Vayechi | Selection in Sefer Bereishit

Many commentators have related to the differences between the two accounts of creation in the first two chapters of the book of Bereishit.[1] To put it briefly, it has been argued that in chapter one, God is referred to by the name Elokim, which symbolizes governance through nature. The man of chapter one was created to fill the world, conquer it, and rule over the beasts of the earth. Man rules nature and is found wholly in the framework of nature. God does not reveal Himself to man in this chapter (He only blesses him), and man is given permission to do with nature as he pleases. The description of creation in chapter two is completely different. In this chapter, God is referred to by the name Y-H-V-H, the Tetragammaton, and the man described here lives in the constant presence of the Shekhina. God reveals Himself to him, places him in the Garden of Eden "to work and to keep it," and imposes a mitzva upon him: "But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat of it" (2:17).

After completion of the creation, with man's expulsion from the Garden of Eden, we no longer find a distinction between the two types of people – the man of chapter one and the man of chapter two. Generally, we tend to think that the rest of human history belongs to the man of chapter two, but in fact this is inaccurate. As the book continues as well, a distinction can be made between people who belong to the model presented by the Torah in chapter one, and people who belong to the model of chapter two.

Natural Primacy and Selection

If we assume that human beings are divided into two types – the people of chapter one and the people of chapter two – the question arises: Which model is better? Which prototype is preferred by God? On the face of it, the man of chapter two is the preferred one, for God reveals Himself to him. However, in order to examine this question in depth, we will try to follow the course of Divine selection in the book of Bereishit.

First, we must rethink a commonly accepted understanding. We tend to think that the book of Bereishit describes a series of God's choices between two people, and that God always chooses the younger of the two. In fact, however, most of the choices in the book of Bereishit are made between three people, not between two people, and not in all cases is it the youngest person who is chosen. In most cases, there is one person who is selected, another person who is rejected, and a third person who is partially selected. Consider the following Divine choices in the book of Bereishit, presented in order (the people are arranged in the order of their birth):

Upon examination, this table indicates that the younger son is not always chosen. For example, Shem is chosen over Cham and Yefet, and Avraham is chosen over Nachor and Charan, even though both of them were the firstborns of their families. 

Now, let us go back to the distinction mentioned at the beginning of this shiur. Before we examine which member of each threesome was chosen by God, we will deal with another question: Which member of each threesome represents Adam I – the man of chapter one who rules nature – and which represents Adam II – whose creation is described in chapter two? In the first threesome, it seems that Shet represents Adam I and Kayin continues Adam II.[5] God reveals Himself to Kayin, but the Torah does not tell us about a revelation to Shet. Furthermore, the Torah uses the Tetragrammaton when God speaks to Kayin (who is called by that name because "I have gotten a man with the help of the Lord [Tetragrammaton]” – 4:1), and it uses Elokim when it describes the descendants of Shet (who is called by that name because "God [Elokim] has appointed me with another seed" – 4:25).[6]

Similarly, among Noach's sons, the Tetragrammaton is mentioned in the Torah only in relation to Shem, and when the Torah describes God with the name Elokim, Yefet comes before Shem. Noach too is aware of the distinction: He blesses Shem with the words "Blessed is the Lord [Tetragrammaton], the God of Shem" (9:26); and he blesses Yefet with the words "God [Elokim] enlarge Yefet" (9:27). It can therefore be asserted that Shem, the firstborn, represents the Adam of chapter two, whereas Yefet is heir to the Adam of chapter one.[7]

In the next threesome, our task is easier. It is clear that Avraham, the first of the believers, who continuously calls in the name of the Lord [Tetragrammaton], is the representative of Adam II, who merits the revelation of the Shekhina and receives commandments. We see, then, that at the beginning of the Torah, until Avraham, it is the firstborn who lives in the constant presence of the Shekhina. Of course, this discovery contradicts the prevailing view that the entire book of Bereishit is a struggle between natural primacy and Divine selection, which always opts for the younger brother.[8]

When we reach Yaakov and his sons, the picture is suddenly reversed. God no longer chooses the firstborn, but rather the younger son. The birthright is removed from Reuven and given instead to Yehuda and Yosef. Yehuda's first two children from the daughter of Shua die, and only his third son, Shela, survives. Similarly among the sons of Yosef: Yaakov gives precedence to Efraim, the younger son, over Menashe, the firstborn.

Along parallel lines, we find a distinction between the sons of Lea and the sons of Rachel and her handmaid, in relation to the use of the name of God. Lea mentions the Tetragrammaton in connection with her first four sons.[9] Rachel, on the other hand, always uses the name Elokim when she names the sons of her handmaid.[10] This difference continues later, when in the story of Yehuda and Tamar, mention is made only of the Tetragrammaton,[11] whereas Yosef again and again uses the name Elokim. (Yosef even calls his sons "Menashe," because "God [Elokim] has made me forget all my toil," and "Efraim," because "God [Elokim] has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction" (41:51-52).)[12]

“For Every Brother Acts Deceitfully”[13]

We have learned that the period of Yaakov was a turning point in human history: Until then, the firstborn son was always chosen to be heir of Adam II. From then on, it was the younger son who was so chosen. The reason for this upheaval might be Yaakov's stealing of the blessings. In doing so, Yaakov changed the grasp of Divine selection: God no longer chooses the firstborn, but rather the younger son.

As I have explained elsewhere, we do not know for sure that Yitzchak was pleased with this reversal. Yitzchak's initial plan was to bless both Yaakov and Esav, and to create the chosen people from the two of them. Because Yaakov deceived his father and stole the blessings of the firstborn, Yitzchak's plan did not materialize, and the people of Israel continued exclusively through the descendants of Yaakov.

Governance of Partnership

Indeed, the tendency is not to choose only one of the personalities. Our ancestors, as we have seen, were divided into people who are more like Adam of chapter one and people who are more like Adam of chapter two. This difference between the two types of people finds expression in the name of God that the Torah uses when telling about them, and in the descriptions of their lives – whether God revealed Himself to them, whether He gave them mitzvot, and the like. In a broad historical perspective, there is room for both models of governance and both types of people together.

In fact, when God chooses one side, the other side is usually also added to the selection. This fact is most striking in the case of the sons of Yaakov – all his sons were chosen to continue bearing the name of Israel – but it is also true with regard to the other selections. Avraham was selected over Nachor and Haran, but the sons of Nachor entered the family of Avraham. Perhaps this is the idea behind the Midrash which brings a dispute regarding whether Na'ama, the wife of Noach, was a descendant of Kayin (Bereishit Rabba 23, 3): According to some Amoraim, even though Shet was selected and Kayin was rejected, Kayin's descendants joined after the fact with the line that was selected. Divine governance does not reject the heirs of Adam of chapter one, but rather chooses the two people as complementary figures, each of whom has an independent and unique task.

(Translated by David Strauss)