קוים is an expression used in Kabbalah to describe the conversion of concepts into a practical effect in our lives. The concept חסד becomes רחמים, i.e. applied חסד, by means of such a קו, line. Ed.] The Zohar (Sullam edition page 70), commenting on Genesis 29,35 "she stopped bearing children," explains that the word ותעמד is a reference to the establishment of this fourth leg of G–d's throne, and that anyone who challenges the kingdom of David is considered as challenging the שכינה, the reason being that the fourth leg of the throne is supplied by the kingdom of David on earth. David is the מרכבה, carrier of G–d's Glory down here in our domain. Once that fourth leg has been contributed to G–d's Throne, His name י-ה-ו-ה will be complete. The root of the line חסד is the letter יוד. The root of the line דין is the first ה"א in that Name, whereas the line רחמים is the letter ו"או. These three lines together, formed through the attributes of the patriarchs, form a מרכבה. By adding the last letter ה"א of the Ineffable Name, G–d's name is made complete, whole. Once the Kingdom of David will flourish as that of the Messiah, once the prediction: והיתה לה' המלוכה (Ovadiah 1, 21) will be realized, the other half of that prophecy ביום ההוא יהיה ה' אחד ושמו אחד will be fulfilled also (Zachariah 14,9). The final letter in each of the last three words of that latter prophecy together spell דוד. A close look at the name יהודה will reveal some remarkable allusions. Firstly, it contains the letters of the Ineffable Name plus the letter ד. That letter, or rather the number 4 that it represents, is an allusion to the fourth leg of G–d's Throne.

I have explained the word סם-אל as being composed of סם, poison, something harmful and of א-ל, something godly, i.e. good and wholesome. We can divide the expression מלאך המות, angel of death, similarly. The מות, i.e. death part of the expression is something negative, whereas the מלאך, i.e. angel part of the word is something good, positive. The good is mixed in with the bad. This is the mystical dimension of Esau's offer in 33, 15: אציגה נא עמך מן העם אשר אתי, "Let me assign you some of the people who are with me." There is a hidden reference in this to the proselytes and their influence on the Jewish people. Esau made this suggestion after Jacob had said to him in verse 14: עד אשר אבא אל אדוני שעירה, "until I come to my lord in Se'ir." Jacob's comment was a reference to Messianic times described in Ovadiah 1, 21, where Israel is described as ascending the mountain of Se'ir, home of Esau, preparing to execute final judgment on Esau. When we look at the respective last letters in the words אבא אל אדוני שעירה, we have the word אליה, as pointed out by Baal Haturim. This was Jacob's reply to Esau's suggestion for his people to convert to Judaism at the time the Messiah would arrive. Jacob hinted that we have a rule that we do not accept converts when there is reason to suspect that these converts only want to reap the benefit of a period of good fortune of the Jewish people (Yevamot 24). Jacob answered at the end of verse 15: למה זה אמצא חן בעיני אדוני The word חן is an allusion to the potential convert's motivation for becoming a גר, proselyte.

In order to survive in our lengthy exile we must employ the weapons of repentance, prayer and charity so as to mobilize the support of G–d on our behalf. The equivalent of "war" is repentance, which reflects the battle with our evil urge. He who can conquer his baser urges has proved himself to be a mighty warrior. This condition will prevail until the prophecy that we will conquer Mount Se'ir will be fulfilled. The redemption will come as a result of repentance, as we know from: ובא לציון גואל ולשבי פשע ביעקב "The redeemer will come to Zion and to those in Jacob who have repented their iniquities" (Isaiah 59, 20).

Thereupon Isaac said to Esau: משמני הארץ יהיה מושבך ומטל השמים מעל. "Your dwelling place will be of the earth's most fertile with the dew of the skies above." Isaac confirmed what Esau had requested. This meant that Esau would absorb some of Jacob's spiritual essence. The terms הר ציון and הר עשו respectively, reflect this relationship of Jacob and Esau. Though both are הר, something elevated, the former is mistress of the latter. In verse 40 Isaac told Esau that in the event Jacob did not live up to the assumptions his blessings were based on, there would be a role reversal; Esau would then be able to shake off this yoke of being only an appendix to Jacob. However, once the pollutant of the serpent's residue in Israel would come to an end, Israel would emerge purified, and the vision of the prophet (Ovadiah 1,21) ועלו מושיעים בהר ציון לשפוט את הר עשו והיתה לה' המלוכה "For liberators will march up to Mount Zion and wreak judgment on Mount Esau; and the dominion shall be the Lord's would become fulfilled.."