This week’s parshah, Toldot, recounts the classic Jacob and Esau story. Isaac and Rebecca go twenty years without having any kids, until they finally manage to conceive. They have twins, Jacob and Esau. Isaac favors Esau while Rebecca favors Jacob. One day, Esau is very tired and hungry after a hunt, so he sells his birthright to Jacob for a pot of stew. This already creates some tension because Esau was very resentful that Jacob now had his birthright. Eventually, as Isaac gets older, he goes blind. Jacob takes advantage of this when Isaac wants to bless Esau before he dies. Isaac tells Esau to go out and hunt and prepare Isaac’s favorite meal so he can bless him. While Esau is out hunting, Rebecca dresses Jacob up in Esau’s clothes and prepares the meal Isaac wanted. Jacob brings this food to Isaac and pretends to be Esau, and Isaac blesses him. When Esau comes back and realizes that Jacob has stolen his blessing, he gets very angry, and he even threatens to kill Jacob. To avoid Esau’s wrath and save himself, Jacob flees to Charan.
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