Nir Cohen: 1. You wrote: “esau was a hard worker: a skilled hunter (YODE( CAYD) and farmer (ISh SADEH)….” No, no, no! %DH can mean “places where wild animals roam”. We have just been told that Esau is knowledgeable about wild game. In that context, %DH must mean “places where wild animals roam”. A young teenager being a “ skilled hunter” is totally incompatible with that young teenager being a “farmer ”. 2. You wrote: “esau was…a main provider for his family and the whole community, for which he gained his father's esteem….” A thousand times No! But nevertheless, you are beginning to highlight the key issue here, in your roundabout way. Never once is there any suggestion, much less statement, in the text that Esau is providing meat for the community. Rather, Esau is currying favor with his father Isaac by bringing home wild game for Esau’s immediate family, in particular Isaac, to eat. It is absolutely clear that the well-being of the community of which Isaac is the leader is almost entirely dependent on the well-being of the large flock of sheep and goats, not on hunting (or, for that matter, farming). 3. You wrote: “…while jacob never got a job (ISh TAM) and stayed
at home (ISh OHALIM) cooking and scheming with his mother, how to gain his father's blessing by, first, taking advantage of his brother's weak moments and, later, by cheating his dying father. i must admit i like your version better, but...” Note that Jacob does not lack for aggressiveness! Believe it or not, university scholars try to tell us that Genesis 25: 27 shows Jacob as being “ self-reflective”, as opposed to Esau being “aggressive”. I will send in a post tomorrow that sets forth the scholarly view of Genesis 25: 27. You will see that the most prominent Genesis scholars in the world have just as much trouble understanding Genesis 25: 27 as you do. The whole key here is to figure out what precise aspect of Esau’s hunting is being castigated by the Hebrew author, and why. Your item #2 above is actually quite helpful in starting to make sense of Genesis 25: 27. If we can understand Genesis 25: 27, we can understand the bulk of the Patriarchal narratives. Jim Stinehart Evanston, Illinois _______________________________________________ b-hebrew mailing list [email protected] http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/b-hebrew
