There are many confusing elements in story we read about the relationship between Yitzchak, Rivka, Esav, and Yaakov. Clarification is needed in order to understand the perspectives and motivations of each. They emerge from a close read of the narrative with classical commentaries.

בראשית כה:כו-כז

וַֽיִּגְדְּלוּ֙ הַנְּעָרִ֔ים וַיְהִ֣י עֵשָׂ֗ו אִ֛ישׁ יֹדֵ֥עַ צַ֖יִד אִ֣ישׁ שָׂדֶ֑ה וְיַעֲקֹב֙ אִ֣ישׁ תָּ֔ם יֹשֵׁ֖ב אֹהָלִֽים: וַיֶּאֱהַ֥ב יִצְחָ֛ק אֶת־עֵשָׂ֖ו כִּי־צַ֣יִד בְּפִ֑יו וְרִבְקָ֖ה אֹהֶ֥בֶת אֶֽת־יַעֲקֹֽב׃

Beresheit 25:26-27

The boys grew up. Esav was a man skilled in hunting, a man of the field, while Yaakov was a man of integrity, a dweller in tents. And Isaac loved Esau because [his] game was in his mouth, but Rebecca loved Jacob.

Why did Yitzchak love Esav? Why did he intend to give him a blessing which ultimately ended up being given to Yaakov? What in the nature of the child attracted the love of each parent?

רד"ק בראשית כה:כח

ורבקה אהבת את יעקב – [חיבה] יתירה על חיבה טבעית, שהרי יש שנפשו של אדם נוטה בטבע אל בן (אחד) יותר מן אל בן (אחר). ולא שהיתה שנאה את עשו, אלא אוהבת את יעקב יותר ממנו,

ויאהב – אין צריך לומר כי יעקב היה אוהב, כי יותר ויותר היה אוהב יעקב משהיה אוהב עשו, ולא היה אוהב עשו אלא שהיה מביא לו ציד למאכלו זהו שאמר בפיו. ורבקה היתה אוהבת את יעקב – לבדו

Radak 25:28

It did not need to be stated that [Yitzchak] loved Yaakov, for he surely loved Yaakov more than Esav. And he only loved Esav for the game that he brought him to eat, this is what it means “in his mouth (25:27). But Rivka loved Yaakov exclusively.

The Radak clarifies that when the verse describes Yitzchak’s love for Esav, it was not to the exclusion of Yaakov. Given Yaakov’s nature, there was a natural bond between Yitzchak and Yaakov. Rather, the verse mentions Yitzchak’s love for Esav as something novel and unexpected. When the verse describes Rivka’s love for Yaakov, this is to the exclusion of Esav.

Rav Hirsch offers a slightly different explanation, with an important opening caveat. We don’t assume our forefathers made foolish errors. But we do not make them out to be infallible.

Rav Samson Raphael Hirsch - Commentary on Bereshis

Our Sages never hesitate to point out to us the errors and shortcomings, both great and small, of our forefathers, and precisely thus they make Torah great and glorious, heightening its instructiveness for us (25:27)…’To be sure, Yitzchak's love for Esav and Rivkah's love for Ya’akov can easily be explained by the attraction of opposites. Yitzchak, who was an “Olah Temima –a perfect offering” withdrew from the commotion of the world; he preferred to dwell in quiet solitude, near the well of "the Living One Who sees me," rather than amidst the bustle of human society. It is possible, then, that Esav's bold and vigorous nature appealed to Yitzchak, and that he saw in Esav the strength, which exceeded his own, to be the mainstay of the household. Rivkah, on the other hand, saw in Ya'akov the ideal personality, representing a way of life she had never known in her father's house (25:28).

Rav Hirsch explains that there was a particular characteristic of Esav that attracted Yaakov’s love, and a particular characteristic of Yaakov that attracted Rivka’s love. Yitzchak admired Esav’s worldliness, his ability to be an Ish Sadeh –a man of the field, at home in public, in the world at large. Perhaps he saw in Esav some of the qualities of his father Avraham. Rivkah saw purity in the nature of Yaakov. Each saw qualities that would be essential to the future mission of the Jewish people.

