Adapted by Channie Koplowitz Stein
After twenty years living with Lavan, Yaakkov Avinu with his family and flocks, encouraged by Hashem, begins his journey home. He fears encountering his brother Esau who undoubtedly still hates him for “stealing” the blessing from their father Yitzchak. Avinu But before Yaakkov Avinu encounters this physical danger, he faces an existential spiritual danger. Yaakkov Avinu comes face to face with an angel who engages him in mortal combat. But the angel, although injuring Yaakkov Avinu in the thigh, cannot vanquish Yaakkov Avinu. As dawn breaks, the angel asks Yaakkov Avinu to let him leave. The dialogue that follows, along with the struggle itself, requires tremendous study that reveal profound truths about each of us and about Bnei Yisroel.
Yaakkov Avinu refuses to let the angel go until the angel will bless him. The angel asks Yaakkov Avinu his name. Yaakkov Avinu tells the angel his name. The angel then gives Yaakkov Avinu a new name, Yisroel, meaning he has striven with the Divine and with man and has prevailed. Now Yaakkov Avinu asks the angel his name. The angel replies cryptically, “Why do you ask my name?”
This is not an empty dialogue of introduction. Names are an intrinsic part of everything, especially of people. As Rabbi Uziel Milevsky points out, shem/name is the center of one’s neshamah/soul. It reveals one’s essence and one’s mission. Our name should remind us of our mission so that we are not frightened, stunned, and ashamed when our neshamah is asked, when it rises to the heavenly court, if it has fulfilled its mission. To keep our names in mind, many people have the custom to recite a verse reflective of the name as part of one’s Shemoneh Esrei Prayer.
Rabbi Milevsky suggests that the angel changes Yaakkov Avinu’s name to imply that by remaining resolute in his righteousness, truth and integrity even in Lavan’s house, Yaakkov Avinu had fulfilled the mission the name Yaakkov Avinu signified. He was now ready to accept a new mission with the name Yisroel.
Does that mean we all need to change our names during our lives if we think/hope that we have already lived up to the mission of our original name? Not at all, replies Rabbi Steinwerzel in Be’er Hachaim. Each name contains multiple levels that reach deeper and deeper, providing new challenges and missions. The name Yaakkov Avinu(b) can be an anagram for yiboka/will burst forth and split, as Hashem had promised and blessed Yaakkov Avinu at the beginning of his journey: “Uforatzta yamah vokeidmah… /and you will break out and spread west, east north and south.” But the name Yisroel offers another dimension. Now Yaakkov Avinu will also be Yisroel, a sar/officer/ruler over El/God, for when a tzadik like Yaakkov Avinu will make a decree, Hashem will fulfill it. We create spiritual reality through our words and our actions.
But why did the angel refuse to tell Yaakkov Avinu his name? The Ner Uziel cites Rav Chaim of Volozhin who reconciles Rambam’s seeming contradiction about the laws of Amalek. The Torah commands us to destroy Amalek, a mitzvah the Rambam states we can no longer perform since we cannot identify the descendants of Amalek. We are also told to erase the memory of Amalek, a mitzvah the Rambam maintains is still relevant and which explains why the angel could not provide Yaakkov Avinu with his name. According to Rav Chaim, Amalek is the generic name of any nation that would try to destroy the Jewish people. In ancient times these could be the Babylonians and the Greek/Hellenists. In modern times, it would certainly refer to Nazi Germany.
Rav Asher Weiss provides a beautiful perspective on Yaakkov Avinu’s new name. The name Yisrael incorporates the initial of each of our patriarchs and matriarchs, Yaakkov Avinu and Yitzchak, Sarah, Rivkah, Avraham, and Leah. As such every member of Bnei Yisroel always carries with him the perfection and merit of our Patriarchs and Matriarchs and is never lost. Further Hashem/El is always straight/yashar with us, even when we are unworthy. Jews are never lost, for they are always attached to Hakodosh Boruch Hu. Jewish history proves it.
The battle between Yaakkov Avinu and the angel exists within every one of us as well. writes Rabbi Pincus. It would also refer to those who would destroy us, as Lavan hoped to do, by corrupting our beliefs with movements that are incongruent with Jewish values. We are lured by the different philosophies of the generations. [As Rabbi Meier Finklestein, YIWH Rabbinic Associate noted, this is what Esau wanted. “Come, be my neighbor. We’ll be friends, and eventually, you will take on my values, assimilate, and no longer be Jewish.” CKS] The archangel of Amalek could not provide a name because his name changes in each generation. His name could be The Enlightenment, Communism, or materialism. The name of this deceiver changes constantly, but the name of Yisroel will never change. No matter what the destructive angel is called, the Jews will remain constant as Yisroel, always maintaining our connection to Hakodosh Boruch Hu.
Getting the name Yisroel, which Hashem later confirms, helps us uproot the idolatry of each generation, writes Rabbi Weissblum. Just as the men of the Great Assembly uprooted idol worship in its day, so must we uproot the god that today’s society worships, the god of egoism, the god of self. In today’s society freedom of self is worshiped. Each individual feels entitled to look only for his own personal benefit, one person will often help another only if he himself can benefit, even if his help costs him nothing. As Rebbetzin Smiles points out, If a boy decides he wants to be a girl, he will make the choice, regardless of biology or science. People even have trouble communicating effectively with each other. Instead of listening, validating, or arguing after acknowledging the other point of view, we are thinking how we can top their news or their challenge, or silence opposition of a differing opinion. “I” has become god, and all the world must worship me and my image.
