Vayishlach :the underdog

Vayishlach :the underdog

Jacob did not dare to simply come to his brother Esau.  Esau said that he would kill Jacob on account of his treachery. Jacob devised a multi layered  plan:  He sent messengers of greeting ( and reconnaissance), he sent gifts of appeasement, he divided his camp- to increase the chance of survivors in the event of battle and probable defeat.  Jacob was terrified, but he went forward and claimed the land.  Esau backed down. Courage triumphed. 

The dream of settling in the Promised Land begins. The family/nation buys a piece of land and settles in Shechem.  Then, the problem feared by Abraham and Isaac finally happens,  Dina is taken.  Abraham and Isaac misled their previous hosts, calling their wives their sisters.  Dina really is the sister of her redeemers.  Simon and Levi wage a war of deception and conquest on the nation of the man who raped their sister.

Deception wins against numbers. 

After this war, Jacob is worried that an alliance of the Canaanites will destroy his band,  The alliance never happens. There is no attack.  A possibility that would certainly defeat the Israelite just does not happen.  The course of history is not predictable, it is second order chaos.. 

The parsha ends with the princes of Esau and the royal succession of Seir.   Each king of Seir is identified by his land, presumably the country of origin.  The series, each from a different place, implies  that each king usurped the previous king, there was a succession of conquests; conquest is the way of the world. Jacob's conquest of Canaan is justified.   The Pilgrims' conquest of Massachusetts is justified.  It is the way of the world  Happy Thanksgiving.