Avraham ben HaRambam explains that worldly pursuits are not against the values of the Torah inherently:

ר' אברהם בן הרמב”ם – בראשית כה:כח

לא היה יצחק שונא אותו אלא נשאר באהבתו הטבעית אשר מחזקים אותה עניני העולם הזה שאינם מתנגדים בגלוי לעניני הדת התנגדות גדולה. ורבקה אהבת את יעקב – [חיבה] יתירה על חיבה טבעית…ולא שהיתה שנאה את עשו, אלא אוהבת את יעקב יותר ממנו

Avraham ben HaRambam 25:28

Yitzchak did not hate Esav, but he remained in his natural love for him. For he strengthened the ways of this world, which are not entirely opposite the objectives of the religious sphere.

And Rivkah loved Yaakov, an additional love beyond the natural love [between parent and child], but she did not hate Esav, but loved Yaakov more than him.

We begin to see a picture emerge regarding the objectives of Yitzchak and Rivkah. Both had a natural love for their children, but their actions were motivated in consideration of the future of the Jewish nation and the continuation of the worldview of Avraham. This is stated explicitly by Rav Hirsch:

Rav Samson Raphael Hirsch - Commentary on Bereshis 27:1

The actions of Yitzchak, too, become clearer, when we examine the nature of the blessing he wished to confer upon Esav…Yitzchak's two sons represented two different elements in his home. Esav represented material power; Ya'akov represented spiritual power. Yitzchak knew very well that both of these tendencies would be needed, if his future nation was to grow and prosper. He, too, apparently knew of the prophecy that the materially stronger one would ultimately serve the materially weaker one (“and the mightier will serve the lesser” (25:23). But Yitzchak thought that Esav and Ya'akov would fulfill the mission of Avraham in partnership and brotherly harmony, with the one complementing the other. He therefore intended to give Esav a blessing of material content, and reserved a spiritual blessing for Ya'akov. This blessing that was reserved for Ya'akov was meaningless to Esav, who by nature had no understanding of the spiritual aspect of the House of Avraham.

What emerges from our analysis is far more compelling than a narrative of petty parental favoritism. Yitzchak and Rivka loved both their children. The Torah does not need to tell us this fact. Rather, the Torah chronicles two different visions regarding the implementation and realization of Avraham’s values. Yitzchak saw potential in Esav the “man of the field” to be the political leader, a man of the people, the face of a great nation. He could win the hearts and minds of the masses, and guide them toward truth. Yaakov was always going to have a role, and his own bracha –blessing and destiny. He was “a dweller in tents”, a man of impeccable integrity, who spent his time in houses of study. Yitzchak thought that he would be the intellectual, the academic, the spiritual leader of the nation. These opposing tendencies could work in harmony to bring truth and justice to the world.

Rivkah had a different vision. This could be because of her accurate perception of Esav’s flaws, outlined by our Sages in many places and echoed by the commentaries. Rav Hirsch quotes the Sages statement, “Rivkah did not do so because she loved Ya'akov more than she loved Esav. She did it so that Esav should no longer be able to deceive his aged father" (Bereshis Rabbah 65:3). Rav Hirsch also suggests another line of reasoning:

Rav Samson Raphael Hirsch - Commentary on Bereshis 27:1

Rivkah, however, remembered from the home of Lavan the misfortune entailed by such a division. She knew from personal experience that only in a home pervaded by the spirit of Avraham, and only in the hands of one guided by this spirit, would material things bring blessing and true happiness. She was right. She realized that materialism devoid of spirit is actually a curse, and that Yitzchak's blessing could not be divided; it could be placed only upon the head of one of the sons.

Rivka was successful in securing the blessing and mantle of leadership for Yaakov. This plan was ultimately blessed by Yitzchak and God. Material power could not be divorced from spiritual dominion and still promote Divine ideals.

References

Hirsch, R. S. R. (2008). Hirsch Chumash: Sefer Bereshis. Jerusalem - New York: Feldheim Publishers.

Rosenberg, A. (1980). A new English translation of the Hebrew Bible text and Rashi, with a commentary digest. New York: Judaica Press. Retrieved from: https://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/

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