What’s in a Name?
This week’s
parasha is Va-yishlah. It follows Jacob and his family back to the promised
land of Canaan . Jacob, in an event, that I will be
dissecting, acquires the name Israel .
He also ends the feud with his brother Esau. Jacob’s sons Simeon and Levi are
forced to retaliate when their only sister Dinah is raped. Jacob’s beloved wife
Rachel dies giving birth to Benjamin. The parasha ends with the listing of
Esau’s descendants.
The
aforementioned renaming of Jacob is found in Genesis 32:25-33 and 35:9-14.
Jacob is left by himself one evening while traveling from his uncle Laban’s
home. He wrestles with a man all night. Jacob has the upper hand and will not
end the fight until the man blesses him. Jacob is told that from now on he will
be called Israel
because he has striven with beings both divine and human. Later, G-d reiterates
that and also reminds him that a nation will descend from him.
Names are
very meaningful. For most parents, a new baby’s name is quite a big deal.
Whether it’s after a relative or drawn out of a hat, it will be with them for
life. In Jacob’s case it was connected to the fact that he was clutching to
Esau’s heel at their birth. This is seen as him trying to “supplant his
brother.” (Hosea 12:4) But after Jacob receives his new name, one could
consider him reborn as a new man ready to receive his own due and ready to
reconcile with his brother. This new name, Israel ,
is translated as “one who has prevailed with G-d.” What a blessing it is to be
the children of Israel ;
we are descended from greatness. I look at “prevailed with” not from an
argumentative or fighting stance but as the fact that we can only prevail with
G-d’s help. In our 5773 year history, we have proven that we have that help to
persevere and we won’t back down.
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