The Kli Yakar also breaks up the name Yisroel into two components, into yashar and El. But Kli Yakar translates yashar as See, citing Bilaam’s prophetic words, “...Umigvaot ashurenu/And from high places I see [into the distant future].” Yisroel has the ability to see the El/the image of God in everyone; there is a world outside the self. Instead, writes Rabbi Weissblum, we live in a world of mirrors where everything we look at and interact with reflects back to me, to my pleasure and my importance. This is a major struggle of Bnei Yisroel against the world, against the selfish Esau. We thank Hashem that He has not made us slaves to ego. Even in the concentration camps and in the gulag, we were never spiritually enslaved. We saw Godliness in our neighbors, we refused to be slaves to our egos, and we were never destroyed. We give to others as individuals and as communities, and we carry Yisroel within ourselves.
Rav Biederman makes an interesting observation about the name change. We would think that the name change would reflect Yaakkov Avinu’s victory, of having prevailed against such overwhelming odds. Should he not have been named Tuchal/prevailed or Kolloh/destroyed? Instead, we are called Yisroel for the struggle, for sorito/you have striven. Says Rav Biederman, we all have a struggle within ourselves. We have the choice to engage in that struggle or not, but even if we engage, the result still remains in God’s hands. Therefore, we do not celebrate victory; we celebrate the struggle. The sincere effort, whether you score a point, ace an exam, perform a mitzvah to its fullest, or you ultimately fail – that effort should be celebrated. We need to keep trying.
Even before we stood at Sinai we were already presented with the challenge and the struggle as a cause for elevation and celebration, to determine our faith and see if we would be worthy of receiving the Torah. Hashem gave us the manna in the desert lema’an anoso/to test us and to raise us up. Would we be so concerned with our daily bread that we would struggle with taking only one day’s portion of manna, or would we rise to the challenge and trust Hashem? Just so, writes Rabbi Weissblum, do we face challenges every day. But it is precisely the struggles and challenges that make us stronger, that reinforce our faith in and commitment to Hashem. The name Yisroel is the symbol of this struggle, and equally the symbol of Hashem’s love for us and His desire for our growth.
In contrast, Esau’s name already signifies his perception of self as complete, in no need of improvement. Even Yaakkov Avinu’s original name implies someone who is lowly and must pull himself up by his bootstraps to improve. As Rabbi Mintzberg notes, Esau also received a second name, Edom/Red. Yaakkov Avinu gave him this name when he realized that all Esau saw was the externals, the red of the stew Yaakkov Avinu was cooking. Esau didn’t even call it lentils, its major ingredient, or stew. He demanded Yaakkov Avinu pour into him just that red, red stuff. How would Esau seek spiritual improvement, which takes time, over instant gratification? Esau never changes; he is always complete externally. Yaakkov Avinu, on the other hand, goes from the struggle of being at the heel to ever more challenging struggles, never satisfied with the level he has reached.
The angel, however, has not yet told Yaakkov Avinu his name. But perhaps he has, speculates Rabbi Michel Twerski, and in doing so, has blessed Yaakkov Avinu with the solution to facing a challenging decision. “Since my identity and mission changes throughout time, I do not have a specific name,” says the angel. “But if you want to know how to make the right decision when I confront you, ask yourself ‘lamah zeh/for what purpose do I want this.’ The answer will tell you whether it will bring you closer to Hashem or distance you from Him. If it is not for a higher purpose, you will know that it is I coming to deceive you.. I impart this knowledge to you as the blessing so you will release me.”
In this world of contradictions, even observing mitzvoth presents a struggle, observes Rabbi Eisenberg in Mesillot Bilvovom. For example, do we enjoy Shabbat because we can disconnect from the material world and focus on our relationship with Hakodosh Boruch Hu, or are we more interested in the gastronomic delights and social contacts, often involving business discussions or filling up on the latest gossip?
Nevertheless, evil is an integral part of this world, created by Hashem as a means of helping us grow spiritually stronger, posits Rabbi Lopiansky. Similar to a weight lifter who can build muscle mass and reach his potential only by resistance to weights, so man reaches his spiritual potential only by resisting the yetzer horo. Herein lies the key to the name changes of our Patriarchs.
The Torah record of Avraham Avinu’s life begins with Lech Lecha, with leaving his land and his home. The Medrash fills in his earlier life, explaining that Avraham had actually been an idol worshiper, albeit for a short time. He rejected this evil, and so his original name Avram no longer describes him. Yitzchak Avinu, recognizing only the spiritual throughout his life, never gets a name change. Yaakkov Avinu Avinu understands that evil cannot be totally destroyed and left as detritus on earth. The essence of evil must be destroyed, but the outer layers of evil must be struggled with and incorporated as spiritual muscle. When the Satan/Guardian angel of Esau gave Yaakkov Avinu the name Yisroel, the name Yaakkov Avinu still was part of his identity. By struggling against the evil that the angel represented, Yaakkov Avinu incorporated the evil that Esau represented, elevated it, and transformed it into spiritual strength.
It is in the struggle during times of darkness, when we have trouble seeing Hashem’s presence, that singing the praises of Hakodosh Boruch Hu should be more powerful, for the struggle is what makes us stronger, writes the Imrei Emes of Gur.
The Ma’aynah shel Torah brings this point home. If we add the gematria/numerical equivalent of Yaakkov (182) to Satan (359) we get Yisroel (541). May we as individuals and as a nation successfully struggle with the negative and evil challenges that confront us until we reach the potential Hashem has invested in us.