HOW TO MAKE IT BACK HOME
This week’s parashah covers the twenty-year period in which Ya’akov Avinu lived in Padan Aram with his father-in-law Lavan. In the end, Ya’akov returned to Eretz Yisrael, making him the first Jew (since Avraham received the commandment of Lech Lecha) to dwell in Chutz LaAretz for an extended period of time and return to the Land. It therefore behooves us, Ya’akov’s descendants, to study this parashah well and try to find out how he did it: how he managed to keep his dream of aliyah alive and actually make it back to the Holy Land, after such a long absence.
Our Rabbis teach that מעשה אבות סימן לבנים – the deeds of the Patriarchs are signs for their descendants. So, here are some lessons we can learn from Ya’akov:
(1) Realize that Chutz LaAretz is not where you belong: Commenting on Ya’akov’s vow, the Midrash states:
Ya’akov said [to God]: “My father, Yitzchak, wanted to leave the Land, but You did not let him, because he was a burnt-offering… I am not leaving the Land for my own good, but because my brother [wants] to kill me. I received permission from You and my father. Do not leave me! (Quoted in Parpera’ot LaTorah, vol. 1, p. 138)
Ya’akov never lost sight of where he truly belonged and why he was not there. We, too, must constantly remember that Eretz Yisrael is our only true Homeland and that exile is a punishment (no matter how nice it feels).
(2) Pray for Divine assistance and vow to return: When he was about to leave the Land, Ya’akov took a vow, saying: If God will be with me, and guard me on this way that I am going, and will give me bread to eat and clothing to wear; and I will return in peace to my father’s home, and the Lord will be my God… (28:20-21). Some commentators interpret the words in bold as part of the condition. That is, Ya’akov asked God to help him return to Eretz Yisrael. Others maintain that these words are part of Ya’akov’s vow, as if to say, “If God protects and sustains me, I will return to the Land.”
Either way we look at it, this verse teaches us an important lesson. One cannot expect to make it to the Holy Land without God’s help. And one of the best ways to get that help is through prayer. It is also helpful to show God how badly we want to be in His Land, by vowing to do everything in our power to achieve that goal.
(3) Don’t be content with (or fooled by) the level of spirituality in Chutz LaAretz: The Tosefta (Avodah Zarah 5:2) and the Zohar (1:150b) interpret the end of Ya’akov’s vow as follows: I will return in peace to my father’s home, for I know that only there the Lord will be my God. Before even setting foot in Chutz LaAretz, Ya’akov ingrained in his head the notion that a Jew can reach spiritual perfection only in God’s Chosen Land. And we can assume that he maintained this attitude throughout his exile, never becoming complacent with Jewish life in Charan and always looking forward to the day when he could return home and serve God to the fullest.
(4) Never take your mind off of Eretz Yisrael: The Sages of the Mesorah point out that Parashat VaYeitzei has no section breaks, no “opened” or “closed” parshiot. Rather, it is one, undivided unit. The Sefat Emet (the second Rebbe of Gur) says that this alludes to the fact that Ya’akov Avinu never took his mind off of Eretz Yisrael. From the moment he left Be’er Sheva until he arrived at Machanayim twenty years later, he never forgot where he really belonged. He constantly longed to return home and never came to terms with living on foreign soil. This, says the Sefat Emet, is the meaning of Rivkah’s request to Ya’akov: Flee to my brother Lavan, to Charan, and stay with him a few days (ימים אחדים) (27:43-44). That is, she assured him that no matter how long he stayed in Chutz LaAretz, it would seem like a short time, if he constantly remained connected (באחדות ובדבקות) to his father’s home in Eretz Yisrael.
(5) Leave as soon as possible and put your trust in God: We mentioned above that the only reason Ya’akov left Eretz Yisrael was to escape Eisav’s clutches. The moment this reason no longer applied, he began his journey home: It came to pass, when Rachel gave birth to Yosef, Ya’akov said to Lavan, “Send me away, that I may go to my place and to my Land” (30:25). Rashi comments:
WHEN RACHEL GAVE BIRTH TO YOSEF [means] when Eisav’s adversary was born, as it says, The house of Ya’akov will be fire, and the house of Yosef a flame, and the house of Eisav [will be] as straw (Ovadyah 1:18). Fire without a flame has no effect at a distance. Once Yosef was born, Ya’akov trusted in the Holy One Blessed be He and wanted to return.
In the next verse, Ya’akov says, Give me my wives and my children… and I will go. Notice that he did not ask for any money. He did not say, “Let me stay another year or two so that I can save enough money to buy a bigger tent or a fancier camel.” He did not say to his wives, “Let’s wait until the kids are finished with high school.” Rather, he seized the first opportunity, put his trust in God, and got ready to leave. The only reason he tarried was because Lavan insisted on paying him his wages (see 30:27-28).
(6) If all else fails, leave the exile when things start getting bad: After Ya’akov “appropriated” a large portion of Lavan’s flock, it says: [Ya’akov] heard the words of Lavan’s sons, saying, “Ya’akov took all that belonged to our father…” And Ya’akov saw Lavan’s face, and behold, it was not towards him as before. And the Lord said to Ya’akov, “Return to your fathers’ Land, and to your birthplace, and I will be with you” (31:1-3). The Chafetz Chayim derives a very timely lesson from these verses:
When the nations speak evil of the Jewish people, libeling and encroaching upon us – in the sense of [Ya’akov] heard the words of Lavan’s sons – we remain silent… But when we see that their faces are not towards us as before – in the sense of Ya’akov saw Lavan’s face – [that is], when the heads of state give us angry looks, then we must find ourselves a place of shelter. And the safest shelter is in the Land of our fathers – Return to your fathers’ Land. (Chafetz Chayim Al HaTorah; see also Oznayim LaTorah v. 3)
If we don’t return to the Land on our own volition, God will cause the nations to turn against us and banish us from their lands. The Chafetz Chayim warns us to pay close attention to the early signs of animosity, so that we can find shelter in the Holy Land before it is too late. A word to the wise is sufficient! (I hope.)
Reprinted form Eretz Yisrael in the Parashah by R’ Moshe D. Lichtman